Tag: nutmeg
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.
Cranberry Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies
Another delicious way to have pumpkin flavored desserts!
- 2½ cups white whole-wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ cup extra light olive oil
- 1½ cups turbinado sugar
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup dried cranberries, chopped
- 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves into a medium bowl. Keep aside. Cream together the oil and sugar for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat for another minute. Add the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract and beat for another minute. Add the cranberries and chocolate and mix well. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix to combine. Scoop with a tablespoon measure and drop the cookies onto a lined cookie sheet, flatten with the back of a spoon. Bake for 15 and 20 minutes. Cool on a baking rack and serve.
Makes about 2 dozen cookies.
Mushroom and Pesto Lasagna
Yummy lasagna for the fall…
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 large garlic clove, peeled
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Pepper
Heat a saucepan with the butter and add the flour. Stir with a whisk on medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the milk and garlic gradually and continue whisking and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Check for seasoning and keep aside.
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 10 ounces Cremini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, grated
- Salt
Heat a frying pan with the olive oil. Add the mushrooms and sauté on medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes till the mushrooms are golden brown. Add the garlic and sauté for another 2 minutes. Season with salt and keep aside.
- ½ cup prepared or homemade pesto
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- ½ cup grated mozzarella cheese
- 9 to 12 no boil lasagna noodles
- 1 8X8 oven-proof pan
Pour a ladle of white sauce to the bottom of the pan, add one layer of noodles on top. Add another ladle of sauce. Spread ¼ cup pesto and sprinkle ¼ cup of Parmigiano cheese on top of that. Then, add half of the sliced mushrooms. Top with another layer of noodles and repeat the process. Top with another layer of noodles and pour the remaining sauce covering the top and sides. Top with the mozzarella cheese, cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes till the noodles are fully cooked and cheese is gooey. Let the lasagna sit for 15 minutes before serving.
Spiced Chocolate Banana Bread
I thought I would do a week of different desserts….
- 1¼ cups unbleached white whole-wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- ¼ teaspoon clove powder
- ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg powder
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for preparing the pan
- 1 cup turbinado sugar
- 3 very ripe bananas, peeled, and mashed with a fork (about 1 cup)
- ½ cup milk or dark chocolate, chips or grated
Sift the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, clove, cardamom and nutmeg into a medium bowl, set aside. Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a liquid measuring cup with a spout, set aside. Lightly brush a 9X5X3 inches loaf pan with butter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually pour the egg mixture into the butter while mixing until incorporated. Add the bananas (the mixture will appear to be curdled), and remove the bowl from the mixer.
With a rubber spatula, mix in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate pieces and transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out clean. Cool the bread in the pan for 5 minutes before taking it out. Cool completely before serving.
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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Lasagna with Meat Sauce
I thought I would continue the pasta theme and post one of my favorite recipes. We all love lasagna in our family. I used the meat sauce from yesterdays post. The dish was even quicker to make than usual since most of the work was done. I usually eliminate the ricotta but I decided to add it to this dish. I added tons of flavor including parsley, cheese and garlic.
All in all, it was a delicious lasagna…
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Kashimiri Koftas (Indian Style Meatballs in a Yogurt Gravy)
My mom has been making these meatballs ever since I can remember. A friend from Kashmir taught her these a long time ago. Since then the dish has been tweaked to perfection. Technically speaking- it is not a typical Kashmiri dish. My mom has changed it over the years by adding more onions to the gravy, etc- she has made it her own.
I had never made these before. I would usually wait for my Mom to visit and make this delicious dish. I finally decided to write down the recipe and try it on my own. It is a bit laborious- but definitely worth all the work.
It is a bit different than the rest of Indian dishes I have posted- the dish does not have any tomatoes or garlic. The main flavorings in the meat are ground fennel and ginger powder. The gravy includes whole cinnamon and cloves. The most interesting flavor comes from asafetida. It has a very distinct flavor. If you can’t find it, no worries- just eliminate it. The dish will be good even without this spice.
Serve it with naans or rotis. I would highly recommend this dish- try it and it will part of your repertoire…
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