Berry Muffins =)

Mixed Berry Muffin

• 1 box muffin mix (I used blueberry since the blueberries come separate)
• 1/2 cup thawed frozen berries
• 1/4 cup strawberry jelly
• 1/3 cup milk

1. Combine muffin mix, milk and jelly... don't worry it's not going to look smooth because of the jelly.

2. Slowly fold in the berries.

3. Bake in a 425 oven for 16 minutes.


Overall: These were really good. I was trying to substitute the vegetable oil for something else. Normally I resort to applesauce but since I was sans applesauce, I opted for trying Strawberry jelly. It worked nice, but as the muffins cooled they got a bit stickier. But I loved adding the frozen fruit instead of using the prepackaged blueberries that came with the muffin mix. It was awesome. That being said I'm going to stick with substituting applesauce for oil when I feel the need to be health(ier)...

Pumpkin Waffles with Maple Cream Cheese

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup cream cheese (rm temp)
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 3 eggs, separated
  
• 4 tbsp melted butter

Directions

1. whisk cream cheese and maple syrup together until blended
2. heat pumpkin on a small sauce pan, about 5 minutes
3. combine all dry ingredients into large bowl
   
4. in a seperate bowl, combine milk and eggs
5. stir the pumpkin and butter to wet ingredients
6. Brush waffle iron lightly with oil and heat.
7. Stir wet ingredients into dry. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form
8. fold egg whites into batter. ]
9. ladle into waffle iron. enjoy =)

Overall: So for the record, these were made by my roommate and his awesome vegetarian cookbook/dictionary... Came home from shopping to this being made. Super awesome flavors and just a great treat. So good, they barely made it to a plate....

Happy Labor Day!

I suppose monday nights are my nights for making food. A few friends and I have been getting together for dinners the past week for watching House M.D. (Which is the greatest show ever). Last week I made some chicken salad, which I haven't written about yet because I've been lazy. This week my two friends brought the main dish (Nummy Sandwiches) and I brought this:

Banana Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for preparing the pan
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 very ripe bananas, peeled, and mashed with a fork (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces

Directions:
Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl, set aside. (No I didn't...) Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a liquid measuring cup with a spout, set aside (No...). Lightly brush a 9 by 5 by 3-inch loaf pan with butter (I had a 8x8 pan that I sprayed with Pam. Also, Instead of using 0.5 cup of butter I might have used 0.33 cup of butter and added one of those to-go apple sauce containers). Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or with an electric hand-held mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually pour the egg mixture into the butter while mixing until incorporated. Add the bananas (the mixture will appear to be curdled, so don't worry), and remove the bowl from the mixer.
With a rubber spatula, mix in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Fold in the nuts and transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean (This was ~40 minutes for an 8x8). Cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Turn the bread out of the pan and let cool completely on the rack. Wrap in plastic wrap. The banana bread is best if served the next day.

Overall: So this bread was a hit at the little House party. The roomates devoured the bread, which is cool because I still have 3 more bananas that need to be made into something delicious. The bread was moist, a few people described it as "buttery", which maybe a compliment but I cut back on the butter a little bit so maybe it was the applesauce?

Some people don't know but subsituting applesauce (normally for oil & especially in cake mixes) is healthier and doesn't taste different at all. It worked great in this recipe.