Fruity Cream Cheese Coffee Cake- New Favorite!

I was looking on pinterest for something to make a few nights ago, as usual. My guinea pig (aka: my mom), requested something fruity and cream cheese. I didn't have the time or patients for a cheesecake, so I just kept looking at 'pins' until one recipe caught my eye. It's a raspberry cream cheese crumble coffee cake. I am so glad I stumbled across this recipe. I changed it a little to make it my own, and it's one of my new favorites. It's pretty sweet so it works as breakfast or dessert. My mom took some to her bible study and it was gone when she came home, which always makes me feel good! So I really recommend making it soon. ps- it has a lot of ingredients and steps, but I promise it is super easy! Here's what you'll need

 Butter, sugar, eggs, brown sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla, cinnamon, sour cream, oil, milk, cream cheese, and of course you're favorite flavor jam. In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.. no sifting necessary!

In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream, melted butter, oil, milk, and vanilla until well combined. Pour into the dry mixture

Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture until just combined

 Scoop into a well greased 9x13 baking sheet

Once all of the batter is in the pan, spread out evenly. It doesn't have to be perfect, this is a pretty easy going recipe

Set that aside and start on the next layer. Combine softened cream cheese, egg yolk, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl

whisk together until there are no lumps. Spread over the coffee cake batter

Now scoop a jar of jam on top.. yes a whole jar. I didn't and I regretted it. I was debating between raspberry or blackberry, but we didn't have raspberry, so blackberry it was

Lastly, create you're crumble topping. In a bowl, throw together brown sugar, flour,  salt, and cinnamon

Mix it up, add in sliced butter

Use two knives or a pastry cutter to cut the butter in.. OR to make it fun, use your hand

Once you're mixture represents chunks, sprinkle over the jam

Once again, this seems like a lot.. but you gotta trust me, it was the best part because the cake alone is not very sweet and this topping helps it out a whole lot. Pop that in the oven

When it is finished baking, pull it out and cool completely! Store in the fridge up to 3 days because of the cream cheese. My favorite way to serve it was room temp with some extra fruity love all over it

Great for a ladies brunch, or just an everyday sweet/breakfast. Here's the recipe.. enjoy :)

Blackberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Cake:
¼ cup oil
½ stick unsalted butter, melted
2 TB sour cream
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup + 2 TB granulated white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 egg
½ cup + 2 TB milk or half & half
2 tsp vanilla extract

Stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a separate, microwavable bowl, melt the butter. Add in all the remaining ingredients and whisk together until there are no lumps. Pour the wet mixture over the dry mixture. Fold these mixtures together by hand until just combined. Scoop batter into a greased 9x13 pan. Spread out evenly; set aside.

Cream cheese mixture:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 egg yolk
3 TB sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Whisk all ingredients together until smooth and well combined. Spread evenly over the uncooked cake batter; set aside.

Fruit layer:

1 jar of your favorite flavor jam (raspberry, blackberry, strawberry, blueberry, etc.)

Pour jam/jelly over the cream cheese mixture and carefully spread out, being careful not to mix the jam into the cream cheese mixture; set aside.

Crumb topping:

1 cup flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
¾ tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, sliced in TB

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Stir until combined. Add the cubed butter and cut it in with a pastry cutter or 2 knives.. or your hands. Whatever floats your boat. Once your mixture resembles course crumbles, sprinkle it over the jam layer, completely covering the cake. Pop in the oven at 350 degrees. Bake about 30-40 minutes, testing with a butter knife to check if it is done. It will be pretty buttery on top from the crumb topping, but that just makes it even better. Cool before serving. If desired or for decoration, serve with an extra scoop of jam on top and a glass of milk. Store left-over's in the fridge up to three days.

Copy Cat Great Harvest Bread

This past summer, we got a Great Harvest Bread Company. They make all the breads there and they are all amazing. My very favorite was the garlic cheddar bread. It had melty cheese inside of the bread, I was just amazed. WEll, thanks to Pinterest.. I found a copycat recipe of that bread. That being said, I made it right away and so should you :) Here's what you'll need

Milk, yeast, salt, flour, sugar, butter, cheddar cheese, and garlic. In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, salt, and yeast

In a saucepan, whisk together sugar, butter, and milk until fully melted and combined

Remove from heat and let cool about 5 minutes. Pour into the flour and yeast mixture

Stir that together on low speed until just combined. Knead in remaning flour. Add shredded cheese and minced garlic

Knead those ingredients into the bread. Roll into a ball, then cover in oil

Cover with a thin, warm and slighty damp towel; set aside and let rise about an hour, or until doubled in size. Punch down and let all the air bubbles out

Place the bread in a greased loaf pan. Top with more garlic and cheese. Place in a preheated oven and bake

Let the loaf cool in the pan about 5 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely

I hope you like cheese, because this recipe is not shy on the cheese. Slice 

And, if thats not enough garlic for you, add some garlic butter

Enjoy! Whatever is left-over, store in tight wrapped foil. Before eating again, I put it back in the oven, still in the foil and heated it up.

Copy Cat Garlic Cheddar Bread

• 3 1/2 – 4 1/2 c. flour
• 1 T. yeast
• 1 c. milk
• 2 T. butter or margarine
• 2 T. sugar
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 1/2 c. shredded Sharp cheddar cheese, divided
• 4 cloves garlic, minced

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 c. flour and yeast.

2. Add the milk, butter or margarine, sugar and salt to a small saucepan. Heat until warm and the butter is completely melted. Add to mixing bowl and stir by hand or beat with an electric mixer until combined. Slowly add remaining flour until the dough comes together and is no longer sticky. Add 1 1/4 c. cheese (reserve remaining cheese) and garlic until combined.

3. Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover and allow to rise for at least 1 hour.

4. Punch dough down and remove from bowl. Form dough into an oval-shaped loaf and place on a baking sheet. Or place in a well greased loaf pan. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and a little more garlic.

5. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-35 minutes, until golden and hollow sounding when tapped.

The garlic in the bread is purely a matter of taste. Feel free to add more, less or omit all together. You could also cut it into slivers instead of mincing it if you prefer chunks of garlic. Slice up and slab on some garlic butter if you would like. Enjoy!

Happy September!

According to myself, you can make pumpkin stuff year round, but also according to me, September is the perfect start to making pumpkin and other fall foods. Once the first day of September comes around, I'm over summer, and ready for fall. In order for that to happen, you of course have to have fall foods :) What better way to kick off the pumpkin season with pumpkin bread? I tried a new recipe, tweaked it a little and had an amazing outcome! The bread was moist, light, sweet, and had the perfect amount of spice too it (I don't like many spices though). So here's what you'll need

Flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, melted butter, vanilla, eggs, water, and of course, pumpkin. In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, both sugars, eggs, vanilla, and pumpkin

Beat on medium-low speed until combined. In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and stir together

Alternately add dry mixture and water to pumpkin mixture, beginning and ending with dry mixture

 Mix on low speed until just combined

Fold in any other ingredients you wish to add, such as, pecans, cinnamon chips, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, etc. Scoop batter evenly into greased loaf pans. (I used 18 mini loaf pans)

 Optional: sprinkle cinnamon sugar over each loaf

Bake until cooked through the middle. Remove from oven and let cool in pans about 5 minutes

Remove from pans and cool completely on foil or cooling rack. My favorite way to eat pumpkin bread is warm with butter or cream cheese. Store in an air-tight container up to a week

Pumpkin Bread

1 3/4 cup AP flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup pumpkin
1/3 cup water

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine butter, both sugars, eggs, vanilla, and pumpkin. Beat on medium-low speed until combined. In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and stir together. Alternately add dry mixture and water to pumpkin mixture, beginning and ending with dry mixture. Mix on low speed until just combined. Fold in any other ingredients you wish to add, such as, pecans, cinnamon chips, chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, etc. Pour batter evenly into greased loaf pans. (I used 18 mini loaf pans). Optional: sprinkle cinnamon sugar over each loaf. Bake until cooked through the middle. Remove from oven and let cool in pans about 5 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on foil or cooling rack. My favorite way to eat pumpkin bread is warm with butter or cream cheese. Store in an air-tight container up to a week.

Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

Everybody loves some good buttermilk pancakes for breakfast, and these will do it for ya. These are some of the best pancakes i've had (next to The Pancake Pantry). This is my grandma's recipe and we've been making these as long as I can remember. I hope you enjoy them like we do! I put blueberries in them this time, but you can do whatever you would like. Sometimes we mix it up and leave them plain, or do my favorite combo, chocolate chip pancakes with peanut butter and syrup.. yum. Here's what you need for the buttermilk pancakes

An egg, sugar, baking powder, flour, baking soda, oil, buttermilk, salt, and whatever add-ins you want. Crack the egg in a large measuring cup, slightly whisk

Whisk in oil and buttermilk. Add all the dry ingredients

Beat that together until combined and there are no lumps, but be careful not to over beat or your pancakes will become chewy. Add your choice of add-ins

Fold in. Scoop batter into a buttery pan

When the middle of the pancake starts too look a little dry and bubbly, flip it

Then leave it alone until it is done cooking. If you keep flipping it, it won't cook through in the middle and it will have the texture of a goodyear tire. So just don't do it :) Top with some butter, syrup, and blueberries (or your favorite pancake toppings)

Cut em open and eat up! I promise these are not hard, so do not be intimidated by homemade pancakes!

Buttermilk Pancakes

1 cup buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

1 Tbs. oil (vegetable, canola)

1 cup AP flour

1 Tbs. sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. soda

1/2 tsp. salt

-Your choice of mix-ins

In a large glass pourable measuring cup, combine buttermilk, egg, and oil; beat. Add dry ingredients and mix until there are no lumps. (Be careful not to over mix, or your pancakes will become tough.) Fold in your mix-ins, unless each person wants something different. If that is the case, sprinkle your mix-in on each pancake right when you pour the batter on the cooktop. Cook on a skillet or stove-top pan. Flip when the middle starts to look a little dry and bubbly. Finish cooking, and serve. 

Chocolate Chip Muffins

I searched a long time for what looked like a GOOD muffin recipe. I finally found one on Handle the Heat blog that looked like a winner, so I made them and I am so glad I did. I made a few changes, and these puppies were moist, sweet, puffy, and just good. I don't know how many of you know Melissa Arnold, but she is an AMAZING cook/baker. She loved these muffins and even asked for the recipe if that tells you anything! For the muffins, you will need brown sugar, sugar, flour, baking powder, milk, butter, eggs, vanilla, and chocolate chips. In a large bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, flour, and baking powder

In another bowl, whisk together milk, melted butter, eggs, and vanilla. Form a well in the middle of the dry mixture. Pour the wet mixture into the dry

Fold the wet into the dry ingredients until moistened. Add the chocolate chips

Fold those in, mixing the least amount as possible

Scoop the finished muffin batter into muffin lined pans

This next part is optional, but I sprinkles turbinado sugar onto each muffin to add a little crunch and sweetness

Bake and dump of of the pan to cool

I love muffins and breads warm, so I ate mine before it had a chance to cool

If you don't eat them right out of the oven, you could always warm them in the microwave. Then of course slab some butter on them :)

Chocolate Chip Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup butter (melted and cooled)
• 2 eggs (lightly beaten)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 (12 oz) pkg. milk chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a muffin pan with muffin liners. In a large bowl mix together flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl whisk together eggs, milk, butter, and vanilla until well combined. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the wet mixture into the well and stir until combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into muffins tins. If using turbinado sugar, sprinkle about 1/2 tsp on the top of each muffin. Place into the oven and bake for about 10-18. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 2 minutes. Remove from the pan and eat warm! Store in an air-tight container. (Best when served the day of making them or the next day).