Banana Crumb Muffins

These are by far the best banana muffins I have ever made.  They are absolutely delicious!  I hope that you like them too.

Banana Crumb Muffins:

Ingredients:
MUFFINS:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3-4 medium very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon (depending on how much you like cinnamon)
CRUMB TOPPING:
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter, barely softened but not melted

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease 12 muffin cups (or use paper liners).
2.  In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3.  In a mixer, beat oil, egg, and sugars until well blended.  Add vanilla, bananas, and cinnamon and mix well. 
4.  Add dry ingredients to the banana mixture and mix just until moistened.  Pour evenly into muffin pan.
5.  For the crumb topping, combine the brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a small bowl.  Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse corn meal or sand.  Sprinkle over the tops of all the muffins.
6.  Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean.  Enjoy!

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Chocolate and Raspberry are always a good combination!  These are a chocolate cupcake filled with raspberry jam and topped with raspberry buttercream icing, drizzled with chocolate-raspberry ganache, and topped with a fresh raspberry.  If you are looking for something extra-special to make for mom for Mother's Day, you could try this recipe.  If you don't want to make the cupcakes from scratch you can always use a chocolate cake mix and then add the raspberry filling and frosting.

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes:

CUPCAKES:
Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1 3/4 cup flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup boiling water

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour cupcake pans or use paper liners.
2.  Mix all the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. 
3.  Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat with a mixer for about two minutes, occasionally scraping the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. 
4.  Add the boiling water, and mix just until blended.  The batter should be watery, so don't freak out!
5.  Evenly pour the batter into the liners, about 1/2-2/3 full.  Bake for 18-22 minutes, until a toothpick poked into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.  Cool and frost.

FILLING:
Ingredients:
1 cup seedless raspberry jam

Directions:
When cupcakes have cooled, microwave jam for about 20-30 seconds to make it easier to pipe, but be careful not to make it too watery or it will just ooze all over.  Dump jam into an icing bag with a pastry-filling tip (or you can use just a large icing tip).  Stick the tip into the center of the cupcake and squeeze about 2 tsp of jam into each cupcake.

RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM ICING:
Ingredients:
1 cup softened BUTTER, no substitutes
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
1/4 tsp raspberry extract (optional)
6 cups powdered sugar
pink food coloring, if desired

Directions:
Beat butter on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until very creamy and fluffy.  Add jam and raspberry extract and mix well.  Gradually add powdered sugar, a little at a time, until it is all combined and a good consistency.  If you want you can add some food coloring to make your icing more pink. ( I did)  Frost cupcakes.

CHOCOLATE-RASPBERRY GANACHE:
Ingredients:
5 oz. semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cup raspberry jam

1/4 tsp raspberry extract (optional)
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions:
Place jam, chocolate, and extract in a small bowl.  Heat cream to boiling in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Pour cream in bowl and whisk until chocolate is completely melted and smooth.  Cool about 15 minutes or until it is thickened enough to spoon over cupcakes.  Top cupcakes with fresh raspberries, if desired.

For an extra treat, try cooling ganache until it is thick enough to pipe into the raspberries to make little raspberry truffles to top your cupcakes.  YUM!

Peanut Butter Waffles!

I saw this recipe in an Everyday Food magazine recently and my kids wanted to try it because they love peanut butter and waffles  We adapted the directions a little bit to make it easier to throw together.  It was good but it took me a minute to get used to having a peanut butter taste in my waffles.  The kids loved it!  I topped mine with Nutella and sliced bananas (YUM) and the kids just used maple syrup.

Peanut Butter Waffles:

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
6 tbsp creamy peanut butter
2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
Toppings of your choice (bananas, Nutella, maple syrup, strawberries, chocolate chips, etc.)

Directions:
1.  Heat waffle iron while mixing ingredients. 
2.  In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
3.  In a separate bowl mix peanut butter and butter until smooth.  Add buttermilk mixture and eggs and mix until combined. 
4.  Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture and stir just until batter is combined.
5.  Spray waffle iron non-stick cooking spray.  Pour in 1/2 to 3/4 cup batter, leaving a 1/2-inch border on all sides.  Cook waffles according to waffle iron directions.  Serve warm with desired toppings.

Creamy Slow-Cooker Chicken and Potatoes

I know life can get kind of crazy sometimes!  When you are trying to chauffeur kids to soccer practice or dance classes, or marching band, or whatever it is your kids do, some days you don't have time to stop and make dinner.  It's days like those when I throw something in the crock-pot and let that do the cooking for me.  This meal is fast and easy to throw together and it's something my whole family will eat.

Creamy Slow-Cooker Chicken and Potatoes

Ingredients:
4-6 frozen chicken breasts
3 medium potatoes, washed and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tbsp dried diced onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder

Directions:
Put frozen chicken breasts in the bottom of the crock-pot.  Add potatoes and sprinkle with onion.  In a bowl mix together the soups, pepper, and garlic powder.  Pour over the top of the potatoes.  Cover and cook on low for about 6-8 hours or until the chicken is cooked through and very tender.  Enjoy!

Bananas Foster Sundaes!

All I can say is Mmmmm!  Next time you have one of those killer ice cream cravings, try this recipe!  It's yummy and really simple to make.  Plus, the bananas make it halfway healthy, right? :o)


Bananas Foster Sundaes

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup rum (or you can substitute rum extract or leave it out altogether)
4 large bananas
your favorite vanilla ice cream

Directions:
In a medium-sized skillet melt butter and brown sugar over medium heat, stirring frequently.  Continue stirring and cooking about 3 minutes or until it starts to thicken.  Stir in vanilla and rum, if desired.  Slice bananas and stir them in slowly.  Turn heat to low and cook just until bananas are heated through, but not mushy.  Spoon over your favorite vanilla ice cream and enjoy!