Copy Cat Biquick mix

I ran out of Bisquick and didn't replenish last time I went shopping.  So I found a few copy cat recipes and this worked perfectly!!!

Bisquick mix (I only made a 1/4 of a batch)

8 cups flour
4 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons baking powder
4 teaspoons salt
1 cup shortening

Instructions

In a food processor, place all the ingredients and process until it looks like cornmeal

Store in an air tight container up to one month or in the freezer up to 2 months. Use as an exact substitute for Bisquick in recipes.

Starbucks Caramel Apple Spice Drink

I have been searching high and low for the recipe for Starbucks Caramel Apple Spice drink.  There are lots of copycat recipes and then....I stumbled upon the real recipe from an ex-barista.

Here is the link to her blog entry.

The key is you must have the Cinnamon Dolce syrup.  I didn't even have to ask for a pump, the sweet girl working just grabbed one for me.

Ingredients for a single cup
Apple Juice 12 oz
Cinnamon Dolce Syrup 3 pumps or 3 tbs
Caramel Sauce (the ice cream topping kind)
Whipped Cream

I don't understand their sizes at all, I am just not into fru-fru coffee.  Just give me a Dunkies Medium, 2 sugar and cream.

Woops went off topic...Anyways, I decided to make a double sized batch so that Miss V and I could have them in our pretty new glass mugs.

So I poured 24 ounces of apple juice into my big 4 cup glass measuring cup and went to put the handy dandy pump into the syrup and proceeded to spill a bunch.  Why and how?  Well the pump is about 3 inches to long for my bottle so it spilled out the top and all over the counter.

After wiping up the sticky mess, I measured out 6 tablespoons of the syrup and poured them into the apple juice.  I microwaved the juice/syrup for about 3 minutes until it was hot.

I then poured the hot juice into our new glasses.

Then of course we had to have a squirt of whipped cream.

Then a quick swirl of caramel syrup.

The verdict....oh yea!!!  It was right on!  Both Miss V and  I loved it!

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Mix (sorta copycat)

I threw this together last night since I am always running out of the packets.  Also there has been many times I see the box in the pantry and think, "oh I don't need to buy any this week" only to find out that the box is empty and didn't get put in the recycle bin.  I figure I can keep better track with it being in a clear container.

Ingredients:

5 cups of quick oats

1 cup of brown sugar

2 (or so) tsp of ground cinnamon

1 bag of dried apples, chopped into small pieces

I shook the container up to mix, but noticed that the apples still were stuck together.  I separated the apple bits with my hands and made sure that they were coated with cinnamon/sugar and then they were mixed in well.  You could also add a bit of salt to bring out the flavors better.

It came out great!!! 

Panera Macaroni & Cheese

Miss V love Panera's Macaroni & Cheese and I was determined to find a copy cat recipe.  Well all of the recipes I found all talked about microwaving the roux.  That just seemed weird to me, doesn't that seem weird to you??

Anyway about two weeks ago I found a recipe from the Panera website.  You can check it out HERE along with the Chef's story. 

1 (16-ounce) package of medium shell pasta
¼ cup butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
2½ cups milk (I used whole)
6 slices white American cheese, chopped
1 cup (8 ounces) shredded extra-sharp white Vermont cheddar
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon hot sauce (I used Frank's)

Prepare pasta according to package directions.

Melt butter over low heat. Whisk in flour and cook 1 minute, whisking constantly.

Gradually whisk in milk (or cream); cook over medium heat, whisking until mixture thickens and bubbles. Remove from heat.

Add cheeses, mustard, salt, and hot sauce, stirring until cheese melts and sauce is smooth.

Stir in pasta and cook over medium heat for 1 minute (or until thoroughly heated).


Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Would I make this again?  YOU BET!!!!

Almost Famous Soft Pretzels

Miss V and I spied this recipe a few months back in our Food Network Magazine and knew that we had to try it.

Yesterday I had to run out and get the yeast since I do not normally use active dry, I use a jar of yeast designed for bread machines.

For the Pretzels:

1 cup milk
1 package active dry yeast
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1 teaspoon fine salt
1/3 cup baking soda
2 tablespoons coarse salt

For the Sauce: (We did not make the sauce, we just don't like it)1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup dijon mustard
3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

Directions

Make the pretzels:

Warm the milk in a saucepan until it's about 110 degrees; pour into a medium bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let the yeast soften, about 2 minutes; stir in the brown sugar and 1 cup flour with a wooden spoon. Dice 2 tablespoons butter and soften; stir into the mix. Add the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour and the fine salt to make a sticky dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding more flour if needed, until smooth but still slightly tacky, about 5 minutes. Shape into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and grease a large baking sheet.

Punch the dough to deflate it, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface. (If the dough seems tight, cover and let rest until it relaxes.) Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Roll and stretch each piece with the palms of your hands into a 30-inch rope, holding the ends and slapping the middle of the rope on the counter as you stretch. Form each rope into a pretzel shape. (We made just pretzel sticks)Dissolve the baking soda in 3 cups warm water in a shallow baking dish. Gently dip each pretzel in the soda solution, then arrange on the prepared baking sheet and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes. (Ours more like 8 minutes)Prepare the sauce: Combine the mayonnaise, mustard, brown sugar and vinegar in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.

Melt the remaining 8 tablespoons butter in a shallow dish. Dip the hot pretzels in the butter, turning to coat; place on a wire rack to let excess butter drip off. Serve the pretzels warm with the sweet mustard sauce.
















These were so incredibly yummy!!! We are definitely going to make them again.

Home Made Blueberry Pop Tarts

I found this recipe on Cake Spy. Makes 6-8 tarts, maybe even more, depending on size; adapted from wonderful, wonderful Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

For the crust
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened and cut into cubes
3 tablespoons cold water
For the filling

Jam, about 1 heaping teaspoonful per pastry (your choice of flavor; I used blueberry)

For the icing

1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
milk, to thin

Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set to the side.

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and blend with a fork, pastry cutter, or your impeccably clean hands. Blend until the mixture is fairly coarse. Add the water, bit by bit, gently mixing the dough after each addition, until the dough is cohesive enough to form a ball. (I used my food processor)
Place dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out rectangles approximately the size of index cards (3x5 inches), or smaller if you prefer a more modest portion (I didn't). Make sure you have an even number of cutouts. I think that mine might have been a little thicker than 1/8 an inch, but I ended up with 12 rectangles (for 6 pastries).

On half of the rectangles, place a small spoonful of the jam of your choice in the center. You don't want it to be too thick or the top crust will mound on top of it.

Place the remaining rectangles of dough on top of the ones with jam. Crimp all four edges by hand or with a fork to ensure that your filling won't ooze out. I also poked the top of each with a fork, to vent them.

Place the tarts on your prepared baking sheet, and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until light golden on the edges. Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.

While the tarts cool, prepare your icing; make sure it is fairly thin but not so thin that it will just drip off. Once the pop tarts are cool, drizzle it on top. Garnish with sprinkles.

As you can tell Victoria wanted heart shaped pop tarts.

All rolled and cut out.

Covered with the top crust, crimped and poked holes for a vent.

Added some blueberry preserves.


Baked and cooling.
All done!
  Mmmm look at all that blueberry goodness...



I made these back in February and posted it in Miss V's blog.  I copied it here and took out the pictures of Miss V, for her privacy.

Ben & Jerry's Fudge Ice Cream

I love copycat recipes! I found a great one for Ben & Jerry's Fudge Ice Cream. My sous chef said that she would like me to add some mini chocolate chips too.

4 ounces Unsweetened Chocolate
1 cup Milk
2 large Eggs (I use eggbeaters if the recipe doesn't call for cooking)
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Heavy Cream
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 pinch Salt

Melt chocolate in double boiler over hot (not boiling) water. Gradually whisk in milk, stir until smooth. Remove from heat; let cool. Whisk eggs in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy, 1-2 minutes. Gradually whisk in sugar, then continue whisking 1 minute longer until completely blended. Add cream, vanilla, and salt; whisk. Add the choclate mixture; blend well. Cover, chill, and freeze according to ice cream maker's directions.

Since Victoria is asking for chocolate chips too, I am going to put 2/3 cup of mini chocolate chips.

Ben & Jerry's Heath Bar Crunch Ice Cream

I love love love Ben & Jerry's, I mean who doesn't???? I found a copycat recipe for their Heath Bar Crunch ice cream. This makes 1 quart.

25 mini Heath Bars
2 large eggs (I use egg beaters if the ice cream base isn't cooked)
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

Use a sharp knife to cut the candy bars into small bits. You should end up with about 1 cup. Place the bits in the freezer.

Whisk the egg until light and fluffy, about 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in the sugar a little at a time. Continue to whisk for another minute. Pour in the cram, milk and vanilla and whisk to blend.

Transfer the mixture to your ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturers directions. After the mix gets to be about soft serve consistancy, add in the chopped Heath Bars and continue mixing for 2 minutes.

Transfer mix to snack size Gladware and put into your freezer.

Coleslaw

What goes great with pulled pork? Coleslaw!! The only one that I like is KFC's coleslaw. So I googled it and found a recipe. It came out fantastic!! This is for a double batch. I actually bought the bag of coleslaw mix and made the dressing.


16 cups finely diced cabbage (about 1 head)
1/2 cup diced carrot
4 tablespoons minced onions
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup milk
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup buttermilk (I made my own, it is cheaper. 1/2 cup milk 1/2 tbs lemon juice and let it sit for about 5 minutes)
3 tablespoons white vinegar
5 tablespoons lemon juice **

Cabbage and carrots must be finely diced. (Use fine shredder disc on food processor) .

Pour cabbage and carrot mixture into large bowl and stir in minced onions.

Using regular blade on food processor process remaining ingredients until smooth.

Pour over vegetable mixture and mix thoroughly.

Cover bowl and refrigerate several hours or overnight before serving. (I made it late Friday night for our 4th of July cookout)

**Lemon juice, since I needed a lot of lemon juice for all my recipes this weekend, I bought Nellie & Joe's Famous Lemon juice. It is fabulous! So much better than the "real lemon". They also have lime juice which is incredible!!!

Coffee Crumb Cakes

I recently picked up a Family Circle Magazine because it had a couple copycat recipes. I love copycat recipes. Anyway the one that got my attention was the Coffee Crumb Cakes (the little ones in the plastic wrap). So I made a double batch for the egg hunt this past Saturday.

12 servings
Prep: 10 minutes Bake: 20 minutes

Ingredients
1- 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/3 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:
1/4 cup packed dark-brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch salt
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose flour


Directions
1. Heat oven to 350°. Coat 12 muffin cups with nonstick spray and dust with flour.

2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a medium-size bowl. Whisk to blend. Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and continue beating until smooth. Add flour mixture alternating with milk until just blended. Stir in vanilla.

3. Divide batter evenly among indents of prepared pan (about 1/4 cup in each).

4. Topping: Combine sugars, cinnamon and salt in a medium-size bowl. Stir in melted butter.
Add flour and rub mixture with hands to make crumb topping. Mixture should clump together and form little balls. Sprinkle topping over batter in the cups, about 1 heaping tablespoon for each.

5. Bake until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean; 15 to 20 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack.

My Thoughts:
They tasted very good but they were huge! Not sure if it is because I double the recipe and I used two 12 muffing pans. Next time I will make a single batch and still use two pans, but not fill them all the way up. I think instead of 12 it would make like 16 and be the perfect size.