confections and musings

i made these morning glory muffins for my daughter’s 2 1/2 year birthday.  yes, we do celebrate 1/2 birthdays.  everyone should.

i made a few tweaks to the recipe to make it a bit healthier…

1. instead of 1 c sugar, i used 1/2 c honey

2. instead of 1/2 c oil, i used 1/2 c applesauce (in addition to the 3/4 c applesauce)

3. instead of 1 c zucchini, i used 2 c carrots

4. i omitted the apple

5. instead of canned pineapple, i pureed fresh pineapple

these muffins were extremely moist and very interesting texture-wise.  crunchy, chewy, soft…it was all going on and i liked it.  my tot loved ‘em and so did my mom friends.  (and of course they loved knowing they were healthy muffins!)  another thing i love about having muffins around is they are a quick, grab-n-go breakfast or anytime snack!

what’s great about this recipe is  you really can add whatever fruits/veggies you want.  it’s FUN to experiment.  now go make someone happy by whipping these muffins up for a 1/2 birthday!***

this here is a super easy recipe for baked chicken that tastes like fried chicken!  all you need is flour and some spices (i actually just used seasoned salt instead of all the spices listed in the recipe because it’s the same thang).  roll your chicken pieces around in the flour ‘n spices a couple of times.  then place the chicken on a broiler pan so the chicken isn’t laying in its own grease.  i baked it for about 1.5 hours, turning the chicken 3-4 times so the skin could get crispy.

lemme tell ya…my husband was gaga for this chicky.  he was actually very excited to be eating it.  he was visibly transformed by the power of the chicken.  elated, he was.  if your man likes a good ol’ fashioned country meal, this is your ticket to his happiness.***

there is a cheeseburger soup served at a local Amish restaurant, Katie’s Kitchen.  i love this soup.  it’s creamy, cheesy, hearty and very much a comfort food, perfect for a cold winter day.  i had a hankering for a bowl of late and wondered if i could find a comparable recipe on the interwebs.  indeed i could.  i found this cheeseburger soup recipe at allrecipes.com.

my only hesitation about trying this recipe was that it called for cubed potatoes whereas Katie’s uses shredded potatoes.  never fear!  it was fantastic with cubed potatoes.  phew!!!  i was also a tad leery about using 1 tsp basil & 1 tsp parsely…ingredients i don’t usually use that much of, but again, it worked.

this is definitely a rich soup, so it would probably be best enjoyed 1-2x/year.  totally my opinion, of course.  my husband & i both thought it was very similar to Katie’s cheeseburger soup.  score!!

and if you ever happen to find yourself in Amish country, please go to Katie’s Kitchen.  better yet, call me and i’ll meet you there.***

i have finally found a perfect baked oatmeal recipe!  a cinch to throw together with simple ingredients you probably already have and absolutely scrumptious!  i made a few changes to the recipe…

1. i only used 1/2 a stick of melted better instead of the whole stick,

2. i used 1/2 cup of brown sugar instead of the full cup,

3. i added 1/4 cup of natural applesauce,

4. and i threw in a pint of blueberries.

i am so excited to have found this recipe…and i’m anxious to experiment with all sorts o’ add-ins…fruits, nuts and what-have-yous.  any suggestions, please let me know!  my friend jenny already suggested dried cherries & almonds.  doesn’t that sound divine??***

my friend desiree first introduced our family to this heavenly, decadent, ‘talian dinner.  it’s a Giada De Laurentiis recipe, so you know it’s good.  this is one of those meals you can only have on special occasions because it’s loaded with fat & calories.  Valentine’s Day last week was the perfect excuse to bust this bad boy out.

this dish combines rigatoni with prosciutto and a ridiculously rich & creamy sauce of butter, flour, milk and fontina cheese.  essentially it’s a real fancy pants mac ‘n cheese.  my kids weren’t big fans, but me & the hubs gobbled this up like nobody’s biz.  but now i guess we have to wait til next year to indulge again…***