Ice Cream Cake

I made this for Adam's birthday.  We loved the cake, but weren't big fans of the frosting.  I used less cookie crumbs than the recipe called for, and it was plenty.

Click here for original recipe.

Graham Cracker Crust

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs, finely ground
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
6 TB butter, melted

Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, melted butter, an cinnamon until well blended.  Press mixture into 8 or 9 inch pie plate.  Bake at 375 for 7 minutes.

Edible Playdough

I realized the other day that I have never made edible play dough for my kids.  I loved that stuff when I was little!  I don't have my moms recipe, and didn't want to bother her in October so I did a google search, and came up with this combination.  The kids loved it!

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup nonfat dry milk

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Mix, create, enjoy!

Pecan Bars

from Our Best Bites Cookbook

I ran across this cookbook at the library while I was browsing the non-fiction section (cause I'm cool like that).  I've tried a few recipes from Our Best Bites blog and liked them, so I thought I'd see if the cookbook has all the same recipes.  This is the first recipe I tried, and it's not on their blog.  The original recipe called for 6 TB butter, and 6 TB shortening, but I changed it because I didn't want to measure out 6 TB shortening.  (I'm lazy and 1/2 cup butter and 1/4 cups shortening sounds much easier to me).  That is the only change I made.  These are good, but really rich.

Crust:
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cups shortening
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups flour

Filling:
2 TB flour
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup chopped pecans

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 TB butter, melted
3 TB orange juice
1 tsp lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Cream butter, shortening, and powdered sugar.  Add 1 1/2 cups flour and mix until combined.  Press evenly in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.  Bake for 13-14 minutes.
3. Mix the filling ingredients together, and spread over the hot crust.  Return pan to oven and bake 20 minutes more.
4. Remove from oven.  While still warm, spread with glaze.  Cool completely and cut into bars.

Old Style Vanilla Ice Cream

from my mom

4 eggs
2 1/4 cups sugar
5 cups milk
4 cups heavy cream
4 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Beat eggs.  Gradually add sugar to eggs.  Continue to beat the mixture until it is very stiff.  Add remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Pour into freezer container (ice cream maker) and freeze.  Makes 4 quarts.

Lemonade Ice Cream Dessert

from my mom

For Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4cup + 2 TB brown sugar
1/2 cup butter

Mix all ingredients together.  Press into 9x13 pan.  Bake for 5 minutes.

Mix together:
1/2 gallon ice cream, softened
6 oz frozen pink lemonade concentrate

Pour on top of crust and freeze.

Tri-Level Brownies

from my mom

Adam can't believe I would add oatmeal to something as sacred as a brownie, but these are the brownies I grew up with.  And I like them.  Sometimes I double the crust and use 1/2 whole wheat flour.

1 cup quick oats
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp soda
1/4 tsp salt
6 TB butter, melted

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter

3 TB cocoa
1 TB oil
1 egg
2/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts (optional)

for fudge frosting:
2 TB butter
3 TB cocoa
1 TB oil
1 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
hot water

For bottom layer, stir together first 5 ingredients.  Stir in 6 TB melted butter.  Pat in 7x11 pan.  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

For middle layer, combine sugar, 1/4 cup butter, cocoa, and oil.  Add egg.  Beat well.  Stir together 2/3 cup flour, baking powder, and salt.  Add to chocolate mixture alternately with a mixture of the milk and vanilla, mixing after each addition.  Fold in nuts, if desired.  Spread batter over baked layer.  Continue baking at 350 for 25 minutes.  Cool.  Frost with fudge frosting and cut into bars.

For Fudge Frosting
Combine butter, cocoa, and oil in small saucepan, and melt over low heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in powdered sugar and vanilla.  Blend in how water (about 2 TB) to make almost pourable consistency.

Caramels

from my mom

1 1/3 cup corn syrup
2 cups whipping cream
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Combine corn syrup, sugar, salt, milk, and 1 cup cream into large heavy saucepan.  Cook, stirring constantly on medium-low (keep it boiling) about 25 minutes and pale beige in color.  Turn up heat and add about half remaining cream.  Bring to boil rapidly and cook slowly for another 10-15 minutes.  Add remaining cream and cook until it is about as thick as brown gravy and golden in color, and reaches soft firm ball stage.  Add vanilla.  (You can also add 1-2 cups walnuts).  Pour into buttered pan and cool.  Let stand over night (better 2-3 days) without cutting.  Cut in squares and wrap in wax paper.  Do not keep in fridge- it will get sticky.

Mini Molten Chocolate Cakes

Easy, and VERY rich.

from Guittard

Makes 6 three-inch individual cakes (I halved the recipe to make 3)

1 ⅔ cups (10 oz) E. Guittard 72% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Wafers (I used 63% cacao chocolate chips)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter + ½ tablespoon for buttering ramekins
⅔ cup granulated sugar + extra for sugaring ramekins
¼ cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400ºF. Butter and sugar the bottoms and sides of six three-inch (6-ounce) ramekins. (I don't have ramekins, but my pyrex custard cups worked great).

Heat butter and chocolate in a medium microwave safe bowl at medium power (50% or level 5) for 2-3 minutes, stirring well after 1-2 minutes, then at 30 second intervals until smooth and all of the chocolate is melted. Set aside to cool slightly. Combine the sugar and flour in a medium bowl until uniform, then whisk in the eggs until blended and free of lumps. Whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until smoothly incorporated.

Divide the batter evenly among prepared ramekins, filling each ⅔ full. Place the ramekins on a baking sheet for easy handling. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. (At 13 minutes, the center is very fluid, but deliciously molten. If you prefer a slightly less fluid center, bake for 15 minutes.) Immediately upon removing the ramekins from the oven, invert each onto the center of a plate to unmold the cakes. Serve while still warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream if desired.

Lemon Frosting

from allrecipes

4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 TB lemon juice

1 tsp grated lemon zest

2 TB milk

Beat powdered sugar, butter, lemon juice, and lemon zest until smooth. Beat in milk, and continue to beat until light and fluffy.

Juice Jigglers

1 12oz can frozen juice concentrate (grape, apple, etc) thawed

3 envelopes unflavored gelatin

1 can water

Soften gelatin in juice. Boil the water. Stir in juice mixture until gelatin dissolves. Remove from heat, pour into lightly greased 9x13 inch pan and chill until firm. Cut into squares, or use cookie cutters to cut shapes.

Penuche Frosting

from my Mom

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup milk or evaporated milk

2 cups powdered sugar

Melt butter and stir in brown sugar. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir on low for 2 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup milk. Heat to boiling. Cool until luke warm. Stir in powdered sugar.

Buttercream Frosting

from Laura Lee

Mix for 5 minutes:

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup shortening (chilled- but I

don't usually do that)

4 cups pow

dered sugar

4-6 TB evaporated milk (I usually use whatever I have on hand)

1/2 tsp salt

1 TB vanilla

Variations:

Cream Cheese frosting: decrease shortening to 1/4 cup, and add 4oz cream cheese

Chocolate: add 1/2-3/4 cup cocoa and 2 TB milk

Orange Cream Popsicles

1 1/2 cups vanilla yogurt

1 1/2 cups orange juice

OR

1 1/2 cups plain yogurt

1 1/2 cups orange juice

2 TB sugar

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Mix everything together, pour into popsicle molds, freeze.

Buttercream Fondant

This was my first time using fondant. I prefer the taste of frosting over fondant, so even with a buttercream fondant recipe I decided to frost the big cake with frosting, and just use the fondant for the flower, and small cake. The one is also made from fondant. It was pretty easy to work with, but I had to add a lot of powdered sugar for it to be stiff enough. (I didn't measure any powdered sugar, so I have no idea how much I used- it may have been the amount given in the recipe). I rolled it out between waxed paper, and then transfered it onto the cake. It was easy enough to do, and turned out well for my first fondant cake, but after tasting it I still prefer frosting. I halved the recipe, and still have plenty of leftovers.

Buttercream Fondant

from allrecipes

1 cup light corn syrup

1 cup shortening

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract

2 pounds confectioners' sugar

In a large bowl, stir together the shortening and corn syrup. Mix in the salt and vanilla flavoring, then gradually mix in the confectioners' sugar until it is a stiff dough. If you are using a stand mixer, use the dough hook attachment. Otherwise, knead by hand. If the dough is sticky, knead in more confectioners' sugar until it is smooth. Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

To use, roll out on a clean surface that has been dusted with confectioners' sugar until it is 1/8 inch thick or thinner if you can. Drape over frosted and chilled cakes and smooth the sides down, or cut into strips to make bows and other decorations.

Peanut Butter Balls

Peanut Butter Balls
I usually call these Peanut Butter Truffles, but I don't think they are technically truffles. This recipe is from my sister-in-law Nancy. I thought it was the same as a recipe I already had, but it's slightly different. (The other one called for 1 1/2 tsp butter, 1/2 cup chunky peanut butter, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, and didn't have specific dipping directions). I remember that recipe being good too, but because it's been years since I made it, I decided to post this one.

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/4 cup peanut butter
4 tablespoons butter
1 6oz bag of chocolate chips
1 teaspoon shortening

Mix sugar, peanut butter and butter until blended. Make into balls and place on wax paper. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours (or overnight).Over low heat, melt chocolate chips and shortening. Let cool a little. Dip balls into chocolate and place on wax paper. Refrigerate to cool.

TIP: These take a little while to do but they are so good. I only take a small amount of balls from the fridge and dip them in the chocolate. That way, the other balls can stay cold. They are hard to deal with when warm. (I think I ended up doubling the chocolate, but I can't remember for sure).

Magic in the Middle Cookies

Magic in the Middle Cookies from King Arthur Flour Website

Chocolate Dough
1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar (plus extra for dredging)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk

Peanut butter filling
3/4 cup peanut butter, crunchy or smooth, your choice
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions
• Preheat oven to 375* Lightly grease (or line with parchment) 2 baking sheets
• The Dough:
o In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt
o In another medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together the sugars, butter, and peanut butter until light and fluffy.
o Add the vanilla and the egg, beating to combine, then stir in the dry ingredients, blending well
• The Filling:
o In a small bowl, stir together the peanut butter and powdered sugar until smooth
o With floured hands or a teaspoon scoop, roll the filling into 26 1” balls.
• Shaping the Cookies:
o Scoop 1 TB of dough, make an indentation in the center with your finger, and place one peanut butter ball inside
o Bring the cookie dough up and over the filling, pressing the edges together covering the center
o Roll the cookie to smooth it out.
o Repeat with remaining dough and filling
• Roll each rounded cookie in sugar, and place on prepared baking sheets ever 2 inches
• Grease bottom of a glass, and use it to flatten each cookie to about ½ inch thick.
• Bake for 7-9 minutes, or until they’re set and you can smell chocolate.
• Cool on rack.

Applesauce Popsicles

In an attempt to eat healthier, I decided to make popsicles instead of buying them. All I did was put applesauce in popsicle molds. Dakota loved them, and even Adam approved.

Key Lime Pie

Key Lime Pie

Lime Filling:
4 tsp grated lime zest
½ cup fresh lime juice
4 egg yolks
1 (14oz) can sweetened condensed milk

Graham Cracker Crust:
11 full graham crackers, crushed into crumbs
3 TB sugar
5 TB melted butter

Sour Cream Topping:
8 oz sour cream
¼ cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt


Filling:
Whisk together yolk and zest. Beat in the milk and then the lime juice. Set aside at room temperature to thicken.

Crust:
Preheat oven to 325* Mix together crumbs, sugar, and butter. Bake about 10-15 minutes. Cool to room temperature before filling.

Topping:
Bake filling for 12-15 minutes. Whisk together topping ingredients and spread over the top of pie. Return to oven for 5 more minutes.

Chocolate Truffles

I made these for Valentine's Day with some leftover cream. I used peppermint extract because I didn't have vanilla on hand. Rolling them didn't work for me, but cutting them worked great... I'll just put it in a shallow square dish instead of a bowl next time. (Although I should probably mention that I forgot about them, and left them in the fridge for a lot longer than the suggested 2 hours). YUMMY!

http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/007403chocolate_truffles.php

Chocolate Truffles Recipe

Ingredients

Basic truffle ingredients

• 8 ounces of semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate (high quality, 62% cacao or higher), well chopped into small pieces
• 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Optional base flavorings:

• Mint leaves (1 bunch, stems removed, chopped, about 1 cup)
• Cinnamon and cardamon (1 cinnamon stick, 2 cardamom pods)
• Amaretto (1-2 tablespoons)
• Almond extract (1 teaspoon)

Truffle coatings

• Cocoa powder
• Finely chopped walnuts
• Finely chopped almonds

Method

1 In a small, heavy saucepan bring the heavy whipping cream to a simmer (this may take a while, be sure to stir and scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula every few minutes).

If you are using one of the other recommended flavorings, stir it in with the cream (and ignore vanilla in the next step). If adding mint or other solids, after the cream simmers, remove from heat and let seep for an hour. Then strain away solids, and return the cream to a simmer and proceed with recipe.

2 Place the chocolate in a separate bowl. Pour the cream over the chocolate, add the vanilla, and allow to stand for a few minutes then stir until smooth. (This chocolate base is called ganache.)

3 Allow to cool, then place in the refrigerator for two hours. Remove and with a teaspoon roll out balls of the ganache. Roll in your hands quickly (as it will melt from the heat of your hands) and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the refrigerator overnight.

4 Roll in cocoa powder or chopped nuts and serve, or place back in the refrigerator until needed.

Makes 30-40 chocolate truffles.