Fluffy Blueberry Pancakes

It is fall and although I really cannot get enough fall flavors, I had to go for some old fashioned blueberry pancakes today.  After a brief search I found this recipe and did a tweak or two to it.  They were AMAZING.  I have never had a fluffier pancake. Ever. Period. So I decided to make these and it was my plan to take a few pictures and to finally get some photos of my food on here, but alas, no such luck.  They were gone before I had even finished cooking them.  So!  Here's the recipe:

2 eggs, separated

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

3 tablespoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

1 tablespoons butter, melted

2 teaspoons canola oil

1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen, thawed

In a small bowl, beat egg whites until stiff; set aside.
In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Beat egg yolks in a medium mixing bowl and add milk and melted butter. Stir egg mixture into dry ingredients; mix until batter is smooth and stir in blueberries. Fold in beaten egg whites. Bake on hot greased griddle. Serve with warm maple syrup. 
For big crowds, I suggest a double batch!

It actually called for three tablespoons of butter, but I only had about one and wasn't going to the grocery store until later so I just added two teaspoons of oil and it was still delicious and probably not needing of the extra.  You could also make these any kind by substituting the blueberries for chocolate chips, apples, cinnamon chips etc. Anything works! 

Hope you all enjoy the rest of the long weekend!  Perfect pancakes to make on a day off!  Sometime soon, I'll also be posting recipes for a wonderful pie crust to go with an awesome blueberry apple pie.  It's actually in the oven right now :) See you soon!

Cinnamon Roll Sunday

To brighten up this rather rainy day, my mother and I decided to make cinnamon rolls.  We actually found the recipe on Allrecipes.com and decided to change it up a little bit from there.  We subtracted the raisins, walnuts, and the white sugar from the original. Instead we added brown sugar, pecans, dried cranberries and diced apples. 
Dough:

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1/4 cup white sugar

1 egg

Filling:

3 tablespoons softened butter

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup dried cranberries (optional)

1/3 cup chopped pecans (optional)

1/3 cup finely chopped apples (optional)

Icing:

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 tablespoons milk

Put wet ingredients in the bread machine first, then add the dry and select the right dough cycle. 

Once Dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the bread machine and punch down. On a floured surface, roll into a large rectangle. Smear with the softened butter. Combine the cinnamon and 1/3 cup sugar. Sprinkle over the rectangle. Generously sprinkle the raisins and/or chopped nuts over the top.

Roll the dough up into a log starting at the long side. Cut into 12 slices. Place the rolls cut side down into a 9x13-inch greased baking pan. Cover, and let rise in a warm place until almost doubled, about 30 minutes.

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). For the icing, combine the confectioners' sugar, melted butter, vanilla extract, and milk into a thick frosting; set aside.

Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and cover with the frosting and allow to cool 10 minutes.

These were amazing! Perfectly moist and warm and fluffy and just absolutely delicious!  Might be the best we have made.  I hope you all enjoy!! :)

Awesome Apple Pie Muffins

Fall is, by far, my favorite season all year.  Everything about it makes me happy.  Being a sophomore in college in an exceptionally pretty area of New Hampshire is one of the best ways to enjoy the changing weather.  Leaves are beinging to change and though it's raining, it cannot dampen my spirits about the beauty of fall.  One of my favorite activities in all of life is apple picking.  There is simply nothing I can complain about when it comes to the sweet smell of apples in the orchard or the juicy crunch of the first bite! And apple cider; liquid happiness. No contest! It has always been a family tradition and am I happy with just one apple picking weekend? Of course not! At least two or three weekends every fall have to be somehow related to apple activities; preferably more :)

A local apple orchard in full swing as you can see! Just the perfect image of fall!

So the first thing I made with some of these delicious apples were muffins to take back to school with me!  Delicious and warm way to start off a day!

Apple Pie Muffins

Topping

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup quick-cooking oats
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Muffin Batter

3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
1 egg
1/3 cup oats (optional)
1/3 cup golden raisins (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or half whole wheat and half regular)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups diced firm tart apples

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with muffin liners or spray with Pam, either way works (but liners are more colorful). 

Mix topping ingredients together and set aside.

In a large bowl mix together the brown sugar, vegetable oil, applesauce, egg, and vanilla. In another bowl, mix oats, flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

Alternate mixing in buttermilk and the dry ingredients to the wet.

After combined, fold in diced apples and raisins.

Scoop batter and fill to the top of the muffin liners.

Sprinkle the yummy topping over all muffins evenly.  Be generous :)

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick and it comes out clean.

Let cool for 5-10 minutes and enjoy!

Just a note:  The origional recipe did not call for oats or raisins so they are completely optional but delicious! You could also add any nuts you may like as well!

Recipe was based off a recipe by another blogger, a personal favorite of mine and I highly recommend her!
The Hazel Bloom