Month: December 2021

Chipotle Chicken Soup

Chipotle Chicken Soup

Soup is a wonderful winter weeknight meal.  This crock pot soup is full of flavor and tastes wonderful alone or with Tostito chips. Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients- 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1 onion diced 1 15 ounce can 

Chocolate Toffee

Chocolate Toffee

This was the first time I have made toffee and it is so good I can’t stop eating it.  I had to special order the Marcona almonds for this recipe, but I think it was worth it.  Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: 1 cup 

Banana Espresso Chip Muffins

Banana Espresso Chip Muffins

I have really been dragging in the morning this week, so I decided to sneak a little espresso into my morning muffin to help get me moving.  These muffins use dates instead of sugar so they are naturally sweetened.

Ingredients:

3-4 ripe bananas (3 mashed, 1 sliced)

1 cup almond flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 scoop vanilla protein powder

1 cup large, pitted dates

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

¾ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

2/3 cup vanilla nonfat Greek yogurt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon espresso powder

½ cup espresso chips

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray muffin tins with nonstick spray. I made 16 muffins.
  2. Put dates in a bowl with hot water and soak for 20 minutes.  Then drain and pulse in a food processor.
  3. Whisk flours, protein powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, espresso, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.
  4. Add bananas to a stand mixer and beat with a paddle attachment.
  5. Add eggs, vanilla extract, and dates to bananas and beat to mix.
  6. Add yogurt and mix in with wet ingredients.
  7. Gradually add in the dry ingredients until just combined.
  8. Fold in the espresso chips.
  9. Use a large cookie scooper to fill muffin tins. Top each muffin with 1-2 banana slices.
  10. Bake 25-30 minutes.
  11. Cool in muffin tins for at least 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
  12. Store in an air-tight container. Refrigerate after 24 hours.
  13. Enjoy!
Persimmon Muffins with Cranberry Pecan Crumble

Persimmon Muffins with Cranberry Pecan Crumble

I love trying new fruits and vegetables. When I saw fresh persimmons at the grocery store, I bought them and then started looking for recipes once I got home.  I start every morning with a muffin so persimmon muffins seemed like a great idea.  I 

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cupcakes

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cupcakes

It doesn’t take much to motivate me to bake.  I made these to celebrate one of my good friends birthdays shortly before Christmas.  I knew all of my teaching friends would benefit from a caffeine and chocolate boost to help us make it to Christmas 

Cajun Chicken Alfredo

Cajun Chicken Alfredo

I often eat leftovers for lunch, and I was thrilled there was enough to eat this again the following day.  This pasta was packed with flavor and is a recipe I will make again.  I made this in a rush on a night when I had planned a crockpot meal and forgot to put the food in the crockpot in the morning. I whipped this together in a breeze in between getting kids home from school and hopping back online for evening work meetings.

Recipe adapted from Food Network

Ingredients:

2 boneless chicken breasts

½ cup blackened seasoning spice mix or Cajun spice mix

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (or 1 tablespoon olive oil and 2 tablespoons oil from sundried tomatoes)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 cup chopped marinated sun-dried tomatoes

3 cups heavy cream

¾ cup shredded parmesan

1 bell pepper sliced

½ cup sliced scallions

1 cup diced Roma tomatoes

8 ounces pasta (I used green pea penne pasta)

Directions:

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
  2. Slice the chicken into strips.
  3. Dredge the chicken strips in the spice mixture.
  4. Heat a large nonstick skillet on high with 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Blacken the chicken by cooking 2-3 minutes without stirring. Flip and cook on the other side for 1 minute. Remove chicken to a bowl and lower the heat to medium.
  5. Add 2 tablespoons oil, sundried tomatoes, peppers, and garlic.  Cook 2 minutes.
  6. Add the chicken back to the pan.
  7. Add heavy cream and reduce heat to a simmer.
  8. Cook the pasta according to package directions.
  9. Drain the pasta and add to the pan.
  10. Add tomatoes, scallions, and parmesan cheese.  Mix in.  Serve.
  11. Enjoy!
Gingerbread Granola

Gingerbread Granola

I was a little unsure when I read this recipe, but I decided to try it anyway.  These granola bars really do taste like gingerbread cookies, but they are so much healthier. Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: ½ cup dark brown sugar ½ cup 

Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies

Chocolate Mint Chip Cookies

My third son devours anything with mints.  My mother in-law found these mint chips at a little shop and I knew they would be perfect with a chocolate cookie.  Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: 4 ounces baking chocolate 2 cups granulated sugar 2 sticks 

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

My son loves pineapple so he requested a pineapple upside-down cake for his birthday, so I made him one from scratch. Then we topped his cake with tiny marvel characters. 

Recipe adapted from Food Network

Ingredients:

Caramel-

3 tablespoons butter

½ cup light brown sugar

1 can sliced pineapple in pineapple juice

Maraschino cherries (I placed cherries everywhere they would fit)

Cake-

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup applesauce

½ cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup milk

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350.  Spray a 10 inch springboard pan or 9 inch cake pan with nonstick baking spray.
  2. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Add the brown sugar and mix.
  3. Spread the sugar mixture over the base of the cake pan.
  4. Press the pineapple rings and cherries into the sugar mixture.
  5. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
  6. Mix applesauce, sugar, egg, and vanilla in a stand mixer. Blend in the flour mixture milk alternating flour and milk.  Mix until just combined.
  7. Pour the batter carefully into the cake pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Make sure the cake is cooked in the center before attempting to flip.
  8. Use a knife to carefully loosen the cake from the sides of the cake pan. 
  9. Place a serving dish on the top of the cake and invert.
  10. Enjoy!
Citrus Bars

Citrus Bars

I’ll be honest these bars take awhile to prep, but they are worth the effort.  The citrus mixed with sour cherry jam make for a unique dessert you will want to eat all day. Recipe adapted from Food Network Ingredients: Crust- 1 ½ cups all