Apple Streusel Cupcakes (They're Muffins)

So a few weeks ago while browsing barnes and noble I found this awesome cookbook in the clearance section. It has a lot of recipes that look good, but more importantly each recipe has pictures and nutritional information, the paper is super nice-smelling (IMPORTANT), and it was only $7. 

 I decided that first I would make these apple streusel muffins (not cupcakes). I don't know why the book refers to these as cupcakes, but they're wrong. According to the recipe, these cupcakes make a good dessert served with whipped cream. No. They are breakfast muffins, end of discussion. And at 160 calories per muffin, they aren't that bad for sugary goodness.

 Ingredients for the muffins:

1 cup applesauce

1/2 stick salted butter

1 egg

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

2 teaspoons baking powder

 first combine butter and sugar

 Add the egg

 The flour

 The other dry ingredients

 And the applesauce

 Ingredients for the topping:

1/3 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2 1/2 tablespoons nutmeg

 Combine the dry ingredients

 Cut in the butter until you get nice crumbles

 Like this

 Distribute the batter into muffin tins

And coat each muffin in topping

Sorry I don't have a finished product picture... but I forgot to take one while eating the delicious muffins. They were good... but I think they would be much better with the addition of apple chunks. Also, the recipe is wrong. It makes 12 muffins, not 14... unless you're making really small muffins. Also I would suggest that you make a little extra topping... if you like topping, which of course you do because it's delicious cinnamon-sugar goodness. 

Lazy Days Of Summer!

I'm so sorry that there is not an interesting post this week... and for the lack of a post last week. I've been relaxing! It is summer vacation after all! Last week I was with my mom in Vegas! It was such an interesting experience. I got home last weekend and didn't have time to do a post then, and this week I've just been relaxing. It's been so nice. I've read more books in the past week than I have since  I started college I think (pleasurable reading... obviously I read my school books... >_>). I was planning on making something from the new cook book I bought a couple weeks ago, but then Will and I had a craving for brownies and we made some a few nights ago... and we made them from a box (gasp!). I will absolutely for sure post something more interesting next week though!

Chocolate Chia Pudding!

 Hey guys! This week I decided to make something super easy (and supposedly healthy). I found this recipe on Pinterest, of course. It's originally from Food Doodles. Chia seeds seem to be all the rage right now, and if they really are as healthy as people are saying, this pudding is a great way to satisfy your sweet tooth without ruining your diet.

It's so simple, with only 5 ingredients:

Chia seeds

Milk (any kind you want)

Honey (or any other liquid sweetener/sweetener that will dissolve)

Vanilla

Cocoa powder

First measure out 2 tablespoons of chia seeds into a bowl

 Next add 1 cup of milk. The original recipe says you may want to add more if you're leaving it overnight, but I found 1 cup was perfect.

Next add 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

2 tablespoons of honey (or however much you prefer)

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Then stir to combine. It takes awhile for the cocoa powder to mix in properly

After leaving it covered in the fridge overnight. 

I really really enjoyed this recipe. It was super fast to make, and it really is filling. It tastes exactly like chocolate pudding you would buy from the store, except I like it better because the chia seeds absorb the liquid and have a texture very similar to tapioca. I'm not sure about the whole chia seed fad that's going on, but if they are as healthy as people are saying, I would absolutely make this pudding again, because it certainly doesn't taste healthy.