Glazed Spice Muffins

Six parents, sixteen children, thirty-six grandchildren.  Needless to say, we attend a lot of birthdays throughout the year.  Every party is enjoyable and we love to get together with the family but that is A LOT of birthday cake.  While we do enjoy eating cake, 5 times a month (actually it works out to be more than that some months) is a little much.  It's so sweet and the frosting is so rich; but how do you tell a child that they should choose something besides a cake, for their birthday?

I made this "muffin" looking for a way to reduce the sweetness while still being able to call it a cupcake.  The secret is the amazing glaze on top.  The glaze is sweet but it's not as thick as frosting or as heavy.  The cake itself is a little denser than regular cake so you get less crumbs all over the floor (a huge plus in my book) and it's not as sweet as a regular cake, so it seems to please adults. 

For the Muffins:

• 1/4 c butter
• 1/4 c canola oil
• 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 1/3 c brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 2/3 c all=purpose flour
• 1 c milk

For the Glaze:

• 3 tbs butter; melted
• 1 c powdered sugar
• 3/4 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbs hot water

Preheat oven to 425'F.  Line 12 muffin cups with liners or spray with cooking spray.  

In a large bowl, beat together the butter, oil, and the two sugars until smooth.  

Beat in the eggs, one at time.  With the mixer on low speed, add the baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and vanilla until just combined.  Stir the flour into the butter mixture alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and mixing until just combined.  Do not over-mix.

Spoon the batter into the cups, filling the cups and smoothing the tops.  Divide the batter equally among the prepared muffin cups.  

Bake until the muffin tops are a pale golden and springy to the touch, about 15 minutes.  

Cool muffins in the muffin tin for 5 minutes, the transfer to a wire rack and cool 10 minutes before glazing.

To make the glaze, in a medium bowl, mix together the melted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and water.  Whisk until smooth.

When the muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin top into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden.  Once hardened, dip a second time and allow to harden then serve.

Souce: Sweet Pea's Kitchen

Happy Halloween & a Green Monster Smoothie

Happy Halloween!!!

Halloween is finally here.  The kids have their costumes, the house is decorated, the treats are bought, now the fun can finally begin.

This year, Zombie's seem to be really popular.  You see them mentioned on billboards, commercials & the oh-so-popular TV shows.  So I thought I'd share with you the music video that my extremely talented brother-in-law, Wes Nelson, created.

Wasn't that a great video?  My kids are obsessed with it.  So are you wondering where this weeks recipe is, yet?  Okay, you asked for it.  Seeing how it's Halloween, I decided to do something that sounded a little scary (although not one bit scary to eat).  Let's make a Green Monster Smoothie.

Green Monster Smoothie

This is a very simple recipe & you can alter the amounts however you like.  This is just the way that I make it.  

• 1c milk
• 1T peanut butter
• 1/2c Greek Gods honey vanilla greek yogurt
• 1 banana
• 3c+ kale greens
• 1c ice cubes

Throw all the ingredients into a blender & pulse.  It seems to work best if you put the ingredients in, in the order I've listed above.  Also, you'll want to pulse the blender instead of just turning it on; otherwise you'll get Green Monster soup.  And don't worry about the taste of the kale.  The other flavors mask it very well.  You could also try using spinach instead; it has a milder taste.  Spinach is just a migraine trigger for me, so I used the kale instead.

Old Fashioned Pancakes

I love going to IHOP & Denney's just for their pancakes.  They taste so much better than the store-bought mixes that I've always bought but I just figured that was how it was & there was nothing I could do about it.  I don't know why I hadn't thought of making my batter from scratch before but I'm so glad that eventually I thought of it.  This recipe is SO much better than any of the store bought mixes & I was even surprise to find out that I liked it a lot more than the restaurant pancakes.  Best part is that I always have the ingredients on hand & they are a lot cheaper than the store bought mixes.  I often double this recipe but then I always have a bunch left over.  I throw the extras into the freezer & then just throw them into the toaster for a quick hot breakfast for the kids.

Old Fashioned Pancakes

• 1 1/2c all-purpose flour
• 3 1/2t baking powder
• 1t salt
• 2T white sugar
• 1 1/4c milk
• 1 egg
• 3T butter, melted

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt & sugar.  Make a well in the center and pour in the milk, egg and melted butter; mix until smooth.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium low heat.  Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4c for each pancake.  

Brown on both sides and serve hot.

 Enjoy!!!

Veggie Omelet

I LOVE this omelet.  It's light & healthy but still full of flavor.  When I was making it, I was worried that it would be dry since there wasn't any sauce on it but it turns out that it really doesn't need anything added to it.

Veggie Omelet

• cooking spray
• portabello mushroom, slices (I was able to use 1 large mushroom for 3 omelets)
• asparagus spears
• 1 whole egg
• 2 egg whites
• 1T feta cheese crumbles

Spray a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray & heat on medium-high.  

Add the mushrooms & asparagus to the pan.  Cook 3-5 minutes or until slightly soft, then transfer to a plate.

In a bowl or mug, whisk the egg & egg whites, and season with salt & pepper.

Spray the skillet again.

Pour the eggs into the pan & swirl to make a circle.  Arrange the mushrooms, asparagus, & cheese on one half of the eggs.  When the eggs set, use a rubber spatula to carefully fold them over.  Serve.

Recipe from TheFitCook.net

Creme Brulee French Toast

My husband loves having breakfast for dinner so that's when we had this but I think it would also be perfect for breakfast Christmas morning.  When I planned this meal, I figured that my family can eat about 9 slices of french toast so since this recipe used less than 5 slices of bread I would need to double this recipe.  Boy was I wrong.  It's such a filling meal that we didn't even finish the 1st casserole dish.  My kids loved this but of course had to have syrup on it.  However, it definitely doesn't need syrup.  The layer of sugar on the bottom is a perfect substitute for syrup.

Lightened Up Creme Brulee French Toast

Servings: 6    Serving Size: 1/6th   

Old Points: 7pts   Points +: 9pts

Calories: 310.9   Fat: 5.6g   Carb: 59.9g

Fiber: 0.2g   Protein: 13.1g

• 1c unpacked brown sugar
• 1/4c water
• cooking spray
• 10oz Challah bread, sliced 1" thick (I couldn't find Challah bread so I used a potato loaf.  Really, I think most breads would work fine).
• 2 large eggs
• 1c egg substitute
• 1 1/2c 1% Milk
• 1 1/2t vanilla extract
• 1t Meyers rum (optional) (I didn't use the rum but it'd give it a nice "Banana's Foster" flavor) 
• 1/4t salt
• 1t powdered sugar
• 1t cinnamon, divided

In a small heavy saucepan, melt brown sugar and water over moderate-low heat, stirring until smooth and melted, about 1 minute, then pour into a 13x9" baking dish coated with cooking spray.

Arrange bread slices into one layer in the baking dish, squeezing them slightly to fit.

 I have no idea why this photo is rotated.  Sorry

In a large bowl whisk together eggs, egg substitute, milk vanilla, rum, 1/2t cinnamon, and salt until combined well & pour evenly over bread. 

Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350' and bring bread to room temperature.

Bake uncovered, in the middle of oven until puffed and edges are pale golden, 40 to 50 minutes.  (If you get any large bubbles, you'll want to pop them so that they cook inside).

Top with cinnamon and powdered sugar.  

Recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipies

Cinnamon Roll Pulls

Well, I won't go as far as to call this healthy but it doesn't have any PHO or HFCS.  The hardest part was to find a bread loaf that didn't have either of those ingredients.  Macey's has a "scratch" bakery so you can find bread without PHO or HFCS if you look for it.  If you can't find any, you can always make the bread yourself. Krusteaz bread mix is okay to eat.   Just throw it into your bread machine & let it make your dough.  Then just form an oval loaf & toss it on the oven.  

The whole family loved this but I think next time I'll try it with regular bread instead of the sour dough that the recipe called for.  Either way, I think you'll really like this recipe.

Cinnamon Roll Pulls

• 1 unsliced round loaf sourdough bread
• 1/2c butter, softened
• 1/4c powdered sugar

• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 tsp cinnamon

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1-2 Tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 350'

To make Vanilla Honey Butter:  Whip butter & 1/4c powdered sugar together until smooth; stir in honey & vanilla.  Set aside.

Cut the bread lengthwise into 1/2" slices, without cutting through the bottom crust.  Spread the Vanilla Honey Butter between the slices.  Rotate the bread 90' & slice the bread again into 1/2" pieces, without cutting through the bottom crust.  Spread more Vanilla Honey butter between the new cuts.  This doesn't need to be perfect - just make sure there is a lot of vanilla butter between all the cuts.

Combine Sugar & Cinnamon.  Generously sprinkle between all the cuts.

Wrap in foil; place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350' for 25-30 mins or until bread is warm.  Unwrap cinnamon bread & place on a serving platter.  

Combine powdered sugar & milk - adding milk until you get the consistency desired.  Drizzle icing over bread & serve immediately.

Recipe from Plain Chicken

Raw Oatmeal

This recipe is one of my kids favorite foods to eat.  My 1 & 2yr olds especially love eating it for breakfast.  I love how healthy it is.  You can substitute Quaker oats but they don't absorb the liquid as well & they don't get as tender.  You can find regular rolled oats at a normal grocery store in the food storage area.

When you first mix everything, it'll be pretty runny

After it has sat overnight, most of the juice will be absorbed

6c Raw Rolled Oats
1/2c Raisins
1/2c Freeze dried fruit
Coconut Juice, enough to cover (Walmart sells it with the Asian food in the soda can size.  I use 4 of these)
1/2c grated Zucchini (optional, you won't even notice it's there but the the kids will get their veggies)
1T, heaping  Cinnamon
1t salt (do not omit)

Mix all ingredients & store in refrigerator over night.  Serve cold, with or without a little honey.

Recipe was adapted from one by Travis Stockwell