Finding the perfect muffin recipe

The other day I was on the search for a great healthy muffin recipe. I just knew that it was possible to make a great tasting muffin that I could eat in the morning without feeling guilty. Most muffins are the equivalent to a piece of cake! Yowza! My search was on when I stumbled onto a fantastic fantastic baking blog. It would be wrong of me not to share it with you because if you enjoy baking then you need to know about this blog. It's http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/ and it's marvelous. Seriously you need to go check it out right after reading this. Anyways, I searched her blog for a recipe that I thought I could use for my muffins because I knew there had to be one and alas I found one! I modified it quite a bit so I'll post the original recipe and in brackets I'll post the changes. The end result was delicious. I mean as delicious as you can get without sugar! I've made 2 batches already in the past week and a half and I've loved waking up in the morning and heating up delicious homemade muffins.I figure that you can take the base of this recipe and turn them into whatever kind of muffins you feel like. I might make some with avocado and walnuts next week. I'll let you know how it goes. Hope you enjoy this recipe and Joy the Baker's blog as much as I do.

Oatmeal Blueberry Muffins
Recipe from http://www.joythebaker.com/blog/archives/320
and modified by me

Makes 12-15 muffins

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour (I used quinoa flour, because I can't have to much gluten)
  
• 1 1/4 cups oats
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce (I used 2 cups)
  
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk (I used soy milk, because I can't have too much milk)
  
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar (I skipped the sugar)
  
• 2 tbsp canola oil
  
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen) (I used 1 1/2 of unsweetened blueberries)
• And I added 1 mushed up overripe banana. If you want you can use this instead of the egg if you're making these vegan.
• And I added a splash of vanilla
  

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper cases or spray with nonstick cooking spray. I simple greased and floured a muffin pan, saving the paper. (I just greased a nonstick muffin pan with canola oil)

In a large bowl combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In a medium bowl combine applesauce, milk product, sugar (I omitted), oil, vanilla, egg and banana. Make a well in dry ingredients and add applesauce mixture. Stir until just moist. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full.

Bake for 16-18 minutes. (I ended up having to make mine for about 21 minutes or so)

I love anything apple

So lately I've been addicted to reading other people's cooking and baking blogs. I seriously can't get enough and I really can't wait to make some of the delicious recipes I've found. Here's a recipe that I have taken in it's original form from http://orangette.blogspot.com/. I literally copied and pasted the entire thing so I can't take any credit other then I found it and am sharing it with you. I'm planning on making this in the next 2 weeks and am planning to have people over so I can share it's tasty goodness with my friends. If you get the chance to make it before I do then please let me know how it turns out.

Ps. I really do love anything apple. It's a great way to my heart.




Apple Tart Cake
Adapted from Judy Amster’s friend and borrowed post from http://orangette.blogspot.com/

"For this cake, it is particularly important that your oven temperature is accurate. If it runs too hot, the base of the cake could burn before the apples are fully cooked, and the topping, too, could burn before it has time to set.

Also, if your apples aren’t terribly tart, you might consider reducing the sugar in the base a little bit, down from 1 cup to maybe, say, ¾ cup.

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
5 Tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into a few pieces
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced very thinly

For topping:
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
3 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 350°. Butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade attachment, combine the sugar, flour, and baking powder. Pulse to mix. Add the butter, and pulse until no large lumps remain. Add the vanilla and the egg, and blend well, until it resembles cornmeal. Dump it into the prepared springform pan. Nudge it around with your fingertips to distribute it evenly, and then gently press it along the bottom of the pan. You’re not trying to really tamp it down; you just want to compact it a little. At the edges, let it curve up ever so slightly, like a tart shell with a very low, subtle rim. Arrange the apple slices over the base in a tight circular pattern. It may seem as though you have too many apple slices to fit, but keep going. Really squeeze them in. Slide the pan into the oven, and bake for 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the topping. Combine the ingredients in a small bowl, and whisk to blend well. After the cake has baked for 45 minutes, remove it from the oven, and spoon the topping evenly over it. Bake for another 25 minutes or so, until the topping looks set. Transfer the pan to a wire rack, and cool for 20 minutes. Then run a thin knife around the edge to release any areas that may have stuck, and remove the sides of the pan. Cool completely before serving."

Personal Goals for 2009

Here are some personal goals I have set for myself for 2009:

-pay off my car
-fix my car
-pay off all debt (not really to much at all, so this one should be easy)
-get in better shape
-start to save enough money to put towards a down payment on a place
-keep on improving my cooking skills
-be a better person
-Go to Churchill, Manitoba to see the polar bears
-Hike up the Grouse Grind at least 2 times this year
-start my own business
-get my iron levels up
-Visit Leanne in Montreal
-Win the lottery


Well, that's on my to do list so far. I'm pretty sure that as the year goes on, this list will get bigger, but this is it for now. I also realize that some if these things will make it difficult to actually save money but whatever. Maybe I really win the lottery? Ha. Wouldn't that be great?!

Missing family

I'm sad that I'll be missing my nephew's 2nd Birthday party today. It's tough to miss those things. So I miss you family and wish that somehow they'd invent a time travel machine that I could hop into and magically appear at special events like these.

Right now

Things are going pretty good. I'm not working at the moment and I have been off since before Christmas, so it's time to get some work. The economy and the olympics seems to have impacted the industry out here a bit. Oh well. I have faith that I'll be back at work very soon. I'm still always looking for ways to exit the film industry. Right now it looks as though I may have something really good but more research will be the true decider on this one. More to come if anything actually pans out. Dave is great. He's been so busy working on his friend's feature film doing all the sound design, ADR and foley work on it. It can be frustrating at times for him but overall he's pretty excited about it. We've also been busy these last couple of months working on promoting his newest CD. It's due out May 5th, 2009 and we've been mailing it out to various magazines and blogs for review. Next step is mailing out to all the indie and college radio stations and try to get some airplay. I've also been busy at the gym. I go to a great gym that offers amazing programs. Right now my friend Tara and I are doing the Fighter Challenge. It's a super intense program that trains you as though you are about to go into a championship fight. Lots of sweating, weight training and stairs! I have a love/hate relationship with it to be honest but I really want to stick by my personal goal of being in the best shape of my life before I turn 30 (in 2 years). I also want to run a 1/2 marathon by then too so I have lots of work to do:) Alright, well that's about it for now.

Ultimate Shrimp Scampi

Here's an amazing and amazingly easy pasta recipe I thought I'd share:

Ingredients:
1 package (16 oz) of angel hair pasta or spaghetti if you prefer
1/2 cup of butter
4 cloves of garlic minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
1 teaspoon of salt but if you are using salted butter then I usually skip and add at the end, to taste
1/2 tablespoon fresh ground pepper or as much as you like. I usually use more:)
1 dash of Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice, usually takes about 2 lemons
1 teaspoon of dry white wine (optional and I've never made it with it)
1 pound or bag of raw tiger shrimp, deveined and thawed
1/2 cup of asisago cheese or what I do is cube pieces of aged chedder and add that to the dish and sprinkle with Asiago. Mainly because I find Asiago too overpowering. When I've made it like this I've gotten more compliments:)
1 large (or more) avocado- peeled, pitted and diced. I also sprinkle lemon juice on to keep from discoloring.

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil and add the pasta, cook until package says.
2. Melt the butter on medium heat and stir in garlic, salt, pepper, onion, parsley, lemon juice, and worcestershire sauce and wine (if using), increase to medium high and add shrimp. Cook about five minutes or until shrimp are pink and no longer transparent in center.
3. Add noodles and diced cheese to sauce pan and toss.
4. Once plated, sprinkle with Asiago cheese and diced avocado.

Enjoy! It's so yummy and honestly is so easy to make.

Yields 4 servings.

Popcorn Cake

Here is a great recipe for kids or adults. It is so yummy, I almost ate the entire thing! Hello 10 pounds! Anyways, it's great for kids parties or picnics.

1 cup butter
1 bag of mini marshmallows
16 cups popped popcorn (airpopped is best) look below for how to do this...
1 bag of m&m's or smarties or whatever chocolate pieces you like
1 cup chocolate covered peanuts ( I skipped this and added peanut butter chips intead)

For popcorn-
I take a midsized pot and add a tablespoon of olive oil and turn the stove on high. Once the pot is hot I cover the bottom with popcorn seeds. I stir the seeds around fast until I see one pop. Then I cover and move the pot around in circular motion lifting the cover up a bit to let out the steam. Do this until the corn is all popped.

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt the butter and marshmallows in heavy pan over low heat. Stir often.
2. Put popcorn in a large bowl and pour marshmallow mix over top. Stir well to mix. Add the candy and whatever else you like , and mix together. Pack into a greased tupperware container or cake pan. Let set till cooled. Cut into pieces and serve.

It's supposed to be eaten in a few days or it gets mushy. Also, if you like you can add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the marshmellow butter mix for a little extra flavor.

Thai carrot soup

From Fresh At Home (a place in Toronto, also known as Juice For Life)

2 tbsp olive oil
2 cooking onions, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 tbsp minced fresh ginger
4 tsp curry powder
6 cups of veggie broth if you are veggie or you can use chicken broth if not
3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
1 3/4 cups of coconut milk (basically 1 can)
1 lime (juiced)
1 lemon (juiced)
2 tsp of sea salt
Pinch of white pepper

To garnish:
chopped peanuts, diced tofu, green onions or chopped red pepper


1. Heat oil in pot over medium heat.
2. Add onions, celery, garlic and ginger. Cook for 5 minutes or until onions are softened.
3. Add Curry powder, and cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
4. Stir in stock and carrots. Cook for 15 mnutes or until carrots are softened.
5. Add coconut milk and bring to a boil.
6. Remove from heat. Add lemon and lime juice.
7. Using a hand blender, blend until smooth. (If you are using a blender, let the soup cool before blending, then reheat)
8. Add salt and white pepper. Serve.

It's so delicious. I promise.