Bacon Maple Cupcakes

Tonight, I started on the Bacon Maple Cupcake Bread Pudding that I am planning to make for the breakfast Tuesday morning. It starts out with Maple Bacon Cupcakes.

Bacon Maple Cupcakes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 Tbsp. Maple Flavoring
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup boiling water
• 3 slices bacon, cooked and diced into small pieces

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla and maple, mix for until thoroughly incorporated. Stir in the boiling water. Batter will be thin. Pour into cupcake liners (about 3/4 full). Top cupcakes with bacon pieces. Bake 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

Well, these cupcakes definitely smell - interesting. I'm not going to try to eat them now, since I need all of them for the bread pudding. Hopefully, all will go well.

Irish Spice Bread with Whiskey Glaze

Tuesday, we're having a St. Patrick's Day breakfast at Huber. Of the things I've decided to make, I started with an Irish Spice Bread with Whiskey Glaze.

Almost Irish Spice Bread

Ingredients
BREAD:

• 2 cups white whole wheat flour (or all-purpose)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup candied citron, chopped
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup honey*
• 1/3 cup molasses*
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup milk

GLAZE (optional):

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons Irish whiskey (or orange juice)
• pinch of sea salt

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F.
2. Line a 9×5-inch loaf pan with parchment paper or grease it with butter. (I sometimes like making two smaller loaves–one to enjoy now and a second to stow in the freezer for unexpected guests. The smaller loaves also seem to bake more evenly.)
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. Stir in the raisins and candied citron. Make a well in the center.
4. In a small sauce pan, melt the butter. Remove it from the heat and stir in the brown sugar and your liquid sweetener(s) of choice. Beat in the egg and milk.
5. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. (Adjust the baking time if you are using smaller loaf pans.)
6. Cool on a rack for 20 minutes then remove from the pan. Allow to cool completely before glazing.
7. To make the glaze, melt the butter in a small saucepan. Remove from heat and whisk in powdered sugar, vanilla, and whiskey or orange juice. Allow the glaze to cool and thicken for 15 minutes. Spoon the glaze into a pastry bag fitted with a large tip or into a sturdy plastic bag with a 1/2-inch opening in the corner. Pipe glaze in a zigzag pattern across the top of the bread.

* The original recipe calls for golden syrup, a product made in the process of refining sugar cane juice into sugar. With no golden syrup in the pantry, I substituted equal parts honey and molasses. You can also substitute light or dark corn syrup.

I couldn't find any candied citron at my local supermarket, nor could I find any citron to candy, so I omitted it. It smells really good, but I'm going to make the glaze Monday night or Tuesday morning, and try it at the breakfast.

**Note** 03/17/15 - The bread was a success! It wasn't too spicy, and it was moist, unlike the Irish Soda Bread that you buy at the grocery store.

Ground Beef Pot Pie

For dinner tonight, I made a dish based on something I saw on Pinterest - a Ground Beef Pot Pie.

Ground Beef Pot Pie

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 2 russet potatoes, diced
• 2 c. frozen mixed vegetables
• 2 c. beef gravy
• pinch black pepper
• 1 can refrigerated crescent rolls

Directions

1. Heat oven to 425. In your skillet, cook ground beef over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until beef is thoroughly cooked; drain.
2. Stir in potatoes, mixed vegetables, gravy and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are almost tender.
3. Pour mixture into oven-proof dish. Unroll crescent rolls and arrange on top of pot pie.
4. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until crusts are golden brown.

Tom liked it, but I thought it wasn't very flavorful. I definitely prefer my chicken pot pie. Next time, I'll have to find a way give it more flavor.

Ravioli with Spinach and Artichoke Filling

Lately, JoAnne (a co-worker at Huber) has been regaling me with stories of her attempts at making homemade raviolli, and how easy it is. I've always thought it would be quite difficult, so I found a recipe for Ravioli with Spinach and Ricotta Cheese Filling, in Tomato Cream Sauce, and gave it a whirl.

I adjusted the filling so that it was half spinach, half artichoke hearts, and it was pretty tasty. And the ravioli didn't need too much of the sauce. I would definitely try them again, maybe with a meat filling, so that Tom will be interested in trying them out.

Chicken Gloria Casserole

Another recipe I found on Pinterest that sounded good for tonight was the Chicken Gloria Casserole.

Chicken Gloria Casserole

Ingredients

• 3 skinless boneless chicken breasts, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/3 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 container (8 oz) sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1/2 cup cream sherry wine
• 1 can (18 oz) Progresso™ creamy mushroom soup
• 6 slices Muenster cheese
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Sprinkle both sides of the chicken with salt and pepper. Spoon flour onto shallow dish or pie plate. Coat both sides of chicken with flour; shake off excess.
3. In 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Brown chicken on both sides. (You don’t need to cook the chicken completely because it will finish cooking in the oven.) Transfer chicken to 13x9-inch (3-quart) glass baking dish.
4. Place butter in same skillet; let melt over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook and stir mushrooms until golden brown. Stir in sherry; cook and stir for additional 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in soup; mix well. Cook until thoroughly heated.
5. Pour mushroom sauce over chicken; top each piece of chicken with one slice cheese. Fold cheese in half if it is too wide for chicken piece.
6. Cover dish with foil; bake 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, turn oven to boil setting. Remove foil from dish; broil 1 to 2 minutes to brown the cheese. Remove from the oven; set aside to cool slightly.
7. Top with parsley.

I never realized Muenster cheese was so delicious, but if there's a next time, I'd cut back on the sherry.

Baked Pork Chops

I found a delicious sounding recipe on Pinterest, Garlic Butter & Mushroom Baked Pork Chops, that I decided to try tonight.

Garlic Butter & Mushroom Baked Pork Chops

Ingredients:

• 3-4 Thick Cut Pork Chops
• 1/2 Stick Butter
• 2 Garlic Cloves, Minced
• 1/4 Cup Flour, All Purpose
• 1/4 Cup Milk
• 1 Cup Mushrooms, Cleaned and Sliced
• 1 tbsp Oregano
• 1 tbsp Thyme
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large skillet over medium high heat combine butter, garlic, mushrooms, salt, pepper, oregano and thyme.
3. Once butter has melted, add your pork chops and seer on each side for 1-2 minutes until golden brown.
4. Once both sides of the pork chops are a golden brown place in oven and bake for 35 minutes or until centers are no longer pink. *Time may need to be adjusted depending on the thickness of your pork chops.
5. Remove skillet from oven and remove your pork chops and sit them aside to rest.
6. Whisk flour and milk into your pan with the remaining liquids after removing the pork chops. Whisk until all lumps are removed. Simmer for 3-4 minutes.
7. Serve over the top of pork chops.

It was quite herby, but dry. But do you know what I just realized? I forgot to make the gravy! I'll have to throw it together before I eat the leftovers.

Winter Reading Program 2015

I followed through this year, and completed the Winter Reading Program in time to get the prize - the mug.

I signed up on-line, so I thought I'd miss out on the pen that you get for signing up, but they had some extras, so I got one of those, too! I think I deserve a drink for the accomplishment...