Thanksgiving 2013

Very grateful for the chance to share today with my awesome family. We were missing a few... . But they were never more than a thought away. Other than eating late due work schedules, sick people and our car getting broke into, our day was filled with traditions, family stories and fun! One of our traditions every year is to try a new recipe... This year, I decided the recipe would be the breakfast treat to share while we watched the parade. (Another family tradition!) 

SOOOOO, I decided to make homemade "Salted Caramel Bacon Donuts" I keep hearing rave reviews about bacon & salted caramel this and bacon & salted caramel that. Anyway, after searching for several months for good recipes, no luck! I came up with my own, Here are the results.... They were delicious!

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp buttermilk
• 1/4 tsp salt
•  2 cups cake flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
•  2 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp butter cut
• 3 tbsp sea salt
• 2 cups caramel sauce frosting
•  1/2 lbs. cooked bacon (crumbled)
•  Lightly spray pan.And set aside. In bowl shift flour, cocoa , baking soda, and baking powder. Mix in sugar and salt, add in butter using your fingers to blend everything together. In a small bowl, mix egg, buttermilk and vanilla. Then add to flour mix and fold together.
•  Pour batter in donut pan so that it's 1/2 full and bake for 8-10 mins.
•  Once bake take out and cool. After it has cool, drizzle caramel sauce over donuts and sprinkle sea salt and crumbled bacon over the top.

TTT's - National Cake Day

As we starting planning for our National Cake Day celebration, we had a hard time trying to decide which cake we wanted to make. So we returned to our heritage and tried to recreate an old Buttermilk Chocolate Cake from my Childhood.

Ingredients

• 2 cups white sugar
  
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Instructions
 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, Grease and flour a 9x13 baking pan and set aside.
   In a medium bowl, shift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt, set aside.
   In a medium mixing bowl, cream together sugar, eggs, buttermilk, applesauce, oil and vanilla.
   Next add flour mixture to egg mixture and fold together until well blended. Stir in the boiling water by hand, mix well, the batter will look runny, but it will work.
   Pour evenly into floured pan. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
   Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to decorate. (I just leave mine in the pan and frost the top).  This cake is very delicious by itself, served either slightly warm or chilled!  We frosted this cake with our new salted caramel frosting and added sprinkles. but I remember it being served with cherry pie filling and whipped cream.

"Tuesday's with Dorie"... Double Chocolate Cookies

Our recipe today was Dori's Double Chocolate Cookies found on page 329 in the "Baking with Julia"

Love these cookies... simple and sweet goodness that works both as a drop cookie and a rolled freezer cookie. They make great gift or sack lunch cookies because the hold there shape very well and yet stay soft and chewy. We love to dunk them is milk!

"Tuesday's with Dorie"... Rustic Pumpernickle Loaves

I finally have a day to call my own and I was so excited to finally get back into the swing of "Tuesday's with Dori". I have missed spending time being creative in the kitchen... :(

So today we were challenged to make the Pumpernickel Loaves that can be found on page 95 in the "Baking with Julia". I have made pumpernickel bread before and this recipe was easy but a little time challenging for me with all the steps and then hanging the bread. And I was majorly disappointed, after going to all the work, that my bread was a little dense and tasteless. I think I will try the recipe again, but at this point I think I like my other recipe much better. This is the first recipe that I have tried that I was a little disappointed with.

TTT's - Blueberry Blossoms

In staying with our cookie theme this month, we decided to do a little experimenting in the kitchen this week... One son wanted sugar cookies, I wanted shortbread cookies and the other son wanted blueberry cookies. So we put our creative minds together and we came up with Sugared Shortbread Blueberry Blossoms. :)

• 1 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter soft
• 2 egg
• 1 Teaspoon vanilla
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 Teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 Teaspoon finely chopped pecans
• 1 cup raw sugar
• 1/2 can blueberry pie filling

DIRECTIONS

In large bowl, blend sugar and butter. Beat in egg and vanilla until light and fluffy. Mix in flour and baking soda. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into roll about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour until chilled. * Cut rolls into 1/4-inch slices. Place on ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle generously with additional sugar. Bake in 375° oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned around edges. Cool on wire rack.

Spice Cake Muffins

2-1/2 cups sifted cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup shredded wheat

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup butter, softened

1-1/4 cups packed brown sugar

3 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup crushed pineapple

1/4 cup chopped dates

1/4 cup grated coconut

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  For cupcakes, grease and flour a 12 cup cupcake pan.

2.  Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices into bowl; set aside.

3.  Place butter and brown sugar in a large mixer bowl.  Blend until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, 
one at a time, beating well after each addition.

4.  Stir in flour, alternating with the buttermilk.  Stir in vanilla. Stir in shredded wheat, fruit  and coconut.

5.  Divide batter evenly into prepared cake pans.  Bake for 30-35 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched, or when a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cupcakes will bake for 20-25 minutes.

6.  Place cupcake pans on wire rack to cool for 5-10 minutes, then turn out of pans and cool completely on racks.

Thrifty Thursday ---- Easy-Does-It-Spaghetti!

Since school has started and all my employee have left me... I have found myself still working lots of nights and by doing so have discovered a greater need to use my crock pot for dinner meals. So to lick off a warm September Fall,  We give you...  


1 lb ground chuck (yeah, I use hamburger)

1/2 C chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 8oz cans tomato sauce
1 - 1 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 4oz can sliced mushrooms drained (yeah, I leave these out)
3 C tomato juice
6oz dry spaghetti, broken into 4"-5" pieces

Cook and drain meat and put in crock pot. Add all remaining ingredients except dry spaghetti and stir well. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours. (High 3-5 hours). Turn on high last hour and stir in dry spaghetti.

I double it for my family.