Strawberry Orange Cream Cheese muffins

You may be wondering why on the first day of fall I am posting a strawberry muffin. Well, for two simple reasons. 1~ They are different than your average muffin and delicious, and 2~ I have mentioned before I have this weird rule within myself to not bake with pumpkin until Oct. 1st. I don't know why, that's just how it is… my kids know no pumpkin deliciousness until October and then it's ON! So, I had some strawberries left over from last week that needed to be used up so we could move on to the fresh batch for this week! I decided to make these muffins for our weekly muffin and everyone loved them. My suggestion, don't be shy when putting the cream cheese mixture in, put a nice dollop. That is what makes them so moist and yummy. Serve these the next day, if you can resist! Allowing them to set makes all the difference. Enjoy!

Strawberry Orange Cream Cheese Muffins
adapted from lick the bowl good

Cream Cheese Mixture: 

• 4 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

Muffins:

• 2 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 1 Tablespoon orange zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup fresh strawberries, diced into small pieces

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F. Line muffin tin with paper liners and set aside. 

For The Cream Cheese Mixture: In a small bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Set aside.

For The Muffins: In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, melted butter, orange zest, vanilla and eggs until incorporated.

Using a spatula, stir the milk mixture into the flour mixture. Stir until just combined but do not overmix.

Spoon  the batter into the prepared tins, filling them no more than 1/2 full.

Scatter a few pieces of strawberry on top of each one.

Top the strawberries with a teaspoon of cream cheese mixture, a tablespoon more of muffin batter, and finally a few more pieces of strawberry.

Bake the muffins for about 20 ~ 25 minutes, until they’re light golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean.

little hands can help with the strawberries :) 

Turkey Quinoa Meatloaf

Just call me the "quinoa queen"…. that just cracks me up because I think of my son saying "coupon queen." When he was 3, he would go around saying it in his cute little raspy voice. It was adorable and we all would laugh at him :) Yes, he heard it from honey boo boo… my daughter watched it, and I allowed it, oh well, It's kinda funny!

 I wish  I could be the coupon queen! Unfortunately, I 'm the girl that cuts them out feeling so accomplished, puts them in a ziploc bag and into  my purse, gets so excited when I am at the register  just to pull them out and their expired. Buzz kill!

 I may not be the coupon queen but I am a self professed quinoa queen. I put it in everything. You may see a trend here on my blog in the next few posts. This Turkey meatloaf adds an extra protein punch from the Quinoa and is tasty too!


Turkey Quinoa Meatloaf

Bliss n Tell

1/2 cup cooked Quinoa
1/2 onion diced
1 small carrot grated
2 cloves of garlic chopped fine
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 pkg. ( 20 oz) ground turkey
1 Tablespoon Ketchup or tomato paste
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 egg
1tsp. salt
1tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
1 tsp. brown sugar
1Tablespoon olive oil

 Sweet Ketchup Topping:

1/3 cup Ketchup ( I use organic)
1 Tablespoon Brown sugar
1Tablespoon Worcestershire

 Cook your quinoa and set aside to cool. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil on medium heat and cook the onion in the olive oil until translucent, add the garlic and carrot, stir around and sprinkle with salt and pepper and Italian Seasoning and ketchup or tomato paste whatever you choose. Set aside to cool. Combine the egg,  brown sugar and Worcestershire sauce together in a small bowl

In a medium size bowl add your turkey meat. Pour in the vegetable mixture, the egg mixture, and mix together… use your hands, get down and dirty! It is the best way to not over mix your meat. Finally, add the cooled quinoa and Parmesan cheese. Mix again until all incorporated. Form into a loaf on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 50 minutes @ 350, add the sweet ketchup topping, cook for an additional 10 to 15 min checking the temperature. Temp must be 165, do not overcook…aint got no time for a dry meatloaf now do we?

Enjoy!

Blueberry Greek Yogurt Muffins

I am a bit of a muffin mama. At the beginning of every week I make muffins for the family. In hopes that they will last the week so I can give them as a snack, a quick breakfast or in their lunchbox. Okay, let's be real ~they don't last the week with my crew. I am lucky if they last the night. I have to hide them so I can have enough for the majority of the week! But, the kids look forward to them and they have their favorites they request. These  blueberry greek  yogurt muffins  were a bit of a trial and error. I wanted to make a new and more healthy muffin and incorporate some protein from the greek yogurt.

The recipe only makes about 8 muffins, so double or triple the recipe if you like it.  All 8 muffins were gone in about 8 minutes, so I think it is safe to say they are a keeper in my house.

A couple of tips…. hand mix, you do not need to pull out your mixer for this recipe. They are more moist when you hand mix anyways. When in doubt, hand mix!! Spray the muffin liners with baking spray (They tend to stick if not).  You can use frozen blueberries, but do not thaw them first, it will make your batter blue! Sprinkle the tops with sugar before baking and a little after. These muffins when baked correctly are moist and light, they are not very sweet and are delicious with a spread of butter or my favorite coconut oil.

Let me know if you like them!
 

 Blueberry Greek Yogurt Muffins

1 cup of flour
6 Tablespoons sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons Vegetable oil
2 Tablespoons 2% milk
1/2 cup blueberries

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl, combine the egg, yogurt, oil, vanilla extract and milk. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in blueberries.
2. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350° for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve warm

Just Peachy

Yes, I did take a bite, I had to!

Hello Again! It has been 3 years since I wrote my last post on this blog! Time goes by way to fast that is for sure :)  I am going to update this blog every now and again, so stay tuned!

 You know by now that I love to bake, and with all the wonderful peaches in season, it is really hard for me not to make a peach crumble or a peach pie. But, I am trying to keep it healthy around here, and I am refraining from making a decadent dessert with my peaches.  What I did come up with is a simple snack or dessert that takes no time at all, it is healthy and will satisfy your sweet tooth for a peach pie, well kinda.

I sliced my peach in half and removed the pit. I then took my favorite raw honey and drizzled it all over the peaches. I topped it with my favorite granola that contains chia seed and finally sprinkled some cinnamon.  The granola gives it some texture and crunch, the raw honey some sweetness, the chia seeds add to the nutritional value by providing you with some omegas and keeps you hydrated all while the cinnamon gives nice warmth as well as nutritional benefits. All and all this is a complete snack that will tie you over until you next meal or satisfy your after dinner craving for sweets.

You can top the peaches with whatever you like! Try it, you won't be disappointed!