Friend Making Monday: The Joy Edition

Good morning and happy Monday to you all. Aefilkins is hosting another Friend Making Monday (sorry to those of you who are regulars, I forgot it was Monday last week!), and this time she's curious about the small things in life that bring a smile to your face. Want to make some new bloggy friends? Friend Making Monday is a great way to do it - visit Aefilkins to learn more.

So...the small things in life that make me happy?

This morning, a good cup of hot cocoa (because it's 48 degrees outside! And this is Florida!)

Knowing that I will be baking something chocolate-y this afternoon - heck, baking of any kind makes me happy

Spending time with my friends - inevitably there is tons of laughter!

Hearing my munchkin laugh or say "love you"

Reading a good book

Need a fall pick-me-up? Check out my pumpkin muffin recipe, it's a sure-fire hit!

Pumpkin Muffins

I have never been a huge pumpkin fan. Growing up, I avoided anything pumpkin. Never had a bite of pumpkin pie, in fact, because I decided that I didn't like the scent, so I wouldn't like the taste. I truly didn't try pumpkin until this year. I'm proud of myself for trying, but I'm still not a fan. It tastes okay, but I'd much prefer chocolate any day. Husband is a huge pumpkin fan - he'd have me bake pumpkin bread all the time if I would, so fortunately, I'm still able to do some pumpkin-related baking and have it all get eaten up. And it turns out, Baby is a huge pumpkin fan.

These muffins were a bit hit with the playgroup crowd - I had baked them mostly for the kids, and Baby seems to want to have one every day at this point. He calls them "pumcake," like a combination of pumpkin and pancake which is really, really cute.

Pumpkin Muffins
from Gourmet magazine, 2006

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup canned solid-pack pumpkin

1/3 c vegetable oil

2 large eggs

1 tsp pumpkin-pie spice (or 1/8 tsp of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and allspice)

1 1/4 cups of sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbsp sugar (for the topping)

1 tsp cinnamon (for the topping)

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Line muffin cups with paper liners or lightly grease the tin.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder in a small bowl.

3.Whisk together pumpkin puree, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

4. Stir together cinnamon and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in another bowl.

5. Divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about 3/4 full), then sprinkle tops with cinnamon-sugar mixture. Bake until puffed and golden brown and a wooden pick or skewer inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, 25-30 minutes.

6. Cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes, then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.

Printable recipe

Menu Plan Monday for October 19th

Last week, my menu totally went to pot. I didn't make any of the new stuff I planned to, for numerous reasons, so this week's menu is OVERLOADED with new stuff! We'll have to see how I do with all these new recipes, especially since Husband's going to be super extra busy for most of the week on a big work project.

Monday - Famous Buttermilk Pancakes

Tuesday - Beef Stroganoff (recipe forthcoming!)

Wednesday - Spaghetti and Homemade Garlic Bread (recipe forthcoming!)

Thursday - Chicken Lo Mein (recipe forthcoming!)

Friday - Oven Fried Chicken Fingers (recipe forthcoming!)

Saturday - Barbecued Pork Chops (recipe forthcoming!)

Sunday - Mandarin Chicken (recipe forthcoming!)

Need further menu inspiration? Visit Org Junkie for over 300 other bloggers' menus, complete with recipes, shopping lists, the whole nine yards!

Homemade Oreos

How can you go wrong with homemade Oreos? Heck, how can you go wrong with store-bought Oreos? Oreos are one of those things that I just love. Can't get enough of them. But only if they are accompanied by a tall glass of milk. Without the milk, it's just not the same. I still like them, but nowhere near in the same way.

When I first spotted this recipe almost a year ago, I knew I had to try it, I just hadn't found the right reason to try it. I decided this month to make it for book club. I love bringing treats to book club, and I think for the most part, everyone enjoys them, although I know that some of them probably curse me for bringing temptation to the table. Oh well, everything in moderation, right? Except when you're watching Real Housewives on Bravo with a plate full of homemade Oreos and a glass of milk. Ooh, sounds like heaven.

The wafers were ridiculously easy to put together, and I had them all baked up within 45 minutes of turning my oven on. They smelled wonderful! I wanted desperately to eat one, for taste testing purposes you know, but I had exactly an even number of cookies, so I didn't want to mess with that.

Piping on the frosting was also relatively easy, and only took me ten minutes or so. So...in theory...55 minutes of work for homemade Oreos? Well, let me tell you, they're totally worth it. And it's quite possible that I may never be able to enjoy a store-bought Oreo again. They're that good.

And just so you know, I tinted the frosting pink because some of us (myself included) are participating in a breast cancer walk this weekend, and the theme for all of the food at Book Club was breast cancer awareness month. Festive, right?

Homemade Oreos
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Note from Smitten Kitchen: Let’s talk about the sugar for a minute, shall we? This is a sweet cookie. A good, sweet cookie. Yet, if you think of an actual Oreos, the wafers are fairly un-sweet and actually on the slightly salty side, which contrasts with the super-sweetness of the filling bringing harmony, happiness, yada yada. If you want your cookie closer to that original, you can take out a full half-cup of the sugar.

Makes 25 to 30 sandwich cookies

For the chocolate wafers:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 to 1 1/2 cups sugar [see recipe note]
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1 large egg

For the filling:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) room-temperature, unsalted butter
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Set two racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375°F.
2. In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
3. Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet approximately two inches apart. With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough. Bake for 9 minutes, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.
4. To make the cream, place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and at low speed, gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer on high and beat for 2 to 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
5. To assemble the cookies, in a pastry bag with a 1/2 inch, round tip, pipe teaspoon-size blobs of cream into the center of one cookie. Place another cookie, equal in size to the first, on top of the cream. Lightly press, to work the filling evenly to the outsides of the cookie. Continue this process until all the cookies have been sandwiched with cream. Dunk generously in a large glass of milk.

Printable recipe

MSC: Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

This month's Martha Stewart Cupcakes recipe was selected by Kim at What the Whisk. We baked the Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes on p. 236.

I was admittedly excited to try these cupcakes. First of all, marzipan scares the crap out of me, and this time I let the fear win. When I saw the picture of Martha's cupcakes, the first thing I thought of was one of my favorite Halloween treats - Mellowcreme Pumpkins. So, yes, I cheated, and planned to use Mellowcreme Pumpkins on my cupcakes. Sue me. Then I promptly forgot to put the damn pumpkins on the cupcakes before my little photo session. So imagine a Mellowcreme Pumpkin atop this lovely cupcake.

The batter for this recipe was really easy to put together - no muss, no fuss. Nothing too complicated, although I did halve the recipe, and double-checked my math no less than 3 times before I let myself get started (I've gotten burned too many times by halving recipes!). I do think that the cupcakes should have cooked perhaps a minute longer than they did - they felt especially spongy after cooling off fully. Speaking of which, does anyone really turn out their cupcakes the way Martha says to? Whenever I try this method, my cupcakes either totally fall apart, or they stick to my countertop. Any advice? Tips? Tricks? I usually wind up using a knife to try my cupcakes out of the pans.

I did taste these, which is especially daring for me, because I'm not a pumpkin fan (nor am I a big fan of spice cake). I didn't despise the taste, but I also didn't love them. I didn't feel compelled to to eat an entire cupcake. This is precisely why I have an impartial taste tester, who loves spice cakes and anything pumpkin to determine how they were. Husband said the flavor was awfully tasty and the cupcakes were super moist. He likened them to pumpkin pie in a cupcake, although the cream cheese frosting didn't exactly evoke the whole pumpkin pie flavor. He did say that these are another "muff-cake," just like the Banana Pecan Cupcakes and Zucchini Spice Cupcakes.

I strongly considered making a different frosting for these cupcakes, because this would be the third time I've made Martha's cream cheese frosting - not to say that I don't enjoy the cream cheese frosting, it just kind of gets tiring to make the same frosting over and over and over. But I only thought about it briefly before remembering that I had bought all that I needed for cream cheese frosting, so I stuck with it.

Next month, we'll be doing Candied Sweet Potato Cupcakes, I'm very curious about those, given that I've never heard of a sweet potato cupcake. It will be interesting, I'm sure! Stay tuned for more Martha Stewart Cupcakes adventures!

Crisp Mustard Glazed Chicken Breasts

This was one messy meal to prepare. It was definitely tasty, and Husband especially enjoyed it, although Baby despised it and actually pried it out of his mouth after he tried it. I liked it, but I didn't love it, so I don't know that this will be making it into our regular meal rotation. The addition of the breadcrumbs was awfully tasty, even though I was out of thyme and used sage instead. This dish reminded me a lot of a recipe I tried quite some time ago that called for making a mustard pan sauce. I wasn't very good at pan sauces then, so maybe I ought to try it again. It's all one skillet, and no prep bowls, so it would certainly make fewer dirty dishes...

Crisp Mustard Glazed Chicken Breasts

adapted from MarthaStewart.com

4 boneless chicken breasts, skin on

2 tbsp olive oil, plus a little more

Coarse salt and black pepper

4 tbsp butter, softened

2 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard

3/4 cup coarse breadcrumbs (think stuffing)

2 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped fine

3/4 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup heavy cream

1. Preheat the oven to 375. Rub chicken breasts lightly with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

2. Combine 2 tbsp butter with the mustard. Reserve 2 tsp and set aside. In a small saucepan, melt the other 2 tbsp butter; mix with breadcrumbs and thyme (or sage - I was out of thyme and used sage). Season with salt and pepper.

3. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Sear chicken skin side down until crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Smear with mustard mixture, and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Turn skin side up; sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

4. Transfer skillet to oven and roast until chicken is cooked through, 15-20 minutes.

5. Transfer chicken to serving platter. Add stock and cream to skillet over medium heat, and stir with wooden spoon until creamy and reduced to about 3/4 cup, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in reserved mustard mixture. Strain through a fine sieve and serve with chicken.

Click here for printable recipe

Brown Sugar Barbecued Chicken

This was insanely easy dinner to put together, which came together really quickly and tastily. The barbecue sauce was very good, and I will definitely be making it again, although next time I will try chicken breasts instead of drumsticks because it took me forever to get all the chicken off the bone - which I did because that's how Baby eats it, and if he sees something different on our plates, we're usually in store for some kind of meltdown. It's the path of least resistance, if you will.

A few words of advice on this recipe - Martha isn't kidding about using aluminum foil. It makes clean up a breeze for this dish. Also, this recipe also calls for using drumettes - I used actually drums (more meat!), and altered the cooking time by adding 5-10 minutes. Finally, I used a rack on top of my baking sheet, thinking it wold help the skin crisp a little - it didn't. I think it may have helped the chicken cook through a little faster, but next time I will skip it.

Brown Sugar Barbecued Chicken

adapted from Everyday Food

2 cups ketchup

1 cup packed light brown sugar

2 tbsp worcestershire sauce

2 tbsp cider vinegar

Coarse salt and pepper

6 pounds chicken drumettes, patted dry

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together ketchup, brown sugar, worcestershire sauce, and cider vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside 1 cup of sauce for tossing raw chicken; use the rest for baked chicken.

2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees, with racks in the upper and lower thirds. Line two rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil.

3. Toss chicken drumettes with reserved 1 cup of sauce and divide among baking sheets.

4. Bake chicken until opaque throughout, 30-35 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Toss baked chicken with 1/2 cup of reserved sauce and serve the remaining alongside chicken.

Printable recipe

Martha's Snickerdoodles

I had high hopes for these snickerdoodles. I am still looking for the quintessential snickerdoodle recipe, one like the snickerdoodle I had at Fresh Market one day. Soft, chewy, and maybe a little bit cakey. Every one I've baked so far is crunchy, crunchy, crunchy. I wound up ultimately undercooking these a little bit to achieve a little bit of the soft and chewy effect I was going for. It sort of worked, but not quite the way I wanted it to. So, I'm still hunting. I saw that Smitten Kitchen also did Martha's recipe, and found them to be precisely the kind of cookie I want them to be, so I may give it another try with a larger scoop and with chilling the dough a little bit next time. In the meantime, if you have a good snickerdoodle recipe, shoot it my way! You can email me at typeamommyblog(at)gmail(dot)com.

Snickerdoodles
Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes three dozen 3 to 4-inch cookies. Your mileage will vary by the size scoop you use.

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
1 3/4 cups sugar, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, plus more if needed
2 large eggs

1. Preheat the oven to 400°, with one rack in top third and one rack in bottom third of oven. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
2. Sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl. Add eggs, and beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and beat to combine. At this point, I chilled the dough for an hour (or you can overnight) before scooping it, because I otherwise found it too difficult to scoop into balls and roll but the original recipe doesn’t find this step necessary.
3. Once dough has chilled, in a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the ground cinnamon. Use a small ice-cream scoop* to form balls of the dough, and roll in cinnamon sugar. Place about two inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until the cookies are set in center and begin to crack (they will not brown), about 10 minutes, rotating the baking sheets after five minutes. Transfer the sheets to a wire rack to cool about five minutes before transferring the cookies to the rack. In theory, they can be stored in an airtight container up to one week, but they won't last that long, trust me.

* Martha recommends a size 30 (1 1/4 ounce) ice cream scoop for your cookies.

Printable Recipe

Menu Plan Monday for October 12th

This year is quickly drawing to a close, it seems. How did it get to be the middle of October already? Is it ever going to feel like fall around here??? We had a brief cold front - or cool front, really - almost two weeks ago now, but since then, we've been back at summer-type temperatures here in Florida, so it's hard to get into making neat fall recipes with the weather so warm. For instance, I'd love to make French Onion Soup, but it's way too hot to appreciate it at the moment. It's funny, because this happens every year - I get impatient about fall in Florida, because it feels like it will never happen. I was watching the weather on the Today show the other day, and it seemed like every other state in the whole country had lovely, comfortable temperatures, but not Florida. This is precisely why I don't think I would mind living up north someday - says a girl who has pretty much lived in Florida her whole life and has never shoveled so much as an inch of snow, let alone driven in snow or ice. But anyway, I digress...

There are a whopping four new recipes on the schedule this week - wow! I'm really excited for all of them and can't wait to share with you how they all turn out. I've been working on my menu plans for the next few months (yes, I really write my menu plans that far in advance - it helps me grocery shop for items I will need when they're on sale, rather than when I need them, which helps us save money), and I must say, there are some pretty awesome new recipes I'm going to be trying out in the weeks to come!

Monday - Waffles

Tuesday - Awesome Pretzel Chicken Tenders (a new recipe to be posted!)

Wednesday - Spaghetti and Garlic Knots

Thursday - Mac and Cheese and Garlic-Cheddar Biscuits

Friday - Beef Stroganoff (a new recipe to be posted!)

Saturday - Chicken Lo Mein (a new recipe to be posted!)

Sunday - Barbecued Pork Chops (a new recipe to be posted!)

Don't forget to visit Org Junkie, if you're in need of menu-related inspiration!

Brown Sugar Glazed Pork

This was a super easy meal to put together, but in hindsight, I think I would skip the Montreal steak seasoning in favor of some simple salt and pepper. Then again, I'm not normally a huge Montreal steak seasoning kind of person. I was pleasantly surprised as to how flavorful this recipe was. I especially liked the red wine pan sauce that this recipe makes to go along with the pork. I also think I'd try pork chops with this rather than pork medallions, just because it's easier to make the appropriate amount of meat for my family that way. I served this pork with mashed sweet potatoes and green beans, and it went over quite well. I will definitely be making this again!

Brown Sugar Glazed Pork

adapted from Publix Aprons Meals

Ingredients:
3 fresh garlic clove
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
2 teaspoons Montreal steak seasoning
1 pork tenderloin (about 1 lb)
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1/4 cup red wine


1. Crush garlic, using garlic press, into medium bowl. Use knife to remove garlic from bottom of press. Stir in brown sugar and steak seasoning until well blended.
2. Preheat large sauté pan on medium 2–3 minutes. Cut pork diagonally into about eight 1-inch-thick slices. Place pork slices in bowl and press into mixture. Turn and press again to lightly season both sides (wash hands).
3. Place 1 tablespoon of the butter in pan; swirl to coat. Add pork (wash hands); cook 5–6 minutes on each side or until well browned and internal temperature reaches 160°F (for medium). Use a meat thermometer to accurately ensure doneness.
4. Remove pork from pan. Stir in wine and remaining 1 tablespoon butter; simmer 1 minute, stirring continually. Serve wine sauce with pork.

Click here for printable recipe