Cinnamon Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins

Fall=pumpkin EVERYTHING! A couple weeks ago, I used this pumpkin bread recipe to make a batch of yummmy of fall flavored bread. To enhance the flavor, I made a cinnamon cream cheese glaze to go on top. It was delicious. I don't have mini loaf pans, so the bread was a bit thick for something so decadent and flavorful. I thought it might be fun to try making them as muffins. So I started playing around. The result? These little cream cheese filled pumpkin muffins. My husband was ALL over them. He absolutely loved them... so I'd say they're a hit. :)

For the original bread recipe click here. Below is my recipe, with the substitutions and additions I made. As I previously stated in my chicken fried quinoa recipe, I do a lot of cooking by taste. So when you see a ** next to something.. just know the amount may need to be more or less depending on how yours tastes. :)

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins

1 15 oz can pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons Coconut Oil
1 cup Sorghum
2-3 tablespoons Agave nectar**
2 eggs
1-1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 heaping teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 heaping teaspoon group cloves
1/2 heaping teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Cream Cheese Filling

1 8 oz package of cream cheese
1/4 cup agave nectar **
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon cinnamon**

-*IN ADVANCED* Prepare cream cheese filling by mixing ingredients together and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare muffin pan with cupcake liners.

-In a large bowl, mix together the pumpkin, oil, sorghum, agave, and eggs. 

-In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. 

-Stir flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture until well blended. 

-Using cookie scoops, spoon enough of the batter to thinly cover the bottom of the cupcake liner. Put a dollop of the cream cheese filling, then cover with remaining dough in scoop.

-Bake in preheated oven for 20-24 minutes.

Chicken Fried Quinoa

Quinoa has been become our newest must have of the summer... Andrew loves to eat it for breakfast, and we've had it cooked several different ways. The cool thing about quinoa is, although it is a grain, it is the only grain that is a complete protein! And if you know my husband {or have just looked at him, for that matter} you know that he likes to get as much protein as he can possibly out of a meal. So, I started searching Pinterest for some recipes that used quinoa. I found this one and instantly wanted to try it, because we both are big fans of fried rice. Weeellll I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I am really bad about that, but i did use it as a great base! For the original recipe {which I am sure is to die for} click the link above ^^ or ...just click this one. >>> Original Recipe. 

Here's what I did. Take my measurements with a grain of salt... I didn't measure anything, so I'm just estimating the amount that I used. If you feel it needs more, add more, if you feel like it's too much, put less! :)

Ingredients:

1 cup Quinoa

2 cups Chicken broth (I used low sodium)

1/2 package of frozen peas and carrots

1/2 a medium size onion, chopped

2 eggs, fried with popped yoke, and chopped

Coconut Oil

2 cups cooked chicken breast

1 cup low sodium Teriyaki sauce, divided

2 tablespoons Low Sodium Soy Sauce

1 teaspoon ginger

Directions:

-Start by chopping up your chicken breast into bite size pieces. Add chicken, 1/4 cup your teriyaki sauce and ginger to a bowl and set aside to marinade. {you can skip the marinading and just put all of that in a pan to cook if time is limited}

-Add quinoa and chicken broth to a pan, cook as package directs.

-If you haven't started cooking your chicken yet, now would be a good time to start it.
-Chop onion and add to a non-stick pan or wok with 2 or so teaspoons of coconut oil. Add the frozen veggies. Cook until thawed and warmed through
-Add cooked quinoa, fried eggs, remaining teriyaki sauce, and soy sauce. {feel free to add more sauce if you think it needs more... remember I didn't actually measure it. ;)}
-At this point I usually create a little whole in the middle of all the quinoa so I can see the bottom of the pan, and I add more coconut oil... it is called *fried* rice, you know. There's probably an easier way of doing this, but I don't feel like dirtying another pan, or taking all the stuff out! :)

-Mix it all together, then add the cooked chicken.

-Let it cook/fry for 5-7 minutes or until you feel like it's done. 

-Plate it and serve. Eat with chop sticks or, if you're a wimp, a fork. 

Mmmm-mmm! 

This has become one of our favorite meals. Andrew loves it.. and it is super easy. I just love making it! It does make a lot though, so make sure you are using a big enough pan or you're going to make a big mess! :)

Chicken Cordon Bleu

 This is the best chicken cordon bleu you will ever taste... I made this for dinner tonight, and it is absolutely delicious. The sauce adds that little something extra and is just to die for! Mmmm mmm I was really nervous making this {I always am when I try new recipes} because my dad and my uncle were going to be joining us. So the fact that it was a new recipe, and we were having people over really put the pressure on... but this recipe definitely hit one out of the park and was completely devoured by the 3 men at my table.  ;)

Ingredients

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

6 slices Swiss cheese
6 slices ham
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (I used Italian bread crumbs instead.. so I didn't use the paprika)
1 teaspoon paprika
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup dry white wine (If you'd rather not use wine in your cooking, chicken broth would great work, too. Just omit the chicken bouillon)
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup heavy whipping cream (I try and stay away from using straight cream in my cooking, so for this I used a mixture of about 3/4 cup milk to 1/4 cup cream. Give or take a bit. ;))

Pound the chicken breasts out until they are about 1/2 inch thick. Fold the edges of the chicken over the filling, and secure with toothpicks. Mix the flour and paprika in a small bowl, and coat the chicken pieces. Lightly egg wash the chicken pieces, then cover them in Italian bread crumbs.

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook the chicken until browned on all sides. Add the wine and bouillon. (Or Chicken Broth) Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear.  
OR brown the chicken on all sides in the pan, remove from pan and place in a greased baking dish and finish in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes, or until juices run clear. And for the sauce, follow the original directions minus the chicken. :)
 
 Remove the toothpicks, and transfer the breasts to a warm platter. Blend the cornstarch with the cream in a small bowl, and whisk slowly into the skillet. Cook, stirring until thickened, and pour over the chicken. Lick your lips and dig in! :)

Greek Yogurt Pancakes

These pancakes are the easiest, healthiest and tastiest pancakes I have ever had. I found this recipe on Pinterest a few weeks ago when we were in Florida. Yay for Pinterest!

 Andrew and I started eating a lot of Greek yogurt in Florida, so when I saw this recipe I thought it would be a fun one to try, but I really didn't think it would work (or be good) because there were so few ingredients. I never had the chance to try them in Florida, I was bummed. But Monday was a rain day here so Andrew got to stay home! *Happy me* :) He convinced me to try them, but I was still skeptical. I even had a back up recipe ready just in case these didn't turn out....Needless to say, I didn't have to use that back up recipe because we LOVED these. They are so delicious and actually pretty healthy. Andrew figured out that each batch has about 40 grams of protein. Another reason why he loved them so much, he ate 7! :)

I really didn't change much of this recipe, I just used some different ingredients. I will put what I did in italics next to the original ingredients. :)

Ingredients:
(Makes about 4 medium/large pancakes, I made 2 batches and made them on the more small/medium side)

6 oz container of Greek yogurt, vanilla or your favorite flavor (I used 3/4 cup of plain non-fat Greek yogurt)
1 egg
1/2 cup Flour (I used whole wheat)
1 tsp baking soda
(To make up for the lack of sweetness from the flavored yogurt, I poured a little bit of maple syrup in to the batter to sweeten it. I'm sure honey or even agave would work as well.)

::In a bowl, mix the yogurt and egg together well. The resulting mixture should be pale yellow in color and have a few lumps here or there.

::Mix flour and baking soda together. Do NOT be generous with your half cup of flour, make sure you measure it out, maybe even do slightly less than a half a cup.

::Slowly pour yogurt and egg mixture in to flour and baking soda.

::Stir together until combined. The batter will be extremely thick, don't worry, it's suppose to be that way. (If you need to sweeten it now would be a good time to do it.)


::Spoon batter on to a sprayed medium/high griddle, flip when bubble appear on top. (I spread mine out a little with my spoon, but don't worry they will melt some as they cook)

::Enjoy.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Again, like the cake dots, the idea for this pizza came from having it out in a restaurant and falling in love! California Pizza Kitchen has the BEST BBQ chicken pizza ever! Oh, it is so good. I love it so much, I decided to try and make it at home... because we all know homemade pizza is the best pizza there is! :)

 I've made this pizza twice now, and each time it has been a hit. Sadly there has never been any leftovers. haha So I've decided to share it. I'm going to try and give you measurements of the ingredients, but honestly, it's all to taste. If you are a strict recipe follower, this might not be for you... that, or you'll just have to let loose for this one. :)

I'm going to be completely honest with you... i cheated. I didn't make the dough. Our grocery store here just makes it so easy, they have freshly made pizza dough that you can purchase right from the bakery. All you have to do is, bring it home, let it rise, and the roll it out! So easy. They even have whole wheat, which is even better! So, if you're looking for the crust recipe... sorry, it would just be totally dishonest if I posted one, because I didn't make it.... BUT my favorite-ist, role model chef Giada De laurentiis has a simple pizza dough recipe that you could use if you don't already have one. :)

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:

Your favorite pizza dough, rolled out into your favorite shape pizza to desired thickness

2-3 thinly cut chicken breasts

Mozzarella cheese

BBQ sauce {I used honey BBQ sauce for the sweet tangy flavor}

1/4 of a Red Onion, sliced thinly

2 Tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro {Give or take a bit}

First, bake your chicken breasts in a bath of BBQ sauce at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until chicken is fully cooked. Just make sure the chicken is coated well in the sauce, you don't necessarily need to to soak it. Once cooled, cut the chicken into 1 inch pieces and set aside.

On a well floured surface, roll out your dough to desired thickness. Then spread BBQ sauce on the dough, as if spreading pizza sauce. Leave about an inch border around the outside. Sprinkle desired amount of cheese on top of sauce. Top with chicken, sliced onion and chopped cilantro. Then drizzle thin layer of BBQ sauce on top. 

Bake at 400-425 for 18-25 minutes. {This really depends on the dough recipe you use. :)}

Enjoy. :)

Cake Dots

I am not a huge fan of cake... I've just never like it. But when I was in Starbucks not to long ago, I tried on of their new cake pops, and I LOVED it! So, I decided I was going to try and recreate them. :)

After looking online and a using few ideas from different recipes I found, I created this very simple, easy as can be, recipe to make cake dots. 

I love recipes that allow you to be creative and don't limit you. This is one of them. There are so many different combinations of cake and icing mixtures you can use, different ways to decorate them, you can choose to dip them in chocolate or you can just leave them as cake dots. {personally, I don't see why you wouldn't dip them in chocolate... the more chocolate the better! ...but to each their own, I guess. :)} You really can't go wrong with these. There is no wrong way to do it! 

 They just melt in your mouth!

Ingredients:
1 box cake mix
3/4 container of icing
2 bags of candy melting chocolates
sprinkles (optional)
white chocolate for drizzling (optional)

Directions:

Bake cake mix according to box directions. Let the cake cool. Then, cut large sections and put in separate bowl and break up with a fork. Then slowly add spoonfuls of icing and mix into the cake until it is gooey and moist and there is no visible icing bits. {I find it easiest to do this a little bit at a time. Saves a huge mess!}

Next, take small portions of cake/icing mixture and roll into balls and put on a baking sheet lined with wax paper.

Refrigerate the cake balls for at least an hour.

Melt chocolates according to package directions. Then take chilled cake balls and dip into chocolate. Set dipped balls back on the wax paper lined baking sheet and decorate them to your liking. :) If you are going to use sprinkles or anything that will not stay on by itself, you will need to decorate while the chocolate is still wet. It dries quickly so have everything ready to do it right away. If you are going to drizzle them with white chocolate, wait until they have dried and hardened, then use melted white chocolate and just simply drizzle it over the

Then the best part... EAT THEM! :)

Beef and Barley

My poor hubs has not been feeling 100% lately, plus it's been crazy cold...perrrrfect soup weather. So, I went on Pinterest {which has become my favorite place for recipes, if you're not on it, you should check it out!} and found this little gem of a recipe for beef and barley soup. I'd say it was a hit, because Andrew had 3 huge bowls of it! 

I changed the recipe slightly to cater to my husband's liking. I added more meat, more barley, doubled the carrots, celery and potatoes, added peas and omitted the mushrooms. Okay.. maybe taking out the mushrooms was for me. I despise those slimy little things. But really the rest was for Andrew :) He likes really hearty soup {less broth, more substance} and this recipe is definitely a keeper. 

ps. Check out our super adorable new plates I got from TJ Maxx for 4 dollars! They make perfect little charger plates for some added cuteness! I just love them! :)

Ingredients

450 g (1 lb) Striploin or Ribeye Steak, trimmed excess fat, cubed (about 1 ½-inch pieces)

1 Tbsp Olive Oil
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
1 Large Yellow Onion, diced
2 Cloves Garlic, chopped
1 Pack (200g) Crimini Mushrooms, quartered
2 Carrots, peeled and diced
3 Ribs Celery, diced
2 Medium Potatoes, diced
1 Bay Leaf
½ Cup Barley
6 to 7 Cups of Beef Stock
Flat Leaf Parsley, chopped
Sea Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Heat the olive oil in a stockpot over high heat. Brown the beef cubed in batches, and set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium-high and melt the butter. Add the onion and garlic, and stirring frequently until it is golden brown. Mix in the mushroom, carrot, celery, potatoes, bay leaf, with a little salt and pepper. Continue to stir the vegetable mixture with a wooden spoon, for about 10 to 12 minutes. Then add the beef and 6 cups of beef stock and the barley.

Bring the soup to a boil, remove any impurities, and reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for about 1-½ hours. Remove the bay leaf and thin the soup with beef stock, if necessary. Season the soup with salt and pepper and serve warm with some chopped parsley.

Enjoy! :)

A little bit tropical in Nebraska...

Fact: Before I was married, I rarely ever cooked. I can remember 3 times off the top of my head that I made a meal, by myself, for my family. And one of those times I was forced to by a school project. So, needless to say, my poor, love-struck, newly wed husband was pretty much doomed when we got married, as far as good cooking and good food goes. Hey love conquers all, right?! :)

Anyways, for their 25th wedding anniversary, my parents went to Hawaii. They had lots of good food over there, but when they came back, my dad raved about one meal in particular. He then recreated it for us. And I helped...cut up the pineapple. ;) 

Since Andrew and I have been married, I've made it several times. It's one of our favorites, and it is super healthy, fresh and delicious! And easy to make, too! 

 You start with your fish. I personally like it best with Mahi Mahi. It's my favorite kind of fish because it doesn't taste very fishy, and it's just flat out good. That is how my dad originally made it and how he had it in Hawaii. But Nebraska hasn't caught on to the amazing-ness of mahi mahi yet, because I can't find it anywhere. So, I've been using frozen Tilapia. Honestly, you can made it with whatever kind of fish you want. My dad has even done it with salmon before. So whatever fish you prefer will probably taste good with it, but if you have access to Mahi, USE IT! it's the best. :)

 Next, you chop up your pineapple. I get the fresh pineapple they have already cut up in the produce section. It's much easier than buying an entire pineapple and it's still fresh. It needs to be the fresh stuff. Canned pineapple just doesn't taste the same. The amount of pineapple you use is pretty much to your liking.

 Next comes the Salsa. Fresh, all natural Salsa from the produce section. It must be fresh. Again, the stuff in the jars just won't taste right. Oh my goodness, I seriously could drink this stuff! It is my absolute favorite salsa in the world. Think, I'm exaggerating? I'm not. Ask my husband. I down this stuff!
I usually use about half the container for the two of us. {Partly because I want to eat the rest with chips.} ;) It all depends on how many you're serving and how much you want. Don't ya'll just love my measurements?! lol

The end product. Yummy, amazing, goodness.

My asparagus recipe is super complicated. ;) You wash and break off the dry ends, spread them on a heavy baking sheet, drizzle a little olive oil over them {and then toss them a bit to get them covered} sprinkle them with salt and cracked black pepper, and stick them in the oven! So hard, right?! I baked these at 400 degrees for just under 10 minutes. Bigger stalks will go for 10-15 minutes. You just want them to be tender. It's delicious. 

Lastly I cook my fish. Just drizzled a little olive oil, {you could use butter, too, if you prefer that} in the pan to keep them from sticking. Even though it's a non-stick pan, fish will still stick if you don't put something in the pan. Crazy little critters. You cook them till they're white all the way through  {2-3 minutes on each side for tilapia, other fish will vary depending on size and thickness}

And wahhhla! A perfectly healthy, amazingly good meal! I also cook up some brown rice, according to the package, and serve it with the fish and pineapple salsa on top. It brings that refreshing taste of the islands right to our little apartment in Nebraska. Enjoy. :)