yes, i know, i know, another cake. but look at the name of it! how can you not want to know more?? well, i assure you it's quite simple, and i took it to a girls' night party, and it went quickly and got rave reviews. no, it's not an original recipe, but i did make a few modifications here and there. prep time is about 5 mins and total time around 2 hours.
equipment:
9 x 13 glass baking pan
medium bowl for mixing
liquid measuring cup
2 gallon-sized ziplock style bags
hammer
toothpick
ingredients:
1 box german chocolate cake mix (though you could also feasibly use devil's food if you were so inclined) and everything the box mix says you need to make the cake (usually oil, eggs, and water)
1 can (14oz, though you won't use the whole thing) sweetened condensed milk
caramel sauce (i bought a 12oz container, and only used about 8oz of it)
1 container (8oz) of whipped cream (i used the publix version of cool whip)
1 bag of fun sized heath bars or 8 king sized heath bars
chocolate sauce (you'll only need a bit, so the smallest size is fine if you don't have any ice cream to put the rest on)
steps:
1.) make the cake according to the directions on the box.
2.) while the cake is baking, unwrap the heath bars, put them into one of the bags and that bag in the 2nd. on a safe surface use a hammer (or something equivalently hard) to crush them into small pieces.
3.) let the cake cool completely.
4.) poke holes in the top of the cake with a toothpick almost all the way down the height of the cake.
5.) generously pour the caramel and sweetened condensed milk over the top of the cake (it's going to seep down into those holes you just made).
6.) frost it with whipped cream.
7.) sprinkle crushed heath bars over the top of the whipped cream and drizzle chocolate sauce over the top.
time:5 minuets prep, about 2 hours total bake, cool, and top time difficulty: 1 (1 being easiest, 5 being hardest) rating: ♦♦♦♦1/2◊ (4.5 out of 5 stars) suggestions for variation: mess around with the toppings you use. maybe try twix instead of heath bars? different kinds of cake? fudge instead of or in addition to caramel, sweetened condensed milk, and/or chocolate sauce? have fun playing around with it!
look! real, non-birthday festivity food! this is my mom's baked sweet potato recipe with my own personal spin. it's easy to make, and pretty much delicious. prep time is about 10-15 mins, and bake time was probably around half an hour to 45 minutes. the sweet potatoes are the dish on the left, and the cranberry recipe is coming up as soon as i revise it a little bit.
equipment:
vegetable peeler (optional)
knife
glass baking pan (i used a 9x13 for 4 potatoes)
small mixing bowl
ingredients:
as many sweet potatoes (yams) as people
butter (melted)
cinnamon
cayenne pepper
ginger
nutmeg
steps:
preheat oven to 350 degrees. wash and peel each sweet potato. then cut them into 1/4 inch thick slices so that they resemble chips or disks (see picture above).
mix together the topping, which consists of cinnamon, cayenne pepper, and ginger. i also added a few grates of fresh nutmeg. for 4 potatoes, i used about 2 T. of cinnamon, about 3/4 t of cayenne pepper, and 1/4 t. ginger as well as the nutmeg.
place the sliced potatoes in rows (almost like fallen dominoes) in a glass baking pan. the drizzle the melted butter over the top of the potatoes (this ensures that the topping will stick). sprinkle on the topping, and bake until the potatoes are soft. honestly, i think it's impossible to overcook a sweet potato, and i wasn't paying attention to how long i left them in the oven, but it was probably somewhere between half an hour and 45 minutes. let them cool a bit before serving, but do serve them warm.
time:10 minuets prep, 30-45 minutes bake difficulty: 1 (1 being easiest, 5 being hardest) rating: ♦♦♦♦1/2◊ (4.5 out of 5 stars) suggestions for variation: play around with the exact mix and proportion of your spices to best suit your tastes. i, for example, love cinnamon, but am not a big ginger gal, so my proportioning might be a little off for your tastes.
i know, i know, you're sick of birthdays. BUT i have a lot of awesome people i'm close to born right around the same time, sooo... deal with it. haha. anyway, today is my roommate's birthday. things rachel loves: ice cream, ice cream cones, cupcakes, funfetti cake, and frosting. so this idea combines alllllll of those in one fantastically delightful (and super easy) birthday cake.
ingredients:
cake mix (i used funfetti cuz it's rachel's favorite)
frosting (again, i cheated and used the canned stuff--it took me 2 cans)
cake cones (flat-bottomed ice cream cones)
sprinkles or other decorations
steps:
this was sooo easy it's unbelievable. mix up your cake mix and spoon it into the cupcake lined muffin tins. then, place the ice cream cones upside-down on top of the batter (it's best if you smoosh them down just slightly into the batter so the cupcakes rise right into the cone) and bake them. then let them cool completely, and remove the cupcake liner from the top of the ice cream cone. frost and decorate! i was also surprised to find that these did not require a crumb coating, and i just dipped the frosted cupcakes into the sprinkles, however you can probably use crushed nuts, candies, and etc. get creative! so easy and so fun, and a delightfully innovative way to eat a cupcake. the only tricksy part is storing them, as they're somewhat top-heavy and gooey with frosting. i ended up cutting rounds in old shoe boxes to store them upright.
boy oh BOY have i been busy! i have several recipes to upload, and i will get to them all when i can, but for now, this is just another fun cake i did for my dad's 50th birthday! he absolutely loves trains, so with a little help from betty crocker, i made this masterpiece for his surprise birthday party. this cake fed around 20 people with leftovers, so it's definitely possible to halve the recipe and make it on a much smaller (aka not table-sized) scale for your train lover. delicious AND fun :o)
equipment:
2-4 loaf pans
serrated knife
glass of hot water
cookie sheets or cutting boards
frosting knife
candles (optional)
ingredients:
cake (i cheated and used 2 boxes of cake mix)
frosting (this bad boy took 1 can of chocolate and 3 of vanilla)
food coloring
round candies
steps:
because we were feeding so many, 2 batches of cake mix were necessary (many thanks to my mom for making the cakes!). these were mixed into 2 loaf pans per batch (4 total loaf pans) and frozen after they cooled and were removed from the loaf pans
after they were frozen thoroughly, each cake was removed from the freezer individually and the rounded top cut off using a serrated knife. *hint: this process becomes much easier if you dip the knife in hot water between each cut! flip the cakes over so the part that used to be the top (now flat after cutting the rounded part off) is facing the counter and becomes the bottom. this makes the cakes much more structurally stable.
first, i made the engine. this is its own loaf pan, and is the biggest piece you'll be working with. cut off the sides the long way of the cake so the cake is about 3 inches wide. then cut 2 of the corners off so the shape is now a really awkward hexagon. then, about 2 inches back from the back edge of those cuts, cut halfway down the height of the cake in 2 strips about 2 inches apart, the across the bottom of those 2 incisions to remove a piece half as thick as the cake itself. "glue" this piece back onto the cake with chocolate icing so the back lines up with the first incision you just made. confused yet? check out the diagram below for some visual help and much needed clarification.
the rest of the cakes are really easy--just quarter them. again, be sure to have the side that you cut the rounded top off become the bottom. these quartered pieces become the "cars." place them the long way behind the engine piece. i just placed my pieces on cookie sheets, but you could also do it on cutting boards or whatever you have that is big enough to support the whole train. regardless, it should be something that you can put in the freezer. after all your pieces are cut, place them onto whatever surface you're using (from here on out, i'll just say cookie sheets) in a train-like shape, meaning the engine followed by the cars in whatever arrangement suits your location best. once arranged, put them back in the freezer, as this makes your decorating job MUCH easier.
the hard part is over! phew! now comes the tedious stuff--decorating. i used all chocolate frosting on the engine and all vanilla on the cars. take your cookie sheets out of the freezer one at a time, and crumb coat your pieces. this means that you cover the pieces using frosting and a knife just to seal the crumbs of the cake in so that they don't affect your final decorating. freeze each cookie sheet again after each piece on it is crumb coated.
then comes the actual decorating. i did the engine all in chocolate, but each car i dyed a different color by mixing food coloring into the vanilla icing. after each car was frosted, i added wheels by using round candies. i piped spokes on to these with colored frosting, and connected them to the cars using plain frosting. add whatever other decorations you like to your cars--be creative and have fun! add candles if you want, but above all, enjoy :o)
so my roommate bought bananas for her sick boyfriend, but somehow none of us ended up eating them. so what better to do with a bunch of overripe bananas than make banana bread?? so that is exactly what i did :o) prep time was about 20 minutes, and bake time is around an hour.
equipment:
measuring cups and spoons
3 mixing bowls (1 larger, 2 medium)
loaf pans (i used 3 of the little guys, but you could use one standard sized one, too)
ingredients:
2 c. flour
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt
3 overripe bananas, smashed
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. softened margarine (1 stick)
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 t. cinnamon
1 T. sugar
1 T. brown sugar
1 T. softened butter
steps:
1.) preheat oven to 350F. grease your loaf pan(s)
2.) mix flour, baking soda, and baking soda in the largest of the mixing bowls.
3.) in one of the smaller mixing bowls, smash your bananas. i used a potato smasher, but you could easily use even just a fork
4.) in your third bowl, cream together your margarine and brown sugar. add the eggs and beat them in. add this mixture to the smashed bananas and mix well. add vanilla to this mix.
5.) add the banana mixture to the dry ingredients and mix until moistened.
6.) pour evenly into the loaf pans.
7.) mix together the streusel topping, by creaming together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and sugar with the butter. sprinkle over the top of the loaves.
8.) bake at 350F for about an hour, or until an inserted toothpick comes out cleanly. let cool before eating.
time:20 minuets prep, 60 minutes bake difficulty: 2 (1 being easiest, 5 being hardest) rating: ♦♦♦1/2◊◊ (3.5 out of 5 stars) suggestions for variation: i am not a big fan of crunchy surprises in my breads, but if you want to add crushed walnuts or something, i'm sure that would be an ok addition.
so today is my friend tyler's 20th birthday, and tyler is absolutely obsessed with all apple products. so what better way to celebrate his birthday than to make him an apple [logo shaped] cake?? well, maybe throw in a taco bar, playing super mario (super nes, of course) projected to take up an entire wall, some fantastic party games, and awesome friends and you've got yourself a party! happy 20th, bud :o) anyway, back to the CAKE!
now this baby was a double layered cake and took a 3 day process to make. despite that, it was not difficult at all, only time-consuming. i guess i cheated, because i used cake mixes and store-bought frosting. you are allowed to give up now and call me a fraud, but i hope you'll stick it out.
equipment: 9x13 pan cooling rack cutting boards sharp knife frosting (butter) knife cup of HOT water
ingredients: 2 boxes of cake mix (i used one chocolate and one yellow)and their respective mixing ingredients 3 cans of frosting (white) food coloring
steps:
the reason needed 2 boxes of cake mix is that tyler's favorite is marble cake. it is almost impossible to shape a marble cake, so to get the same marble taste, we went for 2 layered cake. i began with the chocolate on the bottom and added yellow cake to the top so as to mess up the coloring of the frosting less (yellow cake offers a more blank palate than does chocolate).
i began by making a 9x13 pan of chocolate and greased the WHOLE pan and sides really well. i baked it according to the instructions on the box, and let it cool for about an hour. i then put a cooling rack on top of the 9x13 pan, held it in place and flipped the whole cake pan over onto the cooling rack without the 2 ever losing contact. this makes it easier to flip onto another surface later, as well as serving to let it squash down a little bit so your cake isn't quite so tall. after this fully cooled, i used the same process to flip it back into the 9X13, and then again into a cutting board (i used white to be a blank palate). i just cut the cake to fit onto the cutting board without discarding too much cake. after this, i wrapped the cake and cutting board in saran wrap and refrigerated it overnight.
the exact same process was used for the yellow cake, and this went onto a second cutting board, though this one doesn't matter regarding color or material, as the cake will eventually get transferred on top of the chocolate one.
i then took both cakes out of the fridge and frosted the chocolate one (i just kept this frosting white) on top to act as the congealing layer between the two cakes. transferring the yellow cake on top of the chocolate one was probably the hardest part of the whole process, and i ended up using a slow slide and transfer process, though i think freezing the yellow cake might work better so as to be able to get a firm grip on it without fear of it breaking or crumbling apart, which is the trouble i was facing.
the final product, but for an idea of the layering involved
then i made a rough outline on the cake of an apple and mostly carved the corners away with a sharp knife, soaking it in a cup of HOT water in between every cut. this is a classic wedding cake trick to get the cleanest cut and get rid of any cake or frosting particles that you don't want in another area of your cake. so the apple shape was cut and all that remained was the leaf. i used the "bite" piece (cut after the whole apple shape was cut) as the leaf, as they are essentially the same shape. this i had to prop up with toothpicks, but i later frosted over them and warned the person who ate the leaf about them so they wouldn't choke and die, haha.
then it was time to frost. i did this in two layers--one as a rough covering and one as a finished layer. looking back on it, i could have done the first layer in white and not worried about the coloring yet, but i did not know at the time that it would take two layers to look good. so i just used food coloring to dye my white frosting and put it in the proper locations to cover both the sides and the top of the cake. *TIP: put the cake in the freezer for a few minutes (20 or so) before you start this process, as it will be much easier to frost, and also do this (10 minutes or so) in between every color change.* i also froze it for about half an hour before starting the second layer, and then kept it refrigerated until it was served. this was the time consuming part, but none of it was hard.
anyway, it was a major hit at the party. to cut it i again used my sharp knife and hot water and cut it like a wedding cake. everyone seemed to enjoy it, and the reaction was more than worth the tediousness of the effort!
why hello there! once again, it has been an absurdly long time since i've gotten to do this, again because of travel. for one, finals. then my winter break was jam-packed! my boyfriend came up from florida to visit over christmas (his very first experience EVER with a white one!), and then my parents and i spent 3 weeks traveling in greece, before i went back down to florida for a week to visit james and his family. let me tell you, after a month in the 60s-70s that a greek/floridian december/january offer, the -8 that i woke up to this midwest morning hit me like a slap in the face. but if that's the only negative that comes from a month of travel, i'll take it!
traveling in greece opened me up to a lot of new flavor combinations, if not necessarily new cuisines. here are a few of my favorites:
1.) a green salad (lettuce, spinach, cabbage, all of the above, etc) with olive oil, lemon juice, and dill as its "dressing." i got very used to and comfortable with the olive oil, vinegar, and salt that the spanish use, but this combo offers a similar freshness. there will be a lot of tang in the flavor, and the dill (especially fresh) adds a fantastic full herb sensation. these can, of course, be in any proportion according to your own taste preferences, but if you like formulas, i'd do about equal parts olive oil and lemon juice and enough chopped dill to lightly cover the top of the salad.
2.) greek salad. this is not your typical green salad, as it is comprised solely of cut tomatoes, cucumbers, and feta cheese. if you can't get fresh tomatoes, i'd avoid making this dish, as it is one of the central flavors, and its absence would ruin the dish. the tomatoes are cut into wedges, and the cucumbers in slices. you can either crumble the feta over the top, or, more traditionally, serve a big ol' slab of it over the top of the tomatoes and cucumbers, which are just mixed together. the only dressing on this dish is a sufficient amount of olive oil to coat the veggies, and then oregano over the top. sometimes we added lemon juice and/or salt to mix up the flavors a little bit, but it was always something nice and fresh to have with a meal.
3.) using fried potatoes in lieu of pasta, rice, or other starch. the greeks love their fried potatoes, and boy oh boy are they good! i would recommend beginning with heating olive oil in a skillet or sauce pan where the oil can be at least a good 3/4" deep. peel your potatoes, and cut them into either slices or wedges (slices will probably fry more evenly). when the olive oil is good and hot, put your cut and peeled potatoes into the oil (carefully! it will probably spit at you), and let them fry (remember to turn them so they cook evenly) until they are light brown. when they're done (they will be HOT! be careful!), you can do one of several things with them.
serve them. this one sounds obvious, eh? but the really greek way of doing this is to serve them with a dash of balsamic vinegar or a spritz of lemon juice over them to give them a really fresh taste. they are also typically served unsalted, though oregano might be used instead. they make a great side to anything with which you would normally serve potatoes, french fries, rice, pasta, etc.
use them as a base. these make a great thing over which to serve either meat or veggies (like eggplant, artichokes, peppers, okra, etc.) in a sauce. one of my favorites was roasted pork with bell peppers in a tomato sauce served over these potatoes instead of over rice or pasta.
bake them. i think my favorite dish i had the entire 3 weeks abroad was a baked veal dish, where veal was baked together with these potatoes (yes, they had been fried before baked) with feta cheese as the congealing agent. the veal was diced over the top of the potatoes, and plenty of cheese was over the top, baked in a casserole and making almost a baked pasta hot dish, except, again, using the potatoes as the base starch.
get creative! there are all kinds of things you can do with potatoes. for a spanish equivalent, try my spanish omelette. it's a very similar concept and method, just in a different place along the mediterranean.
if you have any questions or would like some more specific instructions, leave a comment or email me. don't be afraid to experiment! happy cooking :o) -kl
hello! my name is kendra, and i am a recently married workaholic with never enough time or energy. one of the things i enjoy, however, is simple, fast, and inexpensive cooking. please feel free to comment on recipes or leave suggestions for existing or future recipes. thanks for visiting!
happy cooking :o)
