Whole Wheat Oatmeal Nut Bread

This bread takes a little love, care, and patience, but it's so worth it! You can add in your favorite nuts and dried fruits to make it even more delicious! It is a yeast bread, so it requires proofing time and works best if you have either a bread machine or a stand mixer with a dough hook for easing kneading.

The Dough:

• 1 Packet Active Dry Yeast (if you know how to use rapidrise, this is okay too, but I really don't like the results compared to normal yeast)
• 3/4 Cup Granulated Sugar (healthy swap-use 1/4 to 1/2 cup honey or agave instead!)
• 2 eggs
• 1 Cup very warm (about 110 Degree) water
• 1/4 Cup cooled, melted butter
• 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 cup flour, plus about two cups (separate, you'll see why) You can use half whole wheat and half all purpose if desired. 
• 3/4 Cup Oats
• Pinch each of Nutmeg, Cinnamon, and Allspice
• Optional add ins- this bread goes great with nuts (almonds, walnuts, or even peanuts) and dried fruits (especially dried raisins and figs)

1. Working your way down the ingredients one or two at a time, combine all ingredients into the bowl of a stand mixer (dough paddle) and mix until well blended. Be sure to only put in one cup of your flour to begin with. 
2. With your remaining two cups of flour, add very small amounts to the mix until a loose dough begins to form and it clumps on the dough paddle of your mixer. When this happens, remove the dough paddle and insert the dough hook. Continue working the dough with the dough hook, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking on sides of bowl. 
3. Beat dough for ten to fifteen minutes, or until it becomes almost elastic. Flour and spray a large bowl with cooking spray and place the dough into it covered by a warm towel. Allow to rise in a very warm place until doubled in height. (This normally takes an hour to two hours)
4. Punch the dough down after it doubles, then let it rise again for an hour (at least). Please note that the longer you let breads rise, the better. So, you can make this dough in the morning and let it rise all day or make it at night and let it rise all night and it'll only be better!
5. Preheat an oven to 350 Degrees. Place the dough in a bread pan and pat out evenly, then "tent" the bread with aluminum foil and place in the oven. 
6. Bake for about thirty minutes covered, then remove the foil and continue baking until the very center springs back when pushed. You could also test with a toothpick, but be sure to get into the center of the bread with the toothpick and dig around to see if its still underdone. The crust around the bread will wipe the toothpick clean a lot of times even if it isn't done, so be sure to make a big enough hole with a toothpick to test the very center. I find the spring check always works like a charm. 
7. Slice and enjoy with jam, nut butters, honey, cream cheese, nutella, or even use in a sandwich! 

Tips and Tricks:

• Make an "egg wash" with an egg and a teaspoon of water mixed together (optionally add honey too for a sweet touch) and use a pastry brush to coat the top of the bread just before it's done baking to create a shiny finish
• Avoid using too much flour as it will cause your bread to be tough. If using a stand mixer, let your dough be a little more sticky because you don't have to knead it by hand so you don't have to worry about the stickiness!
• Increase or decrease the sugar for different types of bread. If you are looking for a sandwich loaf, decrease the sugar for less sweetness. If you want a bakery style bread that's more sweet, add more sugar.

Springtime Cupcakes

You gotta love a really cute cupcake. These are perfect for handing out as spring and summer roll in, especially for end of school year parties for kids! If you're in a hurry, there's always your favorite boxed mix. However, if you can spare the time, you'll find homemade cakes are a lot of fun to make and bake!

The Cake:

• 1 Boxed Yellow or Angel Food Cake Mix 

OR...

• 1 1/2 Cups White Granulated Sugar
• 1 Cup Room temperature butter (I used light butter)
• 2 Tablespoons Vanilla 
• 3 Eggs, Room Temperature works Best
• 1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
• 2 Cups Sifted Flour (Cake if you have it! It works a lot better than all-purpose)
• 3/4 Cup Milk (can go anywhere from skim to buttermilk-richer the milk, richer the taste, but more calories!) 
• Pinch of Cinnamon (a little bit unconventional for a yellow cake, you can leave it out if you're not crazy about cinnamon) 

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees and put cups into standard cupcake pans. Makes about 24 cupcakes. Using cooking spray on the cupcake liners makes removing the cupcakes from the wrappers even easier. 
2. Cream together the butter and sugar for at least ten minutes with a hand mixer or five to seven in a stand mixer. This step is really important because it will make your cake fluffy and light. The longer you beat, the better. 
3. Add the vanilla and one egg and continue beating until incorporated. Add the two remaining eggs, one at a time, slowly until each is fully incorporated into the mixture. 
4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and (if desired) cinnamon. 
5. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the sugar/butter mixture until JUST incorporated. DO NOT overmix or you'll get a rubbery cake. 
6. Evenly spread the cake into pans and bake off for about 15 minutes before checking. Different pans will cook at different times, so if you think you should check sooner, it's better to be safe than have a burnt cake! Take it out when it springs back when pushed or toothpicks inserted in the center come out clean. 
7. Let the cupcakes cool until you can remove them safely from the pan. I like doing this as soon as possible to prevent soggy bottoms on the cupcakes. 
8. Allow to cool COMPLETELY before frosting (or you'll have a puddle of frosting around your cupcakes...I promise you that!)

The Frosting:

• Two Tubs Plain Vanilla Frosting (I know, I cheated. Here's why. Plain buttercream is delicious when it's homemade, but I've found that when I try to pipe it into designs on cupcakes nothing beats store bought frosting. It hardens well and holds its shape during travel or if left out on the counter. So yes, homemade tastes better, so by all means use it if you're not prioritizing pretty (portable) cupcakes. However, if you are looking to bake and distribute your cupcakes, you might want to use the ready made kind.)
• Gel Food Colors (Don't use liquid! It'll make your frosting runny)
• Extra Powdered Sugar (if your frosting turns out too runny or won't hold its shape)
• Candies to decorate! (I used little circular candies that I found right next to the sprinkles in my grocery store and I also used fake malted milk pearly eggs to top them off) 
• Piping bag with a circular and star tip

Here's what they look like in the end to give you an idea while you're working. The directions are below the picture:

1. Mix green food coloring into a large bowl with one of the tubs of frosting. I say use a large bowl because you're going to probably have to add about 1/3 cup of extra powdered sugar to stiffen up the frosting until it holds peaks easily (you might need even more) and this can get pretty messy. 
2. Mix Yellow food coloring with half of the other tub of frosting, and stiffen it in the same way you did the green. 
3. Put a star tip on a piping bag and fill it with green frosting. to make a "grassy" look, push down the tip onto the surface of the cupcake, release a little bit of frosting, then pull up. It's pretty easy when you get the hang of it. Leave about 1/2 inch around the outside of the cupcake for the yellow border afterwards. 
4. Using another piping bag with a plain circular tip this time, pipe a yellow border of single circles around the edge of the cupcake (see picture above) 
5. Use the remaining frosting (you reserved this from the second container when making the yellow) mix your favorite color into the frosting and add a little powdered sugar to stiffen. Place the frosting in a small ziplock bag, cutting a hole in the very tip (fairly small hole). Pipe two or three small flowers wherever you desire on the side of the cupcake. 
6. I used candy pieces to place in the center of all my flowers, if you want, you can use yellow frosting. 
7. Place a candy topper on your cupcakes. You can use any candy, but I wanted to complete the springtime look and put a little fake malted milk egg on tip.
8. Eat and Share!

Very Healthy Baked Oatmeal;Packed with Fruit!

I'm NOT very good at following recipes. So if you've ever made baked oatmeal and my method looks insane, I apologize. I just sort of wing it. It came out absolutely perfect though (100% luck), so give it a try!

The Base:

• 1 Cup Milk (You can use soy, regular, or almond; I love almond in this!)
• 1 Egg
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla extract (I love obnoxious amounts, if you don't think you will then dial it back to two teaspoons)
• 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
• Honey, to taste (You can leave this out if you prefer only a little sweetness-I normally add two tablespoons because I love sweet oatmeal) 
• 1 VERY ripe mashed banana (I leave it a little chunky to get globs of banana goodness)
• 1 Cup Oats (Quick oats work best for this because they bake faster)
• Pinch of Cinnamon
• Pinch of Nutmeg
• Pinch of Salt (very small pinch...don't go crazy)

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees
2. Whisk together milk and egg until frothy in a large bowl. Add vanilla and brown sugar, and whisk well. 
3. Fold in Banana, Oats, and spices. 
4. In a baking pan (preferably one that is a couple inches deep-you want gooey oatmeal in the center and if it's too thin it'll bake through too much!) line the bottom with parchment paper (this is a really good idea, it comes right off if you do this-or if you don't have any, foil works too). Spray with cooking spray. 
5. Drop the batter onto the pan and shake to spread evenly. 

The Fruit Topping:

• Your favorite fruits! (I used apples and blueberries and it was wonderful!)

1. Cut the fruit up into desired pieces and sprinkle/arrange it on the top of the oatmeal.
2. If you're not worried about the extra sugar, sprinkle a little white granulated sugar on top of the fruit and oatmeal (it doesn't take much). This gives it a nice, crunchy, sweet element on the very top!
3. Put in the oven and bake for about fifteen minutes (largely dependent on the type of baking pan used). The edges will be golden brown but the middle will still be gooey (Which is okay! Think about a bowl of oatmeal, and that should be the consistency in the middle!) 
4. Remove, cool, and enjoy! 

Note:  This goes great with  maple syrup. Also, if you know you prefer gooier oatmeal, you can add more liquids (I think milk is best) and it will end up being runnier and more like a bowl of oatmeal. 

Ultra-Healthy Everything Cookies

Yes, they're cookies...but only in name and shape.

These delicious cookies are packed full of whole grains, heart-healthy nuts, and vitamin packed fruits. If you have an iron stomach, these will definitely hold you over on a run (although for those who have sensitive stomachs they are packed with fiber so beware!). They're perfect for a post run pick-me-up that won't leave you feeling like you've undone your workout. The best part about them is that they're exactly what you want-leave in ingredients or add your own stir ins to create the cookie that you like best!

For the Base:

• 1 Large Egg
• 1/4 Cup Canned Pumpkin Puree OR Applesauce (Whichever you prefer-this keeps the cookies really moist without adding the fat of oil or butter. Alternatively, you can add cooled, melted butter to the recipe instead) 
• 3 Tablespoons Honey (Yeah, it's not a lot at all. Personally, I find the fruit that I add to the cookies to be plenty sweet. However, if you think your palette demands a sweeter cookie, you can double the honey used or even put some Stevia into the mix. To taste.)
• 1/4 Cup Milk (any kind-make sure it's actual milk though, not soymilk or almondmilk. These won't rise properly). 
• 1 Cup Old Fashioned Oats (you can also use quick, but old fashioned gives you something to bite into!)
• 1/2 Tablespoon Baking Powder 
• 1/2 Cup of your favorite whole grain cereal, crushed (My favorite is special K flakes) 
• 1/4 Cup Flour (this might not be used, see directions below) 

For the Stir ins:

• This is the best part of the cookie-anything you want! Keep it healthy and light with nuts and dried fruits, or go for the chocolate chips! I've personally used:
• Peanuts, Walnuts, Almonds, etc. (Basically any kind of toasted nut)
• Dried Cranberries, Raisins, Apples, etc. (Basically any kind of dried fruit)
• Cocoa Powder (gives a nice hint of cocoa-only use a few tablespoons of this)
• Cereals! I've used chocolate cheerios and special K. 
• Try to limit your amount of stir ins to about 3/4 cup maximum. The extra flour above might have to be used after the stir ins are added to bind the ingredients. Use only as much as you need to be able to drop cookies that stay together on a pan, because if you use too much the batter will be rubbery when cooked. 

1. Preheat your oven to 350 Degrees
2. Combine the wet ingredients together, mix well. 
3. Add the rest of the dry ingredients (except the flour) and the mix ins. Fold together gently until just moistened. 
4. If the batter is too loose, add in a small amount of flour at a time until it is tight enough to be scooped onto a pan. These cookies will NOT be pretty unless you're exceptionally patient and want to place them extremely carefully. They'll come out nice and lumpy and delicious! 
5. Bake for about 10 minutes, depending on the size of your cookie and the oven. At ten minutes, check them to see if they spring back slightly when pushed or have acquired a golden brown color. If you like gooey cookies, take them out a little earlier. If you prefer crunchy, leave them in a bit longer. 
6. Enjoy!

PB & J Sweet Rolls

Are you ready for this? Yeah, it's a peanut butter and jelly sandwich...in Cinnamon Roll form!

So awesome. 

Okay, so they take a little bit of time. But it's so worth it! Besides, using yeast is fun, especially when you get it right. You'll feel accomplished, I promise. 

The Dough:

• 1 Cup very warm milk (can go anywhere from skim to whole to buttermilk...obviously depending on how many calories you want vs. how much flavor) 
• 1/2 Cup White Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Packet Active Dry Yeast (I've tried extra active and I don't like it as much)
• 1/2 Stick Butter, melted
• 1 Large Egg
• 1 3/4 to 2 1/2 Cups all Purpose Flour (I know this is a big range, but different flours have different moisture and you might need more or less)
• Optional: 1/2 Cup mini Chocolate chips, 1/2 Cup chopped peanuts (honey roasted are delicious in these)

1. Heat milk to at least 110 Degrees (pretty hot to the touch)
2. Combine milk, Sugars, and yeast and mix very well (you can use the dough paddle of a stand mixture for this) 
3. Add the melted butter, then the egg 
4. Add one cup of the flour and mix with the dough paddle (or a hand mixer) until well incorporated. If using your stand mixer, switch to dough hook. Continue adding flour until a slightly sticky dough is formed. Let the dough work on the stand mixer for ten minutes. Kneading by hand can also be done, but takes much longer to form gluten. At the end of kneading, add in the chocolate chips and/or peanuts if desired. 
5. The dough is done when you can stretch it out without it breaking right away. Because this is a sweet roll, I find that you can get away with under-kneading it a little more than with regular breads. When you're done, put it in a floured bowl in a very warm area covered with a wet towel. Let it rise until it is doubled in size. 

The PB & J Filling:

• 3/4 Cup Peanut Butter (Crunchy gives nice texture) 
• 1/4 (1/2 Stick) Butter, melted and hot
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Jam (any kind-pick your favorite)

1. Soften Peanut Butter in Microwave or add to butter while it's still really hot so it melts into it easily. Add brown sugar and stir. 
2. Add the jam to a plastic ziplock bag (when assembling the rolls you will cut the tip off of the baggie)

To Assemble:

1. Place the raised dough on a floured surface and roll out to about 1/2 inch thickness into a large rectangle. 
2. Spread the peanut butter mixture first onto the dough rectangle. Then, cut the tip of the plastic baggie off and drizzle the jam evenly onto the entire rectangle as well. 
3. Finish by tightly rolling the rectangle along the LONG edge and using a floured knife to cut the rolls out. I wasn't very good at it at first, but after a while I got the hang of it! 
4. Place the rolls on a greased baking sheet and preheat your oven to 350 Degrees. Allow them to continue to rise as your oven is preheating. When it's done, put them in!
5. Cook about 12 minutes or until you can press on the tops and it springs back and it is slightly golden brown, 

Enjoy your PB & J!

Chocolate Pie

So, I was a little scared to try this one out. I've actually never had much luck with pies.

But boy was this pie good.

You can use a home-made or store bought crust. I'm sure graham cracker crust would be fine, but I think that buttery pastry is the best for this pie. The bottom is made of condensed milk and chocolate. Then, a second layer of more rick chocolate filling. I finished it with a meringue topping that was absolutely airy and perfect.

First, prepare your favorite crust.

For the Filling:

• 4 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 Cup Cocoa Powder
• 1/4 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips
• 1 Cup White Sugar
• 1 Can Condensed Milk (I used unsweetened because I wanted to control the sugar content)
• 1/2 Stick of Butter (1/4 Cup)
• 3 Egg Yolks
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 1 Tablespoon Instant Coffee Grounds (optional, but it brings out the taste of the chocolate-you won't be able to taste the coffee) 

1. In a saucepan, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, and sugar. 
2. Add the condensed milk and begin heating the mixture on low heat. 
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Add the butter to the heating mixture, wait a few minutes until almost all the way melted, and whisk the egg yolks (RESERVE THE WHITES FOR THE MERINGUES LATER!) into the saucepan. MAKE SURE your saucepan is on VERY low heat or your eggs will scramble. Cut off the heat, take the saucepan off the stove, and add the chocolate chips, whisking until they're all melted and well incorporated (you can add the coffee with the chocolate chips if desired). 
4. Pour the mixture into the pie crust

For the Second Layer:

• 1/2 Cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 4 Tablespoons Milk or Cream (heavy cream is the tastiest)

1. The easiest way to do this is placing both ingredients into a bowl and heating it in ten second intervals in the microwave. Stirring each time, you can stop as soon as the chocolate chips melt. Pour this mixture evenly over the bottom mixture into the pie crust. 

For the Meringue:

• 3 Reserved Egg Whites from Yolks used above
• 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 Teaspoon Cream of Tartar (whoops, I didn't have this...It worked out fine for me but it stabilizes the meringue!)

1. Beat the egg whites until they start to stiffen, then slowly add the sugar and cream of tartar. 
2. After a few minutes, the egg whites will be shiny and stiff. Beat until it forms stiff peaks, but don't overbeat or you'll lose the smoothness!
3. Place in a piping bag with desired tip, or if you prefer you can just spoon it onto the pie after it's baked and create a more "homey" look. 

How to bake:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 Degrees.
2. Place the prepared pie into the oven and bake until almost set. It's hard to tell when this is sometimes, but I waited about 30 minutes and when I shook it it didn't "wobble." 
3. Remove the Pie from the oven and get ready to pipe! Using your piping bag or a spoon, apply meringue topping as you desire. 
4. Place the pie back into the oven, and up the temperature to 400 Degrees. It should only take five or six minutes at the most to finish off the meringue. Remove the pie as soon as the tops of the meringue begin to turn golden brown.
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool in refrigerator for at least four hours. 
6. Enjoy!

 

Super-Moist Chocolate Cake (with Cream Cheese Glaze)

There's nothing like a good, moist and rich chocolate cake.

We're a family of four, so I don't make cakes very often. I'm always afraid they'll sit on the counter too long and get stale. But when I made this cake, it was gone in record time.

For the Cake:

• 1 Stick of Butter (I used Light Butter) 
• 1 Cup of Granulated Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Dark or Light Brown Sugar (optional, but I love the taste)
• 2 Large Eggs (or three small eggs)
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 1 3/4 Cup Cake Flour
• 1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder (I used dark chocolate)
• 2 Tablespoons Baking Powder
• 3/4 Cup Milk (you can use skim, 2%, whole, or even buttermilk, depending on the flavor you want and the healthiness you are concerned with) 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees. If using dark or nonstick cake pans, you might need to change your oven temperature to 325 Degrees. 
2. Place sugar and butter (at room temperature-this is very important!) in the bowl of a stand mixer and begin creaming at medium speed. If you don't have a stand mixer, you can do it by hand, but it does take longer. You should cream until the sugar is completely dissolved in the butter. The longer the mixture is creamed, the fluffier your cake will be! This should take about five minutes in a stand mixer and ten by hand. 
3. Add the vanilla then one egg at a time to the butter and sugar, incorporating it fully before you add the next. Beat until creamy. 
4. In a separate bowl, add all the dry ingredients and mix well. 
5. Alternately add the dry ingredients then the milk to the egg and sugar mixture until all ingredients are well incorporated. DO NOT overmix! It will make your cake rubbery!
6. Place on well-greased baking pans. Choose whatever shape you like, but make sure to check the cakes towards the end of baking because different pans will finish at different times. Start checking the cakes at twenty minutes into baking, inserting a toothpick and removing them from the oven when it comes out clean. 

For the Cream Cheese Glaze:

This is super easy to make! 

• 1/4 Cup Softened Cream Cheese (I used five second intervals in the microwave until the cream cheese was softened)
• 1 Cup Powdered Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla

1. Mix all ingredients together until smooth and well incorporated. 
2. Spread on cake as desired, between layers and on top. Finish with sprinkles!