Apple Bread

I've become obsessed with apple bread. I've always loved quick breads, but Zucchini is only in season for a couple of months, I hate bananas, and it's just weird to make pumpkin bread any time other than fall. So I needed a new go to loaf bread for when Zucchini isn't in season and this is it. You know when you get apples at the grocery store and get home to find they're mushy and terrible. Don't throw them out, make this bread!!!

Adapted from: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/apple-bread-2/

Ingredients:
- 3 Cups Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 3 Eggs beaten
- 2/3 Cup White Sugar
- 2/3 Cup Brown Sugar
- 1/2 Cup Apple Sauce (I like strawberry flavored. It randomly enhances the apple flavor of the bread. Totally weird.)
- 1/2 Cup Oil
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3 cups shredded apple (About 3-4 medium apples. If you prefer chunks of stuff in your bread, feel free to chop up apples instead of shredding them.)

Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Whisk together the flour, soda, salt, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, sugars, apple sauce, oil, and vanilla.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Add in the shredded apple.
- Spray two loaf pans with PAM and divide the bread batter between them. Bake in preheated oven for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from pans and cool. Serve with a thick slather of butter. MMmmmm.

Blackened Chicken Spice Rub

One of my favorite recipes is Blackened Chicken Alfredo, and this is the recipe I use for my Blackened chicken. Simply apply the rub to the chicken, brown it in a pan, and finish it off in the oven while you make your alfredo.

Blackened Chicken Spice Rub:
- 1 TB Garlic Powder
- 1/2 TB Pepper
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 tsp Cumin
- 2 tsp Onion Powder
- 1/2 tsp Cayanne
- 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 tsp Paprika
- Scant 1/2 tsp Chili Powder

Grilled BBQ Chicken

Quick BBQ Chicken Recipe for the Grill

Marinade:

- 1/3 Cup Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Pepper
- 1/2 tsp Cumin
- 1/2 tsp Paprika
- 1/4 tsp Cayanne
- 2 Cloves Garlic
- 1/2 Cup Water
-  Splash Apple Cider Vinegar (Maybe 1 TB?)

BBQ Sauce (Adapted from the Neeleys):

- 1 Cup Ketchup
- 1/2 Cup Water
- 2 TB Vinegar
- 3 TB Sugar
- 3 TB Brown Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Pepper
- 1/4 tsp Onion Powder
- 1/4 tsp Ground Mustard
- 1 1/2 TB Lemon Juice
- 1 1/2 TB Worchestershire

More Recipe Links

Here are a few recipes I've used lately that I really want to save for the future!

Mexican Macaroni Salad 
Great to take to a potluck. Very versatile. Be careful with the onion. It can be overwhelming.

No-Bake Cheesecake
Ahhhh-MAZING. I have made this several times. Super easy, super quick, super delish. Do use low fat cream cheese, do not use low fat sweetened condensed milk.

Graham Cracker Crust
Basic graham cracker crust. I never add the cinnamon.

Perfect Stovetop Salsa

I wanted to make salsa with all of the fresh veggie goodness from my garden, but both me and my husband hate the flavor of fresh tomatoes. (I know, I know. We're weird.) I adapted a recipe I found online (sorry, I can't remember now where I found it) to create this: My version of  perfect salsa. (By the way, this freezes really well!)

Ingredients: 
- 3 1/2 Cups peeled tomatoes (About 4 Large)
- 1 Medium onion, chopped
- 2 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and diced*
- 1 TB Sugar
- 2 tsp Salt
- 1 Garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 tsp Cumin
- 1 can (6oz) Tomato paste
- 1 TB Vinegar
- 2 TB Lime juice
- Black Pepper to taste
- 1/2 Cup Cilantro

Instructions:

1. Combine all ingredients except the cilantro in a medium sauce pan. Smush the mixture a few times with a potato masher to brake up the tomatoes.

2. Bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for about an hour.

3. Remove salsa from the heat and let cool. Place salsa in a blender along with cilantro and pulse until desired consistency is achieved. Chill and serve.

* Because each jalapeno is different, use your own discretion when adding peppers. This recipe is written as Mild. I usually add about 1 1/2 jalapenos to start and then add more (or a little Tobasco sauce) to achieve the heat level I want. Most people prefer spicier salsa, so feel free to add more jalapenos if you like!

Recipe Links

Here are a couple of recipes I've used recently that I don't want to loose the links for! :)
Best Flour Tortillas

Crepes - All Recipes

Strawberry Shortcake Shells

Today was Easter Sunday! Easter is my very favorite holiday. For one thing, I was born on Easter. Second, I love the reason for Easter. What is more worthy of celebration than the Resurrection of the Savior? Third, it means the beginning of Spring and I love Spring. Fourth, I love the food of Easter. The ham, the chocolate, the potatoes. Mmmm. Just the best.

Well, I had the opportunity to make my very first Easter dinner this year! Everything went fairly well, except for the dessert. I had planned on serving pretzel jello salad, buuuuut I got impatient and added the jello to the pan too soon. Consequently, I ended up with soggy pretzel jello mush instead. I had to come up with a new dessert fast. I had strawberries. I had cool whip. Strawberry shortcakes!! The only thing I needed was the cake shell. I found and adapted this recipe and crossed my fingers. Luckily, it turned out great! The cakes were spongy, but sturdy. Sweet, but not too sweet. Just perfect for strawberry shortcakes.

Lazy Dazy Cake - AllRecipes

Ingredients:
- 2 Whole Eggs
- 2 Egg Whites
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 Pinch Salt
- 1 TB Butter
- 1/2 Cup Milk

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour your cupcake pan.*
2. Combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a small bowl. Whisk or sift to remove any lumps.
3. In a larger bowl, beat eggs for about 4 minutes with an electric mixer on high. Add sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add flour mixture and combine.
4. In a small sauce pan, bring the milk and butter to a boil. Add to the batter and beat until combined.
5. Pour batter into prepared cupcake pans. Fill each cupcake about 2/3 of the way full. Bake at 350 degrees for 13 to 16 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
6. Allow cakes to cool and remove from the pans by running a knife around the edge of each cake and softly prying from the pan. 

*I used a pan that made 8 oversized cupcakes and they were perfect. I'm sure that you could also use a regular 12 cupcake pan, you may just want to reduce the cook time by a minute or two.