Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake

A few weeks ago I saw a call-out on Twitter for people interested in guest posting on Culinary Covers. Lori Lange, aka RecipeGirl (fantastic recipes, go check out her site!) created Culinary Covers as a way to see if those recipes gracing the covers of magazines actually deserve to be a cover photo.

The second I saw her request on Twitter I knew exactly which recipe I wanted to try: the Cranberry Swirl Cheesecake from the December issue of Cooking Light magazine. Part of the deal with guest posting meant that I had to make the recipe exactly according to the directions, take a picture mirroring the cover, and write about the experience. Seeing as how I've never made a cheesecake before, I was more than up for this challenge.

The result was better than I expected, but I'll let you check out my post on Culinary Covers for  more of my notes. I will say, though, that if you need an easy holiday dessert that not only tastes good, looks great, and is somewhat healthier than regular cheesecake, make this. You won't be dissapointed.

Eggnog Cranberry Muffins

Before I go on a trip I like to clean out the fridge and get rid of things so they don't go bad while I'm away. I noticed that I had an extra bag of cranberries and some eggnog, so I went on a mission to find something to make.

I came across two very similar recipes for Eggnog Cranberry Muffins and immediately made them. My house smelled delicious while they were cooking and I couldn't wait to take them out of the oven.

If I made these again I would probably increase the amount of cranberry and eggnog because I would have liked more cranberries in each bite (recipe below does not reflect my wishful changes). Other than that, I loved the recipe. A friend of mine, The Nifty Foodie, saw my tweets about making this recipe, so she made it into little mini bread loaves. This recipe, however you make it, is perfect for the holidays, and the streusel topping is just delicious.

Eggnog Cranberry Muffins 

from Recipe Girl and Annie's Eats

Ingredients:
For the muffins:
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. granulated sugar, divided
2 large eggs
¾ cup eggnog (would bump up to 1 cup next time)
5 1/3 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1½ cups coarsely chopped cranberries (would bump up to 2 cups next time)

For the topping:
½ cup sugar
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, slightly softened
½ cup chopped pecans (optional)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400° F.  Line 14-18 muffin cups with paper liners or grease muffin pan.  In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir to combine.  In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 cup of the sugar, eggs, eggnog, melted butter and vanilla extract.  Stir until well combined.  Mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.  Toss the chopped cranberries with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, and fold into the batter.  Divide batter evenly between the prepared muffin liners or muffin pan, filling them about two thirds of the way full.

To make the streusel topping, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon and butter.  Cut the butter into the dry ingredients until a coarse, crumbly mixture forms.  Stir in the pecans if using. Sprinkle the mixture evenly on top of the muffin batter.

Bake for about 18-22 minutes, or a until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Egg Florentine

As a military wife, I have to learn to cook for one when my husband deploys or goes on business trips, which is much easier said than done. Lonilness usually kicks in around meal time and it's so simple and tempting to pick up a bag of chips or snack on cookies rather than eat a wholesome meal. After he leaves I try to make "bulk" meals like soup, spaghetti, or casseroles, basically anything I can keep in the fridge and easily reheat for later.

I saw Pioneer Woman's Eggs Floreninte Casserole and wanted to try it out, but I knew I'd get bored eating the whole thing day after day, so I cut the recipe in half and changed a few things here and there. The end result was tasty and substantial—I didn't get hungry again for several hours, which is always a good thing.

Consider the recipe below as a base to add other veggies or swapping out different meats—sausage would be fantastic with this, but I was concerned with keeping the WW points low. Next time I may add some mushrooms and green peppers to bulk it up even more. If you're making this for a larger group, just double the recipe or check out  PW's original version. And if making your own hash browns is too intimidating, skip the hassle and just use frozen hash browns!

Eggs Florentine Casserole

adapted from Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:
1 russet potato, shredded (about 1-2 cups)
½ onion chopped
1 ounce diced green chile (or jalapenos)
6 strips bacon, crumbled
2 teaspoons oil
salt and pepper (to taste)
8 eggs (or two cups of egg beaters)
1 cup cheese
1 ½–2 cups of spinach

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees; lightly grease a small baking dish with cooking spray. Cook bacon until crisp; set aside on paper towel. Shred/julienne potatoes (you’re going for hash browns here, folks!) Heat butter and oil in skillet; add potatoes; season with salt and pepper. Leave in skillet for about five minutes or until crispy; flip. When both sides are cooked, add onion; mix until onions are translucent. Transfer potatoes mixture to baking dish; layer crumbled bacon and green chile or jalapenos. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together eggs and ½ cup cheese; add spinach and mix together more. Pour egg and spinach mixture over casserole. Bake for 20 minutes or until eggs are set. Once eggs are cooked, sprinkle remaining cheese; bake for an additional 10 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Plum Upside Down Cake

Even though there is nothing truly magical about upside down cakes, I feel there is. Something about putting it in the oven and it looks like a regular cake with regular batter, then flipping it out and SURPRISE there's fruit and color all over the top of it! When it's baking I try to forget what I whipped together so that it really does surprise me when I remove the pan. It's a wonderful idea and I urge everyone to make one and use any kind of fruit you'd like. I really think anything sauteed in butter then made as a topping on cake has the power to be life changing. This recipe was adapted from Real Simple and I lowered the fat and used whole wheat flour. Happy Baking :)


Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter plus extra for the pan (or low fat butter substitute- I use Brummel and Brown)
4 ripe plums cut into 8 wedges
6 Tbsp agave
3 Tbsp Brandy (optional)
2/3 cup granulated sugar (can substitute Splenda for lower cal)
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tbsp ground flax seed
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 large egg
2/3 cup low fat sour cream
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch cake pan. Melt 1 Tbsp of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the plums and agave cook, tossing, until the plums become syrupy and softened. About 3 minutes. Near the end pour in about 3 Tbsp brandy and toss. Arrange the plums in the cake pan in a circle pattern, completely covering the pan. Spoon any pan juices over the top. Whisk together the flour, flax seed, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl beat 1/2 cup butter and 2/3 cup of sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg, sour cream, and vanilla. Slowly add the flour mixture until incorporated.Pour the batter over the plums and bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool for 15-20 minutes. Place a large plate over the cake pan and invert the cake onto the plate. Once cooled top with powdered sugar.

Tahini Cookie Bars

A couple weeks ago I was invited to my very first cookie exchange. I was excited about the possibility of trying a new recipe, and then one of my friends attending the exchange reminded me that she can't eat dairy. Cookies without milk or butter? Is that even possible? I set out to find a recipe (or two) that would be safe for her to eat and stumbled upon Tahini cookies.

When I saw the following recipe I knew I had to try it—not just because I had an unopened jar of tahini sitting in my pantry, but because I've been wanting to try making a granola-like cookie. Tahini can be found in the ethnic isle of your grocery store (usually in the Mediterranean section). It's commonly used in making hummus and is essentially ground sesames turned into a paste—the texture reminds me of peanut butter. (*Insider's tip: If you are military—or know someone in the military—I got my tahini at the commissary for half the cost of getting it at the store).

Personally, I think the tahini can be a bit overpowering, so I added some vanilla and more cinnamon to the recipe to counteract the taste of the tahini. I also threw in some cherry-flavored craisins to make it a little more like a granola bar, but feel free to add other dried fruit and/or nuts, too.

Tahini Cookie Bars

adapted from All Recipes

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons tahini
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans (or walnuts)
• 1/4 cup craisins (or raisins) 

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets (for cookies) OR grease a  baking dish (for bars).
2. In a medium bowl, stir together tahini, honey, vanilla, and cinnamon. Mix in pecans, oats, and craisins until well blended. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 2 inches apart. OR spread mixture evenly into baking dish (for bars).
3. Bake for 10 minutes in preheated oven, or until edges are golden brown and tops are slightly brown. Cool on baking sheet for a few minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely OR if making bars, cool completely in dish. When completely cool, slice into bars with butter knife.

DIY Hot Cocoa Cones

*This was originally posted over here as a wedding favor, but it's so gosh-darn cute, cheap, and easy to make that it'd be perfect for a stocking stuffer or a little Christmas gift. This would also be perfect with a cider, tea, homemade hot chocolate mix, or even powdered lemonade in the summer.


We had a hard time justifying the cost of including favors at our wedding. Simply put, favors can be really, really expensive for something that typically gets thrown away. I wanted something that would fit with our wedding and that would actually be (hopefully) used after our guests went home.

After searching and searching, I finally found these Hot Cocoa Vials and fell in love.

Everything was perfect until I priced everything out for the above DIY favor and found they'd cost around $1 per favor, which would come out to around $150 and that's way more than we wanted to spend...so the search continued. 

Then I found Hot Cocoa Cones...

source

PERFECT! I found several different tutorials on how to make them, so I set out to make our own.

My mom and I made our favors for less than $.40 each and in under 10 steps:

 

Cast of Characters (to make 150 cones) *obviously, make some changes if you don't want make that many hot cocoa cones!

(3) 100, 12" Disposable Decorating Bags (bought these from Michaels using their 40 and 60% off coupons - regularly $19.99)
(2) Nesquick chocolate powder (we got ours from Costco for around $6)
(2) 75 teeny, tiny hair ties ($5)
(4) Marshmallows (from Walmart, $1 each)
Yarn (Michaels for $2.50)
Favor tags
Total spent: (around) $56. We made 150, so they came out to $.37 each!

  Step 1: Cut decorating bags to around 6.5"

Step 2: Fill bag with 2 tablespoons (or whatever your chocolate powder suggests) with chocolate*:

Step 3: Use the teeny, tiny hair tie to close off the chocolate. (You may need to cut the access bag after tying it off. The picture below, for example, should be cut so there's just about a 1/2 inch of bag showing after the hair tie.)

Step 4: Insert chocolate filled cone into another decorating bag; make sure seams line up.

Step 5: Scoop out a 1/4 cup of marshmallows and poor into decorating bag on top of the chocolate cone.

Step 6: Tie a piece of ribbon, yarn, or string above the marshmallows. You need to make this tight so the marshmallows don't dry out. I tied it into two knots:

Step 7: After string is secure around bag, add your favor tag and tie it into a pretty bow. (I simply created one in a Word document, but you could easily just add a gift tag!)

Step 8: Repeat as many times as necessary

And there you have it, a quick, easy, and cheap DIY favor or Christmas gift!

Puppy Chow

My best friend introduced me to this sweet snack over the summer, but I had yet to make it...until now. Yesterday I stopped by the grocery store and Chex was on sale, so I figured I'd make some for a get-together at my friend's house.

Puppy Chow (I've also heard it called Monkey Munch and Muddy Buddies) is not suitable as a dog treat, but is a very tasty treat! Crunchy Chex cereal mingles with creamy chocolate and peanut butter, a hint of cinnamon*, and powdered sugar. Try it once and you'll be back for more. Did I mention this is easy, too? I made made this and was out the door within 15 minutes. Now that's the kind of "cooking" I like!

Puppy Chow

adapted from Betty Crocker

Ingredients:
9 cups Corn, Rice, Wheat, or Chocolate Chex cereal (or a combination)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup margarine
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Directions 
In large bowl, measure and pour cereal; set aside. In small, microwavable bowl, heat chocolate chips, peanut butter, and butter uncovered on High 1 minute; stir. Microwave 30 more seconds or until mixture can be stirred smooth. Stir in vanilla. Pour mixture over cereal, stirring until evenly coated. Pour into two-gallon resealable food-storage plastic bag. Add powdered sugar and cinnamon. Seal bag; shake until well coated. Spread on waxed paper to cool. Store in airtight container in fridge.

 

*The original recipe doesn't call for cinnamon, but I'm a huge believer in adding cinnamon whenever possible, especially alongside something sweet with chocolate. Give it a try, it's a good addition!