cooking
Maple Apple Glazed Pork Medallions
I found this recipe in a food magazine awhile back, but I didn’t save it. I created my own recipe out of what I could remember. I must be doing something right, my husband asks for it on a regular basis!
Glaze:
1/2 cup real maple syrup
1/2 cup apple butter
1 Pork Tenderloin, cut into medallions
Mix the glaze well with a wire whisk. Set aside. Cook the medallions in a pan until almost done. Drain any excess water. Drizzle the glaze over the medallions and cook for a few more minutes, until the glaze is boiling. Serve immediately. Drizzle the extra glaze over the medallions for a sweeter taste. Serve with rice and your choice of vegetable.
Now isn’t that a nice simple recipe? Feel free to tweak as you like. Please post to the comments if you try it and let me know what you think!
Chicken Noodle Soup
I’ve been feeling the need to make comfort food lately. The cooler temperatures and shorter days are sure signs that winter is on the way. What better way to feel cozy than a wonderful, warm, homemade bowl of chicken noodle soup. This is my own recipe that I created through trial and error, so you may want to tweak it to fit your own taste. For example, my husband is not a fan of celery or onions, so I leave them out. If it was just me, I’d have not only celery and onions, but I’d throw in mushrooms, scallions and whatever else I had in the fridge! I call this version of chicken noodle soup the simple version.
Ingredients
2 frozen chicken breasts
6 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped carrots, pre-cooked
2 cups pasta, pre-cooked
Salt, pepper and onion powder, to taste
Place chicken and broth in crock pot and cook on medium for 6-8 hours. Remove the chicken, place in bowl to shred. Return shredded chicken to crock pot. Toss in the carrots and pasta. Cook for another 30-45 minutes. Stir occasionally. You may need to add more hot water, the pasta will soak up a lot of the water once it is added.
Serve soup with rolls or crackers. Enjoy!
Cinnamon Roll Cake
Fall is here. Let the baking commence. I found this yummy recipe on Pinterest and had to try it for myself. It IS as good as it looks.
Here is the recipe:
Ingredients
3 cups flour
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1½ cups milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
½ cup butter, melted
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
2 cups powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
– In an electric or stand mixer add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, milk, eggs, and vanilla.
– Once combined well , slowly stir in the melted butter. Pour into the prepared 9×13 baking pan.
– In a large bowl, cream butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon together until well combined and creamy.
– Drop evenly over the batter by spoonfuls and use a knife to marble/swirl through the cake.
– Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or when a toothpick inserted near the center comes out nearly clean.
– In a medium bowl, mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla together with a whisk.
– Drizzle evenly over the warm cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Apple Brownie
It’s time for more fall baking! This time I’m using fresh McIntosh apples (my all-time favorite apple) from the local farmer’s market, in these amazing and super-easy Apple Brownies.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter, melted
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 egg
- 3 medium apples – peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions:
– Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×9 inch baking dish.
– In a large bowl, beat together the melted butter, sugar, and egg until fluffy. Fold in the apples.
– In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon.
– Stir the flour mixture into the wet mixture until just blended.
– Spread the batter evenly in the prepared baking dish.
– Bake 35 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Enjoy with some nice Pumpkin Spice coffee!
Peanut Butter Cookies
Here’s a classic cookie that everyone loves.These are great for a cool fall evening while curled up under a blanket with a good book.
Ingredients
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Directions
- Cream together butter, peanut butter and sugars. Beat in eggs.
- In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir into batter. Put batter in refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Roll into 1 inch balls and put on baking sheets. Flatten each ball with a fork, making a criss-cross pattern. Bake in a preheated 375 degrees F oven for about 10 minutes or until cookies begin to brown. Do not over-bake.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Everyone has a favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. And they’re all most likely based on the Toll House Cookie recipe. Mine is very similar to the Toll House Cookie recipe. With a few tweaks. I add an extra 1/4 cup of flour to fluff them up. And I use Aldi brand chocolate chips. They’re much cheaper! And just as good. I also cool the cookie dough in the fridge for a bit before I bake the cookies. I find it keeps the cookies from going flat. I prefer puffier cookies to flat ones. But that’s just me.
Here’s my recipe:
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Bakers Corner Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar in an electric mixer until creamy. Then add vanilla extract and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually mix in flour, baking soda and salt until well mixed. Stir in chocolate morsels. Cool dough in refrigerator for 15-30 minutes. Then drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
Bake at 375 degrees for 9-11 minutes. Cool and enjoy!
Oatmeal Apple Butter Bars
One word: Yum. These were incredible and so simple to make. Another great find from Pinterest!
Here is the recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ cup butter, softened to room temperature.
1 cup apple butter
INSTRUCTIONS
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. In large mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, sugars, salt and cinnamon. Add butter and stir until well mixed. Spread half of the mixture into baking pan and pat down until it is flat. Spread the apple butter evenly over crumb layer. Sprinkle remaining crumbs over apple butter and press down gently. Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden. Transfer pan to wire rack and cool completely. Enjoy!
