Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins

One of my Dad's neighbors has HUGE blueberry bushes the size of houses with the most amazing blueberries. She doesn't charge to pick them and people who know her drive from states away to come pick her berries. My father brought me a gallon of blueberries this past weekend. I was in heaven.

Since it was a co-workers birthday yesterday, I decided to try out a new recipe that has been formatting itself in my head for awhile. A cross between my Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins and the Blueberry Muffins I love so much.

I think they need a little tweaking to notch that flavor up a level but they are yummy just the same!

Blueberry Cream Cheese Muffins

Heat oven to 375° F. Lightly coat a 12-cup standard muffin tin with oil and set aside. Mix 8 ounces (one block) cream cheese, 1 egg, and 3 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
Splash of vanilla
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 3/4 to the top.

Place two teaspoonfuls of cream cheese filling in the center of each cup. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

I use a cookie scoop to fill muffin cups. So I used two scoops of blueberry batter and one scoop of cream cheese mixture.

Peach and Blueberry Sonker

I promised I would list every version and concoction of the Sonker through the summer. This one is not much different then the previous post but here it is. I am trying to clean out my freezer to make room for fresh preserves. I found a lone package of peaches frozen from last year. The package was small so not enough to do the traditional peach sonker but I mixed it with a pint of blueberries and some vanilla for a flavorful purple pie full of antioxidants and southern goodness. I can not express the simple goodness of this pie. I put this together with hardly any time while waiting for my ingredients to cook for my zucchini casserole. Both items went in the oven together. I turned the oven off when I took the casserole out and let the pie finish baking as the oven cooled down. When we were done with dinner, the pie was ready! How perfect can you get for a summer dessert?

Ingredients:
2 cups sliced peaches
1 pint blueberries
2 sticks of butter
2 cups of sugar
2 cups milk
2 cups Self Rising Flour
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
In a 350 degree oven, melt butter in 9 x 13 casserole dish. When butter is melted, whisk in sugar and flour. Slowly whisk in milk and vanilla. When there are no lumps spread fruit evenly across surface. Bake for 45 minutes.

Blueberry Sonker

Growing up, I always looked forward to peach season. I LOVE peaches. They are probably one of my favorite fruits. There was something else about peach season I loved: Dessert. My momma was never one to bake desserts often. She could bake, don’t get me wrong, but it was for special occasions. She was a busy woman with two unruly girls to raise, gardens, farming, house and yard and a family business to deal with. So baking desserts wasn’t high priority and truth be told, none of us needed it anyway.

Oh the peaches though. We would get a box on the way home from the beach and we would have peach EVERYTHING. Peach ice cream, peaches in milk, peaches on cereal and Peach Cobbler were the highlights of childhood summers (okay, that and watermelon but that’s an entirely different story). My momma made the most delicious peach cobbler that she called Easy Pie. Boy was it easy. It was one of the first things I remember making with her and it can be added to and changed at ease (a little vanilla, a little cinnamon and nutmeg, a mix of berries etc).

Since I’ve grown up, I still make it but have learned a few things. It’s not just peaches that go well with this dish. It’s any soft fruit. I’ve also recently discovered (thanks to my momma) that this pie has a real name. Fruit pies made like this are called Sonkers. Sonkers is a name completely indigenous to the Mt. Airy, North Carolina area and expands out from there. (That’s Mayberry, as in Andy Griffith to ya’ll). They actually have a Sonker Festival every year complete with Pies of all size and fruit, blue grass music etc. that benefits one of the historical homes in the area.

There are several variations of the traditional Sonker and some argument about what the original was! Some use old biscuits and juicy blackberries. Still other’s make a deep dish fruit pie with dumplings. The most well known is the Easy Pie version.

I’m THRILLED and I am TOTALLY going to go this year. October 2nd. Mark your calendars if you are anywhere close to the area or planning a trip to “my neck of the woods.” I will report back on all the various ways of the Sonker and what is my favorite (though I doubt I will find one to rival my Momma’s but that’s pure sentiment…just don’t tell her that!)

Blueberry Sonker

Ingredients:
2 cups Sugar
2 Cups Self-Rising Flour
2 Cups milk
2 sticks of butter
1 pint Fresh Blueberries

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place butter in a 9 x 13 casserole dish. Melt butter in heated oven. Whisk sugar into melted butter (right in the dish). Add Flour. Slowly whisk in milk. Pour fruit evenly over the top.

Bake for about 40 minutes or until bread is golden brown on top. Enjoy!

As I play with different versions of the Sonker I will definitely post them!

Strawberry Mascarpone Scones

As part of my plot to conquer anything and all things strawberry, I decided a strawberry scone was in order. Not just ANY scone, but one with creamy Mascarpone cheese to make a luscious thick lightly sweet scone. So good. Even my husband who is not a sweets person, has been taking these to work for breakfast. YAY! They are very delicate, crumbly, juicy strawberries bursting in your mouth, a hint of cheese (almost Danish like but just a hint) and not too sweat. Love it.

Strawberry Mascarpone Scones
Ingredients:
2 ½ cups self rising flour
½ cup sugar plus some for sprinkling
1 stick butter, chilled and diced
1 egg
¼ cup milk
¼ cup mascarpone cheese
Zest of one lemon
1 ¾ cups fresh strawberries, sliced

Directions:
In food processor, combine flour and sugar. Add butter, and pulse a few times until butter is incorporated and the size of peas (like you are making a pie crust). In a small bowl, whisk together: egg, milk, mascarpone cheese and lemon zest. Set aside. Transfer flour to KA Mixer and add strawberries. On low speed for just a few seconds, mix with paddle attachment just so the strawberries are covered in flour and sugar but not so they are mashed or broken.

Pour cheese mixture into flour/strawberry mixture and gently on low mix until just incorporated. Turn dough out onto a WELL floured board and kneed for just a minute until its no longer sticky. Form patties, or cut into triangles for your scones. Place on a well greased baking sheet, sprinkle with sugar and bake on 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Let cool completely. ENJOY!

These would also be good with a light powder sugar glaze if you want them a little sweeter.

Popovers

I decided to make Popovers to go with the Rhubarb Strawberry Jam I made to send to my parents. I've actually never made Popovers before, so I turned to Ina Garten for a recipe. I followed her tips and they came out well but a little overdoneon the outside for my taste. I would recommend keeping an eye on them through the oven glass or if you can't get a good look because your oven light is dim like mine, crack the door at 25 minutes to take a peek. These are VERY smooth and light on the inside. Perfect for bites of jam.

Popovers

Ingredients:
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups self rising flour
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup cream
1/2 cup 2% milk
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Preheat your muffin pan while heating the oven. When you take it out, spray it with Pam. In a KAMixer using the paddle attachment, mix together the flour, eggs, milk, and melted butter until smooth. The batter will be thin. Fill the popover pans about half full and bake for exactly 30 minutes. Do not peek. (I had some batter left over)

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam Muffins

I decided to try a little experiment this weekend. Instead of adding pieces of RAW fruit to the muffin mix or making plain muffins and spreading jam, I decided to add the jam to muffin mix. The batter was excellent. Fragrant, strong, pink. The muffins are a little bland though. Because the jam has so much sugar, I didn't put that much in the mix, so they are not very sweet and the fruit flavor is just hinted at after the baking process.

Not bad at all, but not exactly what I was going for. I even tried some butter cream icing on them but it overpowered the muffin completely...so no cupcakes either. If you are not sure about the flavor combination, try these because its very subtle. Or double the amount of jam or add some raw strawberries and these will be excellent.

Hey, not every concoction can be perfect on the first try right? I like them, don't get me wrong, they are just a light on the flavor for me.

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam Muffins
Ingredients:
1 cup Prepared Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
3 cups Self Rising Flour
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 stick butter
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Cream Butter and sugar. Add sour cream and blend until smooth. Add eggs one at a time. Add Vanilla.

Add flour 1/2 cup at a time. At the end dough will get really thick. Add Jam. This will loosen up the dough and make it creamy. Spoon mixture into cupcake cups about 3/4 full. This rises but not too much. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

This weekend has been a whirlwind, but I love it. The Farmer's Market was packed yesterday but I have a nice array of seasonal goods to use for a week full of exciting recipes. (I'm feeling ambitious this week despite the desperate need to attack weeds in the garden). So what was so great that I bought? RHUBARB and STRAWBERRIES! I haven't had Rhubarb in YEARS but I distinctly remember my mama's rhubarb strawberry pies.

I decided to go in a little bit different direction though and set out to make a small batch of jam to go with my PopOvers later in the week and experiment with some cupcakes. So far so good and my house smells wonderfully of baked strawberry. MMM

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam
(adapted from Simply In Season)

Ingredients:
4 cups diced Rhubarb
3 cups strawberries (decapped)
3 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup water

Directions:
Place rhubarb and strawberries in a large sturdy stock pot. Mash strawberry's slightly (I used the flat side of the measuring cup) Add water and bring to a boil. Add sugar and stir pretty consistently for 20 minutes. About 15 minutes in, you can lower the heat to medium for the last few minutes. This is when it is most likely to burn so lowering the heat is ideal as it thickens. Be careful because this will scorch on the bottom.

Ladel into hot prepared jam jars. Add seals and lids and place in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. I flipped mine upside down on a towel for about five minutes to really keep that lid seal hot, then flipped for a tight seal. This made 4 1/2 pints with about 1 cup leftover for use in my cupcakes.

ENJOY!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

This is the recipe I impressed my grandmother with at Easter. Seriously, poised older Southern baptist lady. Compressed smile, folded hands, peering over her nose in disapprovement prissy grandmother. I finally got to her through my coffee cake (and my spinach lasagna). SCORE!

This recipe comes from a fellow NCer (soon to be back in her native SC-Congrats on the Farm!) and horse lover Branny from Branny Boils Over. Check out her site, its lovely!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake
Ingredients:
2 cups Self Rising Flour
1 cup Sour Cream
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter (room temp)
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Topping:
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp cinnamon

Directions:
Mix topping ingredients together and set aside. In KA mixer on medium speed with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat well. Mix in 1/2 of flour, then sour cream and then flour until blended smooth. Pour half of the batter in a greased and floured loaf pan. Sprinkle half of topping mixture and carefully spread. Carefully smooth the rest of the batter on top. Sprinkle the rest of the topping mixture and then bake at 350 for 55 minutes.

Make sure you use a large loaf pan or put a baking pan underneath. Mine went over the side a little bit.

I served with a choice of sides: sugared strawberries in juice, sweetened whipped cream and chopped walnuts. Everyone was able to make it their own special piece and LOVED IT.

Sweet Potato Biscuits

I've been seeing Sweet Potato Biscuits running around on Food Network and blogs since Thanksgiving. With a plethora of sweet potatoes in season, I thought this would be the perfect time to try some new recipes. Sweet Potato Biscuits to serve the zesty chicken burgers on. Sweet and bright flavors combined. It was worth a shot!

The one thing I wish I had done was roll the dough out on a floured board and cut biscuits out instead of scooping them out with a measuring cup. The ended up spreading out too much and looking lumpy but they stayed together perfectly and were a bright orange color.

Sweet Potato BiscuitsIngredients:
1 cup self rising flour
2 tsp sugar
2 tbsp crisco
3/4 cup mashed sweet potato
1/4 cup whole milk

Directions:
Peel 2-3 sweet potatoes and cut into chuncks. Put in boiling salted water for about 30 minutes until tender. Place chuncks in food processor and blend until smooth. Measure out 3/4 cups.

Stir together all ingredients until dough is well blended and smooth.

Either roll onto floured board and cut out with biscuit cutter or glass. OR scoop with a 1/2 cup onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

*Note: I'm not sure where I got this recipe from. It is not referenced like most of mine. Since I didn't change the ingredients hardly at all and just changed the process some, please let me know if this is your recipe and I'll be happy to give credit!*

Apple and Pear Crisp

What do you do when you have leftover fruit that is starting to go bad? Well, if its banana's tradition says you make banana pudding. What if its apples and pears? Well if you have a love affair with all things Ina Garten like I do, you whip up an Apple and Pear Crisp. I needed some MORE pears and apples than I had, so a quick trip to the farmer's market on an early Saturday morning, and I quickly put this dish together. It was warm, sweet and gooey and a bit hit with the husband and the family! Definately a keeper and I really had no guilt eating it! Honestly, this is a recipe I doubt I would even try to tweak.

Apple and Pear Crisp
Ingredients
2 pounds ripe Bosc pears (4 pears)
2 pounds firm Macoun apples (6 apples)
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
For the topping:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Peel, core, and cut the pears and apples into large chunks. Place the fruit in a large bowl and add the zests, juices, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Pour into a 9 by 12 by 2-inch oval baking dish.

For the topping:
Combine the flour, sugars, salt, oatmeal, and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed for 1 minute, until the mixture is in large crumbles. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit, covering the fruit completely.

Place the baking dish on a sheet pan and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the top is brown and the fruit is bubbly. Serve warm.

Orange Chocolate Chip Scones

This recipe post has been a long time coming. Why you ask? Because I've been too busy making these decadent little darlings, to post. I've kept this recipe all to myself savoring the complete joy and utter bliss that are these concoctions. This by far, has to be one of my all time favorite sweet treats. The Orange Glaze I add is the PERFECT addition and I do not recommend you changing a thing. Seriously. Do not mess up my perfection. ;)

*Warning*-These little rascals have a tendency to jump into your mouth out of nowhere. I periodically wrangle them back into the cake plate but I find stowaways in my work bag, purse, plate and other obscene places (like stuffed into my cheeks) constantly. They are wiley little devils when it comes to disappearing into your tummy. Also, may cause eyes to roll back in your head, moaning and other embarrassing sounds to eminate from your body so be careful where you eat these.


Orange Chocolate Chip Scones
Ingredients:

2 cups Self Rising Flour
1/3 cup sugar
6 tbs cold unsalted butter diced
1 large egg
1/2 cup heavy cream
4-5 tsps orange zest (two oranges)
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
Juice from two oranges (about 3-4 tbs)
1/2 tsp grated orange zest (should be enough leftover from the two oranges)
1/4 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425. use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the sugar and flour (till pea size chuncks or smaller). Whisk together the rest of your ingredients and then add them to the flour/sugar/butter mixture. combine with wood spoon. When just mixed together, turn out onto a floured surface and kneed gently until smooth. Press out into a 1/2 thick square. Cut into 12 wedges and place on greased baking sheet. Brush top with cream. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Cool on wire rack. Blend together Glaze ingredients. When scones are cool, pour glaze over the top and let harden. ENJOY!

Biscuit Surprise a.k.a Stuffed Biscuits

I got the bright idea to play with my empanada stuffing using buttermilk biscuits instead of pie crust. I chuncked up the chicken in large dices to make it a little more substantial and whipped up some Buttermilk Biscuits. The beauty of this is that you can add and change anything about the recipe and still have a fabulous meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner that is perfect to reheat and on the go. For example, add some green peas and celery for a nice spring dinner. Add some bacon bits, cranberry and apple for a great fall breakfast. This is one of those PERFECT starter recipes that is delicious on its own but can be taylored for you and I'm very proud of this one. It was light, hearty, fluffy, soft, warm, cozy and satisfying all in one dish. A big hit amongst friends and family.

One of the few dishes my husband said "Mmmm, this is good, make this again!" He calls them Biscuit Surprise because when you bite into them, there is yummy filling in what looks like an ordinary biscuit. ENJOY!!

Stuffed Biscuits
Filling Ingredients:
1 tsp salt
5 ounces cream cheese
6 ounces colby jack shredded cheese
4 cups diced cooked chicken (I used leftover of the roasted lemon garlic chicken)
1 diced small onion
1 diced small shallot
1/2 tsp pepper

Biscuit Ingredients:
Ingredients:
5 cups of flour
3/4 cup crisco
2 cups buttermilk

Directions:
Mix your filling ingredients and set aside. Mix your flour and shortening with a pastry cutter and add in your buttermilk. Mix until moistened. Turn your biscuits out on a floured service and kneed gently to form a ball. Press out with your hands to about a 1/2 inch thick, square it up and cut into large squares (about nine pieces) (as if you were cutting for scones). The pieces will be about the size of your hand. Place a generous cookie scoop size dollop of filling in the center of each square and fold the endes up around it. Smooth into a rounded biscuit. (you should see no filling).

Brush biscuits with cream or butter.

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until biscuits are lightly browned. Enjoy a warm flaky gooey biscuit and be sure to come back and tell me how much you love them because I know you will! And the only reason I added this dark blurry picture is because Cody is in the bottom corner begging which I didn't notice until I uploaded it. Hillarious.

It's waffle time, it's waffle time. Won't you have some waffles of mine!

I love me some sour cream waffles. Light and fluffy and oh so delicious. I searched high and low for this recipe and finally found it in my Joy of Cooking book. It is so perfect.

1 Cup cake flour, sifted

1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

Beat in a separate bowl until light

3 egg YOLKS (don't toss your whites!)

2 cups sour cream

Combine your wet and your dry ingredients with a few swift strokes.

Beat until stiff, but not dry:

3 egg WHITES

Then fold the whites into the batter.

Pour onto your waffle griddle and thank me later.

I added some blueberries to some waffles too for a fun tasty twist.

Zucchini Almond Biscotti

I wanted a nice Southern Biscotti while the inlaws were in so I tried my hand at creating a soothing blend between a scrumptious zucchini bread and a flavorful almond biscotti. It turned out pretty well. Biscotti simply means twice baked so I started with a basic Zucchini bread recipe that is tried and true, but flavored it up with some slivered almonds and almond extract. Then cut it in slices and placed on parchment and rebaked on a low temp to remove the moisture. I think it got a little too done but it paired excellently with coffee. Enjoy! I think this would be perfect in the summer too with fresh zuchini to enjoy on a Saturday morning overlooking the garden with a cup of coffee. YUM!

Zucchini Almond Bread

Ingredients:
3 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cups flour (self rising)
2tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp almond extract
1 1/2 c. slivered almonds

Directions:
Beat together eggs, sugar, oil, zucchini. Slowly add in dry ingredients. Finish with your extracts and then fold in almonds. Bake in 13 x 9 greased pan for 1 hour at 350.

When it has cooled, turn loaf out and cut into biscotti strips. Place strips on parchment paper in oven at 200. Cook each side for about an hour to slowly remove moisture but do not burn. Keep an eye on them, you may choose to lower the heat or the cooking times if you like them a little less crispy on the inside.

Cheesy Chicken Cups

A very simple goto recipe that made it's rounds among the newlywed crowd a few years ago is actually derived from a Weight Watchers Recipe. Beyond that history I have no idea where it came from but it has been changed, manipulated and passed so many times it could be considered MONO of the foodie world.

I prefer the simple version rather than some of the concoctions that have turned into muffin pot pies. Of course I don't use the weight watcher ingredients so don't count on mine being low fat but YOU CAN make substitutions.

Cheesy Chicken Cups


Ingredients:
2 cans Buttermilk Biscuits (With a few leftover)
1 large cooked chicken breast, diced
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup (for a lighter version use Healthy Request)
1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese (you can use Fat Free)
1 TBS dried parsley flakes
1/2 tsp black pepper

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place each biscuit into a muffin spot using a muffin pan. Press gently around to form cups. In a bowl, combine chicken, soup, cheese, parsley and pepper. Mix well. Spoon evenly into cups.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Paula's Garlic Cheese Grits

I'm putting the cart before the horse here and telling you about the fabulous Paula Deen's Cheese Grits before I tell you about Thanksgiving. You see, I decided hosting family was the perfect time to try out this little southern gem. Not to mention instead of using the called for Chicken Stock, why not make it a true holiday brunch and use leftover TURKEY STOCK. Talk about using your thanksgiving leftovers wisely! I did not change up the original recipe too much which is why I linked it here to give proper credit.

However, the directions below ARE what I used.

Garlic Cheese Grits

Ingredients:
5 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
8 ounce cheddar cheese, shredded
8 ounces Velveeta Cubed
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
2 cup Quaker Quick grits
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
4 cup chicken broth
2 cups Turkey broth
1 stick butter (You know its not a PD recipe without BUTTER! God Love Her)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 4 quart casserole dish with Butter spray. Bring the broth, garlic powder, salt and pepper to a boil. Stir in the grits and whisk until completely combined. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the grits are thick, mine took about 5 minutes. Add the cubed cheese, half the shredded cheese and milk and stir. Take about 1/4 cup of the grits and mix into the whisked eggs to temper them. Gradually stir in the eggs and cubed butter, stirring until all are combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheddar cheese and bake for 35 minutes.


This meal is truly a southern girls dream and lasted us all weekend.

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

My new favorite Fall breakfast. These little darlings are the epitome of fall tastes and a perfect holiday breakfast item. They can be made the night before and served up to guests with no muss or fuss and delight even the harshest of family critics (aka YOUR MOTHER or Mother-In-Law ha ha!).

Cranberry Pumpkin Muffins

1 1/2 cups Self Rising Flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 egg
1/2 cup cold milk
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1 cup chopped fresh cranberries
Cinnamon Sugar
Chopped Walnuts

Directions: In a bowl cream egg, milk, pumpkin and butter. Add sugars. In a seperate bowl mix your dry ingredients and slowly add that mix to the creamed pumpkin until moist. Fold in your cranberries. Fill greased muffin tins to just under the top. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and chopped walnuts. Bake at 375 for 18 minutes or until muffins test done. Cool in pan for about 10 minutes before removing to a colling rack. (Yields 1 dozen).

To Die for Blueberry Muffins

We went to the farmer's market a few weeks ago and bought some blueberries. I have no idea what possessed me because I rarely buy or eat blueberries. So we bring them home and I'm like...what do we do with them now? I decided from scratch blueberry muffins would be the answer. I found a recipe that had some Fantastic Reviews and had been tried by over 2000 people. It looked easy so I tried it. I could not get pictures of the darn things because they disappeared so fast!!! I'm using the picture from allrecipes (I hope I can do that) and including the link to the original recipe as I used it exactly. I highly recommend this recipe...its simple, its sweet, and it is comforting. One of these days I'll be able to have some for breakfast...if they will ever last longer then 10 minutes once I make them!!

To Die For Blueberry Muffins:

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/To-Die-For-Blueberry-Muffins/Detail.aspx

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with muffin liners.
Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, salt and baking powder. Place vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup; add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups right to the top, and sprinkle with crumb topping mixture.
To Make Crumb Topping: Mix together 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup flour, 1/4 cup butter, and 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Mix with fork, and sprinkle over muffins before baking.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until done.

Pancakes=Happiness

Remember that strawberry pie I posted about previously? The following morning, I had a yearning....for pancakes. So I made a nice stack (followed directions on the Hungry Jack box...so hard I know) and smothered them in the strawberry pie syrup, topped with whip cream. YUMMO......IHOP eat your heart out!

Breakfast Casserole

I found this recipe on someone's blog (again, I can't remember who but I think it was one of the NC girls, McJamie maybe?) The original recipe makes "sausage cupcakes", but as I only have a 6 muffin tin and a minimuffing tin, I decided to change it up a bit and it worked really well as a quick dinner entree.

Ingredients

1 can of grands biscuits

4 eggs, beaten

salt and pepper to taste

6 oz Neese's sausage

1 cup of Mexican blend Cheese (I always use this instead of plain cheddar or colby or mozzerella)

Place biscuits in a stone or cast iron dish (I use the Pampered chef deep dish baker)Heat sausage and chop into small pieces, add egg(with salt and pepper added) till almost set. Pour over biscuits. Spread shredded cheese over top. Bake at 400 for approx 25 minutes.

To make the original "muffins" place one biscuit and a small amount of mixture and cheese into each tin (need to grease tins before biscuits) and bake for 11 to 13 minutes.