Today I’ll be in the kitchen for most of the day. I’ve got a cookie catering gig set for tomorrow, and I’m doing some of the prep work today.
I don’t mind though, I love spending time in the kitchen. I’ll be making Homemade Brownies, Cakerdoodles, Iced Sugar Cookies, and Chocolate Chip Cookies for the catering gig.
I also need to make some Ham & Cheese Rolls for the boys, and some Banana Muffin Bars too. We’ll see if I get to those. It is going to be a busy day, better get to it.
Just where did February go?!? I can’t believe that it is March already, and this March is going to be a busy one. We’ve got Dylan’s 6th Birthday, Spring Break, Music Camp, St. Patrick’s Day, and Easter too. There is also a day out of school for elementary planning, and the boys are having a friend over for the day, and Pi day on 3/14, and daylight savings time change, and I’ve got a cookie catering gig… There is a lot to remember in this first month of Spring. I’ve got an easy menu planned for the month, and I’m bringing back some Spring dishes too. So here we go it’s March’s monthly dinner menu.
Time to make some lists and get to it. Happy March everyone!
I’ve been in the kitchen non-stop this month. There have been lots of tasty treats going on. I’ll have more pictures soon, but first I need to go buy more sugar & flour.
Well, I don’t know if this is one that counts as a d.i.y., but you can bake it yourself. For the last few Valentine’s Days I’ve been making Mini Cherry Pies for my hubby. He loves them, and they make a great dessert for the day.
All you need is enough pie crust for a two crust pie. You can make it yourself, or use the pre-made one. You also need one can of cherry pie filling. I used a large biscuit cutter to cut out the bottom crust, and rolled it just a bit with a rolling pin. I also leave the bottom crust a little thicker. The thicker crust makes it a bit easier to remove. Make sure you flour your surface well, pie crust dough is sticky stuff.
Pre-heat your oven to 375 F, and grab your favorite 12 ct. muffin tin. I like to add a little shortening to each of cups on the muffin tin, and dust it with just a bit of flour. Once your tin is prepared, carefully add in the dough circles. Patience is the key with this one. Gently press the dough into the bottom of the tins, and carefully up the sides. Leave a little crust at the top, so they are easier to remove.
Add in a small spoonful or two of the cherry pie filling to each of the mini pie shells, and top off the little treats with a decoration of your choice. Lattice tops are extra cute. I free-form cut little hearts for mine on Valentine’s Day.
Pop them in the pre-heated oven and bake them for 10 minutes. At ten minutes remove them from the oven, and top the entire muffin tin with aluminum foil. Return the tin to the oven, and continue baking for another 5-10 minutes. Keep checking it, so your crust doesn’t burn. I know every oven is different, I think my batch of 12 mini pies took about 25 minutes to be just right.
Once the pies are all finished baking, let them sit in the muffin tin to cool. Once they are cool, carefully remove them with a small spoon, and place them on a rack to cool.
Again, patience is key with removal. They are delicate, and some might not transfer perfectly, but you can eat those, or serve a scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side if it isn’t just right.
Well I had better get to the kitchen, and start making some pie crust dough. Happy Valentine’s Day!
I really can’t believe that it is February already. January flew by way too quickly. I took advantage of the cold weather, and I kept cooking and baking in the kitchen. I need to restock the pantry too. I went through 25 pounds of flour from late December to the end of January.
Banana Muffins are one of my favorite ways to use up bananas that have been hanging around the kitchen for too long. They make a great breakfast, or a quick snack too.
I love my new waffle maker. The family is hooked on Belgian Waffles.
I made a few Cherry Pies too.
I made a vanilla cake and icing from scratch. I used my favorite icing that usually tops red velvet cake.
This one is a Friday night favorite.
I’ve been on a cookie-kick lately. I made some Vanilla Shortbread ones to enjoy with a warm cup of tea.
The first chocolate cake was eaten way too quickly, so I made another one.
We had Thade’s birthday party at home, and I made some treats for the occasion. The Chocolate Whoopie Pies were a big hit the with kids. I had a few left for snacks too.
I made Blue Vanilla Cupcakes for the party too. They were tasty, and the kids loved the them.
I dipped a big batch of Blue Cake Pops for Thade to take to school on his birthday, but I forgot to get a picture. I also made Thade a Chocolate Bundt Cake for his birthday, but I forgot to get a picture of it too. Oh goodness. what a month.