Carrot Muffins

After Shabu Shabu night, I had 4 pounds of carrot left to eat. I was looking up all sorts of recipes to use my carrots. I found this recipe from All Recipes, and I thought it looked fairly easy. It got good reviews, although only 9 of them, and I had all the ingredients in my house.

I followed the recipe but just added a few more carrots (2.5-3 cups or 3 grated carrots), about a tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of nutmeg. I turned the recipe into muffins so that I could freeze them. It made 6 large muffins. Honestly, the muffins didn't look like much but they were delicious! Cooked perfectly, moist and you could taste the hint of cinnamon and nutmeg. This recipe is definitely a keeper, but of course next time I will use gluten free flour. 5 stars!!

Kale and Banana Smoothie

I have been trying to look for new recipes to use with kale, so I thought, why not put it in a smoothie? I love green smoothies after all. This smoothie is delicious and nutritious.

1 banana
2 leaves of kale, chopped
1/2 of soy milk
1 tsp of honey or maple syrup
dash of cinnamon, nutmeg, and/or flaxseed

Golden Yam Brownies

Yams are exceptionally good for the body and I was trying to figure out something new to make with my yams this week. Behold, I found a recipe for Golden Yam Brownies. Who would have thought you could make brownies out of yams? These were delicious!


Based on some of the reviews, I decreased the sugar to 3/4 cups of brown sugar and 3/4 cups of white sugar. I also added in about 1/2 tsp of ground ginger and 3/4 tsp of ground cinnamon.

The brownies came out extremely moist and I am assuming this was due to the butter and/or eggs. Plus, the yams itself carry water. So for my next rendition, I plan on cutting both the eggs and butter in half. I like moist brownies but if it doesn't have to clog the arteries, I rather take it out. I'd also add in a little more ginger and cinnamon... maybe a tsp each, just for some added spice.

Substituting Cherries for Cranberries in White Chocolate Cherry Cake

I made this awhile back but haven't gotten around to posting the recipe. I got this recipe from a co-worker of mine back in 2005. It's for White Chocolate Cranberry Cake. But when cherries were in season, I ended up substituting the cranberries for cherries to make this delicious cake. Hubby gave it a thumbs up and as usual, we devoured it quicker than expected.

Changes in the recipe:
- Cherries = Cranberries (pitting all the cherries stained my fingers for days)
- Did not make the glaze.

Ingredients
6 oz of white chocolate chips
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
4 eggs
3 tbsp grated orange peel
3 tbsp orange juice
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1-1/2 cups fresh pitted cherries

Grease and flour bundt pan. Beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, orange peel and orange juice. Mix well. Add flour and baking powder. Stir in chocolate and cherries.

Bake 60 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool in pan for 10 minutes and remove to a wire rack.

Bundt cake on the wire rack

Close up of the cake

Sliced to perfection!

Molten Spiced Chocolate Cabernet Cakes

I felt like baking something new yesterday and came across a recipe that I tore out of 2008 Martha Stewart Magazine. I have made Molten Chocolate Cakes, also known as Lava Cakes, before but I can't ever seem to get the baking time right. Some cakes are overcooked and don't have chocolate flowing out when you cut into them. Other cakes are undercooked and I can't get them out of the dish without them falling apart. This recipe came out great! The timing was just right and the cakes came out of the ramekins easily. And the cakes weren't overly sweet, which is often the case with the standard Lava Cakes. I'd probably add a dash more ground ginger for more of that spice but other than that, this recipe is a keeper.

Ingredients:

4 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate
1/2 cup butter
2 tbsp Cabernet Sauvignon or other wine
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
6 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger

1) Butter 4 6oz ramekins.
2) Microwave chocolate and butter in a bowl for 1 minute or until butter is melted. Whisk until chocolate is completely melted.
3) Stir in wine, vanilla, and sugar until blended. Whisk in eggs and yolk. Stir in remaining ingredients. Spoon evenly into prepared dishes.
4) Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes. Let stand for 1 minute. Loosen edges with knife. Invert onto serving plates. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar and enjoy.

After they came out of the oven

Inverted cake

Dusted with powder sugar

Taking the first bite and watching the spiced chocolate flow out