What a great weekend!! I just had a great visit with my friend Bev from Kansas! She came up Friday and is going home tomorrow :( I got to cook her lots of great things, so it was a bunch of fun! Here we are together.... goofs! :)

Haha... just have to share these! Bev snapped some pictures of dad picking tomatoes in our "jungle" of a garden. She called him Mr. McGreggor (like from Peter Rabit)! :) Haha. He does look pretty intense! But it paid off... he left with a bucket full of tomatoes!


Now for some food!! :) This is called TOPSY-TURVY APPLE PIE because it is an upside down apple pie. It was delicious with a big scoop of ice cream!

Ingredients

• 2 (9 inch) pie shell
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup pecan halves
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 5 large apples - peeled, cored and sliced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 pinch salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Spread butter or margarine evenly on bottom and sides of a 9-inch pie plate. Press pecans, rounded side down, into butter layer. Pat brown sugar evenly over nuts, then lay one pastry shell over brown sugar layer.
3. Place apples in a large bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice.
4. In a small bowl combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Mix well. Toss mixture with apples, coating thoroughly.
5. Spread apples into pie plate. Cover apples with second pastry shell. Crimp edges of pastry and make steam vents in top.
6. Bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes. Cool 5 minutes then place serving plate over top of pie; invert pie onto plate. Carefully remove pie pan. Serve warm or cool.

Ooooohhhh boy! These are my absolute new favorite muffins! :) I love the "fall feeling" and nothing makes it more realistic than pumpkins! :) Next I will share my recipe for PUMPKIN APPLE STREUSEL MUFFINS. Now... just hold on before you run out to the grocery store for pumpkin. They apparently don't stock it until Thanksgiving. You wouldn't believe how the Wal- Mart lady treated me when I asked. I simply asked "do you have any canned pumpkin? I haven't seen any." "No, probably not, that's a seasonal item... usually here around Thanksgiving" Well thanks for clarifying dummy... I just thought you might keep CANNED PUMPKIN around year-round since it's stored in a can!! You keep cranberries year round don't ya??!?! Well, she proceeded to say "I have 5 cans at home, but that doesn't help you now, does it?" Thanks. Thanks for your assistance.
Oh, please try these muffins. They are a delight!!

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups white sugar
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apple
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 teaspoons butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 18 muffin cups or use paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, sift together 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 cups sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together eggs, pumpkin and oil. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture; stirring just to moisten. Fold in apples. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons flour, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle topping evenly over muffin batter.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

I also made a yummy lasagna, but this post has gotten pretty long, so I will share that another time!

Omelette & Guacamole Chicken

I have 2 of the most simple recipes to share with you today, and both of them quite tasty! :) First, my favorite omelette-


3 eggs, scrambled with a Tbsp or 2 of milk
Salt & Pepper
Spinach, torn
Mushrooms, chopped
Tomatoes, chopped
Swiss cheese

Heat oil over medium heat in a small non stick skillet. When hot pour in eggs and sprinkle with salt & pepper. Turn heat down to warm/low. Sprinkle mushrooms, tomatoes, and spinach over half of the eggs. Cook until egg mostly set. Top veggies with Swiss cheese, flip "egg side" over the "veggie/cheese" side and cover skillet with lid or plate. Let set for 1-2 minutes. Enjoy!!


Next, I have Guacamole Chicken-


4 chicken breasts
4 -6 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled
1 avocado
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes
Salt & pepper
Splash of lemon juice

Cook chicken breasts according to your tastes (George Foreman, skillet, grill, baked). While chicken is cooking, peel avocado and mash in a small bowl. Add sour cream, tomatoes, salt & pepper to taste and lemon juice.
When chicken is cooked top with bacon and guacamole.

Smoothie & Thai Coconut Chicken Curry

Well, let me start by saying I'm not a huge smoothie fan. I prefer my calories in the form of cake, cookies, or donuts... and smoothies usually add up to about that many. But I do love this recipe because it is light and doesn't have much dairy or sugar to weigh it down. But, it still has flavor! :)

Strawberry Pomegranate Smoothie

1 cup frozen strawberries
6 small ice cubes
1/3 cup Pomegranate juice
2 Tbsp plain yogurt
2 Tbsp honey

Blend it up and enjoy! I love this flavor, but I wanted one of these smoothies the other day and I didn't have any Pomegranate juice at home, so I improvised! I used grapefruit juice and strawberry-banana yogurt.... it was yummy too! More sweet-sour and refreshing!

Next, Thai Coconut Chicken Curry... not sure why it's called a curry because there isn't any curry in it, but that's what it's called! :)

3 chicken breasts
Canola or Olive oil
1 package white mushrooms
1 red pepper, chopped
2 garlic cloves
1 can cannellini beans
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup coconut milk (found in the asian section)
1 Tbsp fish sauce
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp corn starch
Salt to taste

Heat oil in a large skillet. Cut chicken breasts into bite size pieces and cook in skillet until cooked through. Transfer to a plate. Heat more oil in skillet and add mushrooms, red pepper, garlic, and salt to taste. Heat for about 2 minutes. Meanwhile combine chicken broth, coconut milk, and fish sauce in a small bowl. Add cornstarch and whisk until smooth. Add coconut milk mixture to skillet and heat to a boil. Add chicken back to skillet. Heat until sauce thickens, about 5-10 minutes.

South-of-the-Border Tomato Soup

Hi Everyone! Time for another recipe share! I just made this tomato soup today with garden fresh tomatoes, and it was quite delicious! Would have been better in the winter of course when it's nice and cold outside... but then the tomatoes wouldn't be fresh! :)

SOUTH OF THE BORDER TOMATO SOUP

4 pints cherry/grape tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 cups chicken broth
1 avocado
1/4 cup greek yogurt (or sour cream)
Cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp ancho chile powder
Tortilla chips

-Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the tomatoes on top. Drizzle with olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Roast the tomatoes until the skins begin to split and blister, about 15 minutes.
- Transfer tomatoes and juices to a food processor/blender. Add 1 cup chicken broth and process until coarsely pureed, about 10 seconds. Force the mixture through a fine sieve set over a medium saucepan; discard the pulp. Add the honey and remaining broth to saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally, about 5 minutes; season with salt, pepper, and chile powder.
- Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mash the avocado; stir in the yogurt and season with salt and pepper.
- Spoon soup into bowls and top with tortilla chips, cheese, and avocado.


Oh & it just wouldn't be right if I didn't share some pictures of Bristol, TN! We just ventured there for the NASCAR race with Mom, Dad, and Whitney... and had a pretty good time! The drive was 18 hours... way toooooo long! And it was quite hot during the day, but night time (race time) was PERFECT! Lots of excitement, and Aaron's guy, Kyle Busch won all 3 races at the track! Sweet!

Cupcakes!!

Hi Everyone! I hope you're having a great weekend! I know I am- I was scheduled Friday-Sunday at the Sioux Center Hospital, but I only ended up working Saturday! :) Nice. I decided it's finally time to share my cupcake recipes! Now, in order to eat a cupcake at my "sophisticated" age... you gotta spice it up and make it exciting! So I found these next 2 cupcake recipes and fell in love! They are VERY good, and something a little different, so I love 'em! First I will share the Margarita Cupcakes. Now, there is alcohol in the ingredients, but I have made it without and it turns out just as yummy. If you want alcohol free cupcakes just substitute more margarita mix in place of the tequila.


Cake:
1 box white cake mix
7 1/2 ounces margarita mix
2 ounces tequila
1/2 ounce orange juice
3 large egg whites
2 T vegetable oil
Zest of 1 lime

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line 24 muffin tins with paper liners or spray with baking spray. Mix together margarita mix, tequila and orange juice in a large measuring cup. Add cake mix to mixing bowl and add egg whites, oil, lime zest and tequila mix. Beat on low speed for about 30 seconds until dry ingredients are incorporated and then beat on medium high speed for 2 minutes. Spoon batter evenly into muffin cups, filling about 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center cupcake comes out clean. Cool about 5 minutes in the pan and then cool completely on wire racks.


Frosting:
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2-3 T lime juice
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp lime zest
3-4 drops green food coloring

Beat cream cheese and butter on medium high speed until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add 2 T lime juice and lime zest and beat until combined. Add powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, beating on low speed until incorporated. Add more lime juice if necessary. Add food coloring a couple drops at a time and beat on medium high speed until desired color is reached and icing is smooth. I usually set the frosting in the fridge for awhile to set for an hour or so, then pipe onto cooled cupcakes as desired.

Lime wedges, straws, and sprinkles all make festive garnishes. Refrigerate cupcakes in an airtight container if not serving immediately and bring to room temperature a couple hours prior to serving.

Next, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcakes! Now, these aren't just cupcakes with a drop of cookie dough in them... they are made to taste just like cookie dough... and I think they do a great job. They are divine! :) Nice and rich like cookie dough!

1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ cups light brown sugar, firmly packed
4 eggs
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips (I used milk chocolate)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 muffin pans with liners. Combine the butter and sugar in mixing bowl, beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir together vanilla and milk in a measuring cup. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the batter, mix at low speed. Alternate adding flour mixture in 3 parts with ½ of the milk; beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Mix each addition until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips. Scoop the batter evenly into prepared cupcake liners, filling each about 2/3 to ¾ of the way full. Bake about 18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan about 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Frosting:
1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened
¾ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
3 ½ cups powdered sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
½ tsp salt
3 T whole milk
2 ½ tsp vanilla extract
Extra chocolate chips for decoration if desired

Beat the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the powdered sugar, mixing on low speed, until smooth. Add in the flour and salt and beat on low speed until incorporated. Add the milk and vanilla and beat until smooth.

Transfer the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip and pipe frosting on to cooled cupcakes as desired. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top if desired.

Lemonade Fruit Salad

Boy it's hot and humid outside!! I am soooo sick of it!! :) I found a great refreshing summer recipe though! Thought you might enjoy it too. It's a bit of an exclamation point on the traditional fruit salad, and has a nice cool kick to it! :) And I apologize again, I am REALLY bad at taking pictures of the food before I DEVOUR it! So this is not my picture, but it looks yummy!



INGREDIENTS:
- Fruit! :) Whatever you like really. I used cantelope, honeydew, fresh pineapple, strawberries, and mandarin oranges. I think blueberries, kiwis, or mango would be great too! I didn't really measure either... just a big bowl full... probably 10-15 cups of fruit??
- 1 can frozen lemonade concentrate
- 3/4 cup orange marmalade (I like the no sugar added kind.... for obvious reasons and because it keeps this salad light and low on sugar)

DIRECTIONS:
Mix 'er up! I combined lemonade and marmalade together first and then poured over fruit. This does get soupy overnight, so best to serve soon after mixing.

Summer Vegetable and Chicken Tostadas

I hope you're enjoying my eats! I have another one for you today that Aaron & I had for lunch today... delish! These tostadas taste very fresh, and you can switch 'em up as much as you like to suit your tastes, but we like 'em "as is" :)

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 12 ounces chicken breast tenders
• 1 cup chopped red onion
  
• 1 cup corn kernels
  
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
  
• 1/2 cup green salsa (salsa verde)
  
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, divided
• 4 tortillas (we like to use whole wheat)
  
• Cooking spray
• 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Preparation

Preheat broiler.

Combine first 3 ingredients, stirring well. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Sprinkle the spice mixture evenly over chicken. Add chicken to pan; sauté for 3 minutes. Add onion, corn, and zucchini to pan; sauté for 2 minutes or until chicken is done. Stir in salsa and 2 tablespoons cilantro. Cook 2 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates, stirring frequently.

Working with 2 tortillas at a time, arrange tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet; lightly coat tortillas with cooking spray. Broil 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon about 3/4 cup chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla; sprinkle each serving with 1/4 cup cheese. Broil an additional 2 minutes or until cheese melts. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, chicken mixture, and cheese. Sprinkle each serving with about 3/4 teaspoon of remaining cilantro. Serve immediately with extra salsa and/or sour cream.

As for changing it up, you could certainly change the veggies to almost anything- green pepper, red pepper, yellow pepper, jalapenos, poblanos, some green onions.