Ham Chowder

Today I spent a lot of time in the kitchen and Mia kept me company for part of it. She coos back at me when I tell her what I’m doing step-by-step, it’s so stinkin’ cute!



Mia Watching Mommy Cook



The other night we had a spiral ham for dinner and had a ton of leftovers. I wanted to do something different with the leftovers instead of just sandwiches or scrambled eggs and ham. This recipe was absolutely delicious!

Ham Chowder

Ingredients:

1 ½   lb. potatoes, peeled, cooked, and drained

½ C. onion, chopped

½ C. celery, chopped

2 T. butter

1 – 14.5oz. can chicken broth

2 C. milk

1 C. ham, cooked and diced

¼ C. parsley, minced

½ t. salt

1/8 t. freshly cracked pepper

¼ - ½ C. cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)

Directions:

Cube and cook potatoes and set aside. Sauté the onions and celery in butter until tender. In a blender combine half the potatoes and the onion and celery mixture with a ¼ cup of the chicken broth. Blend until smooth. Add remaining chicken broth and blend. Pour mixture into a pot and add the milk, remaining potatoes, ham, parsley, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Top with cheese if desired.

Yields: 4 servings

Source: Worldwide Ward Cookbook: Mom’s Best Recipes

Easy Tomato & Basil Pasta

I have been making this dish for years now and haven’t grown tired of it. I originally saw Jamie Oliver make this recipe on Oprah at least 6 years ago. I tried to find the original recipe on the Oprah show’s website but I came up empty handed. I love this pasta dish so much because it’s healthy, fresh, and oh so easy to make. I make the tomato mixture while the pasta is cooking and I always have enough time left over to set the table. I love that there’s not need to heat the tomato mixture because the heat from the pasta cooks it. Over the years I’ve made this dish with variations like adding in capers or artichoke hearts, and adding in Mozzarella instead of the Parmesan and it’s always turned out yummy.

All you need to make this dish.

 My mise en place. Don't the heirloom tomatoes look divine?!?

Easy Tomato & Basil Pasta

Ingredients:

• 1 lb spaghetti or linguine
• 11-14 ounces of cherry, grape, or small heirloom tomatoes
• 2 handfuls of fresh marjoram and basil, leaves picked (you can leave out the marjoram if you’d like)
• 4 T of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• Splash of red wine vinegar
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I like to use a vegetable peeler to make beautiful shards of Parmesan)

Directions:

• Cook the pasta until al dente.
• While the pasta is cooking halve the tomatoes, put them in a bowl and add the herbs, olive oil, garlic and vinegar.
• Season the tomato mixture to taste with salt and pepper, then squeeze the tomatoes until they are slightly mashed.
• Drain the pasta, and while it’s still steaming, mix in the tomato mixture.
• Top with parmesan cheese.

Makes 4 servings.

Caramel Apples - A Tutorial

Caramel Apples – A Tutorial

I absolutely love, and I mean LOVE caramel apples. My favorite caramel apples are from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. My husband knew my love for caramel apples, and when I was pregnant with Mia he accomplished the most important task of a husband -- he satisfied a craving. About five weeks before I was due, Curtis spent his last spring break of law school in San Diego visiting with his grandma. I’m not going to say I was okay with this seeing as my due date was somewhat close… So, I decided to milk it for all it was worth. I knew he had a layover in Denver and I knew that there was a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory store in the Denver airport so I may have dropped a few subtle hints J. I was only expecting one caramel apple, but my hubby came off the plane with FOUR of them! It totally made up for his week-long absence so close to my due date!

I’m currently living in Arizona and while there are Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory stores here, I’m not too crazy about shelling out $8+ for a caramel apple nor am I crazy about the 40 minute drive to get them. So I roped my mom and sister-in-laws, Beth and Bridgette into helping me make them. Working in a tag-team effort it took us about three and a half hours from start to finish.

Here are the steps we took to create our scrumptious treats.

Step 1: Assemble the tools.

The special tools we used (outside of bowls, spoons, etc) were: corn on the cob sticks (I like them better than popsicle sticks for this project), squeeze bottles/condiment bottles, a funnel, parchment paper, and cellophane bags.

Step 2: Assemble the ingredients.

Unwrap the caramels and gather the toppings the apples will be rolled in. We used the following for toppings to make an endless variety of apples (not all toppings are pictured below): marshmallows, mini Reece’s Pieces, crushed Butterfingers, mini M & Ms, nut topping, toffee bits, milk chocolate, white chocolate, and cinnamon sugar.

Step 3: Prep the toppings.

Place the toppings in separate bowls and cut the marshmallows in half so they will adhere better to the apples. Try and keep your toppings small, that way they won’t slide down the caramel apples as much as larger toppings would.

Step 4: Prep the apples.

You need firm, crisp apples. If possible, buy apples that aren't waxed. The wax will keep the caramel from sticking. If yours are waxed, wash them with baking soda or give them a quick dunk in boiling water to melt the wax off. Dry them thoroughly and remove the stems. Insert a stick into the stem end--about 3/4 of an inch so that they are in there firmly. You can pierce the apple with a knife first to make the sticks go in more easily. Refrigerate the apples. This will make the caramel harden faster.

Step 5: Make the caramel.

Add 2 tablespoons of water per bag of candies. Zap them in the microwave for approximately 3 minutes. Stir after each minute, and stop heating them as soon as they’re all melted.

Step 6: Dip the apples in the caramel.

You can spoon some of the caramel on, too. Lift the apple out of the caramel and let the excess drip off. I scrape the bottom with a spoon so you don’t have a ton of caramel pooling up at the bottom of your apple when you place it on your parchment-lined cookie sheet.  

Step 7: Roll the apples in toppings.

Roll the apples in the toppings. Use your hand to press the goodies in and help them stay in place. Place the apples on parchment paper that's been greased or coated with cooking spray. We found that after dipping 6 apples or so we would stop and circle back around beginning with the apples we dipped first and began rolling them in the toppings. If we waited any later than that the apples would begin to harden. If we rolled the apples too soon they would end up being a big, goopy mess.

Let the apples chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before you drizzle them with chocolate.

Sept 8: Melt the chips.

For every 12 ounces of chips you will need 2 T of vegetable oil.

Put chips in a microwave-safe bowl with 2 tablespoons canola oil. Microwave power varies, so exact times cannot be recommended.  Cook on medium power, checking at 30 second intervals, stirring each time. Stop heating when most, but not all, of the chips are melted--there should be a few chunks left. Stir until it is smooth and chips are completely melted.  Be careful not to overcook.

You can drizzle the melted chocolate onto the apples with a spoon. But, I like to pour the chocolate into a squeeze bottle using a funnel. I find there is less mess this way.

Set your bottles of chocolate in either a tall glass or jar of hot water to keep the chocolates nice and melted inside the bottles.

Step 9: Drizzle the apples with the melted chocolates.

I set my apple on an inverted glass to make decorating it easier.

When you’re happy with your decorated apple, return it to a parchment-covered baking sheet and allow the apples to chill for another 30 minutes.

Tray 1



Tray 2



Tray 3

Step 10: Wrap the apples.

I put a paper baking cup on the bottom of the apple before wrapping it in the cellophane. This makes it easier to get the apples in and out of the bags without sticking.

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

The recipes that I usually end up liking the most have two things in common: One, they’re somewhat easy to make. And two, they’re made with no (or few) processed foods. This recipe hits both criteria for me. There’s nothing better than chicken pot pie on a beautiful autumn day!

Easy Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast – cubed

1 C sliced carrots

1 C frozen green peas

1/2 C sliced celery

1/3 C butter

1/3 C chopped onion

1/3 C flour

1/2 t salt

1/4 t black pepper

1/4 t celery seed

1 3/4 C chicken broth

2/3 C milk

2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F
2. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
3. In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Apple Crisp

Nothing says fall or home for me like a bushel of apples. I grew up in Connecticut and the neighborhood our house was in was extremely close to three separate apple orchards, including my favorite, Roger’s Orchards. Around this time of year we’d enjoy a bounty of apples from Roger’s: McIntosh, Jonamac, Baldwin, Golden Delicious, Ida Reds, Cortland, Macoun, Empire, Red Delicious, and Mutsu. I don’t remember ever not having apples in the house. So, when we acquired a bushel of apples I knew I needed to do something to pay homage to the yummy, New England treats we would make from the local apples. More apples recipes are to come!

Apple Tree at Roger's Orchards

 Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

Apple Mixture:

10-12 medium Granny Smith apples, peeled and sliced

3 T all purpose flour

1 C white sugar

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

Oatmeal Crumble:

3 C all purpose flour

1 C oatmeal

1 C packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 C butter, melted

Directions:

Place the apples in a large mixing bowl.  Stir in the 3 Tbsp. flour, white sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice until the apples are thoroughly coated.  Pour apple mixture into a 9×13 inch baking dish.  Set aside.  Stir together the 3 Cups flour, oatmeal, brown sugar, and cinnamon.  Add the melted butter and stir until the mixture is completely incorporated.  Crumble the topping mixture over the apples and bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes or until topping is golden brown and the apples are tender.  Serve with ice cream or whipped cream. Drizzle with caramel topping if desired.

Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely adore traditional bruschetta but sometimes I want something different. I made this for a party a while back and it could very well become my new, easy, go-to recipe for parties. I think this took me all of 20 minutes to whip up.

Strawberry-Goat Cheese Bruschetta

Ingredients:

    1  8-oz.  baguette

    1  Tbsp.  olive oil

    1  4-oz. log  goat cheese (chevre)

    1-1/2  cups  sliced strawberries

    1/2  cup  arugula

    Olive oil

    Sea salt or coarse salt

    Freshly ground black pepper

    Snipped fresh herbs

Directions:

1. Heat broiler. Halve baguette crosswise, then lengthwise. Place cut sides up on large baking sheet. Brush with the 1 tablespoon oil. Broil, 3 to 4 inches from heat, for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes or until lightly toasted.

2. Slice and divide cheese among toasts. Top with sliced berries. Broil 2 to 3 minutes or until cheese and berries soften. Remove from broiler; top with arugula. Drizzle additional oil. Sprinkle salt, pepper, and herbs. Makes 4 servings.

Source: Better Homes and Gardens

America's Test Kitchen Banana Bread

America’s Test Kitchen seriously knows what they’re doing! This might be the best banana bread recipe I’ve tried to date. The consistency is perfect and not too dense like some banana breads tend to be. I attribute the great texture of this bread to the yogurt in the recipe.

America’s Test Kitchen Banana Bread

Ingredients :

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon table salt

3 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)

1/4 cup plain yogurt

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional)

Directions :

Adjust a rack to the lower middle position of the oven and preheat it to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.

In a medium bowl, stir together the bananas, yogurt, eggs, melted butter and vanilla, blending well.

Gently fold the wet ingredients into the dry, just to blend--do not over mix. Add in the chocolate chips (optional). Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs, about 50-60 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn it out and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Yields: 1 loaf

Source: Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen

Easy Shepherd's Pie

 

Well, it certainly doesn’t feel like fall yet in Arizona with temperatures still soaring into the 90’s. I’m getting a little tired of summer-friendly recipes so I decided to make one of my fall-favorites despite what the thermometer is reading outside.

Easy Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lbs ground round beef

1 onion chopped

2 cups vegetables - chopped carrots, corn, peas (I used a frozen mix)

1 1/2 - 2 lbs potatoes (3 big ones)

8 tablespoons butter (1 stick)

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup beef broth

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Salt, pepper, other seasonings of choice

Directions:
1 Peel and quarter potatoes, boil in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes).
2 While the potatoes are cooking, melt 4 Tablespoons butter (1/2 a stick) in large frying pan.
3 Sauté onions in butter until tender over medium heat (10 mins). If you are adding vegetables, add them according to cooking time. Put any carrots in with the onions. Add corn or peas either at the end of the cooking of the onions, or after the meat has initially cooked.
4 Add ground beef and sauté until no longer pink. Add salt and pepper. Add Worcestershire sauce. Add half a cup of beef broth and cook, uncovered, over low heat for 10 minutes, adding more beef broth as necessary to keep moist.
5 Mash potatoes in bowl with remainder of butter, season to taste. Stir in the cheddar cheese.
6 Place beef and onions in baking dish. Distribute mashed potatoes on top. Rough up with a fork so that there are peaks that will brown nicely. You can use the fork to make some designs in the potatoes as well.
7 Cook in 400 degree oven until bubbling and brown (about 30 minutes). Broil for last few minutes if necessary to brown.
Serves four.
Source: Adapted from Simply Recipes

Turkey and Zucchini Green Chili

This is a great fall soup that helps you get rid of some of the zucchini you may have piling up in your garden. My 10-year-old niece Dayna is a self declared vegetarian and she had two bowls of this soup!

Turkey and Zucchini Green Chili 

(makes 4+ servings)

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon oil
1 onion (diced)
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 tablespoon cumin (toasted and ground)
1 pound ground turkey
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups salsa verde
1 (19 ounce) can white beans (rinsed and drained)
1 teaspoon oregano
2 jalapeno peppers (or to taste, diced)
salt and pepper to taste
1 pound zucchini (cut into bite sized pieces)
1 cup corn
1 handful cilantro (chopped)

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a pan.
2. Add the onion and saute until tender, about 5-7 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and cumin and saute until fragrant, about a minute.
4. Add the turkey and cook until no longer pink, about 5-10 minutes
5. Add the stock, salsa verde, beans, oregano, peppers, salt and pepper and simmer for 20 minutes.
6. Add the zucchini and corn and simmer until the zucchini is tender, about 10 minutes.
7. Remove from heat and mix in the cilantro.

Source: Adapted from Closet Cooking

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

These whole wheat rolls will impress everyone with how incredibly soft and moist they are. The secret ingredient? Instant potato flakes. These are also excellent with homemade honey butter.

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Ingredients:

3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups (or more) white whole wheat flour* or regular whole wheat flour
3/4 cup instant mashed potato flakes
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
3 tablespoons sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons quick-rising active dry yeast (from two 1/4-ounce envelopes)
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 large egg yolk
1 large egg white, whisked with 1 tablespoon water (for glaze)
3 to 4 tablespoons quick-cooking oats

Directions:

Bring 3/4 cup whole milk and 3/4 cup water to simmer in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add butter; stir until melted. Attach instant-read thermometer to inside of pan; let milk cool until thermometer registers 120°F to 130°F.

Meanwhile, combine 3 cups flour, potato flakes, dry milk powder, sugar, yeast, and salt in large bowl; whisk to blend. Add warm milk mixture. Stir to blend; mix in egg yolk. Knead mixture in bowl until dough comes together (dough will be sticky). Turn out onto floured work surface and knead until very smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls as needed, about 8 minutes. Place dough in buttered bowl; turn to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then kitchen towel. Let rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Butter 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan or small baking sheet. Turn dough out onto floured work surface and divide in half. Knead each piece lightly until smooth. Cut each dough half into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into almost smooth ball. Arrange dough rounds in 4 lengthwise and 4 crosswise rows in prepared pan, spacing about 3/4 to 1 inch apart (rolls will not fill pan). Cover shaped rolls with kitchen towel and let rise in warm draft-free area until rolls have almost doubled in volume and have expanded enough to touch each other, about 1 hour 15 minutes.
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Gently brush rolls with egg-white glaze, then sprinkle generously with oats. Bake dinner rolls until light golden brown, about 28 minutes. Let rolls cool in pan 5 minutes, then pull rolls apart and cool on rack at least 15 minutes. Makes 16 rolls.

Source: Bon Appétit, November 2007

Honey Butter

It’s just as easy as it sounds and it’s wicked good on homemade breads!

Honey Butter

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/3 cup honey

Dash of cinnamon, if desired

Directions:

Place butter in a small bowl. Gradually add honey, beating constantly until the desired   thickness is attained. Mix in cinnamon.

Green Chile Enchiladas

This is a recipe I got from my dear friend, Valerie Córdova. While student teaching at Roosevelt Middle School in Tijeras, NM the staff would have a monthly potluck breakfast and Val would bring these enchiladas. They would be gobbled up so quickly by everyone and I remember thinking only in New Mexico would you have enchiladas for breakfast!

I’ve made these enchiladas by substituting layered summer squash and zucchini for the chicken and they were just as delicious. I usually serve these with cornbread.

Green Chile Enchiladas

Ingredients:

3-12oz cans of chicken (easily found at Costco or Sam’s Club)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 can cream of chicken soup

2 tsp. minced garlic

2 tsp. Onion powder

2-16 oz jars of green chile sauce (I use El Pinto, but any brand will do)

Mexican cheese

4 roma tomatoes

3 green onions

12 corn tortillas

Oregano

Directions:

Put chicken into a big frying pan and cook until it’s not pink anymore. Add garlic and onion powder. Add cream of mushroom, cream of chicken and two jars of chile. Spray a little oil on the bottom of casserole dish. Lay four corn tortillas down. Spread 1/3 of the mixture on the tortillas. Spread a layer of cheese. Put a few tomatoes on the layer. Make another two layers this way.

On the last layer don’t add the cheese. Put chopped green onions and tomatoes on top layer. Cover with foil and cook for 30 minutes at 350 °F. Take foil off then add a layer of cheese and some oregano then cook uncovered for 15 minutes. Let stand for about 10 minutes. Serve.

Note from the recipe’s creator:

This is the recipe that I use but I change it around sometimes. Sometimes I add grated zucchini. Sometimes I won’t add the cream of mushroom soup and just add some sour cream instead and use sharp cheddar cheese. I mostly use green chile from my freezer that I have peeled myself. The last time I made it I added a layer of fresh mushrooms on top.

Source: my dear friend, Valerie Córdova

Sour Cream Corn Bread

I got the recipe from my cousin, Renee and I have stopped searching for a good cornbread recipe because this one is so delicious. The sour cream in the recipe really makes the corn bread nice and moist. It’s also a great base recipe if you want to spice it up with jalapeño and cheddar cheese. I whip this recipe up pretty much anytime I make a Mexican dish for supper; it’s also great the next day for breakfast!

Sour Cream Cornbread

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 cup yellow cornmeal

4 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup milk

4 tablespoons melted butter

1 cup sour cream (1/2 pint)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Combine dry ingredients.
3. Beat together wet ingredients and add to the dry mixture stirring just until blended.
4. Pour into a greased 8 inch square pan and dot the top with butter.
5. Bake 20-25 minutes until golden.

Source: my cousin, Renee Lavoie

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

 

Look at that cupcake!!!

Regular-sized cupcakes.

Mini-Cupcakes

My 10-year-old niece Dayna and I have decided to bake a treat together once a week. We made these cupcakes about a week and a half ago and they are seriously good! I think they might be *THE* best dessert I’ve ever made and they were surprisingly easy taking only 80 minutes from start to finish. We didn’t have enough ingredients to make a full batch so we halved the recipe and made mini-cupcakes.
***Update June 19th, 2011*** I made these regular-sized and they came out perfectly! See the pictures above and below!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

For the filling:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
¾ cup creamy peanut butter
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ tsp. vanilla extract

For the cake:
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup sour cream
2 tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
2 large eggs

For the frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
½ cup creamy peanut butter
3¼ cups confectioners' sugar
1 cup frozen whipped topping, thawed

mini chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line two cupcake pans with paper liners.

To make the filling, combine the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter and vanilla extract in a bowl.  Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined.  Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls (at least 24) and set aside on a baking sheet.

To make the cake batter, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; whisk together and set aside.  In a liquid measuring cup, stir together the sour cream, milk and vanilla extract.  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar, and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed.  With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the dry ingredients and the sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.  Mix just until incorporated.

Spoon a tablespoon or two of batter into the bottom of each cupcake liner.  Place a ball of the peanut butter filling in each cupcake well and top with the remaining batter so that all the cups are filled.  Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Allow to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Unbaked cupcakes before they get their final layer of batter.

Ready for the oven.

Fresh out of the oven.

To make the frosting, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the cream cheese, butter and peanut butter until smooth.  Slowly mix in the confectioners' sugar, beating until smooth and well blended.  Mix in the whipped topping until smooth and fluffy.  Frost cooled cupcakes as desired, and garnish with mini chocolate chips.

Source: Adapted from Annie’s Eats

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Snickers Cupcakes

When Curtis returned from DC after taking the bar I decided to make him a treat that incorporated his favorite candy bar, Snickers. These cupcakes came out absolutely delicious and were a huge hit with the rest of the family.

Snickers Cupcakes

Makes 24-30 cupcakes

For the cake:
1 (18.25 ounce) package devil’s food cake mix
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs; lightly beaten
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon of vanilla
24-30 frozen Snickers Miniatures

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line (2) 12 cup muffin tins with paper liners.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil,  beaten eggs, vanilla and water.
4. Evenly divide the batter amongst the prepared pans. {I use a large cookie scoop to scoop my batter; it holds 3 tablespoons}.
5. Gently push a frozen Snickers Miniature bar into the center of the batter and smooth the surface making sure to cover the candy bar with batter.
6. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean.
7. Cool cupcakes thoroughly on wire rack.

For the frosting:
2 sticks unsalted butter; room temperature
1/2 cup shortening
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 pounds confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup caramel topping; plus more for drizzling
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
1. Cream the butter and shortening in the bowl of an electric or stand mixer. Add the vanilla extract, salt and caramel syrup and combine well.
2. Begin adding in the sugar and mixing thoroughly after each addition. After all of the sugar has been added and mixed thoroughly, give it a taste and decide if you want to add in more caramel syrup. For thicker frosting you can gradually add in a little more sugar.

Top with chopped Snickers bars and a drizzle of caramel of caramel syrup if desired.

Source: Adapted from My Baking Addiction