Tag: milk
Pumpkin Duffins with Cream Cheese
Here is another version of our favorite healthy dessert- duffins. I wanted to make something for Halloween and the first thing I think of – is pumpkin. When I think of pumpkin, cream cheese frosting comes to mind- it really is a match made in heaven.
So, in order to make duffins, I decided to invert the two and use the cream cheese as a filling in the middle.
The result was delicious- well, eventually. I made one batch and had a few friends taste test for me and give me some critical analysis. My daughter is the most honest taste tester I have- she has no qualms about telling me when things are not right. She told me the duffins didn’t have enough pumpkin flavor and the filling tasted too much like cream cheese and not like a frosting. She was right- I had forgotten to add vanilla extract in the cream cheese mixture.
The second batch included more spiced including cinnamon, ginger and cloves. It also included the missing vanilla extract. The result was delicious.
Make these for halloween…
- 1 cup raw sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1½ cups white whole-wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup extra light olive oil
- ¾ cup 1% milk
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
Filling
- 2 oz cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Mix the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Keep aside.
Topping
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- ½ cup fine raw sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Lightly grease a 12 muffin tin with a bit of oil in each cup.
In a large bowl, beat together sugar and egg till light and fluffy. Pour in vegetable oil, milk and pumpkin puree. Mix to combine.
In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and ginger. Pour into the egg mixture and stir well.
Add a quarter cup batter in each cup. Add a teaspoon of cream cheese on top. Top each cup with the rest of the batter to cover the filling.
Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
While muffins are baking, melt butter in a small bowl. Pour ½ cup sugar into another small bowl.
Once the muffins are done, lightly brush the top with melted butter, remove from the pan and roll in the sugar, coating all parts of the duffin.
Cherry Almond Duffins
Dessert number 3! Use fresh or frozen cherries for this one… yummy!
- ¾ cup raw sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1½ cups white whole-wheat flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup extra light olive oil
- 1 cup 1% milk
- 2 teaspoons almond extract
- 1 cup pitted fresh or frozen cherries, chopped
Topping
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted
- ½ cup fine raw sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Lightly grease a 12 muffin tin with a bit of oil in each cup.
In a large bowl, beat together sugar and egg till light and fluffy. Pour in vegetable oil, milk, vanilla and almond extracts. Mix to combine.
In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking powder and salt. Pour into the egg mixture and stir well. Fold the cherries into the batter and mix to incorporate.
Divide batter evenly into the muffin cups, filling about ½ full.
Bake for 15 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
While duffins are baking, melt butter in a small bowl. Pour ½ cup sugar into a medium bowl.
Once the duffins are done, lightly brush the top with melted butter, remove from the pan and roll in the sugar, coating all parts of the duffin.
Meatballs with Smoked Paprika
Here is another meatball recipe. They are so easy to make and I like to make mine with different flavorings. I also like to make them really healthy and generally make them with ground turkey meat. These particular ones have my favorite flavors- smoked paprika and dried ancho chilies. They both have a delicious, smoky flavor with a bit of kick.
I added the paprika in the meat itself including onion and garlic. For the sauce I reconstituted a few ancho chilies, blended them with crushed tomatoes and cooked it. I then formed the meatballs and cooked them in the delicious sauce.
- 1 pound ground turkey meat
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 egg beaten
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
- ½ cup yellow onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup milk
Transfer the meat into a large bowl. Add the paprika, salt, thyme, beaten egg, cilantro, onion and garlic. Mix well. In the meantime soak the breadcrumbs in the milk for ten minutes. Add the soaked breadcrumbs into the meat mixture and mix well. Keep aside in the fridge for at least 2 to 3 hours.
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 dried ancho chilies
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Salt
Soak the dried chilies in the boiling water for half an hour. Blend the soft peppers (and the water) with the crushed tomatoes until all blended well. Add the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the tomato mixture into the pan and bring to a boil. Cook for about 15 minutes on high. Simmer while forming meatballs and gently dropping them in the sauce. Add the cinnamon. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes. Check for seasonings and serve with rice or bread.
Indian Style Polenta
Polenta is a very easy, healthy and quick starch to make. Like rice, it is very versatile and anything and everything can be added to make it yummier. I have made quite a few different kinds in the past.
I made this one Indian style to serve with the fish curry. I started with mustard seeds and curry leaves. I also added a couple of different kinds of lentils for a nice crunch and I also included peanuts.
My original idea was to cook the polenta in coconut milk and chicken broth but then I realized I was out of coconut milk. Instead I cooked it with my normal mixture of milk and chicken broth- both the liquids ensure yummy flavor in the dish.. and this dish was extremely yummy.
The only person who doesn’t like polenta in the house is my daughter. I made her some rice on the side. She does not enjoy the texture of polenta… but I love it…
- 1 cup fine polenta
- 1½ cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1½ cups milk
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons extra light olive oil
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 4 to 5 curry leaves
- 1 tablespoons white moong dal
- 1 tablespoons channa dal
- ½ cup roasted peanuts, chopped
- 1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed
Heat a medium saucepan with the olive oil. Add the mustard seeds, curry leaves, moong dal, channa dal and peanuts. Saute on medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the spinach and sauté for a minute. Add the broth and milk with the salt. Bring to a boil and add the polenta. Follow package instructions to cook the polenta. Taste for seasonings and serve with the fish curry.
Roasted Red Pepper Meatballs
If you are regular reader, you know how much I love making different kinds of meatballs. This is my newest creation. I roasted a large red pepper, shallot and garlic. I then chopped them up really well and added them to the ground turkey. I also added some chopped parsley and the regular suspects including an egg and panko breadcrumbs soaked in milk. The result was deliciou! I had them with a big salad and my daughter and husband enjoyed them with some whole wheat spaghetti! read more …
Bacon Cheeseburger Macaroni
This is a great dish that incorporates macaroni and cheese with tiny little burgers. I came up with this dish when I trying to cook delicious food for my nephew who was recuperating from a surgery. He loves macaroni can cheese and really loves cheese burgers.. so I decided to incorporate all of those ingredients into this dish.
I had to add some veggies- so decided to add some chopped carrots and peas. I flavored the ground beef with garlic and parsley and made tiny little burgers. I used pancetta and shallots to give yummy flavor to the béchamel sauce. All in all it was a delicious concoction. It was a special treat for him and I was glad I could come up with something he would enjoy….
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Leftover Meatball Lasagna
Why not finish off the week with another pasta dish? Like yesterdays post, this one made with leftovers as well- I love making a completely different dish the next day. This one is quite simple as well since most of the work was already done. All I made was the béchamel sauce and layered the lasagna noodles with crumbled meatballs. It took almost no time and I had a delicious dish.
Next time you have leftover meatballs, make this delicious lasagna…
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