Lets go Banana's

I took my chances on a recipe I found last week on two peas, and I was totally impressed. I have just recently been introduced to Nutella...and I LOVE it! So I wanted to share how mine turned out, and encourage you to try them out too! I'm copying the this recipe right off of the two peas blog...but please don't hesitate to check out Maria's site...it is awesome. She has amazing stuff on there that inspires me to get in the kitchen. Now if I could just get the sewing machine to fit next to the cutting board.

Banana Cupcakes (Muffins) with a Nutella Swirl Adapted from EveryDay Food and Spork or Foon
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (about 4 ripe bananas), plus 1 whole banana, for garnish (optional)
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Jar of Nutella
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a mini muffin tin. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Make a well in center of flour mixture. In well, mix together butter, mashed bananas, eggs, and vanilla. Stir to incorporate flour mixture (do not overmix). Dividing evenly, spoon batter into muffin cups.
With a toothpick swirl in the Nutella, about a ½ teaspoon each.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan; cool completely on a wire rack.

I made mine in the extra large muffin tin I'm in love with, so I baked a tad bit longer than this. Just like banana nut bread without the nuts Dal hates.

Chocolate Covered Cherries

It's another cupcake post! I also made cherry filled cupcakes. Oh yeah, and they taste as good as they sound! I used the devils food cake mix, and filled them with melted cherry chips mixed with vanilla icing. I decided to cover these with Cherry flavoried icing. Having a three year old girl, means you use pink sprinkles on EVERYTHING!

Cupcakes Oh la la!

Lately I'm in love with cupcakes. If I were to list ten jobs I'd love love love, owning my own cupcake shop would be like number 3. Sometimes I get ideas about the things I could do to the cupcakes to make them over the top. I must admit that I'm mostly lazy about them, I always use a box mix. Perhaps someday (in my old age) I will have the motivation to mix up my own batter from scratch. So this past weekend I decided that a raspberry chocolate cupcake sounds divine..and romantic. (sigh) So I sat out to mix up my devils food cake and bake 'em up!

Now where would I get this raspberry flavor? I know that jar of preserves in my fridge that I rarely find a use for...mix it with some vanilla icing (from a jar of coarse) and wallah!

Once my cupcakes cooled I simply used a melon baller to scoop out a small amount from the top, and filled it with a little bit of my magic mix. I let the icing set up for just a bit, and proceeded to top with chocolate icing. I failed to take an after pic...but you get the idea.

A great change for your ho hum cupcakes. And in a way a little sophisticated.

Buckeyes

Over the weekend I decided to try out the Buckeyes that I saw on Schweet 'N Savory. I highly recommend any of Melissa's recipes. She's an amazing girl! So here's how mine turned out: I also decided to dip a few pretzel rods in chocolate while I had a batch heated up already. I included these in a special package that will show up in a later post!

Bleeding Love

These are my bleeding love cupcakes.

Basically I just used the box mix, and added the cherry chips into the batter. The cherry chips look like a bloody mess when they melted up, hence my name for 'em.

They are so delish! And I plan on making another batch up for Valentines.

Yorkie

I saw this being made on a Food Network show during the holiday's and was dying to try it. I actually made this a while back and I'm just now getting around to sharing. It's so easy I was in shock.

Yorkie Puddings - Desert Style
Preheat Oven 450*
Fill muffin tin with 2 tsp of vegie oil and place in oven to get nice and hot.
3/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 c. milk
(I added Orange Zest and a pinch of sugar)
Mix it up.
Pull the muffin tin out and fill each cup with equal portions of the batter. This is my favorite part they start to fry and it looks like a tiny funnel cake.
Place back in the hot oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. These puppies get HUGE!
Take 'em out, and punch a hole in the top. Fill with marmalade, and whipping cream, drizzle with raspberry preserves, eat while warm if possible.
DIVINE! You can use any size muffin tin you wish, I used the jumbo size.

The Cookie Gods

Tonight I decided to make some Banana Pudding. The cheap and easy way. I'm all instant!
I've got it chilling in the fridge, and I can't wait for it to get "firm."
And you're thinking "Isn't she on a diet?" Let me just say it is no fun. I'm starving people!!! If I eat one more freaking Special K bar (90 calories) I'm going to die. Just die. I'm an emotional EATER. Not a Nibbler. I want so badly to be a little toothpick...I do, but something tells me that I'm always going to have the inter tube around my hips. (Genetics is my excuse) I love sweets, and lately I've actually had the urge to do some cooking/baking. Soooo, I'm not giving up, I will continue to cut back, but the Cookie Gods spoke to me in a dream last night.
To start the whole story: A couple of weeks ago I was looking frantically for my Spanks. (Heaven sent) I could not find them anywhere. Grr! I was so frustrated, and knew then being the frugal freak that I am that I could not go out and spend my hard earned $'s on a new pair. It's hard enough to tell your husband that you just spent a ton on "granny panties" that come up to your boobs, let alone ever let him see you in 'em. So back to the Cookie Gods, they sent me an image of the exact location of my Spanks. In the front pocket of my luggage. I am saved, and I can eat cookies again! Or Banana Pudding!

Margaritaville

In a desperate need to use up the lemons and limes before they go bad I decided to make "Margarita Cookies"
adapted from Pampered Chef Classic Spritz Cookies
3 sticks butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
3 1/2 cups flour
lemon/ lime zest to taste
lemon/ lime juice to taste

Blend butter, sugar, and egg well. Blend in one cup at a time of the four until well mixed. Put in a cookie press (pampered chef really pricey and I swear you'll never use it) and press out. You could no doubt do this by making little balls and pressing with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar. Bake at 350* for 12 or so minutes. You can tell when they are getting done by the color and the firmness.

Green icing:
green food coloring
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp milk
mix up and drizzle over the cookies before it hardens
Add sprinkles if you like

Happy Baking, and or drinking!

Lazy Sunday Cookies

Sunday our friend Aurthur ran the half Houston Marathon, then he came to our house. He ran in his "goal" time. So I'm super proud of him. So knowing a few other people would be dropping by the house I knew I needed to have something sweet around for snacking on. So I made the Hubby's favorite things that his grandmother makes him on holiday's.
I used to call them Dino Poop when I was a kid.
Dino Poop
1 cup Karo (corn) syrup
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups peanut butter
4 cups special k

Heat to a boil the corn syrup and sugar, add a the peanut butter then pour over the special K, mix well and drop onto wax paper to dry (aka harden up).

Finally....

I know, I know, it's been a while since I've posted anything. I've been so busy (doing nothing but being beat down from work), and I'm trying to work out, some days, but more than that I'm actually trying to cook. Blogging at work is not going to fit into my schedule. So here I sit thinking about how I need to take a bath, and get my lazy bum to bed but I must must must share with you....

The funniest thing ever that I noticed as I was picking Neely up from daycare yesterday. She does not have a brother or a sister! Oh the lies she can tell these days!

Dallas agreed to allow me to get a cocker spaniel, however www.cockerkids.org has not returned my calls, or my email application...and after watching Oprah today I'm more on board with his plan to pay on the credit card debt. Ohh man, I'm such a sucker for inspirational TV. However if you haven't been watching Oprah this week, this has been the week to watch, life changing! TIVO!
I must share with you my Canton find: $6.50, I'm not kidding. I know I need to put candles in them, but that would require me to go to the dollar store and buy everything I see. (I'm a total dollar store junkie, and I'm trying to rid myself of my addictions!) I was going to hang this adorableness on my covered patio, however Dallas convinced me that it'd look nice in the bed room, and I'm always about a little more glam in my life! Especially in the bedroom. Bowchiawowow! Just kidding.
So I also have been cooking as I mentioned before. I think it is much better than going out to eat because I wont be tempted by the yummy greasy fatty goodness that is most restaurant food. I made this lovely crab over salmon with roasted potatoes and grilled zucchini the other night... and might I say I was impressed with myself. So far I'm doing okay, I haven't gotten upset and started to eat all the sweets in site!
I also have been doing a tad bit of crafting- I painted these cards, that I plan on selling via an etsy(or whever it is) store whenever I get around to that....some day.And so next time my friends I will let you know all about my sewing machine fiasco!

Potpourri

So in the rush to get my baked goods done, I come up with yet another idea. Orange spice potpourri. Oh yes. I made it...in addition to covering litterally all of my brite white counter tops in chocolate.

I sliced Oranges, and Lemons and baked in the oven for a few hours on a low temp. I mixed in ground cinnamon, nutmeg, whole cloves, ground cloves, cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, and whole all spice. I added a few drops of orange and cinnamon oil from the craft store, and my house smells sooo good. It takes a few days for it to dry out completely...but well worth dedicating a bit of foil covered countertop to! I will be using this as hostes gifts during this busy time.

I also wanted to share a sneak peek at the first fabric I bought that is waiting very patiently in my closet to get turned into something fab!

So stay tuned and cross your fingers for me that a) I find the time b) it truly can become something great with my limited skills.

Tonight will be my work Christmas party, I'll share pictures soon...at least of me in my new black dress! wink wink!

And the best news yet when I wake up in the morning...this handsome guy (my brother Justin) will be at my house!

This will be his first Christmas home since 2004! I can't wait!

No Fire Needed Smores

In a rushed effort to get some neighbor/ daycare teacher gifts. I decide to make chocolate covered marshmallows on a skewer. I've seen these in our local Nestle store, and I'm always tempted to buy one...but will continue to keep that $4 in my pocket. All I did was dip marshmellows threaded on a skewer in melted chocolate bark. I took it a step further and rolled them in crushed graham crackers to give them the smores taste. Set out on wax paper and let dry.
Happy indoor camping!