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CIC: Apples & Chives

~ lk529 ~ 6 Comments

CIC-header

The ingredients I voted for actually won this month’s Crazy Ingredient Challenge! It did come down to a one vote swing though for the chives over graham crackers. I have to say, graham crackers and apples wouldn’t be that “crazy” so I’m glad chives took the lead.

I didn’t think this combination would be too difficult though. I ended up being surprised. I kept thinking of some sort of tart or pie type dessert, but honestly, I didn’t have the time (or energy) for that. I then decided to try making an apple jelly with chives. I found a two-ingredient jelly using just apple juice and honey and thought, “Now that I have time for!” I think I cooked the mixture too long because what I ended up with something closer to a candy. Had I realized it was candy I wouldn’t have put it in an ice cream dish to cool and instead have spread it on a baking sheet. The aforementioned ice cream dish was sacrificed to the garbage can (good thing it was a 59 cent thrift store find!). It was now back to the drawing board.

I settled on an Apple and Cheddar muffin recipe. I simply swapped cinnamon for chives. The batter really reminded me of a corn bread (although with flour instead of cornmeal) so I decided to bake these in my Mini Loaf Pan instead of a muffin tin. But then I ran into a dilemma of what to call these guys! They weren’t flakey enough to be biscuits, but lighter than a savory scone would be, and it wasn’t a muffin at this point. So… mini loaves it is!

We loved these mini loaves. They were a great accompaniment to some buttermilk brined chicken and green beans. The loaves were also begging to be dunked in a warm bowl of soup or chili or paired with eggs in the morning. I found them best eaten the same day however the do warm up nicely in the microwave.

Apple Cheddar Chive Mini Loaves

Ingredients:

  • 2 C flour
  • 1/3 C sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 C shredded cheddar cheese
  • 1/3 C shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 1 tbsp chopped fresh chives
  • 1 egg
  • 1 C buttermilk
  • 1/4 C vegetable oil
  • 1 large Granny Smith apple, peeled

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9-well mini loaf pan or a 12-well muffin pan.
  2. In a large bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the cheese.
  3. In a small bowl whisk the egg with buttermilk and oil. Stir into the dry ingredients.
  4. Shred the apple over the bowl and fold into the batter.
  5. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 20 minutes, until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow loaves to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

*This recipe is adapted from http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/apple-cheddar-muffins*

Apple Cheddar Chive Mini Loaves for Crazy Ingredient Challenge from Sew You Think You Can Cook

To see the other bloggers who participated in this month’s Crazy Ingredient Challenge click on the link below.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. 

Apple Chicken Chorizo Meatloaf

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

Confused?

Don’t worry, we are too.

This meatloaf started out with all intentions of being hamburgers. The original recipe called for ground pork, but my grocery store didn’t have any so I went with chicken instead. And then I messed with the ratios because I didn’t need 2 lb + worth of burger meat. The result? A mixture so sticky that there was no way it’d become burgers. So, we threw in some bread crumbs. And then I decided to just stick it in a loaf pan and hope for the best because even still, there was no way this meat mixture would survive a grilling.

While I was trying to imagine what this would taste like, I couldn’t get breakfast off my mind – probably because of the apple. If the burgers had worked out I wanted to figure out some sort of maple-mustard or maple-mayo concoction. Now that it’s a meatloaf I could’ve tried some sort of maple-barbecue-ketchup mixture to put over top but I simply didn’t have the energy to try making something up.

We ended up eating this meatloaf with syrup instead of kethcup. Quite tasty! The meatloaf reminded me of a gourmet sausage from a fancy butcher or deli. This meatloaf is one that could actually work as a breakfast option, just add a fried egg!

Apple Chicken Chorizo Meatloaf

Ingredients:

  • 1 lb ground chicken
  • 1 link Mexican chorizo, casing removed
  • 1 Fuji apple, shredded
  • 1/4 tsp minced garlic
  • 1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp dried thyme
  • 1/2 C panko bread crumbs

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.
  2. In a large bowl combine all ingredients with your hands until incorporated. Place in prepared loaf pan.
  3. Bake 35-40 minutes, or an internal temperature of 165 degrees F is reached.

Apple Chicken Chorizo Meatloaf | Sew You Think You Can Cook

SRC: Apple Cinnamon Muffins

~ lk529 ~ 21 Comments

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It’s Secret Recipe Club Reveal Day! In the Secret Recipe Club, each participating blogger is assigned a blog from another participating blogger and secretly searches their site for something to recreate. The accompanying blog post then goes live on reveal day! So while I was immersed in my assigned blog, someone else was picking through mine! I’m so excited to be part of this group, to see what on my blog peaks other’s interests and to stumble upon new blogs and new recipes.

This month I was assigned the blog Life on Food written by Emily. (Emily was charged with my blog last month!) Emily has been blogging since 2008 so there was an incredible recipe index to search through. She has a few different ways to search through her files: by course, by key ingredient, alphabetically, and the most intriguing by cooking method.

I took the alphabetical route and almost stopped at “A”! I didn’t, though, and after making my way through I had 11 recipes to decide between! I was all set to make Maple Cinnamon Quick Bread until I realized it was a previous SRC post. As I had cinnamon on the brain, I wanted to make her Apple Cinnamon Donuts (although mine would have been mini muffins) but I couldn’t fine apple cider in stores just yet – don’t worry, it’s almost fall. As you can see I took the “next best thing” and went with Apple Cinnamon Muffins.

In retrospect I should’ve gone with a savory item on my list because the amount of baking that’s been happening in my kitchen is completely uncharacteristic of me! Caramelized Brussels Sprouts will definitely need to happen next time my in-laws are in town, Angel Hair with Corn, Feta, and Tomato would be perfect for this summer’s produce, and that 1905 Dressing sounds like a much healthier option to muffins…

IMG_5369But who doesn’t love muffins!? Especially when they’re bursting with apples! My little man definitely approved.

This recipe makes 12 large muffins.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 1 stick butter, softened
  • 1 C sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 C flour
  • 1 C white whole wheat flour
  • 3 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 C unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 apple, peeled and diced

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin tray with liners.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.
  4. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the applesauce to the stand mixer, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Fold in the diced apple.
  5. Divide batter evenly between the 12 muffin tins. Bake 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly.

*This recipe is adapted from Emily at http://lifeonfood.blogspot.com/p/recipes.html?recipe_id=6043170*

Apple Cinnamon Muffins for Secret Recipe Club from Sew You Think You Can Cook

To see the other bloggers who participated in the Secret Recipe Club this month click here:

CIC: Cranberry & Gingerbread Spice

~ lk529 ~ 3 Comments

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It’s been quite a while since I’ve participated in the Crazy Ingredient Challenge – 4 months to be exact! The problem with squash and melon allergies is that come Fall I have to hide under a rock.

December’s ingredients though are ingredients that I can not only eat but ingredients I even like! They also happen to be ingredients we’ve seen before. Last November we paired Gingerbread Spice with Onion, when I made a very festive onion jam. This July we put Cranberries with Shallots and I made delicious Brussels sprouts.

The combination of two sweet ingredients, cranberries and gingerbread spice, wasn’t as tricky as the two challenges mentioned above. But fun all the same. I was really tempted to make gingerbread cupcakes with a cranberry cream cheese frosting, but we really didn’t need anymore sweets around right now. I thought about going the breakfast route, with cranberry syrup and gingerbread waffles. But this is a crazy ingredient challenge and I already have gingerbread waffles on the blog!

Then, thanks to my wonderful neighbors, I got the idea to do applesauce. Last week we were hit with a stomach bug and my neighbors put a little care package on our front step – soups, sodas, crackers, and applesauce. Applesauce is now my new go-to snack during the day. (It has replaced raisins, if anyone’s curious.)

This cranberry applesauce would be a great alternative to cranberry sauce on your holiday table. Using gingerbread spice instead of cinnamon gives it more of a festive flair.

Cranberry Applesauce

Ingredients:

  • 3 apples, peeled and chopped
  • 1/2 C fresh cranberries
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 3/8 C water
  • 1 tsp gingerbread spice

Steps:

  1. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce to medium low and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mash to desired consistency and allow to cool.

*This recipe is adapted from Martha at http://www.marthastewart.com/326493/cranberry-applesauce*

cranberry apple sauce

To see the other bloggers who participated in this month’s Crazy Ingredient Challenge click on the link below.

#BundtBakers: Caramel

~ lk529 ~ 19 Comments

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This month’s edition of #BundtBakers is a little different. No, you won’t notice anything unique about this month compared to any of the previous #BundtBakers events but behind the scenes I’ve gotten to try my hand at hosting! #BundtBakers is a group of bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bundts with a common ingredient or theme. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme or ingredient.

Because Halloween happens this month I chose the ingredient of Caramel. I considered making candy the ingredient of choice but I couldn’t get Caramel Apples out of my mind. Looking at the day’s offerings it looks like I wasn’t alone! And there are even two recipes that use some popular Halloween candy in their bundts!

I must admit though, in all of my excitement at getting to host this month I ended up scrambling to make my bundt. Thankfully our leader Stacy of Food Lust People Love sent me a friendly reminder. If you’ve been following me on Instagram you may have noticed that I am in the market for a planner. If I had a super fun beautiful planner I wouldn’t have gotten my weeks messed up and this bundt would’ve been made in a less stressful environment. When it comes to #BundtBakers I’ve usually completed my cake and blog post by the first of the month!

But it all worked out in the end. My mother-in-law was visiting over the long weekend and although we had to lose some sewing time I got to bake with her! I did use a boxed cake mix as I was in a rush and because it was due to expire next week! I haven’t used a box mix in quite some time, hence it was about to expire. I needed to adjust the cooking time to accommodate for the deeper baking vessel. Feel free to use your favorite chocolate cake recipe if you so desire, but a little “semi-homemade” action isn’t a bad thing. It’s the apple crumble and the homemade caramel that set this cake apart.

Chocolate Caramel Apple Bundt 1

Chocolate Caramel Apple Bundt Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1 box chocolate cake mix and ingredients required (or use your favorite chocolate cake recipe)
  • 1 1/2 C brown sugar, divided use
  • 1/2 C heavy cream
  • 10 tbsp butter, divided use
  • pinch of salt
  • scant 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 C flour
  • 1/2 C old-fashioned oats
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 C finely diced green apple

Steps:

  1. Prepare boxed cake mix to instructions. Pour batter into a well greased bundt pan and bake until a knife inserted comes out cleanly. Allow to cool. (I baked mine at 325 degrees F for 40 minutes.)
  2. Make caramel: In a saucepan over medium-low heat, combine 1 C brown sugar, heavy cream, 4 tbsp butter, and salt. Once butter melts cook stirring constantly for 8 minutes until thick. Add vanilla and cook another 2 minutes. Allow to cool.
  3. Make crumble: In a large bowl whisk together 1/2 C brown sugar, flour, oats, and cinnamon. Cut 6 tbsp butter into cubes and fork into oat mixture until a crumble consistency is achieved. Pat the diced apple dry with a paper towel before adding to the crumble.
  4. When cake is cooled remove from bundt pan and cut a well in the top. Fill well with crumble and top with 1/2 C of the prepared caramel.

*This cake was inspired by Averie at http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/10/caramel-apple-cheesecake-crumble-bars.html *

Chocolate Caramel Apple Bundt 2

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. All recipes and photographs can be found on our individual blogs, on our Pinterest board, and the #bundtbakers homepage.

And don’t forget to take a peek at what other talented bakers have baked this month:

Apple Butter Bundt Cake with Cider Caramel Glaze by Cassie of Cassie’s Kitchen

Apple Pecan Bundt Cake with Caramel Glaze by Aisha of La Cocina de Aisha

Brown Butter Praline Bundt Cake with Salted Caramel Drizzle by Tux of Brooklyn Homemaker

Caramel Apple Bundt Cake by Kaylin of Keep it Simple, Sweetie

Caramel Banana Bundt Cake by Kathya of Basic N Delicious

Caramel Cake with Caramel Cream Cheese Icing by Rebekah of Making Miracles

Caramel Chocolate Bundt Cake by Natalia of Principiando en la Cocina

Caramel/Chocolate La Belle Helene by Jelena of A Kingdom for a Cake

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Caramel Sauce by Laura of Baking in Pyjamas

Cornmeal Bundt Cake with Caramel Popcorn by Patricia of Patty’s Cake

English Toffee Bundt with Drunken Dulce Drizzle by Stacy of Food Lust People Love

Fall Classic Caramel Bundt Cake by Maleka of La Luna en Dulce

Fair Toffee Apple Bundt by Jane of Jane’s Adventures in Dinner

Milky Way Bundt Cake by Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm

Salted Caramelized White Chocolate Glazed Butterscotch Pecan Bundt Cake by Laura of The Spiced Life

Snickers Bundt Cake with Caramel Glaze by Bea and Mara of I Love Bundt Cakes

Spiced Apple Bundt Cake with a Caramel Brickle Drizzle by Teri of The Freshman Cook

Spiced Caramel and Pear Bundt Cake by Rocío of Kids&Chic

Three Flavor Zebra Bundt Cake – Vanilla, Caramel and Chocolate by Caro of En la Cocina de Caro

#BundtBakers: Autumn Harvest

~ lk529 ~ 24 Comments
BundtBakers

This month #BundtBakers is welcoming Fall with some beautiful bundts. #BundtBakers is a group of bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bundts with a common ingredient or theme. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme or ingredient. This month’s theme is Autumn Harvest and our creative host is Tux of Brooklyn Homemaker.

Our theme allowed for a lot of posibilities – from apples and pears, to pumpkins and carrots, to cranberries and figs.

My very first #BundtBakers recipe, my Busia’s Fresh Apple Cake, would have been a perfect fit here. I did stick with apple but added dried cranberries too! I’ve been wanting to try baking with applesauce and this recipe allowed me to do just that. Busia’s sister-in-law even thought I had used her recipe! The addition of the dried cranberries gave it a freshness and tart bite.

Dad and I disagreed on whether or not this cake needed frosting. I found it to be perfect just as is – to me, it’s almost like a banana bread instead of a cake. I may or may not have had it for breakfast…  I hope you give it a try and let me know what you think – to frost or not to frost?

Applesauce Cranberry Bundt

Ingredients:

  • 2 stick butter
  • 2 C sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 C flour
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp nutmeg
  • 2 1/2 C cinnamon applesauce
  • 2 C dried cranberries

Step:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease bundt pan.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs one at a time.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and spices.
  4. Add in the flour and applesauce alternately, beginning and ending with the flour.
  5. Fold in the cranberries.
  6. Pour into bundt pan and bake 40 minutes. Increase oven temperature to 350 degrees F, gently cover with aluminum foil and bake another 20-25 minutes, or until a knife comes out cleanly.

*This recipe is adapted from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/applesauce-raisin-cake/*

Applesauce Cranberry Bundt

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email with your blog URL to foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com. All recipes and photographs can be found on our individual blogs, on our Pinterest board, and the #bundtbakers homepage.

And don’t forget to take a peek at what other talented bakers have baked this month:

Sweet Potato Brioche Bread by Jane of Jane’s Adventures in Dinner

Pumpkin and Chocolate Bundt Cake by Aisha of La Cocina de Aisha

Applesauce Walnut Raisin Cake by Rene of Magnolia Days

Chocolate Zucchini Bundt by Tara of Noshing with the Nolands

Fig and Caramelized Walnuts Bundt Cake by Beatriz of I Love Bundt Cakes

Spiced Pumpkin Bundt Cake by Kaylin of Keep it Simple, Sweetie

 Sherried Pumpkin Bundtlettes by Laura of The Spiced Life

Sweet Potato Pecan Spice Cake with Toasted Pecan Glaze by Stacy of Food Lust People Love

Harvest Bundt Cake by Tammy of Living the Gourmet

Pumpkin and Apples Bundt Cake by Kathya of Basic N Delicious

Old Fashioned Kushaw Bundt by Margaret of Tea and Scones

Pumpkin Espresso Bundt by Kelly of Passion Kneaded

Spiced Harvest Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Glaze by Tux of Brooklyn Homemaker

Applesauce Spice Bundt Cake by Carola of En La Cocina de Caro

Carrot Bundt Cake with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting by Cassandra of Cassie’s Kitchen

Triple Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Bundt Cake by Terri of Love and Confections

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Bundt Cake with Pomegranate Syrup by Patricia of Patty’s Cake

Chocolate Caramel Apple Bundt Cake by Teri of The Freshman Cook

Mini Apple Cobbler Bundt Cakes with Cinnamon Glaze by Lauren of From Gate to Plate

#BundtBakers: Spice

~ lk529 ~ 22 Comments
BundtBakers

I am happy to announce that I have joined another group of bloggers. #BundtBakers is a group of bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bundts with a common ingredient or theme. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme or ingredient. This month’s host is Deepti from Baking Yummies.

Stuart was not thrilled that I signed up for a baking group. He has been complaining that there are too many sweets around the house. Normally that wouldn’t really be a true statement but it seems 2014 has brought with it the “need to bake” with the Olympics, Valentine’s Day, cookies for bowling that turned into rice krispie treats for us, Mardi Gras, and Pi Day there really have been a lot of goodies on our counter. Including sweets from his mom and aunt!

I even think he was trying to sabotage my participation efforts by hiding the bundt pan above the refrigerator. (Note: I’m 4’11”) And “knowing” that I do my baking when he is out training for a race or playing golf it could become impossible for me to make my cake!

Luckily I have a little step stool that I bought my freshman year of college to help me get up in my bed, which we raised to put the mini-fridge underneath. This little stool has been with me since and has even come in handing reserving a parking space during football weekends!

For my first bundt I am making one of my busia’s recipes. Apple Bundt Cake. But to follow the theme of spice I added 1 tbsp of cinnamon to the batter. The baking time of 1:20 was almost torturous – the aromas of baking apples and cinnamon – but that’s nothing compared to the hour you must allow it to cool before making the sauce which finishes off the cake with a glaze of heavenly brown sugar.

P.S. – Stuart, although telling me he was mad at me, greatly enjoyed this cake!

Fresh Apple Cake

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 C vegetable oil
  • 1 3/4 C sugar
  • 4 medium eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3 C four
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 2 C chopped peeled apples
  • 1/2 C butter
  • 1/2 C brown sugar
  • 2 tsp milk

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a bundt pan.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer beat oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.
  3. In a large bowl sift flour and mix with baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
  4. Add flour to egg mixture in 3 batches, making sure each addition is combined. With a spatula, fold in the chopped apples.
  5. Pour batter in prepared bundt pan and bake 1 hour 20 minutes. Let cool 1 hour.
  6. In a small sauce pan bring butter, brown sugar, and milk to a boil. Let boil for two minutes. Spoon over bundt pan and spread until cake is covered.

Apple Bundt Cake

If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, send an email to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove@gmail.com or ask to join our private Facebook group. This is a purely administrative group. All recipe and photographs can be found on our individual blogs or on our Pinterest board.

And don’t forget to take a peek at what other talented bakers have baked this month:

Orange Cardamom Mini Bundt Cakes by Alice at Hip Foodie Mom

Cinnamon Roll Bundt Cake by Tara at Noshing With The Nolands

Sweet Potato Pound Cake by Renee at Magnolia Days

Rum & Ginger Grapefruit Cake by Kelly at Passion Kneaded

Apple Cinnamon Bundt Cake by Kathya at Basic N Delicious

Spiced Applesauce Bundt Cake with Brown Sugar Rum Glaze by Lauren at From Gate to Plate

Saffron and Tahitian Vanilla Infused Bundt Cake by Laura at The Spiced Life

Honey and Beer Spiced Bundt Cake by Felice at All That’s Left Are The Crumbs

Saffron Vanilla Bean and Orange Mini Bundt Cake by Deepti at Bakingyummies

Peach and Spiced Tea Bundt Cake by Stacy at Food Lust People Love

Spiced Apple Popsicles

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

I found these popsicle molds at Walmart at the beginning of summer for $1. I’d been wanting to use them, but I never got around to it. Before I knew it summer was over! But hey, I live in Florida, it’s still hot out, so therefore I can still enjoy homemade popsicles!

Evan couldn't get enough!
Evan couldn’t get enough!

This recipe is actually a perfect way to end the summer and start the fall – they taste like the Motts cinnamon applesauce from when I was a kid. Stuart said they reminded him of an apple cobbler.  These fall flavors are wrapped in a summer treat! I’ve made them twice already and earned the seal of approval from a 17-month-old. Evan actually ran around the table after finishing his popsicle to try and steal the one Stuart hadn’t yet finished!

Spiced Apple Popsicles

Ingredients:

  • 2 C Simply Apple Juice
  • 1/4 C brown sugar
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 3 whole allspice berries
  • 1/2″ piece of ginger root, peeled
  • pinch of kosher salt

Steps:

  1. Combine ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil. Turn off the heat and bring down to room temperature.
  2. Strain popsicle mixture into a measuring cup and pour into popsicle molds. Freeze.
  3. Run the popsicle mold under cold water to make popsicle removal easier.

*This recipe is adapted from Giada DeLaurentiis at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/sweet-apple-pops-recipe/index.html*

Spiced Apple Popsicles 1 Spiced Apple Popsicles 2