Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

Recently my sister posted about making zucchini bread. YUM! Her post inspired me to make some zucchini bread. While waiting for the bread to bake my wheels got turning. "Would icing go great with zucchini bread? What about cream cheese frosting? I have some cream cheese that needs used soon." Then I decided on trying cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

I was a little nervous attempting frosting again. It didn't turn out so well when I tried raspberry cream cheese frosting....I struggle getting the right consistency. But this time everything turned out well and tasty!

I baked the zucchini bread in a 8x8 cake pan and took it into work with the icing on the side. (Which was silly because everyone tried the icing). Everyone enjoyed the frosting with the bread! Success!

The following recipe would frost one loaf of bread or 12 cupcakes.

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting


Ingredients

- 1/4 c. butter, melted
- 1/2 packaged cream cheese, softened (4 oz.)
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- 2 1/2 c. powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp. vanilla almond milk (you could use regular milk or condensed milk)

Directions
- In a large mixing bowl, pour the melted butter in. Add the cream cheese; beat with a electric mixer until well mixed.
- Add the cinnamon, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Beat ingredients until well blended.
- Add the milk; mix until a smooth, spreadable consistency.

Zucchini Bites

Zucchini is all over the farmer's market right now. I purchase some almost every week. That means zucchini in stir-fry, pasta dishes, and baked goods. I've also been getting new ideas from Pinterest - the ever addicting and wonderful website.

These zucchini bites are delicious and were a big hit! My parents and co-workers enjoyed the first batch. My mom liked them so much she bragged about them to her sisters. When we got together recently I made them and everyone LOVED them! My sister is eagerly waiting to try them...I'm sure her boys will love them too!

Using a music note cookie cutter to form zucchini bites

I definitely will be making these again and again. They are also very easy to make and work as a tasty little snack or even an appetizer at a party. These bites would also be a nice alternative to tater tots when grilling hamburgers or hot dogs for dinner. Thank you Pinterest for your unending cooking ideas!

Zucchini Bites 
Adapted (slightly) from The Curious Country Cook

1 c. zucchini, shredded and squeezed
1 egg
1/3 c. seasoned bread crumbs (I used garlic bread crumbs.)
1/3 c. onions, finely chopped
1/3 c. shredded cheese
Salt & Pepper  - to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400-F. Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and set aside. You can use a mini-muffin pan if you have one.
        *Make sure you squeeze out any excess water from the grated zucchini.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg. Then combine all the ingredients and mix well.

3. Scoop about 1 tsp. of mix onto the cookie sheet, forming a small circle. (You can use a cookie cutter like I did if you like). If you have a muffin pan, fill muffin cups to the top. Bake for 15-18 minutes until the outside is golden and set.

Baking Adventures with A

Last weekend I had a baking buddy! A asked to make chocolate chip cookies, but when in the kitchen an idea was born - cookie bowls. Then we could have cookie bowl sundaes with vanilla ice cream, chocolate syrup, and sprinkles. YUM! Let's just say our intentions were good, but the results were a lesson learned.

The original recipe (which I found from Pinterest) uses sugar cookies, but we went ahead made chocolate chip cookie bowls using the Original Nestle Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe...since chocolate chip cookies were the original plan.

Getting ready to cream the butter and sugar together.

 I had a blast baking with A. She was very excited about making cookies and cookie bowls. To be honest, A did most of the work...I basically just supervised and helped her when she needed it.

Handling the electric mixer like a pro!

Folding in the chocolate chips.

After everything was mixed up it was time to start creating our cookie bowls! Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, spray the backside of a mini-muffin pan with cooking spray, and clear a good chunk of counter space.






Roll out dough on your well-floured counter space to about 1/4-inch thickness. Next you want to find something that will cut out a small circle to fit the surface area of the underside of one muffin spot....either a small circle cookie cutter or a shot glass works perfectly.

Then you'll use a knife or fingers and separate circle and place on the muffin tin.

When all the muffin spots have cookie dough on them pop them into the oven and bake for probably about 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. We let them bake for about 12 minutes (following the chocolate chip recipe) and this is where we learned our lesson. Since we were using a mini-muffin pan and less dough, we didn't need them to bake as long. The end result.....slightly burnt and crisp mini cookie bowls.

But there were more goodies! With the leftover cookie dough A wanted to make some regular chocolate chip cookies to enjoy. She made BIG cookies, slightly under baked for soft, gooey middles.

We used a regular muffin tin to make regular sized cookie bowls. They turned out a lot better than the mini cookie bowls.

Next time we try to make cookie bowls I suggest we stick with a sugar cookie recipe. The chocolate chip cookie bowls were a good idea, but I think to master baking cookie bowls the chips just get in to way.

I had a blast baking with A. Even though things didn't turn out how we planned, we still enjoyed a delicious evening treat!

The GIANT chocolate chip cookies! They look so good! 

Getting the regular cookie bowls ready for the oven! A worked hard in the kitchen! 

Cookie Sundae! 

No Bake Chewy Granola Bars/Squares

Now that school is out I've been spending TOO much time on Pinterest. I stumbled across a recipe for No Bake Chocolate Chip Granola Bars and thought, "These look delicious!" Well, they are! And they are VERY easy and quick to make. I may never buy pre-packed granola bars again...this recipe is that simple. It takes about 5 minutes of total work...prep to walking away and letting them cool on the counter.

First batch: left half - raisins...right half - chocolate chips

I've made two batches in three days. No, I haven't eaten them all, ...I've shared them. I took some to work with me yesterday and everyone who tried them loved them. A few people even asked for the recipe. I followed the recipe for the first batch (pictured above) with one change. I put chocolate chips only on one half and put raisins on top of the other half. A great suggestion by Sonny!

Second Bath: peanut butter with chocolate chunks

I added peanut butter into the mix for my second batch. The result: even more delicious! They remind me of the no-bake peanut butter cookies we use to make when I was younger. When I cut these "granola bars" up I ended up cutting them into squares, so I guess I made granola squares.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola Squares

I'm serious about never buying pre-packed granola bars again. My brain thinking of other things I can add to the mix to create different granola bars!

No-Bake Chewy Granola Bars...well squares

adapted from Lauren's Latest


Ingredients 
- 1/4 c. butter (1/2 stick)
- 1/4 c. honey
- 1/4 c. peanut butter, creamy
- 1/3 c. brown sugar, packed
- 2 c. quick oats
- 1 c. Rice Krispies cereal
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla
- chocolate chips
- other toppings (almonds, etc.)

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine oats and rice cereal.

2. In a small saucepan, combine butter, honey, peanut butter, and brown sugar. Heat and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Lower the heat and simmer for 2 minutes, make sure the sugar is dissolved. Pour in vanilla and stir. Remove from heat.

3. Combine the saucepan mixture atop the dry mixture in the bowl. Mix well, making sure everything gets coated. Place mix onto one side of greased baking sheet and press firmly, flattening and packing the granola bars. Sprinkle chocolate chips (or other toppings) on top and press them on top gently.

4. Allow granola bars to cool on the countertop until set (about 2 hours). Cut into bars or squares. Store at room temperature in a container. Separate layers using parchment (or wax) paper.

*UPDATE 7/30/12* An 8x8-inch cake pan works very well instead of a baking sheet. You can cut your granola bars into 25 squares, cover with foil (or plastic wrap), and keep on your kitchen counter until gone.

Raspberry Vinaigrette Chicken Salad

It's back! Panera's Strawberry Poppyseed and Chicken Salad! I could eat at Panera everyday, but there isn't a Panera in my town. As much as that saddens me, it's probably a good thing for my wallet. So I'll settle for the next best thing; I'll make my own version of the salad. I substituted the poppyseed dressing and used a raspberry vinaigrette. I also left off the pecans this time around...I didn't have any in the pantry.

Salad minus dressing and chicken. Looks good! 

To make this salad you need the following:

- romaine lettuce hearts, chopped
- strawberries, sliced
- blueberries
- mandarin oranges
- pineapple, sliced
- pecans (if desired)
- cooked chicken breast, sliced into strips
- raspberry vinaigrette

Toss the lettuce, fruit, pecans, and chicken in a bowl. Drizzle desired amount of dressing on top of the tossed salad.

Looking good! 

Whether it's Panera's salad or my version of this salad, I truly enjoy this salad! It's great on a summer day, having lunch with friends outside on the deck and enjoying some fresh lemonade. I have a feeling I'll be making this salad a lot this summer....it's so good!

Raspberry Vinaigrette Chicken Salad - yum!

Yogurt Covered Blueberries

Pinterest has been filling my head with ideas. Before Pinterest I flipped through various cooking and knitting books/magazines hoping to find an idea I liked. Since discovering (and becoming hooked) I can access some really cool (and simple) ideas and put them into practice that day. This idea blossomed from another post I stumbled upon. 

I know blueberries are not quite in season yet, but this idea has been simmering in my head for awhile. Plus blueberries pints were 3/$5 at Kroger.

These make a delicious snack! I can place some in my lunch in the morning and by time I get to lunch they have thawed enough where the yogurt isn't runny and the blueberry isn't frozen in the middle. They are quick, easy, and delicious! 

You will need the following:

- baking sheet

- parchment paper

- fresh blueberries

- vanilla yogurt 

Here's what you need to do:

1. Line a baking sheet with parchment (or wax) paper.

2. In a small bowl, place the yogurt and mix in blueberries.

3. Scoop out blueberries; make sure the yogurt covered the entire berry.

4. Place berries on the baking sheet. Put in the freezer and allow the yogurt to freeze completely. After frozen, removed the yogurt-covered blueberries in a container or freezer bag and store in the freezer.

5. ENJOY! 

Baby Blanket and Wine Cover

My needles have been knitting away over the past few months...trying to get ahead start on Christmas gifts. I needed a break from knitting the same pattern over and over, so I tried two new patterns. The end results: a baby blanket and a wine cover.

Pattern: "Orange You Glad"

Baby Blanket

My nephews all have blankets that I knitted, but the pattern was simple. I knitted back and forth and there was A LOT of guess work. Also my thinking, "This looks good".

Awhile back I picked up a book by Lorranie F. Hickey called Terrific Textures for Baby: 5 Lively Afghans to Knit. I had every intention of knitting one of these patterns for my youngest nephew, but that didn't happen. However, I did manage to knit him a blanket using my guess and check method. Finally I got around to knitting a pattern.

There was only one reason I started knitting this blanket - to use up the pound of yarn I bought last fall when it was super cheap. It was taking up space in my stash. There's was no baby I had in mind to receive this blanket. I simply just started knitting. Once started, I fell in love with the pattern and the color of yarn I used, Lion Brand - Pound of Love: Turquoise. I decided to keep this blanket and store it for my future kids. The pattern was easy to follow, so if I need to knit one for a family member or close friend I should be able to knit one in no time. I look forward to trying another pattern from this book.



Wine Cover


Wine is a nice gift to give to friends when invited over for dinner or when celebrating various life events: engagements, births, new job, new house, etc.

I found this free pattern during on of my trips to Jo-Ann Fabrics. At the time I had no intentions on knitting a wine cover. I just wanted to store the pattern for a rainy day pattern. Well my "rainy day" happened when celebrating a friends engagement. You can find the pattern online here. There are two patterns you can choose from...I followed the grey bottle cover.

The pattern was very simple and easy to follow. It doesn't take too long either, and you can use your left over sock yarn. I think I made it in a day or two...between work and work. I'm thinking about knitting a few more and saving them for when I want to give one away last minute.