Queso Fundido

Last night my mom had to bring food to a party. She made a new recipe...queso fundido. Sometimes it's dangerous to try new recipes at a party, but if it's from the Pioneer Woman, it must be good!

My sister hovered over it the whole time Mom was making it...it smelled so good! But, unfortunately for both her and I, it was all for the party, so no one got to taste test any.

Later, when my mom returned home, we asked how it was. She said she wasn't really sure, because everyone ate it so quickly! So, we assumed it was good based on the smell and how fast it disappeared. Not to mention the name, 'queso fundido'—'molten cheese'. How could that not be delicious?!

Lucky for us and you, there were some leftover ingredients! So tonight Elena and I helped make it. It was easy! But I warn you, you'd better share it, otherwise you might just eat it all!

Start by browning some sausage and mixing it with your black beans.

Chop up those vegetables into nice little pieces.

Putting those in the skillet you previously used for the sausage makes this recipe extra easy!

Grate that yummy cheese...and if you're like me, sneak some out of the bowl!

Pile it all up and sprinkle on that chili powder!

Pop it in the oven and wait till it gets all melty...

Don't worry, it doesn't take long!

Dig in! It's best straight from the oven!

Queso Fundido

Ingredients:

1/2 pound hot breakfast sausage (like Jimmy Dean Or J.C. Potter) or chorizo

1 whole medium onion, finely diced

2 whole small bell peppers (any colors), seeded and finely diced

1 pound Monterey Jack, grated (or mozzarella, or other stringy melting cheese)

 sprinkle of chili powder

3 whole Roma tomatoes, diced

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

 Tortilla chips for serving

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400F degrees.

2. In a large skillet, cook the sausage until brown. Remove from skillet and drain on a paper towel. Pour off excess fat. Set aside.

*Optional: mix browned meat with black beans in a bowl and set aside.

3. Add onions and bell peppers to the skillet and cook over medium-high heat for about 7-8 minutes until the veggies are soft and golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Build the skillet: place 1/3 of grated cheese in a medium-sized ovenproof skillet. Add half the sausage. Add another third of the cheese, then the veggie mixture (you may have some extra). Add most of the remaining cheese, the rest of the sausage, then the remaining cheese. Very lightly sprinkle with chili powder.

*Depending on the size of your skillet or baking dish, there may be extra ingredients. Pole the ingredients so they reach about the top of the skillet; the cheese will melt and they will shrink.

5. Place in oven. After about 4-5 minutes start watching it; the cheese should be totally melted, hot, and slightly bubbling. It should not be hard, it should be really gooey.

6. Remove from the oven, sprinkle on the diced tomatoes, wrap a towel around the handle (so it won't burn people), and serve immediately with tortilla chips.

*Have everything ready so you can serve it right out of the oven, when it's best!

Recipe from: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2014/01/queso-fundido/

Photos: Elena and Maddie Faber

Glazed Streusel Coffee Muffins

Yesterday we went to the old circus here in Russia. We had so much fun! I loved the sea lions...they all had little personalities, clapping their flippers, bobbing their heads, doing tricks (or refusing to do them)...basically, begging for treats! They were so funny!

Anyways...I just had to share that. Now onto the muffins!

These muffins are perfectly moist when they're just a little bit warm from the oven—and then there's the bonus of the warmth bringing out the coffee flavor. That said, do not hesitate to gobble these down as soon as they cool down enough so as not to burn your tongue.

And there are also so many other layers of flavors, too—spices, maple syrup...and chocolate, if you're like me! I went all out with the streusel and glaze, and then took a step farther with the chocolate chips. Let's just say these weren't the healthiest muffins ever!

While these take a little time to make, the end result is worth it.

Streusel Coffee Muffins with Maple Glaze

Makes 12-13

Ingredients:

Streusel:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup tightly packed light brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

5 Tbsp. butter (cold and cut into bits)

Muffins:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 Tbsp. espresso powder

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. sea salt

1/3 cup tightly packed light brown sugar

1 cup strong brewed coffee (cooled)

8 Tbsp. (1 stick or 1/2 cup) melted butter (cooled)

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Maple Glaze

3/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted

about 6-8 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

Directions:

Streusel:

1. Whisk the flour, brown sugar, and allspice in a small bowl until blended.

2. Add the bits of cold butter and toss to coat, then use your fingers to work the butter into the dry ingredients until you've got irregularly shaped crumbs.

3. Cover and refrigerate while you make the muffins.

Muffins:

1. Preheat the oven to 400F. Butter, spray, or line 12 molds of a regular sized muffin pan. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, espresso powder, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

3. Stir in the brown sugar, making certain that there are no lumps.

4. In another bowl, whisk the coffee, melted butter, egg, and vanilla extract together until well combined.

5. Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and, with the whisk or a rubber spatula, gently but quickly stir to blend. The batter may be lumpy; do not over-mix.

6. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

7. Remove the streusel from the refrigerator. Sprinkle it over each muffin, then use your fingers to gently press the crumbs into the batter.

8. Bake 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean.

9. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool for 5 minutes before carefully removing each muffin from it's mold. Remove muffins and cool completely on racks.

10. Add glaze if desired.

Glaze:

1. In a medium bowl combine the sifted powdered sugar and maple syrup.

2. Mix, adding more maple syrup if needed, to achieve a smooth, sticky glaze. Drizzle over the cooled muffins with a whisk or fork.

Recipe from: http://www.unegaminedanslacuisine.com/2009/12/streuseled-coffee-muffins-with-maple.html

Recipe adapted from: Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

Waffles

American holiday + school holiday = sleeping in.

At least for the rest of my family. I think we were a little tired out from shopping at Ikea for 4 hours yesterday...that store is humungous!

But I woke up this morning ahead of them, and was hungry. I could tell my mom was going to make waffles, so I mixed them up instead. I did not want to wait two more hours for someone to make me waffles!

These waffles are great because they aren't too sweet, so while they taste good plain, you can also put nutella, jam, syrup, or whatever else makes you happy on them. In the summer strawberries and whipped cream is really yummy!

Some time ago, we discovered that these also freeze well. My mom always makes extra for the freezer so that we can have waffles on school mornings, too!

Waffles

Makes 6 Belgian waffles

Ingredients:

4 eggs (separated)

2 cups milk

3 cups flour

5 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. sugar

2/3 cup melted butter

Directions:

1. Beat egg yolks 1 minute.

2. Add milk and beat 1 more minute.

3. Add dry ingredients and beat 4 minutes on high.

4. Add butter and mix until blended.

5. Beat egg whites until soft peaks are formed. Fold egg whites into flour and milk mixture.

6. Cook in waffle iron; these waffles work best in a Belgian waffle iron, but also work in a normal waffle iron.

*Note: These freeze well. Reheat in microwave for a softer waffle, and in the toaster or toaster oven for a crisper waffle.

Recipe from: Margie DeVries

Popovers

Don't these popovers look fancy? Not to mention complicated!

But these could not be any simpler—all you do is take a bowl, dump the ingredients in, mix it up, and bake!

I was a little tired this morning and forgot to turn the oven on before starting the popovers. And 450ºF takes a loooong time to heat up to.

But like I said, this recipe is great...especially for those tired mornings! It turns out, you have to put the popovers into a cold oven. Perfect!

Popovers are a actually pretty healthy, because you don't add any sugar...unless you put jam on them like me. Yum! These are best straight out of the oven, but ours got a little cold while I was taking pictures. Oops. Oh well, they reheat alright too! Popovers have a slightly eggy taste, and are nice and gold and crunchy on the outside, with a soft inside—which makes them so good to sink your teeth into.

These will impress anyone! Don't worry if you don't have a popover pan, I used a normal muffin pan. Butter it very well!

Popovers

Makes 10

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1 Tbs. butter, melted

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:

1. Butter muffin pans, custard cups, or cast-iron gem pans.

2. Mix the eggs, milk, butter, flour, and salt just until throuoghly blended, without overbeating. (a 1-quart glass measure with a spout is good for mixing, because you can pour the batter right into the pans)

3. Half fill the prepared pans, and set them into a cold oven.

4. Turn the heat to 450ºF  and bake for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350ºF and bake about 15 minutes longer, until they are puffed and golden brown on top.

5. Remove from the pans and serve piping hot.

Whole-Wheat Popovers

Use 2/3 cup whole-wheat flour and 1/3 cup all-purpose flour instead of 1 cup all-purpose flour. These will not rise as high as regular popovers.

Red Velvet Cookies

These are so good they're taking over Michigan!

I've been saving this recipe for awhile in anticipation of February and Valentine's Day. But these turned out twice as good as I expected!

I used only 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips and added 3/4 cup white chocolate chips. Turns out the white chocolate chips made the cookies taste like Oreos! Surprisingly though, the cookie dough doesn't taste as good as the real cookies...I guess that's for the better.

Red Velvet Cookies

Recipe from: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2013/12/13/red-velvet-chocolate-chip-cookies/

Baked Cinnamon Donuts

I woke up today and wanted donuts. I'm just guessing, but it was probably because I dreamed about them last night. Just guessing. Anyways, half an hour later, I was sinking my teeth into a warm, soft, cinnamon-y donut, and the kitchen smelled wonderful!

We had no cream cheese (or maybe we did, but the words were in Russian so I couldn't tell) so I simply omitted it. Just mix with a fork the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla together, then add milk a little at a time until it's the right consistency.

Baked Cinnamon Donuts

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbs. light brown sugar, packed

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon (add more if you want a stronger cinnamon flavor)

1/2 tsp. salt, optional and to taste

6 Tbs. buttermilk

1 large egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

Vanilla Cream Cheese Glaze

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

1 to 2 Tbs. cream cheese, softened

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

splash Milk, Half & Half, Cream, or Heavy Cream

Directions:

Donuts:

1. Pre-heat oven to 325 F and lightly grease or spray a Nonstick 6-Cavity Donut Pan  (or a muffin pan) with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and optional salt.

3. Add buttermilk, egg, vanilla and melted butter.  Whisk to combine.

4. Use a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip, a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off, or a spoon to pipe the batter into the donut or muffin pan.

5. Bake 8 to 11 minutes, or until doughnuts spring back when touched.  Donuts will not be golden brown, but should be springy. Cool about 5 minutes in pan before removing.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Glaze:

1. While donuts are cooling, make the glaze by combining powdered sugar, cream cheese, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and a small splash of milk. Whisk to combine, adding the milk as necessary, until desired consistency is achieved.

2. Dip the donuts into the glaze. Donuts are best fresh, but will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Recipe from: http://www.averiecooks.com/2011/11/baked-cinnamon-bun-donuts-with-vanilla-cream-cheese-glaze.html

Apple Salad

A nice, citrusy salad perfect for anytime of the year, but especially fall. Switch the types of cheese and toppings to mix it up.

Apple Salad

Dressing ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

4 tsp apple cider vinegar

Small squirt Dijon mustard

1/8 tsp salt

For the salad:

Thinly sliced apples

Candied walnuts

Dried cranberries or dried cherries

Chunks of brie cheese or thin slices of parmesan

Mixed greens

Apple dressing

1. Put dressing ingredients in a small plastic bowl with a top.

2. Seal the lid and shake.

3. Add more ingredients to taste.

4. Sprinkle over mixed greens and add the rest of the toppings.