Recent Goodies!

Strawberry cupcakes for a 60th birthday party

 Chocolate-chocolate cake for Bubby's birthday

 

Cookie's shaped like bums for my friend Casey's bachelorette party

 

 

Key lime cupcakes with a lime cream cheese frosting

Mini pineapple upside down cakes for my Granny's birthday

 

 Cupcakes for my best friend's wedding!  Pumpkin spice cupcakes with a cinnamon buttercream

Coconut Cream Cake

For Mother's Day, I made a nice coconut cream cake.  In the words of my boyfriend, "It tastes like it took a bath in coconut milk"!  In reality, it did!

  Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
• 1 (14 ounce) can coconut cream
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 cup flaked coconut

Directions 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour 2 round cake pans or one 9x13" pan. 

In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, eggs, oil, water and coconut flavoring. Beat for 2 minutes and pour into 9x13 inch pan. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. 

In a medium bowl, combine coconut cream with sweetened condensed milk and stir until smooth. When cake comes out of the oven, poke holes into it in even rows using a large fork or chopsticks.

Pour milk mixture over, allowing it to soak into the cake. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight. I put the cakes on cooling racks over baking sheets for easier cleanup and so they didn't get stuck to the pan!

 

 In a large bowl, whisk cream until soft peaks form.  Don't whip too long or it'll turn into butter! Add sugar and continue whipping until stiff.  Spread over cooled cake. Sprinkle top with flaked coconut.

Cinnamon Roll Waffles

Thanks to my new favorite website, Pinterest, I found this easy, yet absolutely delicious breakfast recipe!
All you need is a waffle iron and a can of cinnamon rolls!

 Directions:

Pop open your can of cinnamon rolls (I used the Wegmans brand, but homemade ones would probably be amazing!)

Heat up your waffle iron.  Place 3 or 4 of the raw cinnamon rolls on the iron and close the lid.

When the waffle iron says the "waffle" is ready, open it up and check.  Mine took about 6 minutes to cook.

Drizzle the icing packet over the cinnamon roll waffles and enjoy!

Stuffed Acorn Squash

It's not a fun dessert, but tonight's dinner was too yummy not to share!   A mixture of pork, sausage, apples and veggies in an acorn squash "shell" - delicious!

Ingredients:
2 acorn squash 
3/4 pound ground pork and sausage (you can use both or one or the other)
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/3 cup cheese (I used asiago, but parmesan would work as well)
1 small apple, chopped

How to Make:
1. Slice each acorn squash in half and scoop out the seeds from the middle.  Place the halves cut side down in a large casserole dish.  Add about 1/2 inch of water to the bottom of the dish.  Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, or until tender.

2. While the squash is cooking, brown the sausage/pork and celery and onion until the meat is brown and veggies are tender.  Drain well.

3. In a separate bowl, mix the egg, brown sugar, apple and cheese.  Add this mixture to the meat.

4. When the acorn squash is cooked, flip them each over so the cut is up.  Scoop the meat mixture into each squash "cup", forming a mound.

5. Place back in the oven and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the meat mixture is heated thoroughly. 

6. Enjoy :)


My sous chef, Piper...

Apple Brown Betty

I love a good, warm dessert when it's freezing out.  This was perfect after dinner for my dad's birthday, when it was a cold and windy night. Bread crumbs, brown sugar and apples are layered and baked together in a buttery coating...delicious!

 

 

Ingredients

• 3 whole apples, preferably Granny Smith
• 7 slices wheat bread
• 3/4 cups salted butter
• 1-1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 Tablespoons (to 4 Tablespoons) Water

Directions

Peel and thinly slice 3 apples. Slice bread into a small dice, or tear into very small pieces.

Coat a small baking dish or pie plate with butter. Then add 1/3 of the brown sugar, 1/3 of the apple slices, and 1/3 of the breadcrumbs.

Repeat these layers twice more, ending with breadcrumbs.

Slice butter and lay slices all over the top of the breadcrumbs.

Sprinkle dish with water and a little more brown sugar, and bake in a 375-degree oven, covered in foil, until done – about 45 minutes. Remove foil in last few minutes of baking to brown the top.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or homemade whipped cream.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Tonight's project was oatmeal chocolate chip cookies!  These are pretty quick to prepare, but fair warning - they're very addicting!

 

 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar

1 cup butter or margarine, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 1/2 cups Gold Medal® all-purpose or unbleached flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (6 oz)

1 cup chopped nuts, if desired

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, stir brown sugar and butter until blended. Stir in vanilla and egg until light and fluffy. Stir in oats, flour, baking soda and salt; stir in chocolate chips and nuts.


Onto ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart.

Bake 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

Snowball Cookies

Some call these Mexican Wedding Cookies, but I like to call them Snowballs!  They're fun and easy to make, but better to eat :)  I leave out the nuts, but they can be added in at the end.

Ingredients: 

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup  powdered sugar, divided

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups  flour

1 cup finely chopped PLANTERS Pecans

Directions: Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter, 1/2 cup of the powdered sugar and the vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour and pecans, beating on low speed after each addition until well blended. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place, 1-1/2 inches apart, on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 14 to 15 min. or until bottoms of cookies are lightly browned. Cool 5 min. on baking sheets. Roll warm cookies in remaining 1/2 cup powdered sugar until evenly coated; place on wire racks. Cool completely. Store in tightly covered container at room temperature.