Archive
Recipe Exploration: Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes
By: Renee (Modified from Your Cup of Cake)
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 15-18 min
Servings: 24 Cupcakes
Ingredients:
Cinnamon Cake:
- 3 eggs
- 1/3 cup oil
- ¾ cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup sour cream
- Vanilla Cake Mix (not white cake mix)
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup finely sifted Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal (optional)
- (Crush the cereal in a bag or use a food processor and then sift out ¼ cup)
Cinnamon Toast Crunch Buttercream:
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ⅔ cup finely sifted Cinnamon Toast Crunch powder
- (Crush the cereal in a bag or use a food processor and then sift out ⅔ cup)
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line pans with 20-22 cupcake liners.
- In a large bowl, gently combine eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla.
- Mix in sour cream.
- Add cake mix and cinnamon and mix until smooth.
- Stir in lightly crushed cereal.
- Fill cupcake liners ¾ full and bake for 15-18 minutes, or until an inserted knife comes out clean.
- Meanwhile, for the buttercream icing, beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add Cinnamon Toast Crunch powder. Add vanilla and powdered sugar. Adjust the consistency using milk if it is too thick.
- Pipe onto cooled cupcakes and top with cinnamon sugar and Cinnamon Toast Crunch squares.
Notes:
- This also makes great mini cupcakes and cake as well. The mini-muffins were popable and great even without icing (turning them into muffins I suppose) and the cake is really moist. We made a layer cake out of it.
- If making muffins, less bake time is needed. If making a cake, more bake time is needed.
Recipe Exploration: Spicy Sausage Casserole
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 60 minues
Servings: 6
Ingredients:
- 2 lb fresh, ground spicy pork sausage
- 1 cup uncooked long-grain rice (I used instant with no problem)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 (28 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed (can also use crushed tomatoes)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- In a large skillet, brown sausage and drain grease.
- Stir in rice, onion, garlic and peppers. Cook 5 minutes.
- Stir in tomatoes, chicken broth, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Pour into 9×13 inch pan.
- Bake for 1 hour or until rice is tender and most of the liquid is absorbed. Or, at this step, you can cover and freeze it.
Notes:
* If you don’t want it too spicy, you can either cut back on the cayenne pepper or you can get less spicy sausage
5 for 5: Favorite TV Shows
Iceflow and Caoboi bring you another collaborative video. This time we reveal our top 5 TV shows in this 5 for 5 format for Snap Post Vlog.
Even though Iceflow stole some of Caoboi’s shows, he comes back with a vengeance with some expected and not so expected entries.
Pardon Iceflow’s hair and her tiredness. Nothing really to pardon of Caoboi’s. He’s pretty damn awesome.
Intro by Caoboi (http://www.youtube.com/labozqec)
Uploaded for Snap Post Vlog (http://www.youtube.com/snappostvlog) (http://www.snappostvlog.com)
Music by Pretty Lights (http://www.prettylightsmusic.com)
Diary of A Gamer: When Iceflow Met Caoboi
I am a gamer. And a serious one at that. But one cannot live by games alone. This is why I met someone who games too 🙂
This is the story of a Troll Rogue and a Tauren Shaman getting together!
In my first post for Snap Post Vlog (http://www.snappostvlog.com), I tell you how meeting someone online can be beneficial.
Intro by J Valentine (http://www.youtube.com/labozqec)
SnapPostVlog (http://www.youtube.come/snappostvlog)
Music by Pretty Lights
Episode 046 – Bidding
The @Valentine Podcast Show Notes
Intro
Coming to you, from Louisville, KY! It’s the @Valentine Podcast with your Bidding couple, J and Renee Valentine.Intro Music –
Who Loves Me by Pretty Lights – http://www.prettylightsmusic.com/#/homeToday is Monday, January 30, 2012 and this is Episode 46!
Weekend Wrap-up
- Bidding!?!
Tech (Gadgets, Computers, etc.)
- gMusic App for iOS.
- Samsung S10
Media (Movies, Games, Books, Television Shows, Music)
- Movies By Chance: Result: 58 – Fame; 112 – No Impact Man: The Documentary
- Movie for Next Week: 132 – The Brothers; 93 – The Burning Bed
- Beauty and the Beast in 3D
- Downton Abbey
- Justified
- Reckoning: Kingdom of Amalur
Food –
- Texican BBQ
- Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cupcakes
- Homemade Granola Bars
Odds and Ends (Bumper provided by Johnny Feisty)
- Stuff to do to move
- I love to Pack
- Strumpet is going to Paris
- Congrats to Glenn and Juliet
- Happy Birthday to Dills and Eled on Saturday
- Happy Belated to J’s Dad!
- SPV (http://snappostvlog.com/)
Contact Information
You can reach us by email at thevalentinecast@gmail.com. You can also see our blog at valentinecast.com. The podcast Twitter feed is ValentineCast. Video can be seen at http://youtube.com/ValentineCast J’s Twitter feed is theCaoboi and Renee’s twitter feed is theIceflow
Outro Music: Pretty Lights – If I Gave You My Love
Episode 045 – Pie Eating
The @Valentine Podcast Show Notes
Intro
Coming to you, from Louisville, KY! It’s the @Valentine Podcast with your Pie-Eating couple, J and Renee Valentine.Intro Music –
Who Loves Me by Pretty Lights – http://www.prettylightsmusic.com/#/home
Today is Monday, January 23, 2012 and this is Episode 45!Weekend Wrap-up
- Shopping (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nROpnDLN07g)
Tech (Gadgets, Computers, etc.)
- Intro for Vlogs. Working with Sony Vegas
- New camcorder ordered Samsung Q10
- Search for a broadcasting arm for our Mics locally. No luck!
- Goodbye Turtle Beach. Hello new mic.
- Google Plus to now allow psuedonyms…kinda
Media (Movies, Games, Books, Television Shows, Music)
- Movies By Chance: Result: 85 – Ping Pong Playa; 91 – Tangled
- Movie for Next Week: 58 – Fame; 112 – No Impact Man: The Documentary
- World’s Greatest Dad – Robin Williams
- Hell on Wheels
- Discussion around Disney movies and the unlocking vaults…
- SW:TOR
- Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
- Played a little Portal 2
- Batman: Arkahm City and Deus Ex: Human Revolution
Food –
- National Pie Day! We have Pie!!!!
- Cheesy Bacon Chicken and Avocado Quesadillas
- Cajun Chicken Pasta
- Whirley-Pop!
- Canada Dry
- Mom pushing food on us
Odds and Ends (Bumper provided by Johnny Feisty)
Feedback
- Email from Kim
- Tedra64 Theodora Thomson – @theCaoboi @ValentineCast I absolutely love being able to watch. You guys are so awesome.
- From Alachia – OMG. food section now is going to be SOOOOO much more cooler! we get to watch you eat sometimes! sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet!
Contact Information
You can reach us by email at thevalentinecast@gmail.com. You can also see our blog at valentinecast.com. The podcast Twitter feed is ValentineCast. Video can be seen at http://youtube.com/ValentineCast J’s Twitter feed is theCaoboi and Renee’s twitter feed is theIceflow
Outro Music: Pretty Lights – If I Gave You My Love
Recipe Exploration: Cheesy Bacon, Chicken, and Avocado Quesadillas
By:Renee (from kevinandamanda.com)
Prep Time: 10
Cook Time: 10
Servings: 8 (half a quesadilla is a serving)
Ingredients:
- 4 medium-sized flour tortilla shells
- 1 lb chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
- salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup scallions, diced
- 8 strips of bacon, cooked & crumbled
- 1 avocado, diced
- 3 cups mild cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 tbsp butter
Directions:
- Arrange bacon on a cooling rack (like for cookies) and set it on top of sheet pan. If you don’t have a cooling rack, you can just put the bacon straight on the sheet pan. Or in a 9×13 baking dish. Either way will work. Place bacon in a cold oven, turn heat to 400, and cook 15 mins per side.
- Add 1/2 tbsp bacon drippings to a skillet over medium heat. Add the scallions and saute about 2-3 mins until softened. Add the chicken in a single layer, season with salt and pepper, and cook for about 5 mins or until chicken is golden and cooked through, flipping just once during cooking. Remove the chicken and scallions to a plate and rinse out the skillet.
- Add about 1/2 tbsp butter to the skillet over medium heat. When foamy, add a tortilla and swirl it around to get it nice and buttery. Layer one side of the tortilla with chicken, bacon, avocado, and a little cheese. Use tongs to flip the other half of the tortilla over and press down. Cook the tortilla for about 1-2 mins on each side or until golden brown and crispy.
- Repeat with the rest of the tortillas, adding a little more butter for each tortilla as needed. Eat & enjoy!
Notes:
- I used the bacon pieces used for salads and made them crispy in the microwave. Was a lot easier. But if you don’t have extra bacon grease handy, it’s good to make the bacon yourself.
Recipe Exploration: Cajun Chicken Pasta
By: Renee (modified from All Recipes.com)
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 15 min
Servings: 6
Ingredients:
- 12 ounces linguine pasta
- 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced into thin strips
- 1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 green bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
- 4 fresh baby bella mushrooms, sliced (optional)
- 4 stalks of green onion, minced
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add linguini pasta, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, or until al dente; drain.
- Meanwhile, place chicken and Cajun seasoning in a bowl, and toss to coat.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, saute chicken in butter until no longer pink and juices run clear, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add green and red bell peppers, sliced mushrooms and green onions; cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce heat, and stir in heavy cream. Season the sauce with basil, lemon pepper, salt, garlic powder and ground black pepper, and heat through. Add more Cajun Seasoning if desired.
- In a large bowl, toss linguini with sauce. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese. If sauce is too thin, let the bowl sit until sauce thickens.
Notes:
- Can also use rotisserie chicken cut up into pieces. That works out well!
- If sauce is consistently too thin even after sitting, you can add 1 teaspoon of cornstarch mixed with or water to thicken.
Episode 044 – Video Trying
The @Valentine Podcast Show Notes
[audio http://atvalentine.podbean.com/mf/web/736j4e/Episode044.mp3|titles=Episode 44 – Video Trying]Intro
Coming to you, from Louisville, KY! It’s the @Valentine Podcast with your Video Trying couple, J and Renee Valentine.
Intro Music –Who Loves Me by Pretty Lights – http://www.prettylightsmusic.com/#/home
Today is Monday, January 16, 2012 and this is Episode 44!
Weekend Wrap-up
- Snow and Cold
Tech (Gadgets, Computers, etc.)
- New domain, twitter, and email
- Upgraded Internet
Media (Movies, Games, Books, Television Shows, Music)
- Movies By Chance: Result: 140- The Next Three Days; 145- Jet Li’s Fearless
- Movie for Next Week: 85 – Ping Pong Playa; 91 – Tangled
- SW:TOR
- Bastion
- Muppet Show
- Housewives of Atlanta vs. Housewives of Beverly Hills
- J’s New Vlog: Favorite Movies (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9efwQTaWolc)
- Project Runway Allstars
- Project Accessories Finale
Food –
- Try This: Fried Peanuts and Cajun Fried Peanuts from Georgia
- Mexican Style Goulash (https://valentinecast.com/2012/01/13/recipe-exploration-mexican-style-goulash/)
Odds and Ends
- Nerdtacular Hotel Booked (www.nerdtacular.com)
Podcast of the Week (Until we run out of Podcasts)
- The Cantina Band: Star Wars The Old Republic Netcast
- Brian Brushwood and Adam Paulauski
- http://thecantinaband.com/
Feedback
- Email from our good friend Jeff
Contact Information
You can reach us by email at thevalentinecast@gmail.com. You can also see our blog at valentinecast.com. The podcast Twitter feed is ValentineCast. J’s Twitter feed is theCaoboi and Renee’s twitter feed is theIceflow
Outro Music: Pretty Lights – If I Gave You My Love
Recipe Exploration: Mexican Style Goulash
By: Renee (modified from All Recipes)
Prep Time: 15 min
Cook Time: 20 min
Servings: 10
Ingredients:
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 2 cups chopped onion
- 2 medium green peppers
- 2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
- 2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
- 2 cups fresh or frozen corn
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 ½ cups uncooked elbow macaroni
- 1-1/3 cups shredded reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
Directions:
- In a large nonstick pot, cook beef, onion and green peppers over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.
- Stir in the tomatoes, tomato sauce, corn, water, chili powder, oregano and salt, pepper, and cumin. Bring to a boil.
- Add macaroni. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until macaroni is tender.
- Sprinkle with cheese; cover and cook 2-3 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.
Notes:
- Can use ground turkey or half ground turkey
- This goes well with cornbread.
- This makes a very large batch. Even though it freezes well, if you would like to make a smaller batch
Contact Information
http://twitter.com/ValentineCast
Email: TheValentineCast@gmail.com
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