Happy Monday from the camp ground!  The weekend has been a lot of fun minus the damp weather and the lack of propane in both the bbq and oven.  I tried not to let it dampen my spirits and forged ahead.  Needless to say there was no cooking on the first night but the forecast is looking up and I cannot wait.

Despite the weather – I do have a fun little appetizer to share with you and try out next time you need a snack.  This is great for a gathering, nice with some wine before your meal or even great to bring to a potluck if you are in a rush.  This is drop dead simple and requires three ingredients.

Ingredients

• Maple Smoked salmon
• Cream cheese
• Cracker/ Crostini

Method

1. Slice smoked salmon to desired size
2. Get crackers, spread a little cream cheese and top with smoked salmon
3. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: For me I love to serve this chilled as the cream cheese and salmon firm up and make a great combination.

OK, so there you have it guys, a quick simple appetizer that will make you a lot of friends and usually disappear like hot cakes.  I am on my way back to the trailer and looking forward to a fun day!  I will touch base with you on Wednesday and by all means let me know if you thought of anything else to put on the menu.

Take care

zesty

Guess what’s back!!  You guessed it.  Another round of chocolate cream cheese cupcakes.  You cannot go too many months without baking these again if you can even survive that long.  It is a sun-filled day today so I thought I would share with you a baking recap from a few nights ago.  I made these last year at the zesty in laws in the summer and they are always a huge hit.

Can you really beat chocolate, cream cheese and to top it all off in bite size cupcake form?

So before we begin with the amazing recipe and picture overload

Ingredients

Cream Cheese Topping

• 8 Oz. Cream Cheese
• 1 Egg
• 1/3 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 Tsp. Salt
• 1 Cup Chocolate Chips

Dry Batter

• 1 1/2 Cup Flour
• 1 Cup White Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Cocoa
• 1 Tsp. Baking Soda
• 1/2 Tsp. Salt

Liquid Items

• 1 Cup Water
• 1/3 Cup Canola Oil
• 1 Tsp. White Vinegar
• 1 Tsp. Vanilla

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees and spray muffin tins with cooking spray.
2. Stir the cream  cheese to a creamy, smooth consistency.  Add egg, sugar and salt and stir  (blend) (cream) to uniform smooth consistency.













3. Stir in the chocolate chips.



4. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl,  form a “well ” and set aside.









5. Combine liquid ingredients  in another  bowl.





6. Stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients.  Be sure not to over mix.





7. Spoon chocolate mixture into muffin tins until about 2/3 full.



8. Top each muffin with a tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture (Do note the spoon technique).





9. Bake small muffin tins for  9 -11 minutes and regular muffin tins for 20-25 minutes.





10. Remove from oven and let cool.



11. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: If you need to take these special treats with you to a party, you can make 1.5 times the batter portion. You will have lots of cream cheese topping.  Also note that these cupcakes freeze well and are good warm or cold.

So now after all this, I have to hear what you think about these cupcakes.  When you pop one in your mouth you automatically step away from reality and fall in love with the texture and flavor.  Lately I have been hooked on home juice with chocolate treats.  I know it sounds crazy – but I have been trying out different juicer recipes for the last couple of weeks and I think I am addicted.  Usually I am a milk and chocolate guy all the way.

Have a great Friday and be on the lookout for another great treat from our baking excursion the other night.

Take care

zesty