Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Kitchen Ramblings




So I received a request for the muffins that I posted about previously.
They are really yummy!
The tricky part is getting the cream cheese part in the middle of the muffin batter but it can be done.
Happy munching!







Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons brown sugar

4 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons white sugar
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons chopped pecans

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups canned pumpkin
1/3 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.

To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.
For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.

For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.

Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full. Then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter. Try to keep cream cheese from touching the paper cup. Sprinkle on the streusel topping.

Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Happy Birthday Landry!





Today is our niece Landry's Birthday!

I can't believe shes already 3 years old.


Happy Birthday Landry! We love you!

Monday, August 18, 2008

Food Photography

Today I decided to bake some muffins.


Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins to be exact. mmmm.


They turned out beautifully, so I thought I would snap a shot, not expecting to find a new hobby...


I love food, I love photography. FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY!


I'm good with still objects when it comes to taking pictures. I like to take my time finding the right angles, and lighting.


I'll leave the rest of the picture taking to my wonderful hubby!


So I'm going to try to remember to take photographs of what I cook. I hope you like it. Blessings!


Oh if you would like the recipe leave a comment saying so and I'll post it under my "kitchen ramblings".



Goodwill Hunting


Not the movie.


I decided I had to tell you about the bargains we found this past weekend!


This time Greg went with Adom and me. He teased me about how excited I was to be going "Goodwill Hunting".


That was until he himself felt the thrill of the hunt!


I'll keep it short and sweet, he found 2 pairs of jeans that in the retail store would have added up to around $150, he paid $26 people! Thats not all but I think it sums it up.

A hunting we will go! Heehee!

Friday, August 15, 2008

Kitchen Ramblings

If you've ever been to our house for dinner theres a big chance you've had my Tortilla Soup.
I got the recipe from Verna and have added my own touches to it over the past couple of years. (So I can't take all the credit).
My favorite thing to make it SOUP!
It's been raining here in Arlington and looks like it'll be raining for a few more days, so that put me in the mood for soup.

Tortilla Soup

1 Rotisserie Chicken

2 32 oz. boxes chicken stock

2 cups water

1-2 chicken bouillon cubes

1 small onion, chopped

3 stalks celery, chopped

1 can rotel diced tomatoes with green chiles (mild or hot you pick)

1 tsp. oregano

1/2 tbls. cumin

juice one 1 lime

handful of chopped cilantro

Bring chicken stock, water, and chicken bouillons to boil. Add onion, celery, rotel, and spices. Pick meat off of rotisserie chicken, slice into small chunks, (be sure to take skin off chicken as well) add to soup pot. Add lime juice and cilantro. Add Salt and Pepper if needed. Simmer for 1 hour at least. In the past I've simmered up to 4 hours. It just gets better and better. Especially the day after when you warm it up :)

Most of the time I just buy tortilla chips to go with the soup. We garnish ours with chopped avocado, a wedge of lime, and monterrey jack cheese.

This recipe is wonderful for the rainy days! Also wonderful when the cooler months role around! ENJOY!

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Bargain Hunter


Living in a bigger city definitely has some benefits. I am always on the lookout for sales. I love the feeling of buying something for $6.99 when the original price in the store was $60!
There are several places close to us that I am constantly finding amazing deals.
I love Steve & Barry's which carries Sarah Jessica Parker's clothing line. Everthing is $8.98! I LOVE their purses! Thanks, Amanda for introducing me to this store!
But my all time favorite hunt is the Goodwill Super Store down the road from our apartment.
Yesterday I bought some GAP jeans for $6.99! In the past everything I've bought there has been name brand clothing. Express, GAP, Old Navy, Banana Republic, and all sorts of others. This stuff is practically brand new!
Goodwill is such a wonderful organization helping communities and people throughout the world. They definitely help our budget thats for sure!
I actually returned a pair of jeans I bought at the mall because I found the exact pair at Goodwill for $50 less than what I paid in the store!
So go have some fun and feel the thrill of finding a totally awesome deal!

Sunday, August 10, 2008

A day at the Mall








Saturday was soooo hot. We decided to take Adom to the mall for some fun family time. First we ate Chick-fil-A. The boy loves french fries!






Then after a lot of "Dada's" (French Fries) we attempted our first carousel ride.




Let's just say I'm glad Greg was the one to volunteer to go on with him.






I was more than happy taking pictures :)















I love this picture. It's as if he were asking Greg,

"What were you thinking?!"

















"What is this thing, and why am I on it?"


Finally we ended the day at the kids play area where Adom displayed his awesome stuntman skills. haha. it was quite the day. Fun. But exhausting.