Category Archives: Yummy Finds

Jul 2

June’s Tasty Treats

I spent a lot of time in the kitchen during the month of June. I think I was washing more dishes than cooking though… I do have a few photos to share from my kitchen.

We celebrated Donut Day by visiting our local shop. I opted for one Cream Cheese filled and one Old Fashioned. Both were delicious.

I made a bunch of Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I also made lots and lots of Cinnamon Rolls.

I made another batch of Chocolate Mousse, which freezes beautifully into Chocolate Ice Cream.

I’ve been seeing this Soda Cake recipe popping up all over Pinterest, so I gave it a try. This one is a Vanilla Cake mix, with Orange Soda, and Whipped Topping for the icing. I liked it, but the kids wern’t a fan.

It has been a little humid in Kansas, but that makes for beautiful Dinner Rolls.

Lastly,

more Cinnamon Rolls. This batch was proofing, and getting ready to go in the oven.

I’ve been baking a ton already, so many pies, and so many cookies. I’ll have some more pictures to share soon.

Apr 4

March’s Veggie Meals

Well, I made it through my three month challenge of going back to vegetarianism, and I loved it. In fact, I’m going to stick with it. I’m feeling so much better, and I’m really enjoying cooking again.

One of my favorite dishes is Veggie Chili. I make a big batch, and then I have plenty for leftovers. It freezes well too.

Veggie Chili also makes super tasty Veggie Chili Mac.

I’ve been experimenting with adding more fruit here and there. Pancake night was a easy place to start. Sometimes I add peanut butter and bananas. This batch I sauteed Gala Apples in orange Juice with cinnamon. I reduced the sauce, and poured it over fluffy pancakes. It was delicious.

My mom has shared her roasted Broccoli recipe with me, and I decided to give it a try. I used fresh veggies that I had on hand, and I added in some frozen veggies too. I poured the Roasted Veggies over pasty, and hello new favorite dinner.

I made an extra large batch, so I would have leftovers for lunch and dinner. Roasted veggies go along beautifully with a big baked potato.

A simple salad with toast at dinner is always fantastic and fresh. Perfect for Spring.

I’ll be posting some more pictures soon. Yay veggies!

 

Feb 17

Donut Making and Cake Baking

One of my birthday presents was donut pans. Two to make tiny ones, and two to make regular sized donuts. I searched for a few recipes on pinterest, so I could give the new pans a try.

I made one batch completely from scratch, and I used a cake mix for the other.

The recipes, cook times, and even oven temperature varied from recipe to recipe. But I figured it was cake, tiny cake, so 350-375 F max, 8-11 mins. I still need to work on the timing, but my first attempt was tasty. The mini donuts were made from a yellow cake mix, and I made around 40 dounts from just one mix. The only problem I ran into was over-filling my tins. You need just a bit over a teaspoon and a half of batter for one donut.

For the chocolate ones, I found a recipe for twelve donuts, and the batter (and icing) was all from scratch. Again the recipe called for a baking time of eight minutes at 375F, I added another 2-3 minutes of cooking time, they just didn’t look ready at eight minutes.

Now for the verdict. The whole family loved them. The kids liked the chocolate ones the best, but my hubby thought that they needed to be a bit lighter and fluffier. I agreed, the batter was a bit too thick, it needs a little adjusting. The powdered sugar minis ended up being James and Agnes’ favorite. They were really light and airy, they didn’t taste anything at all like the store-bought ones.

Some tips, if you are trying these at home. Use less batter, it is really easy to over-fill the molds. Be patient, it took me two hours to fill, and bake all of the donuts. I think we might be investing in some more pans, since everyone really liked them. Make sure they are completely cool before you ice them, or bounce them around in powdered sugar. If they are too warm, they turn into crumbs, still tasty, but crumbs.

Make sure you get one of these before the kiddos do, they were gone in a flash.

Since I was going to be in the kitchen, I made a few cakes too. I made a Chocolate Bundt Cake for my family, and a Red Velvet Cake for my birthday.

Red Velvet cake is my absolute favorite, but my family won’t touch it. It turned out absolutely delicious, so yay, more cake for me!

 

Feb 5

January’s Veggie Meals

Well. I made it through the first month. I’m feeling pretty darn good about my decision to go back to being a vegetarian. The first few weeks were a little tough, but after a bit I settled in, and got used to the changes. I’ve noticed a little bit of savings on the grocery bill, and I’m feeling a bit better too.

I’m also happy to be cooking new dishes. I’m using fresh ingredients, and getting creative with what I have on hand. I’ve been taking a few photos of what’s been going on in the kitchen, veggie style.

I love burritos, and salsa verde!

Sauteed Onions, Sweet Corn, and Monterey Jack cheese. Pretty tasty indeed.

Corn Pudding or Corn Casserole which ever you choose to call it, I am in.

My kids love Pizza Rolls, and so do I. I made one pepperoni batch for the kids, and one veggie batch for me. Add in plenty of Mozzarella Cheese, and whatever veggies you choose. I’ve got Black Olives, Green Olives, Sauteed Onions, and Broccoli in this batch.

Thade requested a few homemade pizzas for his birthday. I made one with Broccoli, Black Olives, Green Olives, and Sliced Roma Tomatoes for me. It was crazy tasty!

Lastly, what my hubby calls “those are NOT tacos”, and I call them Veggie Tacos.

These “tacos” have a filling of Homemade Salsa infused Rice, with Corn, Black Beans, and Tomatoes. I top it off with a little shredded lettuce. The side is sliced Roma Tomatoes with Salsa Verde. I know it sounds strange, but it is filling, and tasty.