Pumpkin muffins

baking, breakfast, kids 10 Comments

Behold: my breakfast from now till Christmas!

These are such a lovely start to the morning. Warm and comfort food-ey and delicious even without any butter on them. I’m afraid this is another one of my scrawled-on-a-piece-of-paper recipes so I’m not sure where I originally got it, but I’ve been making them forever.

 

Pumpkin muffins

Yield: 36 muffins

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup oil
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 tsp. nutmeg
  • 2/3 cup water
  • 1 can pumpkin
  • 3 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 tsp. baking soda

Instructions

  1. Mix all ingredients till just combined — lumps are okay — and fill prepared muffin cups 1/2 to 2/3 full; bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

Some easy edits if you have the urge to health these up a bit:

  • Cut the sugar — these are lovely and sweet but would still be yummy with less sugar (although when you divide the sugar by 36 muffins it’s not so bad)
  • Replace 1/2 cup of the oil with 1/2 cup applesauce
  • Replace half the flour with whole wheat flour

These freeze wonderfully! I freeze them flat on a cookie sheet then drop them in a zip top bag; I take out one every night and it’s thawed by morning when the coffee is ready. You can also pop it in the microwave for a couple seconds to warm it up. Quick and easy comfort food!

Edited to add 11/12/10: Ooh I just found something! For a decadent version of these involving cream cheese check out these from Family Bites!

RO*TEL winner!

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Comment number 29 was from Amanda:

I have no idea when I had it the first time, but the last time was this past weekend!

Looks like you’ll be having it again very soon. 😉 Just email me your mailing information to erin at oneparticularkitchen dot com and I’ll get you hooked up. Congrats, Amanda!

Hummus

kids, snacks 9 Comments

The first time I tried hummus? Not. A. Fan. I couldn’t even tell you now what I didn’t like about it (it was years and years ago) but I can for sure tell you I didn’t like it. Fast forward to this month when Kiddo’s BFF’s mom made it at her house. Seeing as how it’d been years and years I wanted to try it again, so I sort of held my breath and took a bite. YUM! I don’t know what the difference is, but now I can’t get enough of the stuff.

Vanessa sent me her recipe so I made a big batch of this for last night. Halloween night at our place is hanging out with the neighbors on the front porch with food and wine while we hand out candy; we don’t go trick or treating because Kiddo doesn’t like candy (of course) so we just make it into a party (and I LOVE it!). In the three and a half seconds I spent looking in the grocery store I couldn’t find the tahini Vanessa’s recipe called for so I used natural peanut butter instead, a la Alton Brown.

Hummus

Ingredients

  • Gather up:
  • 1 can chick peas (drain, keep 1/3 c of liquid)
  • 1/3 cup natural peanut butter (or tahini)
  • 2 1/2 Tbsp. lemon juice
  • 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled or a couple spoonfuls of jarred minced garlic
  • Healthy pinch of salt
  • Cayenne pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Put everything but the chickpeas in a food processor and process till garlic is well chopped
  2. Add in chickpeas and process till smooth and give it a taste — adjust salt and cayenne as desired
  3. Chill; eat with pita chips and/or baby carrots

Simple crackers

baking, kids, snacks, soup 2 Comments

The Yankee and I love to have snacky suppers every so often; just some crackers, some cheese, maybe some salami or dried fruit or nuts. Browsing through How to Cook Everything today I came across a recipe for crackers. Did y’all have any idea how fast it is to make crackers? I certainly did not. I gathered:

Simple crackers

Ingredients

  • 1 cup AP flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 4 tbsp butter
  • 1/4 cup whole milk

Instructions

  1. Combine the flour and salt, then cut in the butter like you’re making biscuits or pie dough (a few pulses in a food processor will do this nicely; I used a pastry blender this time), then add in milk
  2. Either pulse till combined in the food processor or stir in with a fork or dough whisk in a bowl
  3. Roll out 1/8 inch thick and cut out into shapes, or just score it with a knife if you want to simply break them apart later
  4. Bake at 400F on a lightly floured baking sheet or on a pizza stone for about ten minutes, then cool on a rack. Serve warm or save for later

With limitless shape options, these crackers also make a very fun kid snack.

Have fun!

RO*TEL dip

uncategorized 34 Comments

True story: the very first recipe I posted on One Particular Kitchen involved RO*TEL. I also use it in jambalaya. And chili. My love affair with the magical can of tomatoes and chiles started in college, though, when Kiddo’s Aunt Burgle introduced me to the classic Velveeta/RO*TEL dip at a UT vs. Alabama football party. We added browned up sausage to it and it was a meal; it’s still a staple in both our households five ten a few years and a few kids later.

RO*TEL

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. Velveeta cut into 1″ cubes
  • 1 can RO*TEL
  • 1 lb. breakfast sausage, browned and crumbled

Instructions

  1. Heat in a microwave or a slow cooker and stir till melted and combined; serve with chips

CONTEST CLOSED, KIDS! 🙂

* * * * *

Given this history, when RO*TEL asked if I wanted to join up with them for a giveaway it was a no brainer.

So… anyone interested in queso for 100? A $50 grocery gift card? Goodies for your kitchen with your team’s logo from FansEdge?

I thought so! Entry is easy: just leave a comment here and tell me how you were introduced to RO*TEL queso dip. And if, for some inexplicable reason, no one has introduced you yet, allow me! Grab a coupon here and make some queso, then come back and tell me about how fabulous it was. Just be sure you do it by the DEADLINE: November 5th at midnight central time.

Details: one entry per email address, please; the winner will be chosen at random by Random.org and notified by email, so make sure you leave me a valid email address with your comment.

But wait, there’s more! Also makes julienne fries! You can also go here and enter for the RO*TEL grand prize:

Disclaimer: by hosting this giveaway I’m entered to win a trip to BlogHer 2011; because can’t you just see me hauling Kiddo to California?

Now… let’s hear those RO*TEL stories! 🙂