An Apple A Day - Fresh Apple Cupcakes with Almond Streusel

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A delicious afternoon delight - just add a cup of tea!

Amaretto Apple Streusel Cupcakes
(Source: Cooking Light Magazine October 2009)
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/amaretto-apple-streusel-cupcakes-10000001924729/)

Cooking spray

6 3/4 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 cups) 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup butter, softened

2 tablespoons amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur)  (or 1/4 teaspoon almond extract)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg

1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream (or yogurt)

1/4 cup 2% reduced-fat milk

3/4 cup finely chopped Gala apple

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Streusel:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons butter, chilled

2 tablespoons sliced almonds

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

4 teaspoons 2% reduced-fat milk

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Place muffin cup liners in 12 muffin cups; coat with cooking spray.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon 6.75 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine 6.75 ounces flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Combine granulated sugar, cream cheese, and 1/4 cup butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until well blended. Add amaretto, vanilla, and egg to sugar mixture; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Combine sour cream and 1/4 cup milk in a small bowl; stir with a whisk until well blended. Combine apple and 1 tablespoon flour in a small bowl; toss well.

4. Add flour mixture and sour cream mixture alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with

flour mixture. Beat just until blended. Fold in apple mixture. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.

5. To prepare the streusel, combine 2 tablespoons flour, brown sugar, and ground cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in 2 tablespoons butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal; stir in almonds. Sprinkle streusel evenly over cupcakes. Bake at 350° for 27 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes on a wire rack, and remove the cupcakes from pan.

6. To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar and 4 teaspoons milk in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle glaze over cupcakes.

 

An Apple A Day - Apple Coleslaw and Pulled Pork Tortas

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We are very blessed to have a few heirloom fruit trees on our property - two apple trees, a pear tree and several cherry-plum trees.  The critters - big and small - hooved and winged - all love our fruit trees! After a good pruning last year,  the apple trees were very fruitful this year.  The apples themselves aren't show-piece apples, but they are so tasty and aren't sprayed with any pesticides.

I thought I'd try out some new recipes featuring apples.  This past week I made pulled pork served with apple coleslaw and apple cider!  Nothing goes better with pork than apples!

A happy customer eating his third serving!

Apple Coleslaw
(Source: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/apple-coleslaw/detail.aspx)

4 cups shredded cabbage
1 cup shredded carrot
1 Granny Smith apple - peeled, cored and coarsely shredded (I prefer to julienne the apple)
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon pineapple juice (optional)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise (I prefer Miracle Whip)
1 dash salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Place the shredded cabbage and carrot together in a bowl with the sliced apple, and toss to combine. In a separate bowl, stir together the honey, brown sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice, and mayonnaise until the honey and sugar have dissolved completely. Pour over the salad, and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, and toss again. Cover and chill until ready to serve.


Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

2 pork shoulder roasts
1-2 cups apple cider
1 bottle of your favorite barbeque sauce

Put the meat in a slow cooker; pour cider and BBQ sauce over meat. Cover and cook on low until well cooked and the pork shreds easily, 6 to 7 hours. Note: the actual length of time may vary according to individual slow cooker. Drain well. Shred pork using a fork to pull it apart.  Serve on tasty roll.

More apple delectables on their way later this week!  Keep toasty warm with some warm apple cider.

Papertrey Ink Design Challenge: Brayer Impressions #2

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Thought I'd give the Papertrey Ink challenge another go.

I'm particularly liking the color combination of

aqua and red.  Great for just about any occassion.

This little darling is planned for an upcoming birthday.

Papertrey Ink Stamps Used: Mat Stack Collection & die, Tag It's #1 & #3
Papertrey Ink Supplies Used: White cardstock (the best card stock by far!), impression plate, baker's twine, buttons, aqua mist and pure poppy dye ink (from the new manufacturer - love it!).
Border of gifts: Martha Stewart Crafts

Have a wonderful day!

Papertrey Ink Design Challenge: Brayer Impressions

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Time for another weekly design challenge from Papertrey Ink.

This week, the challenge was to use a brayer to ink over an impression.

See How-To Tutorial Video Here.

Here's my take on the challenge.

With all of the snow falling in many parts of the U.S., warm mittens and

snowflakes come to mind.

A little something for my new Send Love Today assignment.



Papertrey Ink Stamps Used: Mat Stack Collection & die, Tag It's #3, Tiny Treats Christmas
Papertrey Ink Supplies Used: White cardstock (the best card stock by far!), baker's twine, buttons, aqua mist and pure poppy dye ink (from the new manufacturer - love it!).

Has the snow hit your part of the world?  I'm still enjoying the last little bit of Pacific Northwest sunshine.

Some like muscles - others like mussels

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Image from Penn Cove Shellfish

One of the greatest pleasures of living in the Pacific Northwest

is having delicious and fresh fish and seafood right at hand.

I wasn't much of a mussel eater until I moved here and had a bowl of

PENN COVE MUSSELS.

Penn Cove Mussels are those to which all others are compared when it comes to taste!  Harvested by Penn Cove Shellfish in Coupeville, Washington on Whidbey Island.  So very yummy - there are no other words to describe this delicacy.

Being a Northwest girl now, I have an arsenal of recipes featuring these little devils.  One of my husband's favorites is Mussels in a Spicy Tomato Sauce simply served with crusty bread to sop up the juice and a glass of red wine.  Add to it a beautiful pink & purple sunset over the water and past the mountains and you have heaven on earth.

Simple ingredients mostly available in your pantry.

Cook and serve in a paella pan - very festive.

The recipe I use is from one of Lidia's cookbooks. 

If you don't know Lidia, you haven't had real Italian cooking

(unless of course you happen to be lucky to have

dined in my mother's kitchen).

I recommend any of Lidia's cookbooks if you want to learn

authentic Italian cooking.  She also has cooking

shows on the PBS channel.

Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen

This is my dear dad eating his second bowl of spicy mussels.
He had three bowls in total (over 4 pounds)!
He's an eating machine!  The greatest complement you can
give the cook is to ask for seconds and especially thirds!!

Mussels in Spicy Tomato Sauce
(Source: Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Bastianich)

2 pounds mussels, preferrable cultivated from Penn Cove Farms in Washington State
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 cloves garlic, sliced
1 pint cherry tomatoes (halved) or 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon crushed hot red pepper
1 cup dry white wine
10 large fresh basil leaves, shredded
salt to taste

1.  Clean and debeard mussels as needed.  Remember to discard any mussels that are not closed shut or do not close when tapped.
2.  Heat olive oil in a large skillet - a paella pan is perfect for this dish and presents nicely on the table.  Add garlic and cook, shaking the pan until golden (about 3 minutes).  Slide the tomatoes into the skillet and stir in the oregano and red pepper.  Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have cooked down (about 5 minutes).
3.  Stir the mussels into the skillet, then pour in the wine.  Bring to a boil, cover the pot, and cook just until the mussels are opened (about 3-5 minutes).  Do not overcook or the mussels will be tough.
4. Stir in the basil.  Add salt to taste.
5.  Discard any mussels with unopened shells.  Serve with crusty bread to sop up the juice.


I can hear my grandmother's voice still ringing in my ears. "Tutti a tavola a mangiare!  Mangia!  Mangia!"

Cheap Eats: Chicken and Lentil Salad

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Looking for more ways to put legumes in your diet.  I try to have at least one meal per week that includes legumes.

Here is a great, simple but tasty salad using lentils.  It's great as a side dish or served as a tapa.  I used the bits and pieces left over from a rotisserie chicken served earlier in the week.

Chicken and Lentil Salad
(Source: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/chicken-lentil-salad-50400000116284/)

Ingredient

1 cup brown lentils, sorted of debris and rinsed

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/3 cup lemon juice 

1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed

1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon

1/2 cup slivered red onion

1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves

 

Preparation

1. Simmer lentils in 1 qt. lightly salted water in a covered saucepan just until tender to the bite, 15 minutes. Drain.
2. Mix remaining ingredients in a bowl, then gently stir in warm lentils.

Cheap Eats: Rice and 'Peas'

Pin It So, I'm in my kitchen yesterday wondering what to cook for dinner.
I see that I have a package of organic chicken breast (steal of a deal in my local supermarket this week) and rice in the pantry.  I'm not in the mood for my normal Arroz con Pollo, so I pull up MYRECIPES.COM (see previous post) and type in chicken tenders and rice.  Up pops two recipes  - Oatmeal-Crusted Chicken Tenders and Classic Jamaican Rice and Peas ...Add a salad and we have a delicious and healthy dinner in less than 30 minutes!

Classic Jamaican Rice and Peas
(Source: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/classic-jamaican-rice-peas-10000000523888/)

Ingredients

• 1 (14-ounce) can light coconut milk
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
• 3 fresh thyme sprigs
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 cup long-grain white rice (such as jasmine)
• 1 (15-ounce) can dark kidney beans, rinsed and drained (I used black beans in my version.)

Preparation

• Combine the first 7 ingredients (through garlic) in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil. Stir in rice; reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook 20 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Remove pan from heat; remove the thyme sprigs and garlic, and discard. Gently stir in the beans. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Oatmeal-Crusted Chicken Tenders
(Source: http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/oatmeal-crusted-chicken-tenders-10000001227912/)

Ingredients

• 1 cup regular oats
• 3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound chicken breast tenders
• Cooking spray

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 450°.
• Place oats in a food processor, and process for 20 seconds or until coarsely ground. Add cheese, thyme, salt, and pepper. Pulse to combine, and place in a shallow bowl.
• Place each chicken breast tender between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/4-inch thickness using a meat mallet or small heavy skillet. Coat both sides of tenders with cooking spray; dredge tenders in oat mixture. Place tenders on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until browned.

Have you tried MYRECIPES.COM yet?