Plum Pudding

I have always wanted to try plum pudding.  I guess I have a crazy fascination with with old English traditions.  
I have had this recipe in this cookbook marked to make forever.  This year was finally the year!  My cute mom came over and we made Carrot Pudding, which was a tradition for her family when she grew up, and plum pudding.  We served them both on Christmas.  I soaked some sugar cubes in lemon extract and we set the plum pudding on fire.  I have ALWAYS wanted to do that.  

I switched the "orange sauce" out to the more traditional lemon sauce which I found on this site.

 1/2 cups chopped, pitted prunes
1/2 cup orange juice
1 medium apple, peeled and grated
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup mixed candied fruits (I didn't do this)
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cups brown sugar
3 eggs
3 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 cups milk

Pudding: In a medium bowl, soak prunes in orange juice for 1 hour.  Stir in grated apple, walnuts, candied fruits, and orange peel.  In a large mixer bowl, cream butter; add brown sugar and beat well.  Add eggs one at a time and beat until fluffy.  Sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt ginger and nutmeg.  Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture alternately with milk and ix well.  Stir in prune mixture.  Grease and flour 1 large or 2 or 3 medium molds or cans.  Spoon mixture into containers above 2/3 full.  Cover with foil.  Place containers on rack in large kettle with 2 inches of water.  Steam 2 hours for large or 1 1/2 hours for smaller containers, or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean.  Cool 15 minutes and invert on wire rack.

Lemon Sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 cup boiling water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tablespoons butter
pinch of salt
2/3 cup granulated sugar

Lemon Sauce: (serve hot)

1. Mix cornstarch and sugar. Add to boiling water, stirring vigorously.
2. Cook over medium heat until thickened.
3. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon juice, zest, butter and salt.
   
   
   To Serve: Spoon warm pudding into dessert dishes and top with sauce.  Pudding and sauce can be stored in refrigerator up to two weeks.  Wrap pudding in plastic wrap and foil.  To reheat, return pudding to original mold and steam for 30 to 40 minutes.  Serves 18. 

Chocolate Peppermint Cheesecake

I made this cake for Christmas dessert.  It is SO rich, but I was pretty in love with it.  It's two layers of chocolate cake with a peppermint cheese cake in between them frosted with peppermint frosting.  Oh heavenly!  It seems labor intensive, but it really wasn't.  I made it in one day, but you can make the layers in advance and freeze them.

For the Chocolate Cake Layers:
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
For the Cheesecake Layer:
• 2 pkg (8oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract
• 1 bag (10oz) Andes Peppermint baking chips
For the Frosting:
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 5 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 bag (10oz) Andes Peppermint baking chips
• candy cane for garnish

Instructions

For the Cakes:
1. In a small bowl, mix flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Set aside.
2. In a measuring cup, mix together cooled coffee and milk. Set aside.
3. Grease 2- 9inch round baking pans and line the bottom with parchment paper. Set aside.
4. IN mixer, beat butter and sugar for 5 minutes, until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time. Slowly add in dry ingredients alternating with the coffee and milk mixture, about 3 additions of each.
5. Pour cake batter evenly into the 2 prepared pans. 
6. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes. Remove and cool on wire rack. When completely cooled, you can wrap each layer in plastic wrap and put in the freezer for later assembly!
For the Cheesecake Layer:
7. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Using a large roasting pan on the lower 2/3 of the oven, preheat the pan too!
8. Prepare springform pan by wrapping bottom of pan (outside) with double layer of foil. Spray pan with nonstick baking spray and line bottom (inside) with a circle of parchment paper. Meanwhile, boil a kettle of water to use later.
9. Beat cream cheese with granulated sugar for 2-3 minutes until creamy. Add in salt and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in sour cream, heavy cream and peppermint extract. Fold in baking chips. Pour into prepared 9inch springform pan. Place pan in center of preheated roasting pan in the oven. Pour boiling water slowly into the roasting pan, until there is about an inch of water coming up the sides of the springform pan.
10. Bake cheesecake for 45 minutes. Turn oven off and let cheesecake sit in oven for an additional 30 minutes. Remove and cool completely on counter.
11. When cooled, transfer entire springform pan into the freezer for several hours or overnight. I put it in freezer for about 2 hours. Remove cheesecake and wrap in plastic wrap and return to freezer, or assemble cake.
For the frosting, beat butter for 3 minutes. Add powdered sugar and heavy cream and beat an additional 3-5 minutes until fluffy. Add baking chips.
12. To assemble the cake, lay one frozen layer of chocolate cake on cake plate. Top with frozen cheesecake and second layer of chocolate cake. Frost sides and top with a thin layer of frosting to apply a crumb coat. Refrigerate 30 minutes to an hour. Remove from refrigerator and frost remaining cake. I keep the cake covered in the refrigerator until ready to eat. Remove and allow to sit about 15 minutes before slicing.

Spudnuts

Growing up my mom always made donuts on Halloween.  It was something that I always looked forward to every year.  They are so yummy.  Now I make them with my little family.  We made them tonight and took them around to a few neighbors.

1 c. shortening
1 TBS yeast
1/2 c warm water
1 c. sugar
4 c. milk
5 eggs
2 c. mashed potatoes (I use instant)
1 TBS salt
1tsp lemon extract
1 tsp vanilla
 12-15 c. flour

Glaze

2 lb pwd sugar
 1 tsp vanilla
 1 tsp lemon extract

Scald milk with shortening (slowly heat until bubbles form).  Add salt, sugar, and enough flour to make batter (like cake batter).  Add potatoes, beaten eggs, dissolve yeast in 1/2 c. water and add to mixture.  Add both vanilla and lemon flavorings.  Add enough flour to make soft dough (should be a little sticky), let rise twice until doubled in bulk (I usually let it rise an hour).  Roll out dough, cut into doughnut shapes.

In big pot melt Crisco on medium.  Drop doughnuts in and cook until light brown.  Drain on paper towels and glaze.

Orange Kissed Cookies

I love oranges and pretty much anything that tastes like oranges.  Orange soda, orange flavored candy, orange gum, orange...well you name it, I am a fan.  Our family has gotten into the "chocolate rut".  This is where you can't eat anything that doesn't at least have some chocolate in it.  I have been feeling like we need to branch out and I have been buying those huge bags of oranges and the kids were getting a little done with oranges.  I decided to make these one day as a treat that is something different than we are used to.  I have to tell you, I immediately fell in love.  I wasn't the only one either.  Pretty much anyone (other than my pickiest children who wouldn't go near them as they weren't brown in color and didn't scream that they were made of chocolate) that tasted them went crazy over them.  This recipe was featured on allrecipes.com, but it comes from the ever famous and incredibly talented gals of Our Best Bites (got their cookbook for Christmas and I am loving it!  These are a must try!
 

Orange Kissed Cookies
Recipe from Allrecipes.com

1 c. white sugar
1/2 c. butter-flavored shortening
1 egg
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour (add another 2 tablespoons for high altitudes)
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. + 2 Tbsp. thawed orange juice concentrate
1 Tbsp. grated orange zest
Frosting
1 tsp. grated orange zest
1/4 c.  thawed orange juice concentrate
1/2 c. softened butter
3 c. powdered sugar
2-3 drops orange food coloring (optional)
Preheat oven to 375.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a mixer, combine the white sugar and shortening.  Beat until well-combined.  Add the egg and beat well, then add the sour cream and vanilla and beat for about 1 minute or until the mixture is light and fluffy.  Add the flour mixture and beat until combined. Add the orange juice concentrate and orange rind and mix well.
Using a cookie scoop, drop the dough/batter (the mixture will be VERY moist–thicker than a cake batter but thinner than traditional cookies) by the tablespoon-ful onto a lined, un-greased baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes or until the cookies are set and just starting to turn golden brown around the edges.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.
For the frosting, combine the frosting ingredients with an electric mixer until light and fluffy.  Pipe or spread over the cooled cookies.
Yield: Approximately 36 cookies.

Apple Strudel

Our family created a Summer Bucket List for things to do in the summer and we are still trying to finish up a few of them. One of the things we wanted to do was to learn about a different country. We did this last Sunday night with some friends where we learned about Germany. For dessert I made this delicious apple strudel. I found the recipe here.

Apple Strudel:

• 1/4 cup bourbon or apple juice
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 2 to 3 Granny Smith Apples (about 1 pound), peeled, cored, halved, and thinly sliced
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans
• 2 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
• 5 sheets phyllo dough from 1 pound package of frozen dough
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted, for brushing phyllo sheets, plus more if needed
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• Confectioners' sugar
• Caramel sauce, purchased

Glaze:

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 1/2 tablespoons milk

For the Strudel:

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, pour the apple juice over the raisins and microwave on high for 45 seconds. Let sit for 15 minutes.

Combine the raisins, apples, lemon juice, lemon zest, cinnamon, brown sugar, cookie crumbs, pecans, and butter in a large bowl.

Remove the phyllo dough from the box, unfold, and cover with a damp towel. Place 1 sheet of phyllo on the work surface and brush lightly with melted butter. Repeat with the remaining sheets, brushing each with melted butter, stacking when done, being sure to keep the unbuttered phyllo covered.

Place the apple mixture on the nearest third of the phyllo stack, being sure to leave a 2-inch border. Gently lift the bottom edge of the phyllo stack to cover the filling and fold the side edges over. Continue to roll the stack away from you until the filling is completely sealed in and the seam is on the bottom. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Brush the top with melted butter and sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown. Pour over the glaze and sprinkle with cinnamon and confectioners' sugar. Pass warm caramel sauce, to drizzle over the strudel.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake

Image and Recipe

We made this Fall treat today and LOVED it. I got the idea from a recipe on Pinterest and modified it a bit If you are a pumpkin fan, you have to try this!

1 cup pumpkin

2 whole eggs

4 egg whites

2 tbsp vegetable or canola oil

2 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground allspice

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a 9 X 13 pan.

In a large bowl, combine pumpkin puree, eggs and oil until smooth. Set aside.

In a separate medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and brown sugar. Add to the wet ingredients and mix until thoroughly incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour into prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes or until passes toothpick test. Cool completely before cutting.

Fried Ice Cream

For the last two years I have made this recipe for fried ice cream for Cinco de Mayo. It is the best I have ever had, and got rave reviews from my family as well. Recipe found here with some changes per readers suggestions.

1 quart vanilla ice cream
3 cups crushed Nilla Wafers
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 egg whites
2 quarts oil for frying

1. Scoop ice cream into 8 - 1/2 cup sized balls. Place on baking sheet and freeze until firm, about 1 hour.
2. In a shallow dish, combine Nilla Wafers crumbs and cinnamon. In another dish, beat egg whites until foamy. Roll ice cream balls in egg whites, then in Nilla Wafer crumbs, covering ice cream completely. Repeat if necessary. Freeze again until firm, 3 hours (or longer, the night before would be great).
3. In deep fryer or large, heavy saucepan, heat oil to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
4. Using a basket or slotted spoon, fry ice cream balls 1 or 2 at a time, for 10 to 15 seconds, until golden. Drain quickly on paper towels and serve immediately.
5. drizzle with honey, chocolate sauce and whipping cream. Yum.
   

*Note-the ice cream needs to stay frozen, so I took each ice cream ball out one at a time to fry so I could keep the rest of them cold, When the ice cream starts to melt the outside crumbs come off.

Raspberry Marbled Cheesecakes

I made these delicious cheesecakes for my little sister's bridal shower. They were so so so good.. you have GOT to try them! I got the recipe from here.

Note: Baking the cupcakes in a hot-water bath produces the creamiest results and prevents the batter from sinking in the oven.

1 1/2 cups finely ground graham crackers (about 12 sheets; use a mini chopper or food processor)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar plus 5 tablespoons, divided
1 container (6 ounces) fresh raspberries
2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs, room temperature

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C). Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Stir together ground graham crackers, butter, and 3 tablespoons sugar. Press 1 tablespoon crust mixture firmly into bottom of each lined cup. Bake until set, about 5 minutes. Transfer tins to a wire rack to cool.

2. Process raspberries in a food processor until smooth, about 30 seconds. Pass puree through a fine sieve into a small bowl, pressing with a flexible spatula to remove as much liquid as possible; discard solids. Whisk in 2 tablespoons sugar.

3. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat cream cheese until fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. With mixer on low speed, add remaining 1 1/2 cups sugar in a steady stream. Add salt and vanilla; mix until well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until just combined after each.

4. Spoon 3 tablespoons filling over crust in each cup. Dollop 1/2 teaspoon raspberry puree in a few dots over each. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, swirl sauce into filling. Place each tin in a roasting pan (bake in batches, if necessary); pour enough hot water into pan to come three-quarters of the way up sides of cups.

5. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until filling is set, 27-30 minutes. Carefully remove tins from water bath and transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate (in tins) at least 4 hours (or out of tins up to 5 days in airtight containers). Remove from tins just before serving.

DIY Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs

This picture is right before I froze them for one hour.

I made these for my family on Sunday and was amazed at how simple and how easy these were.
I got this recipe on this site.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs

Ingredients

• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 1 1/2 cups Creamy Peanut butter
• 1/4 cup butter or margarine
• 2-3 tablespoons milk
• 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 tablespoon Shortening

Directions:

Mix together the powdered sugar, peanut butter, and butter. Add the milk one tablespoon at a time until it becomes a nice workable dough. It will be just like play dough, it will be really easy to work with. Form the dough into egg shapes, and place in the freezer for about an hour.

Place the chocolate chips and shortening in a glass measuring cup. Microwave 1 minute at a time stirring in between until completely melted.

Dip each egg in the melted chocolate and place on waxed paper until set. (I use a skewer and then slide the dipped egg off and cover the hole).

Once they are set you can trim any excess chocolate off that may pool at the base with a pairing knife to make them look pretty. You could also decorate them with royal icing and make a really special Easter treat

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

Recipe from HERE

Chocolate Crinkle Cookies

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

In a medium bowl, mix together cocoa, white sugar, and vegetable oil. Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the cocoa mixture. Cover dough, and chill for at least 4 hours. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough into one inch balls.

Coat each ball in confectioners' sugar before placing onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Let stand on the cookie sheet for a minute before transferring to wire racks to cool.

Lemon Bars

Recipe from allrecipes.com

CRUST

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup powdered sugar

TOPPING

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Combine the flour, butter and powdered sugar; pat into an 8-in. square baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine sugar, eggs, flour, lemon juice, extract, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl. Mix until frothy; pour over crust.
Bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until light golden brown. Dust with powdered sugar.

Texas Sheet Cake

So we are of the understanding that most of the recipes that I post on this blog are simple easy classic recipes right? This cake is a.ma.zing. Probably some of you have made or at least eaten this cake. I think I could eat a whole thing MYSELF! It also makes a TON which is great. The recipe is from this cookbook.

2 c. flour
2 c. sugar
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. shortening
1/2 c. margarine
1 c. water
3 T. cocoa
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 c. buttermilk
1 t. baking soda
1 t. vanilla
In large bowl mix flour, sugar and salt. In saucepan mix together shortening, margarine, water and cocoa. Bring to a boil then mix with dry ingredients. In a small bowl mix eggs, buttermilk, baking soda and vanilla. add to chocolate mixture. Combine well and pour on a greased and floured cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. During last 5 minutes of baking prepare icing.

Icing:
1/2 c. margarine
3 T. cocoa
4 c. powdered sugar
1 t. vanilla
4 T. milk

Melt margarine and cocoa. Then add powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Stir until smooth. ice immediately while cake is hot.

Gingerbread and Banana Heaven

Oh how I love My Kitchen Cafe. Her recipes are wonderful and they are perfectly gourmet without being weird and overwhelming. I made her wonderful gingerbread recipe over Christmas and it was a huge hit with my family (even the kids ate it, which is not normal).
Gingerbread:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup very hot water
Cinnamon Whipped Cream:
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup powdered sugar
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9X13-inch baking pan and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until well blended. Add the eggs and molasses and blend again. Sift the dry ingredients together in a mesh strainer directly into the molasses/butter/sugar mixture and mix. Add the hot water and beat until the batter is smooth. It will be fairly thin.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 32-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Don’t overbake or the gingerbread will be dry.
Serve the gingerbread warm or cold with cinnamon whipped cream and sliced bananas, if desired.

For the cinnamon whipped cream:
In a medium bowl, begin beating the whipped cream. After it starts to just slightly thicken, add the sugar and cinnamon and beat until medium-stiff peaks form.

Simple (yet delicious) Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Photo compliments of google

1 spice cake mix
1 regular sized can (15 oz.) of pumpkin
1 bag of chocolate chips

Mix it all together, put it on a greased cookie sheet, and bake at 350 for 12 minutes. So delicious!

Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle

I found this recipe on this blog. It is so good (if you like pumpkin pie) and is a nice alternative to pumpkin pie. The other thing I love about it is that it is a gorgeous presentation without being hard! It is really easy (just remember you have to make it the night before because it has to sit in the refrigerator over night). I took it to a Halloween party and it got rave reviews. I think it would also work perfectly for Thanksgiving dessert!

Pumpkin Gingerbread Trifle

Here's the Recipe:

Ingredients:

2 (14-ounce) packages Gingerbread Mix

1 (5.1-ounce) box Cook-and-Serve Vanilla Pudding Mix

1 (30-ounce) can Pumpkin Pie Filling

1/2 cup packed Brown Sugar

1/3 teaspoon Ground Cardamom or Cinnamon

1 (12-ounce) container Frozen Whipped Topping

(Shelf-Stable Cream can be substituted here.

Just refrigerate, whip, and add a little powdered sugar and vanilla.)

1/2 cup Gingersnaps, Optional

Instructions:

Bake the gingerbread according to the package directions;

Cool completely.

Meanwhile, prepare the pudding and set aside to cool.

Stir the pumpkin pie filling, sugar, and cinnamon

into the pudding.

Crumble 1 batch of gingerbread into the bottom of a large,

pretty bowl.

Pour 1/2 of the pudding mixture over the gingerbread,

Then add a layer of whipped topping.

Repeat with the remaining gingerbread, pudding,

and whipped topping.

Sprinkle of the top with crushed gingersnaps, if desired (I just sprinkle cinnamon on top).

Refrigerate overnight.

Chocolate Syrup

Inspired by Emily's many recipe posts, I'm going to add my first recipe to the blog!

Chocolate syrup for Ice Cream. It was a sauce my Mom always made for ice cream. I don't think I ever tasted store bought chocolate sauce. How lucky, because that stuff is... well so inferior to the homemade variety. I have to try the fudge sauce Emily posted. That stuff looks good!

On to the recipe.... (sorry no yummy picture)

chocolate Sauce

2 Cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1 Cup hot water
1 can sweet & condensed milk

Dissolve sugar,cocoa and water in a saucepan. Add milk and cook 8-10 minutes. Makes 1 quart. (we always make this in a double broiler.. basically a water bath cooking method. If this doesn't make sense, just do this and be careful of the heat. It will work! And you might be eating it by the spoonful.

Hot Fudge Sauce

My mom made most things we ate growing up from scratch. Let's be honest, things from scratch are so much better than store bought (usually). Due to time however, I can't do as much from scratch as I would like (homemade bread is a rare treat at our house these days). Ice Cream toppings however I HAVE to have from scratch. Okay I don't have to have them from scratch, but I really really like them better homemade, like way better).

Another one of my go to cookbooks is Betty Crocker. I LOVE that cookbook. It has a lot of really good basics and some more daring recipes at the same time. I tried out this fudge sauce the other day when my brother and his family came over and we all went crazy for it! I mean like "have a little ice cream with your hot fudge" crazy. So good!

1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 package (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cups sugar
1 TBS butter or stick margarine
1 tsp vanilla

1. Heat milk, chocolate chips and sugar to boiling in 2 quart saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly; remove from heat.

1. Stir in butter and vanilla until mixture is smooth and creamy. Cool about 30 minutes or until sauce begins to thicken. Serve warm. Store remaining sauce covered in refrigerator up to 4 weeks.

Chocolate Fondue

I love fondue, but I have never made it. Today is National Chocolate Day and I wanted to do something special for my family (pay no attention to my poor scratched table). I decided chocolate fondue for dessert would be perfect. I wanted to make it from scratch as I had some high expectations. I found this recipe on epicurean.com. Here is the original, but I tweeked it a bit. The original is for dark/semi sweet chocolate lovers, that isn't me. I added a little more sugar and cream and it came out more like a fudge sauce. We loved it! My little boy ended up with two fondue forks in is had saying "this is a good idea!" We had a great time.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Melt butter in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat.

Add cocoa, sugar, and cream. Heat until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Serve with slices of fruit (banana, pineapple, strawberries, apple), chunks of pound cake and marshmallows.

Gum Drop Popcorn

This is a recipe shared with my by my sister in law Stacey. It is heavenly and I usually want to eat ALL of it myself.

4 quarts of popcorn
2 cups whole nuts (optional)
3 cups colored miniature marshmallows
1 cup butter
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 1/2 cups gum drops (or Dots candy)
1 tsp vanilla

Put popcorn into a big bowl. Add nuts, marshmallows, add gum drops/Dots on top of popcorn. DON'T MIX. Melt butter in heavy sauce pan, add sugar and corn syrup-bring to a running boil. Stirring, let simmer for 3 minutes. Take off and add vanilla. Blend well. Pour over popcorn mixture and mix well.

My Kitchen Cafe's Lemon Berry Trifle

I have always loved the look of Trifle. I have never tasted it, and to be honest felt it was way above me when it came to actually making it. Well, the other day I was checking out My Kitchen Cafe, which I LOVE and think she is a cook I would aspire to be like and came across this recipe for Trifle. I actually had ALL of the stuff to make it which is a rarity and thought it would be perfect for our End of the School Year BBQ...so I tried it. I made it all from scratch, I did, the pound cake, the lemon curd. I can't tell you how much I wanted to bronze the thing instead of eat it, but eat it we did. A lot of it. It was so good! I always have worried about trifle being too soggy for me, but it wasn't at all. This is a recipe totally worth the work.

As an after thought though, there is no shame in buying pound cake and lemon curd. I don't know if I could go to store bought now that I have tried it from scratch (again, it was divine) but another idea is to make the pound cake, lemon curd and berry syrup before and then just whip the cream and assemble it when you need it. Okay so here is the recipe.


Disclaimer-This recipe is copied 100% from My Kitchen Cafe except the photos, they are mine (like you thought otherwise...still working on that aspect of the blog.)

*Note: the trifle should be assembled about 5-8 hours before serving so all the flavors can blend together. All of the components can be made from 1-3 days ahead. Look through the recipe for more specific details.

*Serves 8-10

Berries (can be cooked up to a day in advance and refrigerated):
4 cups berries (a combination of blueberries, strawberries and raspberries), you can use fresh or frozen – if using frozen, they need to be thawed and drained
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Lemon Cream (the lemon curd can be made up to 3 days in advance):
3 cups whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 recipe lemon curd (see below) or an 11-ounce jar lemon curd

Pound Cake (can be made a day in advance or longer, if it is frozen):
1 9-inch round or loaf lemon (or plain) pound cake, homemade (Danielle used this recipe, I wanted to try a new version and typed it up below – both are fantastic) or store-bought, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices

Combine the berries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook just until the berries begin to break down, about 3-4 minutes. Take the berries off the heat and let the mixture cool. This can be done a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate the berry syrup until ready to use.

In a clean bowl, whip the cream with the powdered sugar and the vanilla until soft peaks form. Put the lemon curd into a second bowl and whisk in about 1/4 cup of the whipped cream to loosen it up a bit. Then gently fold in the rest of the cream. Cover and refrigerate if not using immediately.

To assemble the trifle, spoon a layer of the cream into a large glass or trifle bowl. Add a layer of pound cake. You may need to break the pound cake slices into smaller pieces and jigsaw them together to fit. Then drizzle on about 1/3 of the berry syrup. Don’t worry if it doesn’t completely coat the pound cake – just drizzle it across and let the berries fall where they may. Spoon a layer of lemon cream over the top, smoothing to the sides. Repeat all the layers, 2 or 3 more times, depending on the size of the bowl, finishing with a layer of lemon cream. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. It is best to make this several hours before serving and refrigerate it.

Recipe Source: the idea for the lemon berry trifle came from Danielle, a reader, who saw it on this blog. I made my own changes to the method and recipes.

Lemon Pound Cake:
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2002 Annual Recipes

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
5 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons)

Preheat the oven to 324 degrees. Butter and dust with flour a 9-inch round cake pan (or I suppose a loaf pan would work, also). Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

Place the butter in a large bowl and using an handheld or stand mixer, beat until soft. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Reduce the speed to low. Add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until incorporated after each addition. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan; bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes (perhaps longer for a deep loaf pan). Invert onto a wire rack and let cool completely.

Lemon Curd:
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2002 Annual Recipes

4 large egg yolks
1 large whole egg
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons), strained
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)

Strain the yolks and whole egg through a fine mesh strainer into a heavy medium saucepan (this took a bit of work – I pressed on the egg mixture with the back of a spoon, moving it around, until they moved through the strainer). Add the sugar and juice; whisk to combine.

Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, 12-14 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the butter, one piece at a time, until fully incorporated. Stir in the lemon zest. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin forming and chill in an airtight container for up to 3 days.