Garfield...Recipes with Cattitude! Cookbook (Everyday Cookbook Collection) (6 page)

         
   
Wash your hands, put on an apron and…

                
Have fun cooking!

Orange Streusel Coffee Cake

The best eye-opener ever…a citrusy slice of warm coffee cake with a mug of steaming-hot coffee!

2-1/4 c. all-purpose flour, divided

1 c. sugar, divided

2 t. baking powder

1 t. salt

1 T. orange zest

1 egg, beaten

1/2 c. milk

1/2 c. orange juice

1/2 c. oil

2 T. butter

In a large bowl, combine 2 cups flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder and salt; mix well. Stir in orange zest. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and set aside. In a separate bowl, blend together egg, milk, orange juice and oil. Add egg mixture to well in flour mixture. Stir until moistened; batter will be lumpy. Pour batter into a greased 9" round cake pan. In another bowl, mix together butter, remaining flour and remaining sugar with a fork until crumbly; sprinkle evenly over batter. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes, or until center tests clean with a toothpick. Cut into wedges. Makes 8 servings.

Grated citrus zest adds so much flavor to all kinds of recipes…and it’s practically free! Whenever you use an orange or lemon, grate the peel first. Keep it frozen in an airtight container for up to two months.

Almond Coffee Cake

Sprinkle some toasted sliced almonds over the batter for extra crunchiness and almond flavor.

1/4 c. shortening

1-1/3 c. sugar, divided

2 eggs, beaten

1-1/2 t. almond extract

2 t. baking powder

1/2 c. milk

1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 T. cinnamon

Garnish: butter

Combine shortening and one cup sugar in a bowl; blend well. Stir in eggs, extract and baking powder. Add milk and flour, a little at a time; stir until smooth. Spread batter in a well-greased 11"x8" baking pan. In a small bowl, mix cinnamon and remaining sugar. Sprinkle mixture over batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until center tests clean with a toothpick. Cut into squares. Serve warm, topped with butter. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Keep a tin of pumpkin pie spice on hand to jazz up pancakes, muffins and coffee cakes. A quick shake adds cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice all at once.

Upside-Down Apple Muffins

Keep a box of colorful paper muffin cup liners in the cupboard…speed up breakfast and turn it into a party too!

1-1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 c. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. nutmeg

1/4 c. plus 3 T. butter, divided

1/2 c. buttermilk

1 egg, beaten

1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and grated

1/3 c. brown sugar, packed

1/2 c. chopped pecans

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spices; mix well. With a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut in 1/4 cup butter until mixture is crumbly. In a separate bowl, whisk together buttermilk and egg. Add buttermilk mixture to flour mixture alternately with apple; stir until moistened. Melt remaining butter; place in a cup and stir in brown sugar. Divide brown sugar mixture evenly among 12 paper-lined or greased muffin cups; top with pecans. Spoon batter evenly into muffin cups. Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, until golden and centers test clean with a toothpick. Turn muffins out of pan while still warm; serve pecan-side up. Makes one dozen.

A baker’s secret! Grease muffin cups on the bottoms and just halfway up the sides…the muffins will bake up nicely puffed on top.

Oatmeal-Blueberry Muffins

If it’s wintertime and fresh blueberries are hard to find, just plump some dried berries in hot water. Drain and bake as usual.

1 egg

1 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. brown sugar, packed

1/3 c. butter, melted and cooled slightly

1 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. quick-cooking oats, uncooked

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

1 c. blueberries

Combine egg, buttermilk, brown sugar and butter in a bowl; beat well. Add flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir just until moistened. Fold in blueberries. Spoon batter into 12 paper-lined or greased muffin cups, filling 2/3 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until golden. Makes one dozen.

If a muffin recipe doesn’t fill all the cups in your muffin tin, add some water to the empty cups. This allows the muffins to bake more evenly.

Zazzy Zucchini Bread

This recipe makes two loaves of yummy bread…one to enjoy today and one to freeze for later.

3 eggs, beaten

1 c. oil

2 c. sugar

2 c. zucchini, peeled and grated

1 T. vanilla extract

3 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

2 t. cinnamon

Optional: 1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Mix together eggs, oil, sugar and zucchini in a bowl; stir in vanilla. In a separate large bowl, combine remaining ingredients except walnuts. Add flour mixture to zucchini mixture and stir well; mix in walnuts, if using. Divide batter evenly between 2 lightly greased 8"x4" loaf pans. Bake at 325 degrees for one hour. Cool loaves slightly in pans; turn out and cool on a wire rack. To freeze, cool completely, then wrap in aluminum foil and plastic freezer wrap. Makes 2 loaves.

Applesauce can be used as a fat-free substitute for oil when baking muffins and baking powder breads. Just substitute the same amount of applesauce as the recipe calls for oil.

Monkey Bread

Grab a pair of kitchen scissors to cut up the biscuits in a hurry.

2 12-oz. tubes refrigerated biscuits

1/2 c. butter

1 c. brown sugar, packed

3 T. cinnamon, divided

1/2 c. sugar

Separate biscuits; cut each biscuit into 4 pieces and set aside. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt butter, brown sugar and one tablespoon cinnamon. Cook and stir until bubbly; remove from heat. In a small bowl, mix together sugar and remaining cinnamon. Roll biscuit pieces in cinnamon-sugar; arrange in a greased Bundt
^®
pan. Spoon butter mixture over top. Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes, or until golden. Let cool in pan for several minutes; place a serving plate over top of pan; carefully turn over and turn bread out of pan. Serve warm. Makes 10 to 12 servings.