Blondies, any way you like 'em

Yesterday was the last good baking day for this week; so I was determined to get in the kitchen and whip something yummy up for the kids & daddy. I have been making this blondie recipe for at least 4 or 5 years now. It is so good and if I don't keep an eye on the tray the kids will (ok, and daddy too) will devour them in one day.

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can do just about anything you want to it and it will still turn out great. I don't add nuts, but you could add any kind you like. I've used all kinds of chocolate chips in it and even butterscotch chips; they always turn out great. You could even just leave them plain for a true blondie and they would still just melt in your mouth.

Oh I've even made a couple batches and put them in the freezer to pull out as needed. This works great in the summer when there are very few good baking days. They are just as good as if you made them that day. So go ahead, get in your kitchen and make a batch up today for your family. They will dance and sing and give you the highest praise. OK, maybe not all that but they will love them!



Blondies

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
2 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
3 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional - or any kind of nuts)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (any kind will work, I usually use milk chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 13x9 inch baking pan.

Using a large pan, melt the butter and stir in the brown sugar. Let this cool for about 10 minutes.
While this is cooling, sift flour, baking powder and salt together, and set aside. Add the eggs one at a time, to the brown sugar & butter. Be sure to beat well after adding each egg. Add the flour mixture, the nuts and the chocolate chips and blend well (by hand). Spread in the greased pan.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven or until the edges begin to pull away from the sides. Cut into small squares when cool.

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Blondies, any way you like 'em

Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Rolls

Last week a friend on twitter (her profile is private so I won't share her name, but she knows who she is ;) ) ordered a bread machine. She wanted to make cinnamon rolls so I pointed her to a recipe online that I use. Well, I should have looked at it closer. I do use that recipe but I make some adjustments and changes. So here is the actual recipe that I use to make cinnamon rolls.

You can make the dough just fine without a bread machine too, just do what you would normally do when making bread. If you need more specifics than that leave a comment and I'll walk you through it.


Glazed Cinnamon Rolls
Makes 12 rolls

Rolls

3/4 cup water, plus
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon bread machine yeast

Place above ingredients in bread machine & start dough cycle. Once the dough is complete, roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface, until it is approximately 21 inches long by 16 inches wide.

Filling

1/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

Spread butter over dough then sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up tightly into a log beginning at the long end. Cut into 12 equal slices and place into a greased 9x11 pan. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Bake rolls for 20-25 minutes, until golden and puffy.

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar (aka icing sugar)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-2 Tbsp milk

Let rolls cool for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile combine ingredients for the glaze and then drizzle glaze over rolls. Serve warm.

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I hope that your family enjoys these as much as my family does. If you have any questions or just want to say hi! please leave a comment. :)

Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Rolls

The World of Strawberry Bread

The other day on twitter @familyeducation posted a link to a strawberry bread recipe on their blog. As soon as I read it, I knew I wanted to make it. Since I had 3lbs of strawberries in the fridge, I decided today would be the day. The recipe was very simple to put together and it didn't create a huge mess in the kitchen when preparing it, so it definitely gets bonus points in my book. I made a double batch of the batter and the only thing I changed was using 4 whole eggs rather than 8 egg whites. If I would have had egg whites in the carton I would have just used that. I really didn't want to separate all those eggs and then have to find something to do with all the yolks too. The resulting batter was really thick, so I wasn't sure how it was going to turn out. It turned out just fine. I will be making this again as strawberry season gets into full swing here.

Strawberry Bread

1 cup all purpose flour
¾ cup whole wheat flour (or you can use all purpose flour)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
4 egg whites (I used 2 whole eggs)
¼ cup applesauce
¾ cup skim milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups of diced fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl mix the flour, salt, sugar and baking powder. In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites and add the applesauce, milk and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture, mixing only to incorporate. Add the strawberries and mix just a few times, to ensure good distribution throughout the batter.

Grease a 9x5 loaf pan. Add the batter. If desired, top the batter with 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

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Hope you enjoy this as much as we are, and thanks Family Education for a great recipe.

The World of Strawberry Bread

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

As I promised yesterday I'm back with a photo and a recipe for the chicken enchiladas. Everyone really enjoyed them and they are super filling. For those of you on the West coast you still have time to get the ingredients and whip these up for your family for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. :)

Sour Cream Chicken Enchiladas (I use organic/free-range ingredients as much as possible)
Serves 4-5

Ingredients:

2-3 chicken breasts, chopped (done easily if partly frozen)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt & pepper to taste
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup low fat sour cream
1 small can green chillies
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
10 flour tortillas

Directions:

In skillet brown chicken with garlic powder, salt & pepper. When chicken is browned add soup, sour cream, green chillies. Stir and heat until warm throughout. Add 1 cup cheddar cheese and stir.
Spoon sour cream chicken sauce into tortillas. Roll and place seam down on a baking sheet or 9x13 pan. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Cover with a sheet of aluminum foil and bake for 15-20 minutes at 350F

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I hope you enjoy this recipe. Let me know how your family likes it. Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

The *Best* Chocolate Chip Cookies E.V.E.R.

Today I decided I wanted to bake. It's been since my last cupcakes that I have done any sort of baking, so it was nice to get in the kitchen today. Little guy co-operated very nicely too. He took a nice long nap. :) These are seriously some good chocolate chip cookies. It's taken me years of trying different recipes to find one that I am really happy with the results. Lets get to it...

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes Approx. 7 Dozen
Original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups butter or margarine
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar, firmly packed (I always make my own w/granulated sugar and molasses - just add as little or as much molasses as you like.)
  
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole wheat flour (or use 4 cups all-purpose flour)
  
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 bag chocolate chips (I use milk chocolate or swirled)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F or 176°C. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Mix butter, sugars, vanilla and eggs in large bowl. Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt. (I add the flour 1 cup at a time and mix well). Stir in entire bag of chocolate chips.

Using a cookie dough scoop drop on lined cookie sheet. Bake in oven for 9-12 minutes.

If you want a chewy cookie, you'll want to take these out of the oven just as they begin to brown. If you want a crunchy cookie leave in for 11-12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2 -3 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Since this makes so many cookies and kids are kids, I usually just put out 1-2 dozen on a tray and package the rest up for the freezer.

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The *Best* Chocolate Chip Cookies E.V.E.R.