Tasty Tuesday: Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Hey, guys!

I hope you are all having a good week! :)

A few months ago, I got a recipe for Apple Cinnamon Muffins from the lovely Sunny&Star. They looked sooooo good, and I instantly knew I had to give it a try. So here is my attempt at making Apple Cinnamon Muffins.

What you need:

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup white sugar

2 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup oil

1 cup milk

1 egg

And of course, 2 apples! ;)

What to do:

- Preheat oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit.

- In a small bowl, beat egg with fork. Stir in milk, vanilla, and oil.

- In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Make a well in the center. Quickly mix in the liquid mixture with a fork. Do not overbeat.

- Peel, core, and grate the apples. Stir into the mixture.

Okay, here's where I made a little change because I made the mistake of peeling and coring the apple first. I realized that it would bruise since I won't need it 'til later on, so I put the apples in a bowl of cold water... it made it too soft and mushy to grate. Whooops.

So, I ended up slicing the apples into tiny cubes:

- Fill cups 3/4's of the way full

- Turn oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit

I baked mine for about 15 to 20 minutes.

(or until golden... oven temperatures may differ - just make sure they don't burn, haha)

- Cool and serve.

The house smelled sooooo good while the muffins were baking!

My muffins had a little bit of crunch because I cubed the apples instead of grating them, haha.

Next time, I definitely won't make the mistake of peeling the apples first. ;)

These are perfect to snack on at night, and are very easy to grab in the morning when you're rushing out the door. :)

Have you tried making muffins? Do you have a favorite recipe?

Thanks again to Sunny&Star for sharing this recipe on their blog! :D

Tasty Tuesday: Oreo Truffles

Happy Tuesday!

I hope you all had a lovely weekend! :)

I just wanted to share a very easy and delicious recipe with you guys -- Oreo Truffles! :D

What you need and what to do:

- A package of Oreos

Put Oreos in food processor and set some aside.

If you don't have a food processor, no worries - put the Oreos in a big Ziploc bag and crush them with a pan or something of that sort. ;P

- 1 softened cream cheese

Mix the Oreo crumbs with the cream cheese.

I know that probably doesn't look too appetizing, but I promise it's going to be delicious! ;)

Form the Oreo-cream cheese mixture into balls.

- Chocolate (or white chocolate)

Melt it - either by double boiler or microwave.

Dip the Oreo-cream cheese balls into the chocolate.

The chocolate chips I used were actually a bit too sticky, but it worked out okay. Next time, I'm probably gonna use a chocolate bar instead.

After dipping them in chocolate, sprinkle your saved Oreo crumbs on top - make sure you do that right away, while the chocolate is still melted and sticky.

Refrigerate for an hour or two... and taaaaaa-daaaaa:

Delicious and pretty Oreo truffles!

These are perfect to just munch at home, serve as dessert when you have friends over, or even as a gift! I'm actually thinking of making a bunch to give my friends for Christmas -- I know it's a long time from now, but it's never too early to start planning your Christmas gifts, haha. ;)

Isn't this recipe very easy to follow? And the truffles are just delicious! :)

Do you have a different truffle recipe? Is this a recipe you might want to try?

P.S. My Perricone giveaway is open until July 23rd! Click the link to enter for a chance to win any Perricone product of your choice. :D

CSN: Cuisinart 7-Speed Hand Mixer

Happy Thursday!

I hope you guys liked seeing photos of the Royal Wedding courtesy of People magazine! :D

If you haven't seen them, you can click this link:

Wedding: Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Anyway, how is your week going? I hope you are all having a good week. :)

A few months ago, CSN Stores gave me another opportunity to review an item from one of their many stores. They generously gave me $55 to order whatever I would like to review. My first instinct was to look at the shoes, of course. But, when I really thought about it, I came to the conclusion that I don’t really need a new pair of boots or sandals! Yeah, my Mom would be so proud to learn that I am now thinking practically, haha. ;)

So then, what did I order? I got myself a Cuisinart 7-Speed Hand Mixer! One of the best decisions I made because 1) I love to bake, and having this hand mixer really makes it easier and more fun to whip up some baked goodies, and 2) I was finally able to give my sister her mixer back. :D

It's original price is $90, but when I ordered this, it was on sale for about $49 (if I remember correctly) – such a bargain! I was hoping to get an actual stand mixer, but those are way beyond my $55 budget, so finding this Cuisinart Hand Mixer was a blessing! One day I will buy myself a stand mixer, but for now I am a happy girl with my hand mixer. :)

So, moving on… here are some details about the Cuisinart Hand Mixer:

Simple Operation – One touch provides easy speed control. Press the beater release lever for quick cleanups.

Automatic Power Boost – 220 watt motor with automatic feedback adds more power to mix the heaviest ingredients when needed. More Mixing Options – 7 speeds, including 3 extra-low settings, let you mix small to large batches of ultra-light to heavy ingredients.

Clean Counters - SmoothStart® feature starts extra slowly to eliminate splatters. A Cuisinart exclusive.

Comfortable Handling – A balanced handle and rotating swivel cord make mixing comfortable for right- or left- handed users. A Cuisinart exclusive.

It has a limited 3-year warranty. The LED display makes it easy to see how fast your mixer is going.

The mixer comes with extra-long self cleaning beaters with no central post, a stainless steel professional chef’s whisk, and a spatula.

Besides instructions and a user guide, its manual also has some mixing tips and recipes ranging from cinnamon muffins to cappuccino cheesecake to gorgonzola soufflé!

I’ve been using my hand mixer for a few months now, and I’ve had no problems with it (besides the normal heating up of the machine, of course). It starts out slow, so no messy splatters for me. And I love its extra-long beaters because it doesn’t matter if my mixing bowl is filled to the brim with batter. The beaters are dishwasher safe, but I prefer to wash and dry it by hand. ;) The spatula is also a really good kind – very sturdy!

I really think this hand mixer is a great buy! Especially if you’re just starting out with baking, or if like me, you love to bake but don’t get to do so as often as you’d like. I find that starting out with a simple hand mixer is better than going for a full-on stand mixer right away. :)

Do you use a hand mixer? What brand and kind do you use?

If you are using a stand mixer, what brand and model would you recommend?

I also just wanted to share with you guys something I discovered… since the hand mixer only cost about $49, I had more or less $6 left over, and I didn't want that to go to waste.

I didn’t know that you can order rug samples! Did you know that? I found some for about $3.50, and it’s free shipping!

Right now, I don’t really know what to do with it, but I’m sure one day it’ll come in handy. ;)

Any ideas on what I can use it for?

Have a fantastic rest of the week, guys! Hang in there, the weekend is almost here. :D

And, don't forget to enter my giveaway for a chance to win a $100 Shopbop gift card!

Thanks to all those who entered and good luck! :D

Ikea's Glamorous Black Country Kitchen

I haven't posted much about the Interior Design show, but one of my fave booths (and an award winner) is the IKEA Dream Kitchen. I'm really impressed at how IKEA has stepped up their game lately, producing some really pretty and reasonably priced kitchens.

I would love a beautiful and functional island like this 25-foot

one in my kitchen. IKEA's island is covered in leathered granite.

While I tend towards lighter kitchens myself there is something darkly glamorous about these RAMSJO cabinets. "We participate in the Interior Design Show to reach out to the design community and challenge the way people view our product," says Madeleine Löwenborg-Frick, Public Relations Manager of IKEA Canada. "This year, we have featured a sexy new black modern country door style. This is a departure from the ultra-modern high gloss look we have shown in previous years."

Black Faucet: IKEA RINGSKAR

I think IKEA achieved a good mix between country and glam in this kitchen. While I love the look of open shelving, glass cabinets or hooks displaying pots, as seen here, I could never really incorporate them in my own kitchen. I would be way too obsessed with having everything look perfect. And I guess those pots at the top would have to be ones you don't use often.

What do you think about IKEA's black kitchen?

Images courtesy of IKEA Canada

Cool Tools for the Cook! :D

Happy Monday, everyone! It's the last week of August, crazy as it sounds. Haha, I know, I always say that. ;)

Anyways, I'm pretty sure we all love to eat. Food is life. Haha. And cooking our own food can really be fun - that is if we're not too tired or busy. While the basic tools we need can really be narrowed down to pots, pans, knives, chopping board, etc., it is amazing how many cooking tools are now available to us! These colorful and fun tools can make a laborious and tiring day in the kitchen very fun and exciting. :D

I think I want them all! What about you?

Out of all of these, I only have one: a garlic gizmo (part of the 18 gifts my sister and brother-in-law gave me for my 18th birthday). My garlic mincer is a pretty cool gadget - you put the garlic clove in, and then you roll it around (it has wheels!) until your garlic is finely minced. :D

Looking at all these inspired me to look up cooking/baking tools and kitchen gadgets that I would love to own.

Silicone Solutions 10-piece Bake and Serve Set ($49.99)

French White Corningware 16-piece Set ($62.49)

*from http://www.target.com/*

Cuisinart Elite 14-cup Food Processor ($298.95)

Kitchen Aid Artisan Stand Mixer ($299.95)

Shun Classic 8-piece Knife Set ($599.95) --- Yikes!

*from http://www.crateandbarrel.com/*

I kept my "kitchen wishlist" to five items because if I didn't, I think everything in the Crate&Barrel catalog would be on this post, haha! :D

I also dream of having a cozy and home-y kitchen to house my tools and gadgets. And I really want an island! :)

*from Google*

Do you like/love to cook? What does your dream kitchen look like?

White Kitchens

While I can totally see the appeal of a kitchen with rich, dark woods my own personal preference leans towards the white, bright and transitionally modern. My current cabinets are latte-hued and hand-antiqued, but I know that in my next home (which we hope to find soon, after quite a lengthy search!) I would love a white kitchen.

I adore the style of this kitchen from KraftMaid:

I love that this kitchen manages to feel airy and luxe all at once.  The pearlized backsplash and ornate light fixture really adds an element of glamour, which would make the mundane tasks of cooking and washing up all the more fun.  The only thing I would change are the glass doors on the island -- just seems a magnet for little fingers, and one of the things I love about white kitchens is that they're so much easier to maintain than dark ones.  Extra fingerprints are not in the plan.

Another white kitchen that I fell in love with is this one by Selba Kitchens, which was created for a cancer charity sweepstakes show home.

Some other great white kitchens...

 

     A design by Marin Kitchen Co.

Alla Prossima