Friday Foodday

Happy Friday lovebugs, I hope it's full of fireworks and good food.


Red, White & Blue Cupcakes
c/o Lauren's Latest

Ingredients

for the cupcakes-
4 large egg whites
1/2 cup softened butter
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
red & blue food coloring

for the frosting-
1-8 oz. package Philadelphia Cream Cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup softened salted butter
2 1/3 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin tin with paper liners and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside.

In another large bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, 2 minutes. Stir in vanilla. In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Alternate stirring in the dry ingredients with the milk until none remain. Scrape sides to ensure even mixing. Fold in whipped egg whites. Divide batter between 3 different bowls. Stir red food coloring into one and blue into another one. Alternating between the white, red and blue cake batters, spoon into prepared cupcake pans, alternating colors. Once muffin tins are filled 3/4 of the way, bake 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean after inserted. Set aside to cool.

For the frosting, beat cream cheese and butter together to combine. Stir in powdered sugar and vanilla. Scrape sides and beat 3 minutes until frosting lightens in color and thickens slightly. Frost cooled cupcakes and top with sprinkles.

Apple Cheddar Biscuits

c/o Annie Eats

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
8 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 oz. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
¾ cup dried apple slices, coarsely chopped
¾ cup milk
2 tbsp. butter, melted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400˚ F.  Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Whisk to blend.  Stir in the pieces of butter and toss to coat in the dry ingredients.  Using two forks or a pastry cutter, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is coarse largest butter chunks are the size of small peas.  Stir in the cheddar and dried apples and toss briefly to combine.  Pour in the milk and stir gently with a fork until a sticky dough has formed.

Turn the mixture out onto a well floured work surface.  Don’t worry if the dough has some dry bits.  Briefly knead until the dough is mostly cohesive and no longer stick, being careful not to overwork it.  Roll the dough out in a slab about ¾-inch thick.  Use a 3-inch round biscuit cutter to cut out rounds of the dough and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Re-roll any dough scraps and cut additional rounds until the dough has been used up.  Brush the tops of the dough rounds lightly with the melted butter.

Bake for about 16-18 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until the tops are golden and the biscuits are baked through.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool slightly before serving.  Serve warm with sliced apples and cheddar, if desired.

Roasted Garlic and Bacon Dip
c/o Stephanie Cooks

Ingredients2 heads garlic
Olive oil
16 ounces sour cream
1/2 cup mayo
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Salt/pepper
6 slices bacon
2 green onions, finely chopped

Directions

1- Preheat the oven to 350.
2- Slice the tops off the heads of garlic. Drizzle with olive oil. Wrap in tin foil and allow to roast in the oven about 45-60 minutes, until the garlic is soft and easily removed from the paper casing. Allow the garlic to cool.
3- In a bowl combine the sour cream, mayo, Worcestershire sauce, and a bit of salt and pepper. Stir well.
4- Squeeze the roasted garlic from its paper shell into the bowl. Using the back of a fork mash the garlic well, stirring to incorporate it into the dip.
5- Refrigerate overnight (optional- you can do just a couple hours if desired).
6- Cook the bacon until very crisp. Chop finely. A couple hours before serving, stir about 1/2 of the bacon and green onions into the dip, reserving the remaining half for topping the dip right before serving. Refrigerate.
7- When serving, top with the bacon/onions. Serve with potato chips.