Cinnamon-Streusel Coffee Cake

Coffee cake is one of those things that I really enjoy, but rarely make. For starters, I don't drink coffee, and secondly, it doesn't have the allure of a real cake or a rich brownie. However, I have yet to find a King Arthur recipe that didn't come out delicious, so I gave this coffee cake a try.

Even though coffee cake isn't the most flashy of treats, it is incredibly easy and satisfying to make. It pulls together quickly and comes out beautifully - especially with the glossy glaze that this recipe calls for.
I didn't use quite enough of the streusel for the middle, so I had a LOT for the top. But the cake was very tender, cinnamon-y, and yummy. I definitely plan on making this coffee cake again!

French Onion-Pork Chop Skillet

I don't make pork chops very often, mainly because I'm very picky about them - I think that they are often dry and tasteless. But when I saw this recipe in a Kraft magazine, I thought I'd give it a try. I liked that the recipe cooks up quickly, keeping the chops from getting dry, plus the use of onions is always a plus, now that I have two onion lovers in the house. Topping off the dish with mozzarella cheese is a plus, too!

This recipe was really good! It was quick and easy - give it a try!

Orange Chicken

I know this practically makes me un-American, but I never really tried Chinese food* until I met Mike. I was turned off by a very bad experience at a Chinese buffet as a fourth grader, so since my parents hate fast food in all forms, I had never tried it. I never knew what I was missing until my dear husband turned me on to the wonders of cheap Chinese food - BUT it was enjoyed only occasionally, because really, there's nothing nutritionally redeeming about the kind of Chinese food I like. I love Chinese food partially because it's something I never thought I could re-create at home, but that all changed when Mike decided to try this Orange Chicken recipe from Annie's Eats.

Oh. My. Goodness.

This was SO good! It tasted even better than the stuff you can buy! Mike actually used Clementines instead of oranges, but since he used fresh-squeezed juice, the taste was unbelievable. There are quite a few steps in this recipe, but they are all pretty easy to follow. this is definitely a "worth the splurge" meal!!


*In this post, "Chinese food" will refer to the hole-in-the-wall type of take-out restaurants that are always next to a grocery store in strip malls. I realize that this does not even closely resemble authentic Chinese food, but that's another post. Bear with me, here!

Pumpkin-Craisin Muffins

Continuing on the pumpkin theme, I decided to try these Pumpkin-Craisin Muffins for breakfast. Don't look too closely at the picture below, or you can see how much I was in need of a good breakfast that morning - sheesh, I've never seen such a messy muffin tin!

These muffins were delicious - I've discovered that they're good plain (or with butter!) in the morning, and yummy with cream cheese as a snack. They seem like they would freeze well, but they didn't last that long in this house!