Cinnamonkeys

We call these Cinnamonkeys, but I've also seen them called cinnamon pull apart muffins.
(Personally I like cinnamonkeys better. ;o)

Original Recipe can be found here

 Preheat ove to 350 F

Servings - 12 cinnamonkeys.  If you are like me, this means 6 servings. ;o)

Bread Dough - 2 lb
I think if you buy bread dough in the store 1 can = 1lb. Usually for this I just toss the ingredients into the bread maker and let the machine run for an hour before using the dough. I have tried this with refined flour and whole grain spelt flour and both are amazing. The spelt is nice and light, so I think I will go back to that since it is healthier.  B loves it either way too, and he didn't grow up on whole grains.

~1/2 stick of butter
~2/3 cups honey
2tsp cinnamon

These quantities are subjective, tweak them around to find your optimum sweetness/cinnamon level. This mixture should leave a little left over in the pan to drizzle over the top if you like. Be warned however, it will make them a little more messy. :o)

Instructions:
Melt butter in pan, add honey and cinnamon.  - You want the honey to get warm enough to brush onto the dough easily. I recommend keeping the pan on a warm burner so the honey doesn't start to thicken again. 

Meanwhile, roll out the dough (I don't roll it all out at once) to ~1/4" thick, or less (it really depends on how thick you like them.  Thicker segments = less cinnamonkeys, but are still delish!).  Next cut the dough in to ~2 - 2.5" "squares." - I'm not precise here, this is just an approximation

Place 8 dough squares on a plate or cutting board and brush them liberally with the honey/butter/cinnamon mixture.  Stack them on top of each other and then place them sideways in a muffin tin.

Repeat until you fill the tins/run out of dough.

Bake @ 350 F for 10-12 min.

Pull apart and Enjoy!

Pasta with Mushroom sauce

We made this recipe last night when the guys were all out. It is EXCELLENT!

 

Prep Time: 20 min

Start to Finish: 20 min

Servings: 6 (this is subjective, it really depends on how much you eat, teenage boys will eat much more than what this suggests as a serving size)

8oz Uncooked Pappardelle Pasta (we used fettuccine noodles)

2 TBS Butter

1 medium Onion; thinly sliced and separated into rings

16oz of mushrooms (We used regular button mushrooms, however you can use whatever type you desire)

2 tsp chopped fresh Sage leaves (we used ~1/2 tsp dried sage leaves)

1 tsp chopped fresh Thyme leaves (we used ~1/4 tsp dried)

1 cup Whipping Cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1. Cook and drain pasta as directed on package (we started the water boiling and then started step 2... placing the pasta in the water once it boiled.)

2. In 12" skillet melt butter over medium high heat.  

Cook onions in butter 8-10 min, until soft and golden.

Add Mushrooms, chopped sage, and thyme; cook until mushrooms are tender, ~5 min.

Stir in whipping cream, cheese, salt, and pepper.

3. Pour Sauce over cooked pasta and toss. 

(the timing of the food worked out pretty perfect.  The sauce got done a little before the pasta which meant that it simmered for a couple minutes, making it all the better!)

ENJOY!

Speedy Spelt Drop Biscuits

2 cups Spelt flour
1TBS Baking Powder
½ tsp Salt
2 cups Buttermilk (or 2 cups milk + 2 TBS vinegar)
(Use only ½ of the milk to start, that is usually about right, if you use it all it will be too runny)

*Add whatever extras you want.  Some cheddar cheese is delicious (a handful or so).  If you want a garlicky flavor, add ~1tsp of garlic powder per batch I also really enjoy some basil in it.

bake on 400 for 12-15 min

Zucchini Bread

I tried a new recipe today. Here it is. 

Ingredients:

3 cups whole grain flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil (you could cut this back for sure; I used olive oil but I probably won't next time-- wrong flavor)
1 cup honey
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini (I'll add more next time-- maybe another half cup)
1 cup chopped walnuts



Directions:

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and honey together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
Bake for 40 to 60 minutes (it was closer to 40), or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool-- soooo much better once it has been in the fridge for a couple hours!

Mimi's Cafe Bread

Have you ever had that stupendous carrot raisin bread that they serve at Mimi's Cafe? This is a very good imitation of it. So fantastic! Taken from here

Mimi's Carrot Raisin Bread
Ingredients:

1 1/2 C flour (I used whole white wheat)
1teaspoon baking soda
2t baking powder
2t cinnamon
1/2t salt
3/4 C oil
1 C brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 C walnuts chopped (I forgot to add these)
1/2 C crushed pineapples drained
1/2 C raisins
1 C shredded carrot

Method
Sift first five ingredients In a separate bowl whisk oil, sugar and eggs. Stir liquid mix into flour mixture. Add the rest of the ingredients. Grease a 9-in pan or four mini loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 mins. For the mini loaves you want to bake for about 30.
**After its done baking leave the bread in the pan for 10 minutes. Then transfer it to a cooking rack. If you take it out right after its in the oven, it will fall apart, and so will you**

Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Salad

This is so yummy and fresh tasting. I love it! Perfect for the summertime. I have made it as a side or as the main course.

This recipe doesn't have peppers, but this was the best picture I could find.

Ingredients:
1 cup red quinoa, cooked with broth
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups frozen roasted corn kernels (or plain corn)
1 avocado, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 pint grape tomatoes, halved (or other small tomatoes)
½ red onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
¼ cup lime or lemon juice
Zest of 1 lime
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper

Directions
Cook quinoa with broth according to instructions on package. Cool quinoa. Combine quinoa, beans, corn, tomatoes, onion and cilantro. Make a dressing with the oil, lime or lemon juice, lime zest, salt and pepper to taste. Toss together. Garnish with the avocado and additional cilantro.