35 makes better Recipes

betty crocker supermoist german chocolate cake mix, water , as called for on package. make as directed on box, vegetable oil , as called for on package. make as directed on box, egg , as called for on package. make as directed on box, sweetened condensed milk, fudge sauce, oreo cookies

muffin pans, a special metal baking pan , sometimes referred to as a muffin tin, with 6 or 12 cup-shaped depressions. most often this pan is made from aluminum., muffin cups are, standard muffin cup is about 2 1/2 inches in diameter and holds 1/4 to 1/3 cup batter., giant or texas-size muffin cup is about 3 1/2 inches in diameter and holds 5/8 cup batter., muffin cup is about 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter and holds 1/8 cup or 2 tbsp batter., muffin-top cup is about 4 inches in diameter but are only 1/2 inch deep ., substituting a different size muffin cup, substitute another size muffin cup for original size listed in recipe. if substituting a larger size muffin cup the recipe will yield fewer muffins and if using smaller size muffin cup the recipe will yield more muffins. the bake time will be changed also. bake a larger muffin longer than the original time and smaller muffins a shorter time., tips on baking muffins, grease muffin cups by spraying each cup with no stick cooking spray or using a paper towel dipped in shortening to grease each cup., use paper liners in muffin cups for easy clean-up., if muffin cups are filled more than 3/4 full the muffins will have flat, flying saucer tops. if sufficient room is not allowed for muffins to expand before reaching the top of the cup the muffin will flatten on top., if some muffin cups will remain empty during baking , put 2 to 3 tbsp water in the unused muffin cups to keep the pan from warping., if baked muffins stick to the bottom of the muffin cup, place hot muffin pan on a wet towel for about two minutes., source : land o lakes, all about muffins, are you eating muffins or cupcakes, hot breads are always a hit and muffins are 1 of the easiest to make. they are more quickly and easily made than biscuits and no kneading, rolling or cutting is required. they can be a savory, last minute dinner muffin or a sweet delicious breakfast muffin. made using whole-wheat flour, wheat germ, bran, honey, fruits and nuts they can be very nutritious. but like the healthy granola craze which turned into candy bars, muffins also can quickly turn into cupcakes. eating cupcakes for breakfast is your choice, but don tsp tell yourself you are eating healthy breakfast muffins. a recent magazine article revealed some muffins available in new york delicatessens were claimed to be low fat, but actually contained up to 23 g of fat. that s more fat than two egg mcmuffins., what is the difference between muffins and cupcakes, some say cupcakes have frosting. a basic formula for muffins is 2 cups flour, 2-4 tbsp sugar, 2 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 egg, 1/4 cup oil, shortening or butter, 1 cup milk. when the fat, sugar and egg ratio in a recipe reaches double or more than this, you have reached the cake level., other technical difference between muffins and cupcakes, method of cooking is different for muffins and cupcakes. the muffin method is by far the fastest and easiest. flour, sugar, baking powder and salt (all the dry ingredients) are mixed together. this is where the leavening can be uniformly dispersed into the flour. sugar is mixed with the flour to prevent the flour from lumping when combined with the wet ingredients., making and baking muffins, in a large bowl, oil (or melted butter) and egg are beaten together to form an emulsion to disperse the fat more uniformly. then the milk is stirred in. this much mixing can be done ahead and held. the two are combined just before baking., combine, cut and fold liquid into the dry ingredients. mix only to combine. batter will be lumpy but no pockets of dry ingredients should remain. the general rule is only 12 strokes., bake as soon as it s mixed. when filling cups, do not mix batter between scoops. excessive mixing causes loss of leavening., cake method for making muffins, sometimes muffins are made using the cake method , i.e. cream the fat and sugar, add eggs, add the dry ingredients and milk alternately. this is more time consuming but produces a lighter, more tender, cake-like muffin., perfect muffin, perfect muffin has a thin brown crust , a slightly rounded top with a pebbled appearance and a moist, even interior. there should be no peaks, no tunnels which are usually caused by excessive mixing and too much liquid (muffin batter should not be fluid)., more leavening is not better, just because a recipe is in print does not mean that it is in balance. a guide for leavening 2 cups of flour in a recipe is either 2 1/2 tsp double acting baking powder, or 4 tsp fast acting baking powder, or 1/2 tsp soda plus 1 cup buttermilk (for the acid) and 1 1/4 tsp baking powder. excess baking powder and soda taste bitter., here are a few tips for altering muffin recipes, substitute 2 egg whites for 1 egg in the recipe. if these are stiffly beaten and folded in at the end it will produce a lighter muffin with less fat., use non-fat milk instead of whole milk ., use salad oil in place of butter. in place of the fat in the recipe , use 1-fourth of the oil and replace the other three-fourths with fruit puree such as applesauce. jars of baby food fruits provide a quick choice of purees other than apple. adding non-gluten grain products (bran, germ, oatmeal, corn meal) for part of the flour makes a more tender muffin., create your own taste sensations, begin with the basic formula and change 1/2 cup of the flour to corn meal, bran, wheat germ, rye, oatmeal or leftover cooked cereal. add 1/2 to 1 cup chopped apple, dates, prunes, raisins, apricots, figs, blueberries, cranberries, cheese, nuts., make your favorite muffin mixes by measuring the dry ingredients twice (or more ) into two separate bowls. use 1 and package 1 with the list of wet ingredients to be added when mixing at a later date.

here are the basics of making an excellent cheese fondue , the proper way (or at least the lindysez way)., use good cheese , i use half emmental swiss and gruyere, grate them up and toss them with some salt and a good amount of pepper. let them sit out at room temp so they melt better . cut your bread (good french bread, but not sourdough) into bite sized pieces making sure to have crust on each piece. let those sit out for a while too so they aren tsp too soft., cheese that you use , you are going to use 1 3/4 cups of a dry white wine, such as a fume blanc, a california sauv blanc (don tsp use a new zealand 1 as most are too grassy) or a pouilly-fume. when you are ready to make the fondue, rub the pot with a clove of garlic (we like garlic, so we leave the clove in, but you don tsp need to); then place over a medium heat and add the wine. when the wine comes to a simmer, start slowly adding the cheese, sprinkling in a handful at a time, allowing each addition to melt (my dad said you always have to stir in the same direction, in a figure 8 motion, it works. if you stir in a circle you will end up with a big glop of cheese in the middle of a pot of wine, the figure 8 is key); keep adding until you have a nice thick sauce, then add a splash of kirsch and a pinch of nutmeg. put over a burner to keep it bubbling, and stir often when you dip your bread., a lb of cheese is enough for 4 people; or more if you are serving other things. and the amounts are guesstimates. i almost always grate too much cheese, so only add as much as you need to get the right consistency ; when you dip a piece of bread into the fondue, you want a nice coating of cheese and for the bread to absorb the wine. that s what it s all about, cheese, wine and bread. so use the best you can of each ingredient. and any left over cheese makes for a mighty good ham and cheese omelet.

fresh elderberries (dried berries make a better pie) or 1 pint the equivalent of reconstituted dried berries (dried berries make a better pie), sugar, salt, flour, lemon juice, water, pie crust, butter

lukewarm water (90of to 100of), dry yeast or two 0.6-oz packages fresh yeast, crumbled, all purpose flour (i use king arthur bread flour), extra-virgin olive oil, coarse sea salt, note: i have found that adding anywhere from 1-2 tsp. of salt (table salt works just fine) to the flour while making the dough works as good or better than the coarse salt on top. it depends on your taste. i would suggest adding 1 tsp. of salt to the flour and maybe lightly adding the coarse salt before baking. or forgo the coarse salt altogether and add 1.5 tsp of salt to the flour for the dough. bread does needs salt to have a good taste., note 2: drizzle with olive oil before baking., note 3: you can knead with a little olive oil to keep from adding more flour and prevent dryness., add herbs of your choice and/or a grated favorite cheese. i have used rosemary, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, cracked black pepper, asiago, and parmesan in various combinations and it all worked out well.

i use a 3 1/2 to 4 lb chuck roast, well marbelized with fat, and if you can find a bone-in roast, that s better yet (but it s almost always boneless chuck that you find at the grocer). i like to quickly rinse the roast in cold water just before i lay it on the cutting board to coat it with seasoned flour. place the following ingredients in a small baggie and shake the closed bag to mix it up, flour, salt, garlic salt, crazy mixed-up salt (if you can tsp get this seasoning, use seasoned salt instead, but jane s is by far the best), pepper, use your hands to generously pat the seasoned flour into the roast, on both sides, flipping the roast a couple times and repeating the process., in a dutch oven or roasting pan large enough to hold the roast, heat 1 tbsp oil over medium high heat - you want your pan and oil to be hot enough to sear the roast well when you put it in the pan. when the oil is just about to the smoking point, put the roast in and cover the pan. let the meat sear until nicely browned on the bottom, then flip the roast. let it sear for a minute or two on the second side, then add, beef stock (i much prefer the boxed stock to the canned broth - it just seems to give the gravy a much richer taste in the end), cover the roasting pan and place it in a pre-heated 300 degree oven. roast for 4 to 5 hours, until the meat is fork tender and falls apart easily. i check the roast each hour, quickly opening the lid, just to make sure the stock has not evaporated. as long as your pan has a good seal on it, this shouldn tsp happen. but if necessary, add more stock to the pan., an hour before the roast is done , prepare the mashed potatoes. peel 6 large red potatoes (these work better - at least for me - because they are much moister than the russets, so the mashed potatoes are creamier); cut into 1/4th, and place them in a large saucepan - rinse the cut potatoes 2 times in cold water, then cover them in fresh cold water and place the pan over medium high heat; boil until tender. this is usually about 30 minutes, but it depends on the size of your cuts, so just cook them until you can easily insert a fork into a potato. drain potatoes well, reserving 1 cup of the water for the gravy. add the following to the hot potatoes, butter, sour cream, milk, salt, crazy mixed up salt (use regular salt or garlic salt if jane s salt is not available), pepper, i use a hand masher , but you can use an electric mixer or however you chose to mash the potatoes into a creamy yet firm texture. add more milk if potatoes are too stiff. place the mashed potatoes in a buttered casserole dish, cover with foil, and place in the oven to keep warm while you make the gravy., prepare the gravy, melt 2 tbsp butter, stir in 1/4 cup flour to make a paste, stir in enough beef stock to thin the paste enough to pour., finished roast from the pan and place it on a plate; cover meat with foil to keep warm., place the roasting pan over a medium flame and bring the liquid to a gentle boil (i usually seem to have about 1 1/2 to 2 cups liquid in the pan when the roast is done - if you have less, just use the beef stock to increase your liquid)., use a whisk to gradually whisk in the butter/flour/stock liquid., add 2 tbsp beef base - i use tone s (i prefer beef base to buillon - has a richer flavor and is really worth having on hand, but if you can tsp find this, try knorr s beef buillon extra large cubes), add the 1 cup of reserved potato water, add 1/2 cup beef stock, taste the gravy and see if you want more seasoning. i usually find i don tsp need to add anything at this point, since i have the seasoning from the flour coating and the stock and the beef base. if you think you need more seasoning, add salt and pepper to your taste. beef base will also give you more saltiness., keep the gravy warm while you uncover the meat and use 2 forks to pull the meat apart into small to medium chunks., you are now ready to assemble...

be made in a bread machine on dough setting , or by hand. but you have to bake in the oven., butter, lard or dripping, soft brown sugar or caster sugar, plain all purpose flour (or better with strong white bread flour - that s what i tend to use for better results), dried yeast or if making by hand then add some of the water to the yeast and make into a paste., warm water, salt

whole crabs , i use dungeness crabs at about 1 & 1/2 lbs each. (in a pinch you can use just 1 big crab), baby shrimp (you can use larger shrimp if you like), bacon, chopped, milk (i try to make it 2% milk, for health, but everyone likes it better with whole milk), butter, carrots, roughly chopped, celery ribs, roughly chopped, onion, garlic cloves, finely chopped, potatoes, chopped into medium size pieces, chili powder (which type you use will decide how spicy it gets), cayenne, salt & pepper

cheese biscuits often sound better than they taste. those we have baked have generally come out of the oven dense as a brick and gummy to boot. the cheese appears to weigh down the dough and prevent a proper rise. we wanted to master this simple recipe and make cheese-flavored biscuits with an airy texture and light crumb. here s what we discovered, test kitchen discoveries, add cheese to cream biscuits, which are prepared simply from flour and heavy cream leavened with baking powder., knead the dough only long enough to incorporate the dry ingredients and cream. overworking the dough will make the biscuits tough., choose dry , strong-flavored cheeses to flavor the biscuits. wet or particularly rich cheeses turned the biscuits gummy during testing. add most of the cheese to the dough just before adding the cream and sprinkle the remainder across the top halfway through baking so that it browns, which will intensify its flavor., bake the biscuits immediately after preparing them to make the most of the leavener.

butter, divided, vegetable oil, vegetable oil, onions , halved lengthwise, thinly sliced crosswise (about 6 cups), assorted wild mushrooms, cut into bite-size pieces (such as crimini, oyster, chanterelle, and stemmed shiitake), garlic cloves, minced, minced shallots (about 1 medium), dry white wine, minced fresh rosemary, cornmeal (for dusting), garlic oil (make your own with a minced garlic clove in 1 tsp oil), grated fontina cheese (about 10 oz), lukewarm water, granulated yeast (3/4 packet, room temperature ), salt, sugar, extra virgin olive oil (the fruitier the oil, the better the flavor), unbleached all-purpose flour

red delicious apple, reduced-fat peanut butter (better yet, make your own and use less salt), marshmallows or 5 -20 vegan

trifle may be a holiday tradition for many families, but it is more about the tradition than the flavor of the thing. most trifles are a gloppy mass of soggy cake, grainy custard, watery fruit, and strong booze. we love the flavors, but wanted something better than that. starting with a classic southern rendition of trifle called tipsy squire, we set out to make a trifle that tasted as good as it looked. here s what we discovered, test kitchen discoveries, stale sponge cake works better than fresh because it absorbs the liquid without turning mushy. allow the cake to sit unwrapped overnight on the counter or expedite the process by baking the cake at 200 degrees for three hours., make a quick and light custard stabilized with cornstarch., use jam , not fresh fruit, for a deep fruit flavor without a watery texture., top the trifle with small almond macaroons for their flavor and crisp texture.

make better boxed cake mixes , stir the following ingredients, into a dry cake mix ., flour, sugar, baking powder, prepare as directed on cake mix package but also add, water, egg, vegetable oil, bake as package directs .

powdered sugar (confectioners ), crisco shortening, powdered milk, mixed with enough water to make 1 cup, vanilla , clear, salt, butter flavoring , clear, almond extract, creme fraiche (optional), cornstarch

tamarind paste (wrapped in plastic with seeds or in jar), maple syrup, rice vinegar, sutter home sauvignon blanc, lime juice, garlic, minced, fresh ginger, minced, salt, pepper, ground pork, ground chicken (preferably 1/2 thigh meat and 1/2 breast meat, mixed), scallions thinly sliced, just white and pale green parts, fresh ginger, minced, garlic, minced, soy sauce, sutter home sauvignon blanc, fresh cilantro, chopped , no stems, fresh thai basil or regular basil leaves, chopped, fresh mint leaves, chopped, lime zest, minced, salt, pepper, toasted sesame oil (for grilling ), sesame hamburger buns, watercress or arugula, hot house cucumber, thinly sliced, red bell pepper , thinly sliced crosswise, making rings

sliced carrot, diced onion, minced garlic, fat free broth (i prefer better-than-bullion to make broth), diced green cabbage, green beans, diced tomato, dried basil, dried oregano, salt

all-purpose flour, salt, paprika, egg, milk, boneless skinless chicken breasts (butterfly to make 4 thin pieces), butter, fresh mushrooms, sliced, chopped onion, chicken broth (i make this from better than bouillon), white wine (to taste), lemon juice (to taste), cornstarch, capers (optional), chopped fresh parsley, for garnish, cooked rice (i prefer botan calrose)