Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Did anyone else get locked out of blogger for the past few days? I'm glad to be back.

Delicious :-)

I tried out the new Kitchenaid mixer  that my parents gave me this week! I made Apple Cinnamon Muffins, and they were delish!

Here is the recipe I used:

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 2 apples - peeled, cored and chopped
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup butter, cubed
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• chopped walnuts (optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease six muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
2. Stir together 1 1/2 cup flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt, baking powder and 1 teaspoon cinnamon. Mix in oil, egg and milk. Fold in apples. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling to the top of the cup.
3. In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon and chopped walnuts. Mix together with fork and sprinkle over unbaked muffins.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.      

This recipe comes from Mindy on AllRecipes.com.

Fashionista

I also got to see Lacey of Lacey in the City this week. I wish she and Mikey lived closer, since they are one of my favorite couples in the whole world :-) We got coffee at Freedom of Espresso, an independent coffee place in Syracuse. 

Lacey is a fashionista, and I am jealous. I need to go shopping with her. She works for Lodis, which has amazing patterns for handbags, wallets, etc. Check out some of these styles:

Which patterns do you like?

Have a nice, long weekend, everyone!

Chicken Pesto Pizza

Tim and I made chicken pesto pizza for dinner last night. It was pretty amazing.

Here are the ingredients:

1. Pizza Dough
2. Pesto (we made it fresh- most of the jarred kinds aren't good)
3. Chicken (we used a Morningstar chicken)
4. Portabella mushrooms
5. Chopped Roma Tomatos
6. Olives
7. Mozzarella (we used a lactose free kind - it's healthier)

Thanks to everyone who recommended stores for me yesterday. I decided to buy from Express online, because they have free shipping today. Check it out. ;-)

Weekend Rundown

This weekend was all about relaxing, which is my favorite kind of weekend :-)

Last night Tim and I made Vegetable Lo Mein with Tofu. It was delish. Here's the recipe:

Vegetable Lo Mein with Tofu

Ingredients

                        1 box uncooked spaghetti

                        Tofu

                        1/2 cup vegetable oil

                        2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms

                        1 cup shredded carrots

                        1 onion, sliced

                        2 cloves garlic, minced

                        2 cups fresh bean sprouts

                        1/2 cup chopped green onions

                        1 tablespoon cornstarch

                        1 cup vegetable broth

                        1/4 cup hoisin sauce

                        1 tablespoon soy sauce

                        1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

                        1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Stir Fry tofu in about ¼ cup vegetable oil (add more if needed). Cook on each side until golden (Should take about 10 minutes)
2. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain
3. Heat oil in a large wok or saute pan. Stir fry mushrooms, carrots, onion and garlic until tender. Stir in bean sprouts and green onions; cook one minute. Mix cornstarch and chicken broth in a small bowl and add to stir fry. Stir in hoisin sauce, soy sauce, ginger, cayenne pepper. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
4. Add cooked spaghetti, and toss. Serve immediately.

Source: Warm and Neat (view)

This weekend also included a 4 mile run.

Source: Puppy Training (view)

And lots of sleeping.

What did you do this weekend?

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Blog Challenge Day 12: A photo of the place you live

Vegetarian Paella

Last night I made Paella and I had to share it with everyone! It was so yummy!

Vegetarian Paella

Ingredients

1/4 cup (2 fl. oz) of olive oil

4 cloves minced garlic

1 yellow onion, chopped

4 cups (32 fl. oz) vegetable broth

2 cups (16 oz) rice yellow saffron rice

3 medium tomatoes, skinned, seeded and chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut into thin strips

1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into thin strips

1 cup mushrooms

1 cup (4 oz) green peas

1 cup corn

1 cup chick peas

1 tsp Lemon juice

Lemon wedges, to garnish

Preparation

Heat the olive oil in a paella pan and sauté the onion and garlic until the onion is tender and translucent. At the same time, heat the broth in a separate saucepan until simmering.

Pour the rice into the paella pan and sauté for about 3 minutes. Add the bell peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes and cook for a further 3 minutes. Add the simmering vegetable broth and cook over medium heat for 20 minutes or until almost tender and almost all the liquid has been absorbed. Stir in the peas, corn, and chickpeas.

Add a few drops of lemon juice . Continue cooking until the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is tender.

Serve the paella straight from the pan, garnished with lemon wedges

(Sometimes I use artichoke hearts too. You can really use any veggies you like.)

Enjoy!

Do you have Spanish or Mexican food you love to cook? I'm always looking for new recipes and ideas!!

Banana Bread

Blog Challenge Day 2- A photo of something you ate today

Today I made my mom's banana bread. It's deeelish, so I thought I'd share the recipe.

Source: Fitness Charleston (view)

Here's the recipe:

Banana Bread

1 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt (optional)

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg (or 1egg plus 1 egg white)

3 Tbsp oil

3 Tbsp water or orange juice (or a combination)

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup mashed banana

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix all dry ingredient together.  Add remaining ingredients and mix 1 1/2 minutes. Pour into pan (does not mention whether or not to grease pan. Might want to spray it with Pam). Bake 40 minutes or until golden and tests done with toothpick.

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Spanish Rice! Ole!

Tried a new recipe tonight: Vegetarian Spanish Rice & Sausage.
It's based off of some recipes I found online, but mostly my own creation.

Source: Confessions from Household Six 2010 (view)

Vegetarian Spanish Rice and Sausage

• 1 package Italian Smart Sausage
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1/2 package frozen corn, thawed
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes (the kind with green peppers and onions in it)
• 2 1/2 cups Chicken Broth
• 1 1/4 cups uncooked Jasmine rice
• 1/2 cup salsa
• Just a pinch of Chili Powder
• 1 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
• 
  

Preparation:

1. Saute the onions and Smart sausage in a large skillet or paella pan. 
2. Add the corn, tomatoes, broth, rice, salsa and chili powder. 
3. Cook covered on low heat for about 30-40 minutes until the rice is cooked. 
4. Add the cheese at the very end, letting it melt on top. 
5. Enjoy :-)