Strawberry Baking Day

Yesterday morning I spent close to 3 hours utilizing all the wonderful strawberries we picked Monday afternoon. Well, not all of them, but half of them.

I love freezer cooking and knew that most of the items I made were headed to the freezer. Since baby girl #3 is coming our way in less than 4 months, freezer cooking is always on my mind. I want yummy breakfasts, dinners and desserts at the ready for the first few months after I have her. It'll make life much easier and more calm caring for 2 "big" girls and a newborn.

Here's the list of what I made yesterday:
4 loaves of strawberry bread
2 strawberry cobblers (one with cream cheese)
2 strawberry pies
2 dozen strawberry muffins

I still have about half of the strawberries we picked leftover. Later this week or this weekend, I plan on making 1-2 batches of jam, chocolate covered strawberries for the girls Kid's Day Out teachers and whatever else I feel like we'll need in the coming months.

What are some of your favorite recipes containing strawberries?

Peanut Butter Chocolate Dessert

Peanut Butter Chocolate Dessert
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20 minute prep
servings: 9-12

Ingredients:
20 Oreo's, divide
2 Tbsp butter, softened or melted
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
16 oz cool whip, thawed and divided
15 miniature peanut butter cups, chopped
1 cup cold milk
1 package chocolate fudge pudding mix (3.9 oz)

Instructions:
1. Crush 16 Oreo's and mix with butter. Press into a 9-inch square pan (I may use a 9-inch pie plate next time). Set aside; place in the freezer until you're ready for it.

2. In a mixing bowl, place cream cheese, peanut butter and 1 cup powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Fold in half of the whipped topping. Dump onto the Oreo crust. Sprinkle with half or three quarters of the chopped peanut butter cups.

3. Mix 1 cup cold milk and the chocolate fudge pudding, let sit for 20 to 30 minutes until the pudding has set a little. Then fold in the rest of the whipped topping (8 oz). Dump onto the chopped peanut butter cups.

4. Chop remaining oreo's (you should have 4) and the rest of the chopped peanut butter cups and place on top of the pudding mixture. You should now have a beautiful three layer dessert. Refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight. (Note: I placed mine in the freezer for a couple of hours then moved it to the fridge; I was running short on time that day)


Verdict:
This dessert was a hit! I took it to our friend's house for a dinner gathering and it was oh so good! It it something I will make again. I made the crust with too many oreo's (like 22, because I didn't read the directions properly) and it made an extra thick crust which was delicious but it made the top layer spill over which wasn't pleasant. I'll be a better direction reader next time. :)

Frozen Cherry Salads

I have a fond memory of these growing up. My mom would make them and we'd have them with dinner or as a little sweet dessert after. I have wanted to make them for awhile but just kept forgetting about them. Last week when I went to the grocery store I add the four ingredients needed for this delicious treat. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have over the years.

Frozen Cherry Salad

Serves: 48

Ingredients:

1 can cherry pie filling

1 (20 oz) large can crushed pineapple, undrained

1 (14 oz) can condensed milk

1 (16 oz) cool whip, thawed

1-2 drops red food coloring, optional

Instructions:

Mix all in a large bowl and scoop into paper lined muffin cups, 1/2 to 3/4 full. Freeze for a few hours. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Note: These make a lot! I put 12-16 in a gallon freezer bag and pop one out when I want a sweet treat.

These make a beautiful little treat for a bridal luncheon or baby shower.

48 calories per serving (if you make 48)

Strawberry Fruit Pizza

Fruit pizza, who doesn't love it? I had someone tell me the other day, "There for a while everyone was making fruit pizza at get-togethers, then suddenly they stopped. It's not like it wasn't good anymore!" And I couldn't agree more!

The past few weeks I've been spending a decent amount of time getting my recipes organized through Google Docs and have really enjoyed it. It's given me a chance to look through some of the recipes that I've collected but never made or haven't made in quite awhile. This is one of those recipes. It's actually a combination of recipes that I have. This recipe is for strawberry pizza and a fruit pizza I made a few years ago.

The variations I did were, no cool whip in the topping (b/c I didn't have any); 4 oz cream cheese instead of 8 oz and I added half a stick of room temperature butter. I also added more than just strawberries on the top. And for the glaze the container was only about 13 oz, not 16 and that was more than enough.

It was my first time to make this actual crust, I usually use my sugar cookie recipe, but this one was great and much easier to put together.

Strawberry Fruit Pizza

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Strawberry Pizza

From: Julie Richardson

Yields: 1 pizza

Ingredients:

Crust:

2 cups flour

½ cup powdered sugar

2 sticks butter, softened

Mix until like dough and spread over ungreased pizza pan.

Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes or until light tan.

Cool completely.

Topping:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

1 (8 oz) cool whip

Cream sugar and cheese together.

Add cool whip and mix together.

Spread over cooled crust.

Clean 2 quarts strawberries, sliced and mix with 1 (16 oz) jar of continental strawberry glaze.

Spread over pizza.

Refrigerate before serving, 2+ hours.

Store leftovers in fridge.

This post is linked to Blessed With Grace for Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Homemade Cookies & Cream Ice Cream

This an amazing ice cream recipe from Joy in my Kitchen. I am in love with her blog. Why? Because she makes their food from fresh ingredients just like I do in our house. And they're not too difficult. I've tried many of her foods and always love the new recipes she posts. I'm constantly printing off her recipes and putting in my recipe binder to try later. And they don't just sit in my binder I get around to trying them. I also love her dark chocolate ice cream recipe and her strawberry cheesecake ice cream recipe. And hubby loves just the plain ole vanilla ice cream. Yes, I have a thing for ice cream! :) Go to her blog, check out her recipe index. You won't be disappointed!

Without further ado the cookies and cream ice cream recipe!

Cookies & Cream Ice Cream-from Joy in my Kitchen

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1 recipe vanilla ice cream, as follows:

3/4 cup sugar

16 oz half and half

8 oz whipping cream

2-4 tsp vanilla (depending on how vanilla you want it to taste)

1. Make sure your ice cream bowl is frozen, usually best overnight.

2. Mix all the ingredients together in a medium bowl until sugar is somewhat dissolved.

3. Pour mixture into your ice cream maker and follow the machine instructions.

4. Let the ice cream make for 30+ minutes, depending on the consistency you like and however long it takes the ice cream to come together.

5. Serve immediately as a soft serve or put in a freezer safe bowl for about 2 hours for a hard scoop ice cream.

Cookies & cream variation:

12-14 chopped/crushed oreo cookies

Add these after about 15 minutes of your vanilla ice cream making, just when the ice cream is starting to come together. Continue making 10-15 minutes until ice cream comes together. Serve immediately as a soft serve or freeze about 2 hours for a hard scoop consistency.

Note: My ice cream did turn a gray color from the cookies, but it of course didn't change the delicious taste of it. This ice cream is so much better than the store-bought version! Enjoy!

The Verdict: My sister raved about this and said it was better than the store bought! It's been awhile since I've made this and have to say I'm not craving it. It is a tasty tasty ice cream treat. And right now with all these heat we could all use something good to cool us down.

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

Mmmm cookies! Who doesn't love them? I know we sure do. I try not to make too many desserts around here since I'm trying not to gain a ton of pregnancy weight and Daniel is trying to lose some more weight. But yesterday I had a craving for cookies and I may have found a replacement for my sugar cookie recipe (even though I love my sugar cookie recipe!).
These are very similar to the wonderful cookies you can buy at the grocery store. You know the ones? They have the icing tinted to match the season/holiday and they throw some sprinkles on them. The cookies are very soft and the icing is good. Well, these are very much like those. The icing isn't the same. Daniel says the icing could be sweeter but I think it's good the way it is. Besides, it's not going to be a perfect replica! We even tried the cookies without the frosting and they were really buttery and sweet. Throw a few sprinkles on those before they hit the oven and that's a nice treat. Of course, the icing is an added bonus.
Enjoy!

Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies
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Yield: about 2 dozen large cookies OR 4 dozen smaller cookies
(pictured are the smaller cookies)

Ingredients:
For the cookies:
4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
4 ½ tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
3 large eggs
5 tsp. vanilla extract

For the frosting:
5 cups powdered sugar
⅓ cup (5 ⅓ Tbsp) unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
7-8 Tbsp milk (plus more, if needed)
Food coloring (optional)
Sprinkles (optional)

Directions:
Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 F. In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt and blend. In a bowl with an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and mix together on medium until soft and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down sides of bowl if needed after the eggs. Mix in vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, add in the dry ingredients until just combine.
For 2 dozen cookies: Scoop a scant quarter cup of dough and roll into a ball. Flatten the ball slightly and place on ungreased cookie sheet, spacing each about 2-3 inches apart.
For 4 dozen cookies: Use a Tbsp cookie dough scoop and scoop dough, flatten onto the cookie ungreased cookie sheet, spacing about 1-2 inches apart.

Bake cookies at 350 F for 10-12 minutes or until just set. You don’t want to overbake these so they stay soft. The edges should be no more than very lightly browned, if browned at all. (I baked mine for 12 minutes and they were NOT brown on the edges, just the bottom. They were perfectly baked). Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Frosting: Place powderd sugar in a medium bowl and add the melted butter, vanilla and milk. Whisk until smooth; add more milk if necessary, 1 tsp at a time, to reach desired consistecy (not too runny or icing will run off cookies). Tint with food coloring if desired. Use a spatula to frost cooled cookies; place sprinkles on top if wanted. Store in airtight container.


The Verdict: These were "Husband Approved!" He LOVES the cookies from the grocery store because of the thick icing. He told me to make the icing for these cookies a thicker consistency so I can spread more icing on top and I do agree with that. I felt like I had a lot of icing leftover, but it was because I thinned it too much and then wasn't able to pile it on the cookie like I wanted. So if you want a thicker consistency, don't use as much milk. If you want a thinner coating, use more milk.
These cookies are definitely a sweet treat. If you're looking to portion control only have a couple of these a day! :) But they're worth every calorie!

This post is linked to:

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday

Chocolate Silk Pie

Earlier this week I posted a recipe for an easy pie crust. And that pie crust is for this delicious chocolate silk pie. Yeah, it was pretty good! So, I'll just go ahead and get right to the recipe.

Chocolate Silk Pie

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Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder (Hershey's Dark Chocolate would work well)

3 eggs

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1 unbaked (9 inch) deep-dish pie crust (frozen pie crusts would work just fine)

whipped topping (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place ungreased baking sheet in oven to preheat.

Place sugar and cocoa powder in large mixing bowl. Stir until just combined. Gradually add eggs, evaporated milk, melted butter and vanilla. Mix until blended, about 1 minute. Scrape bowl and mix again, whip until smooth and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.

Pour into prepared crust. Place pie plate on baking sheet in oven and bake for 55-60 minutes OR until center puffs up and pie has set.

Cool completely on a wire rack. Garnish with whipped topping, if desired.

Enjoy!

I doubled this recipe and froze the second pie after it completely cooled. I'm saving it to take for a Super Bowl party tomorrow.

I baked both in the oven at the same time and upped the time to about 70 minutes. I did start out at 55 minutes, as every oven is different and checked the pies every 5-6 minutes. I felt like the pie didn't set in the middle when I was looking in the oven, but as it cooled, it did and it wasn't mushy or runny in the middle. It was a little warm when it was served and it was perfect!

It was a very chocolaty pie and good. And the whipped topping made it better. The crust was amazing and it was a very pretty pie. I hope you enjoy!

Easy Pie Crust

I love to bake... obviously from my recipe index!

Recently an old friend on my mom's came into town so I brought a dessert to the dinner party. The dessert was Chocolate Silk Pie and it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The homemade pie crust was just as good. I love a good crust on a good pie. In my opinion, if the crust is no good, the pie is ruined. So here's my recipes for an easy pie crust.

Easy Pie Crust-from Kitchenaid

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2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup shortening, well chilled

2 Tbsp butter, well chilled

5-8 Tbsp cold water

Place flour and salt in large mixer with paddle attachment, mix about 2 seconds. Cut in shortening and butter and mix until the mixture is the size of peas.

While the mixer is going, add water 1 Tbsp at a time, until moistened and begins to resemble dough (it won't quite come together like a ball, but close enough).

Divide dough in half, wrap in plastic wrap and chill 15-30 minutes.

Roll one half to 1/8 inch thickness, roll onto pastry roller and unroll into ungreased 8 or 9 inch pie plate. Pour in pie filling and if recipe calls for 2 crusts, repeat above step and place on top of filled pie. If recipe is only for 1 crust, wrap other crust well and freeze. (I doubled the recipe I was doing so I made 2 pies, baked as directed and cooled completely, wrapped well with clear wrap and froze. It was just great.)

After you've rolled your pie crust and filled it with desired filling, bake as directed by recipe you are using until golden brown. Enjoy!

Double Fudge Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

This cake is AMAZING!

We had a family friend come into town last week for a business trip and he was able to come by and have dinner with us. I was in charge of dessert, shocking I know!

I've been addicted to The Food Network lately. I can't turn it off. Seriously, I can't. It's on 24 hours a day. Okay, maybe not 24 hours, but 8 hours. Any who, I saw this dessert and knew I wanted to make it. It's decadent, chocolately, rich, and oh so good! And it was easy to make. I know I know, I say that about every recipe, but it really was. Yes, the cake is made from scratch, but it's not 800 ingredients and it's probably stuff you already have in your pantry. So, go and make this cake!

Double Fudge Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Modified from Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups cocoa powder

2 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 cup light brown sugar, packed

3 large eggs, at room temperature

3 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature

3/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature

For the frosting:

24 oz semisweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

2 Tbsp light corn syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and butter and flour 3, 9 inch cake pans.

2. In a medium bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.

3. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, cream butter and sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, until they're well incorporated.

4. Combine the buttermilk and sour cream.

5. On low speed, add the flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture alternately in thirds, starting with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture. Mix the batter only until blended.

6. Pour the batter into prepared pans (its thick and dense, so you'll have to spread it a little). Bake for 15-25 minutes, checking after 15 minutes by placing a toothpick in the center. If it comes out gooey, put it back in the oven for 2-3 minutes at a time. If the toothpick has little crumbs on it, it's done. Take it out of the oven, cool on a cooling rack in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely.

While your cakes are baking, start on the frosting.

1. Place the chocolate chips and heavy cream into a bowl a set over simmering water. Melt chocolate and cream until smooth, stirring occasionally.

2. Off the heat, add the corn syrup and vanilla and stir to combine. Allow this mixture to COOL to room temperature (this is important so do it!).

3. In your stand mixture or hand mixer, place cooled chocolate mixture in the bowl with 1/2 stick unsalted butter (room temperature) and beat on medium speed until thick, 5-10 minutes.

4. Spread the frosting onto the cooled cakes. And enjoy!

The Verdict:

This cake was very dense and delicious. It tasted a little dry and was crumbly, so I may not leave it in the oven as long (I think I baked it for 20 minutes), but it may be crumbly because it's such a dense cake.

The frosting was AMAZING! It was easy to put together and spread great on the cake. I felt like it was going to fall off the cake because of the consistency, but it looked beautiful and stayed on. The corn syrup made it so shiny and beautiful.

I only used 2 of the 3 layers I baked (saving one for something else) because it looked like it was going to be so tall and I just felt like we didn't need so much cake for the event I made it for (there were only 6 of us!). But if you're making it for a big family gathering or a potluck, use the 3rd layer. And the 3rd layer will probably make it look more dramatic and beautiful. And there was more than enough frosting for all 3 layers. I should've put it on a little thicker, I felt like it could've used more.

My mom really liked the frosting. She said it wasn't overly sweet and had great texture. Everyone seemed to enjoy it!

Creamy Crock Pot Cheesecake

Yes, you read right, cheesecake in the crock pot. Oh my!

My sister came over Wednesday night for dinner and a visit so I made crock pot cheesy chicken spaghetti and french bread. I wanted a dessert that I wouldn't have to fool with while I cleaned house and took care of N. This cheesecake was the perfect dessert. While I don't usually make dessert for just us, I wanted to try this recipe. It took me maybe 10 minutes to prep and I threw it in the crock pot and left it for 3 hours, awesome!

Crockpot Cheesecake: modified from A Year of Slowcooking

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

2 Tbsp brown sugar

3 Tbsp melted butter

Filling:

16 ounces cream cheese, room temperature (unwrap them and zap them in the microwave for about 30 seconds; mine needed a little more)

3/4 cup sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup heavy cream (I actually didn't have heavy cream, so I used half-n-half as a substitute)

1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp flour

Directions:

Find a heat resistant dish that will fit in your crockpot. You will be making a water bath for the cheesecake.

I used a 9 inch round cake pan in my 6 quart oval crockpot. The cake pan sat on the rim of the crockpot and somewhat floated in the crockpot filled with water, but was still stable.

You could also try a 1.5 qt Corning Ware dish in a 6 qt oval. I didn't have this so had to opt for the 9 inch cake pan.

Place graham crackers in a plastic zipper bag and crush; I used my rolling pin. Put a cup of the crumbs into a bowl with melted butter and brown sugar and stir until wet and crumbly; it's best to use your hands. Press crumb mixture into bottom of pan you're using (I tried to push mine up the side of the cake pan a little bit too). Use the bottom of a drinking glass to make an even layer of crust.

In a separate bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add eggs, flour, cream and vanilla. Pour the cheese mixture on top of the crust.

If you use the cake pan like I did, fill the crockpot almost to the top so it covers the majority of the cake pan; 1/2 to 3/4 up the cake pan. If you use a Corning Ware dish, add about a cup of water to the bottom of the pot. Be careful not to splash any of the water on the cheesecake.

Cover and cook on LOW for 2-3 hours, checking after 1 hour of cook time, just in case. The cheesecake is done with the edges are no longer shiny and have set. Gently touch the cheesecake, if you don't get a bunch of cake on your finger, it's done.

I cooked mine for about 2 hours and 10 minutes. After yours is done, keep cheesecake covered and unplug crockpot. Leave it in the crockpot for 1 hour; transfer to refrigerator for about 2 hours before serving. I left mine in there about 3 hours, I like my cheesecake cold.

The Verdict.

Awesome! Hubby and Sister loved it. They all said it was really creamy and delicious. I loved mine as well. It was the consistency I like in a cheesecake and was really creamy. Hubby would of liked a little fruit topping and I agree. I love plain cheesecake but I do like a fruit topping too, preferably strawberry.

I also loved it because I didn't have to turn on the oven and heat the whole house. And using the crockpot to make cheesecake just blew my mind.

Note: As most cheesecakes are, it was even better the next day.

This link is posted to Flash Back Friday.

Easy Chocolate Pie

I posted this originally back in March, but since it's so hot, I figured I'd repost it again. An easy and cool dessert recipe. No baking and turning on the oven needed!

Easy Chocolate Pie-Mom's kitchen

Printer-Friendly Recipe

1 12 oz container cool whip, thawed

2 extra large Hershey's milk chocolate bar, melted (dark chocolate is great too)

1 graham cracker pie crust (chocolate graham or Oreo crust works too)... I used a chocolate graham this time

1. Mix melted chocolate bar and cool whip together until blended.

2. Dump into pie crust and cover.

3. Freeze 4 hours or overnight.

4. Enjoy!

Yes, it's as easy as that and it's so good!

This link is posted at:

*Crazy Daisy, Tuesday Tastes

*Blessed with Grace, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

*Grocery Cart Challenge, Recipe Swap

*Colleen's Kitchen Recipe Swap

*Cookin' for my Captain, Flashback Friday

Multi-Colored Cupcakes

These cupcakes were fun to make!
Our kids had a church lock-in last Friday and the Director asked for junk food for the kids, since they'll be there 12 hours. Yikes!
So I wanted to make something fun for the kids to bite in to.
I mixed the cupcake batter up as stated on the instructions from the box, then split it up evenly between four bowls. I then added a different color food coloring to each bowl. For this time I added red, yellow, blue and green. I did use a yellow cake mix, but I know the white cake mix would hold true to the colors better, just fyi.
Then I mixed them up well, added more color if needed and began the next steps.
I sprayed my cupcake tins with non-stick spray, then 2 tsp-1 Tbsp at a time of colored batter. I think I did red, then yellow, then blue, then green. I did not stir them around, for fear of it turning into a brown blob mess. Yuck!
I let each layer settle before adding the next. It did not cover the layer before but that was okay with me. This is better than getting brown goop once it all baked!
After I filled them all, let them settle for a few minutes I baked them as directed.
I then let them cool completely before icing them.
Now, I'm a homemade icing kind of girl, but for kids, not so much. I knew the kids might only eat half the cupcake so I wasn't going to waste my good icing on them. I just bought a canned, white icing (that's what the kids usually go for) and topped each cupcake with that. Then I placed a few colorful sprinkles on top to make them more enticing, like that is needed. haha

Here's my finished product!

Cute right?
I think this is 2 bites in because I couldn't see the green at first. It's how the colors positioned themselves in the cupcake tin. I think it's rather fun and springy. I may have to make these again for the Easter Egg Hunt in a few weeks! What a great spring treat to bite into!

I hope the kids enjoyed them!

Simple Chocolate-Almond Ice Cream

This is so good and easy!

I made this ice cream to go on top of my mom's ice cream cake last week. It was a hit!

Simple Chocolate-Almond Ice Cream

Printer-Friendly Recipe

2 cups heavy cream, chilled

1 cup whole milk, chilled

1/2 cup chocolate syrup

2 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp almond extract

Place ingredients in a medium mixing bowl and combine until well blended. Pour into freezer bowl, turn the machine ON and let mix until mixture thickens, about 20-25 minutes. If desired, transfer ice cream to an airtight container and place in freezer until firm, about 2 hours, OR serve immediately for soft-serve consistency.

*Follow your manufacturer's instructions on pre-freezing your ice cream bowl. Mine says freeze at least 6 hours prior to ice cream making, I do it overnight to ensure complete freezing.

Makes 10, 1/2 cup servings

Calories: 253

Ice Cream Cake

Yummy ice cream cake!

We celebrated my mom's birthday last week and I offered to make her cake. I've been wanting to try my hand at SnoWhite's recipe for ice cream cake. I'm glad I did, so good!

And since it's finally starting to warm up around here, I thought ice cream would be in order. Well, why not just make an ice cream cake? So, I did.

Ice Cream Cake-modified from SnoWhite at Joy in my Kitchen

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Cake:

1 cup flour

1/4 unsweetened cocoa

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup oil (or applesauce)

3/4 cup warm water

1 Tbsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. In large bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt.

3. Then, whisk in the sugar.

4. In another bowl combine the water, egg, vanilla, oil (or applesauce).

5. Combine the wet and dry ingredients until just moist.

6. Pour into a greased 9x13 baking pan, and bake at 325 degrees for about 20 minutes.

7. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack. My cake too about an hour.

Next:

Remove the ice cream from the freezer about 15 minutes before you plan to use it to soften a bit. I made homemade ice cream and started making it about 45 minutes into the cooling of my cake, so they'd be ready at exactly the same time. Since I made homemade, it's a soft-serve consistency, this made it easy to spread onto the completely cooled cake.

Spread the ice cream over the cake.

Get it as smooth as possible, then cover with plastic wrap or foil and freeze to harden, about 4+ hours. I put mine in the freezer overnight.

The next day, combine whipping cream, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Whip until stiff, about 6 minutes.

Spread the whipped cream over the frozen ice cream.

I then drizzle chocolate syrup on top and added 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips. It looked so pretty!

Place back in the freezer for at least 2 hours to let whipped topping harden.

Take out 15 minutes before serving to soften, cut up and enjoy!!!

This post is linked to Recipe Swap at The Grocery Cart Challenge!

Saltine Toffee

This is a delicious sweet treat! It's quick and easy and something a little different for a dessert snack.

When you break it into pieces, place it in little bags with some cute ribbon and give out to friends as a little happy. They'll be begging for more. And you'll make their day by giving them this small gift.

Saltine Toffee-from Pat P.

Printer-Friendly Recipe

1 to 1 1/2 sleeve of saltine crackers

1 1/2stick butter

1 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 cups chocolate chips (I tried with semi-sweets and it wasn't sweet enough, in my opinion)

1-2 cups white chocolate chips, melted

chopped nuts (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Line cookie sheet with foil and spray with non-stick spray. Arrange crackers in a single layer so there is no empty space between them.

3. Place the butter and brown sugar in a small pan over medium heat. Stir while the butter melts and bring the mixture to a rolling boil.

4. Once boiling, carefully pour over the crackers, trying to cover most of the crackers.

5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 5 minutes, or until toffee is bubbling all over.

6. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 1 minute.

7. Sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top in an even layer an let cool for 1 minute to soften.

8. Spread the melted chocolate over the top.

9. Sprinkle nuts on top if you prefer or drizzle melted white chocolate for a pretty design, or do both.

10. Refrigerate about 30 minutes to set and enjoy!

Blueberry Turnovers

I love a little sweet treat and these hit the spot.

I was in the mood for just a little something sweet the other night and had the urge to bake a little. So I got on the internet to find something easy and found this turnover recipe. It was simple and quite delicious. Hubby liked the quite a bit too. I'll definitely be making them again!

Blueberry Turnovers-from Allrecipes.com

Printer-Friendly Recipe

1 (8 oz) package refrigerated crescent rolls
1/2 cup fresh blueberries (I used frozed, partially thawed blueberries, rinsed)
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup prepared vanilla frosting (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Roll out crescent dough triangles onto a baking sheet.
2. Place 1 Tbsp blueberries on the widest end of each triangle. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp confectioner's sugar over blueberries on each roll. Beginning with the wide end, roll up crescent around blueberries; pinkch both sides to seal completely.
3. Bake in the preheated over until gold, about 12 minutes. Remove to cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes; dust with the remaining confectioners' sugar. Drizzle with the vanilla frosting.

Note: I felt I needed more blueberries and a little more confectioners' sugar in each crescent roll up. I did not make a frosting, just dusted with powdered sugar. Next time, I may try a glaze, especially if I'm going to serve them to other people.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Bread

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Bread-from Joy in my Kitchen

Printer-Friendly Recipe

1/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup water
1 3/4 cup applesauce (oil works fine here too, but applesauce makes it better for you; and you might not need as much oil)
1 cup flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cup oats (I used Old Fashioned)
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 nutmeg
1-2 Tbsp brown sugar (for sprinkling on top)

1. Cream butter and sugar together.
2. Add applesauce.
3. Add oats, flours, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and nutmeg.
4. Pour in greased bundt pant (or 2 loaf pans).
5. Sprinkle top with brown sugar.
6. Bake for 45-60 minutes, at 350 degrees F.
7. Cool 5 minutes in the pan, remove to wire rack and cool completely.
8. Place on serving plate a little warm and serve. I sprinkled mine with a little bit of powdered sugar to glam it up.

Enjoy!

This post is linked to Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Sugar Cookies

Sugar Cookies-from Mom

Printer Friendly Recipe

Ingredients and Directions: Preheat over 350 degrees

Step 1:

Cream together until light and fluffy;

2 sticks butter (I use unsalted)

1 cup sugar

Step 2:

Mix together and add to step one;

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

Step 3:

Add to butter mixture;

2 tsp baking powder

2 3/4 cup flour, 1 cup at a time

Mix until just combined.

DO NOT CHILL DOUGH!

Pick out desired cookie cutters (or scoop with a cookie scoop and roll into sugar and flatten on the cookie sheet; if you choose this way the cookies will need longer to bake in the oven, add about 2-3 minutes).

Divide dough into 2 balls, put one on a floured surface and roll out into 12 inch circle into 1/8 inch thick or desired thickness (sometimes I roll my out thicker).

Dip cookie cutter into flour. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Re-roll dough until you have used almost all of the dough. Roll out second ball of dough, same directions.

Bake 6-7 minutes at 350 degrees.

Enjoy! They are delicious!!!

This is linked at Grocery Cart Challenge for a recipe swap.

This recipe is linked at The Mom Creative for the Cookie Swap.

Strawberry Cake or Cupcakes

This is one of my favorite recipes!

I'm asked frequently to make it for dinners at church and other functions. It's easy and wonderful. The picture that I posted is from a batch of cupcakes I made for a baby shower back in May.

Strawberry Cake-from Vicki V.

Printer-Friendly Recipe

Cake Ingredients:

-1 box white cake mix

-1 small box strawberry jello

-3/4 cup oil (applesauce might work here too, never tried it)

-4 eggs, room temperature

-1 cup sweetened, sliced strawberries (I buy these in the frozen dessert section at Wal-Mart; fresh would probably work but you would need to put sugar on top and let the juice come out, you need the juice for the cake; this can also be pureed so no big pieces are in your cake)

-Mix first 4 ingredients in a stand mixer, then mix in the 1 cup of strawberries.

-Grease and flour 3, 8 inch cake pans or line 2, 12 count cupcake pans with 24 cupcake liners (sprayed with vegetable spray)

-Dump batter into prepared pans evenly.

-Bake at 325 degrees for 25+ minutes

-Place on cooling racks for 10 minutes, then remove to let cakes cool completely.

Icing Ingredients:

-1/2 stick butter, softened but not melted

-1 pound powdered sugar (or 4 cups)

-1/2 cup sweetened, sliced strawberries (same stuff used in the cake mix)

Let cakes or cupcakes cool completely (this is so important).

Mix all icing ingredients together with a bowl with a hand mixer.

The icing does need to be a bit stiff or it will just drip right off the cakes (another reason to let cakes cool completely). I usually add a quarter cup of the strawberries first and add more as needed. And more powdered sugar if needed too. (An 8 ounce cream cheese, softened can be added into the icing as well. It's a nice, creamy change.)

Ice cakes and refrigerate.

And refrigerate any leftovers.

Enjoy!

P.S. It's not the healthiest dessert, around 350+ calories a serving. But it's a nice treat every now and then.

This post is linked to Blessed With Grace for Tempt my Tummy Tuesday.

Homemade Vanilla Ice cream

Mmmm, ice cream.

I scream, you scream we all scream for ice cream!

A week ago we had an ice cream social/back-to-school bash at our church. We had probably 20+ different flavors of ice cream, some homemade, some store bought. Whew, that was a lot of ice cream. I was good and have 2 scoops, a small piece of cake and half a brownie. I'm trying to be good. 12 pounds down and I've more to lose!

Well I made butterscotch ice cream and it turned out pretty good. It didn't taste a whole lot like butterscotch, more of just a hint of it, but Hubby said it was good an he liked that it wasn't too much. It wasn't hard to make, but I have a great ice cream maker. Here is the link to the butterscotch ice cream, from Smitten Kitchen, HERE. So Yummy!

Anyways, I've been craving ice cream all week. We did have some leftover but we went through it pretty quickly. So today I made some homemade vanilla, just the quick recipe out of the book that came with the ice cream maker. Simple, quick and delicious!

Here's the recipe:

2 cups heavy cream, chilled

1 cup whole milk, chilled

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

-Simply combine ingredients and freeze in ice cream maker as directed by the manufacturer's instructions.
-Makes about 1 quart; 10 1/2 cup servings
Calories: 242 Carbs: 18g Protein: 2g Fat: 18g Chol: 69mg Sodium: 30mg

Enjoy with Peach-Blueberry Cobbler.