Have Leftovers – Make Soup

I had my meal plan in place, for tonight, until I looked into the refrigerator to find quite a few vegetables and fruit which would survive for a short time, if I didn’t use them, very soon.  The sweet potatoes, in particular were ready to get up and walk away.  Usually, I keep four sweet potatoes, in the house, and have plans for them.  This morning, there were six potatoes and I had no idea what to do with them.

I also found lots of leftovers sharing space with the sweet potatoes.  I decided quickly, leftovers would become the fare for, this evening and I would make a soup to go with the meal.

Emptying the refrigerator –  4 sweet potatoes, 1 apple,  container with some apple sauce, leftover vegetable soup.  Can you picture and taste my soup?

Apple Cinnamon-Sweet Potato Soup  (made in a crockpot)

4 medium sweet potatoes

1 cups water

2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup applesauce

1 apple, peeled and sliced

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste

Procedure

Put liquids in slow cooker.  Add sweet potatoes and applesauce.  Cover and cook on low for three hours.

Add apple, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg plus black pepper.  Cook on high for another hour.

Using an immersion blender, blend until the consistency you want.  Mine was smooth and creamy.

If I had cranberry pecan goat cheese, I would have crumbled it on top of the soup.

This soup had a distinct apple flavor to it and it was delicious.

This is not my photo.

 Pennywise Platter Thursdays      Sunday Night Soup      Show Your Stuff

Chocolate Caramel Coffee Cake

I have been making many similar cakes, to this one, over the years, which is probably why, I made a number of changes.  I added the caramel, smoothed on “sort of an icing“, added many, many chocolate and caramel chips to the batter and used Tofutti sour cream instead of dairy sour cream.

This comes from a cookbook, called Gatherings, which has kosher recipes.  I can’t decide if I like this book or not.  There are certain attributes, I know, I don’t like.  While there are some pictures of the recipes, more pages do not have any.  Some of the photos are not of the recipe but of some of the ingredients.  I am a visual cook and like to see what I am working toward.

There is little generalized chit-chat about the recipes which is because it is published by a private school but I miss it.  We have come spoiled, in my opinion, by how much information, stories and tips come with recipes, in today’s cookbooks.  When there is a tip, it is put on a side bar which is a different color. That, I do like.

On the other hand, it is a comfortable cookbook to use.  It is almost simplistic in its style.  It says what it wants to say and no more.  You know what you are doing as a result.  The recipes are familiar with a few twists.  I am glad, I have the book but it would not be the first kosher cookbook, I would recommend.

Chocolate Caramel Coffee Cake (adapted from Gatherings)

Topping – 1/2 cup brown sugar and 1 tablespoon cinnamon plus 1/2 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup caramel chips

Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

!/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1 cup Tofutti sour cream

3 tablespoons margarine

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

3/4 cup caramel chips

Procedure

Preheat oven 350 degrees.  Spray with cooking oil a ten inch spring form pan.

In a small bowl, combine topping ingredients.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients. (Flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt…)  Set aside.

In bowl of electric mixer, cream margarine and sugar for three minutes.  Add eggs and vanilla, and sour cream.  Beat until incorporated.

Fold in chocolate and caramel chips.

Pour into greased pan.

Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on top of cake, reserving chips.

Bake for 45 -60 minutes until a knife, inserted, comes out clean.

Remove from oven and cover with chocolate chips.  Place in oven for one minute.  Remove and spread chips over top of cake.  Sprinkle with caramel chips.

This is linked to Crazy for Crust      Tastetastic Thursdays      Sweet Treat Thursdays

 This is linked to  Friday Food   

Cinnamon Pancakes

My husband usually turns down pancakes for breakfast and happily has his cereal.  He surprised me, this time, when he heartily agreed to pancakes.  I am, always happy, when we have pancakes so there were two enthusiastic participants, awaiting breakfast.  I debated adding apples to this recipe.  What are apples without cinnamon, what is cinnamon without apples.  Actually cinnamon is just fine without the apples so I stuck to what I expected to be a plain pancake.

Actually, the cinnamon really enhanced the pancakes.  My husband ate them plain and I added a little syrup.  We both left the table, satisfied.

Cinnamon Pancakes (adapted from Taste of Home)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons  flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon Canola oil
• 3/4 teaspoon  pure vanilla extract
• Maple syrup (optional)

Directions

• In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.
• In another bowl, combine the egg, milk, oil and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until combined.
• In a lightly greased skillet, drop batter by 1/4 cupfuls; press lightly to flatten. Fry until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Serve with syrup. Yield: 2 servings.

Note:  I used a quarter cup until I found that by letting the batter run off a regular tablespoon, the pancakes were rounder.  I lived it up with a little butter with the maple syrup.

This is linked to Tastastic Thursdays             Simply Delish Saturday          Frugal Food Thursdays   Party Mindy Style       Slow Cooking Thursdays

Friday Favorites     Fusion Fridays

Cinnamon Lovers’ Quick Bread

I love the aroma of cinnamon which means, I am happy, baking with lots of cinnamon in the batter.  I was  visiting Kitty’s Kozy Corner    and that magic word, jumped out at me and I was hooked.  All plans of other cookies and cakes went out the window and I almost ran to the kitchen to make this gem.  It is a simple quick bread but my husband called it cake, as soon as he tasted it.  He also gasped out the word, “cinnamon.”  I queried, “You like cinnamon?”  He enthusiastically shook his head up and down, while grabbing another slice.  He, really is a civilized person and normally would have reached the table, before the first bite but this time, he cheated and tasted it, standing up.   This bread will, very likely, be around for a while and I am not speaking of this loaf.

 Cinnamon Lovers’ Quick Bread  adapted  from Kitty’s Kozy Kitchen, a great place to visit and to stay awhile

Ingredients  

2 cups flour  (I made this gluten-free so I used a gluten-free mix)
1 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 eggs

Streusel

3 tablespoons ground almonds
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons Canola oil

Procedure

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease & flour  9 x 5- inch loaf pan.  Lightly spoon flour into cup; level off.  In large bowl , combine all bread ingredients & beat for 3 minutes on medium speed of mixer.  Pour batter into prepared pan.

In small bowl, combine all streusel ingredients until crumbly; sprinkle over batter & swirl lightly to marble.   Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Remove from pan immediately.

Cool completely before slicing.

Tastetastic  Thursdays

Cinnamon Minis

I had about a half hour to bake something which meant I needed a quick baking item.  Immediately, muffins came to mind  but I was not sure,  I could even pull that off.  Then, I thought of my minis, the tiniest of minis.  In a muffin pan that usually holds six muffins, these hold 12 shaped cakes, as tiny as can be.  They would bake even faster.

I used a recipe from Taste of Home for Cinnamon Muffins, adapted the recipe slightly and made these adorable little gems.

The star-shaped mini below is really a tin, I did not have enough batter for.  I put in a little and got this flat cutie.  It was thick enough to taste good.

Cinnamon Minis        

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 cups gluten-free flour mix or all-purpose flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup Rice milk

There is a topping in the original recipe but I had no time to make it.
Directions

• In a large bowl, mix oil  and sugar well. Beat in egg. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; add to sugar mixture alternately with Rice milk until well combined.
• Fill greased miniature shapes 2/3rds  full. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

This is linked to Made By You Monday        Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays   Tuesdays At the Table        Made From Scratch Tuesday                Dr. Laura’s Tasty Tuesday           Naptime Creations Tasty Tuesday Link Party   Tuesday Time Out Inspiration Party
Tuesday Tasty Tidbits               Totally Tasty Tuesday      Delectable Tuesday     Tuesday To Do List        Bookmarked Tuesdays             Creative Share Wednesday       Penny Pinching Party     Let’s Do Brunch     What’s on your Plate Wednesday           Wow Me Wednesday           Sweet Treats Thursdays