The Selfish Fruit Crisp -- deliciousness in a mug. For one.

Last summer I came up with my version of a Cake in a Mug. It was pretty darn good if I do say so myself. Yummy, sweet and rich. This summer I found myself needed a late night snack and out of cocoa powder. I know, how could I be out of cocoa powder? That's just sacrilege! But after making a few chocolate cobblers and brownies I've gone through 2 cans of cocoa in the last month alone. I think it's close to 6 in the last 3 months. But all that matters is that I was out. And it was storming so there was no trip to a store in sight for anyone in this house.

Think. Think. Think. What could I make. I had rhubarb. And frozen blueberries. Could I make something quick and easy with that? Then I saw the left over bread crumbs that I didn't use for dinner. And the butter sitting on the counter...and an idea was born. I was going to make a fruit crisp. In a mug. Just for me.

I tinkered a bit and put it in the microwave and prayed. I futzed around while it was cooling and hoped that I hadn't just wasted precious rhubarb. And then I tried it. And it was really, really good! Like...did I just make that good. Like...I gotta make this again to make sure that it's for real good.

So I did. I made two more using different options for toppings and made my Number One Taste Tester and husband try one. He looked up at me, mouth full, and said "This is really good. Did you just make this?" I told him I was tinkering with it and he told me to tinker some more because one wasn't enough. I told Mr. Diabetic to go back to playing computer games.

I still wasn't 100% sure and needed to have a few other people test it using their microwaves. The reviews have all been great. Some people liked the oatmeal topping, some like the cereal. I personally like the bread crumb one the best. One note about the cereal topping, it doesn't get as crisp as it would in an oven so to one taste tester the cereal ended up feeling like it was a little stale. But she said it was still really yummy and she ate it anyway.

So try it out, mix it up and see which version you like best. But don't blame me if one isn't enough. Enjoy!

Chilled Rhubarb Soup with Strawberry Puree Garnish

Today is National Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Day.  I wanted to blog a pie recipe...but the thing is I don't like strawberry rhubarb pie.  I tried to psych myself up to make one.  I just couldn't.  Sorry.  Luckily there are a million and one recipes out there for SR Pie.  Now...plain rhubarb pie I can do.  And I'm hoping to bake one this weekend but am holding off only because I will be tempted to eat the whole thing.

But I have been wanting to make a chilled rhubarb soup and finally got the chance to do that today.  It turned out exactly like I had hoped and it was so easy to make.  I also love that it is naturally fat free, healthy and low sugar.  The bright fruit flavors are accented lightly with vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg.  It is a simple prep but the wow factor is huge.  You can serve this for a summer starter, luncheon or as a special dessert.  I could even see this for a bridal or baby shower.  The only "trick" is that you need a blender or food processor.  The rest is easy peasy and can even be done far in advance.

Although it wasn't as easy for me to present it as it was for me to make it.  See...I have this adorable little girl who happens to love strawberries.  She is also getting very tall and is way too smart for her own good.  I made the strawberry puree in advance and put in in the fridge to chill while I made the rest of the soup.  My friend (and taste tester) stopped by to get a few of my homemade protein bars for her girls and I was going to show her the pretty puree.  But it was GONE.  I looked all over the fridge, double checked to see if I had put it in the microwave or freezer (hey...I'm a sleep deprived momma...it could happen) or if I had left it on the counter.  It was simply gone!  My friend left and I figured I'd find it somewhere goofy.  I walked into my living room and there it was.  My Sous Chef had taken it out of the fridge, grabbed her spoon from the smoothie I had made her and was eating the strawberry puree.  She was all smiles though.  Guess she liked it. Hope you do too.  Enjoy!

I'm back! And...Rhubarb Pizza!

A few weeks ago I came up with an idea to make a dessert pizza, using rhubarb of course.   I looked on line and everything I found used a cookie or a pie crust.  I didn't want that.  I wanted something that had that pizza dough bite.  I wanted it to look like pizza and taste like pizza...I just wanted it to be a dessert pizza.  So I tried a few things, put it in the oven, prayed...and it worked!

I knew I needed to make it again to make sure it wasn't a fluke so I invited over a few friends and bribed them with yummy food.  And it worked!  We had yummy pizzas and my friend Kathy even took pics.  It was unanimous that everyone loved it...and a few of the kids even asked if they could have it every day.  My friend Robin said that it was as good, if not better, than the cake in a mug recipe.  I do have to admit it was really pretty good.  It was hard to save the last piece for my husband but seeing as he got the computer up and running I figured he deserved to be spoiled a little.

I have even successfully converted a former rhubarb hater to a rhubarb fan.  I told her mom yesterday that after birthing two children and converting a rhubarb fan that my mission on Earth is complete.  Now I'm off to cook more rhubarb and post recipes galore.  I'm so happy to have my lap top back.  It makes writing and adjusting recipes so much easier.  Oh...and make this.  Today.  Trust me.  It is SO GOOD!  Enjoy!

We interrupt regular scheduled blogging for chocolate! (Worth it...trust me!)

Today I had planned to put up the solar oven post. The solar oven post will still be going up...just tomorrow instead.  Plus the slight delay will allow me to try yeast bread, which is pretty much the only thing I haven't attempted yet.  But I've been super excited about sharing my experience with everyone about using the solar oven to cook just about anything under the sun. (Pun intended. Hee hee.) So why am I delaying it?  What in the world could be so good that I push aside a whole week's worth or cooking and research?

Two words.  Chocolate Cobbler.

The recipe has been floating around my message board for a few weeks and I've been meaning to try it but never got around to it.  The heat wave this week didn't help either.  But after I made cornbread and rhubarb crumble in the solar oven without a problem I figured I had to give this recipe a try.

It is so super easy to make but the wow factor is over the top.  I shared with my neighbors and all the kids. Across the board everyone agreed that I needed to do a Field Trip Friday for this recipe so that people could make it over the Memorial Day weekend.  So make it.  Now.  Today.  And tomorrow too...because it's that good that you will want more.  You will thank me later.  Go enjoy!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen-blog/2010/05/a-tasty-recipe-my-grannys-chocolate-cobbler/

Cookies My Kids Can Eat (aka Reduced Allergen Cookies/Lactation Cookies) AND Milk Maid Giveaway!

How's that for a title? ;)

This week has been another roller coaster/wild ride at our house.  To start, both of my kids tested positive for some pretty tough food allergies.  This was just the first round of testing and they will both be going to an allergist to get more information.  In the meantime, you can expect to see more gluten free (GF), dairy free (DF), egg free (EF) & soy free (SF) recipes posted here on RITK.  Also, all the recipes that have any of these in their description have now been marked and you can now search by these labels as well.

One of my most popular and requested recipes is for my Lactation Cookies.  Not only do they taste really, really good, they are a healthier cookie to serve to your family and they have an added bonus of providing good fats, minerals and extra calories to nursing mommas when they need them most.  And honestly...who doesn't love a good chocolate chip cookie.  So when I was faced with having to change the way my family eats my friend Jennifer (The Glad Kitchen) told me I was not only going to be fine...that I was going to excel at it.  She also challenged me to turn my lactation cookies into a recipe that my kids could eat and any momma who is nursing and on a restricted diet could also eat.

I told her that I would accept that challenge and we set up a plan.  As soon as the recipe was ready and posted we would also do a giveaway.  You see, Jennifer is also the maker of the very popular Milk Maids!  Milk Maids are reusable nursing pads that are super soft and luxurious but most important, they work great.  Jennifer has donated one pair of her hard to get Milk Maids for a giveaway here on RITK!

I am happy to say that the recipe turned out great!  The cookies are free of the 4 major allergens and they taste good enough to fool my kids into thinking they were eating my regular cookies.  They set up just like my original recipe too.  I hope you like them as much as the original.  Enjoy!

Here is how to enter!

This entry is mandatory if you want to win! Follow RITK and post a comment here saying that you follow the blog. Also, you must include your e-mail address if it's not already in your profile! These two things are uber important and if you do not do these then all entries of yours will be invalid and I don't want to have to do that.

For more entries...

1. Like RITK on FB and leave a comment in this post.
2. Grab the new RITK Blog Badge (again, a Greenspired Design) from the right hand side of the blog and add it to your blog. This is worth 2 entries so leave 2 comments with links to your blog in both!
3. Share this giveaway with any social media (message boards, Facebook, etc!). Leave a comment with a link. You may do this each day for multiple entries.
4. Follow me on Twitter and tweet the following "RITK is giving away AFFF Milk Maids @Rumble_Kitchen http://bit.ly/9aV3hs" Leave a comment with a link to your status.

Winner will be chosen on Friday, May 14th.

P.S.  Happy Mother's Day to everyone.  I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing day full of happiness, family and fabulous food! 


We have a winner!  Random.org gave me #12...which is Rebecca!  Congrats to the best friend and doula that a girl could ask for.

Birthday Cake Part 2/Field Trip Friday

My Sous Chef turned two on April 7th. Last year she was super sick and spent the night before her birthday party at our local Children's Hospital. Needless to say, no birthday party for her. :( This year she is healthy, happy & thriving so she got not one but TWO birthday cakes! One on her actual birthday and one on that day of the big party. I'll have that recipe later (thanks Robin!) but today is the recipe I actually made. I wanted something pink and other than that I had no idea what to make. I used the power of SwagBucks and found a recipe for a yummy looking strawberry cake and another recipe for a rhubarb frosting and an idea was born! Strawberry Bundt Cake with Strawberry Rhubarb Frosting! And MAN was it good!

So here is a little field trip to the blog that gave me the fabulous pink cake recipe. I can't wait until strawberry season is back so I can make it again! Enjoy.

Birthday Cake Part 1

The first few weeks of April are crazy around here! April 1st is my husband's birthday, then next is my dad's on the 4th. My Sous Chef was born on April 7th and my great grandmother (who my Sous Chef is named after) turned 94 this year on April 10th. Now...add in Easter to the mix and you can understand why things get a bit nuts. Not to mention school for Monkey, pool therapy for my back, Sous Chef learning to use the big girl potty and all the other daily things that add to our wonderful but chaotic life. So it's no wonder I was at a loss of what to make for my Number One Taste Tester's birthday. I was sore (it was a therapy day for me) and didn't have a lot of time.

Homemade Protein Bars that mascarade as Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars!

On one of the board I love someone posted this recipe. It sounded like a great idea...but with my back the way it has been standing to make cookies sounded like a daunting task. Instead I thought that maybe I could make cookie bars instead. And then I got to thinking that maybe I could play around with it and bump up the protein. So I started playing around in the kitchen and less than a week and 3 batches of bars later we have the final results. And they are so good that my family and friends are not sick of taste testing at all...in fact they want me to make more! Can't complain about that.

Oh! And the best part? The whole pan has NO refined sugars (okay, there are chocolate chips but chocolate doesn't count because it's heaven) and only 1 cup of honey for the whole thing! Yummy & healthy all in one. Enjoy!

Sinfully Delicious Brownies

That aren't really sinful at all. These brownies are so rich, so chewy, so yummy and so easy that you almost feel guilty eating them. Almost. Because they are made with whole wheat flour so they aren't as bad for you as they could be. Sure they have some sugar (or a lot) and some butter (or coconut oil) and some chocolate. But they have whole wheat so you are getting a whole grain. And no one needs to know because they taste so darn good! So fool your family and friend and make these for dessert one night this week. They will think you are a God or Goddess...and it took you under an hour to get them to fight to eat whole grains. Enjoy!

Oatmeal Scotchies

It's officially Fall here in MN but with the recent snowfall it's looking a lot more like Christmas. Christmas means cookies to me! Okay...so it's more then cookies but you can't tell me you don't love all the cookies that seem to surround us at Christmastime. The younger of my Taste Testers loves Oatmeal Scotchies. He loves the smell of the cinnamon and says it makes the house smell yummy. He's right. So bake up a batch and enjoy the Fall/Winter Weather. Enjoy!

Homemade Fresh Caramels

I pulled this recipe out of the archives for Tina. I haven't made these in awhile...I usually save them to make as gifts around the holidays. But I might need to make a batch and add some extra liquid to make caramel sauce for the Ultimate Fast Chocolate Fix.

This is fool proof - you just have to watch the temperature. I've never made candy before and my 2nd batch turned out perfect. They are really rich, creamy and yummy - they'll keep for up to 3 weeks and then the sugar starts to crystallize. Enjoy!

Do not try to make these low in fat - I did and they are not the same.

The Ultimate Fast Chocolate Fix

I know, I know. The 5 minute chocolate cake in a mug recipe has been going around the internet for awhile. I tried it. It sucked. Blech. I was never so let down by chocolate in my life. I *knew* there had to be a better way.

So I played. I will admit that the first try wasn't so great. It was better then the original but it wasn't what I wanted. Tonight's try did it. I even fooled my husband and taste tester. He got mad at me and told me I was supposed to be resting. I told him I whipped it up in the commercial break. He is now sold on the cake and might be requesting it every night.

With out any more delay...here it is! ENJOY!

No Roll Pie Crust

My neighbor and friend gave me this recipe and I was skeptical to say the least. But then I tried it. It was really good! It's easy, flaky and tasty. Who could ask for more. Enjoy!

Super Bowl Super Dessert (Roast Your Own S'mores)

This is so easy it's wrong. And what better food idea for a Super Bowl Party? It's interactive and tastes good too. Monday morning people won't even remember the game or the commercials...they are going to be too busy talking about your dessert.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies (aka Lactation Cookies)

These turned out so good it's hard to believe these things are actually good for you! I found the recipe at epicurious.com and only made a few changes. I didn't have Brewer's Yeast so I used Nutritional Yeast Flakes instead. Also, the original recipe called for only 1 cup of chocolate chips. I purposely read it to read 1 BAG of chocolate chips! Here is the original recipe if you are at all interested. Lactation Cookies

And while these cookies may have been intended for nursing mommas, the added health benefits won’t hurt anyone in your family so enjoy!

Update May 2010
NEW:  I have added in a Reduced Allergen Version of the Lactation Cookies!   Doesn't hurt that they are vegan too! Enjoy!

"Faustess" Cupcakes (aka the best cupcake I've ever had)

My friend Robin made these and I seriously though I had died and gone to cup cake heaven. She combined two recipes, her mother-in-law's Ho-Ho Cake and the Fauxstess Cupcakes by Vegan With a Vengeance. All I know is that they are amazing. Enjoy!

My take of Birthhand's Brownies

My friend Tara (also known as Birthhands) gave me a recipe for brownies that taste even better then box brownies. But for some reason the edges got too hard for my liking so I played with it and figured out that this recipe works every time. But they should come with a warning. You just might eat the whole pan...and that's after you've licked the bowl clean. Enjoy!

Aunt Mickey's Famous Banana Bread

My aunt gets asked to make this bread all the time. She gives it out as gifts each Christmas and we literally fight over the loaves. It's so easy and fool proof.

Aunt Mickey's Famous Banana Bread
Ingredients:

4-5 really ripe bananas (the blacker the better)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
3 tbsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour

1. Mash or mix bananas
2. Mix sugar, oil, eggs milk and vanilla. Add in bananas and mix well.
3. Add flour
4. Bake at 350 for 60 minutes in large loaf pan or 30-35 minutes for muffins.

You can add just about anything to the recipe and it works great. Walnuts, almonds, craisins, chocolate chips.

Apple-Cranberry Crisp

Based on this recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Apple-Cranber...p-2/Detail.aspx

Apple-Cranberry Crisp

INGREDIENTS
2 pounds apples - peeled & cored
3/4 cup cranberries
1/2 cup white sugar
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon, split
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg, split
1/3 cup quick-cooking oats
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup corn flakes
1/4 cup butter or coconut oil (DF), melted
1/4 cup apple juice



DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C.) Butter a baking dish.

2. In a food processor, chop cranberries and half of the sugar.

3. In a large bowl, mix together apples, cranberries and half of the cinnamon and nutmeg. Place evenly into baking dish.

4. In the same food processor, combine oats, flour, cornflakes and remaining sugar, cinnamon & nutmeg. Process until just mixed. Pour in melted butter and pulse just a few times. Take top of food processor off and mix in apple juice until mixture in crumbly.

5. Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until topping is golden brown, and apples are tender.

Bread Pudding

This recipe is based off of the good old standard from the Betty Crocker cookbook. Enjoy!

Bread Pudding

1/2 loaf French or Italian bread, cubed
2 1/2 cups milk, scalded
2 tbs butter
1/3 brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup raisins or craisins
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
dash of salt

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Spray 1 1/2 qt baking dish with cooking spray.
3. Heat milk and butter to scald.
4. Mix brown sugar & cinnamon together.
5. Layer cubed bread, raisins and cinnamon sugar mixture into making dish.
6. Mix eggs, vanilla, salt and sugar in bowl. Slowly add in heated milk mixture.
7. Pour egg mixture into baking dish, coating all pieces.
8. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
9. Bake in water bath (make sure to use hot or boiling water) for 65 - 70 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

~ This is even better if you use left over cinnamon rolls to make it. Reduce the sugars to 1/4 cup each and omit the cinnamon, craisins and raisins if you like.
~ Sometimes I'll add a little bit of fresh grated nutmeg to the custard and it changes everythign ever so slightly and is such a yummy addition.