Thanksgiving Dishes Round-Up

I cannot believe Thanksgiving  is a week away; it just finally started feeling like fall her in Arizona and now Thanksgiving is fast approaching and Christmas is right around the corner…where did this year go?!?
In any event, I’ve compiled a few of my favorite recipes from last Thanksgiving that were super yummy! Enjoy, and Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Dishes Round-Up

Honey Yeast Rolls: What would Thanksgiving be without some yummy rolls?

Butternut Squash & Apple Soup: A great 1^st course dish.

Sweet Potato Soufflé: A classic at my family’s dinner table. 

Cauliflower – Leek Purée: A great low-carb alternative to mashed potatoes.

Cranberry-Orange Sauce: SO delicious and awesome spread on bread for leftover turkey sandwiches.

Skillet Green Beans w/ Spiced Walnuts: A great dish that’s low on calories, but high in flavor.

Pumpkin-Chocolate Cheesecake Bars: A great alternative to the classic pumpkin pie.

Thanksgiving Leftovers – Turkey Noodle Soup w/ Homemade Noodles: You know you’re going to have left over turkey; this is nice, light recipe that uses up some of that leftover turkey!

I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Thanksgiving.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins & September Fall Crawl's 1st Stop

 

Before I get to my muffins, I wanted to let you all know about a fabulous Fall-inspired blog hop I will be taking part in over the next two weeks. Marilyn from The Artsy Girl Connection has put together a fabulous line up of bloggers to share fall-inspired recipes, crafts, projects, etc. Marilyn started the crawl today with the cutest pumpkin project. Head on over to her blog to check it out!!!

Fall Crawl Schedule

Sept 19th - Marilyn - http://theartsygirlconnection.blogspot.com/
Sept 20th - Kellie - http://happybabychronicles.com/
Sept 21st - Letty - http://bellavidabyletty.blogspot.com/
Sept 22nd - Lorie - http://www.readingconfetti.blogspot.com/
Sept 23rd - Abby - http://dirtontherocks.com/  
Abby's will also include our 1st blog hop Linky Party
Sept 24th Tracy - http://tracycooksitright.blogspot.com/
Sept 25th - Kimba - http://kimbas2cents.blogspot.com/
Sept 26th - Jacqueline - http://mukweto.blogspot.com/
Sept 27th - Jillian - FoodFolksandFun.blogspot.com
Sept 28th – Kim & Lars http://larskim.com/
Sept 29th - Deia http://loveandtangles.blogspot.com/
Sept 30th - Meli - http://melifaif.blogspot.com/
October 1st - Renee - http://renee-joyjourney.blogspot.com/

Renee's will be our Second blog hop /Linky Party

October 2nd - Giveaway & thanks to all that joined us in on the crawl!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
I always associate anything pumpkin with fall. Fall here in Arizona means: the temperature has finally dipped below 100°F, we can get cold water from the faucet again (during the summer it’s only warm or hot water from the faucet), and you can sun bathe by the pool without completely melting!

These muffins were so deliciously aromatic and filled the house with the most amazing smell. I can’t decide if they smelt better or tasted better. Try them for yourself and you decide!

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Ingredients:

For the filling:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 C confectioners’ sugar

For the muffins:
3 C all-purpose flour
1 t ground cinnamon
1 t ground nutmeg
1 t ground cloves
1 T pumpkin pie spice
1 t salt
1 t baking soda
4 large eggs
2 C sugar
2 C pumpkin puree
1¼ C vegetable oil

For the topping:
½ C sugar
5 T flour
1½ t ground cinnamon
4 T cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 T chopped pecans

Directions:

For the filling:

Combine the cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth.  Transfer the mixture to a piece of plastic wrap and shape into a log about 1½-inches in diameter.  Smooth the plastic wrap tightly around the log, and reinforce with a piece of foil.  Transfer to the freezer and chill until at least slightly firm, at least 6 hours.

For the muffin batter:

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line muffin pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda; whisk to blend.  In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the eggs, sugar, pumpkin puree and oil.  Mix on medium-low speed until blended.  With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated.

For the topping:

Combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a small bowl; whisk to blend.  Add in the butter pieces and cut into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or two forks until the mixture is coarse and crumbly.  Add the chopped pecans and mix until incorporated. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to use.

To assemble the muffins:

Fill each muffin well with a small amount of batter, just enough to cover the bottom of the liner (1-2 tablespoons).  Slice the log of cream cheese filling into 24 equal pieces.  Place a slice of the cream cheese mixture into each muffin well.  Divide the remaining batter among the muffin cups, placing on top of the cream cheese to cover completely.  Sprinkle a small amount of the topping mixture over each of the muffin wells.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving. Wait for the muffins to cool for about 30 minutes, and then enjoy! (It will be super tempting to bite right into one of these muffins right away, but you want to wait because the cream cheese filling is super hot right out of the oven!)

Makes 24 muffins

Source: adapted from Annie’s Eats

I’m linking this post up at:
Metamorphosis Monday
Menu Plan Monday
Skip to My Lou
Tip Me Tuesday
Today’s Creative Blog

Cheddar Dill Scones

De-li-cious! These scones are my new favorite dinner-time accompaniments. There are SO many different possibilities and variations with these scones like parmesan & sun-dried tomato, cilantro, pepper jack, & jalapeño, etc. I can’t wait to try variations of this recipe and share them here with you, so stay tuned!

P.S. These would be great for brunch!

Cheddar Dill Scones

Ingredients:

4 C plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided

2 T baking powder

2 t salt

3/4 pound (3 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

4 extra-large eggs, beaten lightly

1 C cold heavy cream

1/2 pound extra-sharp yellow Cheddar, small-diced

1 C minced fresh dill

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk, for egg wash

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine 4 cups of flour, the baking powder, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.

Add the butter and mix on low speed until the butter is in pea-sized pieces.

Mix the eggs and heavy cream and quickly add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Combine until just blended.

Toss together the Cheddar, dill, and 1 tablespoon of flour and add them to the dough. Mix until they are almost incorporated.

Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it for 1 minute, until the Cheddar and dill are well distributed.

Roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. Cut into 4-inch squares and then in half diagonally to make triangles.

***If you don’t have a 4-inch square cookie cutter, then: divide the dough into 2 equal pieces using a bench scraper. Pat each half of the dough into an 8-inch round cake pan, evenly distributing the dough. Invert the pans onto the counter so the dough releases from the pans. At this point, your dough should be in a perfect circle. Cut each circle into 8 pieces.

Brush the tops with egg wash. Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for 20 to 25 minutes, until the outside is crusty and the inside is fully baked.

Makes 16 large scones

Source: Adapted from Ina Garten for the Food Network

I’m linking this post up at:
Metamorphosis Monday
Menu Plan Monday
Skip to My Lou
Tip Me Tuesday
Today’s Creative Blog

Layered Mediterranean Ravioli Salad w/ Parmesan & Herbed Bread

I was so excited when I was contacted to take part in Pasta Prima’s “Reinventing Ravioli” promotion. The idea essentially is to toss the sauce and come put with a new way of eating ravioli. To help in the process, Pasta Prima sent me 3 of their fresh ravioli varieties: Butternut Squash, Organic Spinach & Cheese, and Grilled Chicken and Mozzarella. All were completely delicious, but the Chicken and Mozzarella ones inspired me straightway to make this recipe!

I absolutely love this recipe. It’s the perfect marriage between pasta and antipasto salad. The ravioli are perfect in it; they make the salad so filling and they really round out the Mediterranean vibe I’m going for! I think this salad would be awesome for summer entertaining and could easily be made in advance, because the longer you let the salad sit in the fridge the better it gets.

The yummy ravioli I used for this recipe.

The cutest sous chef ever!

Layered Mediterranean Ravioli Salad w/ Parmesan & Herbed Bread

Ingredients:

For the Salad

1 package (8 ounces) Pasta Prima Grilled Chicken & Mozzarella Ravioli

5 T of your favorite Greek or Italian dressing, divided

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 1/2 C crumbled feta cheese, divided

1/2 medium red onion, thinly sliced

1/2 C chopped fresh basil, divided

1 1/2 C sliced cucumbers

1 can (about 14 oz) artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed and quartered (about 1 1/3 cups)

1 C Kalamata olives, pitted and roughly chopped

1 can (15 oz) garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained

Ground black pepper

For the Bread

1 loaf (about 14) rustic French bread from the bakery/grocery store

4 T butter, softened

Parmesan & Herb Packet from the Pasta Prima Raviolis

Directions:

For the Salad

Prepare the ravioli according to package directions; rinse in cold water then drain well. Place the ravioli in a bowl and add 2 tablespoons of the salad dressing; toss very gently to coat.

Place the tomatoes in large glass serving bowl; drizzle with 1 tablespoon salad dressing. Top with half the raviolis, the feta cheese, red onion, cucumber and half the basil. Drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons salad dressing and top with the remaining ravioli, artichokes, garbanzo beans, olives, and the remaining feta cheese and basil.

Cover the salad and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Season with freshly ground pepper and serve.

For the Bread

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Cut the loaf of bread in half length-wise. Spread the softened butter evenly over the bread and sprinkle it with the contents of the Parmesan & Herb packet from the raviolis.

Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let the bread cool for 2 minutes, slice and then serve.

Makes 6-8 servings.

Both recipes are a Food, Folks, and Fun original!

Blueberry Scones

I am so ecstatic about how this recipe turned out, because it’s essentially the first pastry that I’ve made that actually came out well! These scones had the best texture, and were even better than those yummy ones you can get at Starbucks! This is a recipe I’ll make again and again, enjoy!



Mia enjoying a piece of scone. =)



Blueberry Scones

Cooks Note:

It’s crucial that you don’t over-work the dough…you actually want to work with it as little as possible. Be careful when working with the butter, it should be frozen solid before grating. Also, don’t freak out that this recipe calls for 2 sticks of butter; you will actually only use 10 tablespoons of it. Frozen berries work just as well as fresh ones, but don’t defrost them. If you’re feeling adventuresome substitute blueberries for an equal amount of raspberries, strawberries, or blackberries.

Ingredients:

1 C unsalted butter (2 sticks), frozen whole (see note above)

1 1/2 C fresh blueberries

1/2 C whole milk

1/2 C sour cream

2 C unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for work surface

1/2 C sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for sprinkling

2 t baking powder

1/4 t baking soda

1/2 t table salt

1 t grated lemon zest

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425° F.

Score at the 4 tablespoon mark each stick of butter, and remove half the wrapper from each stick. Grate unwrapped ends on large holes of box grater (you should grate total of 8 tablespoons). Place grated butter in freezer until needed. Melt 2 tablespoons of remaining ungrated butter and set aside. Save remaining 6 tablespoons butter for another use. Place blueberries in freezer until needed.

The scored butter

The grated butter

Whisk together milk and sour cream in medium bowl; refrigerate until needed. Whisk flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest in medium bowl. Add frozen butter to flour mixture and toss with fingers until thoroughly coated.

The flour mixture with the butter tossed in.

Add milk mixture to flour mixture; fold with spatula until just combined. With rubber spatula, transfer dough to liberally floured work surface. Dust surface of dough with flour; with floured hands, knead dough 6 to 8 times, until it just holds together in ragged ball, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking.

The milk and flour mixture combined.

The kneaded dough.

Roll dough into approximate 12-inch square. Fold dough into thirds like a business letter, using bench scraper or metal spatula to release dough if it sticks to countertop. Lift short ends of dough and fold into thirds again to form approximate 4-inch square. Transfer dough to plate lightly dusted with flour and chill in freezer 5 minutes.

My attempt at a 12-inch square.

Dough folded into thirds.

Dough folded into thirds again and ready for the freezer.

Transfer dough to floured work surface and roll into approximate 12-inch square again. Sprinkle blueberries evenly over surface of dough, then press down so they are slightly embedded in dough. Using bench scraper or thin metal spatula, loosen dough from work surface. Roll dough, pressing to form tight log. Lay seam-side down and press log into 12 by 4-inch rectangle. Using sharp, floured knife, cut rectangle crosswise into 4 equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally to form 2 triangles and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheet.

Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with remaining tablespoon sugar. Bake until tops and bottoms are golden brown, 18 to 25 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool 10 minutes (if you can wait that long) before serving.

The dough ready for the oven.

To Make Ahead:
After placing the scones on the baking sheet, either refrigerate them overnight or freeze. When ready to bake, for refrigerated scones, heat oven to 425 degrees and follow directions in step 6. For frozen scones, heat oven to 375 degrees, follow directions in step 6, and extend cooking time to 25 to 30 minutes.

Makes 8 Scones

Source: America’s Test Kitchen

I’m linking this post up at:
Metamorphosis Monday
Menu Plan Monday
Skip to My Lou
Tip Me Tuesday
Today’s Creative Blog

Baked Apple Muffins w/ Cinnamon & Nutmeg

These muffins were so yummy and a really nice treat for breakfast. I like that the muffin itself featured both nutmeg and cinnamon, and the cinnamon sugar topping had just the right balance of sweetness.

Baked Apple Muffins w/ Cinnamon & Nutmeg

Ingredients:

2 large apples (I used Fuji apples)
1-1/2 C all-purpose flour
1/2 C sugar
1-3/4 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
1 t ground nutmeg
1/3 C cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg
1/4 C milk

For the topping:

1 T butter, melted
1/4 C sugar
1 t cinnamon powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350^oF and line a muffin tin with liners.

Peel and roughly chop the apples.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and nutmeg. Add the butter to the flour mixture. Rub the butter against the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Beat the egg. Pour in the milk and stir lightly. Add the chopped apples to the egg-milk mixture.

Pour the apple-egg-milk mixture to the flour-butter mixture. Stir (a fork is most useful) just until blended. DO NOT over mix. The batter will be a bit stiff.

Fill the muffin tin with batter (each should be about ¾ full…I used a 3 tablespoon scoop).

Bake at 350^oF for 25 minutes.

While the muffins are baking, prepare the topping. Measure the sugar and cinnamon powder into a bowl. Stir to combine.

When the muffins are done, remove from the oven. Use a teaspoon to remove them from the pan. While still warm, dip the tops in melted butter then roll the tops in the sugar-cinnamon mixture.

Serve warm while crusty. Enjoy!

Makes about 10 muffins.

Source: Adapted from Home Cooking Rocks

Multigrain Bread

In the past yeast breads have been my nemesis, but not after this recipe! It was so easy to follow and it included techniques that I haven’t tried or seen before.  The bread will store at room temperature for 3 days, but trust me…it’ll be long gone before then!

 

Multigrain Bread

Ingredients:

Why this recipe works: Although multigrain bread often has great flavor, the quantity of ingredients weighs it down so much that the loaf becomes as dense and as heavy as a brick. On the other end of the spectrum are loaves with a nice, light sandwich-style texture but so little grain that they’re hard to distinguish from plain old white bread. We wanted a multigrain bread with both great flavor and balanced texture.

Our first challenge was to develop more gluten (a protein made when flour and water are mixed and that gives baked goods structure) in the dough, as early tests showed that the whole grains were impeding its development. Because the protein content of any flour is an indicator of how much gluten it will produce, we thought first to switch out all-purpose flour for higher-protein bread flour, but this move only made the bread chewier, not less dense. The solution was twofold: long kneading preceded by an autolyse, a resting period just after the initial mixing of water and flour that gives flour time to hydrate. This combination also made the dough less tacky and therefore easier to work with. The result was a loaf that baked up light yet chewy, without being tough. To incorporate grains into the bread, we hit upon a convenient, one-stop-shopping alternative: packaged seven-grain hot cereal. To soften the grains, we made a thick porridge with the cereal before adding it to the dough. A final step of rolling the shaped loaves in oats yielded a finished, professional look.
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1 ¼ C 7-grain hot cereal mix(I used Bob’s Red Mill)

2 ½ C boiling water

3 C unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting work surface

1 ½ C whole wheat flour

4 T honey

4 T unsalted butter , melted and cooled slightly

2 1/2 t instant yeast

1 T table salt

3/4 C pumpkin seeds or unsalted sunflower seeds, (I used sunflower seeds)

1/2 C old-fashioned rolled oats or quick oats

Instructions:

Place cereal mix in bowl of standing mixer and pour boiling water over it; let stand, stirring occasionally, until mixture cools to 100 degrees and resembles thick porridge, about 1 hour. Whisk flours in medium bowl.

Once grain mixture has cooled, add honey, melted butter, and yeast and stir to combine. Attach bowl to standing mixer fitted with dough hook. With mixer running on low speed, add flours, 1/2 cup at a time, and knead until dough forms ball, 1 1/2 to 2 minutes; cover bowl with plastic and let dough rest 20 minutes. Add salt and knead on medium-low speed until dough clears sides of bowl, 3 to 4 minutes (if it does not clear sides, add 2 to 3 tablespoons additional all-purpose flour and continue mixing); continue to knead dough for 5 more minutes. Add seeds and knead for another 15 seconds. Transfer dough to floured work surface and knead by hand until seeds are dispersed evenly and dough forms smooth, taut ball. Place dough into greased container with 4-quart capacity; cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled, 45 to 60 minutes.

Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 375 degrees. Spray two 9 by 5-inch loaf pans with nonstick cooking spray. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and pat into 12 by 9-inch rectangle; cut dough in half crosswise with knife or bench scraper. With short side facing you, starting at farthest end, roll dough piece into log. Keep roll taut by tucking it under itself as you go. To seal loaf, pinch seam gently with thumb and forefinger. Spray loaves lightly with water or nonstick cooking spray. Roll each dough log in oats to coat evenly. Place loaf seam-side down in greased loaf pan, pressing gently into corners. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and let rise until almost doubled in size, 30 to 40 minutes. (Dough should barely spring back when poked with knuckle.) Bake until internal temperature registers 200 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove loaves from pans and cool on wire rack before slicing, about 3 hours.

Makes two 9 by 5-inch loaves

Note: Bread can be wrapped in a double layer of plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for 3 days; wrap with an additional layer of aluminum foil and the bread can be frozen for up to one month.

Source: Adapted from America’s Test Kitchen

Quick and Easy Cream Biscuits

These biscuits come together so easily and without any fancy equipment. I don’t know about you, but until this recipe I haven’t been able to get my biscuits to come out correctly…they usually end up resembling hockey pucks rather than biscuits. BUT, this recipe has changed all of that!

Quick and Easy Cream Biscuits

Ingredients:

2 C unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for the counter

2 t granulated sugar

2 t baking powder

1/2 t table salt

1 1/2 C heavy cream

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Stir in the cream with a wooden spoon until dough forms, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and gather into a ball. Knead the dough briefly until smooth, about 30 seconds.

Shape the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick circle by placing the dough into a 9-inch round cake pan and press the dough into the pan until it’s evenly distributed. Then, flip the pan over to get the dough out onto the countertop. If your dough doesn’t come out easily then it’s too sticky and you’ll have to knead some more flour into it.  Cut biscuits into rounds (I used a glass because I don’t have a biscuit cutter). Place rounds on parchment-lined baking sheet. (The baking sheet can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 hours if needed.) Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking.

Makes Eight 2 1/2-Inch Biscuits

Source: America’s Test Kitchen

Individual Yorkshire Puddings

This was my first time making Yorkshire Pudding and I think it was a success! These were so much easier than I thought they’d be and I will definitely be making these again in the future!

Individual Yorkshire Puddings

Ingredients:

3 large eggs
1 ½ cups milk
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
1 tsp. Kosher salt
Melted butter or beef drippings for pan (about 6 Tbsp.)

Directions:

Whisk together eggs and milk in a medium bowl; stir in flour and salt. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to overnight.

Fill each bottom of a 12-cup muffin pan with ¼-inch of butter; heat in a preheated 425˚ oven until hot, 3 minutes. Remove tin from oven; pour cups ¾ full with batter. Return to oven and bake 15 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 350˚ and bake 15-20 minutes more, until they’re medium-brown in color and cooked through.

Puncture cooked puddings with a skewer; turn out from pans. Serve warm.

Source: Adapted from The Wright Recipe

Blueberry Pecan Coffeecake

This was so delightful to wake up to in the morning. The cake was nice and moist, and the crumble topping was my favorite part…and it’s a good thing there was a lot of it!

Blueberry Pecan Coffeecake

For the Cake:

2/3 C cake flour
1/2 C sugar
1/4 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
6 T butter, softened
1/4 C buttermilk
1 T sour cream
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
1 t vanilla

1 C blueberries

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Spray a 9-inch cake pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Whisk together all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl then set aside.

Using a mixer, cream together the butter and buttermilk. Add in the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Mix until well incorporated.

Add in the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, then layer with a generous cup of blueberries.

For the Crumb Topping:

1 C flour
2 T cornstarch
1/2 C sugar
1 T brown sugar
1/8 t salt
1/2 C butter, at room temp
1/3 C pecans, chopped

Directions:

In a medium-sized bowl add all of the ingredients for the crumb topping. Then mix with a fork until you get a pebbly texture, kind of like crumbly cookie dough.

Sprinkle the topping over the blueberry layer.

Bake the mixture for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Source: Adapted from Noshings