Lemon Poppyseed crisps.

Hello. My name is Lara and I have an enormous sweet-tooth. E. NOR. MUSS.

I am currently experiencing minor withdrawal symptoms as I have given up candy for lent.

AND dining out.

We've only just begun and I'm already feeling tortured. Of course it doesn't compare to the passion of Christ, but it IS my own personal suffering.

Anyway, Liam and I are home all day together and we usually end up making treats but today as I peered into the pantry the only sweet things I could find, to ease my suffering, were a 5 year old package of Jello pudding, (the kind you actually have to cook!) and a box mix for lemon poppy seed muffins.
The jello hit the bin but the muffin mix sparked a bit of creativity so I jumped online to see if I couldn't find some guidance (there is precise chemistry required with baking and I am not a chemist) and lo and behold the Lemon Poppyseed Crisp is born!

Here is what you will need:
(recipe adapted from Martha White)

1/4 cup Applesauce
1 TBSP butter or margarine, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons skim milk
1 (7.6 oz.) package Lemon Poppyseed Muffin Mix


GLAZE
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 to 2 teaspoons skim milk
dash of vanilla extract

This really couldn't be easier!
Preheat oven to 350°F. Combine butter, applesauce 2 tablespoons sugar and milk in bowl; blend well. Add muffin mix until well blended. drop mixture by rounded teaspoon 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake 6 to 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. While the cookies are cooling mix up the glaze to desired drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cooled cookies.

People, listen to me: these are REALLY good. I was shocked. Go get yourself some muffin mix and give it a try.

I'm thinking these dolled up with pretty pastel glaze will be on our Easter menu. And Maybe by then I will have kicked the candy habit. Otherwise I'll be hitting Liam's basket for some damn robbin eggs and jelly beans.

Blackberry cobbler. A sure thing.

You know when life gets you down, when the hits just keep on coming and you wonder when or if things will ever get back to normal. When you've got so many things swirling and circling through the forefront of your mind that you need an extra day just to compartmentalize it all.

When you're having one of those days make this:

Blackberry Cobbler. It may not be the solution to all your problems, but it will make you feel better, if only for the amount of time it takes to eat the whole dish. By yourself.

Here is what you will need:

1 stick Butter
1 & 1/4 cup Sugar
1 cup Self-Rising Flour
1 cup Milk
2 cups Blackberries*

(i had some left over raspberries that I threw in there too!)

Add 1 cup of sugar and flour to a mixing bowl, whisk in milk. Mix well. Add melted butter and whisk it all together

Butter a baking dish and pour batter into the buttered baking dish. This pie plate was not the proper dish, much too small. Don't make the same mistake!


lovingly sprinkle blackberries (and raspberries!) over the top of the batter; distributing evenly. Sprinkle 1/4 cup sugar over the top.
Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or until golden and bubbly.

"What I love about cooking is that after a hard day, there is something comforting about the fact that if you melt butter and add flour and then hot stock, it will get thick! It's a sure thing! It's a sure thing in a world where nothing is sure; it has a mathematical certainty in a world where those of us who long for some kind of certainty are forced to settle for crossword puzzles." — Nora Ephron

*produce from our CSA.

"Awesome Apple Crisp"

My husband is an apple crisp connoisseur. It is one of his three favorite desserts when its done right. So its rather convenient, for Chris, that one of his good friends owns a company that produces and sells an incredible apple crisp topping (not so convenient for me on the heels of my renewed focus explained here).

I may have mentioned it before but here's a little recap: Chris is from Rhinebeck NY. Which randomly happens to be some sort of weird hub for State Fair concessions. Chris grew up in Rhinebeck with Rick and Steph Winne who own one of these concession gigs. Just like our friend Rob, they travel from state fairs to horse shows to small craft festivals selling hot apple crisp. They do this in addition to regular, full time jobs; Rick is an insurance adjuster and Steph is in real estate. As if all that weren't enough, they decided to expand the business to local commercial markets and grocers selling the apple crisp recipe along with sweet potato crisp, pumpkin crisp and pear crisp in convenient, single serving packages in parts of the north east.

After a recent visit, when Rick and Steph returned home they sent down a couple of samples of their apple and sweet potato crisp. Today we threw one together and lets just say its good that I'm leaving for work soon lest my willpower waver.

If your are able to get your hands on it, here is what you'll need:

1 package awesome apple crisp
10 to 12 baking apples
2 sticks butter
1/4 cup water

This package makes 18 servings in a 9 by 13 baking dish!

The Winne's recommend using granny smith apples. We had a bag of organic Galas so thats what we're using.
Peel,

core,
and slice your apples. If you have one of these thing-a-ma-jiggies its makes the whole process a lot easier.
place all the apples in the baking dish with 1/4 cup of water

melt two sticks of butter
pour the package of crisp topping into a bowl


add the butter and combine

Topping!

now pour the crisp over the apples

and bake for 45 minutes

The aroma in this house is making my mouth water

and so is this!

Serve with ice cream and earn big points with your hubby! I see shopping in my near future...

Monkey Cupcakes

Monkey Cupcakes... is there really any other way to go for one's FIRST BIRTHDAY? I think not.
These are crafty and cute and your kids will get a kick out of them. But best of all they are so easy to make. Nothing to it.


Check it out:

First, you make yourself some cupcakes. I added mashed banana to a box mix, which not only gave it great banana flavor but also made them super moist.

Ginger snaps cut into 2 pieces, one just a little larger than the other I'd say 60/40. If your ginger snaps are as hard as ours were place them on a plate, cover with a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds. They will soften right up to help make the cut clean.


You'll also need chocolate frosting, a bit of white icing, mini oreos and brown m&ms

Frost the cupcake with a thin layer of the chocolate.

Place the ginger snap like so- to create the "mug"

Split the mini oreos in two, like you did when you were a kid and wanted to lick the cream except don't lick the cream this time... someone else might not appreciate your tongue on their monkey's ear. Take the two halves of oreo and stick to the cupcake. You might need to frost the oreos a little more to get them to stay put.

Take some of the chocolate frosting and put it into a plastic sandwich bag. Snip the teeniest bit off of one of the corners to create a piping bag. Now pipe the hair and the nostrils.

Put a dollop of the white icing where the eyes go and top with m&ms.

And Viola!

Super cute and very impressive!

Pumpkin Butter Cake

"The proximity of a desirable thing tempts one to overindulgence. On that path lies danger."

If you are calorie conscious, prone to fits of emotional eating, or just have a sweet tooth the size of an elephant tusk you may want to go here instead


Don't say I didn't warn you.

Pumpkin Butter Cake. You know you're in trouble when BUTTER is right in the name. There is no escaping it.

This is one of those recipes, like my father's Christmas steak stroganoff, that should only be made once a year. Usually I only make this for Thanksgiving dessert. But this year I'm making an exception to that rule so that I can share it with you.

Yes, I'm selfless.

Here is what you will need:

For the Cake:
1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted

For the Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat your oven to 350.

Melt the butter and set aside to cool.

In a large mixing bowl crack one egg

add the cake mix and blend.

slowly add the cooled, melted butter.

Once the cake mix is fully blended

Drop the batter into a lightly greased 9 by 13 baking dish


and pat, pat, pat.

until the bottom of the dish is evenly covered. Set aside.

In the same mixing bowl add the pure pumpkin and softened cream cheese. Do not make the mistake I once made and use pumpkin pie filling. The end result will be a sloppy mess and that's not good for anyone.

Blend the pumpkin and cream cheese

add the eggs, vanilla and blend.

Now Please DON'T FREAK OUT. Its only butter. Calmly add the butter,

Cinnamon, nutmeg,

and the powdered sugar. Blend until everything is well incorporated.

pour the filling onto the cake crust

and spread out evenly.

Pop into the oven for about 50 minutes or until the center is only slightly giggly. I think mine went for a little over an hour but our oven is old.

The edges will be browned and the center will be soft and gooey, but not runny.

You'll know when its done...

...it will just feel right.

Excuse me now, I have some business to tend to.