Green Chile Corn Bites

I recently went to a birthday party where they were serving chili.  I thought these would make a good addition.  I used Paula Deen's recipe for Green Chili Corn Muffins out of her Paula Deen and Friends cookbook and used my mini-muffin pan.  Just the right size.

GREEN CHILE CORN BITES

1/2 cup canola oil
4 ounce can chopped green chilies
1 cup sour cream
8 ounce can cream-style corn
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup stone-ground cornmeal
2   eggs, lightly beaten 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray.  In a small mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, salt and baking powder, stirring with a metal spoon.  Add the cheese, corn, sour cream, and chilies. Stir until lightly combined. Add the oil and eggs and stir until everything is just combined; do not over mix. The batter will be very stiff.  Place about 1/2 tablespoon of batter into each muffin cup. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes.

PRALINE PUMPKIN POUND CAKE

It was Boss' Day this week.  We had several goodies to honor the bosses in our building.  Seems there was food for days.  This was my contribution.

PRALINE PUMPKIN POUND CAKE

1 stick butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
4 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 can Libby's pumpkin
3 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup buttermilk

Mix butter and sugars together until blended well.  Add eggs one at a time and mix well.  Add pumpkin and vanilla and blend well.  In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin spice together.  Add to wet mixture alternately with buttermilk.  Mix until blended well.  Pour into a prepared 10-cup bundt pan or angel food cake pan.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Praline Glaze:

1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar packed
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons milk or cream

Melt butter, brown sugar and milk in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Add vanilla.  Remove from heat and stir until mixture is thickened.  Pour over cake.  Add toasted pecans to top.

PINK LEMONADE CAKE

Another birthday at work a few weeks ago.  Don't let the picture deceive you, this is a good cake.  I found the recipe from Better Homes and Gardens.  

PINK LEMONADE CAKE

1 cup butter softened

4 eggs

3-1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups granulated sugar

3-4 drops red food coloring

1-1/3 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare a 9 x 13 pan with Bakers Joy or Pam. In a bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.  In another bowl, beat butter for 30 seconds.  Gradually add sugar, beating until well combined.  Scrape down sides and beat for 2 minutes more until will combined.  Add food coloring until light pink.  Add eggs one at a time.  In another bowl stir together buttermilk, lemonade concentrate and vanilla. Mixture will look curdled.  Add dry ingredients slowly and combine until well mixed.  Pour into prepared pan and bake for  30-35 minutes until center is done.  

LEMONADE ICING

3 cups powdered sugar

2 Tablespoons butter, softened

1/4 cup lemonade concentrate, thawed

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

4-5 drops red food coloring, or to color desired.

Splash of milk or cream

Combine all ingredients until spreading consistency.  Spread over cooled cake.

TRIP TO WASHOUGAL, WA

I recently took a trip to Washougal, WA which is right across the river from Portland, OR to visit one of my best friends and her husband. It was great to leave the hot, humid Gulf Coast to enjoy cooler temps and being able to sleep with the windows open. Nothing better. I believe the Pacific Northwest is one of the most beautiful places I've ever had the pleasure of traveling to. It was a rainy trip and some of my pictures had to be borrowed from my friend from a previous time. Despite the rain, I had such a wonderful time. The trees were just beginning to turn color and once in a while there would be a beautiful yellow or orange tree in the midst of the green ones. Such beauty. My friend's new home overlooks the Columbia River and on a clear day you can see Mount Hood. I am so lucky to have a friend who will share her beautiful world with me. I can't wait to go back!

Washougal River

Apple Orchard

Countryside

Beautiful fruits and vegetables.

Mount Hood

Apples

Outside Pittock Mansion

Pumpkin Bread

We are a long way from anything that even resembles Fall here on the Texas Gulf Coast.  I took this to a family gathering Labor Day weekend.  I cobbled together a few recipes to come up with this one.  I have to admit I did not care for the sugar topping and would try something different next time.  No complaints though.

PUMPKIN BREAD

1 cup vegetable oil
5 eggs
1 can 100% pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 small package instant vanilla pudding (dry)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup toasted chopped pecans

In a mixing bowl add oil, eggs and pumpkin. Mix until smooth.  Combine dry ingredients and add to pumpkin mixture. Mix well.  Add pecans.  Pour into 2 large loaf pans that have been sprayed with Pam or Bakers Joy.  Sprinkle crumb topping on and pat down. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

Crumb Topping:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter

Mix together dry ingredients.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  

VELVET BROWNIE SWIRL CAKE

Pardon the bad picture.  My camera battery was dead so I took this with my phone.  Birthday time at work again.  I found this recipe on a blog called A Spicy Perspective.  I took a few liberties with it and below is my adaptation.

VELVET BROWNIE SWIRL CAKE

1 cup oil
1-1/3 cups buttermilk
3 eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons cocoa powder

For the brownie swirl:
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup chocolate chips melted

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan.

Using an electric mixer, beat the oil, buttermilk, eggs, vinegar and vanilla on low until well combined.

In a separate bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cocoa together. Slowly add them to the wet mixture until just combined. Scrape the bowl and mix again.

For the brownie batter: Separate out 1 2/3 cups batter. Whisk 3 tablespoons cocoa powder and the melted chocolate into the batter. Set aside.

Pour 2/3 of the remaining velvet batter into the bundt pan.

Add the brownie batter to the bundt pan and gently smooth over the top covering all areas. Do not swirl.

Pour the remaining 1/3 velvet batter over the brownie batter.

Bake for 55 minutes until set in the middle. After 55 minutes check the center with a wooden skewer. If it comes out clean, the cake is done.

Allow the cake to cool for at least 20 minutes in the pan. Then carefully flip it out onto a cake plate.  Allow it to cool completely before adding the glaze.

I just made a simple glaze with powdered sugar, butter, milk and vanilla.  I melted 1/2 cup chocolate chips and drizzled those as well.

Lemon Drop Cake

I found this recipe on 'Just a Pinch' website.  It's a great resource for home cooking type recipes.  I have made a similar cake to this using Jello mix rather than pudding.  The reviews on this one rave about how moist it is because of the addition of buttermilk.  I made it in my Nordicware Wildflower pan but the design didn't show well. 

LEMON DROP CAKE

1 Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe lemon cake mix
1 small package dry instant Jello Lemon Pudding mix
1 cup water
1/3 cup lemon juice (fresh or bottled)
1 cup water
1/3 cup oil
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk

The ingredients are the same as the box ingredients with using 1/3 cup lemon juice for part of the water and adding 1 cup of buttermilk.  Mix all ingredients together and pour into a pan sprayed with Pam.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.  Make sure the center is done.  Turn onto plate and poke holes and drizzle glaze over cake while warm.

Glaze:
1 to 2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup lemon juice

Mix together and drizzle over cake while warm.

CHUY'S JALAPENO RANCH SAUCE

I'm having a birthday dinner this evening.  I am doing a 'taco bar'.  Taco shells, meat and all the fixin's, rice and beans.  We have a Tex-Mex chain here called Chuy's.  They serve a jalapeno/ranch sauce when they bring out their chips and salsa.  It's really good.  I went in search of a copycat recipe and I think this one is pretty close. I'll serve this with some chips along with some regular salsa.

CHUY'S JALAPENO RANCH SAUCE

1 whole jalapeno, chopped, deveined and seeded (less if you don't like a lot of heat)
3-4 tablespoons cilantro without stems
1 cup mayonnaise
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup tomatillo sauce (salsa verde)
1 package Hidden Valley ranch dressing mix

In a mini food processor put mayonnaise, buttermilk, jalapeno, cilantro, and salsa verde.  Blend well until smooth.  Remove from processor and place in a bowl.  Add Hidden Valley Ranch mix and stir well.  Chill several hours before serving to allow flavors to blend.  Serve with chips or even as a dressing for salads.

Sweet Onion Bake

One of my best friends came to visit me this week.  She had sent me this recipe a while back and I wanted to try it.  It makes a great side dish for anything.  We paired it with baked chicken breasts, grilled asparagus, and a big salad.  There wasn't a drop left when we were done.  It was definite hit.  Pardon the picture, it does not do this dish justice.

ROBERTA'S ONION BAKE

7 1/2 cups sweet onions (3 large), sliced.

Sauté the onions in 4 tablespoons butter

Add:

1/2 cup long grain white rice which has been cooked in 1 cup of boiling water for 5 minutes

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

2/3 cup half and half

Salt/pepper to taste

Fresh parsley, chopped, if desired.

Bake covered for 45 minutes at 325 degrees. Uncover and bake 15 minutes more at 325 degrees until light brown on edges.

Sausage and Cheese Mini-Muffins

This recipe is all over the Internet in different places.  It is a different twist on sausage cheese balls which is a popular item to take to parties.  The plate was cleaned so I think they were a hit.

SAUSAGE AND CHEESE MINI-MUFFINS

3 cups Bisquick
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
1 pound bulk sausage (spicy if you like it)
3/4 cup water or milk (I used buttermilk)
1 can Campbell's Fiesta Nacho Cheese soup

Cook sausage until it is crumbled and no longer pink.  Drain on paper towels.  Mix together Bisquick, cheese, and sausage.  Combine cheese with buttermilk.  Make a well in the middle and pour wet mixture.  Stir just until combined.  Put in mini-muffin pans that have been sprayed with Pam.  Bake at 375 degrees for 18-20 minutes until golden brown.

Carrot Babycakes

I baked this recipe originally as a 3-layer cake but it was not very photo-worthy.  I repeated the recipe and this time I made it in my square muffin pan along with round muffin pan.  It turned out much better and it was for a crowd which worked even better with everyone getting their own little cake.  This is a Southern Living recipe from 1997.  The buttermilk glaze takes a while but I believe this is the key to this very moist carrot cake recipe.  It will replace my Tropical Carrot Cake recipe I posted in the early stages of my blog.

CARROT BABYCAKES

CAKE:
2 cups all-purpose flour 
2 teaspoons baking soda 
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon  
3 large eggs 
2 cups sugar 
3/4 cup vegetable oil 
3/4 cup buttermilk 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
2 cups grated carrots
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained 
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Line 3 (9-inch) round cake pans with wax paper; lightly grease and flour wax paper. Set pans aside.  Or use a 9 x 13 pan that has been sprayed with Pam.  Or use 24 muffin cups sprayed with Pam.

Stir together first 4 ingredients.

In another bowl, beat eggs and next 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add flour mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Fold in carrots and next 3 ingredients. Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Drizzle Buttermilk Glaze evenly over cakes.  Cool in pans on wire racks 15 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks. Spread Cream Cheese Frosting on cakes.

This makes 30 babycakes.  You can cut the glaze in half if you are making these.

BUTTERMILK GLAZE: 

1 cup sugar 
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 
1/2 cup buttermilk 
1 stick butter 
1 tablespoon light corn syrup 
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
 
Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Boil, stirring often, 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla. Use a big pot because the soda causes a big volume until it cooks down.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:

1 8 oz. package cream cheese
2-3 tablespoons milk or cream
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients until smooth.  If too thin add more sugar, if too thick add more cream.

Easy Peach Cobbler

A few weeks ago I made this for a birthday at work.  It is an easy version of peach cobbler that even Paula Deen serves in her restaurant.  It's much better when you can have some fresh peaches but canned will do okay in a pinch. 

EASY PEACH COBBLER

3 cups fresh sliced peaches (or one large can and 1 small can sliced peaches, not drained)

2 cups Bisquick mix (all purpose flour may be used, but I prefer Bisquick)

2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 stick butter, melted

1/2 cup of sugar for batter

1/4 cup sugar for peaches (more if you are using fresh peaches, according to taste)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

 

Put 1 stick of butter in a 9 x 13 pan in the oven to melt.

 

In a bowl, mix together Bisquick, sugar, and milk.

In another bowl slice up the peaches into smaller chunks, add 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon.

Pour batter over melted butter, do not stir.

Pour peaches and juice over batter, do not stir.

Bake at 350 until bubbly and crust rises to the top and is golden brown, 30 to 45 minutes.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

I've always wanted to try to make Irish Soda Bread.  Being yeast challenged and this being a quick bread I am surprised I hadn't made it until now.  So few ingredients and such an easy thing.  I can tell it was a peasant bread when folks didn't have access to yeast so the buttermilk and the soda interact to make it rise.  It would be good with some Guiness Stew I think.  May the luck of the Irish be with you today!

IRISH SODA BREAD

3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups buttermilk

Mix dry ingredients together in a bowl.  Make a well in the middle.  Mix together until dough comes together.  Turn out onto a floured surface and knead into a small round.  Take a sharp knife and cut an X in the top.  Bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes or until golden brown.  Brush melted butter on top.  Enjoy with some Kerrygold Irish Butter.

LEMON BABYCAKES

I have a fascination with baking pans.  I recently found one of those 'square' muffin pans and decided to use it for this recipe.  A regular muffin pan would work just fine also.

LEMON BABYCAKES

1-1/2 cups cake flour (all purpose would be fine)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1-1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) butter softened
2 eggs
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
 3/4 cup buttermilk

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tablespoons lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray pan with Baker's Joy or use liners.  In a bowl mix together butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each.  Add lemon zest and vanilla.  Add lemon juice.  Mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add to wet mixture alternately with buttermilk.  Fill muffin holes 3/4 full.  Bake for 20 minutes or until centers are done.

To make glaze, mix together lemon juice and powdered sugar to a consistency for drizzling over cakes.  Drizzle over cooled cakes.

Texas Coconut Pound Cake

I found this recipe on a sidebar ad on my Facebook page on a website Just a Pinch  I'm not too sure why it is called a Texas pound cake but it caught my eye.  My cousin recently told me about Ancel Coconut in a can.  It is shredded coconut in a can with some liquid.  I used this in place of the coconut called in the recipe and I think it made a nice moist texture.  I used the remaining liquid to make the glaze and topped it off with some toasted coconut and pecans (there's the Texas in it for my version).

TEXAS COCONUT POUND CAKE

2/3 cup shortening
1 cup butter (2 sticks, softened)
3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
5 large eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1-1/2 cups shredded coconut (I used the drained can of Ancel)
2 teaspoons coconut extract (I only had vanilla but think it needs the coconut flavor)

Cream butter, shortening and sugar. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each. Add coconut flavoring. Sift flour and add baking powder. Alternate adding flour and milk to sugar mixture. Add coconut.

Spray tube pan.  Pour batter into pan.  Bake 350 for 1 hr to 1 hr 15 minutes (mine took 90 minutes).  Cool in pan for 10 minutes turn on cooling rack.  

Glaze with powdered sugar glaze and toasted coconut and pecans (optional) 

Toffee Crunch Cookies

Sorry for the long lag in posting.  I just haven't baked anything new lately, mostly old favorites which doesn't make for new blog posts.  I bought a bag of Hershey Toffee Bits around Christmas and went in search of a cookie recipe to use them in.  I came across this one on All Recipes.  My official cookie tester gave them a thumbs up and said that the middle is soft and chewy with a crisp outside.  The toffee bits melt and give this cookie a rich, buttery flavor.  I took liberty with the recipe and here is my version.

TOFFEE CRUNCH COOKIES

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 bag toffee baking bits
1 cup chopped, toasted pecans 

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream butter with brown sugar until fluffy.  Add eggs and vanilla.  Mix until smooth and creamy.  Blend dry ingredients and add to wet mixture.  Fold in toffee bits and pecans.  Drop by tablespoons or cookie scoop onto cookie pan lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees until light brown.  Makes 4 dozen.