Special Treats: Cooking and Baking

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Cooking and Baking

I LOVE to cook as you've read in my previous posts. Not only is it much healthier for you (if you use the right ingredients)...it's also much cheaper than going out to eat! I am weird about a few things. #1) If I go longer than two days without exercise, I get crabby and in a bad mood #2) I need to eat something every 3-4 hours, even if it's just an apple or a healthy snack...I get low-blood sugar quickly and I become "hangry" (hungry and angry!) #3) I always eat breakfast right when I get up in the morning (this is known to be good for you, as your body has not had nutrients for the last 8 hours or however long you've slept and your body needs FUEL!) And, last but not least #4) I don't enjoy eating out all of the time. It actually grosses me out. I could go on and on about this, but I'll stop there.

Needless to say...I love to cook...I love everything about it. I enjoy searching for recipes...I am constantly reading recipes. I have a stack of yummy recipes that I'm just waiting to try! Daniel and I cook (or I cook, he cleans---we are a good team!) about five nights a week. I am big on leftovers too, so we have those a lot (on the menu for tonight-leftover meatball/cabbage stew). If a dish I make makes tons, then I freeze half, so we can pull it out for an easy/quick dinner on a busy night.

As I've said before, I get this cooking "bug" from my Mom and Grandma. Both are ahhhmaaazing cooks!!!! Both are also amaaazing bakers. My Mom gave Daniel and I a plate of her homemade Christmas cookies and yummmo they are delish!

I will post a few pics below of some yummy things I've made recently. I'll try to be better about blogging good recipes that I cook and taking pictures of them. Enjoy!

"Festive Candy Cane Brownie cupcakes"

1 brownie mix 9×13 inch size

A package of your favorite holiday candy (I used small Hersey candies)

1/2 Cup chocolate chips

2 Tablespoons heavy cream (I used skim milk and it worked just fine)

3 original candy canes, crushed

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions and scoop into a muffin tin pan that has been generously sprayed with cooking spray, about 3/4 way full. Press kisses (or other candy) into center of brownie batter, do not push all the way to bottom, some of the tip should stick out the top. Bake for 20-23 minutes or until brownies are cooked through. Let cool completely.

2. Melt chocolate chips in microwave, 30 second intervals until smooth and melted. Stir in cream until silky smooth. You can place back in microwave for 10 seconds to smooth more if needed. Dip tops of brownies into melted chocolate, then sprinkle with crushed candy canes. Serve with a tall glass of milk. Enjoy!! You'll bite into something delish!