Here's my next Guest Chef, Kim (and her lovely assistant Kira). Kim has lots of fun recipes to share...I've already made some of them and they were good! Stay tuned this week for her recipes which will include:
2 TBS packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup honey (use sugar if you must)
1 egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup frozen blueberries, do not thaw
1. Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 12 regular-size muffin cups with cooking spray, or place paper baking cup in each muffin cup. In small bowl, mix brown sugar and cinnamon; set aside.
2. In large bowl, beat milk, oil, honey and egg with spoon. Stir in flours, baking powder and salt just until flours are moistened (batter will be lumpy). Gently fold in blueberries.
3. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups (cups will be full). Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. Bake about 18 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from pan. Serve warm with butter.
(this is more like a cake than a pudding, and is one of THOSE desserts that you dream about afterward)
Unsalted butter for baking dish
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¾ cup chopped, pitted dates (about 4 oz.)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ¼ cups boiling water
8 tablespoons packed brown sugar (1/2 cup)
3 tablespoons heavy cream
Custard (see recipe below) or Ice Cream and Whipped Cream
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8x8 broilerproof baking dish. Sift the 1 cup of flour and the baking powder into a bowl; set aside. Toss dates with 1 tablespoon flour in small bowl. Beat 4 tablespoons butter and ¾ cup sugar in large bowl until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, along with a little of the flour mixture; beat for 1 minute. Beat in remaining flour mixture. Add dates, baking soda, and vanilla to the boiling water, stirring to combine; add to batter, beating until well blended.
Pour batter into prepared dish; bake until set and well browned on top, 35-40 minutes. Remove from oven to wire rack. Heat broiler. Heat remaining 4 tablespoons butter, brown sugar, and heavy cream in microwave on simmer until thickened, 3 to 5 minutes. Pour over hot pudding. Place pudding in broiler, about 4 inches from heat; broil until topping is bubbling and becomes sticky, about 1 to 2 minutes. Serve immediately, top with custard or vanilla ice cream and whipped cream.
Custard
¾ c. sugar
3 T. cornstarch
¼ t. salt
2 c. milk
Combine above and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir a small amount into:
3 egg yolks – slightly beaten
Add egg yolks to the rest of the mixture when tempered and cook 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add:
2 T. butter
1 t. vanilla
Mix and chill. Serve atop sticky toffee pudding.
At Utah State, there was a bread place that I frequented...Hazel's. Mmmm, just the name brings back an aroma of fresh caramel nut bread, or the famous Marv 'N' Joe, a delightful open face sandwich that I've yet to duplicate perfectly at home. However, I used to order my Marv 'N' Joe on the savory, fresh veggie cheese bread. This recipe below is one that I concocted, and it tastes pretty darn close. I made mine in a bread machine, but you can certainly modify it to make it the old fashioned way.
1/2 cup warm buttermilk
3 tablespoons water (add 1-2 more TBS. to your bread machine in the mixture looks dry after mixing for a few minutes)
1 tablespoon canola oil
2/3 cup shredded zucchini
1/4 cup chopped red sweet pepper (I was out of red pepper, so left it out and added a little extra zucchini and it was fine)
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons sugar (I would suggest using honey instead)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon-pepper seasoning
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats (ground in blender until slightly smooth)
2-1/2 cups bread flour
1-1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
Add ingredients according to bread machine - bake on regular bread cycle (mine finished about 12 minutes before the buzzer. No complaints for getting to enjoy a few minutes earlier! Serve warm with butter, or if you want to try one of my favorites:
Marv 'N' Joe:
1 thick slice of fresh, warm veggie cheese bread smothered in garlic butter. Top with 2 thin slices of vine tomato. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, grated parmesan (not fresh). Drizzle with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and top with a slice of provolone cheese. Broil until cheese is bubbly.
8 oz. package of Cream Cheese softened
2-3 Green onions finely chopped (optional) If you don't like onions you can add onion powder.
6 oz. can crab meat drained
Package of 3x3 Wonton wraps
Thoroughly mix the crab, green onions and the cream cheese. Lay the wonton wrappers out and spoon 1 teaspoon or so of the crab mix onto the center of each. Wet the edges of the wonton wrapper with water and fold to enclose the crab and to form a triangle. Fold the corners from the base of the triangle together, and using a little water, pinch and stick them together. (I have also seen people use egg whites to stick the wonton edges together).
Heat the oil in a deep fryer or heat 2" oil in a heavy-bottom pot to 350F. Fry the wontons in batches, for 4-5 mins, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and keep warm.
Makes about 30
Ingredients
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, separated
1 3/4 cup buttermilk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 pint fresh blueberries
Confectioner's sugar
Pure maple syrup
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add the egg yolks and buttermilk and stir until well combined; the batter will be thick.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high until stiff but not dry peaks form. Gently fold the whites into the batter using a rubber spatula until combined.
Put 1/2 teaspoon butter in each well of a filled pancake pan. Place over medium heat until the butter begins to bubble. Pour 1 tablespoon of the batter into each well and cook until the bottoms begin to brown, 2 minutes. Place 5 or 6 blueberries in the center of each pancake and top with 1 tablespoon batter. Using 2 wooden skewers or butter knives, flip the pancakes over and cook until golden and crispy, 2-3 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and repeat with the remaining batter.
Dust the pancakes with confectioner's sugar and serve with warm maple syrup.
The number of fillings and flavor combinations that you can incorporate into this recipe has no limit. Fill the pancakes with your favorite flavor of jam or preserves, chocolate chips, diced bananas, or diced apples that have been sautéed in a little bit of butter, cinnamon, and nutmeg. You could even try a teaspoon of peanut butter topped with a teaspoon of grape jelly for a "PB&J Pancake" for kids!
The batter can be altered as well. Fold in some toasted coconut flakes, your favorite spices, or finely chopped lightly toasted nuts. Substitute whole wheat or buckwheat flour for a portion of the regular flour.
2 Tbs. butter or margarine
1 Med. onion, chopped
1 Cup bell pepper, chopped
1 (1-lb.) pkg. Hillshire Little Smokies Sausages cut into slices
1 (14 1/2 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
1 Cup converted rice
2 Cups chicken broth
1-2 tsp. garlic powder
3 Tbs. salsa or Green Tabasco
Cajun seasoning to taste
Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, and sausage and cook 5 minutes or until vegatables are tender, stirring often. Stir in rice, chicken broth, salsa, tomatoes and seasoning. Mix well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 25 minutes or until rice is tender. Remove from heat and let sit 5 minutes before fluffing with fork.
This is an easy yummy meal and depending on the salsa and seasoning you put in it it can have a good kick to it. 
Stay tuned for some amazing recipes this week!
