Morning Glory Muffins {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

These produce-filled muffins are a new favorite at our house. I love having baked goods for breakfast, but am trying to move away from the refined flour and sugar that typically define American breads and muffins. So, I recently took a recipe for Morning Glory Muffins and "healthified" it a bit. The result was delicious! And this is coming from a girl who doesn't like it when foods "taste healthy" (i.e. cardboard-ish, too grainy, too dry, not sweet enough, etc.).

The only downfall to these muffins is the fact that they still contain white sugar. But I'm satisfied with serving them as a snack or dessert (my toddler loves all things muffin)...or even for breakfast.

When it comes to making baking recipes more healthy, I have a new best friend. White Whole Wheat Flour. Have you tried baking with this sort of whole wheat flour before? White whole wheat flour is lighter in texture and taste than typical whole wheat flour (which is made from red wheat berries), but it has the same nutritional benefits. I am loving this flour! It is causing me to increase my whole wheat to all purpose flour ratio in many of my recipes...and even to give up the all purpose flour all together!

In my local grocery stores, I've found that King Arthur and Gold Medal carry this kind of whole wheat flour. Keep an eye out for it and try it next time you buy flour! I'd love to hear what you think...

Without further ado, here is the muffin recipe...

Morning Glory Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups white whole wheat flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
• 1/2 cup flaked coconut
• 1 apple - peeled, cored and shredded
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (or vegetable oil)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

Grease 12-18 muffin cups (or line with paper muffin liners).

In a large bowl, mix together dry ingredients--flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Then stir in the carrot, raisins, nuts, coconut, and apple.

In a different bowl, beat the eggs, applesauce, oil, and vanilla together. Add the egg mixture into the flour/carrot mixture. Stir until just moistened.

Fill muffin tins ¾ full.

Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 17-20 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Enjoy! These muffins freeze well.

 **Printable Recipe**
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Did you have adventures recently (baking or otherwise)? Link up your adventure-ful blog post, link back to Alicia's Homemaking, and then leave a few happy comments on the posts of other participants. Our twitter hashtag is #TryNewAdventures. :)

 

Morning Glory Muffins {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

Slow Cooked Corned Beef Brisket

Alternatively titled: My husband's favorite meal. :)

(I'm bringing this post back from the archives, since St. Patty's Day is right around the corner! Find some hungry guys, and feed them this dish...)

I typically don't do a lot of themed stuff for most holidays (with the exception of Valentines Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas), but I do get excited when corned beef brisket goes on sale prior to St. Patrick's Day (by on sale, I mean $2.99/lb here in my area). I had never cooked brisket prior to meeting my husband, but it is his favorite. Maybe because his middle name is Reuben, leading to an affinity for Reuben sandwiches? Regardless, let me share with you the makings of one of his top requested meals--Slow Cooked Corned Beef Brisket with Veggies! It is hearty and delicious.

The necessary ingredients:


1 rib celery, 3 carrots, 4 medium sized red potatoes, 1 head of cabbage, 1 3.5 lb brisket (can be as large as 5 lbs), bunch of cilantro, 1 onion, and salt and pepper to taste.

First, chop up your veggies. Remember that these babies are going to cook in the crock pot for 8 hours or so, so think chunky, or else they'll be mush. In hindsight, I could have used a few more carrots...I was just afraid of overfilling my crockpot.

 
Cut your cabbage into wedges, like so.

Then pack all your veggies into the crockpot. I start with the cabbage and then add the other veggies, trying to fill in as many gaps as possible. My crockpot is always stuffed to the gills when I make this dish.

Next, attend to the brisket. Take it out of it's package and rinse it, being sure to save the packet of seasoning that comes with it.

Then I like to trim some of the thick fat off, as pictured. Some fat will be left, and that's good (and unavoidable).

Place the corned beef on top of the veggies and rub the packet of seasoning on top. Season with salt and pepper. Then fill the crockpot with water. Ideally, you want to cover the veggies and the meat with water, but in this instance I did not have enough room. In fact, the amount of water pictured here is just a tad too much, because my crockpot boiled over slightly towards the end of the cooking time (but no worries, all was well in the end!)

Put the lid on and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the meal shreds easily with a fork, as shown below. If your meat is tough, then it probably has not cooked long enough.

I like to serve this with rice, to soak up the juices (although an Irish commenter tells me that this is very un-Irish of me....oooops)!

Ahhh. I am pleasantly full from this meal as I type.

Here is the printable version for ya. :) Enjoy!



Linked to Works For Me Wednesday, Things I Love Thursday, Ultimate Recipe Swap, I'm Lovin' It, Crockpot Mondays and Homemaking Link-Up.

Slow Cooked Corned Beef Brisket

5 Keeper Recipes {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

Pinterest is my new google. In the past, I used google to search for recipes or tutorials by typing in "blog tutorial for _________." Because who doesn't want pictures and step-by-step instructions? But now I just skip that step and go straight to Pinterest.

(If you haven't gotten on the Pinterest bandwagon and need an invite, let me know! I'll send you one).

My favorite way to use Pinterest is to keep track of recipes that I want to try or already love. Here are 5 recent recipes that I've tried...5 recipes that are real keepers!

The "Best" Sugar Cookies

Source: ourbestbites.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

These sugar cookies are awesome for decorating. I tried them for the 1st time right before Christmas and then made them again on Valentine's Day. They hold their shape very well, so they are perfect for cookie cutters. Squishy loves to help me cut out shapes and put sprinkles on them. (So far, all of the recipes I've tried from OurBestBites.com have been fabulous. I just got their cookbook...it's so beautiful.)

Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings

Source: merrywithchildren.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

I've mentioned this recipe to you before! Chicken and Dumplings are such a comfort food, and I appreciate the fact that I can make this recipe easily in the slow cooker. I recently whipped up 3 batches for the freezer. This requires an extra step (blanching the carrots and potatoes) when you are doing the freezer prep, but the finished product was AWESOME and so easy to just plop in the crockpot.

Crusty Baguettes in 30 Minutes

Source: blogs.babble.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

Fresh bread is lovely touch to any meal, but can be time consuming. These baguettes, however, are a cinch to whip up! I up the amount of flour to about 4 1/2-5 cups of flour to keep the dough from being too sticky (1/2 a cup of that flour was wheat flour...to add some depth of flavor!). 

Creamy Grilled Chicken Piccata

Source: plainchicken.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

This is one of those meals that makes people fight for the leftovers. If there are any. I made it last week for the 1st time and WOW. It did not disappoint.

Creamy Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta

 

Source: chaosinthekitchen.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

Apparently I'm drawn to recipes that start with the word "creamy." This one definitely fit the bill...please don't look at how much butter goes into it! It's restaurant-level fattening...but better-than-resaurant good. And very easy to put together. Just don't eat it every night. So soooooooooo good.

Next on my "to-try list?" This delicacy...

Source: bettycrocker.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

Have you tried any Pinterest projects lately?
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Ok--your turn! Link up your adventurous blog post below, link back to Alicia's Homemaking, and then click around and leave some sweet comments on other participant's posts. It's a fun time. Our twitter hashtag is #TryNewAdventures.

5 Keeper Recipes {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

Dear Monday: Weekend Recap, Menu, and Goals

We've decided that kite-flying is the perfect weekend activity. After so much busyness filling our recent weekends, this past Sunday afternoon we cancelled some plans and headed to the park. Just the four of us and the kite (and a picnic dinner).

Having a newborn has kept me indoors more than usual, and it was glorious to get outside and enjoy the cool, the wind, my boys. This week we're going to try to get outside more!

And now, a little groundwork for the coming week, starting with our menu plan:

Dinners for This Week:

Monday--Taco Night.
Tuesday--Creamy Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta (my weekly recipe-from-Pinterest-experiment) with Broccoli

Wednesday--Quick Crustless Quiche
Thursday--Spaghetti with Salad and Olive Cheese Bread

Friday--Cheddar Cheese Soup with Broccoli, Zucchini, and Carrots and Biscuits

Saturday--Pizza Night with salad
Sunday--Leftovers.

How I did with last week's goals: 

• Memorize Mark 2:17.
• Finish Surrender: Your Key to Spiritual Success. I have two more pages left, I think. Almost there!
• Double the Quick Crustless Quiche so I have one for the freezer. 
• Wash our sheets and bathroom rugs. 
• Exercise x 3. Nope! I started to feel a scratchy throat coming on, and so I headed Amelie's pleas of "please take care of yourself" and opted for naps instead of exercise. Sore throat successfully avoided!
• Walk with the boys x 1. Like I said, I've had a hard time getting outside lately. It's all the breastfeeding sessions, I think! We're going to try again this week.
• Update my recipe binder.
• Get up to date on editing February's photos. Again, made some progress, but still not completed.
• Have 2 learning/activity times with Squishy. Only did this once.
• Think of something special to do for Andrew.
  

Goals for this week are: 

• Memorize Deut. 8:11-13.
• Finish Surrender and read 3 chapters from The Great Omission by Steve Saint. 
• Do something special for Andrew (need to brainstorm this). 
• Have 2 learning/activity times with Squishy.
• Exercise x 3.
• Walk with the boys x 1. 
• Edit 20 photos from February.
• Make a triple batch of Taco Meat. 

Our morning is in full gear over here, so I'm signing off.

What's your favorite outdoor activity to do when you get inside-itis?



Linked to Money Saving Mom and Menu Plan Monday.

Dear Monday: Weekend Recap, Menu, and Goals

Roasted Tomato Salsa {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

I've found a new favorite fresh salsa recipe. It's very simple, but prepare yourself for greatness.

My local grocery store periodically sells marked down tomatoes (I found some for 59 cents/pound this week!), and on Super Bowl Sunday I experimented with the following salsa recipe from One Particular Kitchen.

When I've made fresh tomato salsa in the past, it's turned out tasty, but the texture has been a bit watery. For this salsa, however, you roast the tomatoes, onions, peppers, and garlic. It gives the finished product a thicker texture and UHmazing flavor!

To make the salsa you simply use:
8 ripe tomatoes
1-2 yellow onions
2 largish Serrano peppers
5 cloves of garlic
1 TBSP salt
1 large bunch of cilantro
Lime juice to taste

(This is half of the original recipe, which makes a TON of salsa! I also drastically decreased the amount of Serrano peppers. 2 peppers gave the salsa a nice kick without overtaking us with spicy-ness. You can adjust the amount of peppers to your taste!)

The tomatoes, onions, and peppers (caps removed) go in a 375 degree oven for approx 30-45 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Allow them to cool a little after you remove them from the oven, and then toss them in a food processor along with the remaining ingredients.

The result is fabulous. It's even better after it's sat in the fridge overnight! My next thought is to experiment with canning this recipe.

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Share your Thursday adventures below! Just link up your blog post, link back to Alicia's Homemaking, and try to visit around and leave a few encouraging comments on other participant's blog posts. Our twitter hashtag is #TryNewAdventures!

Roasted Tomato Salsa {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

Kicking Off The Week: Menu Plan and Goals

I think we've hit a milestone. Last week actually felt (mostly) "normal." I cooked. Went to playgroup. Andrew even gave me a night off, and I went to Starbucks by myself. And my post-pardum tendency to cry at the drop of a hat seems to be subsiding.

Hurrah!

The first 6 weeks of a baby's life are so full of warm cuddles, tiny outfits, the constant clicking of the shutter, and those sweet I-can't-believe-how-small-this-diaper-is moments. But it's encouraging to start emerging from the fog of sleep deprivation, hormone fluctuations, and the crazy schedule that Andrew had last month.

Last week's burritos. Fabulous. :)

Let's see how this week goes!

Our Dinners for This Week:

Monday--Penne a la Betsy with broccoli
Tuesday--Lasagna (will double for the freezer) with corn, carrots, and asparagus
Wednesday--Beans and Rice
Thursday--Spicy Thai Chicken with Peppers (we love this Betty Crocker recipe!)
Friday--Pizza Night with salad
Saturday--Leftovers.
Sunday--Potential date night.

Curious how I did with last week's goals? Here's the list:

• Finish reading The Hidden Art of Homemaking.
• Finish memorizing James 4:6-10
• Have two learning/activity times with Squishy.
• Make quadruple batch of Cheddar/Veggie soup.
• Make quadruple batch of Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings
• Make large batch of taco meat
• Grate mozzarella cheese for freezer pizza kits.
• Make chocolate granola bars. These were a huge hit in our house!
• Write our sponsored child and another friend.

I crossed off all but one task!!! I couldn't believe it! I wrote out my weekly goals on a list and posted it next to the daily sheet I use, and each day I focused on one or two things....and whaa-laa. Progress.

Here are my goals for this week:

• Read 2 chapters of Surrender: Your Key To Spiritual Success. 
• Memorize Mark 2:17.
• Write Andrew a letter.
• Have 2 learning/activity times with Squishy.
• Work out one time (after my 6 week post-pardum appointment!) and also go for a walk with the kids.
• Make a double batch of lasagna.
• Grate mozzarella cheese for freezer pizza kits. 
• Make snack for playgroup.
• Get up to date on editing February's photos. 
• CLEAN THE BATHROOM. Honestly, this is a weekly goal of mine, but it's been a couple of weeks since it's been really cleaned, and it's reaching bachelor-pad proportions. Scary.

Is your week off to a good start? Here's to Monday!



Linked to Menu Plan Monday and Money Saving Mom.

Kicking Off The Week: Menu Plan and Goals

Sweet Potato Casserole (With a Holiday Topping)

(I'm bringing this recipe back up from the archives, but with the addition of  my favorite way to top it for the holidays!)

If you were to ask my mother what my most-loved dish was growing up, she would tell you Sweet Potato Casserole. Hands down, it is my favorite way to eat a sweet potato (or two, or three). Traditionally, we always have this dish at Thanksgiving and Christmas, but it also makes a nice side dish for a weeknight meal (especially if you have tons of sweet potatoes to use up).

Here's how to make this easy-peasy dish.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Ingredients:
6 medium to large sweet potatoes, cooked, peeled, and mashed
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4 TBSP butter
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs

Topping Ingredients: 

1 cup light brown sugar

1/3 cup pecans, chopped 

1/3 cup flour

4 TBSP butter, melted

Directions:
Beat cooked potatoes with a mixer to remove some of the sweet potato strings (they will accumulate on your beaters). Add the rest of the ingredients and mix together. Place in a 2 quart dish. To make topping, combine topping ingredients. Crumble on top of sweet potatoes. 

Bake dish at 350 degrees for approximately 35 minutes.

To cook my potatoes, I normally boil them for approximately 20 minutes, or until fork tender, and then I remove the skins after they've cooled down a bit. If you use smallish-sized sweet potatoes you may want to reduce the amount of sugar called for. :)

Here is the printable version, just for you. 

Sweet Potato Casserole (With a Holiday Topping)

A Muffin Tin Meal

We've been dealing with a bit of toddler pickyness lately. The current rules at our house are 1) you can't throw a fit in the highchair because you don't like how a certain food looks, and 2) you have to take the bites that mommy and daddy give you (no spitting the food out).

Oh yeah...and I'm not up for making a separate meal for a toddler who has opinions!

With that said, I decided to shake dinnertime up a little a tad the other night. Squish still ate what we were eating (it was an all-vegetable night + eggs for us), but I served it to him in a muffin tin. Just for fun! Here's how it went:

Reaction: Can I please have that fun container?

Inside the muffin pan: 1 slice whole wheat bread with butter (fit into two compartments), cooked carrots, steamed zucchini, mozzarella cheese, and raisins.

Cheese!!!

At the end of the meal: Everything eaten except half of the piece of bread and three pieces of zucchini. Oh yeah, and Squishy wanted a piece of daddy's hard boiled egg to top everything off.

I'd say it went pretty well! I might break out the muffin pan periodically to change things up at dinner. Squishy just saw one of these pictures and started talking excitedly about muffins (his name for the pan)...

How do you address pickyness at your house?

By the way, there is a lady with a whole blog all about muffin tin meals! That might be a bit overboard, but it's kind of fun, too...

A Muffin Tin Meal

#25 On The List {Try New Adventures Thursday!}

When I was a little girl, my godparents showed up at our house unexpectedly one morning to make us breakfast. And not just any breakfast. Eggs Benedict. My godfather took charge in the kitchen, poaching, blending, and assembling. Until then, I had no idea such an exquisite breakfast existed.

15-ish years later, and I'd never tried to poach an egg or make a hollandaise sauce myself. It's #25 on my list of 27 things I want to do this year before I turn 27.  So on Monday, I attempted it! It was not completely successful, but I'll show you how it went.

1st off, while there are several steps involved, none of them take very long. 2 1/2 minutes or so to poach the eggs, 5 minutes to toast your Canadian bacon and English muffins, a minute or so to melt your butter, and then maybe 5 minutes to make your hollandaise sauce (but I could be off on that, because mine didn't come out exactly right). So it's best to get everything out and ready so that you can actually serve the end product hot. Above you can see my assembly line of sorts.

I went by Ree Drummond's recipe, and here is her glorious result:

Source: thepioneerwoman.com via Alicia's on Pinterest

She makes it look easy as pie! See how incredibly thick her sauce is?

Everything went well until I got to the hollandaise part. Then, sadly, I couldn't seem to get it to thicken! In hindsight, I think I poured the hot butter into the blender with the eggs a tad bit too quickly.

My end result:

My hollandaise didn't thicken, but can I just say that all together, it still tasted great? Please, Julia Child, don't turn in your grave. We ate it and enjoyed it (and I'm rejoicing in the fact that I now know how to poach eggs!).

Speaking of Julia, I should have referenced her cookbook before I started. She gives all kinds of tips for hollandaise sauce and speaks about how every cook should be familiar with "egg yolks under all conditions." Next time I attempt the sauce (I will conquer it eventually!) I'll read that section 10 or so times before I start! I did get a laugh out of what she says about making hollandaise in a blender:

"...the technique is well within the capabilities of an 8-year-old child, it has much to recommend it."

Well, don't I feel brilliant! Maybe she meant an 8 year old French child....
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Ok, link up your adventures below! Participating in Try New Adventures Thursday is easy, simply link up your particular blog post below, link back to Alicia's Homemaking in your post, and visit a few fellow participants with cheerful comments!

#25 On The List {Try New Adventures Thursday!}