Spicy Turkey Meatballs

I love spicy food - not the spicy food like my mouth goes numb, but I like some heat on occasion. These meatballs fit the bill perfectly. I was worried they would turn out too hot, but I pleasantly discovered they weren't. Super easy to make, which is also a big plus to any recipe. And it's easy to alter the heat by adding or leaving out the Sriracha.

This recipe was adapted from Life's Ambrosia.


Spicy Turkey Meatballs

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1 egg beaten
• 1/2 yellow onion, minced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
• 2 tablespoons sriracha
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients except oil in a bowl. Mix well to combine. Roll into meatballs (I made 21).

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook meatballs until browned (I found flipping them the hardest part of this as they were very fragile and wanted to fall apart). Transfer to a baking dish.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 more minutes or until cooked through. Serve immediately.

3CPB Monkey Bread

YUM! I love monkey bread so I decided a while back to make my own. It's not difficult since you use pre-made dough and yet it's super yummy. First, I ran across a banana monkey bread and thought that sounded wonderful. Then, I ran across a cream cheese filled monkey bread and decided that sounded even better so I was going to make that. Then I had an epiphany! I could combine them! Awesome! 


THEN...I found a caramel pecan cinnamon roll bread and decided to take the topping from THAT and put it on my delightful creation. I have to say that MAN did it turn out beautiful! (I even broke out the GOOD camera to take pictures of this amazingness!) Thus the caramel, cream cheese, pecan, banana monkey bread - or 3CPB for short! 


This turned out really well. I was worried it would end up too sweet with all the sugar and caramel, but it wasn't.

This recipe is adapted (a combination) from Pip and Ebby, Plain Chicken, and Pinch of Yum.


3CPB Monkey Bread

• 6 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping 
• 1 cup chopped pecans

• 2/3 cup dark brown sugar
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon

• Two 12-ounce tubes refrigerated flaky buttermilk biscuits
• One 8-ounce package cream cheese, cut into 20 cubes
• 2 large bananas, cut into 20 slices
• 10 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with cooking spray; set aside (I totally forgot to do this step but luckily it didn't stick to the sides at all with all the caramel and butter in there). In a medium bowl, combine the sugars and cinnamon; set aside. Combine the 6 Tbsp melted butter, caramel and pecans; set aside.


Slice 10 discs of dough from each tube of biscuits. Set discs on a flat surface and set one slice of banana and one cube of cream cheese in the center of each piece of dough. Wrap edges of dough up and around the cheese so all that is visible is the top side of cream cheese cube. 


Dip 10 of the dough-wrapped cheese cubes, cheese-side-up, into the caramel pecan mixture and place in the bottom of prepared pan. Top with half of the sugar mixture and half of the butter (5 Tbsp). Top with the remaining dough-wrapped cheese cubes, cheese-side-down, the remaining sugar and remaining butter.


Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Invert onto a serving platter and serve. (When I got it out of the oven I thought it looked good, but then I inverted it and wow it was out of this world!)

Bran Muffins

I have always loved bran muffins but the problem is the only boxed mix available that I used to buy started putting raisins directly in the mix instead of in a separate packet as an optional add in. I do not like raisins in my muffins (or anywhere else, really) so to make that mix I had to sift out all the raisins. Too much work. So I looked around and found myself a recipe I thought looked good and wasn't too difficult.


I am glad I went with this one as it turned out excellent. The original recipe gave the option to put in some raisins but I've found out recently that I really like dates, so I decided to put some dates in instead. That was a wonderful idea also - the honey-like taste of the dates blended very well with the bran muffins. I ended up making 12 muffins (as I gave half the batter away) and I seriously wanted to eat all of them they were so good.

This recipe is adapted from the Joy of Baking.com.


Bran Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups oat bran (the original recipe called for wheat bran, but I couldn't find wheat so I substituted with oat - use whichever you prefer)
• 1/3 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 Tbsp unsulphured molasses
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white whole wheat flour (or whole wheat...w.w.w. is what I had available)
• 2/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp freshly grated orange zest (about 1 medium-large orange)
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 3/4 cup milk (I ended up running out of milk and used 1/2 cup milk and 1/8 water and 1/8 cup heavy whipping cream to substitute)
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup chopped dates (to about the size of a raisin)

Place the oat bran in a bowl and stir in the boiling water (it gets a bit clumpy - don't worry). Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat  the butter with the brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and molasses and beat until well blended. Add the oat bran and beat until combined.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, oats, cinnamon, orange zest, salt, baking soda and powder.   

In a small bowl or measuring cup combine the milk and buttermilk.

Add the flour mixture (in three intervals), alternating with the wet ingredients (in two intervals) to the bran mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Fold in the chopped dates. Cover and place the batter in the refrigerator until well chilled (several hours or overnight, like I did). 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and place the rack in the center of the oven. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners or else spray with a nonstick vegetable spray.

Fill the muffin cups, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop, about 3/4 full (and if desired, sprinkle muffins with extra oats). Bake about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool slightly before serving. Serve with butter and honey, if desired.

Banana Nut Baked Oatmeal

Wow...if you love banana nut bread and oatmeal this is the perfect dish for you. Super delicious and wonderfully filling. Plus it is super easy to make. I'm sure you could put in the nut of your preference, so I use pecans because they are my nut of choice.

This recipe is adapted from Budget Bytes.


Banana Nut Baked Oatmeal

• 1.5 cups (about 3 large) mashed bananas
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp nutmeg
• 2 cups milk
• 2.5 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Begin preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Mash the bananas well with a fork (the riper they are the easier to mash). Measure the bananas to make sure you have about 1.5 cups.

Whisk the mashed bananas together with the brown sugar, eggs, salt, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Next whisk in the milk, then stir in the oats. Roughly chop/break the pecans and stir them in as well.

Spray the inside of a glass baking dish (8x8 inch or similar size) with non-stick spray. Pour in the oat mixture. Cover with foil and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes or until the center is solid and the edges are slightly golden brown.

Serve warm or refrigerate and enjoy cold! Can eat with maple syrup or milk (or a combination of both is good, too).

Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake

I found this recipe and immediately knew it was the one I HAD to make to have for my birthday. And boy did it not disappoint. Yum city. I love cinnamon and I love caramel - put them in a cheesecake and it's pure bliss. Wasn't super hard to make either, thankfully.


I had a cute little helper who helped me layer the cheesecake - as such, I forgot to drizzle the caramel in the layers as directed so it only made it on the very top. Still worked as it was a minor oversight. It's such a pretty cake too.

This recipe is adapted from Perry's Plate.


Cinnamon Roll Cheesecake
Crust:

• 1 1/2 c finely crushed Mother's Iced Oatmeal cookies
• 1/4 c butter, melted
• 2 T brown sugar

Filling:

• 3 8-oz packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 c sugar
• 1/2 c sour cream or whipping cream
• 4 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 c flour
• 1 c coarsely chopped cookies (same kind as above)
• 1/2 c cinnamon chips (this is an estimate as I didn't measure this out)
• 1/4 c butterscotch or caramel sundae topping (I used caramel)
• 1 tsp cinnamon mixed with 1/4 c sugar

Preheat oven to 325. Place a pan of water on the bottom rack.


For crust, mix cookie crumbs, butter and brown sugar and press into the bottom of an 8-inch springform pan. Spray the sides of the pan with non-stick cooking spray.


For filling, blend cream cheese, sugar and sour cream until smooth, scraping bottom and sides of bowl, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in eggs, vanilla and flour and blend well, 2-3 minutes. (I did this in a stand mixer, but you can easily use a hand mixer).


Spoon 1/3 of filling into pan and dust on some cinnamon sugar mixture. Top with 1/3 of each chopped cookies and cinnamon chips. Drizzle on some caramel topping. Repeat with all layers twice more until everything is used up.


Bake 50-55 minutes or until cheesecake is set about 2 inches from the side and wiggles slightly in the center. Turn oven off, leave door open and let cheesecake cool until you can take it out of the oven without oven mitts. Leave cheesecake on the counter until it's room temperature, then refrigerate overnight.


Serve with whipped cream and caramel topping.

Apple Fritters

To go along with my corn dog and frog eye salad, I made apple fritters for dessert. I figured I might as well make my fried dessert while I've got the oil in the pan ready for frying because of the corn dogs. They turned out really tasty also. Though I did feel the honey sauce for on top was a little on the weak side for my taste so I might want to try something different if I ever made them again. They were a wonderfully fattening dessert to go along with my wonderfully fattening meal (I neglected to mention the chili-cheese fries my dad made as a side dish also).

This recipe is from Gastronomer's Guide.


Apple Fritters
for the apple fritters:

• 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and diced
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoon butter, melted
• 3/4 cup whole milk (I used half heavy cream and half 1% milk as I didn't have whole milk)
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• canola oil, for frying (I used corn oil because I already had it out from the corn dogs)

for the honey syrup:

• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 small cinnamon stick

Toss together diced apples with lemon zest and juice in a small bowl to keep from browning.


In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Mix together with a whisk to aerate.


Combine melted butter, milk, eggs, and vanilla in a small bowl and beat together. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Fold in diced apples.


Warm 1 to 2 inches of oil in a large pot set over medium-high heat. The temperature of the oil should register around 350 degrees F. Test with a drop of batter.


In the meantime, make the honey syrup. Combine honey, water, and cinnamon stick in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil. Simmer on low until slightly reduced, about 5 to 10 minutes.


To make the fritters, using a 1-1/2-inch releasable scoop, drop dollops of the batter into the hot oil. Using tongs or a fork, turn the fitters so that all sides brown. Fry, in batches, until golden brown all around, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove to a tray lined with paper towels to drain. Serve drizzled with honey syrup.

Corn Dogs and Frog Eye Salad

I love corn dogs and I love this tiny pasta salad. So I decided to make them for my birthday dinner. They turned out really well, as I had hoped. Home-made corn dogs are delicious. I was so busy cooking and eating that I forgot to take pictures of my corn dogs so I'll update once I've taken a picture of my remaining one.

The corn dog recipe is from Alton Brown.


Corn Dogs

• 16 turkey dogs
• 16 wooden chopsticks (or anything to skewer the dogs on)
• corn oil (enough to fill a pan 1-2 inches deep)
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon dried, minced jalapeno pepper
• 1 (8.5-ounce) can cream-style corn
• 1/3 cup finely grated onion
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• cornstarch, for dredging

Pour oil into a deep fryer or large heavy pot and heat to 375 degrees F. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and cayenne pepper. In a separate bowl, combine the jalapeno, corn, onion, and buttermilk. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients all at once, and stir only enough times to bring the batter together; there should be lumps. Set batter aside and allow to rest for 10 minutes.


Place your hot dogs on chopsticks. Scatter the cornstarch onto a plate. Roll each hot dog in the cornstarch and tap well to remove any excess.


Transfer enough batter to almost fill a large drinking glass (refill the glass as needed) and quickly dip in and out of the batter. (I did need to do a little spooning the batter on as it didn't stick quite like I'd wanted it to.) Immediately and carefully place each hot dog into the oil, and cook until coating is golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes, turning once. With tongs, remove to cooling rack, and allow to drain for 3 to 5 minutes.

This recipe is adapted from Allrecipes.com.


Frog Eye Salad

• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 3/4 cups unsweetened pineapple juice (you will have more than you need when your pineapple is drained)
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 quarts water (to cook the pasta)
• 1 (16 ounce) package acini di pepe pasta
• 3 (11 ounce) cans mandarin oranges, drained
• 2 (20 ounce) cans pineapple tidbits, drained
• 1 (20 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
• 1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 1-2 cups miniature marshmallows

In a sauce pan, combine sugar, flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pineapple juice and eggs. Stir and cook over medium heat until thickened (it is like a thick syrup). Remove from heat; add lemon juice and cool to room temperature.


Bring water and remaining salt to a boil and cook pasta until al dente. Rinse under cold water and drain.


In a large bowl, combine the pasta, egg mixture, mandarin oranges, pineapple, whipped topping, and marshmallows. Mix well and refrigerate overnight or until chilled.