Springtime Cake

*Photo courtesy of Mary Gajda, Capital Area Women's LifeStyle Magazine

About five years ago,  I was on my way home from the Kroger and my cell phone rang. I answered the phone and this gal said something along these lines, "I'm from the Rachael Ray Show, I'm one of the producers and we loved your "double duty" idea! can we talk?" (The idea was using powdered lemonade in a biscotti). I said, "well, I'm in the car now and have a bunch of groceries, can we chat when I get home?" I ended up talking with the woman from the Rachael Ray Show for a while and when she got to the question about how often I watch the show, being the extremely honest person I am replied, "as often as I can!" That wasn't exactly what they wanted to hear and after a few email exchanges, I never heard back! Anyways, the reason I told the above story was because when I made cake pops for the first time recently, I came up with another "double duty" idea!! My idea is this - when you are dipping the cake pop into melted candy melts, you need a place to put them to harden up and dry. Take a 12-count egg carton, flip it over, take the stick and press into the bottom of each egg "cup." After you are done with the egg carton, it can be recycled! I sent my idea to the Rachael Ray Show, again. We shall see!

Ingredients

For cake:

4 cups white flour

2 cups white sugar

1 cup margarine, melted

4 large eggs

5 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups milk

Other ingredients needed:

16-ounce container vanilla frosting, any brand

1 cup unsweetened flaked coconut

Green food coloring

Small plastic or wooden fence (35 inches x 1.93 inches)

Sliced almonds (2.25 ounces)

Candy melts/wafers, any color, any brand (16 ounces)

6-inch lollipop sticks (50)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8-inch square pan and a 9-inch round pan with non-stick spray and set aside. In a large bowl, put the ingredients in the order given for the cake and mix well with a large spoon, whisk or electric mixer until smooth. Pour the batter evenly into the two pans and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of each cake comes out clean. Remove pans from oven to cool on a wire rack. When completely cool, remove both cakes from their respective pans. Place round cake on a serving platter. Use 1/2 of the container of frosting (approximately one cup) to frost the round cake. To make the "grass" add a few drops of green food coloring to the cup of coconut and using a fork, mix gently until you get the shade of green you like. Sprinkle the coconut evenly on top of the cake. Toss the sliced almonds on next. Set aside. In a medium bowl, break the square cake finely into crumbs with a fork or with your hands.  Add approximately one cup of frosting (the other half of the container) to the crumbs and combine well with your hands until dough forms. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for a minimum of one hour. Roll into four dozen equal-sized balls, cover with plastic wrap and chill again for one hour. In a medium bowl, melt the candy melts/wafers according to the manufacturer's instructions. Place a lollipop stick into the melted melts/wafers and then press half way into each cake ball. Let it harden up (about one minute) - this little trick will keep the ball from detaching itself from the stick! When the cake pop is ready, dip completely into the melted melts/wafers and place into the egg carton "stand." When dry, place seven cake pops on top of the cake. If you want the cake pop shorter, just cut off the bottom of the stick. When done, wrap the white fence around the cake. Enjoy!!

Blondies

 

I was stumped recently when I was trying to come up with a new recipe for a dessert!! Just for the heck of it, a few weeks ago, I asked my dad. He said, "how about butterscotch?" I immediately thought of blondies, even though I have never made them😉.  Ever since I decided to make the blondies, I have been giving my dad updates on how the recipe was progressing whether he wanted to hear it or not. LOL.  I did learn one very important thing that I didn't know about my dad - he's a big fan of butterscotch!! I already knew he liked my "tea!"

 

 

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed

1 large egg

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup white flour

1/3 cup butterscotch chips

1/3 cup milk chocolate chips

1/3 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 8x8 inch square pan with parchment paper and set aside. In a medium bowl, put the butter and light brown sugar and mix well with a large spoon until smooth. Next, add the egg, salt and vanilla extract and combine well. Add the flour and stir vigorously for 50 strokes (the batter should be starting to pull away from the bowl).  Gently "fold," in the butterscotch chips, milk chocolate chips, pecans and stir to combine. Pour into prepared pan and spread the batter evenly with a knife and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the blondies comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Store covered at room temperature.

Monte Crisco

One of my favorite things to eat out is a "Monte Crisco." They have always been so delicious no matter which restaurant I have been in. I thought you needed a special kind of "sandwich maker," and subsequently put off making one for YEARS!! Well, after tons of research, I came to the conclusion that I could make them in a frying pan. Okay, now that I had that finally figured out, I needed to look in the fridge to see if I had all the ingredients. I had ham (leftover from Christmas), mustard, mayo, one egg and sliced turkey breast. I was only missing some sliced Swiss cheese, so the next time I went to the store I picked some up!! Last week, I made Monte Crisco's for the hubby and myself for dinner. I have NEVER made them before, so I wasn't sure what he would think.  I shouldn't have worried, he gave them a 9.5 out of 10! Well, they did turn out great and were really yummy!!!



 Ingredients (For One Monte Crisco) 

One large egg
Two slices bread (I have used both wheat and white) 
Two slices Swiss cheese 
One slice turkey breast 
Two slices ham 
One tablespoon butter, unsalted
One teaspoon mayonnaise
One teaspoon mustard (I used stone ground)

In a medium bowl, beat the egg with a fork and set aside. To assemble the sandwich, put 1/2 teaspoon of mayonnaise and 1/2 teaspoon of mustard on each slice of bread. Next, on one of the slices of bread, put a slice of Swiss cheese, then the two pieces of ham, followed by the turkey and another slice of Swiss cheese. Place the other piece of bread on top and then dip and coat the entire sandwich in the egg. Melt the butter slowly in the frying pan and then put the sandwich in. Brown on each side until the cheese is starting to melt. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.Enjoy!

Cardamom Spice Cookies

Back a while back, I made a loaf of cardamom bread. I tucked the bottle of cardamom back into my kitchen cabinet and promptly forgot about. A few weeks ago, I re-organized said cabinet and "rediscovered," the glass bottle of cardamom. I spent more time than I probably should have looking for cardamom cookie recipes on the Internet and couldn't find any! So, I did the next best thing and took my basic sugar cookie recipe and "tinkered," with it. Guess, what? These cookies are so tasty, that Dominic had three and wanted more!! These cookies make your kitchen smell beyond amazing. Hmm, could it be the combination of nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and cardamom ?!?!?! I think Dominic and I will bake some for Santa and Mrs. Claus!

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 large egg

3 cups white flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

In a large bowl, put the butter and sugar and cream together with a large spoon or electric mixer. Add the remaining ingredients in the order given. Combine well with a large spoon. Cover with plastic wrap and put in the fridge for a minimum of three hours. When ready to make, remove from fridge and roll into 36 equal-sized balls. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. On a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, put a dozen at a time on the sheet and press down gently with the bottom of a small glass. Sprinkle with colored sugars and bake for 12-14 minutes or until the bottoms of the cookies  are just starting to turn brown.  Remove from oven and remove immediately to wire rack.

Pfeffernusse

A month from today is Christmas Eve! Every year, it seems to sneak up on me. The past couple weeks have been very busy and I hadn't had a chance to test out a new Christmas cookie recipe. Early in the afternoon on Wednesday,  I mixed up the batter, covered it up and put it in the fridge with the intention of baking them about 10:30 p.m. Well, Lauren, the hubby and I ended up getting into a very lengthy game of Monopoly. We had set a time limit of 11 p.m. and by the time we added up our money and properties it was past 11:15 p.m. I'm a "night owl," but even to me that seemed late to start baking cookies! On Thanksgiving, after the turkey, rolls and pumpkin pie were done, the oven was finally free! I pulled the batter out and started rolling the cookies. They were in the oven about 20 minutes and then I let them cool a bit. Next, they were covered generously in powdered sugar. The "kids," were both interested in a "taste test."  These were so yummy and were a hit with my family!! Awesome!!! P.S. these cookies are delish for breakfast with a hot cup of coffee😀.

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups white flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon anise seeds

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1/4 cup molasses, unsulfured

1 large egg

1 cup powdered sugar, reserved

In a medium bowl, put the flour, salt, black pepper, anise seeds, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger, cardamom and nutmeg. Set aside. In a large bowl, put the butter, brown sugar and molasses. Beat by hand or with electric mixer for about two minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix well with large spoon. Pour the mixture from the medium bowl into the large bowl and mix well with a large spoon. Cover with plastic and put in the fridge for a minimum of eight hours. When ready to bake, remove from fridge and roll into 30 equal-sized balls. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Put 15 balls at a time on the cookie sheet and bake for  20 minutes or until the bottom of the cookies are turning slightly brown. Remove from oven and place the cookies on a baking rack for five minutes. In a small bowl, put the one cup of powdered sugar and while the cookies are still warm, roll them completely in the powdered sugar. Return them back to the baking rack to finish cooling. Store covered at room temperature.

Mom's Pecan Balls

Since both of my parents no longer live in the family home, when we cleaned their house out in the Summer of 2016, many of their belongings went to different members of the family. I was able to get a few of the recipe boxes with some of my mom's handwritten recipes. Yes, it is hard to think back that far, but in those many years before the Internet and computers, recipes were actually written on recipe "cards." This particular card had a plastic "sleeve," covering it, which makes me think she made them a lot. My mom is the one that instilled my love of baking. Every Christmas for many years, she would make me a dozen or so of these pecan balls and give them to me. It meant so much to me that she did that! Unfortunately, her days of baking are over, since she has been bedridden for the past two years or so and living in a skilled nursing facility.

That makes me kind of sad, but at the same time I'm glad I have her recipe card and I plan on making a bunch for the holidays this year!

Ingredients

Cookies:

7/8 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup powdered sugar

2 cups white flour

1 cup finely chopped pecans

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon cold water

For rolling: 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Put the butter and powdered sugar in a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer or by hand with a large spoon. Gradually add the flour, pecans, vanilla extract and water. Mix with a large spoon until the batter starts to form.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and using the palms of your hands, roll into 30 equal-sized balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and let them stand  on the cookie sheet for five minutes. In a small bowl, put the 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. While still warm, roll each pecan ball carefully and completely in powdered sugar. Store covered at room temperature.

Easy Cajun Red Beans and Rice

The hubby is very predictable. Every night, when he gets home from work, he says, "what are you whipping up for dinner?" Unbeknowst to him, I had been doing "research" for the past couple of days about how to make homemade red beans and rice. When he asked me last night, I answered, "red beans and rice!" Anytime we have ever had red beans and rice in the past, I have used a boxed mix, Zatarain's. They make awesome authentic New Orleans boxed mixes, but they are LOADED with sodium, like 880 mg/serving in their red beans and rice mix!! YIKES!!! Since November of 2011, when I got diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure, I have been on a low-salt diet. I was never one to sprinkle a ton of salt on my food, but I used to eat Campbell's Chunky New England Clam Chowder Soup ALL the time !! A cup is 890 mg of sodium. Even though I take four medications for my heart, if I had some of that soup, I would blow up like a Pufferfish! Anyways, I tried really hard to make the red beans and rice sodium level realistic, so I could enjoy it. The hubby loved it, he had three helpings! When I was putting away the leftovers, there was about one serving left. The hubby said, "I wanted to save enough for you to have for lunch tomorrow!" He's such a sweetie!

Ingredients

One tablespoon unsalted butter
12-ounce bag Cajun Style Mirepoix Blend,
  frozen (I used the Kroger brand)
15.5-ounce can red beans, undrained
14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
3 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
13-ounce turkey sausage, fully cooked,
  cut into bite sized pieces

*2 cups cooked white rice

In a large skillet, melt the butter slowly and then add the Mirepoix blend. Cook over medium heat until the veggies (celery, green peppers and onions) start to get soft, stirring occasionally with a large spoon. Add the red beans, tomatoes, Cajun seasoning and turkey sausage. Mix well and cook another 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Serve over white rice.

*I like to multi-task, so while I was making the red beans, I was cooking the rice at the same time!!