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Food, Sweet

S’more Cupcakes

The smokey smell of pallets burning over a backyard campfire, the sweet taste of marshmallows that have been over-charred from being in the fire for too long, and an evening tolerating all your friends in a confined space. Oh, winter bonfires. Okay, I’m just kidding about tolerating people, I actually really enjoy group activities. Especially when there is food involved. And while the snow hasn’t quite fallen yet and the winter bonfires are still a few weeks away, I’ll just bake.

That’s ultimately what led to these s’more-inspired cupcakes. They still need a little work, but for my first go, I think I succeeded. Simple, cute, and a little rough painstakingly roasting mini marshmallows over an apple cider scented candle. Yeah, that last part happened.

Anyway, all you really need is a yellow cake box mix, chocolate frosting, graham crackers, and mini marshmallows. You’ll also want on hand some toothpicks for the roasting part, you’ll see what I mean.

S’more Cupcakes

Gather:
Yellow Cake Mix (and the eggs/oil/butter, whatever the manufacturer says you need)
Chocolate frosting (from a can, cause I’m lazy)
Cinnamon graham crackers, crushed
Mini marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350. Using the manufacturer’s instructions, mix together your cake mix. Now, I tried poking a mini marshmallow into the center of each one, but when it baked, well… those mini marshmallows disappeared. So it’s your call if you want to take the effort to see if they’ll survive a time in the oven.

Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick can be inserted in the cupcake and removed clean. Set aside and let cool completely.

In a Ziploc bag, place four to five graham crackers. Seal bag, leaving as little air in it as possible, and a corner open. Take a rolling pin and roll over the crackers until crushed. Leave a few little bits, try not to make it a complete powder.

Light a candle (or use your gas stove top if you have an open flame, candle works fine though.) Carefully place a marshmallow on the end of a toothpick and heat over flame. I purposely burned them just a bit to give them a campfire look, but you can be patient and toast them until golden brown, your call. Remove from toothpick and set aside until you’re ready to decorate cupcakes. This is tedious, but the end result is adorable.

After cupcakes are cooled, frost with chocolate frosting and sprinkle graham cracker powder on top of cupcakes. Place a single toasted marshmallow on each cupcake. Serve and enjoy.

November 19, 2013 by Roni

Life In General, Sweet

Easy Apple Pie

I love fall. I love leaves. I love cold weather. I love bundling up in blankets by a fire. AND I love apple picking. So my friend dragged me (totally kicking and screaming… NOT!) to a farm in Lee. I’m sorry to say that he refused to get his face painted. We had enough time waiting for the wagon to bring us to the field, but for some reason that’s apparently not “manly” or “adult” to do.

Maybe next time.

So we picked apples. Lots of apples. And took enough pictures for two families visiting the farm worth. A nod to my grandma, we used film cameras for the majority of our pictures. I remember her lugging around her camera every summer until digital cameras took over the world.

Look what I found: the world’s tiniest apple! Okay, not really, but it was adorable and delicious! Oh yeah, and surprise, my hair is a new reddish, brown, purple color. Did that on a whim the other day.

So we ended up with a lot of apples. . . and a craving for apple pie. Which I must tell you, I’ve never made before without the assistance of my grandmother who used to make the best blueberry pies I’ve ever had. So in honor of her marvelous baking skills, we chopped up those apples, tossed them in cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar and baked it in a pie crust. Might have taken a shortcut and went with a freezer section pie crust, but that was only because I wanted the pie in a hurry. No patience when I’ve been out in the field for hours.

Roni’s Easy Apple Pie

Gather:
5 large apples, peeled and sliced
3/4 cup of white sugar
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust, softened as directed on the box

Preheat oven to 425.

Lay one of the pieces of pie crust in the bottom of a 9-inch round pie pan. In a bowl, mix apples and other ingredients. Pour into pie pan. Top with other pie crust, cut off excess crust, and pinch edges together. Cut holes in top of pie crust.

Bake for 20 minutes with edges covered with aluminum foil. Remove foil and bake another 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool for at least an hour and a half before serving.

October 17, 2013 by Roni

Food, Sweet

Strawberry Raspberry Pudding Bites

WordPress, I hate you. This is the second time I’ve had to rewrite this post. One time, ok. Shame on me for messing something up. But two times? Two times? Come on WordPress. Geez.

Okay, now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, let’s go.

The temperature is rising, and quickly I might add. I’ve been sticking to everything that I touch. So if any of you guys out there have a nice pool to loan me, I’d be happy to take you up on that offer and make sure it’s in working condition.

I’ve also started up on my diet again. Which I’m glad I did, but honestly, it just means that with all the ice cream stands opening up, I have to avoid them. So I came up with what I think will help. Or at least let me portion out my cravings into bite sized pieces.

Strawberry Raspberry Pudding Bites

Gather:
1 package of Jell-O Instant Pudding, Strawberry Creme, 3.4oz Box
1.5 cups of milk
8 to 10 raspberries, halved
Silicone Ice Cube Tray (the bites come out easier that way)

Mix pudding package and milk for 2 minutes. Let sit for another three, then fold in the raspberries. Fill ice cube molds with pudding mixture and then place molds into freezer. Let “bites” freeze for at least an hour, or until hard all the way through.

Pop out of the trays and place into ziplock bags. Place back in freezer until you’re ready to eat them. Yum!

June 25, 2013 by Roni

Food, Sweet

Peanut Butter & Banana Stuffed French Toast

It’s been raining for days. Seriously, days. All this week we’ve seen clouds up leading up to what is expected to be a sunny weekend. If I lived closer to the beach, I’d be worried.

But instead of worrying, I’d much rather cook, be it breakfast for dinner. But really, who is going to ridicule me for having brinner (that’s code for breakfast for dinner) if I make French toast? Something I haven’t had in a really long time. Frankly, I’m not much for maple syrup, so I mostly steer clear from pancakes, waffles, and anything that might be covered in maple syrup. Shocker! I know. Being as I was raised in Vermont within smelling distance of the farms. I will eat it, just not in high volume.

So having some maple syrup on hand, a craving for bananas and peanut butter, and a kitchen that was calling for breakfast past 6 p.m., I made an executive decision. I was making stuffed French toast. Peanut butter and banana stuffed French toast to be exact.

After wrangling the pan down from our hanging rack, this is how it went down:

Gather (for a single serving):
1 tablespoon of butter
2 slices of whole wheat toast (not thick bread)
1 heaping tablespoon of creamy peanut butter
Half of a banana
1 egg
2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Grade A Vermont maple syrup

Heat a medium-sized skillet on medium heat. Add butter. While butter is melting, beat egg, cinnamon, and vanilla extract in a bowl. Dredge one side of a piece of bread with egg wash. Place bread egg wash side down in the pan. On the second piece of bread, spread peanut butter and top with slices of banana (1/4 inch to half inch slices work well). Place that piece of bread peanut butter-side down on top of the bread already in the pan, making a sandwich. Take the rest of the egg wash and evenly spread it over the top of the “sandwich.” It’s okay if the egg wash gets into the pan, you can cut off the cooked egg later.

Cook for about 4 minutes or until first side is toasted. Flip sandwich and press down on the sandwich with your flipper. This will keep the pieces together and help heat the center a bit. (I promise, this works.) Cook other side until golden brown, or for about another 3 minutes.

Remove from pan. Slice in half, drizzle on maple syrup, and enjoy!

If anyone makes it, let me know what you think of if you have other stuffed French toast ideas. I think I’m going to make this a regular thing. Bring on the brinner!

May 31, 2013 by Roni

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