Perfect Carrot Cake

I've never been a huge carrot cake fan. And then I found this amazing recipe from The Pioneer Woman, and I was changed forever!

You'll need...

For the cake:

2 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups grated carrots

For the icing:

8 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 pound powdered sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup pecans, finely chopped

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Blend together sugar, oil, and eggs.

Sift all your dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon) into the mixture - yup, just add it all in there.

Mix the dry and wet ingredients together until just blended. Then add carrots, and mix for about a minute.

Pour into a sheet pan that's been greased with Baker's Joy, and use a rubber spatula to make sure the batter is distributed evenly.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Let the cake cool at least 30 minutes before spreading with icing. Chop your pecans... or buy the pre-chopped bag of pecans - no judgment.

Blend together softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Then add powdered sugar about a cup at a time, blending well in between each addition. Blend in vanilla. Then use a rubber spatula to mix in the pecans.

Spread icing over cooled cake.

This got eaten FAST, so the pictures aren't great... but I can't wait to make it again!

Enjoy!!

White Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

Can't believe I let July pass by without a blog update! Here's a fun dessert... I made these for a friend's birthday by putting a twist to this cake recipe by Sweetapolita.

You'll need...

For the cake:

5 large egg whites

3/4 cup milk, divided

2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 3/4 cups cake flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 Tbsp. and 1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

12 Tbsp. unsalted butter

For the icing:

8 oz. cream cheese

8 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 stick)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 lb. of sugar

Let eggs sit on the counter for about 30 minutes to bring them to room temperature. Move butter to a plate and cut into cubes. Let this soften for about half an hour as well. 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 2 cupcake pans by lining each tin with paper liners and spraying each with a shot of Baker's Joy.

In a measuring cup or small bowl, use a fork to whisk together the egg whites, vanilla, and 1/4 cup of the milk. Set this aside for later.

Sift together dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt) into a large mixing bowl, and stir gently with a whisk until just combined.

Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk to the flour.

Then toss in the butter.

Use an electric mixer on low speed for about 30 seconds until the mixture moistens up. Then crank the speed to medium-high until the batter is well combined - about 90 seconds.

Scrape the sides of the bowl, and add one-third of the egg mixture at a time, mixing well between each addition.

 Voila! Now use a scooper to evenly fill the cupcakes tins.

Bake 15-18 minutes or until golden on top. 

Blend together icing ingredients until creamy, and spread or pipe onto the cupcakes once they've cooled. This icing is SO sweet, so I didn't pipe the edges, but there's enough to smother them if that's your thing. :) Top with sprinkles or other fun treats! I used strawberry halves and mini Oreos.

Enjoy!!

Whole Wheat Walnut & Chocolate Chip Pancakes

These were supposed to be Whole Wheat Walnut Pancakes.... The row of pancakes on the right above are with walnuts only, but somehow chocolate chips found their way into the rest of the batter! Delicious!!

Let me preface by saying that pancakes are usually a flop for me. I try a different recipe every time, hoping to find one worth repeating. This one's a keeper!!! Next time I'm throwing in blueberries instead of walnuts/chocolate!

*Recipe makes 8 pancakes!

You'll need:
1 cup + 3 Tbsp milk
1 egg
2 Tbsp canola oil
1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 Tbsp baking powder
1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt 
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup chocolate chips
butter and/or olive oil spray for greasing pan

Start by setting your griddle or pan to medium-low heat.

Whisk together milk, whole egg, and oil in a medium bowl until combined. (I used 1% milk.)

In a smaller bowl, combined the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. (If you're not a fan of the whole wheat, just use all-purpose flour instead.) Add to wet ingredients and fold together a few times.

Add walnuts and chocolate chips. Don't over-mix! The flour shouldn't be too visible, but lumps are good!

My chocolate chips were a little late to this party. You'll see them soon.

Put a little butter on your griddle and spread it around as it melts. I used a mixture of butter and olive oil. (Be sure to grease the pan between each round of pancakes.)

Use a 1/4 cup measuring spoon to scoop batter onto the griddle.

Usually pancakes will start to form tiny bubbles on top when they're ready to flip. Mine weren't as obvious. Just keep an eye on the bottoms and flip when they start to brown - about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending on your heat setting.

Drizzle with syrup, and serve!

Yum. :)

Chicken, Mushroom, & Spinach Quesadilla

Here's my latest fave!

You'll need:

Tortillas

Chicken, cooked and shredded

Sliced mushrooms

Spinach

Shredded cheese (I used Monterey Jack!)

Olive Oil Cooking Spray

Begin by heating a small skillet on medium-low heat. Spray with olive oil cooking spray.

Build your quesadilla by layering cheese, chicken, veggies, and more cheese. The cheese on both sides helps to hold the quesadilla together.

Place in skillet and cook for about 5 minutes on each side. I like to place a small plate on top as a weight to flatten everything together. 

Flip over when golden brown, and cook for another 4-5 minutes.

 Move to cutting board to cut in quarters, and serve!

Enjoy!