Perfect Buttercream | stetted You know the scene – you’re at a party, and it’s time for the cake to be served. The cake sure looks beautiful, but the frosting … well, you never can tell with frosting. On the cake it all kind of looks the same. The flavor is a mystery. Will it send you running for your toothbrush with its sweetness? Both can ruin a good cake and cause people to doubt the skills of the cake baker. Last week I was roped into asked to coordinate last-minute baby shower for one of our temps whose last day was Friday. Megan’s Perfect Buttercream makes enough to fill and frost a 9-inch two-layer cake 2 sticks (8 ounces total) butter, softened 6 cups sifted powdered sugar 4 tablespoons milk (I use whole) 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon almond extract Dump everything into a large bowl (preferably stand mixer bowl with whisk attachment). * Tip – the trick to getting smooth frosted cakes is to frequently scrap off excess frosting and dip your spreader into a cup of warm water, then continue spreading.
Banana Split Bites Banana Split Bites ~ A classic ice cream dessert gets mini for some bite size fun. And yes, there is actually a tiny scoop of ice cream tucked inside and underneath the whip cream of those little darlings. Banana Split Mini Bites For once I made something mini for portion control and not just for the cute factor. My little guy had some friends over the other day and of course with a mom who is a baker, the expectation is dessert will not only be good but it will be fun. Keeping all things in mind what I served is what you see here. Here’s what wasn’t a hit and what I learned. Impromptu play dates with four kid’s ages 3-5 year olds after a full work day –not a good idea.Know in advance what other kids will and won’t eat. Luckily, dessert made all things right. No recipe just a few notes: Use firm bananas and cut into 1 inch sections. Leave a Comment
sweet saturday: one minute peanut butter cake & Food & back to her roots Picture this scene: it’s 8:30 in the evening. The sky is just starting to get dark outside your living room window. You ate a delicious, healthy and veggie-filled dinner a few hours ago and now you are ready to sit down to the most recent episode of So You Think You Can Dance and dive into a decadent plate of dessert. Oh wait, you have no dessert. No chocolate, no cookies, no ice cream, no cake, no pie, not even a Jordan almond. Well she’s to go to her microwave. You can make a delicious, fluffy, moist peanut butter cake in your microwave in about one minute (30 seconds mixing, 30 seconds zapping). The options are also pretty endless. One Minute Peanut Butter Cake Print This Recipe Serves One Like my peanut butter microwave cake? Ingredients: 1 egg, beaten1 tablespoon brown sugar1/2 teaspoon baking powder1 heaping tablespoon flour2 tablespoons peanut butter1 teaspoon milk1 tablespoon powdered sugar (give or take) Directions:
Watermelon Lime Sorbet Slices A sweet and tangy watermelon lime sorbet is a great way to cool off in the summer. As a bonus, this recipe is frozen back in the watermelon rind and cut off into slices. It’s hot. The type of heat where when you step outside the door and your skin is wet before the door swings shut behind you. It’s a hot that hangs in the air, letting you breathe it in, that is cured only by two things: being completely immersed in water or hiding indoors, the air conditioning cranked as far as it will go.I find that the heat makes me very unmotivated to do things like take a walk, water and weed the garden (though I have forced that one on myself) and prepare food and eat it. When your simple syrup is cool and watermelon chunked, blend them together in a food processor or blender until smooth. Cool the liquid completely in the refrigerator for a few hours. This then goes into the freezer. There’s nothing like a slice of watermelon on a warm summer day, especially when your slice happens to be sorbet.
Strawberry & Chocolate Nachos I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: sometimes the best creations are the ones you don’t set out to create! This might be my new favorite thing. It’s the perfect easy, throw-together, family style dessert for summer. I did a local tv segment this week and made my Baked Cinnamon Chips and Fruit Salsa. When I got home I had a bag full of cinnamon chips left over and started snacking. Then my boys walked in from the back yard with handfuls of strawberries from our garden and I started thinking about how chocolate covered strawberries sounded so good right then because my first thought when I see any sort of food product is how it would taste covered in chocolate. So I chopped up those berries and let them sit in a spoonful of sugar for a bit. Then I sprinkled them all over those crispy cinnamon-sugar coated chips. I grabbed some chocolate chips, and ate a few. Adding just a touch of vegetable oil or shortening to your chocolate makes it nice and smooth for drizzling. Holy Frijoles.
Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries These cheesecake stuffed strawberries are the perfect dessert treat! Can I just say that I have died and gone to heaven. Cheesecake stuffed strawberries….how have I not made these before?! I’m serious. Making up the filling was a breeze too. Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries Yield: 10 - 12 strawberries (depending on size) Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 0 minutes Total Time: 15 minutes Ingredients: 1 pound large strawberries 8 ounce block cream cheese – softened 3 – 4 tablespoons powdered sugar (depends on how sweet you want the filling) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or use almond, lemon, etc. ) Graham cracker crumbs Source: Inspired by pictures seen on Pinterest Directions: Rinse strawberries and cut around the top of the strawberry. Combine cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla with a mixer or by hand. You could also drizzle or dip strawberries in chocolate if desired. Enjoy!!!
6 Foods To Eat If Youre Skipping Meat - KitchenDaily Making salt Intro You may have guessed by the title of this blog that I have a thing for salt. Resting on a little ledge in the kitchen, always within arms reach, are at least three different salt varieties. In the inside pocket of my purse I carry with me a small container that contains a modest amount of both Fleur de Sel and Maldon. In our kitchen salt is the most frequently used ingredient, which is why I’m surprised that it took us until now to make some ourselves. We grabbed the largest containers we could find, (at our house those just happened to be two growlers) and headed to one of our favorite local beaches. Soon enough we had the containers filled and we continued our time on the beach searching for shells, skipping rocks and watching the kite surfers rush past us as they soared through the water. When we arrived home I passed the beach water through several layers of cheese cloth (four, at least) to capture the bits of sand, rogue sea shells and kelp that came with our catch.
{Recipes} Homemade Summer Popsicles & Free Printables! It’s summer time and what better way to cool off than with homemade popsicles! These are my two favorite popsicle recipes and have never been able to pick which one I liked better, the strawberry coconut or the honeydew lime, so I decided to share them both with you! Need a reason to make these popsicles? Make for dessert at the summer BBQHave as an afternoon treat with your kidsPlanning a summer birthday party? Not only are both recipes easy peasy, but your kids will love them and so will you! Strawberry Coconut Popsicle Recipe PRINT Recipe {Recipe adapted from With Style and Grace} Ingredients 1 cup strawberries1 cup blueberries1 can light coconut milk1 cups water1 cup apple juice1/2 cup honey5 ounce Dixie cups20-30 Popsicle sticks Directions Add strawberries, blueberries, coconut milk, water, apple juice and honey in a blender. Place in the freezer for 30 minutes (set your timer), insert your wooden sticks, and continue to freeze until the popsicles are completely frozen, about 6 hours.
Hi Hat Cupcakes I did it. I finally made them. Hi Hat Cupcakes have consumed my cupcake thoughts since I first saw their tall chocolate dipped tops online after I started blogging. But this weekend, I tried them. So I decided to use the only recipe I remembered seeing. > Update: I just realized this recipe is also from the book, Cupcakes! Chopped chocolate. But even better with the frosting. If I had paid attention to the directions beforehand I don’t know if I would have been as eager to get started. 12 minutes later and a candy thermometer in check to make sure the frosting formed stiff peaks at the right temperature. Actually, it never made it to just the right temp, but after 12 minutes… I was over holding the hand mixer. So I took a leap of faith it would work and piped it on the cupcakes… as tall as I could get it. The cupcakes went in the freezer while I prepared for the scary part. One bag of semi-sweet chocolate. And melted them in the microwave with three tablespoons of vegetable oil. Tasty.
Quinoa - 5 Ways Quinoa. The ancient grain. The protein grain. The underutilized, but gaining in popularity grain. The perfect gluten free alternative for many recipes (…like the parfait above. If you have not cooked with quinoa yet, I highly recommend it. So here’s my list… For Breakfast Berry Quinoa Parfait (pictured above) Cinnamon Quinoa with Walnuts and Raisins For Lunch Quinoa and Black Bean Burritos For Dinner Mushroom Quinoa Pilaf Chicken and Quinoa Waldorf Salad with Creamy Maple Vinaigrette Curried Quinoa with Chicken and Peas (also known as “The meal in which Tyler licked his bowl, multiple times!”) So that was 6 ways?! Will you forgive me! What’s your favorite way to prepare quinoa?!
Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Dip « Slice & Dice 6 Oct This dip might put me into rehab. It is so addicting. I couldn’t get a grip. I kept telling myself I needed to stop, but apparently my hand and mouth had a different plan. I. Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Dip 8 ounces cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 3/4 cup powdered sugar 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup miniature chocolate chips Graham cracker sticks or teddy grahams In a small bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Like this: Like Loading... Tags: Appetizer Correcting The World's Wrongs With Campfire Bananas - Home - Burgh Baby "What are you doing?" my husband asked. He was staring at me as if I had eighteen heads, each with 20 piercings and Mike Tyson-esque tattoos. "Making Campfire Bananas," I said. In my head, his question was quite possibly the dumbest one I had ever heard him ask. "What are those?" ::blink::blink::blink:: ::blinkblinkblinkblinkblink:: "Are you serious?" "Yeah, what are they?" "You are a victim of child abuse," I told him in a bewildered tone. I turned to Twitter to report this crime against humanity. My memories of Campfire Bananas are wrapped in Girl Scout camp and fires by the lake and all sorts of . . . . hell, who really cares? Anyway, let me share with you how joy can be packaged in a banana peel. Campfire Bananas You'll need some bananas, chocolate chips, marshmallows, and I am a fan of throwing some peanut butter into the mix as well. Peel one strip from the banana and then cut a groove in the banana, kind of like how the Sandwich Artists at Subway used to cut the bread "boat style."