Monthly Archives: May 2012

TIN ROOF PEANUT BUTTER MUFFINS

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MUFFIN BATTER:

1 cup plus 2 tbs flour
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
3 tbs vegetable oil
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

PEANUT TOPPING:

1/4 cup peanuts, chopped
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and baking powder. set aside.

in a small bowl, whisk together the milk, peanut butter, oil, egg, and vanilla. stir the liquid mixture into the flour mixture just until mixed; do not overbeat.

spoon the batter into the muffin pans, fillng the liners three-quarters full. sprinkle peanuts and chocolate chips over the top.

bake in the center of the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out dry. cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

makes 12 muffins

THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE

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1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tbs butter, melted
1 cup plus 1 tbs sugar
3 (8 oz) pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
whipped cream

preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

make the crust by combining the graham cracker crumbs with the melted butter and 1 tbs sugar in a medium bowl. stir well enough to coat all of the crumbs with the butter, but no so much as to turn the mixture into paste. keep it crumbly.

press the crumbs onto the bottom and about two-thirds of the way up the sides of a springform pan. you don’t want the crust to form all of the way up the back of each slice of cheesecake. bake the crust for 5 minutes, then set it aside until you are ready to fill it.

in a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and vanilla. mix with an electric mixer until smooth.

add the pumpkin, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice and continue to beat until smooth and creamy.

pour the filling into the pan. bake for 60-70 minutes. the top will turn a bit darker at this point. remove from the oven and allow the cheesecake to cool.

when the cheesecake has come to room temperature, put it into the refrigerator. when the cheesecake has chilled, remove the pan sides and cut the cake into 8 equal pieces. serve with a generous portion of whipped cream on top.

serves 8

PINEAPPLE COOKIES

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1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups sifted flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup crushed pineapple
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

cream shortening and sugars. add egg; beat thoroughly. sift together dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with pineapple. stir in nuts. drop by teaspoonfuls on greased cookie sheets, allowing 4″ between each cookie.

bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.

makes about 3 1/2 dozen cookies

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CARROTS USED TO BE PURPLE BEFORE THE 17TH CENTURY – The modern day orange carrot wasn’t cultivated until Dutch growers in the late 16th century took mutant strains of the purple carrot, including yellow and white carrots, and gradually developed them into the sweet, plump variety we have today. Before this, pretty much all carrots were purple with mutated versions occasionally popping up including these yellow and white carrots, among others. These, however, were rarely cultivated due to typically being very thin and not very good tasting.

MY 1000TH POST!

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I’ve been mulling it over for awhile what my 1000th post on Yum-O would be. Here I am at my 1000th post, and I STILL have no clue! I want to thank each and every one of you for hanging in there with me. Your support means the world to me. My goal from the beginning was to make Yum-O NOT be just about recipes.I want y’all to see different pieces of me and I hope I have achieved that. Not only do I love to cook, but I am PASSIONATE about all things food. I am also about teaching and having fun. I really enjoy reading and learning about food and food-related things. In fact, I get excited about it! (I guess that really DOES make me a food geek!). And I love being able to help people improve their cooking skills and cooking knowledge. I LOVE when somebody asks me a question about cooking or food in general! If I don’t know the answer,I will find it! I LOVE doing the research! If any of y’all have any thoughts, ideas, questions regarding the content of Yum-O-Licious Recipes, my ear is open! If there is a particular topic you would like me to blog about or a particular recipe you are looking for that I don’t have posted on here, PLEASE feel free to let me know. Chances are pretty darned good that I have a recipe for it somewhere! I know pictures with the recipes would be a HUGE asset, but unfortunately, I really don’t cook that often any more, at least not like that. It’s not that I don’t want to, because believe me, I do! I hope someday that I will once again have opportunities to cook like crazy for others. God has also called me to have a food-related ministry, but He hasn’t given me the specifics yet. I would also like to thank Rachel, my “Web-Genie”. Without Rachel’s expertise, Yum-O would not be. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, Rach, for planting the Yum-O seed and doing all the behind-the-scenes work. I REALLY love our Yum-O! And a special thank you to all 231 of you who “Like” Yum-O on Facebook. I love when you stop by, say hi, and comment! Take care, my beautiful friends, and may God rain many blessings down on you and your families.
Love and Best Dishes from my nest to yours…MUAH!!!

HOMEMADE WONTON WRAPPERS

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2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 lg egg
1/2 cup cold water
cornstarch

mix flour and salt in medium-sized bowl.form a hole in the flour and pour an egg into the hole. mix well.

add 1/4 cup water to the bowl and mix completely. continue to add water until dough is firm and slightly sticky. you don’t need to use all of the water. mix with your hands if necessary.

cover dough with a damp cloth. let sit fo 20 minutes.

dust a clean, flat surface with cornstarch. place a golf-sized piece of dough directly on the starched surface and sprinkle with cornstarch.

roll a rolling pin across the dough to thin it until the dough becomes translucent. spread it into a rectangular shape, if possible. add more cornstarch if dough becomes too sticky. cut thin, translucent dough into squares approximately 3″x3″.

continue dusting, rolling and cutting small balls of dough until all the dough has been used.

dust each wrapper with a thick layer of cornstarch. stack on top of each other until ready to use. cover in plastic wrap to contain moisture.

GERMAN APPLE CAKE

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4 cups peeled and sliced apples (4 or 5 medium apples)
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups flour (pack it down in the cup when you measure it)

preheat oven to 350 degrees with the rack in the middle position.

grease or spray the inside of a 9″x13″ cake pan.

peel, core and slice the apples as you would for a pie. place the sliced apples on the bottom of the prepared cake pan.

in a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil until they’re thick. the add the sugar and beat it in.

mix in the vanilla, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. mix thoroughly.

add the flour in one-cup increments, mixing after each cup.

scrape down the bowl, give a final stir with a spoon, and then drop the batter over the apples in spoonfuls. (DON’T WORRY IF IT DOESN’T COMPLETELY COVER THE APPLES. THE BATTER WILL SPREAD OUT DURING BAKING).

bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes. cool the cake in the pan on a cold burner or a wire rack.

GERMAN APPLE CAKE FROSTING

1 (8 oz) pkg softened cream cheese (NOT the whipped kind)
2 tsp vanilla
1 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
4 tbs (1/2 stick) melted butter
2 cups 10x sugar (no need to sift unless it’s got big lumps)

if you forgot to take the cream cheese out of the refrigerator to soften naturally, unwrap it, place it in a microwave-safe bowl and heat it for 20 seconds on HIGH. check it to see if it’s soft. if not, give it another 15 seconds or so until it is.

stir the vanilla into your cream cheese. then add the lemon juice and the melted butter. mix until it’s smooth. beat in the 10x sugar in half-cup increments, checking consistency after each addition. when the mixture is the consistency of frosting, stop adding sugar.

BANANA MUFFINS

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1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp drained crushed pineapple
1 cup mashed bananas

combine egg, milk, oil, sugar, salt, cinnamon, lemon juice and vanilla. sift flour with baking powder; stir into egg mixture jus until blended. fold in pineapple and banana. fill greased or lined muffin cups 2/3 full. bake at 450 degrees for 20 minutes.

makes 16