Smoked Salmon Muffins with Cream Cheese Topping

I really like smoked salmon and look for ways to use it in all kinds of recipes.    Give me an excuse to add it to any recipe and I am there.  When thinking about making a breakfast muffin, what would be more logical than cream cheese and lox.

This month, Naomi from Straight Into Bed, Cake-free and Dried, the originator of the group, “Go ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free” hosted and came up with the brilliant theme of breakfast.  It is brilliant because I love breakfast.  I could have made eggs, French toast, waffles, pancakes of what I did make, muffins.  These are not just muffins, not with all the goodies inside and the cream cheese topping, no, indeed.  These are truly a delight to eat.

Smoked Salmon Muffins with Cream Cheese Topping

2 3/4 gluten-free flour mix

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

2 scallions, chopped

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup cornmeal

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons of guar or xanthan gum.

2 large eggs

1 cup Rice Milk

2 large eggs

1/2 cup cut-up lox

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Topping – 1/3 cup cream cheese.  Add spices to taste.

Method:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and baking soda.  Mix with a whisk.

In a separate bowl, combine the milk, scallions . beaten eggs, oil, honey and scallions.

Mix with whisk until well-blended.

Mix the flour mixture well and then add the smoked salmon.  Mix gently.            

Bake for 22 minutes,

While these muffins are baking, microwave the cream cheese for a few seconds so it spreads easily.

Two minutes before the muffins are completed, remove from oven. 

Using cookie scoop, make a ball to place on each muffin.  I spread it like an icing after it baked for two minutes to soften.

These were really good but I think after the muffin bakes, it should be removed from the oven and split in half, horizontally.  Then, spread cream cheese mix.  I thought the muffin was slightly dry and the cheese would have moistened more of it than spreading it on top.

I would add some spices to the batter to give it a little more oomph.

Try this and I think you will be a happy camper.

Check this out – 11th Heaven’s Homemaker Haven and Tasty Tuesdays and Make it From Scratch and Foodie Friday which is a gracious blog.

If you would like to see me Strut (my) Your Stuff, here is where you will find me.

I Challenge You to Bake This Delicious Bread

This is one of the best quick breads, I have made in a long time.  It has a nutty flavor and a richness, hard to find.  One bite leads to another.  So, take my challenge and make this bread.

Are  you sitting there, puzzling, as to why I am challenging you to make a great bread?  I would be more than puzzled.

This bread is a beet bread.  Keep on reading.  I am making this for a challenge which calls for beets and I wanted to make something different than the great beet salads.  When I saw this recipe at Astray, I knew this was for me.  Of course, at that point, I did not know that this was going to be a fantastic cake.  I prayed that it would not be too red so hubby would at least, try it, before we threw it out.

I took it out of the of the oven, fearing what it would look like and then what it would taste like.  It looked like any other cake with some red speckles from something like strawberries or rhubarb or BEETS.  When you see what the batter looked like, you will understand my very real fear.  After, I got over a sense of relief, that it looked normal, meaning hubby would, at least taste it.  I still thought this was going into the garbage and you are right, I don’t love beets.  How could you tell?

I took a tiny bite and it was heaven, so I quickly gobbled down the piece with a huge smile on my face.  Hubby was going to like this.  I drifted away from the kitchen, leaving a cut piece of cake waiting for the man of the house to come along.  Of course, he did what you would expect.  He ate the piece of cake and called to me that it was delicious. In our discussion about the cake, I asked him what he thought the red was, not that he had noticed it.  He immediately guessed, “cranberry”.  I was tempted to leave it at that but honesty prevailed.  He questioned me as to why I did such a thing.  He must have loved my response.  “There was a challenge on one of the blogs……”    This is for BSI – Bloggers Secret Ingredient, hosted by Part of the Whole and 

I decided that was the moment to leave him to enjoy his cakey bread which he did and I am taking bets, a few pieces will go to work with him tomorrow.  A success……  Now, you be brave and make this and let me know how much you like it.

 Beet Nut Bread    adapted

	Ingredient
¾ cup	canola oil
3/4 cup	Agave
4	Egg Beaters “or vegan substitute”
2 teaspoons	Pure Vanilla Extract
2 cups	Shredded beets
3 cups	gluten free Flour mixture
2 teaspoons	Baking powder
1 teaspoon	Baking soda
1 teaspoon	Cinnamon
¼ teaspoon	Ground nutmeg
1 cup	Chopped walnuts

(From Kraft’s Fresh Focus, February 1987.)

 

Beat oil and agave until light and fluffy.

Blend in egg beaters and vanilla.

Stir in beets.

Add combined dry ingredients; mix well.

Stir in nuts.

 

Pour into greased and floured 9×5″ loaf pan.  (I used parchment paper.)

 

Bake at 350′F. for 60-70 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan.

Makes 1 loaf

This is for the Sweet and Savory Challenge on  Diet, Desserts and Dogs.

I submitted this to one of my favorite gluten free blogs, who has Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

Submitted to Tuesdays at the Table and Gluten Free Wednesdays.  Make a quiche-gluten free to share with Linda of GF Wednesdays and Pennywise Platter Thursday and Sunday Favorites.

I have linked this recipe up because it is delicious and unusual and can be versatile.

Pecan Cajun Salmon – Baked

Each week, I face the challenge of coming up with a new salmon recipe and each week, I search through blog recipes, cookbooks, the Internet, magazines and my collections of “to do’s.”  Then, I walk away, go into the kitchen and start pulling ingredients off the shelves.  Mind you, these ingredients, may have been suggested in five different recipes but they ring a bell for me, in my combination.

 I did find a recipe on Food Network for Cajun seasoning.  I have a nice bottle of spice for Cajun seasoning but it has gluten in it, so I can’t use it for hubby.  This, searching for gluten brings new knowledge, daily.  I remember the time, I made a dish with canned lentils to find that they add gluten to the lentils.  Sigh.

Cajun Seasoning:  (1/3 cup)

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

1 tablespoon dried thyme

1 tablespoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

(I cut back on the cayenne pepper and eliminated the black pepper, knowing my husband’s pepper alarm which works similarly to his garlic alarm.)  Mix all spices together.

Pecan Cajun Salmon  

2 salmon fillets

1/2 cup Rice milk

1 teaspoon white vinegar

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup brown rice flour

1/2 cup ground pecans

2 tablespoons of Cajun seasoning (above)

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray a square or small rectangular pan with cooking oil.

Place salmon in a dish with  rice milk and vinegar.  Turn so, the fish is entirely covered.  Put aside

In a plastic bag, put pecans,  cornmeal, rice flour and seasonings.  Shake so they are mixed well.

Coat salmon on both sides , putting one piece at a time.  I cut my salmon fillets in half and used a one pint size bag.  It just fit with enough space to share the fish inside and coat it. Shake well.

Place coated salmon pieces in prepared pan.  Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

I was nervous about how this would taste.  My husband took a bite and complimented the fish, immediately.  Then, I took a bite and shared his enthusiasm.

submitted to Crazy Daisy Tuesday Tastes and Fight Back Fridays

Caramelized Apple-Pecan Cake – Mark Bittman-My Hero

When I was looking for simple sides, I came across this dreamy recipe.  What is it about the word, “caramelized or even caramel” that turns a plain Jane into a glamorous princess?

This was not a difficult recipe but it left me with a lot to clean up.  I was doing several jobs, at once, and my husband tells me, I am simplex and can’t do that.  I did it though and with him talking to me.  So there!  I mixed the batter, caramelized the sugar, sliced the apples and greased the pan at the same time.  Fortunately, I had ground pecans, on hand and I did not have to chop them, as well.

Caramelized Apple-Pecan Cake

1 stick (4 ounces) soft unsalted margarine (I split it half and half with Canola oil. 2 ounces oil and 2 ounces margarine)

3/4 cup pecan halves

2 large tart apples, like Fuji, peeled, cored and sliced

1/2 cup flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cups sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method:

 1. Use a little butter to grease a 10-inch glass pie plate. Arrange 1/4 cup pecan halves in a pattern in pie plate. Arrange apple slices over and around pecans, in a single layer in a pattern. Scatter any extra slices randomly on top.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, finely grind remaining pecan halves. Mix with flour, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside.

3. Whisk 1 cup sugar and remaining salt together in a skillet and mix with 1/3 cup water. Cook over medium-high heat, without stirring, until mixture turns amber. Swirl pan from time to time if necessary. Immediately pour caramel over apples in pie pan.

4. With a mixer, cream remaining butter and remaining sugar together. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add vanilla extract. Fold in flour mixture. Spread batter over apples. Bake 30 minutes, until nicely browned. Cool.

5. Run a knife around edges and invert cake onto a serving dish, one that is heatproof if you want to warm cake before serving. Serve with ice cream.

I could not turn the cake over as is suggested so I served it with the crust on top.  I did show a photo of a single piece that I cut out and turned over so you can get an idea what the cake could look like.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

 

                   The bubbly photo is the process of caramelization.     

                              

I submitted this to Sunday Favorites and IHCC. and Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays. 

Related Articles

• 7 Low-Fat Holiday Desserts (lifescript.com)

Swedish Meatballs for Debbie Our Crockpot Lady

Wednesdays are Debbie days.  Dining with Debbie has what most of us know as Crockpot Wednesdays.  To me, collecting crockpot recipes is a service to most of us, who have crockpots and perhaps don’t use them enough or are on the lookout for more recipes to make in the crockpot.  Thus, it is important for me to support Debbie by participating.

I have not been able to share in the last few weeks because I do not have a crockpot that I can use on Passover but now I am back.  Today, I pulled out the crockpot and some chopped meat and asked myself, “Now what?”  Thinking it through, I realized, we have not had good ole meatballs, in a while and my decision was made.

I was not in the mood for spaghetti since we had pasta, the last two evenings.  I chose Swedish meatballs and we paired them a little strangely.  I took a yummy piece of challah and covered it with meatballs and loads of sauce.  My husband had some leftover rice and beans which he added the meatballs too.

I started with high hopes for smooth sailing until I went looking for my spices.  Some of them have not turned up, since Passover.  I have most of them but I did not have allspice which I was planning on using.  The best laid plans……..

Swedish Meatballs   (for two) 

Ingredients:

1 pound chopped meat (only had beef – prefer turkey or chicken)

1/4 cup chopped onions

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/8 teaspoon salt

dash of pepper

1/2 cup potato starch (you can use corn meal, rice flour, soy flour)

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 1/2 egg beaters (the advantage of eggbeaters – you can have half of an egg)

1/4 cup Rice Milk (soy or almond will work as well)

Sauce:

2 cups vegetable broth

2 tablespoons milk

(Instead of adding Tofutti sour cream to the pot, at the end, I added some to my bowl but did not give hubby any.)

Method:

In a medium sized bowl, mix chopped meat, onions, parsley, salt and pepper, potato starch.  Add liquids, Worcestshire sauce, Rice Milk and eggs.  Mix well.  Using your hands to mix is more effective than a utensil, if you don’t mind working with raw meat.

Take prepared mixture and make meatballs.  I like them about an inch in size but many like them larger.  Make them according to your preference in size.

Turn crockpot on high and brown meatballs.  In my pot, it took 30 minutes to be lightly browned.  In the future, I am going to brown them in the oven first so there is not fat in the sauce.

Add vegetable broth and non dairy milk. 

Turn to low and leave cooking for three hours.

Serve on rice, pasta or bread.  I bet it would be good on quinoa.

Enjoy.   Submitted to Trendy Treehouse Share Wednesdays and What’s Cooking Wednesdays?

New York Pasta

If you are a New Yorker, bagels and lox sounds just right together.  Even, if you are not a New Yorker, you may have heard of that smoked salmon delight.  Smother the bagel with cream cheese

and then pile it up with smoked salmon (lox).  What am I talking about?  There is a photo of tonight’s dinner.  Doesn’t look much like bagels and lox to me.  Does it to you?

This is my New York Pasta, mac and cheese gone  eastward.  My hubby had no idea what he was eating.  He had asked for baked mac and cheese and he did get that but, I usually use a yellow cheese so this did look different.  He seemed not to notice the little orange bits swimming amongst the macaroni.  NY Pasta is mac and cheese at its best, in my very humble opinion.

Ingredients:

1 package spirals, cooked according to package directions

1 eight ounce container whipped cream cheese

3 eggs, beaten

2 -3 tablespoons Parmesan  (missing from above photo)

1/3 cup mozzarella or enough to cover the top of the casserole

3 slices of lox, torn or cut into small pieces

Method:

Preheat oven 350 degrees.

While the pasta is cooking, combine cream cheese and eggs.

Add the small pieces of smoked salmon.

When pasta is cooked, add it to the bowl of cheese and eggs.  Mix well.  (let pasta cool for a few minutes so it does not cook the eggs.)

Grease a round baking dish and put the pasta mixture in it.

Top with shredded mozzarella and Parmesan, to cover but with a light touch.

Bake for 20 minutes until mixture is set.

Then gobble sedately eat your meal.

Enjoy.

 

Submitted to Pennywise Platter Thursdays - Healthy Eating at good prices.

Haitian Rice and Beans

       This month in Regional Recipes, the location is Haiti.  This is my first time participating so I give you any incorrect information, please forgive me.  You should stop byRegional Recipes and Joanne’s  blog,  Eats Well with Others , for accuracy.  You should join in, just to read Joanne’s blog.  She is funny, clever, smart, a med student, a runner, a great cook and baker,a writer,  a comedian, and most important, a really fine person.   

This month, the emphasis is on Haiti.  The goal of the people is to grow their people big which means lots of carbohydrates.  I was surprised that pumpkin soup is a popular recipe and planned to make it.  I, then got sick and chose an easier choice in which I had all the ingredients, on hand.  Unfortunately,  later, I found a better recipe but that will be for another time.  

I made the national recipe, riz and pois, rice and beans.  High in carbs and inexpensive makes it reachable for most of the people.  It is hearty fare. The recipe I made was eaten by hubby and he liked it a lot.  I thought it was bland but then I realize, I am sick and my taste is off.  He is probably more accurate.  Otherwise, go heavier on the spices.  

Rice and Beans (Riz and Pois) 

             INGREDIENTS: 

slightly adapted

2 quarts water 

• 2 cups dried red beans, rinsed
• 1 can (13 3/4 ounces) beef broth    (vegetable broth)
• Water
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 8 parsley sprigs
• 3 scallions or green onions, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1/4 teaspoons dried rosemary
• 3 tablespoons peanut oil   (did not have – used Safflower)
• 2 cups rice

 

 METHOD : 

Bring water to boiling. Add red beans and cook covered for 1 1/2 hours.  (I used canned.  If I were feeling better, I would have used the regular beans.) 

Drain beans, reserving liquid, and set aside. Add beef broth and enough water to bean liquid to equal 4 3/4 cups of liquid. Set aside. 

 In a mortar, pound together to form a paste the salt, parsley, scallions, garlic, and rosemary. (used food processor.) 

    

 Heat oil and seasoning paste in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Put rice in Dutch oven and stir until well coated with oil. Add reserved liquid and bring to a boil, stirring. Add beans and again bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and cook undisturbed for 20 minutes. 

Remove cover, stir, and cook about 5 minutes longer, or until no liquid remains.

  

You will find this at Tempt my Tummy Tuesdays.

Gluten Free Wednesdays is the place to be.

Submitted to Food Revolution Fridays and Fight Back Fridays

Ultimate Recipe Swap - Beans – Yeah team

Caramelized Spiced Nuts – Mark Bittman – IHCC

Personally, I am more than excited about the new chef that we are cooking with at I Heart Cooking Clubs.  I had a great six months cooking with Nigella Lawson and can’t believe how time has gone by, so quickly.  Although, it has been a good six months, I am now, looking forward to another wonderful half year, cooking with Bittman. 

He is known for his minimalistic methodology which is perfect for me.  I have two of his books and in reading parts of them, I love the way he expresses his ideas about cooking, always giving the reader an out to an easier to get ingredient or method.  I have a list soooooo long of recipes, I want to make and look forward to making a dent in this list. Come join us and cook with Mark Bittman and the many members of IHCC.

These are the choices for this month:                                                                                                    

  April 5th-11th  Bites of Bittman

April 12th-18th  Pantry Raid!

April 19th-25th  Potluck

April 26th-May 2nd  Spice Caravan
This is my choice for Bites.

I was fortunate to find the recipe online and I only made two changes in this recipe.  I cut it in half which I commonly do, with new recipes.  I did not have peanut or grapeseed oil so I substituted.

Caramelized Spiced Nuts

Makes 4 to 6 

Time: 15 minutes

2 tablespoons peanut or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons garam masala
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups (about 1 pound) mixed unsalted shelled nuts

1. Heat the oven to 450°F. Grease a baking sheet with the oil. Put a wide pot or deep skillet over high heat and add 2 cups water and the sugar. Bring to a boil and stir in the spices, salt, and nuts. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the liquid is reduced to a syrup, 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Turn the heat to low and remove the nuts with a slotted spoon, letting the excess syrup drain off a bit and then spreading the nuts on the baking sheet (be sure to turn off the burner when you’ve finished).

3. Roast the nuts for 10 minutes, tossing once or twice with a spatula. Remove from the oven and let cool (the sugar coating will be very hot, so resist sampling for a few minutes!); the sugar coating will harden as the nuts cool. Serve or store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 or 3 days.  (I apologize.  The nuts below are before baking and I forgot to take a photo of after they were finished cooking.)

I did not have Garam Masala so I looked it up on the Internet and found several recipes, all different.  I went with this one from All Recipes.

Garam Masala

1 tablespoon ground cumin 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom (do not have) 1 1/2 teaspoons ground pepper

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (got cut out of photo)

Directions:

1.	Mix cumin, coriander, cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg in a bowl. Place mix in an airtight container, and store in a cool, dry place Check out Recipe Trader - You will find this recipe there.  I submitted this to Food Revolution Fridays.

Enjoy!!!!!

Honey Coated Clementine Salmon

                        As you know, each week, it is in our plans to have salmon during the week and that I am trying to make a new recipe, each week.  

As I entered the kitchen,  today, to make the salmon, my mind was void of any ideas for the fish.   I started to describe this as a Susie Fishbein recipe until I went back the Kosher Palette and looked up her recipe which is called Honey Battered Lemon Sole and Vidalia Onions.  Looks like a great recipe and I did get the idea of making a batter using honey from it but this recipe is not really based on hers.   I would like to try her sole recipe, someday. 

Honey Coated Clementine Salmon 

Ingredients: 

1 egg,  beaten 

1 tablespoon honey 

1 tablespoon rice flour 

2 salmon fillets 

juice from one clementine 

pinch of black pepper 

Method: 

Preheat oven 350 degrees. 

Spray a baking dish that will accommodate the two salmon fillets. 

In a shallow bowl, mix egg, honey, black pepper  and flour. 

 

 

Dip salmon fillets on both sides so they are coated completely. 

Squeeze clementine juice on top of the salmon.  You could also add it to the flour-honey mixture, instead of dripping it on top.

Place in greased baking pan and bake in oven f0r 20 minutes. 

 

I suggest eating this right away since reheating tends to dry it out. 

 

We gave this an A for taste.  The coating was not like a breaded one.  It was lighter and for us, much better.  

 

  

Contributed to Homemaker Mondays and Tuesdays at the Table and Real Food Wednesdays.

Disguised Rice

This is the first time, I have made rice since the holidays and hubby, the rice lover, is thrilled.  I love using this rice because it is attractive.  Isn’t that as good a reason as any? 

Speaking of disguises, (I will get to that), I went back to teaching today and my class was in disguise.  I opened the door and each child was seated, clean desks and big smiles.  Who knew they could do this?  I have a wonderful class and did know but today, I did feel like they were disguised as the Perfect Class.  As great as they are, perfect they are not.

How can rice be disguised?  When one equalizes the amount of vegetables in the rice, which is basically, what I did.  Despite the photo showing baby carrots, I had to change that.  They are too short to use the mandolin on so I took out some full sized carrots and used two of them.  I also left the scallions out of the photo.  The reason for that is, somewhere in the middle of slicing and dicing, I decided, the recipe needed something else and added  one scallion, green and white parts.

Disguised Rice             Serves 2

Ingredients:

1 cup rice (check that bottle-this is not just rice)

There is white, brown and red rice and it is quick cooking (15 minutes).

1 1/2 cup organic vegetable soup

(no spices – soup  covers that)

1 zucchini, shredded with mandolin

2 carrots, shredded with mandolin  (I did not have a mandolin for Passover and I missed it)

1 scallion, chopped  (You could use a red onion in place of the scallion.)

(I though about adding a yellow pepper but I decided that was overkill with the small amount of rice, I was making.)

Method:

Put everything into pot and put heat on under the pot.

Add carrots to rice.

Add zucchini to rice and carrots.

Above – Scallion left out of Ingredients photo.

 

Add scallions to rice, carrots and zucchini. 

Get it to boiling and lower it.

Cover tightly and cook for 15 minutes.

That is it.

Finished in pot.

Serve it as a side with fish, poultry or meat.

Most of all, enjoy it.

I hope the bloggers stopping at Jerri’s Simply Sweet Home will also enjoy it.

Submitted to Friday Feasts