Monster Pocket Muffins

I've learned the biggest hurdle for me in my lack of blogging recipes is pictures. I bake pretty often, at least enough to get one recipe up a week. However, I generally tend to make things the day they're headed somewhere, and whisk them out the door without getting a nice picture of them. Plus, I have no idea what I'm doing, and care more about the food than getting the gorgeous pictures I see around the web.

I've seen plenty of posts, however, where people don't take pictures for whatever reason and still post. So I should probably just get over it and continue blogging!

Today is a double win, though-blog and accompanying pictures! And...they're gluten-free and vegan! Total nuts! The son of the couple who leads my small group has a crazy long list of allergies, and I bring dessert every week. I like regular baked goods-full of butter, eggs, flour, sugar, the works. But I felt bad always carting the gluten-full desserts around in front of the gluten-free boy. So I worked way outside of my comfort zone, and brought these babies!

Gluten-free Vegan Apple Cinnamon Pocket Muffins! That's a mouthful! So what are pocket muffins, you're surely wondering? Originally these muffins had a base, and two toppings-fruit and struesel. However, the second they entered the oven, the muffin base rebelled and swallowed the toppings whole. Some turned out completely flat on top, giving no hint of what was inside. Others however, look like mini muffin monsters. There's just little hints of apple cinnamon attempting to dig it's way up and out to freedom.

Apple Cinnamon Pocket Muffins

Adapted from Never Bashful With Butter (no longer active)

Muffin

2 cups gluten free all purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill)

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/4 cup margarine

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup plain applesauce

1 tsp canola oil

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup soy milk

In a large bowl, mix together dry ingredients and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the margarine and sugar, then add applesauce, oil, vanilla, and soy milk. Pour the wet ingredients, into the large bowl of dry ingredients. Fold until just combined, being careful not to overmix-muffins are meant to have a less refined texture than cakes.

Apple Filling

1 apple, cored, and chopped into small pieces

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until soft.

Streusel Topping

1 Tbsp margarine

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 Tbsp cinnamon

Mix together until crumbly.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Add batter to pan lined with cupcake liners, filling 2/3 full. Divide cooked apples evenly over batter, and top with about a Tablespoon of streusel. Bake for 10-15 minutes, and enjoy!

Lemon Meringue Cake

So I'm currently on a diet...

And. It. SUCKS. Two years ago (I can't believe it was that long ago!) I decided to lose weight. I dropped 40 lbs. A year later I lost another 10. This year I realized I'd quit trying, and decided to really put my all into getting down to a healthy weight. I lost 8 lbs in three weeks, and was feeling really good about that. Then I decided to try a no carb, no dairy, no fruit, no fun diet. There are parts of it that are obviously great-more vegetables, less sugar. I lost 3.8 lbs my first week, but it has shown next to no results this week.

It's SO frustrating to be eating so restrictively (I just want an apple!), and to see a 1.2 lb change. The nice thing is the once a week cheat day, where you can eat anything (no really, anything and everything!) you want. It keeps you from cheating throughout the week knowing you get an opportunity to in just a few days. However, it also makes you absolutely obsess over food the day before your cheat day. All day long you just think about all the food you want to cram the following day.

So. I'm finished. I'm finished eating nothing but eggs, beans, vegetables, and turkey meat. I want...oatmeal, and toast and peanut butter, and a granny smith apple for goodness sake! After 8 lbs. in three weeks, I'm not sure why I decided to try anything else.

I still want to lose 33 lbs. But I haven't ever dieted to get to this point, and I'm done trying now. For me it was always about simply making better choices, and all things in moderation.

I'm currently making the most ridiculous, outrageously delicious, and incredibly bad for you dessert ever. Tonight, at small group, I'm going to have a small slice, completely guilt free. I can't wait. And in the mean time, I'm going to share this cake with you. Seriously, just make this. They're also super awesome as cupcakes-trust me!

Lemon Meringue Cake

Lemon Cake
From Life or something like it...

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
2 tablespoons lemon juice
4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk (Can be substituted with 1 cup milk + 2 tsp. vinegar-let sit 10 minutes before use)

Preheat oven to 350˚ F.

In a medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl beat the butter until soft. Add the sugar, lemon peel and lemon juice, mixing until well combined. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition, and scraping the bowl down. Add the dry ingredients in three parts, alternating with the buttermilk.

Pour into two greased 9 in. cake pans and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.



Lemon Curd
3 sheets gelatin
generous 3/4 cup lemon juice
4 eggs
2 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups + 3 Tablespoons sugar
1/8 tsp cornstarch
2 1/2 sticks butter

Bloom gelatin in ice cold water, set aside. If you're using gelatin powder, you'll want to bloom 1 teaspoon in a small amount of cold water, and you may need to adjust the liquid in the recipe to make up for the difference.

In a large bowl, mix together eggs, yolks, sugar and cornstarch. Set aside. Bring the lemon juice to a boil, and pour slowly into the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the pan and simmer for 3 minutes.

Whisk in the butter and gelatin, and let chill.



Meringue
1 cup sugar
3 large egg whites

Mix together in the bowl of a stand mixture. Place bowl over pan of simmering water, mixing constantly until the temperature reaches 110˚F. If you're working without a thermometer, just heat until the mixture is slightly warmer than body temperature, and you don't feel sugar granules when you rub it between your fingers.

Whip the meringue on high speed until it reaches stiff peak consistency.


Assembling the cake
1. Cut each cake layer in half. Place first layer on plate, cover with lemon curd, top with next layer of cake. Repeat until the final layer is put on top.

2. Frost cake with meringue using a spatula.

3. Toast the meringue with a blow torch. (Or broil in the oven!)

4. Enjoy!

Honey Pecan Breakfast Cake

Wow. Well it's officially been over a month since my last post. So much for blogging, huh? It's sad that I don't just buckle down and post, because I have plenty of recipes and pictures just waiting to enter the great expanse of the internet. But hopefully my New Years Resolutions will stick and I'll get better at blogging. Which should work-this is my only specific resolution. I made very specific goals last year, and only managed to complete one. "Eat at 10 new restaurants this year." Surprising I completed that one, right? So, with vague resolutions this year, I'm hoping I can look back and say, "Sure, I sorta did all those!"
During a lull at work the other day, I spent an hour flipping through an all dessert special edition of some magazine I found in the cupboard (Better Homes, maybe?). Not that I ever need an excuse to flip through dessert recipes, but I was keeping a special eye out for something I could potentially bring to an upcoming breakfast potluck. So naturally the words "breakfast cake" caught my eye.

The cake went by another name in the magazine, but I can't remember it right now...Either way though, it's delicious. The cake is very textural, and even a bit dry, but soaks up a rich, flavorful honey sauce and the end result is rich. The thick cake stands up to the onslaught of delicious topping, and the addition of crushed oats leaves you with a slightly nutty, rich, delicious cake you can enjoy at breakfast-who doesn't love an early dessert?!

Honey Pecan Breakfast Cake
From...BHG? Not me, that's for sure.

1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 Tbsp light corn syrup
2 tsp lemon zest
4 tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup crushed oats
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 eggs
2/3 buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Combine honey, 1/3 cup melted butter, corn syrup, lemon zest and juice, and chopped pecans together. Spread into the bottom of an 8 in. cake pan.

In a large bowl mix together dry ingredients, including pecans. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Create a well in the center of the flour mixture, and pour the wet ingredients in. Mixing from the center, slowly incorporate dry ingredients until just combined-mixture will still be slightly lumpy. Pour over top of the honey mixture.

Bake for 25 minutes. Invert onto a plate immediately after removing from oven (be careful, you're likely to spill some of the hot honey topping. Spoon any extra honey topping over the cake and allow to cool slightly before enjoying (I'd suggest having it warm-it's extra fantastic that way.). This would be a great quick brunch for the holidays-especially if you have guests coming to stay!

Snow Day!!

It snowed up here a few days before Thanksgiving. I was instantly transformed into a six year old kid again, and it was fabulous!

All my childhood memories came rushing back to me-spending Christmas break applying fake blue nails and watching Twister, only to lose a fake nail in the snow later that day. I remembered playing until long past the point my ice cold fingers would have wanted, only to rush home and dunk them in steaming hot water (which, by the way, I totally don't recommend!).

Just thought I'd share some pictures for those of you still enduring 80+ degree days!

The first day it snowed, it wasn't very sticky, so instead of a snowman I went with a snow angel.

Poor Arizona Freddy the Focus was coooold.

Snowy tree!

Front yard blanketed in snow.

It was cold. Like 22 degrees cold. Snow brings out the Arizona cold weather whiner in me rather quickly, though. Don't get me wrong, I've pretty much been cold here since mid-August. Even at the of July I wore a sweater all day with my shorts and sandals. But give it about 5 minutes of solid snow play and I'm ready to go inside and just look at it through the window. I told my mom the other day that I wanted it to snow again cause I wanted to play in it some more. But then I added that I didn't want to drive in it...or be cold. Something tells me that won't be happening!

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

I officially consider it Christmas cookie time. And since I first made these 5 years ago, they've been my go to Christmas cookie ever since.

I literally remember where I was standing when I copied down the recipe. Is that weird? Hey, at least I don't remember what I was wearing...

These cookies are just so fudgy and fantastic. They come out in perfect circles, and I love the textural and taste differences with the soft chocolate and crunchy peppermint. Trust me, you need to throw these on your cookie tray this year-you'll thank me.

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
From Martha Stewart

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup dark cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 oz. milk chocolate
1 stick butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
3 eggs
35 crushed peppermint candies, divided


In a small bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Melt together chocolate and butter in a large bowl placed over a pan of simmering water. Remove bowl from over pan and add sugar and extracts. Allow to cool, then mix in eggs one at a time. Slowly add in flour mixture. Stir in 15 crushed peppermint candies. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes, or as long as overnight.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Roll dough into circles, and dip tops in remaining crushed peppermint candies. Place cookies on lined/greased baking sheets, and bake for 15 minutes. Allow to cool, and enjoy!