Dinosaur BBQ, French Toast Bread, and Small Batch Cupcakes

I made ribs this weekend with the Dinosaur BBQ Mutha sauce. The sauce is excellent but makes a TON. I rubbed the ribs with a rub and put them in a glass baking dish covered with foil for 4.5 hours at 225. Then at 4.5 hours I took them out and basted them with the BBQ about every 10 minutes for 30 minutes. They were excellent.

Dinosaur BBQ Mutha SauceFrom the Dinosaur BBQ cookbook
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup minced onion
1/2 cup minced green pepper
1 jalapeno pepper , seeded and minced
1 pinch kosher salt
1 pinch black pepper
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 (28 ounce) can tomato sauce
2 cups ketchup (preferably Heinz)
1 cup water
3/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup cayenne pepper sauce
1/4 cup spicy brown mustard
3/4 cup dark brown sugar , packed
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons fresh coarse ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon liquid smoke (optional)
Directions:
1Pour the oil into a large saucepan over medium-high heat.
2After oil has heated, add the onions, green peppers, and jalapenos and stir.
3Add a pinch of sa1t and pepper and cook until vegetables are soft and onions are golden.
4Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Add remaining ingredients except the Liquid Smoke.
5Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the sauce simmers.
6Simmer for 10 minutes.
7Turn off heat, add the Liquid Smoke and let the sauce cool.
8Pour it into a container, cover, and store in the fridge until ready to use.

DH requested this for his b-day dinner. It was good, but not what I expected.

Texas Red ChileFrom: the Dinosaur BBQ Cookbook
Ingredients
3 1/2 to 4 pounds beef sirloin or stew meat
kosher saltcoarsely
ground black pepper
1 tablespoon corn oil
1/4 pound bacon, diced
3 cups chopped onion
2 cups chopped green pepper
2 medium jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
2 heaping tablespoons chopped garlic
4 cups beef broth or stock
1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick (2 1/2 to 3 inches long)
2 tablespoons ground ancho chile (see note)
1 tablespoon ground pasilla chile (see note)
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
juice of 1/2 lime
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
The Garnish:shredded cheddar cheesechopped red onions
Directions
Trim away the fat and membrane from the meat and cut into 1-inch cubes.
Season the meat with 1 tablespoon each of salt and pepper and set aside.
Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven. Toss in the bacon and cook over medium-high heat until brown and crispy. Scoop out the bacon and drain on some paper towels. (The bacon is only for flavoring the oil in the pot, so feel free to eat up all the crispy bits while you cook.)
Keep the bacon fat in the pan and add the beef in batches. Cook each batch about 5 minutes, stirring the pieces around till browned. Scoop each batch out into a bowl when it's done.
Toss the onions, green peppers, and jalapenos into the pot and stir them around in the pan juices, scraping up all the tasty brown bits clinging to the bottom and sides of the pot. Season the veggies with a generous pinch of salt and pepper, and cook until soft. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.Dump all the meat and any accumulated meat juices into the veggies. Add the broth, tomatoes, bay leaves, cinnamon stock, chiles, cumin, and brown sugar and give everything a good stir. Cover the pan and bring to a boil, then crack the lid, turn down the heat to low, and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the beef is nice and tender but still holds its shape. Finish the chili by adding the oregano, lime juice, and cilantro.Fish out the cinnamon stick and the bay leaves, then check the seasonings and add a bit more salt and pepper of you like. Ladle the chili out into bowls and top with some shredded cheddar cheese and chopped red onion. It's lip-tinglin' good.

I have made this bread before but wanted to try to incorporate some whole wheat flour into it. So I subbed 1/2 white whole wheat flour into it. It turned out well. I also added 1 tbsp of gluten into it. I used raisins instead of apples and added 1 tbsp brown sugar. It came out excellent and you wouldn't know that I had changed the flour in it.
French Toast Bread
http://www.breadmachinedigest.com/recipes/loaf-recipes/french-toast-bread.php
1 cup water1 teaspoon maple extract
2 tablespoons butter
3 cups bread flour
2 tablespoons brown sugar -- packed
1/2 cup dried apples -- cut in 1" pieces
2 tablespoons dry milk powder
1/4 cup maple syrup -- fake or real
1/3 cup walnuts -- coarsely chopped
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons yeast
Add ingredients to bread pan in order suggested by manufacturer.

Today's my dad's birthday and I wanted to send along a few cupcakes with the kids but didn't want to make a whole batch. These came out well. I actually got 5 cupcakes out of it but it is a perfect small batch cupcake.
Golden Oreo Cupcakes
http://www.cookiemadness.net/2011/03/golden-oreo-cupcakes/
1/2 cup flour (2.25 oz)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons regular salted butter (if using unsalted, add pinch of salt)
1/4 cup milk mixed with a teaspoon of lemon juice or buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg yolk
2 Golden Oreos, broken into piece
Icing:4 tablespoons butter, softened
1 1/2 to 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons milk or 1 tablespoon milk and 1 tablespoon cream (if you have some)
1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 4 muffin cups with paper liners.Combine the flour, sugar and baking soda in a small mixing bowl. Add the softened butter and mix it around to coat the flour mixture. Mix together the milk, vanilla and egg yolk and add half of the milk mixture to the flour mixture. Using low speed of a hand held mixer, beat just until mixed, then add remaining milk mixture and beat for one minute or just until smooth. Mix in the Oreos.Divide evenly among 4 muffin tins and bake for 22 minutes or until set. Let cool and frost with vanilla icing.Icing: Mix butter and confectioners’ sugar Add milk and vanilla. Beat until mixed, then increase speed of hand mixer and and beat until smooth and creamy, adjusting with more sugar or more milk as needed.Makes 4