2 LARGE eggs 1 1/2 cups WHOLE milk 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce or other fruit purée like mashed banana or even canned pumpkin 1/4 cup nut butter or 2 tablespoons melted unsalted butter or coconut oil 1/4 cup PURE maple syrup orQUALITY honey
1/4 cup packed brown sugar 1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract (see notes) 3 cups old-fashioned oats 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon QUALITY ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon fine salt 1/2 cup chopped nuts, pumpkin or sunflower seeds, coconut flakes, or chocolate chips (optional) 1/2 cup golden raisins or chopped dried fruit of choice or both 😀 (optional)
Preheat oven 350°.
Coat the wells of a standard 12-well muffin tin very well with cooking spray or line with papers.
Add the eggs, milk, applesauce, nut butter, maple syrup, and vanilla in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth.
Add the oats, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt and fold with a rubber spatula until combined.
Fold in fruits, nuts and coconut.
Divide the oatmeal mixture evenly among the muffin wells, filling each one up to the top.
Bake 25-30 minutes until slightly risen, dry on top, and golden-brown.
Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes.
Run a knife around each muffin and remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.
NOTES:
I make my own vanilla and usually have flavored on hand that adds a cit of flavor. I use Coconut Vanilla or Pineapple Vanilla regularly.
I also use Red Ape Cinnamon which is a high quality and extremely flavorful cinnamon.
The nuts, seeds and/or fruit are optional, but HIGHLY recommended. I usually add both nuts or seeds AND coconut.
I also recommend muffin papers to make clean up easier.
Muffins can be kept an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
CRANBERRY ORANGE BREAD Cranberry orange bread is a go to fall favorite for us with its FRESH cranberries and sweet orange glaze. It also makes a wonderful neighbor gift during holiday times.
3 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 cups sugar Zest of 2 LARGE oranges 1 1/2 cups buttermilk 1 cup neutral oil 4 LARGE eggs, lightly beaten 2 tablespoons FRESH orange juice 1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract (see notes) 2 cups FRESH cranberries, halved ½ cup chopped walnuts (Optional)
Preheat oven to 350°.
Spray two 9×5 loaf pans with cooking spray and set aside.
In a large bowl add sugar and orange zest, stirring well to combine.
Add flour, salt, and baking powder, stirring to combine. Set aside.
In a separate medium bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, orange juice, and vanilla.
Slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined.
Fold in the halved cranberries and walnuts if using.
Pour batter into prepared pans.
For regular sized loaf pans, bake for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan. Let cool completely on wire rack.
For mini loaves, bake for 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from oven and set on a cooling rack for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides of the bread with a knife.
For muffins, bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan. Let cool completely on wire rack.
In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest.
Whisk until smooth.
Drizzle the glaze over the bread.
Dust with the powdered sugar if desired.
NOTES:
If your loaf starts to get too brown during cooking, place a piece of aluminum foil over the top to finish baking.
I make my own vanilla so often have great complimentary flavors. This batch was made with a coconut pineapple vanilla.
STORING – Wrap in plastic wrap and store 2-3 days at room temperature.
FREEZING – This cranberry bread freezes beautifully. Cool completely, Wrap well in plastic and ziploc bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature.
STRAWBERRY PINEAPPLE BANANA BREAD 1 cup packed brown sugar 1 cup butter, DIVIDED 2 JUMBO eggs 1 tablespoon QUALITY cinnamon 1/4 cup coconut flavored rum 1/2 cup golden raisins 8 ounces crushed pineapple, drained WELL 1 cup rustic chopped strawberries
2 LARGE, RIPE bananas 1/2 cup crushed walnuts (optional) 1/4 cup sugar 2 1/4 cups AP flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Place the raisins in a small bowl and cover with rum. Set aside to soak for 10 minutes and then drain WELL.
Combine 1 stick of the butter, brown sugar and bananas in a sauce pan cooking until smooth and sugar is dissolved.
Fold in strawberries, pineapple, nuts and raisins.
Stir until well coated & set aside to cool.
Cream softened butter, sugar and eggs until fluffy.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon.
Add this to the creamed mixture gradually until well blended.
Add cooled banana mixture.
Pour into greased and floured pan(s)*
Bake at 350° for 45+ minutes.
*NOTE:* This recipe will make 2 large loaves or 1-2 snack cakes or 18 muffins…
FROSTING (optional) – use this if you want to turn it into a snack cake.
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
Juice of 1 SMALL lemon
1 teaspoons PURE vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
In a medium bowl beat cream cheese and butter until smooth.
Add lemon juice and vanilla. Beat until blended.
Add powdered sugar gradually until well blended and smooth.
Whether you are starting your morning or having a midnight snack these super moist muffins with a blueberry burst in every bite topped with a buttery, sweet, crunchy crumble are a hit. PLUS these are super easy and come together in just minutes! They’ll keep several days IF THEY LAST THAT LONG!
BLUEBERRY SOUR CREAM BREAD & MUFFINS
MUFFINS 2 LARGE eggs 3/4 cup sugar 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup avocado oil 1 1/4 teaspoon PURE vanilla 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 cups FRESH small WILD blueberries** see notes
Preheat the oven 400°.
Line 12 muffin cups with muffin papers or spray with cooking spray.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until fluffy.
Add the sour cream, oil, and vanilla and whisk to combine.
In a larger mixing bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Add the wet ingredients and stir JUST until combined. DO NOT OVERWORK THE BATTER! Overworked batter will not rise very well and will be tough.
Gently fold in the blueberries.
Fill the muffin cups with about 1/4 cup of batter or 3/4 full.
STREUSEL 1/4 cup salted butter 1/4 cup dark brown sugar 1/2 cup all purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon QUALITY cinnamon (I use Red Ape) 1/4 teaspoon salt
Using a cheese grater grate the butter into the flour, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon.
Using a pastry cutter work the butter into the flour mixtures until the mixture resembles course crumbs.
Place 1-2 tablespoons on the top of the muffin batter in each muffin cup.
Bake for 18-22 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
NOTES: FROZEN blueberries can be substituted and they do not need to be defrosted first. Defrosted will also work, but the juices will turn your muffins a little purple. Still tasty, just purple.
2 3/4 cups flour – 350g flour 5.07 ounces – 15 cl lukewarm milk 2 LARGE eggs 1 packet dehydrated baker’s yeast 1/3 cup – (25 grams sugar) + a little to decorate Pinch of salt grated lemon zest 1 3/4 tablespoons (25 grams) softened butter frying oil
powdered sugar lemon curd *or your favorite flavor sour cherry jam *or your favorite flavor
In the bowl of a mini food processor with a dough hook (or in a LARGE bowl if doing it by hand), sift together the flour, yeast, sugar, salt and grated lemon zest.
Add the lukewarm milk and knead just to combine.
Add the whole beaten eggs and mix again to obtain a homogeneous paste.
Add the butter cut into pieces and knead for at least 5 minutes until the dough is very elastic.
Cover dough with clean tea towel & let rise in a warm place about at least 2 hours. (SEE NOTE)
Flatten dough by hand & knead for another minute to remove bubbles.
Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured work surface to 1/4 inch – 5mm thickness.
Cut out circles with a 2 inch (5 cm) cookie cutter diameter and place them on a floured board, cover with the tea towel and leave to rise for another 45 minutes. (SEE NOTE)
Heat the oil in a fryer and when it is very hot try it with a single donut first, it should not color too quickly and will be completely cooked in 2-3 minutes. They should be blonde. When you have found the right temperature you can dip several donuts at the same time.
Immediately dredge them in powdered sugar. Let them cool down on a paper towel. Fill them with jam using a pastry bag. Enjoy!
NOTE: I recently found a WONDERFUL trick for rising dough in the winter. Use a heating pad on LOW under your bowl or tray and everything will rise PERFECTLY!!
PINEAPPLE PEACH BREAD PUDDING is a summer dessert that’s bursting with pineapple and peach flavor, but can be easily converted to just about any flavor you want for any time of the year! Small wild blueberries are a winter favorite.
😀 You can serve it with or without caramel sauce and ice cream 😀
8 cups bread, cubed 3 LARGE eggs 3 tablespoons melted butter 1 cup pineapple yogurt 1 cup WHOLE milk 2 cups Sugar
1 SMALL can pineapple, WELL drained 1 1/2 cups FRESH peaches, peeled, pitted and diced *(see note) ½ cups chopped pecans 1 teaspoon QUALITY cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350°.
Spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray.
In a large bowl beat 3 eggs, add melted butter, yogurt and milk. Add 2 cups sugar slowly, stirring until it is dissolved. Add peaches and bread, mixing well.
Allow mixture to soak into bread 30 minutes.
In a small bowl, stir together 2 Tbsp sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.
Pour the bread mixture into 9×13 baking dish, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. Cover loosely with buttered foil and Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove the foil, sprinkle with the pecans and bake until the top is golden and the center is set, 20 to 25 minutes longer.
CARAMEL SAUCE 1 cup unsalted butter 1 cup heavy cream 1 cup brown sugar
In a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, stir together the butter, heavy cream, and brown sugar, bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low, simmer until the sauce thickens, for about 5 minutes.
Pour over individual bread pudding servings.
Top with vanilla ice cream.
NOTE: You can use canned peaches or even frozen peaches. If using canned peaches be sure to drain them EXTRA well. If I use these I start the draining the night before and just cover them in the fridge over night. If using frozen, thaw them overnight and the drain well.
APPLE PIE STREUSEL MUFFINS adapted from OMG CHOCOLATE DESERTS I made this batch using a Texas size muffin pan, but find they are better as regular size because they are so rich and filling.
CINNAMON STREUSEL TOPPING
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 teaspoon QUALITY cinnamon
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon, add melted butter and stir with a fork until crumbly and set in the fridge until ready to use.
MUFFINS 2 cup all purpose flour 3 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 1/2 teaspoons QUALITY ground cinnamon 2 LARGE eggs 1 cup granulated sugar 1 cup vanilla Greek yogurt 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract 1 ½ cups COMSTOCK apple pie filling, chopped small
Preheat the oven to 400°.
Line standard muffin pan with paper liners and set aside.
Prepare streusel topping and set aside.
In a large bowl stir together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, then set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and granulated sugar until combined.
Whisk in yogurt, oil, and vanilla extract – mixture should be a pale yellow.
Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix everything together by hand. The batter will be quite thick.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins, filling less than two thirds.
Tap the pan onto working surface to remove air bubbles.
Add a heaping tablespoon of chopped apple pie filling on top of batter and gently press the apples into the batter.
Reduce the heat to 375° and place pan in center of shelf.
Bake about 19-22 minutes or until the toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool for 5 minutes in the pan then remove muffins and cool on a wire rack.
Honestly these are great without the glaze, but they are phenomenal with the glaze.
GLAZE 1 cup powdered sugar 1–2 Tablespoons milk
Stir together powdered sugar and milk. If it’s too thin add more powdered sugar, if it’s too thick add more milk.
This is a SUPER easy to use with other meats and/or make sweet instead of savory. Thanks Molly! 😀
NO KNEAD BREAD
Level: Easy Active: 30 min Yield: 6 servings Total: 16 hr 50 min (includes overnight rising and cooling time)
3 cups (400 grams) bread flour, plus more for dusting 2 teaspoons kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast 1 1/3 cups (320 grams) water 8 ounces Genoa salami, diced into 1/4-inch pieces 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh chives Butter, for serving, if desired
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and yeast.
Add the water and stir with a stiff silicone spatula until combined and there are no longer bits of flour, 20 to 30 seconds. (It will be very sticky.)
Cover with saran and let sit on the counter at room temperature overnight, 12 to 18 hours.
Remove saran. It will have a funky, fermented aroma and bubbles.
Sprinkle one-third of the salami and chives over the top.
Using a rubber spatula, fold the outside of the dough over the salami to cover.
Repeat this process two more times until all of the salami and chives are folded in.
Lay a piece of parchment paper on the counter and sprinkle with an even layer of 1/4 cup flour to cover the surface.
Scrape the dough onto the floured parchment and use heavily-floured hands to shape it into a roundish blob.
Press in any exposed salami bits and pinch the dough to seal.
Sprinkle the top with another layer of flour and cover with a piece of saran.
Let sit until the dough has risen by half, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
Place an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 450°.
Place a 3-4 quart lidded Dutch oven on the rack and allow to heat while the oven reaches the desired temperature.
When the dough has proofed, carefully remove the Dutch oven from the oven and remove the lid.
Remove the saran from the bread and using the corners of the parchment lower the bread dough into the Dutch oven parchment and all.
Cover the Dutch oven and bake for 30 minutes.
Remove the lid, then bake until the top is golden brown and crusty, another 10 to 20 minutes.
Let it cool on a rack for about an hour, then slice and serve with butter if desired.
I remembered a target commercial from a few decades ago that featured Betty White making Gingerbread men so thought this was a good day for this recipe in honor of her would be 100th birthday. I even found a youtube of the old commercial.
I have been trying to recreate my grandmother’s gingerbread recipe for years. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to have been written down anywhere and she is no longer with us so I cannot even try to coax it out of her 🙁
Her recipe was super moist, spicy with complex flavors. Each time I try a new recipe that sounds like it might come close I am sorely disappointed time after time. And then I ran across Jane’s recipe from The Heritage Cook. It didn’t sound right, but it sure looked right! So, I decided to give it a try and WHOA with a couple tweaks it’s so darn close that I’m calling it a day on my search.
It was the black pepper that didn’t sound right, but who am I to say that grams didn’t use black pepper? I know she didn’t use fresh ginger, but she may have compensated with a much larger amount of ground ginger.
This REALLY is NOT a timid gingerbread. It is EXTREMELY bold and FULL of bold flavor. This is really NOT like most gingerbread that you remember, but is spicy, bold and flavorful. The taste will linger on your tongue and that’s a good thing. This recipe is PERFECT for the holidays, but truly wonderful year round.
OLD FASHIONED GINGERBREAD – YIELDS 10-12 MUFFINS ADAPTED slightly FROM JANE the HERITAGE COOK 1 cup unsalted butter ½ cup water ¾ cup mild unsulphured molasses (NOT Blackstrap) ¾ cup Lyle’s Golden Syrup or QUALITY flavorful honey or Agave Nectar (see note) 1 cup PACKEDdark brown sugar 3 cups all purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 2 ½ teaspoon ground ginger 1 ½ teaspoon QUALITY ground cinnamon ½ teaspoon allspice ¼ teaspoon ground cloves ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper 3 LARGE eggs, at room temperature ½ cup WHOLE milk 2 packed tablespoons FRESH peeled and grated ginger
Combine the butter, water, molasses, honey and brown sugar in a medium saucepan over low heat stirring frequently until the butter is melted and the ingredients are smoothly incorporated. Remove from the heat and pour into a large aluminum bowl as an aluminum bowl will cool much quicker than those made of other materials.
Set aside and cool to lukewarm. If you are in a hurry you can cool down the bowl by placing it in a cool water bath.
Preheat the oven to 350°.
Lightly grease a muffin tin and set aside. Bundt and loaf pans also work well with this recipe.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice and cloves.
When the molasses mixture has cooled to lukewarm, add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add the milk and stir to combine.
With a wooden spoon fold in the dry ingredients gradually. Gingerbread is like brownies, you don’t want to over mix it.
Stir in the grated ginger.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake in the center of the oven for 45 minutes – 1 hour, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when touched and a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. If making a bundt or loaf pan bake time will be 1 – 1 1/4 hours. If the top is browning too quickly, tent with a piece of foil.
Cool for 10-20 minutes in the pan set on a wire rack, then invert onto the wire rack and cool completely.
Store in the refrigerator to keep it fresh. Bring to to room temperature before serving.
Serve with a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream if desired. A dollop of whipped cream will temper the spiciness a lot.
TIPS & HINTS
Lyle’s Golden Syrup has a delicate butterscotch flavor and it allows the other flavors to shine through. It is a byproduct of refining sugar cane and you can use it in place of corn syrup, maple syrup, or honey. A company that follows fair trade practices and has a low carbon footprint, Lyles has created a product to be proud of.
There are several types of molasses available on the market and using one over another can drastically change the flavor of your baked goods. Unsulphured molasses is the highest quality, made from sun-ripened sugar cane and is from the first boiling in sugar processing while sulphured molasses is made from unripe sugar cane, treated with sulphur fumes, and is from the second boiling. It has a darker color and stronger flavor. The strongest form is called Blackstrap and is the most bitter. Whenever a recipe calls for a specific type of molasses, the balance will be off if you use a different kind.
On a side note Betty White was a fabulous dancer and while I believe she had a stunt double for parts of the season 3 dance scene that starts around the 5 minute mark in this clip, I do remember hearing that she still danced several hours a day well into her 60’s.
I LOVE these bars, but you can only get them once a year at the holidays so a copy cat recipe was a necessity! Not to mention Starbucks charges almost as much for one bar as I can make a WHOLE batch. These taste just like Starbucks in my opinion!
BLONDIE COOKIE BAR LAYER 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, melted 1 1/2 cups PACKED brown sugar 2 LARGE eggs 1 teaspoon PURE orange extract 1 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger Pinch QUALITY cinnamon 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 cups all purpose flour, sifted 1 cup white chocolate chips 3/4 cup Craisins, chopped
Preheat oven to 350°.
Line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper (which makes it easy to lift out of the pan) or spray generously with non-stick baking spray.
Add melted butter and brown sugar to a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer at medium speed.
Add in eggs, orange extract, vanilla extract beating until mixed well.
Add in ground ginger, baking powder, salt and flour, beating JUST until blended. DO NOT OVER MIX!
Fold in white chocolate chips and Craisins by hand.
Spread evenly into the bottom of prepared pan.
Bake 18-22 minutes until set and golden brown at the edges. DO NOT OVER BAKE or your bars will be hard as rocks.
Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.
Allow bars to cool COMPLETELY before frosting.
FROSTING/TOPPING 8 ounces cream cheese, softened 1 1/2-1 3/4 cups powdered sugar 1/2 teaspoon PURE orange extract 1/2 teaspoon PURE vanilla extract 1/3 cup Craisins, chopped SMALL 2 squares white chocolate almond bark, melted
Beat cream cheese and 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy.
Add orange extract and vanilla extract mixing well. If too thin, add remaining powdered sugar.
Top cooled bars with frosting.
Sprinkle with chopped Craisins and drizzle the white chocolate almond bark over the top.
Cut into triangles or squares. I recommend chilling them for at least an hour before serving and keeping them in an airtight container chilled to store.
Enjoy!
NOTES:
This recipe works as a gluten free bar really well. Swap out the all purpose flour for Bob’s Red Mill or King Arthur Flour.
They freeze REALLY well! Be sure to thaw overnight before serving.
