Jolene's Recipe Journal

Hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!   For our last day of break, I thought that these Cranberry Orange Pancakes from Taste of Home would make a great breakfast. The syrup comes together easily and quickly, keep an eye on it or it will boil over in a flash. I did adjust the method a bit for the pancakes themselves.  Instead of folding the chopped cranberries into the batter I held them back and sprinkled them on after I dropped the batter onto the griddle.   I didn't have a lot of time for pictures because we couldn't wait to dig in. The syrup would also be wonderful on French Toast or waffles or even spooned over ice cream. Thank you so much to Nancy Z for this delicious recipe!   Cranberry Orange Pancakes Print With Image Without Image Ingredients Syrup 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries- used fresh 2/3 cup orange juice 1/2 cup sugar 3 tablespoons maple syrup Pancakes 2 cups biscuit/baking mix 2 tablespoons sugar 2 teaspoons baking powder 2 large eggs 1 large egg

Veggies are a tough sell at my house.  My son has limited favorites, and my husband is even pickier.   The December 2015 issue of Taste of Home featured this Orange Spice Carrot recipe, and I thought it would be a nice change from our usual sides.    It also happened to coincide with the ingredient for this week's Cook's Corner Challenge on the Taste of Home Community, Citrus.   I'm on my 3rd crockpot, and this one runs hot.   I wasn't going to be home most of the day to keep an eye on them, so I decided to go with a stovetop version instead.     Even my husband enjoyed these, he had two servings. They'll definitely be going into the regular rotation.   Thank you to Christina A for sharing her recipe! Orange Spice Carrots Print With Image Without Image Author: Jolene Martinelli Ingredients 1 pound frozen carrots, cut in coins 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/4 cup orange juice 1 tablespoons butter 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon ground

I'd slid into a little bit of a cooking slump the last few weeks, relying heavily on T&T recipes.    I planned the menu on Sunday for this week, and penciled in ground beef for Tuesday night.   The go-to recipes for that would be either tacos or Beef Stroganoff Sandwiches and I wasn't in the mood for either. Clicking through my Beef Pinterest board brought up this recipe from Kevin & Amanda.  I had to make a few adjustments due to my family's food quirks- minced dried onion instead of fresh, jarred garlic.  I omitted the cumin.   Tomatoes are a no go, I went with tomato paste.   Mexican blend cheese because I had it on hand.  Doubled the meat, and also added crumbled bacon to half at the end.   Parsley for garnish.  My husband had 2 helpings and I thought it was great.  I knew it would be a tough sell for my son, he ate his portion but said he'd rather not have it again.   That's ok, it's a perfect date day meal.  Print With Image

I've spoken of my cake mix/pudding mix addiction before.  I just can't resist when I see fun new seasonal flavors.   I've amassed quite a collection, and it's time to start working my way through them. My friend Carol shared this recipe for Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cookies, and I knew that the guys would love them.    I did omit the cheesecake emulsion, and I used King Arthur Flour mini cinnamon chips instead of the full size.     The first tray I forgot to flatten, the second tray I flattened too much, and the third was just right.    I was slightly worried because I've been overloading the guys with apple stuff lately, but they were a huge hit.  Thank you Carol! Print With Image Without Image Caramel Apple Cheesecake Cookies Ingredients 1 pkg. caramel apple cake mix -- (15.25 oz.) 1 pkg. cheesecake instant pudding mix -- (4 serving size) 1/2 c King Arthur Baking Company mini cinnamon chips -- plus a T or so for the tops 2 large eggs 1/2 c. vegetable oil 1 tsp

I know people go bonkers over pumpkin everything, but to me, Fall= apples.  We are situated near several amazing orchards, and I try to get around to all of them at least once during the season.    I get into a frenzy of baking, some to eat now, some to stock the freezer.   Today's baking coincided with apple being the ingredient on the Taste of Home Cook's Corner Challenge.   Perfect!   I made pies and apple zucchini bread last week, and this week I wanted something different.   Something that used puff pastry.  I went back and forth between strudel and turnovers, and in the end, this recipe won out. I read through the reviews carefully, and it gave me a few things to look out for.  My apples were not overly sweet and neither was my cider, so I went with slightly less than 1/4c sugar.  I started with 1/2 a cup of cider and kept an eye on it in case it needed more.   It didn't.    Be sure to cool the mixture completely- it says it in the directions, don't be temp

Felt like treating myself a little bit today.  I'm all alone for lunch and usually I'll just grab some leftovers or a quick sandwich.   I had some nice jalapenos from the farm, and this recipe seemed like the perfect way to use them.   Just small changes to this one- I used Fiesta blend shredded cheese and real bacon bits.  I scaled it down to just one serving.  Next time,  I'll make them on my Cuisinart Griddler for more even browning and crispiness.   Thank you so much to Rebecca N for sharing her recipe! Jalapeno Popper Quesadillas Print With Image Without Image Author: Jolene's Recipe Journal Ingredients 2 flour tortillas- burrito size 2oz cream cheese -- room temperature 1T Real bacon bits 1 jalapeno pepper -- seeded and finely chopped (used a mix of green and red) 1/2 cup shredded Fiesta blend cheese Instructions Preheat oven to 400°. Place tortilla on greased baking sheet. . Spread with cream cheese; sprinkle with bacon, jalapeno and cheese. Top with remain

Peach season is coming to a close here in New Hampshire, but I still managed to score 4 large, sweet, juicy peaches.   I knew I wanted to make muffins, and a search through the Taste of Home database turned up this recipe.     It called for pecans, but I substituted blueberries because both my guys are allergic to tree nuts and I have a ton of blueberries.  I liked the use of the sour cream, though I'm betting they would be great with greek yogurt or peach flavored yogurt.    I sprinkled the tops with raw sugar before baking, I like the crunch and sparkle it gives them. The recipe makes 12.  Half of them disappeared very quickly last night.   My son asked me to send one for his school snack today.    I'm enjoying one with coffee this morning.   This is one of those recipes that as soon as I mix the batter, I know I should have doubled it!    Thanks to Mrs. Michelson for sharing her recipe  :) peach, blueberry Muffins, desserts, breakfast, snacks American Yiel

This week's ingredient for the Cook's Corner challenge is coffee.   I am the only person who likes coffee here, so my challenge was to find something that used the ingredient that didn't taste like the ingredient.    I had planned on making a chocolate poke cake before the ingredient was announced, so I went looking on Taste of Home to find a cake I could adapt.  I chose Joylyn T's Rich Mocha Cake.  I almost never have buttermilk on hand, so I had to rely on the regular milk/vinegar trick.    I mixed and baked the cake, then let it cool while I made the boxed instant pudding according to the package directions.   I used a wooden spoon handle to poke holes all over the cake, and then poured the pudding over.   I spread it evenly with an offset spatula and put it into the refrigerator.    I did make a rookie mistake with the frosting-  I somehow missed that the chips were to be melted and cooled.   I tossed mine directly into the sugar mixture.   The texture was not spr

  I had zucchini, I was craving chocolate so I went in search of a recipe and I found these Fudgy Zucchini Brownies on the Taste of Home website. I did peel the zucchini to get it by my veggiephobes and left the nuts out because they are allergic. I find these more like cake than brownies, but who cares?  They are delicious no matter what you call them.   Thanks to Ruth B for sharing the recipe, they are super simple to make and really delicious!                       Fudgy Zucchini Brownies Print With Image Without Image Author: Jolene's Recipe Journal Ingredients 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/3 cup baking cocoa 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 2 cups peeled, shredded zucchini 1 1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup vegetable oil 2 teaspoons vanilla extract FROSTING: 1/4 cup butter -- cubed 1 cup sugar 1/4 cup milk 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips 1/2 cup miniature marshmallows 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Instructions In a large bowl, combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.