Mom's French Breakfast Muffins

Just look at that deliciousness.  These were always a favorite of mine growing up because really, who doesn't love baked goods dipped in melted butter and rolled in a cinnamon/sugar mix?!  It's 10pm and my mouth waters just thinking about them.

I think the best part of these breakfast muffins is that they really don't take very long to make, and don't require a ton of ingredients.  One Saturday morning that Bobby had the day off, I woke up to take out Gus and left him sleeping.  I started thinking about something yummy I could make us for breakfast since he has Saturday mornings off so rarely.  Pair them with a delicious cup of coffee and YUM.  Talk about a great start to the weekend.

Mom's French Breakfast Muffins

• 1.5 cup and 2 Tbs flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten

Cinnamon/Sugar Mix

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp vanilla

Pre-heat the oven to 400.  Combine flour, baking powder, nutmeg and sugar in a large mixing bowl.  In a smaller bowl, combine the melted butter, milk and egg.  Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients thoroughly.  Grease and flour a muffin pan (don't skip this! I made that mistake the first few times I tried to make these!).  Fill them each about half full.  Bake about 20 minutes, and then remove them from the muffin pan right away.

Some of the muffins may have a little excess flour on the bottom--use a butter knife and scrape this off very carefully.  I've learned through trial and error that because you're going to dunk them in melted butter, if there's extra flour on the bottom it absorbs all the butter quickly and makes the bottoms mushy.

Melt about a half cup of butter (more if you need it).  Mix the sugar, brown sugar and vanilla into a small bowl (but one that is large enough to roll the muffin in).  You may want to use a small whisk to make sure the vanilla doesn't clump the sugar.  Then one by one, dunk the muffins into the melted butter (I usually use a small saucepan and keep it on the burner set to Low).  I recommend using a slotted spoon to remove the muffin so it drips off excess butter before rolling it in the sugar/cinnamon mixture.  Serve immediately!

Spicy black bean and turkey burritos

When making a 'come-back' it's probably wise to post interesting or at least aesthetically pleasing recipes. Now I wouldn't say this was necessarily UN-intersting, but I'll admit the photo may not be the best representation of the following yumminess  (But isn't that always the way with Mexican food?  Think about it--it's the only genre of food that can get away looking like it does, and taste soooo good).  So while I could have gone with a more interesting or unusual-sounding recipe, or something that had a really pretty photo--I figured the focus of the blog is intended to be quick meals that are reasonably healthy--and that's exactly what this dinner is!

It's no secret Bobby and I love our Mexican food, and when we're really wanting something tasty and spicy, but not too heavy--this is our go-to recipe.  The recipe below I'm going to call a 'base'.  Because it is originally taken from Kraft Food's Layered Enchilada Bake, and after I made that recipe a few times, I discovered it would be a great 'base' for burritos or even taco salad.  Of course the original recipe calls for beef I think.  And obviously it's delicious with beef.  But swapping for ground turkey is really easy in this recipe in particular because it's so flavorful that you don't need beef.

I decided against a picture of the 'final product' because really, all burritos kind of look alike...and instead here's a photo of the 'base' in the skillet.

Spicy Black Bean and Turkey Burritos

• lb ground turkey breast

• 1/2-1 onion, chopped

• 2 cups salsa (I have started using this recipe from Pioneer Woman to make my own)

• 1 can low sodium black beans, rinsed

• 1/4 c Italian dressing (recipe obviously calls for Kraft, I use Wishbone Light)

• 1/2 package low sodium taco seasoning

• 1 cup reduced fat sour cream

• Top with shredded cheese and lettuce

Spray a large skillet with Pam, and add crumbled ground turkey and chopped onion.  Cook, stirring frequently until turkey is thoroughly cooked and onion is soft.  Add salsa, black beans, Italian dressing, and taco seasoning.  Stir until well mixed and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and let simmer for 30 minutes on the stove.  Add in sour cream to base to tone-down the spice in the mixture, or you can add sour cream to the burritos as a topping--your call!  Scoop into warm tortillas and add toppings.  It usually makes enough for leftovers too!

Mexican Chocolate Pound Cake

The blog is back!

It's been well over a year since my last post--and I can pin-point the exact day my blog hiatus began:  March 17, 2011.  Match Day.  We were thrilled to have matched in Orlando, FL, and we've been so happy here!  But for a lot of reasons (mostly good ones!) I was busy in a way that I'd never been busy before, and blogging had to take a back seat to packing up and moving 1,000 miles away, buying our first home, making that home 'feel like home', making new friends, spending time with family, lots of travel, adjusting to Bobby's residency schedule, and that small piece of my day that makes these things possible:  working!  Looking back, I think I couldn't sit down to blog because I just had too much to say, and I wasn't sure how to say it.  

But I never deleted my blog (well, I had to delete the other one, per Bobby's request), and didn't consider my blog hiatus to be 'quitting' the blogosphere--I knew I'd be back when things calmed down a bit!  And they have :-)  We continue to be very happy here, and we've settled into a good routine.  I will occasionally share bits of residency and life info on this blog, but for readers solely interested in recipes, you can always scroll down!  Bobby's enjoying his General Surgery residency, and really likes the other surgeons and the hospital as a whole.  Yes, his hours are insane.  Imagine the worst possible hours your spouse could keep...and then make it slightly more worse than you imagine.  Interns aren't supposed to work more than an average of 80 hours a week (so on average, imagine your spouse working an additional 40 hours a week).  That's two full-time jobs for one person.  Next year the hours restrictions are lifted, so I'm bracing for that!

On to Kitchen things!  My kitchen is adorable, with yellow walls and blue accents.  A fantastic countertop and cupboards, with lots of space.  I'll add some photos soon.  So with a new kitchen, I gave the blog a new blue look.

I figured I'd make a come-back with something sweet and yummy--a Mexican Chocolate Pound Cake!  The other night it was late (you know...after 8:30pm) and I wasn't necessarily craving dessert, but I had some energy, and  I just felt the urge to bake something.  So I poured a glass of wine, grabbed an apron, turned on the Adele Pandora station, and pulled out this recipe I had dog-eared in my 2010 Southern Living Annual Recipe Book.

Mexican Chocolate Pound Cake

8oz package semisweet chocolate baking squares, chopped
1c butter, softened
1 1/2 c sugar
4 eggs
1/2 c chocolate syrup (I used Hershey's No Sugar Added)
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 c flour
2 tsp cinnamon (I probably used closer to 2 Tbs because I like cinnamon)
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 c buttermilk
1 c chocolate chips (not in the original recipe, but I think they'll make a great addition!)
1/2 c powdered sugar

Microwave the chocolate baking squares in a microwave-safe bowl for 1-2 minutes, or until melted--stir every 15-30 seconds.

Using a mixer, beat the butter until creamy, and then gradually add in the sugar--beat at least 5 minutes or until fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating just until the yellow disappears after each addition.  Stir in the melted chocolate. syrup, and vanilla until smooth.

In another bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon and baking soda.  Then add to the batter alternately with the buttermilk (begin and end with the flour mix).  Fold in chocolate chips.  Pour batter into a greased and floured bundt or tube pan.  Bake at 325 for an hour.  Let it cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes, and then remove from the pan and let it cool alone on the rack for an hour and a half.  Garnish with sifted powdered sugar.