Baking Days Update #2

After looking at available freezer space and the amount of sweets on hand this morning, I decided to not make the bagels or Mock Kit Kat Bars.

I did make muffins, waffles, granola bars, and two loaves of bread this morning...on top of doing my Monday chores.

Pumpkin Muffins/Mini-loaves - I don't eat these, but James likes to have them for quick breakfasts. I freeze them and then he defrosts them in the morning in the microwave. My Mom gave me the recipe and she got it from an issue of Diabetes Forecast. I made some changes so here's my version:

1/3 c toasted, chopped pecans

2-1/2 c flour

2 t baking soda

2 t cinnamon

1 t all-spice

1/2 t ground nutmeg

1/4 t ground cloves

2 eggs

1 egg white

1-1/2 c lightly packed brown sugar

1 (15 oz.) can pumpkin

1/3 c skim milk

1/4 c canola oil or applesauce (I've made it both ways)

1 t vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine flour, baking soda and spices in a medium bowl.

3. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, egg white, and brown sugar. Stir until uniform and fluffy. Add the pumpkin, milk, oil (or applesauce), and vanilla.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and combine.

5. Fill lined muffin cups with batter and bake for about 15 minutes. You will have to watch the muffins because my oven is a little off and I had to guesstimate the time.

I was able to make 12 muffins and three mini-loaves with this recipe.

I have also substituted 1 c brown sugar and 1/2 c Splenda for the brown sugar with good results. Another substitution I sometimes use is to use 1 cup of white wheat flour for part of the total flour.

Waffles of Insane Greatness - courtesy of Finding Joy in My Kitchen. I haven't tasted these yet, they went straight into the freezer. The looked and smelled good.

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars (No Bake) - courtesy of Heavenly Homemaker. I used toasted almond slivers and mini-chocolate chips as my add-ins, but the chips melted while mixing so we'll see what happens. These are cooling in the fridge so I haven't tasted them yet.

One loaf of Cinnamon Swirl bread and one loaf of Honey Whole Wheat Bread - both recipes from Heavenly Homemaker. These were easy to make, but like most breads a little time consuming. I just planned the rest of my baking around the rising and baking times.

Not bad for a couple of hours worth of work.

Baking day update

I decided to make it "Baking Days" instead of one baking day. Yesterday I made the Peanut Butter Candy Bars pictured below. I froze most of them for future snacking opportunities. I would post the recipe, except I don't remember where I got it from so I can't give that person or magazine credit. I don't like to post recipes if I can't give proper credit. If you'd like the recipe, leave me a message with your email address and I'll send it to you.

Today I made pizza shells, calzones, and whole wheat English muffins. Most of these will go in the freezer as well for future meals.

Now I have four marked four things of my baking list for tomorrow!

Monday = Baking Day

I am gearing up for a massive baking day on Monday. I will be stuck in the house waiting for a delivery, so I might as well make use of my time. Here's what I am planning on baking:

Granola Bars

Pizza shells and Calzones = FINISHED

Honey Whole Wheat Bread

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Bagels

English Muffins = FINISHED

Waffles (double batch)

Cheese-stuffed Breadsticks

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Muffins

Peanut Butter Caramel Bars = FINISHED

Mock Kit Kat Bars

I will hopefully have some time tomorrow to start on a few of these items, otherwise I will shorten the list some for Monday.

Quick CVS Trip

Needed some mascara so I thought I would take advantage of earning some ECB.

Total OOP = ZERO ($6.58 on GC which was a gift)
Total saved = $22.97

Casa Chapala Review

We had never heard of Casa Chapala, until a Groupon deal was offered. $30 worth of Mexican fare for $15 was what we purchased through Groupon. We didn't know when we were going to use it, but then along came Saturday...cold, rainy and gloomy. You have to love spicy Mexican food on days like that!

Casa Chapala is owned by the Barragon Cortez Family and was established in 1987. We really didn't have any expectations of the restaurant since we had never been there before, although one of James' colleagues had told him good things about the restaurant.

There are two locations and we visited the one on W. Anderson Lane in North Austin. It is kind of tucked into a corner of a strip mall. The outside of the building is pictured above.

Our waiter Abel (who by the way you should absolutely request...he was awesome! Super knowledgeable, attentive, and helpful) sat us at our booth, as per our request. The menus were supplied in these huge leather binders that James is modeling for you.

One of the coolest things about Casa Chapala is that your server actually makes your salsa at your table according to your taste preferences. James and I have visited a ton of Mexican food establishments and this is the first place I had ever visited with this practice. I love super spicy salsa, so with James agreement (sometimes spicy stuff doesn't agree with him) and Abel's recommendation, we went with super spicy. He mixed pureed tomato with about 1/2 teaspoon of garlic/salt/pepper mixture and a heaping tablespoon of some kind of fried, crumbled pepper pieces together to make a beautifully spicy concoction. This wasn't your typical burn-your-mouth spicy salsa though, it was almost a smoky flavored salsa. Different than what we were used to, but we both still really enjoyed it.

For his meal James picked the Enchiladas Astlan which were described as:

"These enchiladas are stacked, rather than rolled. The first layer is topped with black beans and pico de gallo, then layered with your choice of meat, green salsa and topped with melted cheese and a dollop of sour cream."

For his choice of meat he picked shredded beef, the other two choices were spicy chicken or ground beef. He also had his choice of refried, Charro or black beans of which he chose Charro. His meal is pictured at the top of the food picture and he LOVED it! He thought the flavor and texture was awesome and also enjoyed the beans and rice.

I chose chicken fajitas for one. Usually these would be served on a hot plate, but because I don't eat vegetables (usually these are served with green and red bell peppers, onions and mushrooms) the cooks put my chicken on a regular plate so it wouldn't burn. I opted for black beans. My fajitas were very good and nicely flavored. Nothing really different about them from other places, except they thankfully weren't swimming in oil or butter. The only downside to me meal were the black beans. While nicely flavored, they were not whole beans instead it was almost like a soup. I would have preferred whole beans, but it wasn't enough to make me not enjoy my meal. Next time we go back, and we will be going back, I think I am going to try the cabrito (for you non-Spanish speaking people that means goat!)

And then came dessert. We had several choices but opted for the very traditional sopapillas. These were just plain delicious!

As you might be able to tell from the background of some of the pictures, the decor was very traditional Mexican fare...brightly painted walls adorned with dresses, blankets, hats, and metal wall hangings. Even the waiters and waitresses wore "traditional" Mexican clothes which definitely added to the feel of the restaurant.

Casa Chapala is a little more expensive than what we are used to in our small town, but it was definitely worth it. Our meal total was $34.72 with tax, but after our Groupon deal we paid $4.87 at the restaurant (we had already paid $15 to Groupon). This total did not include a tip, which I am not going to share because I am an over-tipper, but I will say that Abel did an excellent job and deserved the entire tip!

We can't wait to visit Casa Chapala again and hope to see our local friends there!

Menu Plan 1/10-1/16

I have finally gotten back to meal planning. Here's what we are planning on eating this week:

Monday - Baked Potato Soup

Tuesday - Pizza

Wednesday - Crockpot roast beef and baked potatoes

Thursday - BBQ beef sandwiches and mac & cheese

Friday - Chicken fajitas

Saturday - waffles

Sunday - hamburgers and chips

My Gatorade deal

Quick stop at CVS today to get some Gatorade and Superbowl snacks. We also bought a Snickers Almond (buy for $0.89, get $0.89 ECB back), but that didn't make it home for the picture. The rest of the items were buy $20 get a $10 ECB back.

Total OOP = ZERO ($5.20 on GC)
Total saved = $39.03
ECB earned = $10.89 total