Bran Muffins With Coconut Oil & Flax

We don't get the sickies often, but when we do...its ROUGH

This one hit all of us at once, and its been a whirlwind trying to keep the house germ free, get the munchkins to eat nutritious food and have a good nights sleep and keep up with all the daily "to-dos"

With what little energy I had at 9am this morning I decided to whip up something I knew the kids would eat- a muffin!

Coconut oil is such an amazing super food and contains  powerful medicinal properties. Did you know that the Lauric acid in coconut oil can kill bacteria, viruses and fungi, while keeping infections at bay? Coconut oil also helps moisturize the skin from the inside out. Living in a very dry climate, moisture is so helpful, especially when you are under the weather!

You need:

• 2 cups wheat bran
• 1/2 cup buttermilk (1/2 cup whole milk and 1/2 tablespoon vinegar works too)
• 1/2 cup orange juice + 1 tablespoon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar ( I would usually use 1/2 cup turbinado sugar blended with 1 tablespoon molasses, this time I went the easy route!)
• 1/2 cup organic virgin coconut oil
• 1 large egg + 1 Egg white
• 3/4 cup AP flour or Whole Wheat 
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• tiny pinch of salt
• 
• Mix all the ingredients together and pour into recycled kraft cupcake liners- I like these unbleached liners
• bake @ 350 degrees for 25 minutes and enjoy :)
• 

Oktoberfest German Style Soft Pretzels

Pretzels...

Filled with flour and gluten and salt... NOT the healthiest treat in the world but delicious and great with a big stein of Oktoberfest beer.

Its an easy process but there is a lot of rising time. So be prepared to wait a few hours to eat your delicious pretzels. Real Authentic pretzels are actually made with food grade lye. But I rather not cook with things that you need to wear goggles and rubber gloves!

You need:

• 4 cups all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour 1:1
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 cup warm water plus 2 tablespoons
• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
• 5 tablespoons butter, divided 3 tablespoons and 2 tablespoons
• Coarse sea salt 

* try using all organic ingredients if possible and full fat butter

Add yeast to the warm water. In the bowl of your electric mixer, add in flour and sugar and make a little well in the middle.

Pour your yeast/water mixture into the well and leave it alone for 15-20 minutes.

When you return to your bowl the flour will be risen a bit and the water will be very bubbly, mix with a slotted spoon or silicone spatula. 

Add in 3tblspoons butter and mix on low speed until dough comes together, you might need to add in 2 additional tablespoons of water. The dough should be just sticky enough to hold together.

Let the dough rest for 40 minutes to an hour.

Beat the dough down and cut into 12 equal strips... I am not Auntie Anne so please excuse my uneven pretzel dough!

roll dough strips on the counter top to desired thickness. The skinnier bigger pretzels are more crisp and the smaller fatter pretzels have softer insides.

Once all your pretzels are shaped, lay them out on a parchment lined baking sheet and place in the fridge for another hour...I KNOW you are desperate to eat them already, but I promise this step is important!

After your last rise, bring a large pot of water to a boil (fill up a little more than half way full) And SLOWLY pour in 1/2 cup of baking soda.

Quickly, 1 pretzel at a time let pretzel soak in the water bath for 5 seconds per side, a wide spatula is the easiest way to flip!

After you dip the pretzel line them back on the parchment lined baking sheets, sprinke desired amount of salt and bake at 400 degrees for 12-17 minutes depending on your level of crisp desired, these were baked for 15 minutes. Use remaining butter (microwave for 20-30 seconds) and lightly brush your warm pretzels with butter, using a pastry brush or basting brush.

Eat with mustard or with House Of J Raw Milk Queso 

Real Food: Organic Raw Cacao Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate pudding...It's delicious, it's my hubbies favorite sweet and if you make it from a box. You are pretty much eating chemicals.

Sugar, Cornstarch, Cocoa (Processed With Alkali), Food Starch Modified, Contains Less Than 2% Of The Following: Natural & Artificial Flavor, Salt, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean And Cottonseed Oil, Calcium Carrageenan (Texturizer), Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1

Sugar, cornstarch, cottonseed oil and soybean oil is pretty much guaranteed to be GMO. Chemical colorants that are actually listed on FDA website to cause hyperactivity in children.

Carrageenan has no nutritional value and linked to inflammatory illnesses and ups the chances of developing diabetes.

Homemade real food chocolate pudding?
Cacao powder
Tapioca starch
Raw cane sugar
Egg Yolks
Milk
Cream
a little organic semi-sweet chocolate
a pat of butter
DONE

Ingredients you can pronounce. With healthy fats and protein. Oh and by the way...
Done in 10 minutes time. You can totally eat it right away (it's delicious) Or you can wait 45 minutes to let it harden a little.

I even made it 2 ways, regular refrigerated chocolate pudding (which is for the hubs) and pudding pops for me and the kiddos =)

For 8 servings...you need:
2 tablespoons raw Cacao Powder*
2 tablespoons Tapioca Starch*
5 tablespoons raw pure cane sugar*
2 egg yolks*
2 cups whole milk*
4 tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate chips*
.5 tablespoons butter*

* organic ingredients

Whisk together all dry ingredients. in a medium sauce pan. Slowly pour in milk and yolks.

After all ingredients are fully incorporated, add in cream and bring to a slow rolling boil. About 8 minutes with continuous whisking.

Once pudding has thickened add in chocolate and butter and whisk to combine.

Pour into 8 ramekins or pudding molds.. Let set 45 minutes and up until over night and enjoy =)

PS:
If you are tracking calories this recipe is uploaded under "House of J: Real Food Chocolate Pudding" on Myfitnesspal.com

117 calories, 13.5g carbohydrates, 6.4g fat, 3.4g proteins,9.6g sugar, 38g sodium

xo-J

Banana Muffins with Almond Butter and Coconut Oil

Lets talk for a moment about brown sugar...http://grist.org/industrial-agriculture/feds-to-farmers-grow-gmo-beets-or-face-a-sugar-shortage/

It's delicious. If you buy generic brown sugar its pretty much guaranteed to be GMO beet sugar. Pesticides, Highly processed and refined.

We use only 100% organic pure cane sugar for everything that needs sugar here at House Of J. Organic pure cane brown sugar is... EXPENSIVE 1 lb of brown sugar is $5.00 compared to regular super market sugar @ $1.75 per pound!! 

Another reason why it's so hard for many of us to keep a 100% GMO free and organic diet. It costs so much..

Well here is an amazing alternative to A. eating junk sugar or B. going broke

Make your own!

Buy your fabulous organic pure cane sugar and a jar of organic unsulpured molasses  The result is a more fluffy version of regular old brown sugar, and no worrying about it drying out or hardening. 

I will show you a great recipe where brown sugar is needed but instead I use this method!

Banana Muffins!

You need:

3 very ripe bananas (so ripe even that your hubby says, oh wow what are you going to make with those bananas, hint hint hint)

1 cup organic pure cane sugar

1 tablespoon organic molasses

1 egg

1.5 cup flour (make sure GM free/Organic)

1/2 cup almond butter (make sure it's not cut with canola or soy in any way) PURE almond butter

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

preheat oven to 350

Combine bananas and sugar in the bowl of your mixer and beat until it forms a gooey paste. Add in the molasses and beat until completely incorporated then add in your egg.

Combine flour baking powder/soda and salt in a bowl and set aside. 

Using a large microwave safe measuring cup heat up your coconut oil for 20-30 seconds. Add in the almond butter (to the measuring cup) and stir until smooth. 

Take turns adding in dry ingredients and your oil/almond butter mixture until smooth.

Pour into a greased muffin pan or liners and bake for 18-20 minutes. I use the eco recycled liners, 75 liners for $1.75!

They are so moist and airy. Sweet enough for desert and perfect for breakfast :) 

Dairy Free Vanilla Frosted Cupcakes

Since starting my Etsy business, I've had various requests for different types of allergy adjustments which of course gets me into the kitchen working with fun new ingredients and different flavor combinations...

I can't say this recipe is 100% dairy free because there is 1 egg in the batter... Some people consider eggs dairy while others do not. And since no one in my family has allergies to anything food related, I've never had to worry about it. This can be substituted very easily with 1/2 ripe banana.

Tomorrow is Dr. Seuss' birthday..So I decided to have a little fun, try some new ingredients and make a cute little treat. Feel free to just bake the cupcakes without the food coloring because they are just as delicious, I promise.

Dairy Free Vanilla Cupcakes: 

(this recipe makes 6, double if making a full tray)

Side note: Eco Friendly recycled cupcake liners, cheap and sustainable :)

1/4 cup Spectrum Organic shortening

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup vanilla soy milk

In the bowl of your mixer cream together shortening and sugar. It will look pretty grainy at first, but will become smooth and shiny in about 4 minutes on medium speed.

In a seperate bowl combine flor and baking powder and set aside.Add in 1 egg and vanilla in your sugar/shortening mixture and mix until smooth and creamy. About 2 minutes more.

Slowly add in the flour mixture and soy milk in 3 parts, alternating until smooth. Mix another minute.

If you are coloring your batter, separate into different bowls and add a drop of your favorite colors, I used gel color, a little bit goes a long way.

Drop in teaspoon fulls of the different colors in the lined cupcake tin (3/4 full) and bake at 350 for 18 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes or so. 

While they cool down, work on the frosting..

Vanilla Coconut diary free frosting using Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil.
adapted from

You need:

2 tablespoons Virgin Coconut Oil

6oz icing sugar

2-3 tablespoons soy milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

*side note*(last one I promise)

I DID NOT MISS BUTTER AT ALL! this "frosting" recipe is so delicious.While the texture and ability to decorate with it is a bit limited, It is really a fabulous topping to any confection.

The oil is solid so it takes a bit of work getting it integrated into a smooth icing but its worth the work.
Add in the coconut oil and vanilla and mix on medium speed until the coconut oil breaks apart and starts looking a bit more creamy. Add in icing sugar and mix on low speed, pouring in your milk until you get a glossy, creamy icing.

Now the texture is a bit runny, but IMO adding more sugar would make it much to sweet. The texture was more of a glaze but a few minutes in the fridge hardens it up a bit and makes it much easier to work with. The slightly sweet coconut flavor on the vanilla cupcakes was just a marvelous combination.

Sprinkle a few sprinkles and enjoy :)

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Bread baking is a great way to save money and elimated unwanted ingredients like fillers and chemicals.

Check out my guest post over at Coping with Frugality today for the recipe!

Whole Wheat Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Nursing...Trial & Error, Support and Cookies

Nursing is hard...If you think it is going to be a cake walk...YOU ARE CRAZY.

I have been nursing my 8 month old for 8 months minus 2 days...Before that, I nursed my 2.5 year old until she was 11 months.

Not because I wanted to stop. Because SHE wanted to stop...she was done. Very independent little girl and that was just the beginning.

My heart sank when I took my daughter to her first pediatrician appointment only to be told that she was starving and needed formula. I listened of course, but know better now.

I struggled...A LOT. I had production issues and 2 preemies. My youngest was in NICU and I couldn't feed him until the third day. I was very lucky that we were able to connect even though we missed those first critical hours when he was taken out of my arms and put in an incubator. It took a good few weeks months before we got a good nursing routine going and it stopped being so painful.

I was in some serious pain for a long while with the little fellow, bad latching, extra sensitivity, who can be sure the reasons. If it wasn't for EarthMamaAngelBaby...I'd probably given up.

I stuck with it for the second time around again, and I am so so glad I did...My little guy went from 1% to well over 30% in just a few short weeks and is practically walking at 8.5 months.. Both my children are so smart and I do give the mothers milk just a little of that credit...ok...A LOT of credit.

But I know it can be so challenging and production issues are mostly out of our control. Especially as new mommies who are consistently told to give in and give formula. I was lucky enough to stumble upon some cool sites and blogs listing the benefits and health factors of things like brewers yeast, oats and flax. I tried ever trick in the book, supplements and teas, they tasted so gross. But I was willing to do anything.

With my skills in the kitchen I knew I could create something delicious, healthy and great for nursing mommies.

Cookies of course...

I'm sharing this story with you as some inspiration to keep at it, and don't give up until your baby is ready. It's so worth it.

You can buy them Here. Or send me a letter for a donation to your cause( woman's shelters, veteran's and their wives, etc, through House of J's facebook page.

*(plug for earth mama angle baby is my own opinion and experiences I was not compensated or approached for this review)

Dark Hot Chocolate

January is well under way and once the sun goes down its pretty darn cold around here.  Hot chocolate is always assumed to be a kids drink. You know the old story of the children playing in the snow and momma has a cup of cocoa waiting for when they come inside to get toasty. It's even been a cool trend for parties recently. Well, I love chocolate and I think it's time for a hot chocolate update. A more gourmet, grown up style cocoa that, with just a little effort could be a really delicious dessert drink on a cold wintery night.

There are a ton of cocoa mix recipes all over the web right now, and if you love Pinterest as much as I do, you've seen them.  Mine is just a little bit different, with ingredients you may not have thought to put in a cup of hot chocolate.

This recipe serves 1 but it is easily doubled or even quadrupled for great party dessert beverage. 

You need to start off with a quality unsweetened cocoa powder. I am all for buying budget friendly ingredients but when it comes to an ingredient being the main focus of whatever you are making, it needs to be quality stuff...save the grocery store cocoa for that batch of brownies you are planning for your next PTA meeting.

Just a quick side note:
I recently replaced all of my run of the mill spices for a full refresher from The Spice House . I've been very satisfied with the quality of every spice I've used from them so far, and if you have your own spice jars, their bulk options are more than reasonable. 

You need

1 tablespoon+1 tsp dutch processed cocoa powder

1 teaspoon espresso powder

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup milk

1/4 tsp orzata (almond syrup)

1 heaping teaspoon sweetened condensed milk.

House of J homemade vanilla bean marshmallows-optional 

Start with milk in a small sauce pan on low heat and gently whisk in cocoa,espresso and sugar until the mixture starts to simmer and bubbles form around the edges.

Add in your almond and sweetened condensed milk and let it come to a very slow rolling boil. 

Pour into  your favorite mug, get cozy and enjoy.

Double Chocolate Cake

J's Double Chocolate Delight.

We are moving...ACROSS THE COUNTRY!

It is very exciting, but I was quite sad to pack up my kitchen tools and call it quits until we are settled into our new place.

My sisters birthday only comes but once a year so I figured why not use up the rest of my ingredients and make a delicious cake.

I was working from scratch and had ZERO thoughts on the flavors and fillings.

What does a stumped mommy do when she wants an idea for a cake? She asks her two year old.

Me-"What kind of cake should mommy make for Aunty Kya?"
Munchkin-"Choc Choc"
Me-"OK good idea, what kind of frosting?"
Munchkin-"Choc Choc"
Me-"got it, so double chocolate?"
Munchkin-"YES!!! Double Choc Choc is my FAVORITE!!!"

There you have it folks, the next culinary genius...

Starting with a saucepan. Melt 1 and a half sticks unsalted butter and add in 1/4 cup of dark chocolate cocoa powder. I used basic grocery store cocoa but the better the cocoa the better this cake will be!

Pour in 1 cup of warm water once chocolate and melted butter have smoothed and remove from heat.

In a separate bowl combine 2 cups flour, 1 cup white sugar,1 cup brown sugar and 4 teaspoons baking powder.

While the butter/cocoa mixture cool down a bit, in the bowl of your electric mixer add in 2 eggs 1 cup milk and 1 tablespoon vanilla extract. If you want to "adultify" your cake, replace vanilla with Kahlua or rum or brandy.YUM!

Mix on low speed until milk, vanilla and eggs are well combined. Slowly add your butter/cocoa mixture to the flour mixture, once that is combined add in to your eggs/milk mixture.

Mix on low speed for about 5 minutes, until batter is smooth and resembles brownie batter.

Bake at 350. I used a 9x3 inch circular cake pan and baked for about 45 minutes. If you are using a bigger, flatter pan, it will cook for less time.

For the chocolate frosting, I used a combination of crisco and butter, as a full butter recipe is much more finicky and does not always hold a good shape. Most wedding cakes/bakery cakes use crisco so don't be turned off just yet :)

All ingredients in the bowl of your mixture, low speed until smooth and creamy-

1 stick butter,softened
8 tablespoons shortening(crisco)
3 cups confectioners sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons heavy cream
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Once the cake is cooled, frost with a small layer (called a crumb coat) and refridgerate for 15 minutes or so, once that base layer has hardened a bit. continue frosting to your liking!

If you make a large round cake, you can even cut the cake in half and put a frosting layer inbetween for a more gourmet feel.

After I frosted I rolled used chopped walnuts to coat the sides. It was DELISH!
I even made little cupcakes using the same recipe.

If you decide to do cupcakes as well, fill your liners half way, bake at 350 for 18-20 minutes.

frost and enjoy!

Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Sweet Cream Caramel Glaze

Picture this:

Julia in the shopping cart @ Fairway Market, fresh out of ballet class with a leotard, shoes and a PIRATE HAT.  Mommy & Grandma picking out some veggies.

Nice Old Lady: "How cute she's playing dress up!"
Grandma S: "No! Didn't you know...It's Talk like a Pirate Day!"

Isn't it funny how having little ones can make you totally comfortable with being a complete and utter goofball?

Of course, this also means fun play group activities and baked goodies! I decided to make a pumpkin something, because pumpkin is pretty healthy and sweet without requiring a ton of sugar. Which is great for toddler snackin'.

The caramel as a topping was an after thought as I felt that these little muffins just needed a littttle something sweet.

3 dozen cupcakes, iced, decorated and adorned with pirate garb. THEY ALL CRASH TO THE FLOOR. Of course I didn't get a picture before the accident. Just invision pirate flags and crossbones.

Yep, you read that correctly. 3 dozen mini muffins on floor + big mess + no muffins = one irritated momma.

Damn Ye Pirates!!

Well, crafty momma's do prevail. I made them all over again in the morning. Yes we were a little late, but they were enjoyed by all, especially Julia. Which is what really matters anyway.

So without further adieu:
Pumpkin Spice Muffins with Sweet Cream Caramel Glaze

First off.. These are made with whole wheat flour but can be subbed with white flour 1:1

3 cups whole wheat unbleached flour.
2.5 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1.5 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

combine all ingredients and set off to the side.

In the mixer goes:
12 tablespoons cold butter cut into 1 tablespoon pieces
3/4 cup dark brown cane sugar

blend until the butter and sugar is blended nicely, the butter should not be smooshy, having a slightly hard butter will make for a richer tasting muffin.

add in:
1.5 cups pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling, please use actual canned pumpkin)
and 2 large eggs.

once blended, add in your dry ingredients very slowly while continuing to churn the batter with your mixer on its lowest setting.

Once incorporated, add in 1/3 cup buttermilk

If you are using miniature muffin cups, this makes about 5 dozen if you are using regular size it should make 16 muffins depending on how much you fill your liners. I fill about 2/3 up.

bake at 350 for 15 minutes for small and 30 minutes for large.

While your muffins are baking you can start on the glaze. 

1/2 cup pure cane sugar, melted completely
1/4 cup whole cream
vanilla to taste
Pumpkin Pie spice

combine all ingredients in a sauce pan and continuously stir until all melted and incorporated. If you have a candy thermometer great, the correct temperature is about 212* But it takes about 15 minutes on the lowest setting of your burner. You will know when its perfect, its amber in color and very smooth.

Just before you turn off the heat, throw in a pinch of your pumpkin pie spice to blend in all the flavors.

When the muffins are cooled, but while the glaze is still warm, lightly dip the top into the glaze and let rest.  It will not completely "harden" but it will be hard enough to transport or to set up on a cake stand, etc. As long as you don't drop them of course.

ARGGGH!

PS: I'm fully aware pirates didn't wear jean jackets, but it was pretty windy. HA!

Meyer Lemon Donuts

The summer is almost over and the fall is approaching fast. I love the fall for so many reasons. Apple cider, pumpkins, Halloween, I could name a million.

I will post A LOT of fun dishes this fall. I know I've been MIA lately but I have been really trying to get my name out there locally. I would really love to show my children that you can be successful at doing something you enjoy while still being a great, active stay at home mommy. 

Anywho, I thought a great way to say farewell to summer is with a treat that's delicious regardless of the season. DONUTS!

The recipe  is a basic old fashioned but to add a little extra zing, I incorporated beautiful Meyer lemons I found at Fairway this week, they were perfectly ripe and added a nice delicate touch to a basic donut glaze.

Just a heads up, this dough must be refrigerated overnight.

Starting with 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon of milk in a small sauce pan, I let it simmer until steaming and poured over 1 packet of active dry yeast.. Let the yeast and milk settle for about 10 minutes. Melt 3/4 cups of butter In the microwave for about 30 seconds. While the butter is cooling down a bit, take two eggs and put them in your mixer with the dough hook attachment and beat them for a minute. Add in the melted butter without turning off the mixer.

Continue to mix until fully blended and add in the yeast mixture. Once thoroughly mixed, add in 4 cups bread flour. Using the dip and sweep method.

Knead in your mixer or by hand for 10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, with plastic wrap in the fridge overnight.

When you are ready to make your doughnuts, line 2 cookie sheets with parchment and turn your oven on to 350 degrees. The cookie sheets should be on top of the oven as the doughnuts will need to rise in a nice warm area.

Roll out your dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. You can use a round cookie cutter or a cup for the shape. For the doughnut hole I used the smallest circular fondant cutter that is used for flower making (I think) But you could even use a bottle cap if you do not have a small round cutter.  Place molded doughnuts on the cookie sheets and let rest until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

In a large heavy pot. Heat enough canola oil to go about 2/3 of the way up your pot and heat until 375 degrees. In the mean time get a few cooling racks and place a nice layer of paper towel on top to catch the grease.

Once the temperature is about 360 it will rise pretty rapidly so get ready.

Place the doughnuts in, 2-3 at a time for 30 seconds per side, or until nice and golden to your liking.

The dough is very delicate so I recommend picking up with a heat resistant spatula.

While they rest and degrease on the paper towel, make your delicious glaze.

1.5 cups of confectioners suger, the juice of 1 Meyer lemon and enough water to get to medium-thick consistency, about 1/4 cup(warm).

Dip your doughnut in half way through and let rest right side up so that the glaze drips down. I also used Alton Brown's chocolate doughnut glaze for a few, it was...OK

Hubby loved the ones I left plain the best, a real old fashioned doughnut.

For a basic glaze, just omit the Meyer lemon juice.  I even fried up the donut holes and let Julia roll a few in some sprinkles for a little quiet kitchen time while baby Jacob was asleep. I'd advise you not to let your toddler do this if you JUST MOPPED THE FLOOR! Like I did...whoopsie.

P.S This recipe makes 18.

Enjoy :)

Overnight French Toast with Blueberry Compote

When you have young children at home your house is never spotless...Unless you have a maid (we don't) or you have odd children who sit quietly and let you clean everyday (we don't). So I thanked my lucky stars(and Jacob for taking a nice long morning nap) when I was given the opportunity to dust, sweet, mop and wipe this morning. The point of telling you this is because now, instead of spending all weekend cleaning, Hubby and I can relax, hang loose and spend some quality family time.

What better way to start off a lovely weekend than with a 5 star breakfast!

If you know anything about me you know that I LOVE COFFEE. I gave it up cold turkey for both pregnancies so that means that for 18 out of 24 months I had ZERO cups of coffee. Needless to say I am back with a vengeance.

If you want a 100% gourmet cup of iced coffee follow my cold brew recipe HERE. If you rather prep  the night before and whip up something delicious and FAST in the AM here is the easy road...

I pulled out our 100 yr old Mr. Coffee and brewed 11 cups of coffee, (Melita Classique) for 11 cups I used 11 HEAPING tablespoons of coffee. We like it bold here at the House of J. If you like your coffee lighter, regular tablespoons should do it.

Once it finished brewing I popped it straight in the fridge. This will be our iced coffee for the weekend, no ice required :)

For a classy touch I froze regular milk, vanilla soy milk and my caramel sauce(recipe here) in Julia's ice pop maker. Once it was half way frozen I stuck in some toothpicks for easy removal. This will flavor the iced coffee and make it even more cold and delicious without watering it down with ice.

You can stop here of course or you can make "Overnight" french toast...

Recipe as follows:

6 Pieces of bread. We used honey whole wheat
4 eggs
1 tablespoon sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix ingredients 2-5 until eggs are beaten and smooth.

Line a baking dish with 2 tablespoons melted butter and dust with cinnamon.

I did the dip and pour method, many online recipes say pour over bread but to make sure all pieces were saturated I did both.

place bread in dish sprinkle with cinnamon and cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate overnight...

When you wake up in the morning, take your baking dish out of the fridge and preheat oven to 350.
Bake for 30 minutes.

While your french toast is in the oven, realllllly impress your hubby with blueberry compote :)
1/2 pint blueberries, juice of 1/2 a lemon and 1 tablespoon sugar.

Boil until blueberries "pop" and mixture becomes saucey. Serve on the side in a cute little spouted cup :)

Enjoy a beautiful breakfast for 2. Or a fun, hectic, delicious breakfast for 4!

House of J now on Etsy!!

House of J is now on Etsy.com!  http://www.etsy.com/shop/HouseOfJParties?ref=si_shop

I am so excited. I have the most supportive and amazing hubby in the world. I love creating and I love to cook and bake.

This blog is about helping you do things yourself with easy laid back instructions but I get that sometimes you don't have the time,patience or energy so I'll do it!


I am just starting out professionally but it has been a passion of mine for a long long time. I love planning kids parties and I just cannot wait an entire year for Jacob and Julia to have a birthday, so please let me help with yours!

I only have a few things listed at the moment, but the possibilities are endless. Email me @ cutiepieevents@gmail.com and we can dream something up together. I can make you a private listing with a prototype of whatever it is you are looking for. 

Help support mom-owned and mom run businesses.

PS. if you are local and have a party related talent lets team up and do an event of some kind- I.E photography or face painting, makeup, whatever.

Fancy Julia and the Delectable Cupcakes

De·lec·ta·ble

   [dih-lek-tuh-buhl] 

adjective

1.

delightful; highly pleasing; enjoyable: a delectable witticism.

2.

delicious: a delectable dinner.

We love Fancy Nancy...

We also love cupcakes...

The result: Vanilla cupcakes with banana creme pudding filling, chocolate ganache topping and sprinkles. mm mm mm.

I started with Billy's vanilla cupcake recipe, cut in half, because who needs 30 cupcakes, not us!

I did make a few adjustments of course. 

Even though the recipe was halved, I still used the full portion of vanilla extract. Another adjustment was 1/4 evaporated milk 1/4 almond milk instead of 1/2 cup milk. 

Side Note: Half of 3/4 is 1/4 and 2 tablespoons

.

The general rule of thumb for cupcakes is to fill the paper liner about 1/2 way. Because we were scooping out some cupcake for the pudding, I recommend filling 3/4 of the way. You want the cupcake top to sort of poof out over the paper. Like a shelf for the topping. Because we are filling the liners higher, I needed a cook time of 22 minutes.

I highly recommend spraying the top of the cupcake pan for easy release. I forgot too, and had to use a super sharp, super thin knife to slide under the tops to pop them out, resulting in a few scratches to my pan. BOO. 

For the banana creme pudding I used 2.5 mushy "nanas" 

1 cup almond milk 

2 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup corn starch

1/2 cup sugar 

1 tablespoon vanilla

pinch of salt

Mix together with a blender, emulsion blender, or food processor and simmer on low heat until it bubbles and reaches a pudding like consistency, stirring constantly.

Throw that in the fridge until cooled. PS if you don't like "skin" on your pudding, put plastic wrap over it.

This made enough to fill the cupcakes plus 2 small pudding cups for Julia.

In the mean time, make the ganache.

1/2 cup heavy cream

6oz semi-sweet chocolate chips(roughly half the bag) 

Boil the cream and remove from heat. Toss in chocolate, stir and walk away...

Now would be a good time to make the cupcakes.. or nurse the baby...or...

clean up an ENTIRE container of cornstarch that your toddler "baked" with all over herself.the chair. the floor. her bedroom and her toys.

235436452364655 minutes later.. the ganache is ready (realistically, about 2.5 hours on the counter or 30 minutes in the fridge.

Once the cupcakes are cooled. Take a paring knife and cut a circle in the cupcake, about an inch in diameter and an inch deep. Fill with cooled pudding.

Place back in the fridge for a few minutes just to set the pudding.. In my house this happened to be bed time so it set in the fridge for story time and kisses.

Use the back of a spoon to spread the ganache over the cupcakes, about a teaspoon per cupcake. Sprinkle with colored sprinkles and top with a cherry. Or any other candy that suites your fancy.

The next day, after an awesome time at the park, and a nap and a change of clothes...SURPRISE!

"momma's cupcake my favorite"