Summer Squash Breakfast Muffins

Our garden is going crazy. I haven't taken many photos of it, since the weeds are healthier than the plants, so it looks like a jungle. I guess we just have had the perfect combination of fertile soil, compost, manure, sun, and water. The yellow squash plants in particular have turned into gigantic monster mutant squash plants. I've never seen summer squash plants so big & healthy. The zucchini plants, however, mysteriously died. I'm not worried though since the other plants are doing so well & we have way way way more produce than we can really eat.

In an effort to use & disguise some of that squash, yesterday I made muffins. I used a recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction.

They turned out to be the best muffins ever. Since I made so many substitutions, I decided to share the recipe with you.

The muffins are so good, I didn't take any pictures of them whole. I ate half first. Oops!

 

Summer Squash Breakfast Muffins

Adapted from: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/06/18/award-winning-zucchini-bread/

Ingredients:

Topping:

2/3 cups old-fashioned or quick oats

1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar

2 Tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, cold

1 Tbsp chopped pecans

1 Tbsp chopped walnuts

1 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut

Muffins:

1 large egg, beaten

1/2 cup packed light or dark brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted & cooled

1 cup shredded yellow squash

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsps ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425F degrees and spray a 12-count pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.

Make the streusel topping first by combining the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour together in a medium bowl. Mix in the cold butter with a pastry cutter or your hands. Mix until the streusel resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in the nuts & coconut with a spoon. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the beaten egg, brown sugar, granulated sugar, oils, squash, and vanilla until evenly combined. In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together. Stir in the nuts and coconut. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix with a spoon until just combined. 

Fill 12 muffin cups with the batter. Press the streusel onto the tops of each muffin. Bake for 5 minutes at 425F degrees and, keeping the muffins in the oven, lower the oven temperature to 350F degrees and continue to bake for an additional 13-14 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before serving.

Based on: http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2014/06/18/award-winning-zucchini-bread/

Mango Slaw

One of the things I learned by participating in the Whole30 plan is that I could eat vinaigrette-based slaw with any meal. I love the stuff! Yesterday I made a batch with mango, using the recipe for this slaw from smitten kitchen. Here's my very slight variation of it.

Mango Slaw

1 bag shredded cabbage, coleslaw blend
1 mango, julienned
1 small red bell pepper, julienned
1/2 shallot, finely minced
1/4 cup rice vinegar
6 Tbsp lime juice
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
5 tsp (1 Tbsp + 2 tsp) olive oil
1/4 tsp red chile flakes
3/4 tsp salt
heaping 1/4 cup cashews, toasted & roughly chopped
1/4 cup mint leaves, finely sliced

Notes: Julienned means cut into thin strips, like matchsticks. Dressing can be made in advance; just shake well to re-emulsify.

In a large mixing bowl, mix your cabbage, mango, and bell pepper.
In a small jar, add the shallot, vinegar, lime juice, oils, chile flakes, and salt. Shake well to emulsify.
Thoroughly mix dressing into the slaw.
Optional: chill for an hour.
Just before serving, mix in cashews and mint.

My Favorite Pasta Sauce

First thing you should know before I go on, I'm two-thirds through my first Whole30! The Boyfriend is not participating, although he'll eat what I cook. Thus, this recipe is paleo, gluten-free, & Whole30 approved. To keep the whole meal in line with the Whole30 plan, I served the sauce over roasted spaghetti squash. It would also be good with zucchini noodles, and honestly, it's so good that I like to eat the leftovers heated up with a spoon.

Also, if I was a real food blog, there would be pictures. Unfortunately for you, I'm not a photographer, my only camera is my iPhone, and my kitchen is usually a mess. So no pictures. Trust me, it looks like delicious pasta sauce.

Big Batch Meat & Mushroom Tomato Sauce

(This makes enough for 4 dinner servings + leftovers for snacking + a jar for the freezer)

Olive oil
2 lbs ground beef
2 small sweet onions, chopped
4 carrots, peeled & diced
4 celery stalks, diced
16 oz mushrooms, sliced or roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried basil
2 bay leaves
2 28-oz cans crushed tomatoes with basil (no-salt added, if possible)
1 small can tomato paste
splash of balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp salt
2 tsp pepper

Heat a drizzle of olive oil over medium-high heat in a large heavy pan, such as an enameled cast-iron dutch oven. Add ground beef & cook until brown. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Reduce heat to medium-low. Add onions to pan, cook until softened and starting to brown. Remove and set aside with the cooked meat.
Add more olive oil if the pan gets dry. Add carrots and celery to pan, cook until slightly softened, then add mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms begin to brown.
Add garlic, dried spices, and bay leaves. Cook 30 seconds or until garlic is fragrant.
Add cooked meat & onions and all remaining ingredients. Stir well.
Lower heat to lowest setting on burner, cover with a heavy lid, and cook at least 30 minutes. Stir occasionally. The sauce will get better if you can cook it longer.
Taste for seasoning, season with salt or vinegar if needed.

King Cake

February is for Valentine's Day. No wait...it's Mardi Gras season. How about both in one dessert?

I love to bake, but before meeting my SO, I had never successfully worked with yeast. I had tried to make my own King Cake in the past & failed. Luckily my SO is a master at baking bread, and he taught me a few tricks. Now I'm confident to take on almost any baking challenge. Last year we made a traditional King Cake. That was my intention this year as well, but I ended up using blood orange in place of the lemon zest in my recipe. It turned out better than ever. I think this is the best thing I've ever baked. Plus the blood orange juice in the icing makes it pink, perfect for Valentine's Day, although it us definitely not going to last that long in this house!

Blood Orange King Cake

Recipe adapted from "Paula Deen Celebrates!"

Cake:

1 stick butter 

3/4 cup plus 1 tsp granulated sugar

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup half & half

2 envelopes or 4 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

3 eggs, whisked

Zest of 1 small blood orange

5 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup cake flour

1 egg white, for glazing

Filling:

1/2 stick butter, melted

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 cup granulated sugar

Icing:

2 cups confectioners' sugar

4 Tbsp blood orange juice

1. Melt 1 stick of butter in a microwave safe bowl. Mix in 3/4 cup sugar and salt, stir until sugar dissolves, reheating if needed. Allow to cool, then mix in half & half.

2. In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, mix together yeast, 1/4 cup lukewarm water, and 1 tsp sugar. Set aside for 10 minutes. If yeast does not foam up or bubble, discard and start over with new yeast.

3. If you have a cast iron pan or 2, place them on the lower rack in your oven. Place the second rack in the middle of the oven. Turn on your oven & allow to preheat no more than 5 minutes. Turn off. Leave door closed if oven is approximately 100F, vent to cool if needed.

4. Whisk cooled butter mixture into yeast mixture. Add in eggs and orange zest, whisk well.

5. Add flour 1 cup at a time. After 3 cups, switch out your whisk for a dough hook attachment. Occasionally scrape the sides & bottom of the mixing bowl. Continue alternating scraping the bowl and kneading the dough with the mixer just until a cohesive and elastic dough forms.

6. Remove dough ball from bowl, throughly grease bowl, return dough, and cover with greased plastic wrap.

7. Place dough in warm oven to rise for approximately 1 hour or until slightly less than doubled in size.

8. Prepare filling: mix cinnamon and sugar in small bowl, and melt butter. 

9. Prepare a large work surface for working with the dough. Get out a large cookie sheet.

10. Divide risen dough in half. Press dough into a 10"x15" rectangle.

11. Brush with half of the melted butter, and sprinkle on half of the cinnamon sugar.

12. Roll tightly into a 15" long roll, seal edge, set aside, and repeat with remaining dough and filling.

13. Twist together the dough rolls, then transfer to your cookie sheet, and form into a circle or oval, pressing ends together.

14. Cover with greased plastic wrap or parchment paper. Return dough to warm oven to rise again, 1 hour or until slightly less than doubled in size.

15. Carefully remove dough from oven. Set oven to 350F and allow to preheat. Whisk egg white and 1 Tbsp water together. Remove covering and brush egg wash onto dough.

16. Bake cake for 35 minutes, until golden brown. Cake should sound hollow when tapped.

17. Prepare icing: whisk together confectioners' sugar and 2-4 Tbsp orange juice. Icing should be smooth. Add more sugar or juice if the mixture is too thick or thin to drizzle.

18. Drizzle icing onto slightly cooled cake. Top with colored decorating sugar if you desire.

Enjoy!