Cakes and Cupcakes

Meyer Lemon Pudding Cake

March 17, 2015

Oh, what a weekend! Such a good weekend!!!

My sister came up from Connecticut on Saturday so we could go wedding dress shopping. We went to David’s Bridal in Danvers to start our shopping adventure. I had done some previous browsing on-line but nothing had jumped out to me so when we got there we just started grabbing dresses based upon the vision I had in mind. Plus, a few more that I wouldn’t have originally considered, like a short dress and a mermaid dress. Some looked surprisingly good but didn’t make the cut.

Ultimately, I the dress that I did pick was the first dress that I tried on. We both really liked it early on but I didn’t like a shadow from where the tulle was added to the lower portion of the dress. I tried it on again to see who annoying that shadow was – it was annoying. I jokingly mentioned that I would love to hack it off and the great women helping me there said it could be done. They suggested that I get a petticoat to replace the fullness from the tulle we would be removing. Plus, we added a grey band around the waist and it all fell into place. Woohoo!!

Plus, my sister picked out her Matron of Honor Dress. Getting things done!!

I had a busy Saturday so my Sunday was a bit more relaxed with some baking in the morning, and new laptop shopping in the afternoon. Ugh, that’s the worst. But the cake I made was delightful!!

I had grabbed some Meyer Lemons at Trader Joe’s on a whim the last time I was there. They were taunting me every time I went into the kitchen as I had no plan for them. I had to figure something out fast before they went bad. I turned to Pinterest to find a recipe to use up those Meyer lemons.

Side note- is Pinterest the new Google? It is for me! I need a recipe. Pinterest! Home design inspiriation. Pinterest! Wedding hair styles. Pinterest!

So I found a few great recipes and Price narrowed it down to this Meyer Lemon Pudding Cake from Kelsey, aka The Naptime Chef. It looked and sounded great. I love pudding cookies so I was intregued and then even more intrugided as there is no pudding in the cake! What?!?

The texture is what gives the cake it’s name. It’s dense, but airy. It’s creamy, but fuffly. It’s just plain interesting! We loved it, as did autumn’s daycare teachers. They are saints with all those kids running around. They deserve a slice of cake with a cup of tea while the kiddos nap. (Also, last week Autumn woke up early during naptime and then yelled to wake the rest of the kids up so they could all play again. Naughty!)

Kelsey does note that you get a different consistancy when you use a glass pan, it’s a little less dense on the bottom, than when you use a metal pan. I thought the results I had, with the metal pan, were enjoyable, but I would like to try it with a glass pan to check out the difference.

Meyer Lemon Pudding Cake

Makes a 8″ square or 9″ round cake*

Ingredients

1 1/4 Cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 1/4 Cups sugar, divided
5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2 Tablespoons grated Meyer lemon zest
5 eggs, separated, yolks in one bowl with whites in another
1/2 Cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
1 1/4 Cups whole milk

Process

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly butter a baking pan*. Place the baking pan in a larger roasting pan to create a ban marie later.
Bring several quarts of water to boil for water bath.
Mix flour and cornstarch together in a bowl, set aside.
Cream the butter, 1 Cup sugar, and lemon zest until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Beat in the egg yolks, then flour mixture, mixing until smooth.
Slowly mix in the lemon juice, then mix in milk. Set the custard mixture aside.
Beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Addthe remaining sugar and beat egg whites to stiff, moist peaks.
Gently stir a dollop of the egg whites into the custard. Then, working slowly, fold the remaining egg whites in bit by bit until they are all incorporated, but not over beaten.
Pour the batter into the buttered baking pan. Fill the larger pan with the hot water until it comes halfway up the side of the smaller pan.
Bake until pudding cake center is set and springs back when gently touched, about 1 hour. Let pan cool for 1 hour before serving.

*There is some flexibility in the shape of the cake pan you use, as long as you have the same volume capacity. For expample, the recipe called for a 8″ x 8″x 2″ square pan, but I didn’t have it so I used a round 9″ x 2″ (deep), as it has the same 8 cup capacity. I refered to this chart for help.

Sourced from The Naptime Chef

Slow Cooker Italian Style Cheesecake

February 24, 2014

Oh another Monday. I hate to see the weekends go. They always go by way too fast. Just 2 days to savor the time off from work, for all 3 of us to hang out, to relax or power through the to-do list… ah just 2 days. But the hardest part now is accepting that with every Monday it means Autumn is another week older. Gah! Stop growing up so fast!!

Anyway, today is the day for my monthly Secret Recipe Club post!

When I received my assignment I immediately picked out the Slow Cooker Italian Style Cheesecake that Dena had featured on her blog, Oh, You Cook!. When I read it I was intrigued about the idea of making a cheesecake in a slow cooker.

As well, I couldn’t resist an Italian style cheesecake. It’s very different compared to cheesecakes made with cream cheese, but just as good. Since it’s base is made of ricotta it reminds me of the ricotta pies, which always reminds me of my paternal grandparents. We’d enjoy ricotta pie during the holidays at their house in New Jersey. So this was a fun way to enjoy flavors similar to ricotta pie right at home.

So here is the thing, I procrastinate A LOT. So I made this recipe this weekend (and promptly inhaled it) since I waited to the last minute. (sigh!) But it was then when I realized that I didn’t have a 6″ spring-form pan. (ruh-roh!) I didn’t have time to order a 6″ pan so I had to improve and used for mini loaf pans. Then I figured out that only 2 would fit in the slow cooker. (ugh!) Well, I was going to do the cheesecake batches back to back but then I decided to conduct a little experiment and do 2 loaves in the slow cooker and 2 in the oven. Oh my gosh! Big difference! The slow cooker method was lighter in color and lighter in texture as well. I am definitely going to be making cheesecake in a slow cooker whenever possible from now on.

Go to Dena’s blog to see all the other wonderful recipes she has made. As well, she has a cookbook too! Umm, so cool!!! Something to check out if you are looking for slowcooker meals that are Kosher. Would make for a great gift for the foodie in your life.

Slow Cooker Italian Style Cheesecake

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients

1 (15 oz.) container of ricotta cheese, room temperature
6 oz (approx. 1 cup) ground almonds
1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons honey
2 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 Tablespoon corn starch
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds (for garnish)

Process

Place the ricotta in a colander lined with several layers of paper towels over a bowl or in your sink. Cover with another paper towel and weigh down with a bowl. Let drain for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix together the ground almonds and butter in a small bowl.
Spray a 6 inch spring-form pan (or a similarly sized pan lined with foil or 4 mini loaf pans) with the cooking spray. Press the almond mixture onto the bottom and up the sides. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix the drained ricotta, sugar, honey, eggs, vanilla, corn starch, cinnamon, lemon zest and salt until completely smooth. Pour into the prepared pan.
Pour the cup of water into the bottom of a 4 or 6-quart slow cooker. Place a heat-safe trivet or 3 wadded-up balls of aluminum foil in the bottom of the slow cooker. Place the pan onto the trivet or balls of aluminum. If using the foil balls, press the pan down to leveling balls and pan.
Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Turn off the slow cooker and let the cheesecake at and steam for 80-90 minutes with the lid on, or until the center is firm. Remove the cheesecake from the slow cooker and garnish with the sliced almonds.

Sourced from Oh. you Cook!

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Check out all the other great Secret Recipe Club posts this month!

Check out my 2 years of Secret Recipe Club posts!!!!

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Banana Crumb Cake with Pecans and Chocolate Chips

December 23, 2013

Will ya look at that?

Just take a minute and look at this crumb cake.

Did you do it?

I hope you really did take the time and soaked in the prettiness of this crumb cake.

But it’s prettiness is not the only nice part. Nope. It’s the bananas. It’s the chocolate chips. It’s the pecans. It’s a triple threat!!

The crumb cake will have you sneaking into your kitchen all day and night just so you can cut sliver after sliver hoping that no one notices just how much you’ve eaten.

It’s just such a good cake. I swear. It’s flavorful like banana bread but the texture is light and airy. Plus there are chocolate chips and pecans in it! Not to mention, the crumb topping is soft, with a nice crunch on top. Ah crumb cake bliss!!

Banana Crumb Cake with Pecans and Chocolate Chips

Makes a 9″/10″ cake

Ingredients

Banana Cake

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup Greek yogurt (vanilla or plain)
1/2 cup oil
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
3-4 small banana’s mashed very well
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecan pieces

Crumb Topping

3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3 Tablespoon softened butter
1 Tablespoon water, if neccessary

Process

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and spray a 9 or 10 inch springform pan with nonstick spray.
To make the crumb topping: in a small bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Incorporate the butter until the mixture is crumbly. If the texture is not right then add in a few drops of water at a time to get a crumbly mixture. Set aside.
Mix all the dry ingredients together in one bowl.
Lightly beat the eggs and add in the Greek yogurt, and oil and mix until well blended.
Mix the bananas into the wet ingredients.
Fold the dry ingredients into the wet banana mixture until just combined.
Fold in the pecans and chocolate chips until just combined as well.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and then top with the crumb mixture.
Bake at for 30-40 minutes. Allow the cake to cool for 5 minutes prior to carefully removing the outside of the springform pan.

Sourced from Ask Chef Dennis

Sour Cream Pound Cake

November 11, 2013

This Sour Cream Pound Cake is a simple timeless dessert. This beautiful classic is loved by the whole family with some fresh fruit and a big dollop of whipped cream.

Sliced Sour Cream Bundt Pound Cake on a wooden cutting board with a dusting of powered sugar on top

Sour Cream Pound Cake is a wonderfully tender cake that is buttery, rich, and perfect for a dessert for any occasion.

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Pumpkin Roll- SRC

August 26, 2013

It’s that time again… Secret Recipe Club time!!

I’ve really loved being part of Secret Recipe Club. It has been such a great past 2 years (well almost). It has put me in touch with so many great bloggers and given me the chance to try new recipes. I try to pick a new to me recipe or a new to me technique so I’m learning something new in the process.

In this month’s case, I had Colie’s Kitchen. yay! Another Nicole!!!!! She juggles a busy schedule, exactly like me, but still manages to make so many good sounding recipes. It’s also fun to search through the recipe index and get so insprired. And Colie has been posting and posting for ages!!! So many options to pick from, well for Price to pick from since I always give him first pass at picking out recipes.

Colie had a pumpkin roll recipe that must have jumped out to price since pretty much as soon as I had giving him the recipe index link he hands back the computer so I can make that. He also picked another pumpkin recipe so he must be ready for some fall time recipes. It worked out for me since I’d never made a ‘roll’ recipe before so I’d be learning a new technique.

Some things I learned while making this pumpkin roll…

you need A LOT of powdered sugar on the towel to prevent it from sticking to the towel. I did put a lot on since that tip was provided as well, but it really is a lot. You basically can’t put too much on. Well, you could but basically you need more than you think of putting on the towel
Do not to too much frosting on! I was thinking that this recipe didn’t had a lot of frosting and there is a reason! It would really mess things up if you put too much on as it would overflow out of it and/or cause the roll to split in the process of rolling as it would be too full.

I’m so glad that I had Colie’s blog this month! I got to try a great new recipe and learn how to make a roll in the process. So much fun!

Give the Pumpkin Roll recipe a try and I swear you’ll be a fan of this sweet fall treat!

Pumpkin Roll

Makes 10 servings

Ingredients

For the Cake

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup pureed pumpkin
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
1/4 cup powdered sugar (to sprinkle on a towel)

For the Filling

8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Powdered sugar (optional for decoration)

Process

For the Cake:

Preheat your oven to 375° F.
Grease a 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Then line with wax paper, and grease and flour that.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt in small bowl.
Beat the eggs and granulated sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. Add in the pumpkin.
Gently stir in the flour mixture.
Evenly spread into prepared pan. Sprinkle with nuts.
Bake for 13 to 15 minutes or until top of cake springs back when touched. (If using a dark-colored pan, begin checking for doneness at 11 minutes.)
Immediately loosen and turn cake onto a thin, cotton kitchen towel that has been generously been sprinkled with powdered sugar. Carefully peel off the wax paper. Roll up cake and towel together, starting with the edge that is 10″ wide. Cool on wire rack.

For the Filling

Beat together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla extract until smooth.

To Assemble

Carefully unroll the cake. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture over cake.
Reroll the cake and then wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour.
Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving, if desired.

Sourced from Colie’s Kitchen

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Banana Bundt Cake- SRC

April 29, 2013

Another Monday. Another exhaustive start to the week.

Pricer and I kicked some garden butt this weekend. He worked in back attacking weeds and digging out the million rocks and chunks of broken concrete in the ground there. (Major thanks to the contractors, who instead of having the chunks of the driveway they dug into hauled away, just threw all of it into the garden. THANKS d-bags.) I worked in front digging up part of the lawn to plant some flowers and some seeds for 5 varieties of flowers, including moon flowers and canterbury bells. Plus some container work transplanting some little trees into bigger pots and prepping for some summer veggies and herbs.

Man, I wish I had a slice of this bad boy for breakfast today. It would totally jump start my week!

Moist banana cake topped with a dreamy cream cheese frosting. It would totally work for dessert or breakfast. Right?!?!

I just made this cake last week but I’ve already planned on making it again soon. I bought more bananas for them to chill out and get nice and soft so they can be whipped up into this stunning cake.

This month’s Secret Recipe Club recipe is from K&K Test Kitchen. Mother and daughter duo, Kim and Kelesy, started the blog in 2010 as a creative outlet to be able to document and share cooking adventures with family and friends. Since they they have made some fantastic recipes that had me really interested when i was browsing their blog.

It’s funny tho. As I scrolled through the recipe index I saw their Banana Bundt Cake and immediatly knew that tthe recipe that I would make. Still I browsed aorund and saw some great recipes that I wrote down just to give a try one day. Like this Sun-dried Tomato, Corn, and Bacon Pasta sounds awesome. And I think I’ll have to make this Strawberry Peach Sangria one day for Thirsty Thursday.

Stop by K&K Test Kitchen to check out this Banana Bundt Cake recipe along with many other scrumptious recipes!

Banana Bundt Cake

Makes 8-12 servings

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups cake flour
1 package vanilla instant pudding
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3 very ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup greek yogurt

Process

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare a large Bundt Pan by generously buttering and then lightly dusting the sides with flour.
Whisk the flours, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt together.
Beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugars and beat at medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract. Then add the eggs, one at a time, beating for about 1 minute after each egg.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients, all the greek yogurt, and then the rest of the flour mixture.
Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to de-bubble the batter and smooth the top.
Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, or until a thin knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after about 30 minutes, if it is browning too quickly, cover it loosely with a foil tent.
Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding on the rack to cool to room temp.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

8 ounces cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

Beat cream cheese and the powdered sugar until smooth.
Add the milk and vanilla extract, beat again until it is thoroughly mixed and spreadable. Add more cream if you want a thinner icing.
Spread onto the cooled cake.

Adapted from: K & K Test Kitchen

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Mango Mini Cheesecakes

March 11, 2013

Mango Chobani + Mini Cheesecakes + Girl Scout Cookies = Mango Bombs!

So this year the Girl Scouts came out with a new cookie called Mango Cremes with nutrifusion. I ordered a box to try them out. The first thing I thought of when I opened them up was that they smelled like suntan lotion. No, I’m not saying a chemical smell! I’m saying the fruity, tropical smell that I can’t get enough of. Pure spring and summer.

Besides just eating Girl Scout Cookies I love to use them in different recipes. Most recently I made a Samoa Cookie Cocktail that I garnished with a Samoa Cookie. So I got to thinking about how I could use these cookies and I decided on using the cookies as the bottom of mini cheesecakes, just like my Mini Creamsicle Cheesecakes with Creamsicle Oreo Cookie Crusts.

I basically used the same filling recipe for my Mini Cheesecakes with an Oreo Crust, with just substituting regular yogurt for the Mango Low-Fat Chobani Greek Yogurt. This made the mango flavor shine throughout the entire cheesecake. I used the Mango Creme Cookies on the bottom of the cheesecakes, but if you don’t have them then use Golden Oreos.

I decided to invert the cheesecakes and put them in a new wrapper so that everyone could see the cute cookie bottom. You can leave them right side up and sprinkle some powdered sugar on top. Or you can take out of the wrapper and serve with a fruity sauce on top.

The thing I love most about these little cheesecakes is how easy they are to make and how yummy they are! Give them a try!!

Mango Mini Cheesecakes

Ingredients

1 1/2 packages (12 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup mango Greek yogurt, such as Chobani’s low fat Mango yogurt
12 Mango Creme Girl Scout Cookies or Golden Oreos

Process

Preheat the oven to 325.
Line a 12-muffin pan with aluminum liners and place a whole cookie of the bottom of each of the cupcake liner.
Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat the cream cheese until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, salt, and vanilla; beat well. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing just until blended. Stir in the mango yogurt.
Evenly divide the filling into the baked Oreo crusts, about a 1/4 cup of filling. The filling should should come almost to the top of the liner. Bake for 15 minutes or until tops of cheesecakes are puffed and only slightly jiggly in the very center. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least a couple hours, preferably overnight, until serving.

Mini Creamsicle Cheesecakes with Creamsicle Oreo Cookie Crusts

August 14, 2012

Today is National Creamsicle Day. I love creamsicles just as much as I love these wacky holidays. I used to go to the Jersey Shore when I was growing up and I loved going on the boardwalk and having a creamsicle soft serve ice cream. Hot day, fun boardwalk, and a yummy ice cream… perfection at the shore.

So when I saw the limited edition Oreo Creamsicle Cookies recently I immediately tossed them in my basket. They are a vanilla cookie with an orange flavored cream filling. I knew that I would love dunking them in some milk and just eating them as well as making mini cheesecakes with them.

These mini cheesecakes are easy to whip up which is perfect since I have been so busy all summer that making something complicated is a big deterrent. Plus turning on the oven on a hot summer night for a long perod of time is just not going to happen. So these just take 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to bake so I can totally deal with that. The end result is a cute marbled cheesecake that

Mini Creamsicle Cheesecakes with Creamsicle Oreo Cookie Crusts

Serves 12

Ingredients

12 ounces (1 1/2 packages) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon orange extract
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup plain yogurt
red and yellow food coloring
12 Oreo Creamsicle Cookies

Process

Preheat the oven to 325. Line a 12-muffin pan with cupcake liners and then place 1 Oreo Creamsicle Cookie in each liner.
Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat cream cheese until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, salt, and orange extract; beat well. Add eggs one at a time, mixing just until blended. Stir in yogurt until the cheesecake filling is evenly mixed.
Remove a 1/2 cup of the cheescake filling and set aside in a bowl. Add 1 drop red and 3 drops yellow to the filling and mix until the color is even.
Evenly divide the batter into liners, then add the orange colored filling among the cheesecakes. Using a toothpick swirl the cheesecake batters together for a marbled effect.
Bake for 15 minutes or until tops of cheesecakes are puffed and only slightly jiggly in the very center. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate for at least a couple hours, preferably overnight, until serving.

Check out my other Mini Cheesecakes!

Mini Cheesecakes with an Oreo Crust

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with an Oreo Cookie Crust

Checkered Flag Cake

February 28, 2012

To celebrate ~~Sunday’s~~ ~~Monday afternoon’s~~ Monday night’s running of the 54th Annual Daytona 500, I made a checkerboard cake to match the checkered flag that is waved at the end of the race. There are 6 main flags (green, yellow, white, red, black, and checkered) that are used in NASCAR races so I wanted to feature the one that all the drivers are dying to see first as they cross the start/finish line on the last lap. We were so amped for this race. We are excited for any race but the Daytona 500 is the Super Bowl of NASCAR. It is the BIG race. It really kicks off the season and there is a whole week of races leading up to it that we follow diligently. I really hope to make it to Daytona one day but until then celebrating it at home will have to do.

We originally planned on watching Daytona on Sunday and enjoying a great dinner of Price’s amazing pulled pork and I figure we can end it with this fun checkerboard cake. I was tempted to just make this on my own but I figured the easiest way would be to get the Wilton Checkerboard Cake Pan Set. The set comes with three 9″ cake pans and a divider ring that creates the checkerboard pattern in the cake. The set was affordable at just $15 and really worth it. I think it is a great set but I would LOVE having 2 more rings so I didn’t have to remove it for each layer. I hate washing dishes and I think it would make filling the cakes a little less ‘stressful’ so I could really see that each layer was getting an even amount in each pan.

I filled the cake pans with large spoonfuls of batter and helped smooth it out with an offset spatula. From that experience I strongly suggest to fill large storage bags or cake decorating bags with the batter to fill the rings. I think that would provide more control to the filling the rings.

I used the cake recipe that was provided on the Wilton box because it was my first time making this checkerboard cake and I was not sure how much mix I would need for it. I had my go-to standard yellow cake mix recipe ready but I just was a little uneasy about using it since the flour content was so much less than the Wilton recipe so I was not sure it if was a quantity or texture difference. In the end I think it was a bit of both but mainly this was dense cake. I figure it was to make the chocolate portion and the vanilla portion not bleed into each other. I didn’t actually like this cake when we had some because it was so dense, dry but I am including (with a minor adjustment to the baking time) for reference. I know I will try this cake again with different flavor and color combinations so get ready so see more of this checkerboard cake in the future!

Did you stay up for the crazy Daytona 500? From the 36 hr rain delay to Jimmie Johnson’s Lap 2 wreck (which brought tears to my eyes from his driver’s side hit) to Juan Pablo Montoya’s out of control crash into the jet dryer!!! Never a dull moment and we loved it. But still it got to be really late for a work night after the Montoya crash/red flag delay Pricer crashed and went to bed. I wanted to watch the ending with him so I went to bed shortly after midnight although I was dying to know who won. Plus I was afraid I would yell some profanities if there was another big crash. Which did happen but thankfully I was more composed at 6.30 this morning when we started to watch the end of the race again. I sat in angered disbelief when Kasey Kahne was hit during lap. Oh well! Congrats to Matt Kenseth for his 2nd Daytona 500 win! Can’t wait for next week’s race at Phoenix!

Checkered Flag Cake

*Serves 12*

Ingredients

2 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 2/3 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk
4- 1oz squares of semi-sweet chocolate, melted

Process

Preheat the oven to 350 and spray all 3 pans with non-stick cooking spray.
Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until smooth.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Combine the milk and vanilla extract in a measuring cup.
Incorporate 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Add 1/3 of the milk and beat. Continue to alternate the dry and wet ingredients until the cake is complete.
Divide the cake in half to remove the vanilla cake batter portion.
To the remaining batter in the mixer, add the melted chocolate.
Follow the steps below to fill the pans to create the checkerboard patter.
Bake for 25-30 minutes. Rotate half way through the cooking process and remove from oven when a tooth pick is inserted and is clean upon removal.
Once the 3 cakes have completely cooled, place one of the chocolate, vanilla, chocolate layers on a plate or a cake stand. Level off the top of the cake. Add some butter cream frosting to cover the bottom layer.
Add the vanilla, chocolate, vanilla later to the first frosted layer. Trim the cake top as needed to provide a level cake. Cover layer with frosting.
Add the final layer of the cake, trim as needed, and then complete frosting.

To create the checkerboard pattern

Place the batter divider in the first pan and alternate the chocolate batter and the vanilla batter in the rings. Start with the outside ring filling it with chocolate, then do the next ring vanilla, and the center with chocolate again. Carefully remove the divider ring from the cake pan by pulling it straight up. Wash the diver ring prior to using it again.
For the second pan, repeat the same process with a chocolate outer ring, vanilla ring, and then a chocolate center.
For the last pan, make the outer most ring vanilla, then chocolate, then a vanilla center.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients

6 oz of semi sweet chocolate
2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups of powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Process

In a small bowl over a double boiler, melt the chocolate. Once the chocolate is evenly melted, remove from the heat and let cool a bit prior to adding to the rest of the buttercream.
Cream together the butter and sugar until very fluffy.
Add the milk and vanilla and beat until completely incorporated.
Add the melted chocolate and mix until evenly incorporated and fluffy consistency is reached again.

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Key Lime Trifle

February 18, 2012

Price and I recently had a party at our place for my birthday. It was centered around a Mexican fiesta theme so I’ll be posting a few recipes from that that works well for a Taco Tuesday dinner, Cinco De Mayo party, or just any great gathering. Enjoy!

You can’t have a party and not make dessert!

But I didn’t want a typical birthday cake, because I like to change things up.

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Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with an Oreo Cookie Crust

November 14, 2011

Something that has always shocked me are the blog posts that receive the most traffic. Two of my top ones are the post about the adventure that Emily and I took to Satan’s Kingdom in MA and my recipe post about Mini Cheesecakes with an Oreo Crust. I love that people keep searching for those things and come to my blog that way. Unfortunately, with the cheesecake post the photos are awful. (must redo post and photos!)

Since the mini cheesecake post is such a hit I figured that making an autumnal version would be a hit for this time of year. At least I know it was well received with the contractors I work with. I brought dozen over for them (in addition to some peanut butter and jelly cookies) and I heard they went quickly at an afternoon meeting.

Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes with an Oreo Cookie Crust

Makes 18 Mini Cheesecakes

Ingredients

18 Oreo cookie sandwiches
2 eight ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1 Cup canned pumpkin purée
1/2 Cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
3 eggs

Process

Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 18 cups of 2 muffin tins with liners.
Place 1 whole Oreo cookie at the bottom of the liner.
Combine the softened cream cheese, pumpkin puree, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and pumpkin spice. Beat until completely smooth. Fold in the eggs. Divide evenly among the liners.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the centers are just set. Cool completely before serving.