Strawberry Banana Muffins

Try one of these for a meal on the go.

Yield: 18 Muffins
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 35 Minutes

WET INGREDIENTS:
•½ Cup honey
•¼ Cup packed light brown sugar
•½ Cup plain yogurt
•¼ Cup unsweetened applesauce
•1 Egg
•1 Tablespoon ground flax seed, soaked in 3 tbsp. water for 5 minutes
•2 Large bananas, mashed
•1 Tsp. pure vanilla extract
•1 Tsp. pure almond extract

DRY INGREDIENTS:
•1 Cup unbleached all-purpose flour
•1 Cup whole wheat flour
•½ Cup rolled oats (not instant)
•1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
•1 Tsp. baking soda

•1 Cup fresh strawberries, diced and lightly mashed

Preheat oven to 375°. Spray your muffin pan with nonstick spray or grease the cups. In your mixer bowl, combine the wet ingredients until well mixed. In a separate bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, and whisk to sift. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet, and mix until all the ingredients are incorporated. Stir in the strawberries. Divide the batter evenly among 18 regular sized muffin cups, and bake for 18-20 minutes. They may seem underdone, but if they cook for more than 20 minutes at 375°, they will be OVERdone. Remove from pan, and cool completely.

Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

Goes perfectly with Coconut Cupcakes from MarthaStewartShow.com.

•8 Oz. softened low-fat cream cheese
•4 Tbsp. softened unsalted butter
•1 Tsp. pure vanilla extract
•4-4 1/2 cups powdered sugar
•3-4 Tbsp. low-fat coconut milk
•Dried Coconut (optional)

Whip cream cheese and butter until combined. Add Vanilla. Alternately add the milk and sugar, blending smooth between each add, ending with sugar. Whip until smooth and creamy. After frosting the cake, I like to sprinkle on unsweetened coconut flakes. For cupcakes you can just dip upside down into a bowl of coconut, and it covers great!

*This makes a very soft and creamy frosting. This would NOT be suitable for piping.

Pocket Filling Recommendations

My last recipe posted was for pocket dough. I can't say enough about the versatility of the dough. I wanted to list some of my family's favorite fillings for the pockets pies. I will add more as we try new ones.

Pizza: Pepperoni, mozzarella, parmesan, cheddar, pizza sauce, pesto, peperoncinis.
Brush with butter and sprinkle cheese on top right before baking.

Cheeseburger: Ground beef, ketchup, mustard, velveeta.
Brown ground beef and stir in a big squeeze of both ketchup and mustard. Cut the velveeta into to small cubes and add into the pockets with the ground beef. Brush pockets with egg wash, and sprinkle with sesame seeds before baking.


Mexican Chicken: Chicken breast, ranchero sauce.
Saute chicken breast and combine with homemade ranchero sauce. Brush pockets with egg wash before baking.


Dessert: Fruit preserves, cream cheese, cinnamon, sugar.
Combine softened cream cheese with preserves. Make sure the cream cheese and preserves are completely mixed or the cream cheese with separate into tiny pieces, and look a little weird. Brush with butter before baking. Toss is cinnamon and sugar immediately after baking. These are also delicious with only the preserves.

Plum Tart Cobbler

Simple ingredients, extraordinary results!



Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour

Crust:
•2 Cups all-purpose flour
•½ Cup granulated sugar
•12 Tbsp. butter, cut into small cubes

Filling:
•2 Pounds thinly sliced plums
•2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
•2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

Topping:
•5 Tbsp. butter, cut into small cubes
•¼ Cup granulated sugar
•¼ Cup all-purpose flour

Combine the crust's ingredients with a pastry cutter, your fingers, or a food processor. The mixture should resemble moist sand. Press the mixture into a 9" round cake pan, and bake at 325° for 20 minutes. In the meantime prepare your filling and topping. For the filling gently stir together the ingredients and set aside until ready to use. Combine the ingredients for the topping with a pastry cutter, your fingers, or a food processor, until it resembles moist sand. After the crust has baked for 20 minutes, spread over the plum mixture, and cover with the topping. Bake for an additional 25 minutes at 325°, then broil for 3-5 minutes. Make sure to keep a close on it under the broiler. Cool at least 10 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Frosting

Chocolate cake. What else can I say?


Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Total Time: 50 Minutes

Cake:
•1 3/4 Cup all-purpose flour
•3/4 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder
•1 Cup packed brown sugar
•1 Cup granulated sugar
•1 Tsp. kosher salt
•1½ Tsp. baking powder
•1½ Tsp. baking soda
•2 large eggs
•1 Cup milk
•2 Tsp. vanilla extract
•¼ vegetable oil
•1 mashed banana (make sure it's really mashed, not chunky)
•1 Cup boiling water

Frosting:
•1/4 Cup softened margarine
•1/4 Cup milk
•1 Tsp. vanilla extract
•3-3½ Cups powdered sugar

For the cake, combine all the dry ingredients in your mixing bowl. Add in the eggs, milk, vanilla, oil, and banana, andmix until smooth (about 3-4 minutes). Stir in boiling water by hand, and pour batter into two prepared pans. I like to butter my pans and line the bottoms with parchment, then flour the pans. Bake the cakes at 350° for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling racks. Cool completely before frosting.

While the cakes are baking prepare the frosting. Start by mixing the margarine, cocoa powder, and milk. Mix until all of the ingredients are incorporated, but it doesn't need to be totally smooth. Add in the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time (make sure to scrape the sides of your bowl in between), until everything is combined. Finish by whipping up the frosting for at least 5 minutes. Frost onto cooled chocolate cake.

☼You may notice that the cake in the picture is only 1 layer...well I moved and seem to have misplaced my cake sheet pan and my other round pan, so I had to use one square and one round...but I promise it will make 2 layers.

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Rolls

Make the night before for a yummy breakfast treat!


Yield: 12 Rolls
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Total Time: 2 Hours

Dough:
•3/4 Cup heavy cream (or milk if that's what you have)
•¼ Cup butter or margarine
•3¼ Cups all-purpose flour
•2¼ Tsp. dry active yeast (1 .25oz packet)
•¼ Cup packed brown sugar
•2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
•½ Tsp. kosher salt
•1 Large egg
•¼ Cup warm water

Filling:
•1 Cup packed brown sugar
•½ Cup butter or margarine
•1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

Icing:
•4oz. Softened cream cheese
•¼ Cup softened butter or margarine
•1 Tsp. vanilla extract
•2 Cups powdered sugar
•Heavy cream or milk (optional)

Heat the milk through, and stir in your butter until melted, set aside. In your large mixer bowl combine the dough's dry ingredients, reserving about 1¼ cups of flour. As soon as the milk is lukewarm (not hot anymore), add the egg and water to the dry ingredients. Add the milk and butter alternately with 1 cup of the reserved flour. Mix until your dough comes together. Turn your dough out onto the counter and knead with the final ¼ cup of flour for 5-7 minutes, until the dough becomes soft and smooth. Let the dough rest for 10-15 minutes. In the meantime, combine the ingredients for the filling by mixing them together in a small bowl. When your dough is ready, roll it into about a 10"x12" rectangle, and spread your filling evenly across the dough. Roll up the dough, and seal off the edge. Cut the dough into 12 slices to make your rolls. Place the rolls in a greased pan, and let rise for 30-60 minutes before baking (sometimes I cheat by putting them into a 150° oven for about 15 minutes, especially when it's cold), or place in the fridge and take out to rise before you're ready to bake. Bake at 400° for about 20-25 minutes. Really keep an eye on the towards the end. I start checking at about 15 minutes just to be safe. If you notice the tops browning faster than you'd like, just lay over a piece of foil. Prepare your cream cheese icing while to rolls are baking, by combining the cream cheese and butter. Add in your vanilla, and slowly mix in the powdered sugar. Add just a touch of cream or milk if you want to thin the icing. Spread over your rolls straight from the oven.

Berry Filled Shortbread Cookies

Tender and sweet, what a treat!


Yield: 12 Cookies
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Total Time: 25 Minutes

•½ Cup unsalted butter
•1/3 Cup granulated sugar
•1 Tsp. vanilla extract
•1 Cup all-purpose flour
•2 Tbsp. fresh berry preserves or your favorite store bought jam


Cream the butter and sugar together, then add in the flour and vanilla and mix until very well combined. Roll into 12 small balls and push holes in the centers with your finger. At this point you can stick your cookies in the freezer for about 15 minutes, and they will hold their shape in the oven better. If you like them a little thinner like I do, just skip that step. Fill each cookie with about a ½ teaspoon of jam, and bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes.

Key Lime Pound Cake

OMG, good!


Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 45 Minutes

Cake:
•3 Cups all-purpose flour
•½ Tsp. baking powder
•1 Cup butter
•½ Cup margarine or shortening
•2½ Cups granulated sugar
•5 Large eggs
•½ Cup milk
•½ Cup key lime juice

Topping:
•½ Cup granulated sugar
•3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
•3 Tbsp. butter or margarine, cut into cubes

Preheat oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, combine the flour and baking powder, set aside. Cream together the butter and sugar with your stand mixer. Add the eggs one at a time. Whip this mixture for about 5 minutes, until it's really fluffy and smooth. Combine the lime juice and milk in a liquid measuring cup and add to the butter mixture, alternating with the flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Spread evenly into two loaf pans. Place the loaves in the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 325°. Bake for 1 hour. In the meantime, in a small bowl combine the topping ingredients with your fingers, a food processor, or a pastry cutter. The mixture should be combined, but in coarse chunks. After the 1 hour of baking, remove the loaves from the oven and spread the topping evenly between them. Place them back in the oven for about 30 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely before storing.

Raspberry Triple Chocolate Muffins

A chocolaty treat, with just the right amount of sweetness.


Yield: 18 Muffins
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 40 Minutes

•2 Cups all-purpose flour
•1 3/4 Cups cocoa powder
•1½ Cups granulated sugar
•½ Tsp. baking soda
•2 Tsp. baking powder
•½ Tsp salt
•1 1/3 Cups milk
•1 Large egg
•3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
•2 Tsp. vanilla extract
•½ Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
•½ Cup white chocolate chips
•1 Cup fresh raspberries
•1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Combine the flour, cocoa, sugar, soda, baking powder, and salt. In your large mixer bowl, combine the milk, egg, oil, and vanilla. Whip the liquids until frothy. Slowly add in the dry ingredients, and mix until just combined. Hand stir-in your chips and berries. Line muffin pan and fill cups 3/4 full. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes. Start checking them at 20 minutes, to make sure you don't over bake them. Remove from the pan immediately, and place on cooling rack. Cool for 10 minutes then dust with powdered sugar.

Key Lime Squares

A tart, delicate dessert, perfect with afternoon tea.

Yield: 24 Squares
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 55 Minutes

Crust:
•1 Cup all-purpose flour
•⅓ Cup granulated sugar
•6 Tbsp. fat, cut into small cubes (I use ½ margarine and ½ shortening, but you can also use butter)

Filling:
•1 Cup demerara cane sugar
•⅔ Cup key lime juice
•3 Large eggs
•¼ Cup all-purpose flour

Topping:
•2 Tbsp. demerara cane sugar

Start with the crust. Combine all the ingredients for the crust in your food processor and pulse until everything is evenly combined. It should be like a handful of sand. Press the mixture evenly into a parchment lined ¼ sheet pan, and bake in a 325° oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and reduce the oven temperature to 300°.

In the meantime, prepare your filling. Whisk together all of the filling ingredients, and pour over the hot crust. Put it back in the oven for 30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes the sprinkle over topping of cane sugar. You can lightly press in the topping. Cool completely before serving or storing.

☼Please keep in mind that your end result should only be about ¼ of an inch thick, not like a typical "Lemon Bar".