Cinnamon + Brown Butter = Heaven

Here we are again with another breakfast type muffin recipe! I made these for a friends baby shower that was a few Sundays ago and they were a hit. The only downside to these is that they are best if made right before an event and not beforehand, but they are totally worth it! I found the recipe over at Smitten Kitchen, an ABSOLUTELY amazing food blog, you must check it out.

Cinnamon Brown Butter Breakfast Puffs from Smitten Kitchen

Cinnamon Brown Butter Breakfast Puffs
Adapted from Betty Crocker and others

Yield: 9 to 12 standard muffin-size puffs or 30-ish miniature ones. Try not to overfill as I did or you won’t get as great domes on them. (I used mini-muffin tins!)

Coating
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter

Puffs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup (5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing muffin cups
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 12 standard size or 30 miniature muffin cups, or line cups with paper liners.

Prepare coatings: In a small saucepan, melt 6 tablespoons butter over medium heat and continue to cook it, stirring frequently, until brown bits form on the bottom and it smells nutty and heavenly. Immediately remove from heat and set aside. 

In a small bowl, combine 2/3 cup sugar and cinnamon. Set aside as well.

Prepare puffs: Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg together in a medium bowl and set aside. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Mix in 1/3 of flour mixture, followed by 1/2 of buttermilk, repeating again and finishing with the flour mixture. Mix only until combined.

Spoon into prepared muffin cups, filling only 3/4 of the way. (I filled mine higher and they ended up spilling over a bit and doming less than they are capable of.) Bake standard sized muffins for 20 to 25 minutes and miniature muffins for 12 to 14 minutes. When finished, muffins will feel springy to the touch and a tester inserted into the center will come out clean. Transfer them in their pan to a wire rack.

As soon as you feel you’re able to pick one up, take your first puff and roll the top and upper edges in the browned butter. Don’t be afraid to pick up the browned butter solids at the bottom of the saucepan; they’re the dreamiest part. Let any excess butter drip off for a second before gently rolling the butter-soaked cake top in cinnamon-sugar. I find if you roll too firmly, or have too much wet/not absorbed butter on top, the sugar can clump off, which is heartbreaking. Transfer puff to wire rack to set and repeat with remaining puffs. Eat warm.

Oscar Fashion!

Sooo I know I'm a little late to the party on the topic of Oscar fashion, but I still wanted to recap my favorites. I am embarrassed to say that I didn't even watch the show, just the red carpet arrivals (The best part!) and then E!'s Fashion Police recap of it. So here we go!

Emma Stone in Giambattista Valli...yes yes yes we KNOW it looks similar to Nicole Kidman's 2007 look, but its still totally different too. LOVE this, love her...she has really nailed it almost every time on the red carpet.

My dearest Gwyneth in Tom Ford, she rocked it. She totally took a risk and it paid off. And from what I hear it was a cooler CA night so the cape came in handy. She looked awesome!

Michelle Williams in Louis Vuitton looked precious. I love the peplum trend so thus I'm in love with this. Loving the coral color too, not loving the brooch or the necklace. I think she should of ditched those two accessories and just gone with a statement earring, but she still looks radiant!

Milla Jovovich in Elie Saab Couture, to me this is what Oscar fashion is all about the glitz and the glam. I love that its a little Old Hollywood, but still modern at the same time. Well done Milla!

Octavia Spencer in Tadashi Shoji, I've been loving all of Octavia's choices this award seasons. While some bloggers and fashion critics have nailed her for wearing the same designer over and over, I praise her because this designer clearly knows how to dress her body and she always steps out with confidence and class. This gown looks great on her and shows off all assets.

Shailene Woodley in Valentino Couture...WAY TO GO girlfriend. It's so refreshing to see a young girl in a uber-classic gown. I love this look on her, I don't care if its a wee bit mature for her because she still looks fabulous in it and shows young girls that you don't have to let it all hang out. Well done! And its Valentino people, he can do no wrong.

Tina Fey in Carolina Herrara, way to step out of your comfort zone Tina. While I know we just moved to navy and not a bright color its still a step in the right direction. Her hair is also super fun which adds to the dress and she is rocking the peplum trend. LOVE this.

Now onto the looks from the Vanity Fair After Party. Kate Bosworth in Prabal Gurung, OMG this is so hot, but still modern and fresh. I LOVE this look. Does she not just look amazing?

Claire Danes in Valentino...Claire also stepped out of her comfort zone and went in a more vibrant and fun direction and I'm loving it. Love the polka dot pattern at the neck, but the sheerness to it adds a bit of sexy. This just looks like the ultimate girly party dress to me!

Diane Kruger in Calvin Klein, one word, sexy. And luckily classy sexy not sleazy sexy. Claire rocks this look so well. Love it.

All images courtesy of Red Carpert Fashion Awards

Because Everyone Needs a Go To CC Cookie Recipe

I knowwwww I've been a bad blogger lately and haven't been as consistent, shame on me! This is largely due to a very fun weekend I had in Fredricksburg, TX to celebrate a bride-to-be, another post on that coming. But back to today's post, chocolate chip cookies...who doesn't love these? I made a batch to deliver to some loved ones and then even let some remain in our home, I know my husband is thrilled about this as he often asks, "Can't you ever just make "normal" cookies?" Well he got his wish!

This recipe was SO easy. I made the dough last night and then baked off the cookies early this morning. Enjoy!

Irresistible Chocolate Chip Cookies from RealSimple

20 (makes 40 cookies) Hands-On Time: 0hr 15m Total Time: 0hr 35m

Ingredients

• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• kosher salt
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Heat oven to 375° F.
2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil. (I just sprayed them with non-stick baking spray)
3. With an electric mixer on medium-high, beat the butter, sugars, and vanilla for 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the baking soda. Reduce mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture to the egg mixture until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
4. Scoop the dough into tablespoon-size mounds and place on the prepared baking sheets, 2 inches apart. Bake until lightly browned at the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. (12 minutes seemed perfect for me)
5. Cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks and cool completely.

Entertaining Ideas for a Happy Hour at Your House

Happy Thursday everyone! Last night I had the pleasure of hosting one of my girls groups over at my home for an evening happy hour. It was so fun. I know some people feel like entertaining in their house is stressful, expensive and time consuming but I want to share some tips and my menu with you all to prove that you CAN do it easily.

First I wanted to list my menu. This happy hour started at 6pm and while normally I would serve more heavy appetizers for this time frame I kept it light since this is what this particular girls group tends to do.

- Block of Cream Cheese with Chutney poured over, served with crackers of your choice
- Pea Pesto Crostini 
 - Chipotle Black Bean Dip with Tortilla Chips & Veggies (Recipe coming soon!)
 - Spinach Parmesan Dip with Tortilla Chips & Veggies
 - Spicy Roasted Chickpeas
 - Roasted Edamame
 - Mixed Nuts

The GREAT thing about this menu was that almost everything can be made ahead of time. I made both dips and the chickpeas the night before. I used store bought chutney for the cream cheese so that was easy. The only thing I made right before was the Roasted Edamame. I also just made one batch of everything and that was more than plenty for about 15 girls!

Also, put together your table the night before or earlier in the day of the party. Its always helpful to put sticky notes on your serving pieces so you know where everything goes and what food item is going in them. It's also a good idea to take dips out of the fridge about 30 minutes before you serve them to soften them up.

Using frozen vegetables and canned beans really kept the cost down of all my items. The most expensive ingredients I used were parmesan cheese and chipotles in adobo. A little trick I learned about chipotles in adobo, usually recipes only call for 1 or 2 teaspoons of this ingredient, but then you are leftover with the whole can of them. You can deseed all the chilies and put them and the sauce in the can into a blender or food processor and puree it. Once pureed ration out a few servings into individual baggies and freeze until you need them.

Since I was serving pretty much all finger food I only put out cocktail napkins and just let everyone dig in. More fun that way sometimes! I set up a bar in the kitchen with additional cocktail napkins with the needed glasses and drinks. Don't forget to have a pitcher of ice water out too!

Do you all have any entertaining tips? The best thing to remember is to just have fun, if you are having fun and don't seem stressed than all your guests will too!

I Think I Could Make Muffins EVERYDAY...

I love to bake as I'm sure you all have gathered and if you are new to the blog than you will learn quickly. I especially love muffins, most likely because I love any bread products, but muffins are just so easy, they are the perfect thing to eat on the go and are one of my favorite things to bake for other people. On this occasion I was making these Apple Muffins for friends of ours who just had their second baby girl. These were even better than I expected and are even relatively healthy. Since these muffins were so good I'm tempted to try more of Ellie Krieger's recipes. Do any of you have favorites from Ellie?

I made a few tweaks to the recipe, mainly upping the cinnamon, switching out pecans for walnuts and using regular whole wheat flour instead of the pastry variety. My other suggestion would be to REALLY consider waiting 5 minutes after taking the muffins out of the oven and before placing them on the wire rack to cool. I found that having the muffins stay put in the pan for a little bit helped hold their shape better.

Apple Muffins from Food Network

Apple Muffins slight adapted from Ellie Krieger from Food Network

Yields about 12 muffins (I was able to get 16 muffins)

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup natural applesauce
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup lowfat buttermilk
• 1 Granny Smith apple cored and cut into 1/4-inch pieces

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat a 12-capacity muffin pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar, the walnuts and cinnamon.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose and whole-wheat flour, baking soda and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk the remaining 3/4 cup sugar and oil until combined. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, whisking well after each addition. Whisk in the applesauce and vanilla.

Whisk in the flour mixture in 2 batches, alternating with the buttermilk. Whisk just until combined. Gently stir in the apple chunks.

Pour the batter into the prepared muffin pan and sprinkle with the pecan mixture. Tap the pan on the counter a few times to remove any air bubbles. Bake for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center of 1 of the muffins comes out clean.

Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the muffins to loosen them and unmold. Cool completely on the rack.

Veggie Meal

I'm going to have a lot of recipes coming at you all since I've been cooking up a STORM lately! I made these Stacked Roasted Veggie Enchiladas for dinner Sunday night and LOVED them, I will warn you though, this is not one of my "husband approved" meals, but it would be perfect for a girls night dinner. The leftovers are also very good so bonus there.

I found this recipe courteous of the all time consuming Pinterest. When I make these again I'll serve some tortilla chips and hot sauce on the side. Enjoy!

Stacked Roasted Vegetable Enchiladas via Perry's Palate

Stacked Roasted Veggie Enchiladas slightly adapted from Perry's Palate

ingredients:

1 poblano chile, cut into matchsticks
2 red bell peppers, cut into matchsticks
1/2 head of cauliflower, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 small sweet potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium onion, halved and slivered (I left this out as the husband hates onions, but you should add if you like!)
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen (I used frozen)
3 T heat-safe oil like grapeseed or coconut (Loving using grapeseed oil)
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt and black pepper
2 cups homemade or store bought salsa/pico de gallo (I use 1 cup salsa and 1 cup pico)
2 ounces baby spinach leaves (about 2 big handfuls)
3-4 tortillas for layering, I used a WW version that was large so 1 tortilla was enough for each layer
2 cups reduced fat Mexican blend shredded cheese

directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a large shallow roasting pan or rimmed cookie sheet.

Place poblanos, red bell peppers, cauliflower, sweet potato, onion, and corn kernels onto cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle the cumin and minced garlic over top. Add a generous pinch or two of salt and black pepper, then use your hands to mix everything together. After everything is coated well, spread the vegetables evenly in the pan. Roast for 30-40 minutes until vegetables are tender and begin to brown in spots. Stir or shake the pan every 10 minutes for even roasting. Remove pan from oven and reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

Prepare an 8x8x2 or 9x9x2-inch square baking pan with nonstick spray. Spread 1/4 cup of salsa into the bottom of the baking pan. Add a layer of tortilla pieces, to completely cover the salsa. Top with 1/3 of the vegetables, a handful of spinach, and 1/3 of the cheese. Make a second layer of tortilla, salsa, vegetables, spinach, and cheese. Top with with a layer of tortillas, salsa, vegetables, and cheese. Cover with aluminum foil.

Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes, until cheese is melted and everything is heated through.

Let it sit for 5 minutes and cut into squares. 

Serves 4-5

Must Try Chickpea Recipe

Hiiii friends, sorry that I've been MIA lately, life has gotten in the way, but I promise to get back on the blogging bandwagon. So I've been seeing multipe recipes lately for roasted chickpeas and have wanted to try them myself and man o man am I glad I did. Chickpeas are a good source of folic acid, fiber, 
and manganese and they have a lot of protein in them too. Basically chickpeas = awesome for you.

This recipe couldn't be easier, these are great as a snack, as a topping to a salad or to put out at party which I'll be doing this Wednesday night.

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas via Our Best Bites

Spicy Roasted Chickpeas via Our Best Bites

Ingredients:

1 15-ounce can chickpeas
1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drain and rinse chickpeas and pat dry with paper towels. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the spices and the olive oil. Toss the chickpeas in the spice mixture and spread the seasoned chickpeas over a lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove the pan from the oven. Use a spatula to toss the chickpeas, then replace the pan and cook for another 15-20 minutes or until browned (but not burned) and crispy. Allow to cool. Snack away.

Enjoy!