Recipe

ORANGE SPICED MONKEY BREAD

December 15, 2019 by Sarah Baade 1 Comment

Before we ever met, my husband and I each had a family tradition of making Monkey Bread during the holidays. One year we even had a bake off with the two family recipes. I can’t recall who the judges were but I sadly didn’t win that competition. We had a lot of fun but, if I’m honest, we also had way too much monkey bread for two people to finish off.

A couple of weeks ago we lost my oldest brother in a car accident. There is a void in the family. I loved baking with my brother, Ron. We didn’t see each other often but when we did, activities often revolved around food. He was the bread master of the family and would make delicious loaf breads and bagels. My absolute favorite of his? Orange rolls. Nothing can compare to his orange rolls.

Let me just admit right here that breads are not my specialty. As much as I love baking, I can screw up bread with the best of them. In other words, replicating those orange rolls on my own is not a very realistic goal. To honor Ron’s baking legacy, and still keep things really easy, I’ve mashed up the family tradition of monkey bread with the flavors of his orange rolls. This orange spiced monkey bread is much lighter in flavor than the traditional version. It is bright and sweet and a perfect dish for sharing with family as a dessert or a breakfast option.

ORANGE SPICED MONKEY BREAD

Sarah Baade

Citrus and spices give this monkey bread a bright twist to the classic monkey bread.

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Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine American

Equipment

12 cup Bundt Pan

Ingredients

For the Monkey Bread

1 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
2 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
2 Tablespoons orange zest
2 packages 8-count canned flaky biscuits
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

For the Glaze

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 Tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon orange zest

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 12cup sized bundt pan.
In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, ground ginger, ground nutmeg and orange zest. Set aside. Cut each biscuit into quarters. Dip each piece of biscuit into melted butter then coat with the sugar mixture. Arrange coated biscuit pieces evenly in the bundt pan.
If you have any remaining melted butter and sugar mixture, stir them together and pour over arranged biscuit pieces. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until cooked through.
Let cool 5-10 minutes then turn over onto a serving plate.
For the glaze, stir together powdered sugar, milk, vanilla extract and orange zest. Drizzle over monkey bread and serve warm.

Keyword Monkey Bread, Orange Monkey Bread, Orange Spiced Monkey Bread

HONEY SRIRACHA SNACK MIX

November 26, 2019 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

There are certain foods that we tend to eat only for special occasions. Holidays, birthdays, Super Bowl, etc. I love that it makes those dishes seem extra special. When you eat them, you instantly have memories of those special gatherings – the people you were with or the event you were celebrating. One of those dishes for me is homemade snack mix. Don’t get me wrong, store bought is great and I routinely buy it for road trips. But homemade snack mix? That’s extra special to me. I can recall the smell wafting through the house as it cooked in the oven. The wait for it to cool enough to eat was excruciating but so worth it.

One of the things I love about cooking and blogging is putting a twist on a classic dish. The flavor options are almost endless with something like snack mix. Salty, sweet, spicy… or a combination like I did for this version. The heat of the sriracha isn’t overwhelming. It’s that type of heat that adds flavor and the presence gradually increases as you eat more and more. Similarly, the honey doesn’t cause excessive sweetness; it adds a balance to the heat and the saltiness. The result? A snack you’ll struggle to put down. You might want to just double the batch so you’ll have enough for friends. 😉

Honey Sriracha Snack Mix

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Course Snack

Cuisine American

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup sriracha sauce
2 Tablespoons Honey
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups Crispix cereal
3 cups wheat Chex cereal
2 cups mini twist pretzels
2 cups Cheez-It crackers
1 cup whole, raw cashews, unsalted

Instructions

Preheat oven to 250°F.
In a large pot over low heat, stir together butter, sriracha, honey, garlic powder, onion powder and salt until butter is melted and all ingredients are incorporated.
Remove butter mixture from heat and stir in all remaining ingredients until evenly coated. Transfer mixture into a roasting pan and bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool completely before serving.

Keyword Honey, Honey Sriracha Snack Mix, Snack, Snack Mix, Sriracha

If you enjoyed this recipe, you might also like Chili Lime Roasted Cashews.

8 HOLIDAY SIDE DISHES

November 25, 2019 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

I’m going to keep this short. We’re days away from Thanksgiving and we need easy side dishes for the big dinner. I’ve got you covered. I’ve gathered together eight of my favorite side dishes. Each one is easy to make, mostly healthy and definitely delicious. Any and all of these would make a wonderful addition to any dinner table.

1. BROCCOLI AND RICED CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE

2. SWEET TURMERIC ROASTED VEGETABLES

3. LEMON ROASTED BROCCOLI

4. AUTUMN HARVEST SALAD

5. FARM STYLE BISCUITS

6. SWEET POTATO HASH

7. PARMESAN ASPARAGUS AND TOMATOES

8. KALE SALAD WITH LEMON VINAIGRETTE

BARLEY SOUP

October 29, 2019 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

This has felt like the longest summer I’ve ever experienced. As of a few days ago, we were still hitting temperatures near the 90’s. Did Mother Nature forget to check the calendar? It is already late October?! Truthfully, I love living in a warmer climate. I’ve done my time with cold and snow and I learned it wasn’t for me. That being said, I can’t help but crave a few cooler (not cold) days so I can indulge in winter comfort foods. We are finally cooling off here in Texas and I’m going full out on my comfort food recipes.

I’ve been craving soup lately but my brain has also been wandering back to my recipe for Baby Bella Shepherd’s Pie. The solution? Turn the base of that shepherd’s pie into a soup! The result? Pure satisfaction! This soup is hearty and rich in flavor. Anyone who eats this is going to think you slaved away in the kitchen all day when, in fact, it is simple to make. Bonus? This is one of those recipes that tastes even better as leftovers.

Barley Soup

This hearty soup is rich in flavor yet easy to make – a perfect way to warm up on a cold day.

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Course Dinner, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine American

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 large carrots, cut into 1/4" slices
2 large parsnips, cut into 1/4" slices
2 lb white mushrooms, stemmed and quartered
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
4 cups vegetable broth
1 cup dry red wine
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
2/3 cup pearl barley

Instructions

In a Dutch oven or large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add carrots and parsnips, cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms, garlic, thyme, salt & pepper. Cook until mushrooms start to sweat. Sprinkle flour over vegetable mixture and stir until evenly coated. Pour in diced tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce, vegetable broth and wine. Stir in tomato paste and barley. Increase heat to bring pot to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer 45 minutes or until barely is cooked through.

Notes

Having a hard time pulling those thyme leaves off of the stem? Grab a few sprigs and tie them together with kitchen twine. Toss the whole bundle into the soup and simply remove the bundle when soup is fully cooked.
This is a thick, hearty soup. If you prefer a thinner soup, you can add water after simmering until you reach the consistency you desire.

Keyword Barley, Barley Soup, Dinner, Easy Recipe, Homemade Soup, Soup, Vegan Recipe, Vegetarian Recipe

BROCCOLI & RICED CAULIFLOWER CASSEROLE

October 18, 2019 by Sarah Baade 1 Comment

Casserole or hotdish? I only recently even heard of the term hotdish. I’ve looked up several sources trying to get some clarity on the difference between the two. Both include a creamy condensed soup with vegetables and usually meat of some sort. The differences? From what I gather, casserole tends to use a lighter meat like tuna or chicken while a hotdish is more likely to use beef. But honestly, even that seems somewhat vague given you could eliminate meat altogether. The biggest difference seems to be a matter of where you’re from. Hotdish is more of an upper Midwestern term (think Minnesota). Having grown up in Kansas, I’m definitely a casserole gal.

Grab those veggies out of the freezer and soup out of the pantry, we’re making casserole today! Now that the temperatures are finally cooling off here in Texas, I’m ready for comfort food. As you know, I’m also a huge fan of super easy recipes. This is basically a stir and bake recipe – if only every recipe were this easy! You can use it as a side dish or make it the main event. Either way, this broccoli and riced cauliflower casserole has made it onto the regular rotation of dinner recipes in our house. I’d love to hear what types of casseroles (or hotdishes) are your favorites!

Tips

Trying to keep things low carb? Replace the bread crumbs with more shredded cheddar.
For added veggies, you can use a riced cauliflower & sweet potato blend.

Broccoli & Riced Cauliflower Casserole

This broccoli and riced cauliflower casserole is basically a stir and bake recipe – Comfort food at it's best!

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Ingredients

8 oz cream cheese, softened
8 oz sour cream
2 cans (10.5oz each) cream of celery soup
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
10.5 oz frozen riced cauliflower
1 lb frozen broccoli florets
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup panko bread crumbs

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a large bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sour cream, soup, salt, pepper and cheddar cheese.
Stir in riced cauliflower then stir in broccoli.
Spread broccoli mixture into a greased 9×13 casserole dish.
In a small bowl, stir together butter and breadcrumbs then sprinkle over broccoli mixture.
Bake 45 minutes. If breadcrumbs are not golden, turn the broiler on and watch carefully until you achieve golden color.

PUMPKIN SPICE GRANOLA

October 9, 2019 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

I’m going to tell you a secret. This is something I’ve been holding back from you for fear of judgement. Are you ready for it? I don’t like pumpkin spice lattes. I know, it seems almost un-American but I’m hoping you won’t judge me. Seriously though, what I’ve learned over the years is that I very much enjoy it in all sorts of other foods. Pumpkin bread? Sign me up! (In fact, I’m working on my own recipe for a loaf right now.) Scones? Score! Cheesecake? Yes! Just please keep it out of my coffee.

My foodie brain has been stuck on pumpkin spice for weeks. That being said, I’ve also been trying not to overindulge in baked goods. I mean, we haven’t even hit Halloween yet, let alone the major baking holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. So, I’m easing into this pumpkin spice craving with granola. Eat it as cereal or add it to yogurt for a parfait. For next level breakfast, mix in some dark chocolate chunks and sprinkle it over some toast with peanut butter or even over French toast. Get creative and let me know how you use this delicious pumpkin spice granola!

Tips

You can substitute the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice for 1 tablespoon of pumpkin spice blend.
Store granola in the freezer to keep it fresh and crunchy longer.

Pumpkin Spice Granola

Warm flavors make this the perfect granola for Fall.

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Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine American

Ingredients

2 cups old fashioned oats
1 cup raw, unsalted pecan halves
1/2 cup pepitas
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/4 cup maple syrup
Optional: 1/4 cup dark chocolate chunks

Instructions

Preheat oven to 300°F.
In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together. Spread mixture out on a parchment lined sheet pan. Bake 1 hour.
Let cool before serving. If adding in dark chocolate, stir in after granola has cooled.

Keyword Granola, Pumpkin Spice, Pumpkin Spice Granola

TURMERIC SPICE MUFFINS

September 10, 2019 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

My daughter loves muffins. Like REALLY loves them. I think she’d eat muffins for every meal if we let her. Unfortunately, she’s not into having fruit or grated veggies in her muffins right now – I think it’s a texture issue. So, I won’t be making my favorite, blueberry muffins, any time soon. I don’t want to fill her muffins with chocolate chips every time either so I’ve started experimenting with flavors and spices. To my surprise, and delight, my girl gave me her stamp of approval on these turmeric muffins. “Mama, I like your muffins” is pretty high culinary praise when your critic is only two years old.

Do you remember that episode of Seinfeld where Elaine wants to donate all the muffin stumps? My brain goes to that show every time I make muffins. To be clear, I do eat my muffin stumps and I enjoy them. This particular recipe did something amazing inside the stumps. I tried various amounts of turmeric with each revision of the recipe. The flavor would change slightly but the color ended up with an ombre type of effect regardless of how much turmeric I added. Cut one of your muffins in half before biting in and you’ll see what I’m talking about. Maybe Elaine wouldn’t have been ditching all those muffin stumps if they had been this pretty inside.

Tips

You can freeze these muffins and then reheat as needed – about 45 seconds in the microwave should do it.
The sugar topping is completely optional but it does add a nice texture and sweetness.

Turmeric Muffins

Turmeric gives a balance between sweet and savory in these ombre shaded muffins.

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Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 12 muffins

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup milk
Optional: course sugar such as turbinado or demerara for sprinkling on top.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F and line muffin pan with paper liners.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients. Stir half of the dry ingredients into the sugar mixture. Add milk then remaining dry ingredients.
Scoop batter into muffin pan, filling each cup two thirds full. Lightly sprinkle each muffin with course sugar. Bake 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Keyword Breakfast, Muffins, Turmeric, Turmeric Muffins

Looking for other breakfast ideas?

Savory Spinach Turnovers

Farm-Style Biscuits

Vanilla Almond Granola

SHEET PAN DINNERS FOR BUSY WEEKNIGHTS

September 3, 2019 by Sarah Baade 1 Comment

People often think that as a food blogger, I must have it all together in the kitchen. They assume my meals are always planned ahead of time. That I choose healthy options and only indulge occasionally. That dinner is easy to prep regardless of any other activities going on. These assumptions are completely off base. I certainly do enjoy cooking. Why else would I do a food blog? However, dinner at my house is often as last minute as any other household. I reach for convenient foods as often as I do healthy foods. I get in food ruts and end up fixing the same meals every week for a month. My biggest struggle is honestly just getting to the grocery to even pick up any ingredients. What is your biggest struggle for getting dinner on the table? I would genuinely love to hear from you on this.

I’ve met and follow some incredible people through food blogging. One of the things I love most about this community is the support people provide. Blogging is always a work in progress. We work to improve our recipes, our writing, our photography, our styling. My fellow food bloggers understand every aspect of what goes into creating a post. When you start following someone closely, you see their progress. We cheer each other on. We congratulate one another when we see something inspiring. We sympathize when struggles hit us in the kitchen. It is a wonderful thing to have companionship in this space.

Weeknights are about to get easier. For this post, I’ve collaborated with eight of my favorite food bloggers to create sheet pan dinners. I love sheet pan dinners because of how easy they are to make but also how easy they are to clean up. With the school year now in full swing, everyone has a busier schedule and could use an easy dinner recipe. I have been blown away by the variety and creativity in this project. A huge thank you goes out to each and every collaborator for helping me put this together. I hope that you’ll stop by their sites and check out more recipes from these incredible food bloggers!

SHEET PAN BBQ CHICKEN MEATBALLS & VEGGIES

CURRIED PORK CHOP AND POTATO SHEET PAN RECIPE

**Created by Nicolas at Blogtastic Food**
https://www.blogtasticfood.com/curries-pork-chop-sheetpan-recipe/

SHEET PAN GNOCCHI AND SAUSAGE

SHEET PAN HARISSA CHICKEN WITH BROCCOLINI AND CHICKPEAS

DUKKAH AND PARMESAN CHICKEN TRAY BAKE

SHEET PAN CHICKEN FAJITAS

EASY SHEET PAN DINNER WITH SAUSAGE, POTATOES & VEGGIES

**Created by Julia at Julia Recipes**
https://juliarecipes.com/2019/08/30/easy-pan-sheet-dinner-with-sausage-potatoes-veggies/

SHEET PAN ITALIAN MUSHROOMS AND GARLIC BREADSTICKS

SHEET PAN SHRIMP FAJITAS

MY FAVORITE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

August 14, 2019 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

I promise I’ve been trying to focus on healthy recipes. In fact, I have a few waiting in the wings for the blog. However, sometimes I get distracted by sweets. Let me be honest here, chocolate chip cookies are typically not my jam. I mean, I’ll still eat one if that’s what’s available – let’s be reasonable, there’s still chocolate involved. But if I have other options, I will pick almost any other cookie on any given day. Maybe I’ve just had too many super plain tasting chocolate chip cookies in my day? I know you know what I’m talking about. Something mass produced for a cafeteria. Something lacking flavor and or quality chocolate.

Given my history with this all-American cookie, it is a wonder I was craving them the other night. I saw a friend post some chocolate chip cookies in her Instagram stories and I just couldn’t get them out of my head. So, I did it. I made some cookies from scratch and THANKFULLY wrote the recipe down as I created it. My cookie loving world has been forever changed! I’m going to make a big statement here and people will might try to argue with me (I’ll be respectful of your opinions if you’ll respect mine). These cookies turned out to be the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had. I know you love your grandma’s recipe but I feel like that is only because you haven’t tried these yet. Bonus? They are still simple to make!!! Be sure to eat one (or four) while they’re still warm from the oven. You can thank me later.

Tips

The toffee bits add a beautiful sweetness that is different from the chocolate chips. However, if you’re serving these to friends who have a nut allergy, please leave them out.
Quality ingredients do make a difference in the cookie, especially when it comes to the chocolate. This recipe is the perfect reason to splurge a little and get the more expensive chocolate chips.

Chocolate chip cookies with a glass of milk.

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

Slightly crisp outside, slightly chewy inside. A perfectly balanced chocolate chip cookie.

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Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 18 cookies

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup toffee bits

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt and baking soda.
In a separate large bowl, beat butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar.
Mix eggs and vanilla into butter mixture.
Gradually stir in flour mixture until all ingredients are fully combined.
Stir in chocolate chips and toffee.
Scoop cookie dough into golf ball sized balls and place onto parchment lined baking sheet. Leave 2 ½ inches between cookies. Bake 15 to 17 minutes or until edges start to turn golden brown. Remove cookie sheet from oven and transfer the cookies from the parchment to cooling racks.

While these are certainly my favorite chocolate chip cookie, I understand that people have strong preferences when it comes to such a classic cookie. If you prefer soft batch, I’ve got you covered. You can check out my soft batch chocolate chip cookies here.

KALE SALAD with LEMON VINAIGRETTE

July 31, 2019 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

What is your go-to when you really don’t want to cook? Maybe I should back up a bit. What are the staples in your fridge or pantry? The items you know you can always make a meal out of in ten minutes or less? My staples include kale (don’t roll your eyes at me), chickpeas, tortillas and eggs. At my laziest, I will toss together a kale salad. The toppings vary as far as which cheese or seeds I might sprinkle on top but I always include chickpeas for protein. My other go-to quick meal option is a breakfast taco. I live in South Texas and down here, there is no room for not loving breakfast tacos.

I get it that there are plenty of people who don’t like kale. Heck, there are plenty to mock it and shout their hate for kale from the rooftops. However, I think those people either haven’t actually tried it OR it wasn’t prepared well for them. In raw form, it can be really tough and fibrous. If the stem isn’t removed, you’ll feel like you’re gnawing on a tree branch. HOWEVER, if prepared well, it is delicious and has lots of nutritional value. At the very least, it is worth trying. If you still don’t like it? Hey, more for me!

Tips

I created this recipe as a side salad. However, you can top it with chickpeas, a hard-boiled egg or even grilled chicken to turn it into a meal.
To make this recipe go even faster, you can use a store-bought vinaigrette instead of the one I created for this salad.

Kale Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

My go-to salad recipe – perfect as a side salad or turn it into your main dish.

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Course Salad

Ingredients

5 large handfuls kale, destemmed and torn into pieces
zest of 1 lemon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup shaved parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoons roasted & salted pepita seeds
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

For the Vinaigrette

juice of 1 lemon
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 pinch salt
1 pinch ground black pepper

Instructions

Place kale, lemon zest and salt in a large pan with 1 tablespoon of water. Sauté 2-3 minutes or until kale is bright green and slightly tender. Remove from heat immediately and put kale in a medium bowl.
Toss kale with pepitas, parmesan and red pepper flakes until ingredients are evenly distributed.

For the vinaigrette

For the vinaigrette: whisk together all ingredients in a small bowl. Drizzle over salad as desired.