Blueberry Lemon Muffins

After my husband got called out to plow snow tonight, I got an itching to do a little baking because my attempt to spend the day scrapbooking failed when I ran out of glue tape about an hour into it. I'm a better baker than scrapbooker, so in the end it all worked out for me. The recipe I came up with is an absolute winner and is even on the healthier side! Here they are, Blueberry Lemon Muffins...can I hear a YUM!

For this recipe I wanted to make some larger muffins as well as some regular sized ones. You can see the difference in the picture above. I will be sure to post separate baking times so you can do either way confidently.

Ingredients:
*2 eggs
*1 cup sugar
*1/2 cup oil (I used vegetable oil)
*1/2 tsp almond extract
*1 tsp lemon extract
*1-6 oz container Greek lemon yogurt (I used Chobani)
*1 2/3 cup flour
*1/3 cup ground flax seed meal
*1/2 tsp salt
*1/2 tsp baking soda
*1 1/2 cups blueberries (I used frozen, simply because they are easier to handle)

Directions:
*Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin tins or line with baking cups.
*Mix eggs together and gradually add in sugar, then oil.
*Mix in the almond and lemon extracts.
*In a separate bowl, combine flour, ground flax seed, salt, and baking soda.
*Alternate adding small amounts of dry ingredients and greek yogurt to the egg mixture until all of it is combined together.
*Carefully fold in blueberries. Batter will be thick and somewhat sticky.
*Spoon batter into muffin tins, filling them roughly 2/3 full. If you want larger muffins, but don't have a large muffin tin, you can use 4 oz ramekins, which is what I used.
*Bake regular sized muffins in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean from center. Bake large muffins or ramekins for 35-40 minutes; check with toothpick.

The above picture is a close up of the large muffins I made. The tops got a super nice golden color, but the rest of the muffin is so moist and delicious. I like the larger muffins because of these two reasons alone. You can also make mini sized muffins; just reduce bake time. I would begin checking them after 10 minutes.

These muffins are seriously so easy and so delicous. I've never tried Greek yogurt until tonight, and I actually really like the lemon kind I used in this recipe. The lemon flavor comes out so nicely and pairs wonderfully with the blueberries and almond extract. I didn't start using almond extract until a couple months ago, and I have to say, it's my new favorite ingredient. It makes almost everything I bake taste better! I've been trying to cook healthier, so this was my first attempt to actually BAKE something that was a little healthier as well. By using the Greek yogurt and substituting some of the flour with ground flax seed, I think I accomplished my goal. I hope you give this recipe a try; happy baking :)

Peaches 'N Cream Bars

I love being able to make simple and delicious recipes that take little effort whatsoever. This morning I made these Peaches 'N Cream Bars, and they were scrumptious!

Ingredients:
*1 package dry cake mix, I used yellow, but could use white or french vanilla
*1/3 cup butter, softened
*2 large eggs, divided
*29 oz canned peaches, drained and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
*1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
*1/3 cup sugar
*1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 9x13 pan with cooking spray (I used a glass pan).
*Mix cake mix, softened butter, and 1 egg in mixing bowl until crumbly. Reserve 1 1/2 cups for the topping. Press remaing cake mix into bottom of greased pan. Bake for 10 minutes.
*Spoon cut peaches onto semi-baked crust.
*In mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, 1 egg, and vanilla until creamy. Pour over peaches.
*Sprinkle reserved cake mix over the top of the peaches and cream.
*Bake in over for 30 minutes.
*Allow to cool for an hour before serving. Refrigerate leftovers.

This would taste superb with some vanilla ice cream, so I'm kind of bummed that I don't have any in my freezer! This is a fool proof recipe that even kitchen 'dummies' can make. Happy Baking, All!

Lazy Day Cookie Bars

I was craving something sweet today, but had absolutely no ambition to bake anything. Then I remembered that a while back I had seen a recipe for super easy cookie bars that virtually take no effort at all. I knew it was perfect for the mood that I was in, so I got right to it.

These are probably one of the easiest bars I have ever made. It took me a matter of a couple minutes to throw the ingredients together and the oven did the rest. Here's the recipe for these fool proof, Lazy Day Cookie Bars!

Ingredients:
*1 box yellow cake mix
*2 large eggs
*5 tablespoons melted butter
*1-2 cups mini M&Ms (can use whatever you want, choc chips, nuts, whatever you have on hand)

Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 8x8 pan with cooking spray.
*Dump cake mix in mixing bowl.
*Add eggs and mix together on low.
*Add melted butter and contiue to mix until the three ingredients are incorporated together.
*Stir in mini M&Ms.
*Scoop mix into greased pan and flatten out evenly.
*Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

I baked mine for 25 minutes and after allowing them to cool and cutting into them, I realized they could have been baked for a smidge longer. I checked mine with a toothpick and it came out clean, but they were a tad doughy yet. Just and FYI :)

Happy Lazy Day Baking!!

Raspberry Pie Bars



I give you Raspberry Pie Bars. I have to admit, I did not come up with this recipe on my own. The original recipe was called Blueberry Pie Bars, and they were a-maz-ing! I tweaked the recipe a bit to make it easier for me and just because I thought they were better this way. This time around I wanted to try a fruit other than blueberries since I already knew those rocked. I chose raspberries because I thought they would work much in the same way as the blueberries, but would make the bars a bit sweeter. So, keep in mind that if you don't like raspberries but you do like blueberries, just swap the two ingredients. These bars are so good! The raspberries add a tartness that the blueberries didn't. I would also like to try this recipe with cherries and peaches, but I'll save that for another day :)

Ingredients:

Crust:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/8 tsp salt

3/4 cup butter (softened)

Filling:

2 large eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup sour cream (can be lite)

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp almond extract

12 oz frozen raspberries

Directions:

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8x8 pan with cooking spray and set aside.

*For the crust, add flour, sugar, and salt to mixing bowl and mix together briefly.

*Cut butter into tablespoons and add to mixer. If butter is chilled, after cutting, microwave for 15 seconds to soften. Mix together until butter is cut down and incorporated well with the flour mixture, about a minute. Crust should be crumbly.

*Set 1 1/2 cups of the crust mixture aside for the topping. Press the remainder into the bottom of the greased 8x8 pan.

*For the filling, whisk the eggs using mixer and whisk attachment.

*Add sugar, sour cream, flour, and almond extract.

*Remove bowl from mixer and gently fold in raspberries.

*Pour filling over crust, then sprinkle reserved crust evenly over the top of the filling.

*Bake between 1 hour-1 hour 15 minutes. Allow them to cool for about an hour so they can fully set up before digging in.

Cooking times may vary depending on your oven. You may want to start checking them after 45 minutes or so just to get a feel for where they are at. When the bars are golden brown and no longer jiggle in the middle, they are done.



Creamy Garlic Baked Potato Soup

My husband has been bothering me for literally months to make him potato soup. I, of course, kept saying that I'd eventually get around to doing it. Well, today was the day that seemed like the right time to get creative in the kitchen. I did not follow a recipe for this version of potato soup; I simply threw some of my favorite ingredients together and what I came up with was very, very YUMMY! I give you Creamy Garlic Baked Potato Soup.

Ingredients:
*7 medium potatoes
*9 slices thick cut bacon
*2 tbl butter
*3 garlic cloves (use less if you aren't a huge garlic fan, 2 cloves will work)
*3 tbl flour
*5 cups milk (I used 2%)
*24 oz velveeta cheese (3/4 a box)
*1/3 cup sour cream
*4 tsp cream flavored soup base (optional)
*Parsley
*1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Directions:
*Scrub potatoes and wrap in tin foil. Bake in 425 degree oven for about an hour. After baked, unwrap tin foil and set aside to cool. It helps to cut them in half also.
*Fry bacon in pan and let drain on a paper towel.
*Cut up cheese in 1 inch cubes and set aside.
*Melt butter in large pot on medium heat. Grate garlic cloves into the butter and cook for about a minute. *Turn heat down to medium low after that.
*Add 1 tbl flour and 1/4 cup milk to butter and garlic and whisk together.
*Slowly add in velveeta cheese and the remaining 4 1/4 cups of milk. I alternate, allowing time to melt the cheese and heat the milk. Be sure not to burn the cheese or milk by heating slowly and stirring periodically.
*When the cheese is melted, whisk in the cream flavored soup base and additional 2 tbl flour. It may be lumpy for awhile, but will eventually break down.
*Whisk in the sour cream to the mixture.
*Cut up the potatoes into chunks. I like to leave the skins on some of my potatoes, but remove from at least half of them because the skins make it harder to cut them. It's okay if some of the potatoes fall apart. Once you have them cut up, add them to the soup (which should be creamy by this point, but not real thick) and carefully stir.
*Cut up bacon into small piece. I use scissors because thick cut bacon is harder to crumble. Add this to the soup as well. Save some aside if you want to use as a garnish.
*Add some parsley just for looks basically.
*Allow the soup to cook on low for a good 20 minutes so the flavors can come together.
*When serving, add some cheddar cheese to the top and some bacon pieces.

Soup is chunkier than it looks, but it is hard to get a great picture.

Now, you can also add onion to your soup, but since neither my husband nor I care for them, I skipped putting them in the recipe. If I did like them I would use them as follows: Chop up red onion into small pieces. Add to melted butter in beginning of process and cook down with the grated garlic. I would also use chives as a garnish and for color.

Hope you like my soup and give it a try next time there's cold weather!