A Guest Blogger and a Recipe Swap!

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Today's the day! Welcome to an Old Fashioned Recipe Blog Swap! I am swapping blogs with Tessa from tessacotton.  She has a fabulous recipe I know you will love! There are 30 different blogs participating! Click on the links of the swap hosts at the bottom of this post to see all of them!

Hey friends! My name is Tessa and I'm so excited to be guest posting here at The Freshman Cook as part of the Good Old Fashioned Recipe Swap. I run the blog over at tessacotton and I've created a simple fish and veggies bake (with a chicken option for those of you who don't care for fish).

Tilapia and Spinach Bake

Ingredients: 

10 oz chopped spinach (fresh or thawed and squeezed)

1 large diced tomato

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (divided)

1 cup bread crumbs (divided)

2 eggs beaten

3-4 pieces tilapia

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 tsp red pepper flakes

1 tbs minced garlic

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

Combine 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, 2 eggs, garlic, tomatoes. spinach, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper in a med bowl, mix well.

Spread spinach mixture on the bottom of a 9x9 or similar sized pan. Arrange tilapia in a single layer on the spinach. Top with remaining breadcrumbs and shredded cheese.  

Bake 17 min or until fish is flaky and cooked through. There you have it! 
**To make with chicken, preheat oven to 350 degrees, cover dish with foil, bake 35 min, remove foil for last 10 min**

Thanks to White Lights on Wednesday, Missinformationblog and i love my disorganized life

for hosting! Go ahead and click through to one of the hosts to check out all the great blogs participating in this fun recipe swap. 

Father's Day Man Cave Giveaway!!!

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FATHER'S DAY IS COMING!

I am excited to be joining bloggers and authors Lexie Lane and Becky McNeer, along with a lot of your favorite bloggers in an exciting and fun Father's Day Giveaway! We are giving away cash prizes and 3 people have a chance to win!! So make all the entries to have the best chance! Each entry you make gives you another chance to win!

Have you ever wondered if there is a better way to blog? How to do it? How to do it effectively? Should you do it, or not? Well, a lot of your answers can be found in the new book, "The Blogger's Survival Guide".  This book is not just for new bloggers. Written by Lexie Lane and Becky McNeer, this book will simplify your blogging life! Check out this great book!

Enter below for your chance to win! 

The more entries you make, the more chances you may be a winner!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cannoli Cupcakes

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Today is Secret Recipe Club reveal day! This month I was the lucky blogger who was assigned the blog Mele Cotte, which is authored by Chris. I had a really difficult time deciding which recipe to choose. There are so many great ones and now I have a lengthy list of Chris's recipes that I will be making in the future! I finally decided to make the Cannoli Cupcakes and I was so glad I did. These cupcakes are just like the Italian pastry, and oh, so tasty!

Cannoli Cupcakes

2 cup cake flour
1 ¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
1 ½ cup sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
4 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cannoli Filling
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese

 (drained in a fine-mesh strainer for 2 hours to remove excess liquid)
1 cup mascarpone cheese
½ cup confectioners sugar
½ tsp. vanilla
½ tsp. cinnamon
pinch of salt

Mascarpone Buttercream

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
16 oz. Mascarpone cheese, room temperature
4-5 cups confectioners sugar
chopped pistachios

Whisk flours, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl; set aside.

Cream butter and sugar, mixing until just light and fluffy. 

Add eggs 1 at a time until combined, 

scraping down the bowl after each addition.

Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk 

and vanilla to batter until completely mixed scraping down the bowl as you mix.

  Scoop batter into baking cups filling about 2/3 full. 

Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix filling ingredients using a wooden spoon. 

Cover and refrigerate until ready to fill cupcakes, at least 2 hours.

When ready to fill cupcakes, transfer the cannoli filling into a pastry

 bag fitted with a plain tip.

 Push the tip gently into the bottom of a 

cupcake and squeeze in the filling until the cupcake plumps.

 Continue with the remaining cupcakes.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, 

cream butter and Mascarpone until light and creamy.

 Add sugar and continue beating until smooth.

Top with mascarpone buttercream.

Add chopped pistachios.

Chris added a cannolli shell to the top of each of the cupcakes,

and they look so cute!

Thanks for joining me today!

Stop by Mele Cotte and see this great recipe and so many others.

Check out what all the other Secret Recipe Club members made today.

It's An Old Fashioned Recipe Swap!

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I’m participating in a Good Old Fashioned Recipe Blog Swap! Julie {White Lights on Wednesday}, Kelley {Miss Information} and Rachel {i love my disorganized life} have paired up 30 incredible bloggers to trade blogs for the day.

Tessa from TessaCotton and I will be sharing a fabulous recipe on each other’s blogs {but we can’t tell you what they are, because they’re a secret!}. Be sure to visit both of us on May 27th, we wouldn’t want you to miss out on any deliciousness!

Caramel Cinnamon Muffins

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Today is the day for the wonderfully fun, Improve Challenge, and this months 2 ingredients are equally fun~cinnamon and sugar!! How many yummy things can you make with cinnamon and sugar? Probably, like, a zillion! But as difficult as it was, I narrowed it down to just one~Caramel Cinnamon Muffins! There is no way you won't like these!

Caramel Cinnamon Muffins

(adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Muffins
4 tablespoons Butter
3/4 cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
Pinch of Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 large Eggs
2 1/2 cups Flour
1 1/4 cups Milk

Cinnamon Filling
1/2 cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Cinnamon
2-3 tablespoons Melted Butter
 12 Individual Caramels

Topping
1/4 cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.

Mix together the butter, sugar, baking powder,
cinnamon, salt and vanilla.

Add the eggs and beat until smooth.

Add 1/3 of the flour, and half of the milk, and mix together.
Add some more flour, the rest of the milk, and mix together again.
Then add the rest of the flour and mix together one more time.

In a separate bowl, mix together the cinnamon, sugar,
and butter to make the filling. When you add the butter,
add 2 tablespoons first and mix together. Add the third
tablespoon if needed. The mix should be thick.

Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of batter into each muffin cup.

Place 2 tablespoons of cinnamon filling over the batter
of each muffin.

Cover the cinnamon filling with more batter.

Take a caramel and place one into each muffin. The caramel
won't be totally submersed in the batter. A little might show
on the top. Make your cinnamon sugar by mixing
1/4 cup white sugar with 2 teaspoons of cinnamon.
Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top of each muffin batter.

Bake for 20-22 minutes. Let cool just a little.
Serve right away and the caramel will be totally molten.
If you wait 15 minutes, the caramel will ooze. If the muffins
cool completely, pop them into the microwave  to warm.

Thanks for joining me today!

Check out what everyone else made!

 

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I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day,
and you were blessed with happiness and joy!

Thank you for reading
The Freshman Cook!

Reese Cup Popcorn!

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My son is currently studying for his final exams of his senior year of college. It's almost over!! I know you can't see me, but if you could, you would be seeing me with a huge smile on my face! :) So, to help him get through some long and tough study sessions, I made him some of this Reese Cup Popcorn. It's yummy, addicting, and so easy to put together. You are gonna love it!

Reese Cup Popcorn

1 bag microwave Popcorn

1 package Nestle Peanut Butter and Milk Chocolate Morsels

1/4 cup Party Peanuts

2 small bags Mini Reese Cups

Pop your popcorn according to package directions.

Place the popped popcorn into a pan to cool.

Use a pan that will fit into your freezer.

Take out the unpopped kernels.

Separate the peanut butter chips from the

milk chocolate chips.

(it doesn't take as long as you might think!)

Melt the peanut butter chips in a double boiler, or 

refer to the package directions for other

methods of melting.

Pour the melted peanut butter chips onto the popcorn.

Mix until totally covered.

Add the peanuts, and mix in.

Place in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, just like the 

peanut butter chips.

While the chocolate is melting, chop each of the

 mini reese cups into 4 pieces.

Add the chocolate chips and the 

chopped reese cups to the popcorn.

Mix together well. 

Place in freezer for 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

Thanks for joining The Freshman Cook today!