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Top 12 in 2012

It's been a quiet year for cooking and baking.  But nevertheless, I want to review my top posts (by page views) of the year.  I think there are four recipes here that were originally found on Pinterest (my new inspiration source for the year.) 

12. {Tied}
French Apple Cobbler (10 views)

No-Bake Energy Bites (10 views)

11. Swedish Meatballs (11 views)

10. {Tied}

Easy Mini Quiche (12 views)

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (12 views)

Beef Stew (12 views)

9. {Tied}
Chicken, Spinach, Egg Noodle Casserole (13 views)

Favorite Pancake Recipes (13 views)

8. Frog Eye Salad (15 views)

 7. {Tied}

Chocolate Chip Cookies (16 views)

 Cheeseburger Mac & Cheese (16 views)

6. Chicken, Spinach, Black Bean Enchiladas with Greek Yogurt Sauce (17 views)

 5. Idaho Sunrise Potatoes (19 views)

4. {Tied}

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes (20 views)

Oatmeal Cranberry White Chocolate Chunk Cookies (20 views)

Chili Biscuit Bake (20 views)

 

3. Kugel (23 views)

  

2. Peanut Butter Quinoa Cookies (26 views)

 AND...!

 #1 is
Octopus hot dog-with-spaghetti Lunch (27 views)
 

Apple Streusel Bars

We made these for Thanksgiving this year.  The recipe is easy to make and everyone seemed to really enjoy them.  I thought that it was very sweet and wonder if more apples and somehow less butter would help.  I halved the glaze recipe, which I'm glad I did as I drizzled just less than half onto the apple bars and it was a major contributor to the major sweetness.  But to each his own!

SWEET pastry:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup real butter
1 egg, beaten

Apple filling:
3 medium apples (4 cups) sliced, peeled baking apples {Granny Smith}
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp cinnamon

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 T milk
1 tsp almond extract


Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl.  Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or two knives until the crust is in pea-size crumbles.  Mix in the beaten egg.  Grease a 13x9 pan with non-stick spray and pat 2/3 of the mixture into the pan.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Peel and slice the apples.  Toss the sliced apples with flour, sugar and cinnamon.  Spread apples out onto the crust.  Sprinkle reserved crust mixture on top.  Bake for 40 minutes.  Cool completely and drizzle with the glaze to taste.  Allow the bars to harden and cut to serve.

Source: Jone, Kate and Sara Wells.  "Apple Streusel Bars".  Our Best Bites. 3. May 2009.

[Sorry, pictures to come later.  Ran out of storage space.]

Coleslaw

Yesterday I made coleslaw dressing.  It's way better the next day after the flavors have melded together.  Just as good, if not better, than store bought!  However, you can be like me and just buy a bag of coleslaw at the supermarket.

1/2 head coleslaw, coarsely shredded
1/2 green pepper, diced (optional)
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely shredded
1/2 cup salad dressing or mayonnaise, fat free
1/2 tsp mustard
1 tsp honey or sugar
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp celery seed, optional
2 T milk

For colesaw: combine vegetables in a serving bowl.  For dressing: mix mayonnaise, mustard, honey, vinegar, salt, celery seed and milk together.  If too think, thin with more milk.  Add dressing to salad and toss well.

Source: Merrill, Jane P. and Karen M. Sunderland.  Set for Life.  "Creamy Coleslaw".  Salt Lake City, UT: Sunrise Publishers, 1995. 139.

Pumpkin "Poppers"

I didn't make these as poppers.  I made them more like "muffin tops" as I don't have a mini muffin tin.  I also had to adapt the spices, but it turned out just fine and very autumn-y. 

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon [I used 1 tsp]
1/2 tsp nutmeg [I used 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice]
1/2 tsp allspice [added 1/8 tsp ginger]
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup milk

For topping: 1 stick unsalted butter, 2/3 cup sugar, 2 T cinnamon

Grease muffin tin and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves.  In a separate bowl, mix together oil, sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk.  Slowly add flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture until incorporated.  Fill muffin tins with batter (almost full with a mini muffin tin and 1/2 full with a normal muffin tin.)  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until baked through.  [I needed to add five minutes with my full sized muffin tin.]  Cool on a wire rack.  Once cool, you can dip the poppers melted butter and the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Source: "Tasty Tuesday: Pumpkin Poppers". Just the Little Things. 24. Oct 2011.

Chicken, Spinach, Egg Noodle Casserole

After a seven week hiatus from trying new recipes, I finally made something new to post.  I was very worried that the sauce wouldn't thicken up, and it really didn't get that thick, so I wonder if my roux (butter and flour) didn't thicken enough.  I added more flavorings to the sauce: Italian seasoning, black pepper, parsley and no-salt seasoning (with onion and garlic being the top two seasonings.)  I also added more spinach, less pasta and no breadcrumbs.  It reminded me of fettuccine Alfredo.

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter (4 T for roux, 2 T for breadcrumbs)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
1 cup sour cream
12 oz. egg noodles [I used 8 oz, measured on a scale]
5 oz. chopped baby spinach [I used 2 cups chopped spinach]
2 cups cooked cubed chicken or rotisserie chicken
4 slices sandwich bread
salt and black pepper
[Italian seasoning]
[Parsley]
[garlic/onion seasoning]

Boil water and cook egg noodles according to directions.  For sauce, melt 4 T. butter in a medium sauce pan until melted, whisk in flour until bubbly and thick (not brown.)  Slowly add the milk, let simmer and whisk until thickened.  Remove from heat, add the seasonings to taste and stir in the sour cream.  Mix the chopped spinach and chopped chicken into the sauce.  Combine with the drained noodles and pour into a 9x13 baking dish.  Sprinkle on bread crumbs (made from the 4 slices sandwich bread and 2 T butter.)  Add additional butter on top.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for 8 to 10 minutes until breadcrumbs are golden and the sauce is bubbly.  Cool for five minutes before serving.  [I covered the casserole with foil and let it bake for 20 minutes; however, I wonder if I needed to cover it at all even without breadcrumbs.]

Source: Real Simple Recipes.  "Chicken, Spinach, and Noodle Casserole".  27. March 2012.

Kugel {Jewish casserole}

At my friend's wedding reception, they served a traditional Jewish dish with eggs, cottage cheese, egg noodles, and peaches/pineapples (other fruits).  I didn't catch the name, but I wanted to try to make it myself.  At home I immediately searched for the ingredients and found out that it's called Kugel.  I searched for a recipe that I thought would taste most like the one at the wedding.  This is what I found, and tonight I tried it.  It tastes similar but not exact, and now I know how I want to vary it for the future (namely, more eggs and fewer noodles).

Peach Noodle Kugle
1 lb broad egg noodle
[1 stick] butter
4 eggs, lightly beaten
[3/4 cup] sugar
1 tsp salt
1 pint (2 cups) small curd cottage cheese
1 pint (2 cups) sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp nut butter flavoring {didn't use}
1 large can (28 oz) peaches, cut into pieces (reserve some juice for later)
OR 1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple, with its juice
apricot preserves

Boil water in a medium saucepan, cook pasta for 7-9 minutes.  Drain and pour into a large mixing bowl.  Add butter, beaten eggs, sugar, salt, cottage cheese, sour cream, vanilla and peaches.  Stir and pour into a greased 13x9 baking dish.  Optionally (because I didn't do this, this time) thin out some apricot preserves with peach juice, spoon onto the top of the dish, spreading evenly with the bottom of a spoon.  Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

*Some notes: first, I would like to find a recipe with more eggs and less pasta.  I would like to try mixing pineapple and peaches.  I'm not sure if you need to cover it in the oven because the top of the dish had darkened pasta (could be solved by adding a cover like the preserves).  I like the fragrance and the taste (especially from the cheese, eggs, and fruit, not so much from the pasta).  It's a sweet dish that makes a great alternative for get togethers and holidays.


Other links to try: Pineapple Noodle Kugle and Top 10 Kugel Recipes