Cheesy Corn Cakes

I have always been a fan of corn cakes.  I think I’m the only one in my family that would take a corncake over a pancake any day of the week!  Yesterday, I wanted something a little different, a little more savory.  This is what I came up with:

 YUM!  They were delicious!  If you like your food a little more spicy,

you can throw some diced jalapeños in the batter, too. J

This is how it's done...

Chop two tablespoons green onion.  Measure out 3/4 cup of corn.  

(I used corn I put up in the freezer a couple months ago.)

I was out of green pepper, but feel free to add a couple 

tablespoons of chopped green pepper, too.  

Throw it all in a pan with 2 tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon minced garlic,

1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Saute until the onions are tender and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine 1/4 cup flour, 2 tablespoons cornmeal, 1 tablespoon sugar,

1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt, 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano,

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional), and 1/8 teaspoon baking powder.

Whisk to combine.

Add 1 egg and 1/4 cup milk.  Stir until moistened.  

Spray large skillet with nonstick spray and fry 1/4 cup of batter

over medium-low heat.  (Approximately 3 minutes each side.)

  

Immediately after flipping (the first and only time), 

top with 1 1/2 tablespoons shredded cheddar cheese.

Remove from heat and top with salsa and sour cream.

 

Enjoy! 

Cheesy Corn Cakes
Makes 5 Corn Cakes

2 T Butter or Margarine
3/4 c Corn
2 T Green Onion, minced
2 T Green Pepper, minced
1 t Garlic, minced
1/4 t Salt
1/4 t Pepper

Melt butter in small skillet.  Add other ingredients and saute over medium heat until onions are tender.  Set aside.

1/4 c Flour
2 T Yellow Cornmeal
1 T Sugar
1/2 t Salt
1/2 t Garlic Salt
1/4 t Oregano
1/4 t Cayenne Pepper (optional)
1/8 t Baking Powder
1 Egg 
1/4 c Milk

Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Sour Cream
Salsa

Combine dry ingredients in medium bowl.  Stir egg and milk into dry ingredients until just moistened.  Add corn/onion/pepper mixture.  

Spray large skillet with nonstick spray and place over medium-low heat..  Drop 1/4 cup batter at a time on skillet and fry approximately 3 minutes, or until light brown.  Flip each corn cake and top with 1 1/2 tablespoons cheddar cheese.  After removing from heat, top with sour cream and salsa.

Chocolate Cheesecake Dip

I found this recipe on Pinterest while looking for Brownie Batter Dip. While it tastes NOTHING like brownie batter, it was very good and did taste like chocolate cheesecake!  We served this with pretzels, apples slices, and marshmallows; but it would’ve been great on bananas, strawberries, vanilla wafers, or graham crackers!

Start by beating 8 ounces of cream cheese and 1/4 cup softened butter for two minutes.  

Add two cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  

Add 5 tablespoons flour, 5 tablespoons cocoa powder, 

2 tablespoons brown sugar, and one teaspoon vanilla.

Mix on low until ingredients are combined; then beat on high for 1-2 minutes.  

Add milk one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency.

**Remember, cream cheese and butter will firm up in the fridge, so add plenty of milk!**

Refrigerate until ready to serve.  :)

Chocolate Cheesecake Dip

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
¼ c. butter, softened
2 c. powdered sugar
5 T. AP flour
5 T. cocoa powder
2 T. brown sugar
1 t. vanilla
2-4 T. milk

Beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until well combined and fluffy (1-2 minutes).  Add two cups of powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  Add flour, cocoa powder, brown sugar, and vanilla.  Mix on low until ingredients are combined; then beat on high for 1-2 minutes.  Add milk one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency.  (Remember:  this dip has cream cheese and butter in it and will firm up in the refrigerator… so be sure to add enough milk to make it “dip-able.”)

Cover or transfer to Rubbermaid container with lid and place in refrigerator until you’re ready to serve!

*I would normally give credit to the blogger/website/etc. where the recipe originated, but we found it SO many different places, I don’t know who to credit!  If this is your recipe, please let me know so I can give credit where credit is due!

Hot Guacamole Dip

I've been on a guacamole kick lately.  It’s my “go to” snack for movie watching or pre-dinner snacking.  Now that it’s cooling down, I thought, hmm… how can I make this into a delicious warm snack?  This yummy dip is what I came up with!  Whether or not you like traditional guacamole, you should give this hot and creamy dip a try!

Hot Guacamole Dip

3 oz.  cream cheese, softened

4 oz. guacamole*
1 ½ t. lemon juice
1/8 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/8 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
2-3 T. heavy cream, optional

*I usually make my guacamole from scratch; but our local grocery store didn’t have any avocados!  Instead, I used a store-bought, mild guacamole and doctored it with some lemon juice, finely chopped green onion and minced garlic. 

Preheat oven to 350°.

Using a hand mixer, beat the guacamole and cream cheese until smooth.  Add lemon juice and cheeses and beat until combined.  If you want a thinner dip, add heavy cream.  (I like mine thick, so I didn’t add any.)  Spread in two ramekins and top with a little shredded cheese and a light sprinkling of salt and pepper.

 

Bake for 14 minutes or until cheese is melted and it begins to bubble around the edges.  Serve with your favorite tortilla chips, crackers, or veggies.

This recipe is enough for 2-4 people.  The boys’ nanny and I shared one ramekin as a pre-dinner snack.  If you are making this for a party, I would double (or even triple) the recipe.

Banana Streusel Muffins

It’s beginning to feel like Fall in our neck of the woods and I was in the mood for a tasty, Fall treat!  I remember my mother and grandmother always baking banana bread and filling the house with its sweet aroma.  I wanted to try something just a little different; so I made banana streusel muffins.  And, boy, were they yummy!  So yummy that I decided to share the recipe with you! 

Put these delicious banana treats in a Rubbermaid container with a tight fitting lid and they won’t dry out for days!  If you decide to give them a try, please stop by and let me know how they turned out! 

Start with 1 t. vanilla, 3 mashed bananas, ¾ c. sugar, 1 egg, 3 1/3 T. butter, and 2 T. oil.
 Beat until well combined.  You should end up with something that looks like this:

***Please excuse my pictures… I didn’t have my camera handy, so I had to take them with my phone!***

Dump in 1 ½ c. AP flour, 1 t. baking soda, 1 t. baking powder, ½ t. salt, 1 T. cinnamon, and ½ t. nutmeg.

Whisk until combined.  DO NOT OVERMIX.

At this point, it may not look… edible.  You’ll just have to trust me ;)

Spoon the batter into a greased muffin tin, dividing it between all twelve cups.

Don’t look at my muffin tin.  It’s been through a lot.

The next step can be done with a fork OR two knives OR a pastry blender;
 but, it’s easiest with a food processer.

Throw 1/3 c. brown sugar, 2 T. AP flour, 1 t. cinnamon, and 1 T. COLD butter into your food processer.
Process until itty-bitty balls form.

Top batter with streusel topping.

Bake for about 18 minutes and… VOILA!

Yum!  Hope your family enjoys them as much as we did!

Banana Streusel Muffins

1 ½ c. AP flour

1 t. baking soda

1 t. baking powder

½ t. salt

1 T. cinnamon

½ t. nutmeg

1 t. vanilla

3 mashed bananas

¾ c. sugar

1 egg

3 1/3 T. butter

2 T. oil

Streusel Topping

1/3 c. brown sugar

2 T. AP flour

1 t. cinnamon

1 T. COLD butter

Preheat oven to 375°. 

Pour mashed bananas, sugar, egg, melted butter, oil and vanilla into stand mixer bowl and beat until well combined.  Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Whisk together until combined. DO NOT OVER MIX. 

Using a food processer, combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and cold butter until small balls form. (This can also be done in a bowl with a pastry blender.)

Spoon batter into greased muffin tin.   Top batter with streusel topping. 

Bake muffins for 18-20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool for 5 minutes before removing to cooling racks. 

YIELD: 12 muffins