Walnut Zucchini Bread

Ingredients: Makes 2 loaves of bread

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 large eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325F. Grease 2 pans of roughly 8x4.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla extract in a medium bowl. Add ingredients to flour mix.
4. Shred 2 large zucchinis, or enough to make 2 cups and add to mixture. Add walnuts. Mix well.
5. Pour half of the mixture into one pan and leave half for the other pan.
6. Bake for 45' to 60' depending on oven.

P.s. The zucchinis from my parents' garden would make enough bread to feed the entire community! I used a single zucchini (over a foot long) to make these two loaves!

Blueberry Streusel Coffee Cake

Eclectic Treats is Back! I took a loooooong break from my cooking activities, but I'm back to share more deliciousness!!



Ingredients:
1-1/2 cup blueberry crisp cereal ( I used Meijer's Blueberry Almond Crisp)
1/2 milk
8oz blueberry yogurt
1 egg
1 tspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 tspoon cinnamon
1-1/2 baking powder
1/2 baking soda
1/2 tspoon salt

Instructions:
Preheat oven @ 375F. In a medium bowl, mix cereal & yogurt. Let stand for 5'. Then add 1 egg and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, combine flour, butter, sugar and cinnamon. It will look crumbly. Separate 1/2 cup of this mixture for topping. Add baking powder, baking soda and salt to remaining mixture and mix with cereal mixture. Once all ingredients are moistened, place in a greased pan (I used non-sticky 9' square pan). Add the 1/2 of mixture that was reserved for topping on top and bake 30'.

I give credits to hubby Kyle for his assistance with this great coffee cake! Enjoy with style :)

Eclairs ("Mom's Bombas Rellenas")

These are my mom's Eclairs, or "Bombas Rellenas." They are an Argentine classic at every festivity and I just started making them to keep some traditional foods from the family alive.

Serving: 20-24 Eclairs

Ingredients: Dough

1 Cup water

1 Stick Butter

1 Cup All-Purpose Flour

4 Eggs

1 Teaspoon salt

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

Note: Eliminate baking powder is using self-rising flour.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425.

1. Add water and butter to sauce pan and bring to boil. Add flour and remove from heat.

2. Add/beat one egg at a time with wooden spoon. The dough should be sticky. If it looks to thin, add another tablespoon of flour.

3. Using a tablespoon, grab dough and make round shapes onto a greased baking sheet. Make sure to leave some space in between them as they will likely double in size.

4. Bake at 425 until they look golden brown (Approx. 10' depending on oven). Then lower the temperature to 375 and bake for an additional 5-7' to make sure they cook thoroughly inside. Remove from oven and set aside.

5. Once the eclairs have cooled down, remove them from baking sheet and slice down the sides making a pocket for custard filling.

Note: Vanilla and chocolate pudding work well as fillings. Dip in chocolate and sprinkle powder sugar on top for a more appealing look.

Ingredients: Custard for Filling:

2 Egg Yolks

5 Tablespoons Sugar

2 Tablespoons Flour

2 Cups Milk

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Directions:

1. Beat the egg yolks slightly with the sugar and add milk.
Place on a slow fire and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add flour, while boiling. Immediately remove from heat and continue stirring until custard begins to thicken.
2. Add the vanilla extract.

3. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours

Cranberry Almond Biscotti

This recipe from http://www.cooksrecipes.com/ is one of a kind! I am a biscotti lover and was looking forward to this one. Absolutely delicious! This recipe makes approximately 24-30 biscotties.

Ingredients:

Part A

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup of granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon of salt

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Part B

1/2 cup of dry cranberries

1/2 cup of sliced almonds

1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Mix well ingredients in part A. Once the dough looks consistently firm, add ingredients in part B.

2. Using a spoon form into two flat logs, 2-3" wide and about 10" long on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes.

3. Remove from the oven and let them cool on the sheet for 10 minutes.

4. Transfer to a cutting board and slice across the log in 1/2" sections. Sprinkle sugar on top (Picture 1).

5. Return to baking sheet and lower oven to 275 degrees. Toast slowly, turning once, until slightly browned (Approximately 10-15 minutes). Remove from over.