recipe to do list!

i'm always on the look out for new recipes! for me there's a real sense of calm and relaxation when i'm making something. i turn on a little country music, mix everything together, and then something delicious comes out of it all. so whenever i have the chance to try something new i'm always excited. 

here are a list of recipes on my to do list that i just can't wait to try. they all just look sooo good (said in my best sophia grace impersonation). 

1. watermelon cake.
2. peanut butter lava cookies.
3. red velvet cheesecake cookies.
4. cheesecake stuffed strawberries. 
5. vegan oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. 

what are some recipes on your to do list? 

share below, i'd love to try more recipes!

baking: blueberry muffin!

with berry season in full swing, the first thing that comes to mind is 'what can i make with them?' blueberry muffins of course!

i've looked at various recipes in the past and have settled on my take of this recipe i found online a couple months back. i tweaked it a bit, so here's my take on blueberry muffins!

ingredients:

• muffin
• 3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 tsp of baking powder
• 1 cup honey
• 1 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 2 cup blueberries
• crumble
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/8 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon 
• 2 tbsp butter (frozen, shredded)

how to:

• preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
• mix wet ingredients together (honey, milk, applesauce, and eggs) in a large bowl. 
• in a separate bowl mix dry ingredients (flour, salt, and baking powder).
• carefully add dry mixture into the wet mixture, 1/2 cup at a time and mix well. 
• once everything is mixed together, fold in blueberries. 
• in a small bowl, mix crumble ingredients together.
• for butter, place butter in freezer before use and once it is solid use a cheese grater to shred the butter. this will allow for the butter to mix well with the rest of the ingredients and evenly sprinkle over muffins. 
• pour muffin mixture into muffin tin nearly to the top. 
• sprinkle crumble evenly over the top of each muffin. 
• bake in oven for 20-25 minutes and enjoy! makes about 15 muffins. 

goes perfectly with your morning cuppa or coffee. 

how did the recipe turn out for you?
share below if you tweaked the recipe to make it better.

cooking: individual turkeyloafs

i love meatloaf, so over the years i've bake my fair share of meatloaf and eventually came up with a recipe that my family really enjoys. its probably my brother's favorite dish that i make. so here's my take on a 'healthier' meatloaf.

mmm, delicioso.

ingredients:

• 20 oz of lean turkey
• 1/2 cup 2% milk (any type will do)
• 3 slices of whole wheat bread, chopped (white will work as well)
• 1 egg 
• 1 cup shredded zucchini (use a cheese grader to shred the vegetable)
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 of chopped onions
• 2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground mustard
• 1/2 tsp ground paprika
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 cup ketchup
• 1/8 cup mustard
• 1/8 cup brown sugar

how to:

• preheat oven 350.
• in a large bowl combine turkey, milk, chopped bread, egg white, zucchini, carrots, onions, salt, pepper, ground mustard, paprika, and garlic powder. mix well with hands' make sure everything is evenly incorporated.
• lightly grease muffin tin or you can use a bread pan as well; or oven form a loaf by hand and place on top of a baking sheet. i just prefer using a muffin tin because that way everyone gets their own individual loaf.
• with an ice cream scoop, or just a plain old spoon, evenly scoop mixture into muffin tins. (this makes about 12 individual turkeyloafs)
• place in oven and bake for an hour.
• meanwhile in a separate small bowl mix ketchup, mustard, and brown sugar together. 
• half way trough the baking time (30 minutes), take out muffin tins and evenly pour ketchup mixture over mini loafs. finish baking. and tada! now you have delicious individual turkeyloafs. 

how did this recipe turn out for you? any tips you'd like to add on how to improve it?

baking: loaded oatmeal cookies!

i genuinely really love oatmeal cookies. i often prefer a good chewy oatmeal cookie over pretty much anything. so here'rs my take on an overloaded oatmeal cookies filled with my favorite things: cinnamon,  chocolate, brown butter, and rum soaked raisins.
  

golden brown deliciousness. 

ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) softened unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 eggs
• 2 1/4 cup of all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp of kosher salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• 2 1/2 cups of instant oats
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup of rum
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp sugar

how to:

• when taking out the butter to soften, soak the raisins in rum as well. it'll give them enough time to soak up the rum and plump up.
• preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• in a medium sauce pan brown butter. if you're not sure how to brown butter, here's a great how to. 
• once the butter is browned and cooled pour into a large bowl and mix brown sugar, vanilla extract, and an egg at a time with electric mixer. 
• in another medium sized bowl (or whatever size bowl you have handy) mix together dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pinch of nutmeg.
• slowly add dry mixture to wet mixture in small batches. you don't want the four to end up all over you!
• lastly mix in oats, raisins, and chocolate chips. 
• scoop a tablespoon sized ball of batter onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (if you don't have any handy just spray a baking sheet with non stick spray and lightly coat with flour)
• mix 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tbsp of sugar. dip a fork in the mixture and flatten down cookies.
• pop in the oven and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown
• let cool and enjoy!

how did the recipe turn out for you? any suggestions on how to make it better? leave your thoughts and comments below!

baking: s'more brownie bars!

heyyy internets! i've been wanting to make a s'more recipe for awhile now. but i couldn't quite decide between a cupcake or cookie. so in the end i decided on a bar that would most resemble and actual s'more. so here's my take on s'more brownie bars.

ingredients:

• for gram crust
• 10 sheets of gram crackers. 
• 4 tablespoons of softened butter (you can use less/more if you'd like)
• for brownie mix
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup of white sugar
• 1 package (8 oz) of regular cream cheese or reduced fat cream cheese
• 2 egg whites
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 of all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips
• marshmallow topping
• 1 bag (10 oz) of small marshmallows
• 1/4 cup of dark chocolate chips

how to:

• preheat oven to 350.
• cover a baking dish with foil, use one thats pretty long. i used a baking pan 
• in a food processor or in a ziploc bag, crush gram crackers until they're the consistency of bread crumbs. add softened butter to crumbs, mix well. 
• pour crumbs over foiled baking dish and evenly flatten.
• baking in oven for 7-10 minutes.
• in a large bowl mix softened butter and sugar. add vanilla extract. when creamy add egg white one at a time. add cream cheese and mix until mixture is creamy. 
• in a seperate bowl mix dry ingredients well. add to creamy mixture slowly. mix well. 
• with a spatula fold in chocolate chips.
• pour evenly over gram cracker crust. bake for 20-25 minutes depending on how thick the layer of brownie it; it should be just before they're done.
• pour mini marshmallows evenly over the top of the almost done brownie. sprinkle chocolate chips. 
• turn oven up to 450 and finish baking for 3-5 minutes. the higher heat will melt the sugar in the marshmallows and great a golden brown crust over the marshmallows. 
• let cool complete and then cut into bars. 
• and viola, enjoy!

if you made this recipe, how did it turn out? any suggestions on how to improve it? leave your comments and questions below!

baking: coco-flan

heyyy internets. since its mothers day and my mama loves anything coconut, i decided to have a go at making coco-flan. she had seen a similar recipe done on the food network and asked for it for her mother's day lunch. my family couldn't get enough of it and especially loved the coconut topping. it was a hit! so here's my take on it!

ingredients:

• 1 can (14 oz) of unsweetened or sweetened condensed milk (its put to you and how sweet you like things, but since this recipe has a ton of sugar i tend to use unsweetened)
• 1 can (13.5 oz) of coconut milk (if you're wanting to make this a tad bit healthy you can use light)
• 3 eggs
• 1 tbsp of vanilla extract
• 1 package (8 oz) of softened cream cheese (using reduced fat cream cheese is perfectly fine) ***this is my 'secret ingredient' when it comes to making flan. it makes flan skeptics change their opinion on the custard.***
• 1 cup of white sugar (you can get away with using 3/4 cup)
• 1/2 tbsp of butter or margarine  
• 1/2 cup of shredded coconut 
• pinch of sugar and cinnamon 

how to:

• preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• in saucepan (i advise you use nonstick) heat butter at medium heat. once butter has melted add sugar. watch closely and stir so the sugar doesn't burn. once the sugar has liquefied and turns to a golden brown color, pour the sugar into a baking pan (i used two round 8 in dishes that were shallow). evenly coat the bottom of the dish and set aside. 
• in a large bowl mix softened cream cheese until creamy and smooth. add egg one at a time and vanilla extract. 
• slowly begin to add condensed milk and coconut milk. its advised to do this slowly so the wet ingredients mix well into the creamy mixture. 
• pour mixture into baking dish(es) and cover with foil. 
• bake for 60 minutes.
• let flan cool completely and refrigerate for at least an hour but preferably overnight. i tend to make my flan the day before i plan on serving it. 
• before serving, toast coconut flakes with pinch of sugar and cinnamon in a nonstick pan. toast until they are a golden color. sprinkle toasted flakes over a slice. 
• and viola, enjoy!

if you made this recipe, how did it turn out? did it convert flan skeptics in your family or group of friends? any suggestions on how to improve this recipe? leave your comments and questions below!

baking: honey-coconut cupcakes

honey-coconut cupcakes

Ingredients...

• 1/2 cup softened butter (take butter out from fridge a couple hours before baking)
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp of vanilla
• 1/3 cup of shredded coconut 
• 1/4 cup of honey
• 1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 2/3  cup of milk

How to...

1. first preheat oven to 350 (for any first time bakers, 350 is like the universal temp for most cakes).
2. beat together butter and sugar until creamy. add eggs one at a time. add vanilla, honey, and coconut.
3. now for the dry ingredients. it’s best to stir them all together in a separate bowl. add a bit at a time to the liquid mixture. half a cup at a time is what i do. then add milk.
4. place cupcake cups into cupcake/muffin tin. with an ice cream scooper or spoon, add mixture to cups. depending on how much you fill the cupcake the recipe should yield 10-12 cupcakes.
5. place in preheated oven for 18-20 minutes. a baker’s tip of mine that i learned years back was to place a pan of water in with the cupcakes to make sure they come out moist. also make sure to do the toothpick test (stick a tooth pick into a cupcake, if it comes out clean its done but if it comes out wet it needs more time.). oven temps tend to differ depending on oven so test!
6. let cool before placing on a cooling rank. cool awhile longer before frosting, i usually cool overnight because cold cupcakes are easiest to frost.
7. you can use store bought frosting or make your own. i’ve found that it’s easier just to buy it. i used store bought chocolate frosting and just used a disposable piping bag to frost. finally i topped with a raspberry and sprinkled red sprinkles on top.  
8. lastly, eat and enjoy!

***if anyone is counting points, one cupcake is 6 ppv (for a batch of 12) or 7 ppv (for a batch of 10). this is without frosting. frosting is usually about 3 points. i'm convinced that the flexible fun 49 points were invented for sweets and booze. so have one!***