Key Lime Cupcakes

 

Ingredients

Cupcakes:

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup butter, softened
4 large eggs
1 TBS key lime zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups buttermilk

Key Lime Filling:

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
4 oz key lime juice

Key Lime Buttercream:

1 cup butter, softened
6–8 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup Key Lime Filling
1/4 cup key lime juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt

Graham Cracker Crumble:

2 graham cracker rectangles, crumbled
2 TBS butter, melted
1 TBS light brown sugar

Instructions

To make the cupcakes: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line 36 muffin tins with cupcake liners.

2. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sugar and the butter together on medium speed until combine. Add in the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the zest and the vanilla and beat to combine.

4. With the mixer on low speed, add 1/3 of the flour mixture. When it’s almost mixed in, add half of the buttermilk, followed by an additional 1/3 of the flour, and then the final buttermilk. Continue to beat just until it is blended.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared muffin tins, filling each about 2/3 full.

6. Bake until a tester inserted in the middle of the cupcakes comes back with just a few crumbs, about 15 to 18 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the filling:

7. In a bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth.
Add the sweetened condensed milk and lime juice and beat to combine.
Reserve 1/2 cup of the filling for the buttercream, and refrigerate the remainder until ready to use.

To make the buttercream:

8. Beat the butter in a large bowl until light.
Add in 3 cups of the powdered sugar, the reserved key lime filling, the lime juice, vanilla and salt and continue to beat until combined.
Gradually add more powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until the buttercream is smooth and thick.

To make the graham cracker crumble:

9. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper.

10. In a small bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbles, the melted butter and the brown sugar.
Spread out on the baking sheet into a thin layer.

11. Bake for 4 to 6 minutes, just until golden, then remove from the oven.
Allow it to cool completely, then crumble into small pieces.

To assemble the cupcakes:

12. When the cupcakes are cool, use a sharp knife to cut a cone out of the center of each cupcake, reserving the cut piece. (I will usually cut off the cone end and discard that, leaving just the circle to cover the filling once filled.) Fill the cupcake with some of the key lime filling, then replace the cut out piece back onto the cupcake.

Pipe the buttercream onto the cupcakes, then garnish with the graham cracker crumbles and small pieces of lime if desired.

from Taste and Tell

Jalapeno Popper Wonton Cups

 

Ingredients
12 wonton wrappers, *I found them in the produce section of my local grocery store
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. sour cream
12 oz. bacon, cooked & crumbled (reserve 2 TBS)
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese, reserve 2 TBS.
3-4 jalapeños, seeded and chopped (**for more spice, do not remove all the seeds)


Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Spray muffin pan with cooking spray.

2. Place one wonton wrapper in each muffin cup; bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
Remove from oven and cool slightly.

3. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together cream cheese, sour cream, bacon, cheddar cheese, and chopped jalapeños.

4. Spoon filling into wonton cups, then sprinkle with reserved bacon and cheese.

5. Return to oven and bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, until wontons are golden brown and cheese is melted.

from Lemontreeddwelling

Lemon Sugar Cookies with Lemon Frosting

COOKIES:
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
1 TBS lemon zest
2 -1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

LEMON FROSTING:

1/2 cup butter, softened
4 cups powdered sugar
1 dash salt
1 TBS lemon zest
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 TBS milk, if needed


INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Cream butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat in eggs, lemon juice, and lemon zest till well combined.

2.  Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt.

3.  Roll dough into tablespoon sized balls and place on lightly greased cookie sheets. Flatten with a glass dipped in sugar.

4. Bake at 350℉ for 9-10 minutes, or until barely light brown on the bottom. Let sit 3-4 minutes on pan, then remove to cooling racks.

5. Cool cookies completely, then frost. 

6. Frosting:Beat together butter, powdered sugar, salt, lemon zest, and lemon juice in a mixing bowl till creamy, adding milk if needed. If you are piping the frosting, it needs to be thick. If you are just spreading it on, you can add more liquid.

from Creations by Kara

Slow Cooker Shredded Beef Tacos

1 TBS olive oil
3 pounds chuck roast
1 TBS beef bouillon powder, or 1 bouillon cube
1 can (28 oz) enchilada sauce
25-30 small (4½ inches each) taco tortillas, flour or corn
1 white onion, finely diced (about 1 cup)
1 cup queso fresco
2 tablespoons cilantro, minced
lime, for garnish

Instructions

1. To a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat, add oil.
Once the oil is hot, add the chuck roast to the skillet and sear on each side, just enough to brown (3-5 minutes per side).

2. Add the seared beef to a crockpot. Top with bouillon powder and the enchilada sauce.
Cover and slow cook on low for 10 hours.

3. When ready, remove the chuck roast from the slow cooker and use two forks to shred. Add the shredded roast back to the juices in the slow cooker.

4. Preheat a skillet to medium-high heat.
Once hot, working one at a time, dip a tortilla into the juices in the crockpot. Add the tortilla to the hot skillet. While it is cooking, top with shredded roast, onion, queso fresco, and cilantro. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Use a spatula to remove from the skillet.

5. Fold the tortilla in half. Serve with leftover juices from the slow cooker for dipping.

 from I am Homesteader

Iced Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients
12 TBS butter, unsalted
1/2 cup brown sugar, tightly packed (light or dark)
1/3 cup white sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cake flour
1 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
2 TBS milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
pinch of salt



Instructions
1. Brown the butter: In a stainless steel skillet over medium heat, melt the butter. Swirl the pan occasionally to help the butter melt evenly. The butter will begin to foam, and then the foam will begin to subside and you’ll start to see tiny specks at the bottom of the pan, stir with a heat resistant spatula or wooden spoon and constantly stir and scrape so milk solids that are browning don’t stick. (These are what give brown butter it’s yummy flavor.) As soon as the butter turns chestnut brown and omits a nutty aroma, remove the pan from the heat and scrape the brown butter and all of the delish brown bits into a heat proof bowl. It’s important to remove to a bowl immediately so the residual heat from the pan doesn’t burn the butter. Set aside & cool slightly.

2. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.

3. Pulse the oats in a food processor about 10 times. They should have some texture to them, not finely ground. Set aside.

4. Add the sugars to the slightly cooled brown butter and whisk. Then add in the eggs, one at a time, until incorporated. Then add in the vanilla.

5. Add in the dry ingredients and fold them in just until incorporated.

6. Roll into about 2 TBS. sized balls and place on the prepared cookie sheets. (Or you can make the cookies smaller if preferred).

7. Bake for 9-11 minutes or just until the edges are golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire cooling rack.

8. Make the frosting: whisk all frosting ingredients together in a bowl. The frosting will be thick, this is perfect! Dip/dunk the tops of each cooled cookie lightly into the frosting. Repeat with remaining cookies and enjoy!

Notes
You can make the cookie dough and refrigerate for up to 3 days before baking.
Cookies will freeze for up to 3 months in an air-tight sealed container.

 from Kroll's Korner

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

Ingredients

1/2 cup salted butter softened (I used all butter, no margarine)
1/2 cup margarine softened
1-1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 TBS light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2- 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Cinnamon Filling

1/4 cup butter partially melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1-1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1-1/2 tbsp all purpose flour

Toppings

1/4 cup white chocolate chips (I used 1/2 cup)

Instructions
1.  Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line two baking sheets with either parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine the ingredients in the "cinnamon filling", mixing until smooth.
Spread the mixture onto one of your prepared baking sheets until about 1/4 inch thick.
Place the pan in the freezer until needed.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer or with an electric hand mixer, cream together the butter, margarine and granulated sugar until light in color and fluffy in texture.

4. Scrape the sides of the bowl and add in the egg, corn syrup and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.

5. Add the flour, baking soda and salt. Mix until a soft dough forms.

6. Remove the cinnamon filling from the freezer and chop into 1/4-1/2 inch squares.
Add the frozen cinnamon filling to the mixer and pulse the mixer just a few times to distribute the cinnamon filling pieces in the dough. Do not mix so much that everything is completely combined, we want there to be swirls and chunks of cinnamon.

7. Portion out the cookie dough using a cookie scoop for uniform sized cookies. For small cookies, use 1 1/2 TBS of dough (#40 scoop) for large cookies, use 3 TBS of dough (#24 scoop).

8. Bake at 350° F until the cookies spread, flatten and are no longer glossy on top. (I did small and baked for 8 minutes). Remove from the oven, and allow the cookies to cool on the pan.

9. Once the cookies have cooled, melt your white chocolate chips in the microwave. Microwave for 30 seconds and then stir. Repeat until melted.

10. Transfer the melted chocolate chips to a zip top bag, snip the corner and drizzle the white chocolate onto the cookies. 

I got 36 cookies

 

from cookies for days