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Archive for the ‘Desserts’ Category

Strawberry Bundt Cake

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Recipes, tagged , , on September 16, 2011| 5 Comments »

Strawberry Bundt Cake

I needed to make a cake to take to a potluck as well as whip up dessert for the people at my house, so I doubled the recipe for this. That was not only a good idea, but a tasty one as well. This recipe for Strawberry Bundt Cake is easy, moist and very yummy. Especially by the time you put frosting, strawberry and chocolate syrup on top of it.

The ingredients - minus the chocolate syrup. Just a bottle of Hershey's works great.

Dump all ingredients into a bowl and mix well. Batter will be really thick.

Bright pink batter in the pan.

Baked to a lovely golden brown on top.

Even the minis are golden brown.

Once cool, turn out of pan onto a serving platter. Parden my plastic plate. I wanted to be able to leave it at the potluck and not worry about finding my dish later.

Zap frosting in the microwave for about 12-15 seconds, until it is thin and pourable.

Then pour it on. You can go thick or thin in the application. My theory is more is better!

Next, pour on the strawberry syrup, drizzling it down the sides.

Do the same with the mini cake.

If so desired, drizzle on some chocolate syrup then garnish with fresh berries. Then enjoy!

Strawberry Bundt Cake

1 box Strawberry Cake Mix

1 small package instant cheesecake pudding

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup oil

3 eggs

1/2 cup vanilla or cream cheese frosting

Strawberries

Strawberry Syrup

Chocolate Syrup (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Blend all ingredients on medium speed until combined. The batter is supposed to be super thick, so don’t worry if it seems heavy.

Scoop it into a greased bundt pan, evening it up as best you can (I tap the pan on the counter to get out air bubbles and even up the batter). Bake for one hour or until it starts to pull away from the edges of the pan.

Let cool completely then invert on a cake plate. Put 1/2 cup of  frosting into a microwaveable pitcher or bowl and nuke it for about 12 seconds. For this recipe I ended up using  Cream Cheese Frosting. That was a very good decision

Drizzle frosting over the cake. Then drizzle on strawberry syrup.

You can finish it off with a drizzle of chocolate syrup if you so desire, and of course I desired. Serve with sliced fresh strawberries and enjoy!

She Who Needs to Quit Eating Dessert

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Graham Cracker Cookies

Posted in Cookies, Desserts, Entertaining at Home, Recipes, tagged , , on August 26, 2011| 1 Comment »

When I was a kid, I thought one of the best cookies ever was one my mom would often have waiting when I trudged off the school bus.

Back before I was banned from chocolate, these delicious goodies would be piled on a plate ready for me to inhale with a glass of cold milk.

I had no idea then that my mom whipped these together as I was no doubt stepping off the bus. I was sure she had labored hours making them just for me.

During the abyss of my childhood when no chocolate was allowed, Mom would make them with other fillings like plain ol’ vanilla. But nothing quite beat the sweet, buttery goodness of the chocolate filling.

I’m going to share the secret recipe for these cookies with you because you could whip them up for your kids in a matter of seconds or you can set out the ingredients and let them make their own. Even better, right?

So there you have it… the ingredients and recipe and…

Really. That is it.

You take two graham crackers, generously spread with frosting, sandwich together and enjoy! Now if you wanted to get all fancy pants on me, you could make your graham crackers from scratch then make your butter cream frosting from scratch. But that would take a few hours out of your life you could spend eating bon bons or sitting with your feet up reading a good book. My mother, of course, made the frosting from scratch.  But I’m more of a pop the top on a can of frosting and go from there kind of gal.

Take a few seconds out of your busy day, make one and be glad you indulged! Or have the kids make one for you!

She Who Loves These Easy Treats

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Orange Dream Pie

Posted in Desserts, Entertaining Ideas, Pie, Recipes, tagged , , , on July 22, 2011| 5 Comments »

Thanks to the Schwan’s man, I had a carton of Summer’s Dream languishing in my freezer. If you haven’t tried it yet, it is pretty yummy. They blend vanilla ice cream with orange sherbet and package it frozen under the title of Summer’s Dream.

Really, it is dreamy.

I decided to try whip up a pie using a recipe in the Schwan’s catalog as a starting point. I tweaked it just a bit and ended up with a delicious pie that even Captain Cavedweller liked (which is really saying something!).

It was very simple and easy to make. Having the patience to wait until it was frozen and ready to eat was the biggest challenge. Especially for those of us who are patience-challenged.

Ingriendent's for Orange Dream Pie

Whip cream cheese until light and fluffy.

Add in whipped topping.

Scoop softened Summer's Dream into your prepared pie crust, just covering the bottom and sides.

 

Drain Mandarian Oranges. Captain Cavedweller likes to drink the juice and then I don't feel like I've just poured something delicious down the sink.

Scoop Summer's Dream into cream cheese and whipped cream mixture. Add in Mandarin oranges and blend together.

I skipped a few steps here as the ice cream was melting way too fast in our hot house. Pour mix into pie pan. Freeze for three hours (or longer) and garnish with whipped cream, Mandarin oranges and a sprig of mint if you want to get all fancy-pants. Which I did. And it was yummy.

Orange Dream Pie

5 cups softened Summer’s Dream

1 1/2 cups freshly whipped cream

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 15-ounce can Mandarin oranges

1 graham cracker crust

Substitution Note: If you don’t have a Schwan’s man who brings deliciousness to your door, you can easily mix three cups of vanilla ice cream with three cups of orange sherbet. If you don’t feel like making fresh whipped cream, a tub of frozen whipped topping works just as well. If you aren’t a lazy slug like me, you can mix crushed graham crackers, a spoon of sugar and melted butter to make the crust. Pat into a pan and refrigerate 30 minutes before pouring in the filling.

While ice cream is softening, drain the oranges and set aside.

If you buy a small package of cream cheese, use it all. If you are cutting a large package in half, use three ounces. Beat it until it is light and fluffy then add in whipped cream.

Spoon softened ice cream into crust. Use just enough to cover the bottom and up the sides – probably about 1 1/2 cups. Scoop the remaining 3 1/2 cups into the cream cheese mixture along with the can of oranges. (Reserve a few orange slices for garnish, if you wish).

Pour into the crust and freeze for three hours. Remove from freezer, slice and serve with a dollop of whipped cream and an orange slice for garnish.

Enjoy!

She Who Really Didn’t Need to Find Another Dessert She Likes

 

 

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Strawberry Shortcake

Posted in Desserts, Easy Recipes, Entertaining Ideas, Fast Recipes, Recipes, tagged , , , on July 20, 2011| 1 Comment »

I love strawberries. Almost as much as raspberries.

One summer-time treat I can’t pass up is strawberry shortcake – in most any variation. Have you noticed some people use biscuits for the cake. Others use actual cake. My Mom always made shortcake from scratch. It was dense and sweet and often made me think she had baked a pan of cornbread from the look of it, but the taste was all shortcake.

On occasion, if Grandma had been baking pies and there was leftover crust, she would roll the crust into a thin layer on a baking sheet and bake until a light golden brown. Then she would break the crust into bite-sized pieces and layer it with fresh sliced strawberries that she had smooshed a bit release their juice and ice cream. I kid you not, it is delicious. Especially if you pour a little of the juice over the top of the whole thing. You could also use whipping cream. It also tastes divine but my favorite is vanilla ice cream.

So you need pre-baked pie crust. Whip up a batch with my Vodka Pie Crust  recipe. It is easy and so flaky. Then just layer it in a bowl with berries. You can put them in whole but I think they taste best when you slice them, sprinkle on just a bit of sugar and smoosh them just a bit. Then top with vanilla ice cream. Continue layers and pour a bit of strawberry juice over the top. Give the berries just a minute to soak into the crust and the ice cream to soften and then attempt to stay upright as your knees turn into a jello-like substance as bliss overwhelms you and your taste-buds start applauding.

She Who Needs to Make Some Shortcake

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