Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

 

In all my years of baking, I've never made scones! They're one of my favorite pastries but I never got up the nerve to make them before. They seemed too messy and complicated. I finally sucked it up and gave them a try. They were indeed messy. But not complicated at all! AND they turned out amazing! I'm already making another batch today for some friends :)

 

 

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones

Ingredients:

1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. sour cream

2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. white sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. cold butter, diced
1 c. frozen raspberries*
1/2 c. white chocolate chips
1 tbsp. butter, melted
Sugar for sprinkling

 

Directions:

Whisk together the milk and sour cream and refrigerate until needed. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium or large bowl. Add the diced, cold butter to the flour mixture. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until the size of small peas. Add the milk mixture and fold with a spatula until just combined.

Place the dough onto a liberally floured work surface (this is where it gets messy!). Using floured hands, dust the dough with flour and knead 6-8 times, until it holds together in a ball. Add flour as needed to prevent sticking.

Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into an approximate 12-inch square. Fold dough into thirds, like a letter, using a spatula to release dough if it sticks to the counter top. Lift short ends of dough and fold into thirds again to form an approximate 4-inch square. Roll into a 12 inch square again. Sprinkle raspberries and white chocolate evenly over surface of the dough. Using a spatula, loosen the dough from the work surface and roll up tightly into a log. Place seam side down and press log into a 12 by 4-inch rectangle. Using a sharp, floured knife, slice rectangle into 4 equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally to form 2 triangles. Transfer to baking sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar.
Bake in the preheated oven for 18-24 minutes. Transfer to cooling racks and let cool at least 10 minutes before serving. Makes 8 large scones.

 

Recipe found here

 

 

*I like to use frozen raspberries and break them into small pieces before adding them to the dough. It disburses them more evenly and you don't get big mouthfuls of raspberries when you bite into the scone.

 

Chewy Chocolate Almond Cookies (gluten-free)

It's been a while, guys! Life is very full (in a good way) and I just haven't had the time to sit and update my little blog. Honestly, I've been thinking about deleting it all together...we'll see. Anyways, I've been cooking and baking like crazy, as well as doing tons of house and craft projects but these cookies were just too good not to share! Even if you don't do the gluten free thing, these are definitely worth a try. Probably in my top 5 favorite cookies. The flavor and texture are out of this world!



Chewy Chocolate Almond Cookies

Ingredients:
8 oz. semi sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 tbsp. butter, softened
2 eggs
1/3 c. white sugar, plus additional for rilling
1/2 tsp. almond extract
3/4 c. finely ground almonds

Directions:
Melt the chocolate in a glass bowl in the microwave, 30 seconds at a time, stirring in between. Once melted, stir in the butter until thoroughly combined. Using a mixer, beat the eggs, sugar and almond extract until light and frothy, about 60 seconds. Fold the egg mixture into the the chocolate, then fold in the ground almonds.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 and line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, portion out dough balls and roll in sugar. Place on prepared baking sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, just until cookies are set. Allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely. Makes 2 dozen cookies.


Recipe adapted from here

Toasted Coconut Rice Krispie Treats

Oh my gosh...these are like a little piece of heaven in your mouth! So simple, yet so delicious! I love rice krispie treats and a looooove coconut so I knew I couldn't go wrong mixing the two together. I may or may not have eaten these for breakfast today ;)



Toasted Coconut Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients:
3 tbsp. butter
10 oz. bag mini marshmallows
1 1/2 c. toasted shredded sweetened coconut*, divided
1 1/4 tsp. coconut extract
5 c. Rice Krispies cereal
Directions:
Generously spray a 13x9 pan with cooking spray and set aside.  In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium/low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Stir in half the toasted coconut (3/4 cup) and the coconut extract. Remove from heat and stir in the cereal until well combined. Spoon into the prepared pan and press down with your fingers (it helps if you put a little cold water on your finger tips to prevent sticking). Sprinkle the remaining 3/4 cup of toasted coconut on top and press lightly. Allow to cool at least 30 minutes before cutting and severing.

*To toast coconut, heat a skillet over medium heat (no oil needed) and add coconut. Stir constantly until lightly browned and crunchy, about 5 minutes.

Healthier Sesame Chicken

Here's yet another photo my hubby snapped on his iPhone at the dinner table. I've been too lazy to get my camera out I guess! This recipe is from my friend Jessy's blog. I've had it saved all year and finally got around to making it this week! Mine didn't turn out nearly as pretty as hers but it sure did taste amazing. And it was SO easy! I usually shy away from making Asian dishes at home because they usually involve many steps and a deep fryer. This didn't require either. We'll definitely eat this again!

Healthier Sesame Chicken

Ingredients:

1/2 c. all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/4 c. reduced sodium soy sauce
1/4 c. white sugar
1/2 tsp. sesame oil

1 tbsp. sesame seeds
1/4 c. chopped scallions

Directions:

In a gallon size Ziploc bag, combine flour, salt and pepper. Add chicken to the bag, seal and shake well to coat. Generously spray a large skillet with non stick cooking spray and heat to medium-high heat. Add chicken to the hot skillet and cook, stirring occasionally for 4-5 minutes, until no longer pink. Transfer to a plate.

Reduce heat to medium and add soy sauce and sugar to the skillet. Stir until the sugar dissolves, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in the sesame oil and sesame seeds. Finally, add chicken and scallions. Toss and serve immediately over hot, steamed brown rice. Makes 4 servings.

Raspberry Almond Bars - take 1

I say "take 1" because I have a pile of raspberry almond bars/tarts/cakes etc. that I'll be trying out over the next several weeks to determine which recipe is best. Then I'll make my favorite for a big event I'm baking for in September.

This one turned out well. I don't have anything to compare it to though since it's the first! But it was really easy to make and they don't seem dry (something I'm trying to avoid). I'm feeding these to a group of ladies this evening...so we'll see if they go over well!

Raspberry Almond Bars

Ingredients:

2 c. white flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

3/4 c. butter, softened
1 c. sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. almond extract
10 oz. raspberry preserves
1/2-3/4 c. sliced almonds

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 13x9 pan and set aside. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 1 minute on medium speed. Beat in the egg and almond extract. Next, slowly add the flour mixture until well combined. Press the dough into the prepared baking pan and spread evenly with raspberry preserves. Sprinkle with the sliced almonds and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, until dough is set. Cool completely, cut into squares and serve.

Mango Coconut Sorbet

Wow! This post is long overdue! So sorry for how dead it's been around here. We're still busy busy getting our house in order....I'll have some room reveal posts soon! Over the last couple weeks I redid our laundry room, Amelia's room and put some finishing touches on Margot's room. It's looking and feeling great!

I really wanted to take a moment and share this sorbet recipe with you. It's just too good not to! I made this for my family earlier this week and it was consumed immediately! Everyone raved about it. Even a couple people who don't care for either flavors loved it. Mango and coconut are two of my favorite things to eat so I was super excited to make this! It met all my expectations and then some! I can't wait to make it again. Someone snapped this photo and posted it on Instagram. I borrowed it since it was the only one taken :)


Mango Coconut Sorbet

Ingredients:
3/4 c. white sugar
1/4 c. water
2 c. peeled and cubed ripe mango
13.5 oz. can coconut milk
1 tbsp. fresh lime juice
1.5 tsp. coconut extract
1/2 c. flaked coconut, toasted*

Directions:
In a small saucepan over med/low heat, combine the water and sugar and stir occasionally until sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from heat. Next, place the mango cubes, coconut milk, lime juice and coconut extract into a blender and pulse until smooth. Add the sugar water and pulse a few more times until well combined. Place mixture into a container with a lid and refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours. Once mixture is chilled, place in your ice cream maker and freeze to soft serve consistency. Transfer to a freezer container with lid and freeze 2-3 hours, until firm. Serve topped with toasted coconut*. Makes 6 servings.

*To toast coconut, heat a large skillet over med/high heat (no oil needed) and add coconut. Stir constantly until lightly browned and crunchy, about 5 minutes. Cool and serve.

Cake Batter Cookies

I've seen lots of recipes for these cookies floating around blogs and Pinterest and I finally decided to give them a try. It's probably a really bad thing that I did! They were SO easy to make and SO delicious! And the flavor combos are endless...chocolate cake mix with peanut butter chips, lemon cake mix with poppy seeds, vanilla cake mix with chocolate chips, etc. etc.
I made these for 4th of July and slapped some vanilla frosting and a scoop of vanilla ice cream between a two cookies and made sandwiches out of them. They are the perfect cookie for making sandwiches because they're extremely moist and chewy but hold they're shape well.



Cake Batter Cookies

Ingredients:
18.25 oz. vanilla cake mix
1 tsp. baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. colored sprinkles

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350, grease a couple of cookie sheets and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the cake mix, baking powder, eggs, oil and vanilla on medium speed, just until combined, about 30 seconds. Stir in the sprinkles. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets and bake in the preheated oven for 9-11 minutes. They will be very soft, so allow them to cool about 5 minutes before removing them from the pans to cool. Makes 2 dozen cookies.

Pork and Pineapple Kabobs over Wild Rice

This has got to be one of my very favorite dishes I've made in a while! This will be a go to meal many times this summer, for sure. The flavors were awesome! The pork was juicy and tender, mixed with the tanginess of the bbq sauce with the sweetness of the pineapple...mmm mmm! So good! Can't wait to make these again.

Pork and Pineapple Kabobs over Wild Rice

Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless pork loin, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/2 c. barbeque sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)

2 tbsp. dijon mustard

1 tbsp. soy sauce

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 c. pineapple chunks

1 c. green bell pepper chunks

1 6 oz. box wild rice mix, prepared according to package directions

Directions:

Whisk together the barbeque sauce, dijon mustard, soy sauce, olive oil and pepper. Add the pork pieces and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate and allow to marinate for 2-12 hours. When ready to prepare, heat your grill to medium/high heat. Remove meat from marinade and discard any that's remaining. Thread pork cubes onto skewers alternately with pineapple and peppers. Grill 10-12 minutes, rotating occasionally until meat is fully cooked. Serve over prepared rice. Makes 2-4 servings (depending on how hungry you are! Randy and I ate it all by ourselves)

Sour Cream Enchiladas

This is one of my favorite recipes from the Pioneer Woman. I've made it several times but I never get a chance to snap a picture because they get eaten up so fast! These enchiladas are so simple, but SO flavorful and delicious. I've always made it with low fat or fat free sour cream and they still taste awesome.

After making these several times, I made a couple small changes in the way I do it...nothing major. I just found I didn't need to use as many toritillas. Also, I only use one 10 oz. can enchilada sauce, instead of two like Ree does. I hope you'll make these. And I hope you'll love them as much as we do!

Sour Cream Enchiladas

Ingredients:

10 whole corn tortillas

Canola oil, for frying

1 10 oz. can red enchilada sauce

2 c. low fat sour cream

8 oz. 2% sharp cheddar cheese, grated (about 3 cups)

1/2 c. diced green onions

1/2 tsp. cumin

1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Mix together sour cream, green onions half the grated cheddar, cumin and cayenne pepper.
Heat canola oil in a skillet over medium/high heat. Pour the enchilada sauce in a large, deep plate or pie pan. Using tongs, fry tortillas one at a time, for only about five to ten seconds per side (don't allow to crisp.) Remove from oil, then dunk tortilla in enchilada sauce. Lay tortilla on a plate, then spoon a good two or three tablespoons of the sour cream mixture in the middle. Roll tortilla, then place face down in a 9 x 13 inch baking pan. Repeat with remaining tortillas and sour cream mixture.
Cover the dish with any remaining enchilada sauce and the other half of the cheese, then bake, uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes until bubbly.
Serve immediately. Place a dollop of sour cream on each serving, then sprinkle on sliced green onions.

Paprika Chicken Stroganoff

My husband loves anything with the word "stroganoff" in it! I've never been a huge fan, mostly because of the beef and mushrooms...two things I won't eat. But when I came across this recipe, it looked perfect for the both of us! It was fairly simple to make and the end result was delicious! Just the right amount of creamy sauce, not too saltly, and super tasty with the added tomato element. Definitely a keeper!

Paprika Chicken Stroganoff

Ingredients:

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 tbsp. paprika
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. olive oil, or more as needed
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 3/4 c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 cup sour cream
12-16 oz. hot, cooked egg noodles

Directions:

In a medium bowl or large plate, sprinkle the cubed chicken with the paprika, salt and pepper. Sprinkle the flour on top of the chicken and toss to coat.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until rippling and hot. Add the chicken in a single layer and cook until golden brown on all sides, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. The chicken will finish cooking fully a bit later so it doesn’t need to be cooked all the way through. Transfer the chicken onto a plate and set aside.
Add a bit more oil to the pan, if needed, and stir in the onions. Saute, stirring occasionally and scraping up the browned bits from the chicken, until the onion is translucent and lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute, until fragrant.
Pour in about 1/4 cup of the chicken broth and deglaze the pan by scraping up any bits from the bottom. Stir in the tomato paste, whisking to combine. Add the rest of the chicken broth and stir well.
Add the chicken back into the skillet and simmer the mixture over medium-low to medium heat, until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce thickens slightly, about 5-6 minutes. Stir in the sour cream and cook for about 2-3 minutes longer, until thickened. Serve over hot noodles and garnish with fresh parsley, if desired.