Snickerdoodle Muffins

Loved these.  But then as I always thell people, "Santa has never met a cookie he didn't like" and I do love snickerdoodles.  Make it into a muffin and loife is really good.  The recipe comes from: http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/breads/snickerdoodle-muffins-3/

Ingredients

1 cup Butter, Softened

1 cup Sugar

2 whole Eggs

2 teaspoons Vanilla

2-¼ cups Flour

¾ teaspoons Baking Powder

¾ teaspoons Baking Soda

¾ teaspoons Cream Of Tartar

½ teaspoons Salt

1 cup Sour Cream

¼ cups Buttermilk

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FOR THE TOPPING:

⅔ cups Sugar

2 Tablespoons Cinnamon

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Prepare a muffin tin with liners. (I learned the hard way that they are too fragile for just cooking spray.)

In a mixer, combine the butter and sugar and cream until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and combine.
In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add half of the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and stir to combine. Add the sour cream and buttermilk and mix to combine. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until you have a smooth batter.

In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon for the topping.

Use scooper and plop a scoop of batter into the bowl with the sugar and cinnamon. Gently roll the batter in the sugar and cinnamon. Place the ball into the muffin liner.

When you have completed all of the muffins, sprinkle the leftover cinnamon sugar onto the tops of all of the muffins.

Bake the muffins at 350ºF for about 15-18 minutes or until they are golden on top and just baked through.

Caramel-Filled Snickerdoodles

I made these cookies over the Christmas Holiday.  They were a big hit with my family.  My mother wouldn't try one though without being told what was in the middle.  She does not like surprises and I couldn't get her to trust me.  Oh well.  The recipe comes from the following blog:  http://www.the-baker-chick.com


Ingredients

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/2 cup pure vegetable shortening

1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed

2 large eggs

48 soft caramel candies or Rolos unwrapped

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Line baking sheets with Silpat baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.

Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter, shortening, and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine.

In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon. Use a small (1 1/4-ounce) ice-cream scoop to form balls of the dough. Break the ball into two and place the caramel into the middle. Form one large ball and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after 5 minutes. Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to cool about 5 minutes before transferring the cookies to the rack. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Cowboy Casserole

This recipe comes from: http://thecuttingedgeofordinary.blogspot.com  I made this a couple weeks ago for my daughter and her family shortly after she had her twins.  It was very good and my grandson loved it.  I will make this again.

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I used 80/20)
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 can (15.25oz) whole kernel corn, drained
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons sour cream
1 bag (30 oz) frozen tater tots (I used Ore-Ida Crispy Crowns)

Directions

In a large skillet cook the onion until tender and translucent. Add the chopped garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add the beef and cook over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain the mixture and place into a large bowl and set aside.

In a small bowl combine the soup, milk and sour cream. Whisk until smooth. Add to hamburger mixture and stir to combine. Add corn and 1 cup of cheddar cheese. Gently mix to combine.

Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish. Layer half of the Crispy Crowns on the bottom, pour the hamburger mixture over the top and then layer with the other half of the Crispy Crowns. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese and bake at 350 for 25 - 30 minutes, or until golden brown and crunchy.

Chicken & Black Bean Enchilada Casserole

I made this for dinner recently and my wife said this is a keeper.  It comes from: http://www.sweettreatsmore.com  She has some great recipes on this blog.  There are several more I want to try.







Igedients:

2 cups diced or shredded chicken breast meat (or for extra lazy days use a rotisserie chicken)½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon garlic powder
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (4.5 oz) can diced green chili peppers, drained
1 (10 oz) can red enchilada sauce
8 (6 inch) corn tortillas
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
1 (8 oz) container sour cream

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°. Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and spray with vegetable cooking spray. Sauté chicken with cumin and coriander until chicken is cooked through. Transfer to a medium bowl. Stir in the cilantro, black beans, and green chili peppers.

Spread half of the enchilada sauce over the bottom of an 11x7 inch baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Place 4 tortillas over the sauce, overlapping if necessary. Spoon half of the chicken mixture over the tortillas, and sprinkle with half of the cheese and half of the sour cream.

Spoon the remaining enchilada sauce over the cheese, and make another layer of tortillas. Layer the remaining chicken mixture over the tortillas.

Cover dish with a lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven.

Remove the cover, and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and dot with sour cream. Continue cooking, uncovered, for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese melts.

Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Skillet Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

I made this the other night thinking Isaac, who always wants macaroni, peas and cheese would love it.  After he ate about half of it, he asked "Grandpa, is there pepper in it?"  when I said yeas, his answer was I don't like pepper.  I sat with him a fed him and he ate it all.  The next day when his mom warmed up the leftovers he asked her if it and salt in it and when she said yea, he reponded he didn't like salt, but again he ate the whole luch.  My daughter and son-inlaw loved it because they said it tasted like it had Velveeta Cheese in it and my wife wasn't crazy about it because it tasted like it had Velveeta Cheese.  The recipe comes from: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2009/03/skillet-creamy-macaroni-and-cheese.html
She has a lot of great recipes on this blog.  Check it out.

INGREDIENTS:

3 1/2 cups water, plus extra if needed
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
12 ounces (about 3 cups) elbow macaroni
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
6 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
6 ounces Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (1 1/2 cups)
2 tablespoons butter, cut into small chunks
Ground black pepper to taste


DIRECTIONS:

Bring 3 1/2 cups water, 1 cup of the evaporated milk, the macaroni, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to a simmer in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over high heat. Cook at a vigorous simmer, stirring often, until the macaroni is tender and the liquid has thickened, 9 to 12 minutes.
Whisk the remaining 1/2 cup evaporated milk, the cornstarch, mustard and hot sauce together in a small bowl, then stir into the skillet. Continue to simmer slightly thickened, about 1 minute.
Off the heat, stir in the cheddar and Monterey Jack, one handful at a time, adding water as needed to adjust the consistency of the sauce (I didn’t need any additional water when I made it). Stir in the butter and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.