Lighter Red Velvet Cake
by Martin Family Food Admin on Oct.20, 2011, under Cakes, Desserts
256 Fewer Calories
16g Less Fat
Servings: 16
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 35 min
Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
Cake:
2 cups cake flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch processed)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1 large egg
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon red food coloring
Frosting:
1 (8-ounce) package reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchatel)
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup toasted chopped pecans
1/4 cup toasted coconut
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 8-inch round baking pan with nonstick spray.
Whisk the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk the buttermilk, granulated sugar, oil, egg, vinegar, vanilla, and food coloring together in a medium bowl. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture; stir until well blended.
Spoon the batter into the pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 – 40 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a rack. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Invert.
To make the frosting, with an electric mixer on high speed, beat the cream cheese in a medium bowl until very smooth 2 – 3 minutes. On low speed, beat in the confectioners’ sugar, sour cream, and vanilla until blended, 1 – 2 minutes.
Split the cake layer in half with a long serrated knife. Place the bottom layer, cut side up, on a serving plate. Spread 1/2 cup of the frosting evenly over the layer, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Place the remaining cake layer on top, rounded side up. Spread the remaining 1 cup frosting over the top and side of the cake. Sprinkle with the pecans and coconut.
Nutritional Information: Per Serving: 216 Cal (32% from Fat, 6% from Protein, 62% from Carb); 3 g Protein; 8 g Tot Fat; 2 g Sat Fat; 3 g Mono Fat; 34 g Carb; 1 g Fiber; 19 g Sugar; 31 mg Calcium; 2 mg Iron; 79 mg Sodium; 22 mg Cholesterol
Corn & Crab Chowder
by Martin Family Food Admin on Oct.18, 2011, under Entrees, Seafood, Soup
Ingredients:
4 slices of bacon, cut up
2 tablespoons of butter
3/4 cup of chopped onion
1/2 cup of chopped celery
1/4 cup of all purpose flour
2 cups of chicken stock or broth
1 1/2 cups of diced raw potato
1 can of whole kernel corn, drained
1 can of creamed corn
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 turns of the pepper grinder
1/2 teaspoon of Cajun seasoning (like Slap Ya Mama)
1/4 teaspoon of Old Bay seasoning
2 cups of warmed half and half
1 pound of fresh crab, picked over for shell, (set aside a few pinches for garnish)
1/4 cup of sliced green onion
1-2 tablespoons of dried parsley
Reserved crab and extra sprinkle of Cajun seasoning, for garnish
Instructions:
Cut the bacon into small pieces and saute until cooked but not crisp. Add the butter, onion and celery and cook until tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in the flour, until well blended. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes to cook the flour. Stir in the broth a little at a time until mixture is smooth. Add the potatoes, increase heat and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring several times. Stir in the corn, seasonings and half and half. Bring back up to a boil, reduce back to a simmer and gently fold in the crab. Stir in green onion and parsley; simmer for about 10 minutes or until crab is warmed through. Garnish with a pinch of crab and a sprinkle of Cajun seasoning.
Pumpkin Mudslide Cupcakes
by Martin Family Food Admin on Oct.18, 2011, under Cupcakes, Desserts
Quick tip: Make these for the under-21 set by replacing the Kahlua and Baileys Irish Cream in this recipe with apple juice.
Yield: 12 cupcakes
Cupcake Ingredients:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt
1 ½ cups sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup Kahlua
¼ cup Baileys Irish Cream
Cupcake Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F.
In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice, instant coffee granules, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat sugar, pumpkin puree, and eggs until smooth.
Mix the vegetable oil, Kahlua, and Baileys Irish Cream into the wet ingredients until fully combined.
Mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients a little bit at a time until just incorporated.
Divide batter evenly among 12 cupcake liners.
Bake for 20 minutes or until cupcakes bounce back when lightly touched.
Frosting Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
½ cup pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate syrup for drizzling
Orange and black sanding sugar (optional)
Frosting Directions:
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy – about three minutes on high speed using an electric mixer.
Add powdered sugar a little bit at a time until fully combined.
Mix in pumpkin puree, coffee granules, pumpkin pie spice, and vanilla until fully combined.
Spread or pipe onto cooled cupcakes.
Drizzle with chocolate syrup.
Optionally, dust with orange and black sanding sugar.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Swirl Brownies
by Martin Family Food Admin on Oct.05, 2011, under Brownies, Cheesecake, Desserts
Ingredients:
Brownie Batter:
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 tbs vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teas salt
1/2 teas cinnamon
Cheesecake Batter:
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/3 cup sugar
2 tbs flour
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 teas vanilla
1/2 teas cinnamon
1/4 teas each ground ginger and ground cloves
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8×8? or an 11×7? baking pan.
For the Brownies: Beat together melted butter, sugar, and vanilla, then beat in eggs one at a time. Combine dry ingredients in small bowl, and then gradually stir into butter mixture by hand.
For the Cheesecake: In another bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in remainder of ingredients until smooth.
Spread about 2/3 of chocolate batter into prepared pan. Spread the pumpkin batter over top, distributing evenly. Drop the remaining brownie batter over cheesecake batter. To make the swirls, run a butter knife back and forth through the pan.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the center doesn’t jiggle when you nudge the pan. Cool completely and chill before cutting and serving.
Creamiest Mac and Cheese
by Martin Family Food Admin on Sep.14, 2011, under Entrees, Pasta, Vegetarian
2 cups elbow macaroni (8 ounces)
3 tablespoons butter
2 large eggs
3/4 heavy cream or evaporated milk
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon mustard powder
Pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (6 ounces)
8 slices American cheese
Directions
1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the macaroni according to the package directions. Drain well and return the pasta to the pot. Add the butter and stir over medium heat until the butter has melted and the pasta is coated.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, salt, black pepper, mustard powder, and cayenne pepper, if using. Pour the egg and cream mixture into the pot and stir. Add the cheeses and continue stirring over medium heat until the sauce has thickened and is very creamy, about 3 minutes. Serve hot.
Serves 4 to 6
Take Away Tip
Dairy products are delicate creatures when they come across heat. There’s always the risk of curdling, which makes a clumpy mess. The best protection against curdling, folks, is fat. So, regular milk, with its lower fat content, will just not cut it in this recipe. Stick with the heavy cream or evaporated milk, and this mac will be at its creamy best!