Zucchini Bread

3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 325. Grease two loaf pans. Beat eggs until light and frothy. Mix in oil and sugar. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. In another bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, soda, powder, salt, and nuts. Add the wet ingredients and stir to combine. Divide into pans and bake 60-75 minutes.

Posted by: Erika

Blueberry Doughnuts

2 c. all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. sugar
1 stick melted butter
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 c. milk
1 1/2 c. blueberries

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and sugar. In a smaller bowl, combine the egg, milk, and butter. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture, and stir just until combined; do not over mix. Fold in the blueberries.

Scoop the batter into a pastry bag or a ziploc bag with one of the bottom corners snipped off.

In a large skillet or dutch oven, heat 2-3 inches of oil. When the oil is hot enough (test by dropping in a little bit of the batter), squeeze the batter into the oil in a doughnut shape. About halfway through cooking, flip each doughnut over so they cook evenly.

Drain on a paper towel lined plate, and sprinkle with powdered sugar once they cool.

(Notes from me: This was supposed to be a muffin recipe-- 350 degrees, 20-25 minutes-- but I got started before I realized I didn't have a muffin pan available, and had to figure out something to do with all the batter! Also, I used 1 cup of blueberries and just over 1/4 cup each of diced strawberries and peaches.)

Posted by: Erika

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

Low Fat Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins with nutritional info.

I followed her recommendation to use 1 cup whole wheat flour and 1 cup all-purpose flour.  These turned out GREAT!  They are a lot sweeter than I expected; usually whole wheat items aren't very sweet at all.


 Posted by:  Tabitha

Biscuits

This is the absolute best biscuit recipe I've tried-- it's replaced my former favorite biscuit recipe. I found it on the Food Network website, but I don't remember who's recipe it is.

2 c flour
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp baking powder
8 tbsp very cold butter, cut into small cubes, plus 2-3 tbsp melted butter
3/4 c milk or buttermilk (I usually end up needing 3/4 c + 1-2 tbsp milk)

Preheat oven to 425. Combine the dry ingredients, then cut in the cold butter until it's all crumbly. Stir in the milk. Roll out to desired thickness, then use a glass or biscuit cutter dipped in flour to cut the biscuits out. Place in a buttered cast-iron skillet, brush the tops with melted butter, and bake 12-15 minutes until the tops are golden. Brush with melted butter again, then serve.

Posted by: Erika

Smoked Gouda Grits

2 cups chicken broth
1 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
1 cup freshly grated smoked Gouda cheese
1 Tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste

1. Bring chicken broth and 2 1/2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Gradually whisk in grits; reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes or until creamy.
2. Gradually stir in cheese, and cook, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and smooth. Stir in butter and salt; season with pepper to taste.

**I usually add more cheese, maybe 1/2 cup extra. 1 cup just isn't enough ;)


Posted by: Tabitha

Pink Pancakes

"Hide the vegetable" recipes rarely work with my kids, but these were a HUGE hit. The recipe says it serves 4 small children-- for my two kids, the hubby, and myself, we had to double the recipe.

Ingredients:
3/4 c water
1/2 c ricotta cheese
1/4 c beet puree*
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 c pancake mix
1/4 c grated apple
maple syrup or fruit, for serving

*For the beet puree, I just dumped a can of beets (make sure they're just plain beets, not pickled!!) into the blender. A food processor would work, too.

In a blender or food processor, combine the water, ricotta cheese, beet puree, vanilla, and cinnamon and blend. Dump the mixture into a medium bowl, add the pancake mix and apple and stir until just combined. Do not overmix-- the batter will be a little lumpy.
Coat a griddle or large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and set it over med-high heat. Spoon the batter onto the griddle or skillet, using about 1/4 c batter for each pancake. Cook the pancakes until bubbles form on top and the batter is set, 1-2 minutes. Then flip the pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown on the other side, 2-3 minutes.
Serve warm, with syrup or fruit.

Sausage Gravy

Here is the link to the original recipe:
http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,175,133181-245192,00.html?pg=2&opt=old


After reading the comments on it, I changed it up a little. Here are the changes I made-

-I used 1 lb of sausage instead of 3/4 lb (Jimmy Dean Original)
-I added 2 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp oil to the sausage after it was cooked because there wasn't much grease
-I used 6 tbsp flour
-I added salt & pepper to taste (not sure how much)

I didn't make my own biscuits; Grands Southern Style in a can works just fine for me ;)
Oh, and I cooked the sausage on medium, and turned it up to med-high after I added the milk, until it was boiling. Then I turned it down to med-low to simmer until thick. Make sure to stir frequently!


Posted by: Tabitha

Cherry Cheesecake Pancakes

•2 cups milk
•2 large eggs
•1/2 cup sugar
•2 teaspoons vanilla extract
•2 cups all-purpose flour
•2 teaspoons baking powder
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/4 cup butter - melted
•1 cup cottage cheese 
•Jar of Cherry preserves, such as Polaner's or Cherry Pie Filling
•Whipped cream

Directions:

In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the milk. Add the sugar and vanilla and mix well.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt.
Combine the two mixtures and stir in the melted butter followed by the cottage cheese

To make each pancake, dollop 1/4 cup of batter onto a well-greased skillet set to medium high heat (about 375 degrees).
Cook until both sides are lightly brown - about 2 minutes per side

Serve warm with your favorite topping. I suggest cherry preserves and whipped cream.


Posted by: Rachel

Banana Bread

This is the easiest banana bread recipe I've ever seen- and it's so moist and tasty! I know, I'm lazy to just post the link, but why re-type it if I didn't change anything?! :)
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/banana_bread/


Posted by: Tabitha

Pumpkin Wheat Honey Muffins

I got the recipe from this link, but tweaked it a little:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/pumpkin-wheat-honey-muffins/detail.aspx
Here are the ingredients I used (the rest of the instructions are the same)-

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar (I used dark)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup honey

I did have to cook them a little longer, maybe 3 extra minutes, due to the added pumpkin. 

I didn't use raisins or walnuts, but I'm sure it would be good if you like that sort of thing. Chocolate chips would also be good, especially if you need a bribe to get your kids to eat them!


Posted by: Tabitha

Pumpkin Pancakes

2 1/2 c. pancake mix
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1 egg
1 3/4 c. milk
2 tbsp. veg. oil
2 tbsp. vinegar
1 c. pumpkin puree

Combine the first six ingredients together in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, combine the last 5 ingredients, then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined. Use 1/4 c. batter for each pancake-- pour onto a griddle, spread the batter around a little bit, then cook like you would regular pancakes.
Makes about 12 pancakes.


Posted by: Erika