Recent Catering Job & Other Recipes... (Days 262-266)

If you follow me or my catering page on facebook (Bethany's Cookie Crumble Catering) then you know we celebrate "Pancake Wednesday" in this house--which can easily be substituted for "Waffle Wednesday" and will be from time to time.  Wednesday was Day 262 and I made apple fritters, which are like pancakes, only thicker, smaller, fried in oil and covered with powdered sugar.  Is your mouth watering, yet?  Here's the recipe...

Powdered sugar/cinnamon mixture for coating the fritters.

Apple Fritters
The fact that these are fried in bacon grease makes them all the better--they turn out super flavorful, and now you HAVE to serve bacon with them! ;)

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 TB sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup apples, finely chopped

Cook bacon in a fry pan.

Sift dry ingredients together.  Combine the egg and milk and stir in with the dry ingredients.  Stir in apples.  Drop by the spoonful onto a hot griddle or fry pan greased with bacon fat.  Fry on both sides for about 2 minutes or until golden brown.

Drain on a paper towel-covered plate.  Roll in a mixture of 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.  Serve.

Wednesday night Randy had an alumni get together at school, so the kids and I bravely hit the grocery store to shop for my weekend catering job, which I'll describe later.  For dinner, we had Wendy's. :)  On to day 263...

Thursday's dinner was a treat for Randy and I as we went to a staff appreciation dinner at his work.  I bought a frozen pizza for the kids and my mother-in-law, who watched them for us.  But breakfast that morning was certainly another treat--homemade parfaits.  Making homemade granola seriously couldn't be easier.  Here's how I do it:

Homemade Granola
Preheat the oven to 350*.  On a rimmed baking sheet, spread about about 1-2 cups of oats.  Now you can add whatever ingredients you'd like in granola.  Though I do change it up occasionally, my traditional go-to consists of a 1/2 cup coconut flakes, 1/2-1 cup of almond slices, drizzle of vegetable oil and a drizzle of maple syrup.  I add a pinch of kosher or sea salt, and stir everything so it's all lightly coated with liquid.  Then I bake for 10-15 minutes or until fragrant and browning.  Once it comes out of the oven, I add about 1/2 cup of dried cranberries or raisins and stir.
Other additive ideas:
sunflower seeds
pumpkin seeds
chopped pecans or walnuts
currants
any other dried, chopped fruit (add after the baking process)

To make a parfait, layer the granola, yogurt (I use Greek vanilla), and fruit in a glass.  Enjoy!

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we either went out, had tacos, or ate at a friend's house.  I was busy preparing for a catering gig for Sunday afternoon.  Here's what I made:

"Tuxedo" Cupcakes
Chocolate cupcakes with a decadent white chocolate filling.  Topped with vanilla buttercream frosting and white chocolate "50s"  to commemorate the 50th anniversary--reason for the party.

Vanilla Cupcakes
Vanilla "secret" recipe cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting.  These are the "bride" cupcakes--decorated with pearls for the feminine side of a marriage.

Sugar Cookies and Icing
Designed with simple gold sprinkles, wedding dates, and monogram initials for the couple.

Appetizer and Sandwich Platters

Hopefully I can catch up with the blog this week!  I have another catering job this coming weekend, so things are getting busy in my kitchen...