Cakes

Lately I've been delving into the enjoyment I find in making cakes. I wish I had a lot more time to spend messing around with different techniques but cake making has to be a pretty rushed process around my home these days, while my children are small. Of course if I didn't have children I'd likely still be working away from home 40hrs a week. Here are some of the cakes I've made.

This was a cake I made for my son's baptism. It was the first time I did piping around a cake. My buttercream was really soft by then and it's something I'd like to play with more. I also can hardly look at the "e" without cringing although my family said it was lovely :)

This is the cake I made for my husband's 33 birthday. It was my first attempt at fondant. My little guy had a rough couple days and it was hard to find the time to get this cake enough attention. I used raspberry jam and raspberry jello to make a delicious filling for this cake that didn't squish out the sides. There's buttercream under the marshmallow fondant. Marshmallow fondant is pretty tasty, nothing like the store bought stuff. The cake is dark chocolate Pillsbury, my current favorite. Next time I'll find cutters for the circles b/c I can see where the edge of a glass pressed onto the fondant leaving a seam instead of giving it a sharp cut. I also need to work on the timing of when the buttercream is made and the fondant is ready to be rolled. I had to wait for my buttercream to soften and then my fondant was already rolled and got a little dry and cracked in a few places. Not bad for a first attempt.

This is the cake I made for my daughter's second birthday. A friend of mine made it and I found the idea on Woman's Day website. I LOVED it and I imagine next year Madelyn will be asking me for a certain kind of cake so I took advantage of being able to make her whatever I wanted this year! It's a layered pound cake, goldfish crackers in two colors and sizes, fruit roll up cut to look like algy, and the pebbles are nerds. As tradition holds we gave Madelyn the first cut piece. She was so excited and suddenly looked very surprised and unhappy and started crying for "balls". She so badly wanted a piece with nerds on it! Well normally I wouldn't have a child crying over which piece of cake but it WAS her birthday so we gave her a piece with nerds. She hardly touched the cake and just ate the nerds off it! Everyone else liked it though!

This was Madelyn's first birthday cake. We had always called her a monkey so I had to go with that for the theme. The belly was cooked in a Pyrex bowl to look rounded. The ears were cooked in small bowls as well. The face is actually two layers to give it dimension. The arms and legs were free-hand cut from a sheet cake and the tail was free-hand cut from a round cake. I had a LOT of extra pieces of cake that I just threw away to make this. It was a lot of fun!

This was Madelyn's smash cake for her first birthday. It's in the shape of a banana although I forgot to take a photo before I put the little monkey on it and I should have just put the monkey next to the cake. It's two layers for dimension and to give her plenty of ammo for messy cake eating! She certainly did smash right in, loved it, and I had to change the bathwater to get her clean!

Okay this isn't a great cake at all. The piping was done with a plastic bag. There is jam in the middle squishing out the sides but now I know to add jello to the jam to make it not slide around. This was a year we couldn't go home for Christmas and I was very sad. I made this in between church services...we went to all the services we could to try to make up for not being able to spend the holiday with family. Minnesota winter was rough that year!

I made this cake, in a hurry, last night. I didn't plan on it at all. In fact I wanted to go out for ice cream but my husband thought it would be too crowded on a hot Memorial Day night. I thought it would be fun but that's okay. I made a quick cake so we would have dessert. It ended up being VERY quick b/c my son became very needy. There are many things I would do differently if/when I did it again. I'd use fondant for sure. Love the crisp look of fondant! Still this was a pretty tasty cake and it was fun to make. I like that I was able to make a cake with 50stars even if they aren't lined up exactly right...and 13 stripes :)

My next cake will be for Father's Day. I already have a design all picked out. It will use fondant and be a little more difficult than the first one. Hopefully I can refine some skills and use some new ones. I really love making cakes. It's so fun to see an idea come to live especially since I'm not much of an artist!

Jello Yogurt

I found a recipe for jello yogurt and after reading the reviews changed it a bit... of course. Since I just made my own homemade yogurt I had thinner yogurt than most store bought so I thought changing it a bit would be a good idea. Someday I'll share my homemade yogurt recipe but I don't have it down quite yet although this batch was thicker than the last. Even though it's thin we just use it to make smoothies and now... jello yogurt!

Simply make a small package of jello according to directions and add an envelope of unflavored  gelatin (but don't add the additional water for the gelatin recipe). Add the gelatin to the HOT water and dissolve completely before adding the cold water.

Once the Jello is made and still hot add it to 2cups of your favorite yogurt. Mix and put in fridge to firm-up for a few hours.

Since I used yogurt that was lightly flavored but hardly sweetened I ended up with a dessert that's not too sweet and I didn't feel bad giving my daughter "seconds" on a special treat since it's mostly milk and water!

This recipe is easy to alter with various flavors, and more or less gelatin for a firmer or thinner result. Using plain yogurt with the Jello will make it not as sweet. I'm guessing you could add drained canned or frozen fruit to this as well although I like things smooth ;).

I made cherry this time but next time I'll try orange!

Taco Lasagna

One of my creations which I may have gotten an idea from someone else somewhere along the line but it was so long ago I can't remember where. Had to post this for my girlfriend today.

What you need:
-Tortillas (flour/corn/whole wheat are all fine. You may want to fry them ahead of time, I usually don't.)
- A can of diced tomatoes or a cup of salsa
-TWO cans of beans, drained (kidney/pinto/ or black). I use two different types.
-A can of refried beans.
-1 lb ground beef, cooked
-1-2 packages taco seasoning or your own taco seasoning.
-Shredded cheese (any type, we like cheddar)

1. Mix the tomatoes (or salsa), beef, and beans including refried beans.
2. Add 1 package of taco seasoning, add more to taste. I usually use 1.5packages.
3. Spray a round casserole dish with non-stick spray.
4. Start with a layer of tortillas. I leave the tortillas whole if I can but then rip one in half to make them fit in the dish.
5. Add a layer of bean mix and then some shredded cheese. Top with more tortillas and repeat until ending with bean mix. Top with shredded cheese. (To save money and calories I usually only top my casserole with cheese instead of including in each layer).
6. Bake at 350F for 45mins or until heated through. Cut pieces like a pie to serve.

We just had this but ate it too fast for pictures!

Coconut Macaroons

I merged this recipe from several I found online. It's not hard to find a good macaroon recipe. These are VERY easy and I made them tonight b/c I needed something sweet in a BAD WAY. At 31 weeks pregnant I couldn't resist.

4 cups coconut
1 can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)
1/3 cup flour
1 tsp Almond extract (or vanilla but almond is much tastier)

1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
Parchment paper or waxed paper if available

• Preheat oven to 325F.
• Combine milk and almond extract. 
• Add flour and mix to combine.
• Fold in coconut. 
• Drop by rounded teaspoonful (I use a small cookie dough scooper) onto baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 
• Bake 10-15mins until edges and top are lightly brown. 
• If desired turn on broiler to toast the tops. If you use the broiler do not take your eyes off the cookies. I stood with the oven cracked and watched them brown. 
• Remove from oven. 
• Melt chocolate chips and drizzle over macaroons. Use a zip lock with the corner cut to make this easier. I was out of bags and impatient so I just put a little circle of chocolate on top of each cookie. 

Cereal Bars

A pretty good basic recipe to make Rice Krispee treats or cereal bars using other cereals. Today I used Cheerios.

5-6cups dry cereal. (I like to use rice krispees or Cheerios).
3 tablespoons butter
1 10 ounce package marshmallows
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup chocolate chips (or another flavor such as peanut butter)

1. Melt butter over low heat.
2. Add marshmallows and stir until melted.
3. Stir in vanilla and peanut butter until incorporated.
4. Stir in cereal.
5. Mix in chips.
6. Press into a greased 9x13 in pan and let cool. Cut into squares to serve.

Not exactly gourmet food but the kids sure love them! So do the grown ups :D

Peanut Butter Kiss cookies

Ok this one is really easy. You can find this recipe anywhere. But just in case you want to know MY thoughts....which few do...well here, ya go.

For each batch:
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 cup peanut butter
18 Hershey's Kisses (actually, I'd figure closer to 23)

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix sugars, egg, and peanut butter. Roll into one inch balls (maybe my balls were small, I didn't actually measure), and bake on a cookie sheet for 10mins.

When they come out of the oven, stick a Kiss in the center of each cookie, let them cool, and then remove from the sheet.


Other thoughts:
I made  a triple batch so...a cup of each sugar, 3 eggs, 3 cups pb (which was just about a 28ounce jar), and supposedly a bag of Hershey's kisses would have been more than enough. But It wasn't I had about ten without kisses. So sad. So tasty. So delicious.

While the cookies are baking unwrap the Kisses. Supposedly you can buy these without the wrappers but I was not about to go on a while goose chase for such a thing. The time driving and the increase in cost per bag. So just be smart and unwrap them ahead of time!

 I used Kisses with meltaway centers. I knew there would be consequences but it just sounded too good to pass up. I stuck the cookies in the fridge and let them sit there an hour before I touched them. If I had unwrapped the first batch ahead of time they might be standing a little taller but really they look fine and taste GOOD.

After I was done I saw a recipe on the back of the package to make brownie bites with meltaway Kisses. The instructions were to put the Kisses in the freezer before making the dough. Now THAT would have been smart!

There's a world of possibilities out there. Some people use crunchy peanut butter. I'd like to make chocolate cookies and put mint kisses in the center... Mmmm.

Really simple, good for kids to make, and a holiday favorite in many homes.

Slow Cooker Thai Chicken and Coconut Rice

Here's a meal my mom makes that my husband and I love. I made it for my husband and our sister-in-law last night and it was a big hit. Everything was GONE!

Slow Cooker Thai Chicken

Lay frozen chicken breasts (1-2lbs) at the bottom of a crock pot. If they aren't frozen that's fine but it's always nice to have a recipe that doesn't require defrosting. 

In a bowl mix: 

• 3/4 cup salsa. Use whichever one you like.
• 1/4 cup peanut butter.
• 2 tbs lime juice
• 1 tbs soy sauce
• 1 tsp grated ginger 

Mix together and pour over chicken. Cook on low or high or a high/low combo to make it's done for your dinner time. Gosh, I love not worrying about exact measurements but in case you don't... Approx times are: On low about 6-8hrs, on high 4-5 hrs, or on high for an hr and then low for 2-3. 

When it's done top with 1/4 cup chopped peanuts and chopped green onions. I skipped this last night and it was still tasty. 

*You can make this in a casserole dish in the oven. Bake at 350F for about an hour. I haven't made it this way yet so (as ALWAYS) make sure to check the temp of the chicken before serving!

Coconut Rice (two cooking methods)

This is my absolute favorite rice. I could eat it everyday. Easily doubles/triples. I only fed three adults but I wish I had made a double batch. For a double batch just double all ingredients; no special instructions. 

In a rice cooker combine 1 1/4 cups chicken broth, 1 1/2 tsp grated ginger, 1/3 cup coconut milk (reg or light but NOT cream of coconut). Stir in 3/4 cup white rice. Turn on rice cooker. When done top with 1/2 tsp grated lime zest, 2 medium green onions, chopped, and 2tbs toasted coconut. 

OR

Bring 1 1/4 cups chicken broth, 1 1/2 tsp grated ginger, and 1/3 cup coconut milk to a boil. Stir in 3/4cup rice. Bring back to boil then reduce heat. Cover and simmer 15mins or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and top with 1/4tsp grated lime peel and 2 medium green onions chopped. Garnish with 2 tbs toasted coconut.

*To toast coconut: Spread coconut evenly on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350F for 5-7mins, stirring occasionally, until golden brown. You can make a large batch and store in a air tight container or zip lock for several months. 

Stir Fry Broccoli

I only add this b/c it uses left over ingredients from the chicken and it was also GONE. A can of chicken broth is about 2 cups so I simply dumped a bag of frozen broccoli, the remaining chicken broth, a good tbs or two of soy sauce, and a sprinkle of garlic powder into a stir fry pan and cooked until the broccoli was heated through and the sauce boiled off. It was really very flavorful and delicious! 

Note about the coconut milk: The recipe uses only 1/3cup coconut milk. I measured the remaining milk into 1/3 portions and froze in freezer bags. Coconut milk is about $1-$2 per can but makes several recipes. I may use the leftover for our favorite curry chicken :)

Note about fresh ginger: You can freeze the whole root and then just grate what you need each time! Lasts a LONG time and really a very cheap ingredient. Don't be afraid to break off a piece at the grocery store since it tends to be sold in very large portions (as it grows).

No pictures on these yet...Sorry but it went too fast!