Chocolate Chip Wacky Cupcakes

I am very proud and happy to have my first guest poster today. She happens to be our daughter, Marshmallow. She wanted to make her own recipe and headed into the kitchen and did just that! Her creation turned out to be moist and delicious. (I have to add that she is even sweeter than her cupcakes☺.)

Ingredients

1 recipe White Wacky Cake
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 recipe Paleo Chocolate Frosting

Directions

Follow cake directions except substitute vanilla extract for almond extract using a total of 1 teaspoon in the recipe. Stir in chocolate chips once batter is made. Divide batter into 12 cupcake pretty paper lined muffin tin. Bake for 15-20 minutes until cake lightly springs back. Cool before frosting. Make frosting per directions.And enjoy! Oh and don't forget to lick the bowl when you're all done, a personal tip of mine☺

Party Punch

One of the easiest punches I've ever made is one that conjures up fond memories of my Uncle F. He made it for holidays and special occasions. It only requires 2 ingredients and I am not sure if its simplicity was born out of need due to having a very large family or just because there was no need to further complicate it. As kids anticipating it to be made we didn't notice anything other than the sherbet looked like pretty floating clouds and it tasted really good! You were considered a "big kid" when you were asked to help scoop the sherbet and stir the punch. Oh, happy day, when that day arrived! The great thing with this punch is you can tailor the color of the sherbet to your occasion (raspberry for Valentine's or girl themed party, orange for Halloween, lime for St. Patrick's Day, etc.). This recipe also multiplies very easily. Cheers!

Ingredients

1 qt. sherbet, your choice of flavor

2 L bottle ginger ale, chilled

Directions

Pour ginger ale into punch bowl.  Scoop sherbet into bowl and stir. Some of the sherbet will melt into the ginger ale creating the punch, but many scoops should remain floating making them in high demand when serving☺.

Slice'N'Bake Mac'N'Cheese

This baked macaroni and cheese is easy to make and so cheesy.  Every bite is rich and buttery.  The best part is that the sauce makes itself while baking.  While you boil the pasta, you slice butter and cheese to layer along with the macaroni and milk and it all goes in the oven.  The picture you see only has half topped with breadcrumbs as that is our family's taste preferences and not the recipe instructions ;-) This recipe can be easily doubled and made in a 13"x9" pan for parties and potlucks.

Ingredients

1/2 lb. elbow macaroni
10 oz. bar of extra-sharp cheddar cheese (like Cracker Barrel brand)
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup Italian bread crumbs

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a shallow 8" square dish with butter or olive oil. Boil the pasta for 8 minutes (you only want to cook it partially). Drain. Slice cheese as thinly as possible. Slice butter about the same width as the cheese. Place half the macaroni on the bottom of the baking dish. Dot with half of the butter squares and half the cheese. Add half of the milk. Repeat layers. Cover the dish with foil and place on a cookie sheet to catch any overflow. Bake for 30 minutes. Uncover, stir and top with bread crumbs. Bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Adapted from recipe on Vanderbilt Wife

Busier Day Banana Bread

Our kids are used to my kitchen experiments and some turn out better than others.  This one combines two flavors we love - bananas and chocolate. It's almost as easy as the original recipe I posted and definitely worth the extra step! And if you want to add even more Nutella on top, I am with you 100%! (It does contain chocolate, hazelnuts and milk so several of my favorite food groups are covered.☺)

Ingredients

1 recipe Busy Day Banana Bread
1/2 cup Nutella

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and lightly flour pan. Follow directions for making banana bread. Once mixed, add half of the batter to a second bowl and add Nutella. Mix just until uniform. Checkerboard the two batters into loaf pan on the bottom and then on top of each other as well until all the batter is in pan. Bake for 45 - 55 minutes or until a toothpick poked in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan then transfer to a cooling rack.

Inspired by this recipe on What Megan's Making Blog

Homemade Yellow Cake Mix

Having this dry cake mix on hand can be useful for the many recipes that call for a yellow cake mix especially the ones that only call for "1 cup" or "2 cups." It makes just under 9 cups of mix so if you store it evenly halved you can also make smaller batches at a time should the need arise ("12 cupcakes for after dinner? Turn on the oven!")

Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk powder
3 T. cornstarch
1 T. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup butter, chilled and cubed
1 T. vanilla extract

Directions

Process sugar, flour, milk powder, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a food processor for 15 seconds to combine. Add butter and vanilla and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Freeze the dry mixture in a plastic bag for up to 2 months or use immediately.

To make cake, preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour your pan(s) of choice.* With an electric mixer, mix the prepared cake mix with 1 1/4 cups warm water and 2 eggs until the mixture is smooth, about 2 minutes. Scrape the batter into the prepared cake pan(s) and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake(s) in pan(s) for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

*For two 9" round cakes, bake for 20-25 minutes; for one 13"x9" cake, bake for 35 to 40 minutes; for one 12-cup bundt pan, bake for 40 - 45 minutes; for 24 cupcakes, bake for 18 - 20 minutes.

Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

Chicken Enchiladas

Head to your pantry and spice cabinet for the ingredients to whip up the sauce for these chicken enchiladas. It's mild so if you want to add any heat add a little cayenne or some canned jalapeños.  I like to serve this with a rice dish and salad for an enjoyable family meal.

Ingredients

1 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 T. butter
16-oz. can diced tomatoes
4-oz. can green chiles, diced
8 oz. can tomato sauce
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. basil
12 corn tortillas
2 cups shredded cheddar or monterey jack cheese
2 cups shredded chicken
Green onions, olives, cilantro, sour cream, salsa

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large saucepan over medium heat, sauté the onion and garlic in the butter until tender.  Add the tomatoes, chiles, tomato sauce, cumin, oregano and basil. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. (At this point I like to use an immersion blender to make the sauce smooth or you can transfer to a blender for this process or you can leave the sauce chunky!) Dip each tortilla briefly in the sauce to soften. Place 2 tablespoons of chicken and 2 tablespoons of cheese. Roll up and place seam side down in a 13" x 9" baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over the tortillas. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Cover and bake for 40 minutes. Garnish with olives, cilantro, sour cream and salsa.

Buttermilk Cinnaswirl Bread

This is an easy recipe that can be put together quickly. The yield of two loaves allows you to share one or freeze one. You could also bake mini loaves making plenty and not have to choose☺

Ingredients

4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups sugar, divided
2 cups buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 T. cinnamon

Directions

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, combine oil and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Add buttermilk, vanilla and eggs; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fill two greased 8" x 4" loaf pans half full. Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle half over the batter. Top with remaining batter and cinnamon-sugar. Swirl batter with a knife. Bake at 350°F for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes before removing to wire racks.