Raspberry Streusel Muffins

If you add the word "streusel" to any recipe, then I am a fan.  This particular streusel has oats in it, and it is deeeee-licious!

The very best possible way to make these muffins is with raspberries from your own garden that you picked that very morning . . . but let's be realistic, people.  We don't all have raspberries.  For those of us who do, they are only ripe in July/August.  For those of us who 1) do have raspberries that are 2) ripe in said months, then 3) our kids have probably already eaten them off the vine despite our repeated warnings and threats to leave some "for jam."  For those of us who 1) do have raspberries and 2) it is July or August and 3) our kids haven't eaten them off the vine . . . well, "we" might have gone outside in the morning with intentions of picking a few cups for muffins, only to make the mistake of popping one into "our" mouths and then ravenously eating 3 or 4 cups of ripe raspberries by ourselves and then 4) decide to let our kids have cold cereal for breakfast instead of homemade, hand-picked raspberry muffins from the heart.

I need to have my husband make a flow chart of these options.

And my point is really this: frozen raspberries are delicious, and all I have ever used in this recipe.  {But I have big plans for this raspberry season . . . } Enjoy the pictures.  I promise you will love.

STREUSEL!!!!!!

Gingham makes breakfast pretty . . .

Don't be jealous of my square muffin tin . . .

Wholesome American Goodness, people.

These muffins are easily in my top five favorite muffin recipes, along with Cinnamon Ripple and Huckleberry Cream.  Be sure to read all about kefir and conquer any recipe that calls for yogurt or sour cream or buttermilk.

Truman's No-Bake Cookies

No-bake cookies are the perfect "first cookie" for your kids to learn to make.  My son, Truman, actually learned to make these in his second grade class, with teacher par excellence, Mrs. Williams.  He came home with the recipe and couldn't wait to try it out.

Two years later, it's still his favorite thing to make.

What a handsome ten-year-old!

Taco Soup

This is one of my mother-in-law's signature dishes and it is so satisfying.  The first time I had some, I knew I needed the recipe.  It's also one of the first recipe cards I ever made, and look how horrible it used to be:

Do not print this card--scroll down for new and improved recipe card.

The best thing about this taco soup is that you can have it in the crockpot in ten minutes.  It's fast and easy and the envelope of Ranch makes it so zesty.  Just be sure you buy a packet of Ranch DRESSING and not Ranch DIP.  I have made that mistake more than once, and believe me, they are not the same thing.

The recipe also makes a lot.  It feeds our family of six easily, and I freeze whatever is left (usually half) for a night when I don't feel like cooking.

My husband likes to crumble corn chips in his taco soup, but I prefer to dip my chips.  Our kids each have their own style, too.

Becca's Best Crepes

This is a rich crepe batter--perfect for Christmas and General Conference mornings. As far as my kids are concerned, crepes is the most special food I can possibly make, so I save them for special occasions.  If you have favorite talks (past and present) from the General Conferences of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (held every October and April), please share them in the comments box!

My most recent batch--for April 2012 General Conference
"And A Little Child Shall Lead Them" was my favorite talk.

October 2009, "More Diligent and Concerned at Home"
and "Moral Discipline" were my favorite talks.

You MUST chill the batter, or it won't turn out.  I usually mix mine up the night before and put it in the fridge or out in the garage on top of my deep-freeze.

I didn't grow up with Nutella spread, but since my husband
introduced it to me, it's pretty much all I have on my crepes.

Get two (or even three) non-stick pans going and it
will take much less time to make a huge stack.

Cinnamon Ripple Muffins

These are my all-time favorite muffins and my all-time most-requested muffin recipe.  When my siblings come to visit, this is what they hope I am making for breakfast.

I love muffins because they are delicious, can be served as part or all of breakfast, make your house smell amazing, and are already in perfect portion sizes. They freeze beautifully, too, so I like to make big batches, freeze a dozen, and then have one or two thawed muffins in the morning with my oatmeal. Mmmmm.

The top crackles so beautifully

Bonus: this muffin also comes perfectly out of it's wrapper without
leaving parts of itself stuck behind.  The inside is cinna-yummy!

These particular muffins are extra good to dip in your Cream O' Wheat.  If you don't like CO'W, then you may suffer from the same affliction my husband does: complete lack of appreciation for wholesome goodness in the morning.  But, his affliction notwithstanding, these are his favorite muffins, too.

Buttermilk Waffles

This has been my number one waffle recipe for about six years now.  It makes quite a bit of batter (enough for about 30 square waffles, I'd say), so I like to cook the last few batches until they're barely golden brown, then freeze them and use 'em later for a rushed morning when my kids can pop them in the toaster.  They are ten times more delicious and twenty times more healthy than Eggos.

Also, since I discovered kefir, I never use buttermilk or have to mix milk with vinegar (Click here for my What is Kefir? post).  They make the waffles so moist and yummy!

Pumpkin Bread

This is one of my favorite breads to make as a "gift."  I like to take mini loaves of this pumpkin bread when I go visiting teaching, to bake sales, or to add to a Christmas goody platter.  Plus, it makes your house smell like heaven when it's in the oven.

Bex Tip: I buy lots of small baskets at Deseret Industries (best local thrift store ever), clean them, then use them to take baked goods to people, lining each with a square of gingham fabric.  I tell them the basket is part of the gift: it's pretty, inexpensive, and no one has to worry about returning a plate or dish.

Caesar Salad + Authentic Dressing + Homemade Croutons

Whenever I bring this salad to a party/potluck/function, I always get recipe requests.  It makes me feel extra good, because the dressing is my very own concoction!  I came up with it after sampling lots of Caesar dressings and poring over cooking websites, comparing different Caesar ingredients and adapting it to my taste.

If it grosses you out to use anchovy paste, then you have no business trying to make homemade Caesar dressing, because that's what makes it completely divine (sorry to my vegetarian friends).  I have made this once without anchovy paste, and it was still delicious, but lacking that totally over-the-top flavor.  You can usually find anchovy paste with the Asian foods or near the canned tuna, depending on your grocery store.  It comes in a tube, which comes in a box.  Like this:

You can whip up the dressing and store it in an airtight container the fridge for a while--I'd say about a week (and mind the lemon seeds when squeezing the juice!).


'Un croûton' is one of the ends of a loaf of bread in French. It probably didn't take people long to figure out that the crusty ends were good to use to dip in soups or as a garnish for other foods.  Homemade croutons are SO EASY that you'll never go back to those stale crusties that you get in a box.  They are also much easier on your teeth, and they don't explode in half when you try to stab one onto the end of your fork.  But, I digress . . .  

It doesn't matter if your French bread is fresh or older for croutons

I usually use the traditional Garlic & Herb
Mrs Dash blend for my herb-butter

Remove from the oven when the edges get brown.

I just use my butcher knife to cut each
slice into about 12 bite-size pieces

Mmmmm . . . so much better than crunchy, store-bought croutons.
Tip: save leftover croutons in a Ziploc bag, then toss 'em for a few
minutes over medium heat in a nonstick skillet to "re-crisp" them
before you serve them a second time.

Add some grilled chicken and make it even better

This salad is great as a side, but I've served it to my family as the main course with grilled chicken breasts and it's a great dinner.  My kids love having "tiny garlic bread" on their salad.  It's so delicious.

Best Yellow Butter Cake & Fancy Chocolate Frosting

This is my very favorite cake.  Though I love chocolate cake a great deal, I think that baking a beautiful, moist butter cake with rich chocolate frosting is prettier, tastier, and just maybe a little more sophisticated.  It's what I want every year on my birthday.

I originally got both the cake and frosting recipes from Martha Stewart, but have adapted the directions (Read: most Americans do not have such frivolous things on hand as parchment paper), and cut the frosting recipe by a third.  Since there is still plenty of frosting for FOUR layers, I shudder to think of the frosting-to-cake ratio before this reduction.

But Martha gave me a great formula for frosting four layers.  Maybe it was obvious to everyone else how to cut each cake in half and then stack and frost them in the most aesthetic way, without your frosting getting gummed up with crumbs and one side of the cake being much higher than the other (I speak from experience).  You layer the cake in this order: one of the cake tops on the bottom (top up), frosting, then a cake bottom, (bottom side up), frosting, the other cake bottom (bottom side up again), frosting, and finally the second top (top side up) goes on top before you frost the whole thing.  It turned out beautifully.

Cake for breakfast the next day?  Maybe I did.  So?

Other cake tips:
1- Take the time to bring your butter and eggs to room temperature, which will allow you to get more air into your batter and frosting.  Set both out on the counter the night before.
2- The cake flour really does make a difference (it's more finely milled and can hold larger amounts of fat and starch without collapsing).  You can make a cake flour substitute with 3/4 cup flour plus two tablespoons of cornstarch.  That said, the cake you see in these photos was made with only all-purpose flour.  It was still delicious.
3- Always let the cake cool in the pans on a rack!  It will release so much easier if you don't try to rush it while it's still warm.
4- Try not to eat all of it yourself.  But if you do, don't be ashamed.  Sometimes you just need cake.

My daughter Mollie loves anything that involves using the pastry
brush.  She did a very thorough job, and I love it that she wants
to wear her Lowe's "Build and Grow" apron when she cooks.

Just before entering the oven . . .

Parchment paper? No thanks.

The finished product on my favorite tablecloth

It's hard to make this only on special occasions.
I want it every week.

Satisfied customers!