~Twinkle Teaches~: Life

life.

This is my little corner to share some of the other things I love besides reading! I love to make a mess in the kitchen and make a glittery mess in my craft/scrapbook room.

Easy Peasy Mandarin Orange Cake

This is really good if you need to make a dessert in a pinch!

Ingredients

1 yellow cake mix

1 can mandarin oranges, not drained

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Mix and pour in greased and floured 9x13 pan. Bake 25 to 30 minutes in a 350 oven.

To make the frosting-

1 large can crushed pineapple, well drained

1 8 oz. carton whipped topping

1 small box vanilla instant pudding.

Mix the instant pudding and pineapple, then fold in whipped topping. Put on cooled cake and refrigerate.

Blueberry Cream Muffins

Ingredients

2 cups All-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon Baking soda

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1 cups Granulated sugar

1/2 cup Vegetable oil

2 large EGGS

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla extract

1 cup (8 oz) Sour cream

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries (or frozen thawed and drained)

Preparation

Place oven rack in lower-middle position of oven and heat to 375 degrees F.

In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour mixture over blueberries and toss to coat; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs and sugar together until mixture is pale yellow.

While whisking, slowly pour in oil; add vanilla and sour cream, and mix well.

Fold in remaining flour mixture until just incorporated. Do not over mix.

(Batter should be mixed just until it comes together. It's OK for some small sprays of flour to be visible in the raw dough.) Gently fold in 1 cup of the blueberries.

Spray a twelve-cup muffin tin with vegetable cooking spray or coat lightly with butter (or use paper liners). Distribute muffin dough equally among cups.

Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup of berries on top of muffins and press down lightly.

Place in oven and increase temperature to 400 degrees F. Bake until muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Remove from oven and turn out, upside down on tea towel to cool completely. Serve immediately or store in airtight container for 2 to 3 days.

Variation:

If desired, to cinnamon-coat muffin tops, dip warm muffins in melted butter, then in mixture of 1/2 cup granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons cinnamon.

Berry Green Tea Smoothie

pic from greensmoothiesdetox.com

Ingredients

2 Green tea bags

2 Cups frozen berries (I like strawberries and blueberries, mixed)

4 Packets Truvia or honey to taste

Directions

Steep tea bags in 1 cup hot water for 5 minutes, then remove. Cover and chill tea in fridge until cold.

Place frozen berries in blender with chilled green tea and Truvia. Blend until smooth. Pour into two glasses and serve.

2 Servings

Optional Idea- I had frozen berries whipped up with yogurt and a little ice and water in the blender. The green tea will be a really nice addition and help me to get more green tea in for the day’s requirement. Thank you!

Best Beef and Broccoli

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 pound round steak, thinly sliced into 2 inch pieces

salt to taste

ground black pepper to taste

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 cups fresh broccoli florets, chopped

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of broccoli soup

1/4 cup water

3 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. Stir in the steak and season with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is almost completely browned.

Stir in onions and saute until tender. Stir in broccoli, condensed cream of broccoli soup, water and soy sauce. Blend well.

Reduce heat and cover. Cook to desired doneness.

Strawberry Spinach Salad

This has been my favorite summer dinner!

Ingredients:

About 2 cups of fresh spinach

1 cup grilled chicken, cut into chunks

1 cup sliced fresh strawberries

1/2 cup crumbled cheese of your choice-I like Feta.

1/2 cup raw pecans

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup olive oil

Add some salt and black pepper to taste. (I do!)

1. Combine the spinach, strawberries, pecans, grilled chicken, and cheese. Toss.

2. Mix the vinegar and honey in a bowl. Slowly add some olive oil while whisking. Add some salt and pepper. Drizzle over the mixed salad.

I love to eat it with saltine crackers!

Confession: I love it best with my mason jar of Sonic ice and water with a big straw! Now you can have dessert lol.

Pink Lemonade Pie

Ingredients

1 pre-made Graham Cracker pie crust

1 can of sweetened condensed milk

1 container (8 oz.) of Cool Whip

1 (8 oz.) cream cheese

1 can of frozen pink lemonade concentrate-thaw it out beforehand

1. Mix the sweetened condensed milk and cream cheese with the pink lemonade concentrate.

2. Fold in the Cool Whip and then pour into your pie crust.

3. Refrigerate overnight and then enjoy!

I think it would be fun to try this with other flavors of concentrates. You could experiment!

Mexican Vanilla Ice Cream

Ingredients

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream

3 cups Corn Flakes cereal

1 stick (1/2 c.) butter

3/4 c. sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 container of Cool Whip (8 oz.)

Supplies

Skillet

9x13 baking pan

Spatula for spreading

1. Add the butter in a skillet on medium heat. When the butter melts totally then add the sugar into the pan until the sugar dissolves a little.

2. Then add the Corn Flakes into the pan. Stir it so the sugar/butter mixture covers the Corn Flakes--about five minutes until the Corn Flakes start to turn golden brown.

3. Get a 9x13 pan and spread 1/3 the mixture from the pan onto the bottom of it. Save the rest for the top.

4. Put the whole container of Cool Whip and the ice cream with a teaspoon of vanilla and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Mix.

5. Spread this to your 9x13 pan. Then add the remaining Corn Flake mixture to the top.

6. Put pan in the freezer for about 4-5 hours. Scoop pieces out or if you are fancy, cut into squares. Serves 10-12.