Vegetable Flower Centerpiece

Again, I took a class with Amy Malone.  This time we all contributed to this beautiful veggie flower bouquet--completely edible.  I'm going to attempt one on my own.

Flour Fight

Cousin Ashley came over for some cousin hang time while Aaron was home from college.  This is what happened.

Cookie Class with Amy Malone

We learned so many different techniques in cookie making.  Here are my samples.  We did melted white chocolate, fondant, stenciling, embossing fondant, royal icing, flooding, and piping.  Monica and I had a great time together! 

Hello Kitty Purse Cake

I helped my friend Monica P. make this purse cake for her cousin's promotion at work.  This was Monica's second time working with fondant (Dr. Who cake was her first one).  Great job, Monica!

Bars & Brownie Recipes

PUMPKIN BARS

one 15 oz. can of pumpkin               2 cups all-purpose flour

4 eggs                                                2 tsp.  Cinnamon

2 cups sugar                                      ¾ tsp. each gr. ginger, cloves, nutmeg

¾ cup vegetable oil                           ¾ tsp. salt

                                                            2 tsp. baking powder

                                                            1 tsp. baking soda

Orange cream cheese frosting (recipe follows)

Sliced almonds

Beat eggs lightly, beat in oil, sugar and pumpkin.  In another bowl combine all dry ingredients. Blend wet and dry ingredients together.

Pour batter into greased and flour-dusted 10 x 15 baking pan.  Bake 350 degrees for about 20 – 25 min. (lightly touch center; springs back when done)

Cool.  Add frosting:

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

1 small package (3 – 4 oz.) cream cheese (softened)

3 Tbls. Butter (softened)

Beat together and add 2 tsp. milk, ½ tsp. vanilla, grated peel of one fresh orange, and juice of the orange.

Beat in 2 cups (or more) of sifted powdered sugar until consistency is spreadable, not runny.  Top with almonds.

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AIMEE'S BANANA BREAD

¼ cup sour cream

1 tsp. baking soda

1 large or 2 small ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup sugar

¼ cup softened butter

2 eggs

1 ½ cups flour

1 tsp. vanilla

Oven 350 degrees.  Grease a 9” loaf pan.

Combine sour cream and baking soda in bowl.  Let stand 5 min.

Mix butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla.  Stir in sour cream and

Mashed bananas.  Add flour mixing well.

Add chocolate chips, butterscotch chips or nuts to batter.

Pour into loaf pan.  Bake 50 min. or until done.

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PAMPERED CHEF BROWNIE MOCHA TRIFLE

I pkg brownie mix (plus ingredients to make cake-like brownies found on the box instructions)
4 tsp. instant coffee

1/4 C warm water
1 3/4 C cold milk
2 pkgs (3.4 oz each) white chocolate instant pudding and pie filling
2 C thawed, frozen whipped topping
3 toffee bars (1.5 oz each), coarsely chopped or bag of toffee bits

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare brownies according to package directions for cake-like brownies. Bake as directed. Cool completely.
2. Dissolve coffee granules in warm water. Add milk and pudding mix; whisk until mixture is smooth and begins to thicken.  Gently fold in whipped topping.
3. Cut brownies into 1-inch cubes. 

4. Chop toffee bars. 

5. Layer 1/3 of the brownie cubes onto bottom of a trifle dish or clear class bowl. 

6. Top with 1/3 of the pudding mixture; press lightly. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the
chopped toffee. Repeat layers two more times.

Cake Recipes

PUMPKIN CAKE

• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 3 eggs 
• 1 15 ounce can pumpkin puree 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 2 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg 
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice 
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1/4 cup chopped nuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 10 inch bundt or tube pan.
2. Cream oil, beaten eggs, pumpkin and vanilla together.
3. Sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, ground nutmeg, ground allspice, ground cinnamon, ground cloves and salt together. Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix until just combined.
4. If desired, stir in some chopped nuts. Pour batter into the prepared pan. 
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for 50 min. - 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. 
6. Let cake cool in pan for 10 minutes then turn out onto a plate and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar. 
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(I haven't tried the next recipe, but plan to some day.  Not sure about the paraffin wax in the ganache.  I'm sure I'll change that to whipping cream instead.)

Butterfinger Cupcakes from The Starring Rolls Cafe

Adapted from Plain Chicken

Chocolate Cake:
1 box Devil’s food cake mix
1 small package chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup milk
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips 

Fudge filling:
1 jar pre-made chocolate fudge frosting
Buttercream frosting:
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
6-7 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
Chocolate ganache:
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Paraffin wax, about 1 1/2 inches square
Topping:
6 Butterfinger bars, crushed (or any other candy topping you desire)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Fill muffin pan with cupcake liners.  Prepare chocolate cake.  Mix the first six ingredients until mixture isn’t lumpy.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Divide batter evenly into muffin cups, and bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Mine took 25 minutes.  Cool cupcakes completely.
Using a sharp knife, cut a hole about halfway into the cupcake.  Remove the cake chunk and fill the hole with frosting.  Invert the cake chunk on top of the frosting-filled cupcake.

Prepare the buttercream frosting.  Mix all ingredients until smooth and creamy.  I refrigerated my frosting for a little while to help it set up.  Pipe buttercream around the cake chunk until it is completely covered.  If you don’t have piping bags, just spoon the frosting on top of and around the cake chunk.  It doesn’t have to be beautiful.  Refrigerate frosted cupcakes about 30 minutes or until the frosting is hardened.
While frosted cupcakes are chilling, prepare your chocolate ganache.  I melted the chocolate chips with about a 1-1/2 inch square piece of paraffin wax.  The wax helps the chocolate to harden quickly so it doesn’t drip all over the place.
Go ahead and crush your Butterfinger.  I froze mine before crushing them.  
Remove a cooled cupcake from the refrigerator.  Use a spoon to spread/smear the chocolate over the buttercream frosting.  Cover buttercream frosting with ganache.  Use your hand to immediately coat the ganache with Butterfingers.  You will have to work quickly so that the chocolate doesn’t harden before you put your Butterfinger on.  Set aside and allow the ganache to harden.
Oh, and you may have to heat and reheat your ganache several times during the process if it hardens.

Cookie Recipes

GRAMMA NONNEMACHER'S FAMOUS CHRISTMAS COOKIES

The BEST sugar cookie recipe in the Whole Wide World!

Betcha can't eat just one!

4 cups flour

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. nutmeg (secret ingredient)

{SIFT THESE TOGETHER}

1 cup softened butter

1 ½ cups sugar

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

½ cup sour cream

{CREAM THESE TOGETHER}

Mix dry ingredients with wet ingredients until it forms a stiff dough.  Lay out plastic wrap on flat surface and form a dough slab (not a ball because when it's cold, it's easier to roll out in this slab form).  Wrap tightly and refrigerate two hours or overnight.

On a floured surface, roll out dough to desired thickness (about ¼”).  Cut out cookies with floured cookie cutters or round beverage glass, transferring them to a cookie sheet with a spatula.  Bake 375 degrees for 8 – 10 min. (depending upon the size and thickness of the cookies) until just browned on the edges.

Cool on cooling racks.  Frost and decorate with sprinkles and red hots.

Icing for Cut-Out Cookies

1 bag powdered sugar (2 lbs)

¼ to ½ cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

optional:  add 1/2 tsp. almond extract with vanilla

1 tablespoon melted butter

Combine until runny consistency—adding milk a little at a time.  Use a squeeze bottle to pour icing onto cookies.  Immediately add sprinkles (before the frosting dries).  Let air dry several hours or overnight.  Store in airtight containers.  Use a variety of food colors and sprinkles.

When I frost the cookies, I place them on cooling racks and place the racks on baking sheets.  That way the icing can drip below the cookies, and the sprinkles stay on the sheets (and not on the floor). Enjoy!

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OLD FASHIONED MOLASSES CHEWS COOKIES

These are one of my favorite cookies 

(2nd only to Gramma Nonnemacher's Christmas Cookies)

¾ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup dark molasses

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

____mix all of the above ingredients_______

2 ¾ cups white flour

1 ½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

¼ tsp. ground cloves

____sift together, then add to wet ingredients; cover and refrigerate one hour or overnight

½ cup raw sugar

Roll into balls, then dip in raw sugar.  Bake 350 degrees 10 to 12 min.

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Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

(Wes' favorites)

1 ½ cups flour

¾ cup white sugar

¾ cup brown sugar

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup butter, softened

1 bag butterscotch chips

3 cups oatmeal

Vanilla extract

Zest of one orange

juice of the orange that was zested

2 eggs

raw sugar

Combine butter and both sugars.  Mix dry ingredients.  Add eggs to butter mixture.  Combine dry and wet together.  Stir in oatmeal, zest, and chips.  Squeeze juice of orange to mixture.

Roll in raw or white sugar (1/2 cup).  Bake 375 degrees for 10 min. or until browned.

Purse Cake for Ivette

Happy Birthday Cookies

Dr. Who cake

This cake was for Bianca's 17th birthday.  Her mom helped make it.  It was eight layers high and 5.5" square.