Yummy in the Tummy Apple “Cupcake” Muffins

Apple Muffins

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**THIS is a repost of a popular recipe I posted a year or so ago. Enjoy!***

This morning, I knew the moment I woke up that I had made a mistake.

A big mistake.

I remembered the previous night, we went to go get Noah a much needed haircut. I grabbed my keys, Colin grabbed his keys and we rushed out the door (in the D-A-R-K…at 6:00 PM…this time change is going to take some getting used to) and headed on our way. Now, since we were driving in the same vehicle, there was hardly a good reason for BOTH of us to have our keys, so I dropped my keys into the center console.

USUALLY, I drop my keys in my purse. My purse always comes inside with me. The center console? It’s kind of like socks and the dryer. Objects go in, but often don’t come back out.

As the kids hopped on me and jostled me awake this morning with their excited, “Mommy, we’re going to school today!” and “Mommy, I can’t wait to play with my friends!“. It dawned on me.

I never grabbed my keys out of the center console. The car was definitely locked. I remembered Colin double checking that it was locked.

Colin had my spare key…at work.

We weren’t going anywhere today.

As I told my children they’d be stuck with me all day (sheesh, you’d think I told them that we were bypassing Christmas this year), they showered me with Mama Guilt (my kids are good at that. Are yours?).

I knew a morning of cold cereal and/or toast wasn’t going to cut it for breakfast, so I decided to bake them something. I have an overabundance of apples right now, so I decided to try out these Apple Muffins. Now I have posted an Apple Muffin recipe here on FFF in the past, but it required more applesauce then I had on hand and to be honest, I wanted a fluffier muffin (okay and a better picture).

So without further ado…here is the recipe for Apple “Cupcake” Muffins (oh…real quick. We call them “cupcakes” because our kids don’t eat muffins. I’m not sure what it is about that word they don’t like, but call it a muffin and they won’t take a bite. Call it a cupcake and they are all over it!)

Apple “Cupcake” Muffins

(adapted from the Southern Plate Cookbook)

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/4 cup self rising flour (make your own by adding 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt)
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 cup quick cooking oats
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples (any kind will do)
  • 1/2 cup applesauce
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons water

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Prepare your muffin tray by adding in your cupcake liners.
  2. Mix the flour, sugar, oats, cinnamon & nutmeg together in a bowl.
  3. Beat your eggs and then add your apples, applesauce, oil and water and stir together until incorporated.
  4. Slowly add your flour mixture to your wet mixture and stir until just moistened.
  5. Start spooning your batter into the cupcake liners. Mine were filled just about to the top. They do puff up a bit, but mine didn’t spill over at all.
  6. Bake for about 20 minutes. The tops should be slightly brown
  7. Let cool and enjoy!

The kids adored their cupcakes. They each ate 2! I ate one and thought it was pretty filling with the oats added in. Next time I think I’ll make them with all wheat flour and I’ll also add in some flax. This seems like a pretty versatile/quick & easy recipe!

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies On A Southern Mom!

It’s cookie time!

Check out these Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies that I just posted on A Southern Mom. These cookies are SO good and have an added benefit for nursing mothers (but can be eaten by EVERYONE, I promise!).

Just take a look at these yummy pictures:

Mmm! Click here to check out these tasty cookies on A Southern Mom!

Cinnamon Sugar Pull Apart Bread-Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Sugary Wonderfulness

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I first saw this recipe on Pinterest.

I loved the idea of it because even though I love cinnamon rolls, I kind of hate the outside edges.

They are typically really tough and more bready than cinnamon sugary.

I have to say, it’s a *bit* more work than I expected, but the results were definitely worthwhile.

The picture doesn’t do it justice though. I was in a hurry and it was pouring outside so I couldn’t get the right lighting or focus going.

You’ll just have to take my word for it that what lies in between those layers is ooey gooey cinnamon sugary wonderfulness.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull Apart Bread

adapted from Joy the Baker 

Dough Ingredients:

  • 2 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) active dry yeast
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 ounces unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup whole milk
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Filling:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
  • 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted until browned

Directions:

  1. First you are going to want to combine your dry ingredients (2 cups flour, sugar, yeast & salt) in a large bowl
  2. Now whisk up your eggs and set them aside.
  3. Heat your butter & milk in the microwave until butter is melted and add your vanilla after you take it out
  4. Add your butter/milk/vanilla mixture to the dry ingredient mixture and mix with a spatula
  5. Add eggs & stir, the mixture will be kind of soupy
  6. Add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour and stir with a spatula for a bit. I ended up pulling mine out to knead it for a bit. About 5-10 minutes should do the trick. Knead into a ball.
  7. Let the dough rise in a well oiled bowl covered with plastic wrap. Put it in a warm, draft free location.
  8. Give it about an hour to double in size.
  9. Punch the dough down and knead in the additional 2 tablespoons of flour. Let it rest for about 5 minutes.
  10. Roll the dough out until it is about 12 inches tall and 20 inches wide (my dough did not want to do that…that’s why my bread isn’t all nice and uniform looking. Do the best you can).
  11. Mix your filling (sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg) together in a small bowl.
  12. Spread your melted butter all over the dough, then sprinkle the filling all over
  13. Slice the dough vertically in 6 rows and stack the dough strips on top of each other
  14. Cut the stacked dough into 6 equal parts.
  15. Grease a 9x5x3-inch (22x12x8) loaf pan.
  16. Place the dough squares in the loaf pan like a “flip-book”
  17. Throw a towel over the top and allow to rest for 30-45 minutes
  18. Place in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until golden brown
  19. Allow to cool before pulling apart and serving!

Yum! It tastes best the day you make it, but you can heat the leftovers in the microwave for a few seconds and it tastes freshly baked even days later!

Be sure to check out all the frugal recipes here on Family Friendly Frugality!

Garlic Cheddar "Copycat Red Lobster" Biscuits

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Can I just tell you the truth?

I mean, I’ve been living this lie for awhile and I honestly think it’s about time I come clean.

I don’t really like Red Lobster. I use them for their biscuits.

Phew! I am SO glad to get that off my chest.

Who wouldn’t love those yummy, buttery, cheesy biscuits? It’s a fabulous marketing technique. Give the people something for free that is so absolutely scrumptious that they don’t really care if their entree isn’t up to par.

I have outsmarted them though.

For so long I’ve seen copycat cheddar biscuit recipes on the internet. Of course, I never tried them. I worried that A.) they wouldn’t be good OR B.) They WOULD be good and that many cheddar biscuits in my house seemed like a recipe for cardiac arrest.

Today though, I happened upon this recipe from Two Of A Kind Working On A Full House.

I loved that the recipe didn’t require I make 3 dozen biscuits and even suggested making them in a mini muffin tin.

Now I don’t have a mini muffin tin, so I just made mine in a regular muffin tin, but the results were still absolutely stellar.

In fact, after I handed the biscuit to my husband, he’s only response was, “wow…this is it. This is it“.

’nuff said.

I bet you $10, you have the ingredients to make this on hand. So make it. Now.

Garlic Cheddar “Copycat Red Lobster” Biscuits

adapted from Two Of A Kind Working On A Full House

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 cup cold butter, cubed
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup milk

Directions:

  1. Preheat your oven to 400.
  2. Combine all of your dry ingredients together.
  3. Cut” in the COLD butter using two forks or whatever technique works best for you. You want the flour to take on a crumbly consistency. Don’t overwork it, you don’t want the butter to warm.
  4. Add your milk and cheese and mix until the flour is fully moistened (once again…don’t overwork it.).
  5. Spray your muffin tin with cooking spray.
  6. If you have a mini muffin tin, you can drop by the tablespoon full. I did not, so I made 10 biscuits just by eyeballing even portions.
  7. I let it cook about 15 minutes and it was done perfectly. I say start checking at around 10 minutes. They should be slightly golden brown on top.
  8. Eat and enjoy!

Be sure to check out all the frugal recipes here on Family Friendly Frugality!

Easy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Easy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

This super simple and easy Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie comes together in minutes and the end result is warm, chocolate-y, gooey chocolate chip cookie pie! You can’t beat that for an easy and fun dessert that even the kids will love!

 

I am not a pie person. I actually kind of detest pie crust. However, I guess you can say that while I’m not a pie crust fan, I can be convinced (you know by twisting my arm or setting a plate in front of me) to eat pie filling.

My mama taught me to clean my plate, a habit that unfortunately has not died, despite the reassurance from my ever-growing hips that I totally would be just fine if I left some (if not most) food on my plate.

This is the main reason why I don’t really bake pies. As a member of the Clean Your Plate club, I take offense to any recipe that I know I’ll only partially enjoy.

Mainly it’s a time thing. If I have to spend the time to make the pie crust, roll it out, prepare the filling, crimp the edges etc…I definitely would rather spend that time on something “lick the crumbs” worthy.

However…chocolate chip cookies are probably my single biggest weakness (well…good ones are). I’ll eat a chocolate chip cookie in just about any form:

  1. Dough
  2. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream
  3. Chocolate Chip Cookies
  4. Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
  5. Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
  6. Chocolate Chip Caramel Cookie Bars
  7. You get the picture

So it stands to reason that when I saw this Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie recipe from Bakerella, my dislike of pie crust was NOT going to be holding me back from at least attempting it. I mean who knows? Chocolate Chip Cookies really do make everything better! Could they even make pie crust worth the effort?

Luckily, this chocolate chip cookie pie recipe calls for pre-made refrigerated pie dough…so other than slapping the pie crust in the pie plate, it actually required very little effort.

You like how fancy I make my pie crust? It’s a talent, I think I have a real knack for it!

(Yes MIL, that is your pie plate. I will give it back to you…soon? BTW, thanks for letting me “borrow” it! 😉 )

The cookie dough filling was even easier than making actual cookies and required even less ingredients.

Mmmm, it’s a wonder I didn’t eat all that batter!

The entire pie was in the oven in less than 10 minutes. At this point I’m thinking, wow…even if it is absolutely disgusting, that was super easy!

Let’s Dig in!

55-60 minutes in a 325 degree oven and you are presented with this:

We let it sit for a bit, and then we dug in.

The verdict?

Well, I still don’t like pie crust. I don’t necessarily mind the bottom of the pie-pie crust, but the actual edges? Yuck, not my cup of tea (my hips say THANK YOU!). However, this pie was so super easy to whip up and dirtied very few dishes…so I’m calling this one a winner.

It’s also really quite economical as far as pies go. AND it’s even better the second day (in my opinion…husband likes it fresh from the oven!).

We have had the pie with homemade vanilla ice cream and that is To.Die.For!

Definitely try this pie, you won’t regret it!

Recipe:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

from Bakerella

Ingredients:

  • 1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell (make it yourself or buy it. I say just buy it)
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup butter
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • nuts optional

Directions:

  1. Preheat  your oven to 325
  2. Whip your eggs until they are light and fluffy (I used my Kitchen Aid).
  3. Add flour, both sugars and butter and beat until thoroughly mixed
  4. Add chocolate chips and nuts if you like
  5. Put pie crust into your pie plate (or your Mother in Law’s pie plate)
  6. Pour filling into pie crust
  7. Bake for 55-60 minutes
  8. Let sit for at least 30 minutes or so. It will “set” a bit.
  9. Enjoy!

You don’t want the nutritional info on this one. I promise.

Let me know if you make this! If you want to print this recipe you can click the print friendly button below and just print the ingredients and directions (tutorial here).

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Frugal Recipes: “Instant” Pancake Mix

I don’t know about you, but breakfast always winds up being kind of a haze every single morning. I am not a morning person and my lack of early morning inspiration is painfully obvious when you look at our daily breakfasts. I have found a few ways to streamline the process however. One in particular has really made making a warm filling breakfast super simple and painless. Even on my worst mornings, I can easily add a few wet ingredients to dry and make stellar pancakes for the little bellies in our family.

How do I do this? Well I pre mix the dry ingredients during a more alert and caffeine supported moment, so that in the mornings all I have to do is add the wet ingredients and heat!

It’s super easy and it really doesn’t take much effort or pre planning at all. If you like, you can even totally make the pancakes ahead of time and freeze them, reheating each morning. While you are at it, be sure to check out my freezer breakfast burritos too!

Here’s how I streamline breakfast:

Continue reading Frugal Recipes: “Instant” Pancake Mix

Silly Silly Applesauce Muffins

This morning I decided I was going to take advantage of the “extra” hour given by DST and wake up earlier than my kiddos. I only ended up getting 40 minutes (try telling my kids we get an extra hour of sleep..they aren’t buying it!), but they were the most productive 40 minutes I’ve had in a LONG time.

In 40 minutes, I:

1. Read my Bible Verses
2. Did a quick 10 minute exercise DVD from Netflix
3. Took a shower!

The only thing that would have made the morning more productive is if breakfast had been ready by the time the kids woke up. Noah requested Silly Silly Muffins, and unfortunatley I have no recipe for that (what kind of mommy am I!). I was able to convince him that Applesauce Muffins were really quite silly…so we pulled out the ingredients and got to work! Here’s our recipe:

Silly Silly Applesauce Muffins
(we use cupcake liners and it makes about 12)

  • 1 1/2 cups flour (we do half wheat half white)
  • 1 tspn baking powder
  • 1/2 tspn baking soda
  • 1/2 tspn salt 
  • 1 tspn cinnamon
  • 2/3 cup brown sugar
  • 2 1/2 tbspn butter
  • 2 cups apple sauce
  • 2 small apples diced
  • 2 eggs
  1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Mix dry ingredients together
  3. Add wet ingredients and apples and mix until batter is just moistened
  4. Line cupcake pan with liners and spoon in batter
  5. Bake for 20-22 minutes
  6. Let cool and enjoy!
I thought this recipe would be a great addition to the frugal recipes here on Family Friendly Frugality! 

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