Miranda Lambert's Raspberry-Lemon-Yogurt Bread

Posted by: Maggie

When I saw this recipe over on Kelly's site last week, I knew that I had to make it before summer was over.  I adore the combination of tart citrus and juicy berries - possibly even more than I like chocolate. I know, blasphemy. But come on, in the summer I want to be refreshed, not weighed down by rich, heavy (albeit delicious) chocolate.

The fact that this recipe comes from one of my favorite country stars of all-time made this bread even more appealing. Apparently, Miranda Lambert is quite the cook, and shared this recipe with Self Magazine in a recent issue. Now that I know she has delicious recipes like this in her cooking arsenal, I think Miranda needs to take some time off from recording awesome music and hanging out with her hot husband to write a cookbook!

If you're not familiar with Miranda Lambert, please watch this immediately, so that you too can become a fan:

Tags: Only Prettier, Miranda Lambert, Miranda Lambert Videos

Now that that's out of the way, here's what you'll need for one delicious loaf of bread:

Vegetable oil cooking spray
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar, divided
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup fat-free lemon yogurt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Grated zest of one lemon (tip: I recently discovered that it's much easier to zest organic lemons. The skin is less bumpy, and as an added bonus you're not ingesting pesticides!)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
2 cups raspberries (I used frozen, but feel free to use fresh)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Generously spray your loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl, combine flour, 2/3 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, combine yogurt, eggs, melted butter, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and lemon extract. Stir together to thoroughly combine. Pour yogurt mixture into flour mixture, and stir to combine. Don't over-mix or the bread will be tough. I didn't even use my mixer for this recipe - just a spoon! In a separate bowl, toss raspberries with the reserved 1 tablespoon of sugar. Gently fold raspberries into the batter. Scrape batter evenly into the loaf pan, and bake for 60-65 minutes, or until the top springs back when you gently touch it.

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Source: Adapted from Eat Yourself Skinny

Bread Pudding

Posted by: Annie

This week is my last week of freedom. This Monday, school is no longer out for summer, and my days of lounging at the beach and playing at the pool are coming to an abrupt end. However, the dorky student I was in high school has translated to me being a dorky high school teacher and I am a teeny bit excited about my new teaching supplies and the general idea of a fresh start to a new school year.

Today I had a whole list of errands to run and supplies to purchase to prep for next week, and I realized that I should really enjoy the free time I have left before my evenings are filled with grading papers, writing lesson plans and going to bed at absurdly early times. So at 11 am this morning, I found myself salvaging a two-day old french baguette and making my first bread pudding. This bread pudding would be delicious served after dinner warm with ice cream or even as a breakfast dish. OR, if you are anything like me it tastes delicious standing up over the sink, because we all know that when you eat desserts standing up, they do not count. :)

What you will need:

1 stale french baguette

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup raisins (optional)

4 eggs, beaten

2 cups skim milk

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Slice baguette into half-inch slices and then rip each slice into smaller pieces. Arrange the bread in the bottom of an 8-inch casserole dish and drizzle with melted butter. Sprinkle raisins on top if desired. In a medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Pour egg mixture evenly over the bread and using a fork push push down the bread to ensure that the bread soaks up all of the mixture. Bake for 45 minutes until the bread is springy to the touch.

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Slightly adapted from: All Recipes

Creamsicle Cookies

Posted by: Maggie


Before I talk about these cookies, can I just mention how difficult it was to get that darn orange sliver to balance on top of the cookie stack? I must have replaced it about 10 times while trying to snap a photo. Oh, the trials and tribulations of food photography.

I've had these cookies from The Girl Who Ate Everything bookmarked for quite some time now, and am so glad I finally made them. I thought that a recipe reminiscent of an ice cream truck favorite would be the perfect way to start wrapping up summertime, since it is (finally) almost over. It has been years since I've had a creamsicle, but the flavors of this cookie bring me right back to childhood.

Here's what you'll need:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
Zest of 2 oranges
1 3/4 cups white chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars together until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla until thoroughly incorporated. Gradually beat in flour mixture, being careful not to over-mix. Lastly, mix in orange zest and white chocolate chips.

Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough into balls, and bake for 8 minutes or until just golden around the edges. I got 29 medium sized cookies out of this recipe.

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Source: The Girl Who Ate Everything who got it from Baked Perfection