bakery style strawberry muffins

 

I have made these muffins twice and they are GREAT!  I love ALL the fresh strawberries and how moist and flavorful they are- natural flavors!!

Note:  The recipe makes a lot of topping!  Cut in half or store in the refrigerator to top other muffins or sweet breads.

bakery style strawberry muffins (Home Cooked Harvest)

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

pinch of salt

2 cups fresh strawberries, diced

crumb topping

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cut up

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Add liners to a standard 12 cup muffin pan with liners or use nonstick cooking spray on each.

In a mixing bowl, cram together butter and granulated sugar until creamy.

Add in egg, buttermilk, and vanilla extract.  Mix till combined.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.

Slowly add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.  Beat on low speed until combined.

Add about half of the diced strawberries to batter and gently fold in with a spoon.

Fill the prepared muffin liners about 3/4 full.  Top each muffin with the remaining strawberries.

To make the crumb topping:

In a medium bowl or food processor add in brown sugar, granulated sugar, flour and butter.

Stir with a fork or pastry blender.  Or pulse 13-15 times in food processor until mixture looks crumbly.

Sprinkle over the tops of muffins.

Bake for 23-25 minutes in the middle oven.  Muffins should be lightly browned and toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin should come out clean.

curried cauliflower soup

 

Hall of Fame.  This soup is SO good.  It was so good I couldn't wait to be hungry again so I could have more.  My husband also loved it.  It's such a simple soup yet the flavors are unique and delicious.

curried cauliflower soup (cookieandkate.com)

1 medium to large head of cauliflower, broken into small florets

up to 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1-3 tablespoons Thai red curry paste (I used 1 tablespoon)

2 cups vegetable broth

1 can (14 ounces) light coconut milk

1-3 teaspoons rice vinegar, to taste (I used 1 teaspoon)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

for garnish:  1/4 cup chopped green onion

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Toss the cauliflower with enough oil to lightly coat.  Spread the cauliflower in a single layer on a large baking sheet and roast until the tips of the cauliflower are golden brown, about 25-35 minutes.

Wait until the cauliflower is done before starting the soup (this is a good time to prep the remaining ingredients).  

In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat, warm 1 tablespoon of the oil until shimmering.  Add the onion and a pinch of salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is turning translucent, about 3-4 minutes.  Add the curry paste and stir to incorporate.

Add half of the cauliflower florets and all of the stems to the pot.  Add the broth and coconut milk.  Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally.  Continue simmering for 5 to 10 more minutes to meld the flavors, reducing the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.  Remove the pot form the heat.

Let the soup cool for a few minutes.  For the creamiest results, transfer the soup to a blender, blending until smooth.

Stir in 1 teaspoon vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.  Ladle the soup into 4 bowls.  Top each with 1/4 of the cauliflower florets and a sprinkle of green onions.

grilled spiced chicken skewers with cucumber salad

 

Honestly, these were even better as leftovers as I enjoyed mine poolside at the resort.  The combination of the chicken with the cucumbers and tzatziki is delicious!

grilled spiced chicken skewers with cucumber salad (slightly adapted from             Country Living)

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts                                                                         

1 tablespoon oil

2 teaspoons curry powder

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

kosher salt and black pepper

cucumber salad:

1 sliced english cucumber

2 sliced scallions

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint (I didn't have that; wish I would've had cilantro)

1 tablespoon oil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh lime juice

1 garlic clove, minced

tzatziki sauce for serving

Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces.  Toss with oil, curry powder, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, kosher salt and pepper.  Let marinate in the fridge for a few hours.

Heat grill to medium-high.  Thread marinated chicken onto skewers.  Grill, turning occasionally until charred and cooked through 8-10 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss together cucumber, scallions, mint, olive oil, fresh lime juice and garlic.  Season with salt and pepper. 

Enjoy the chicken, cucumbers and tzatziki sauce with some rice.

blueberry preserves (no pectin)

 

I found the best deal on organic blueberries from Hood River, Oregon so I had to make some lemon blueberry bread and some blueberry preserves.  It was an unexpected turn of events for my day and it made me so happy!

blueberry preserves (creative canning)

8 cups blueberries (approximately 4 pints)

4 cups granulated sugar

1/2 cup lemon juice

Pick through your blueberries carefully, remove the stems and rinse your berries with clean water.

Place the blueberries and lemon juice into a large pot.

Over low heat, slowly cook the blueberries until they begin to pop and produce their own juices.  Stir and carefully watch to prevent scorching, especially at this early stage.

Lightly mash the blueberries as you stir and cook them, allowing them to break apart.

Once the blueberries and lemon juice have created a significant amount of juice, add the sugar, stirring to dissolve.

Turn the heat up to medium-high, and continue to stir and check to make sure the jam is not scorching.

Cook the jam until it has reached the gel stage, which should be approximately 20 minutes (or 220 degrees).

Ladle or pour the jam into prepared jars.

Preserve the jam by processing in a water bath for 10 minutes or by steaming for 10 minutes.

spicy cashew chicken

Note to self:  Youngest and only child at home ate two big helpings.  Make again.

This dish was really good!  I forgot the cashews and should have sprinkled sesame seeds over the top but I'll add those things next time. 

spicy cashew chicken (slightly adapted from jar of lemons)

8 ounces rice noodles

1.5 pounds chicken breasts

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1/2 cup green onion

1 medium red bell pepper, chopped

1 medium green bell pepper, chopped

1 medium zucchini, chopped

2/3 cup roasted cashews

I threw in some baby bok choy we had in the fridge too.

sauce:

1/2 cup chicken broth

3 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon rice vinegar

1 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 tablespoon honey

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the noodles according to package instructions.

Whisk together all ingredients for the sauce and set aside.

Cut the chicken into small cubes.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.

Once warm, add the garlic and green onion.  Sautee for a couple of minutes.

Add in the chicken and cook on each side for 3-4 minutes or until lightly browned but not totally cooked through.

Add in the bell peppers, zucchini and any other veggie and saute for an additional 5-6 minutes.

Pour the sauce into the pan with the chicken and veggies.

Simmer for 3-4 minutes to let the sauce thicken and flavors blend.

Stir in the roasted cashews.

Serve over the noodles.

fig salad with goat cheese and baby arugula

 

Excellent salad.  Hall of Fame!  The fresh figs from the tree is what did it for me.  To pick fruit and put it right into our dinner just felt right.  The cheese and toasty nuts too.  Excellent combination.  I grilled some chicken and added it to my salad.  Lovely addition.

fig salad with goat cheese and baby arugula (striped spatula)

1/2 cup pecans, toasted in the oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes

vinaigrette:

1 1/2 teaspoons minced shallots

1 to 1 1 /2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt or fine sea salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons olive oil

fig salad:

4 large fresh figs

5 cups baby arugula

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Make the vinaigrette by stirring together shallots, 1 tablespoon vinegar, honey, salt and pepper.  Drizzle in oil.

Taste the dressing and if you like a more tart flavor, add additional vinegar.  Season to taste with additional salt and pepper.

Assemble the salad by cutting the stems from the figs and slice in quarters.

Toss baby arugula with the toasted walnuts and half the vinaigrette.  Arrange the figs on the top of the salad and drizzle with remaining vinaigrette.  Sprinkle the salad with crumbled goat cheese.

If desired, finish the salad with  a few grinds of cracked black pepper and a few pinches of sea salt.

Serve immediately.

frozen sour grapes

 

In my produce box I received two boxes of grapes- cotton candy grapes and red grapes.  That's a lot of grapes for three people when in addition we have lots of grapes growing in our garden.  I decided to try making frozen sour grapes.  It was fun and super easy!!  I used both types of grapes.

frozen sour grapes

2 cups grapes, rinsed and dried

2 tablespoons lemon or lime juice (I used lemon)

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1-1 1/2 teaspoons food grade citric acid

In a bowl combine grapes and lemon juice.  Mix to combine.

On a small platter combine sugar and citric acid.

Roll the grapes around in the sugar/citric acid mixture.

Place the grapes in a single layer on a small tray and put in the freezer for 2 hours.