Raspberry Jam filled cupcakes

A raspberry filled cupcake? Is there anything better? So today I decided to take a regular box mix cake to the next level. I filled it with Raspberry jam, I know nothing to exciting, but man did they taste good. I made these for the Drama team and I made half jelly filled and half plain, They were gone in minutes, there wasn't even a crumb in sight. You could use any kind of jam/jelly, or peanut butter, basically you could fill these with whatever your heart desires.. Now i'm going to show you the super difficult instructions. :) Just kidding they are a breeze. You don't have to use a box cake mix you can use a cake recipe from scratch.

Alright here it goes, prepare yourself!

Ingredients:
1 Vanilla cake mix
1/4 cup red jimmies
1 can of vanilla icing (Or you can make your own)
1 jar of Raspberry preserves
heart sprinkles
cupcake cups

Directions:

Follow the directions on the back of the vanilla cake mix, add the red jimmies and stir until combined. Using an ice cream scooper, fill the scoop with cupcake mix and dump it in the cupcake cups. Follow the baking instructions on the box for a muffin tin. When done let them cool on a wire rack.

1. Using a small knife, carve a hole in the top of a cupcake going in at an angle (Just like carving a pumpkin) and then carve a little more out of the center, Shave the point of of the top of the cupcake topper.. 2. Scoop out 1/2 tablespoons of jam and spoon it into the cupcake,3.Put the tops back on.
4. Ice the cupcake and sprinkle it with the sprinkles an WALLA!!

They were so good.

ENJOY

Broccoli and Cheese soup

Watch out Panera, I'm giving you some stiff competition, well at least in my house! Broccoli and Cheese soup, Mmm. This is another recipe from Debbie Macomber's cookbook Cedar Cove. I love it, it's so creamy and smooth, plus this one doesn't have pieces of broccoli, instead it's a broccoli puree. Although this said that it serves 4, It definitely served more, I don't know how big her servings were but man alive they must have been huge! I think that Panera's Cheddar and broccoli soup is kind of minty, I don't know what it is but I have a serious aversion to it!! Also I should let you know, Even though I always put in the salt and pepper to taste in the recipes, I don't salt any of my food, and I also used basil and cilantro instead of thyme..

Now without further Ado,

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
1 clove chopped Garlic
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme. or you can use 1 teaspoon Basil, 1 teaspoon Cilantro
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups sodium-reduced chicken broth
1 pound broccoli (about 3 heads), stems thinly sliced and florets cut small
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
4 small round bread loaves (4-5 ounces each) Okay I didn't have these so I just used a small dinner roll!
Olive oil

1. Melt the butter in a large sauce pan over medium heat. add onion; cook for 5 minutes, until softened,stirring often.Add garlic, thyme, salt and pepper; cook for 1 minute, stirring. Sprinkle in flour, stirring constantly until incorporated.Slowly pour in broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring to blend. Add broccoli; cook 10 minutes, until tender.

2. Using a blender, puree soup until smooth.

3. Return the soup to the pot; add cream and cheese and warm over low heat, stirring.
4. For Bread Bowl: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, Using a serrated knife, slice a thin circle off the top of each round. Lift off the circle; using your fingers to pull out the soft insides of the bread, leaving at least a 1/2 inch of bread around the sides and bottom of the loaf.Set the loaves on a baking set and drizzle olive oil into each cavity; spread the oil to coat the insides. Bake rounds about 10 minutes, or until crusty and golden. Ladle warm soup into bowls and serve immediately.
ENJOY!

Cranberry White Chocolate Cream Scones

These scones are more of a dessert scones than a breakfast scone... This recipe is a family favorite! The cream makes the scones more moist and delicious! I actually had these at a bakery here in Miamisburg called Boosalis Bakery (If you haven't been there you should go, it's amazing!!) I tried to recreate them, and while they are close his are definitely better! These are SO good I made them and they were gone within the hour!! They taste better when they are warm too!

Okay here is the recipe!!

Ingredients:
2 Cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2/3 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives (I use a pastry blender.) The mixture should look like coarse crumbs.In a small bowl combine the heavy whipping cream, beaten egg and vanilla.Add this mixture to the flour mixtures. Then add the Cranberries and White chocolate chips. Stir just until combined.
Don't over mix. I like mine with a lot of chocolate chips so sometimes I add more, Don't be shy with the Chocolate chips!!!

knead the dough on a lightly floured counter top or parchment paper (Still use the flour with the parchment paper). Roll the dough into a rectangle, it's about 8 inches in length, the size of a piece of computer paper. Then cute the dough into three pieces to make three long strips. Then cut it four more time so you have 12 squares. Then cut the squares diagonally so you get little triangles. , place the triangles on the prepared cookie sheet, or cookies sheets, spacing them two inches apart.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a scone comes out clean. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool. You can eat them plain, or you can whip up some whipped cream and cut the scone in half put some of the whipped cream in between and put some fresh berried in between.. Or you can serve them with butter and some jam!

ENJOY

Black Satin Chocolate Raspberry Cake - Cake Pictures

Okay so here are the pictures for "The cake process" !!

The Batter:


The batter in the pan:


It's almost done!!


Done baking , with the parchment paper peeled off

Parmesan Knots

One word.... YUM!! These are SO good! The perfect little snack or dinner roll.. And of course I found it in The Taste of Home 2010 Annual Recipes book from the library... Man that book is packed full with the most amazing and mouth watering food ever :)
These are definitely one of those recipes that I would make over and over again! And if you aren't a fan of garlic just use the Parmesan cheese and Basil.

Prep/Total time 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 tube (12 ounces) refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
1/4 cup canola oil
3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan Cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

I didn't have the dried parsley or oregano so I just used Basil.

Directions:
Cut eat biscuit into thirds.
Roll each piece into a 3 inch rope and tie it into a knot; tuck the ends under
Place 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes or until golden brown.
In a large bowl combine the Parmesan, Garlic Powder, Oregano, and dried parsley. I just used Parmesan Basil and Garlic Powder. Pour the canola oil in a small bowl, and using a small brush, brush on the oil and dip in the mixture.
Yields: 2-1/2 dozen.

Enjoy

Bon Appetit

August Corn Chowder

This recipe is also from Debbie Macomber's "Cedar Cove Cookbook"... I made this when we had our last snow storm, Hot soup on a cold winter day.. Now when I think if Chowder this soup wouldn't of come to my mind, it's definitely more or a soup than a thick chowder. I also substituted Basil for the thyme and I think it mixed well.. It was a family favorite! I also added a can of corn and about a cup more of potato's and 1/2 cup more chicken broth because it only serves 4.

Now here it is,

Serves 4

Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion (Vidalia) or 2 shallots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
pepper
3 1/2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1 1/2 cups water
4 medium boiling potatoes, suck as Yukon Gold, um-peeled and diced
16-ounce bag of frozen corn or 5 ears corn, kernels scraped off
2 medium Beefsteak tomatoes, chopped (Or cherry tomatoes)
1 1/2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
Sour cream and chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Directionss

1. melt the butter in medium sauce pan or soup pot over medium heat. Add onion; cook 5 minutes, stirring often. Add garlic,thyme,and pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring. Add broth and 1 1/2 cups water; bring to a simmer.
2. Add potatoes to simmering broth; cook for 20 minutes, until cooked through. Stir in kernels; cook 15 minutes.

3. Remove from heat; stir in vinegar and tomatoes. Garnish servings with sour cream and parsley.

Enjoy!!

Bon Appétit

Oatmeal Brulee

I love Creme Brulee so you can't even understand my excitement when I saw Oatmeal Creme Brulee!! The creamy custard and the crisp sugar top, pure bliss. Now I kind of made up my own recipe for this because I didn't feel like waiting 40 minutes for it to cook, Impatient I know, but I just had to have it! So here is my rendition! I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did!



Serves 1

Ingredients

I cup of quick oats
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Less than a handful of dried cherries
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Brown sugar
fresh fruit (For garnish)

Directions:

Put the Milk and the Heavy cream in a pot on medium-High heat and bring it to a boil, stir in oats until they are completely incorporated with the milk and cream about 1 minute. Add the dried fruit, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and sugar and mix thoroughly. Put the oatmeal in oven safe dishes, if you have ramekins you can use those. Turn oven temperature up to broil (400 to 575 Degrees F ). Sprinkle with the brown sugar in a thin layer, making sure the sugar coats the entire surface of the oatmeal. Return to the oven and broil 2 to 3 minutes, until the top is browned and crusty. I have a kitchen torch that I used, if you can get ahold of one of these it will most likely work better. Garnish with Fresh fruit like (Blueberries, raspberries, or bananas) and serve

You can buy a Kitchen torch and a set of 4 ramekins at amazon for 27.00 here is the link.. It is less expensive to buy the ramekins and the torch instead of just the torch.

Bon Appetit

Teri's Macaroni and Cheese

My mom and I love the library, so when we saw Debbie Macomber's "Cedar Cove Cookbook", we leafed through it and saw that all the recipes looked and sounded delicious, and we just knew we had to get it! And let me tell you what, it didn't disappoint! Tonight I made Teri's Macaroni and Cheese, and August Corn Chowder, they were amazing!! This was not your typical mac and cheese either, I have never seen sour cream or cottage cheese in Macaroni and Cheese, but let me tell you what, It made it so rich and creamy . It does make a lot of macaroni and cheese so you could definitely cut this recipe in half.

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons(1/2 stick) Unsalted butter, plus extra for your pan
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
1/2 pound Velvetta cheese, cut into chunks
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound elbow macaroni
Shredded cheddar cheese, for topping

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. butter a 3 quart ( 9x13) casserole pan or several small oven safe baking cups.
2.Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium low-heat. sprinkle in flour; stir until absorbed, about 1 minute.Slowly pour in your milk, stirring constantly,until incorporated. add the velvetta chunks, stirring until melted. Stir in the cottage cheese and the sour cream, and add the salt and pepper.3. Meanwhile, Cook macaroni according to package directions. Drain, and place in a large bowl.
Fold in the cheese sauce.
in the prepared pan and sprinkle to top with shredded cheddar and bake until the cheese it melted on the top, About 15 minutes.

Bon Appetit

Cherry Turnovers

I remember when my mom would make us turnovers for breakfast when we were little! They were the highlight of the morning! I just love the variety that you can make; Blueberry, Peach, Strawberry, Cherry, Pecan, you could stick anything in them!!
Personally cherry and maple pecan are my favorites! The crunchy, flaky crust with the warm juicy fruit filling inside, Heaven in your mouth, and your stomach :)

Here is the recipe!

Ingredients
1 package frozen puff pastry; thawed
1 can cherry pie filling; drained
2 tablespoons water


Directions
Take out one sheet of pastry puff and cut it into 4 squares (Or smaller pieces, I thought these were too big). Drain the can of cherries,and scoop equal amounts of cherry pie filling on the center of the pastry. using a pastry brush, brush a little water along the edges of the pastry. Seal and crimp the edges with a fork. Cut 3 slits on the top of the pastry. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. bake on an ungreased baking sheet for 15 - 18 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. When cooled sprinkle with a little powdered sugar, and top with remaining cherries, if you have any.


Bon Appetit

Very Berry Compote

I love fruit, almost as much as I love cookies. So I decide to make a berry compote for my vanilla ice cream one night, little did I know that it would turn out so well! It tastes wonderful when it is served hot or cold, it's all up to you! I also used frozen fruit so that the fruit would stay in whole pieces while I stirred it and it didn't break apart . You could use fresh or frozen. You could also use Honey instead of sugar in the raw.

Ingredients:
Frozen mixed fruit
1 tablespoon Sugar in the raw
1 1/2 Tablespoons Cinnamon

Directions

To prepare the compote,add the frozen fruit and sugar in the raw to a medium sized pot and wait for it to come to a boil. Once the fruits start producing juice add the cinnamon and mix thoroughly. Cook it for about 5 minutes.


This is a relatively thick compote since there are no other liquids other than what the fruit produces.

Who knew fruit compote could be so easy??

Bon Appetit