Alligator or Crocodile Cake

We made THE CUTEST alligator cake for my husband's birthday.
Since moving to Florida, this is the first 'baking' that we've done so far.
I was really nervous about the humidity and low altitude, but it turned out SO great.

My kids were so creative and helpful. We really enjoyed making this cake together - we got the idea from a family fun recipe posting.
Their recipe is HERE

While their recipe was solely for the alligator, we made some creative additions.
We make a chocolate cake for the base, and frosted it with a german chocolate frosting for the dirt/earth element. Because it was still light, we added cocoa powder to the frosting.
We made butter cream frosting for the alligator, and then added green coconut to give the frosting texture and make it a bit more bumpy.
We found some licorice called Rips, and used it for the grass on the sides. The girls decided to add swedish fish, and blue coconut to give it a more 'swampy' feel.
Finally, instead of leaving the snout square and turned (as the recipe suggested), we cut the opposite side to make it point and straighten out the face.
We also used a different part of the pretzels for his teeth which we thought made him look less dorky.

He's SO cute!!
And my husband loved him!

Sapodillas or Sapotes

So I've only sort of been cooking.  Still trying to get things out of boxes and find myself.  I don't love my new kitchen.  I'm not very excited about spending much time in my kitchen.  I hope things will change over time, but I haven't been as excited about trying out new recipes here.  Still trying to figure out the shopping thing, and find my stuff.  Hopefully it will come. 

I am however, VERY excited about finding Sapotes in the grocery store.  

Okay - I guess I lied.  I went to the grocery store today with my kids for the first time to do some real shopping other than the bananas, grapes, broccoli, milk, bread, eggs, cheese type of shopping.  

The produce section was CHOCK FULL of funky stuff I'd never seen before.  We are going to go back, write down the names of the funky stuff, figure out what it is, and how to cook it, and we are going to try some new stuff.  I guess I am sort of excited...it is just taking some time.  

When we walked into the produce section, I instantly recognized one of my favorite fruits from Guatemala.  We called them sapotes.  In the Caribbean they are called sapodillas, and they are called both here in Florida.  Actually they were listed here as a mamey sapote.  My friends from Mexico who live here called it a mamey (not like mommy, but like ma'am A)

Here's a description: 

The fruit is a large ellipsoid berry, 4–8 cm in diameter, very much resembling a smooth-skinned potato and containing two to five seeds. Inside, its flesh ranges from a pale yellow to an earthy brown color with a grainy texture akin to that of a well-ripened pear. The seeds are black and resemble beans, with a hook at one end that can catch in the throat if swallowed. The fruit has a high latex content and does not ripen until picked, whereupon the fruit softens to a firmness and appearance very similar to that of a fuzzy, brown-skinned kiwifruit.

Zapota tree with fruits in Tamil Nadu,India.

The fruit has an exceptionally sweet, malty flavor. Many believe the flavor bears a striking resemblance to caramel or a pear candied with brown sugar. The unripe fruit is hard to the touch and contains high amounts of saponin, which has astringent properties similar to tannin, drying out the mouth.

I used to eat these for dinner every night - oh so delectable.  Mine is sitting on my counter ripening as we speak!  I'll spend some time and see what cool recipes we can come up with for these babies.  Can't wait. 

Beehive cupcakes - 24th of July recipes

Well - so much for a great photo.  I stole this one - the yellow pan on the left is the cool cupcake pan used for this recipe.  I've been able to find it at Deseret Book (online and in the stores).  The cupcakes on the right look nothing like these babies, so please disregard them.  Thanks   

I did find my camera - but I'm feeling too lazy tonight to take photos, and the lighting is all wrong.  They'd end up looking orange or green or something.  I'll try and get some pictures posted in better light tomorrow.

Happy 24th of July!!!!  (early of course)

I know, you might be wondering what that is all about, but if you are from Utah, or ever lived there, you will know that it is the state's biggest holiday.  It is the day when the pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley, and their leader Brigham Young proclaimed, 'This is the place'.  The trek was over, and the Mormon pioneers (my ancestors) would be relatively safe from the mobbing and expulsions which launched their exodus from Missouri to Utah.  

In honor of the 24th of July, I am always seeking a good recipe or idea.  And while I'd like to think that I did this on purpose...I didn't.  I bought one of these beehive cupcake pans a while ago, and then someone gave me another as a thank you gift.  Now I have 2.  The more the merrier I always say.  As these were baking, my kids asked if I had baked them for the 24th of July.  While I hadn't intentionally, I now had a reason and a cause.   

The first time I made these, we LOVED the taste.  The glaze dries in a way that makes the outside of these almost like a donut (really - there's no way to describe it other than REALLY yummy).  The inside isn't as sweet as a cupcake or as cake, but it is perfect.  

So, in my first attempt, I ended up filling the cups a little too full, and got lots of burnt cupcake all over my oven racks and the bottom of my oven.  

I decided that with two pans, - I would only 1.5 my recipe and see what happens.  

However, now that I'm at a MUCH lower altitude, I'm not sure if my very fluffy cupcakes were are result of the altitude, or because they weren't over filled.  (Note I later realized it was probably because I forgot to add the baking powder - I'll post later on the finished product...maybe it doesn't need it)

Moral of the story - next time, I'll divide the batter for 1 recipe into both pans.  I think it will be perfect. 

Finally - for posterity's sake - here's the recipe: 

1 c. butter

2 c. white sugar

4 eggs

1 T. vanilla

2.5 c. all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1 c. milk

(I hate this part - when I'm typing up the recipe and realize I forgot to add something...editor's note - I forgot to add the baking powder - maybe that's why they didn't explode on me this time!...I'll let you know how they taste) 

Preheat oven to 350*

Grease and flour the pans

Mix flour, baking powder and salt, and set aside

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 

Beat in eggs, one at a time

Stir in the vanilla

Beat in flour mixture alternately with one cup of milk, mixing just until incorporated. 

Pour batter into prepared pans - take care not to fill more than 3/4ths full.

Bake in preheated oven for 60-70 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  (At sea level, this only took 52 minutes). 

Cool for 10 minutes

Invert pans onto cooling sheets and cool cupcakes an additional 10 minutes

Place cooking rack onto waxed paper and glaze (recipe below)

Glaze

1/4 c. milk

3/4 c. white sugar

1/2 t. almond extract

Combine, and slowly drizzle over cupcakes using a spoon.  Allow glaze time to dry/harden prior to serving.  

Shepherd Pie

SO...the food pantry challenge hasn't worked very well since we were out of town for a week, and since we packed our food storage, and then the pantry as well.
However, a lady from church brought us dinner tonight and she brought a shepherd's pie.

My husband loved it.  My kids loved it.  I loved it.  We asked her for the recipe.
I didn't take pictures and I haven't made it, but I wanted to get it down, because I'll make it in the future.
Our favorite part was the sauce...we couldn't figure out what it was.

So - Nickie's instructions are:
Brown hamburger
Mix in 1 can campbells tomato soup (not diluted)
Add a can of green beans
Top with mashed potatoes and shredded cheese and bake for 20 minutes at 350* until heated through and cheese melts.  

Strawberry Pie

I received this recipe many years ago from a mom of one of the missionaries who was serving in our area.
My family literally fought over who got the last piece today.
Fresh strawberries, with a fluffy cheesecake like filling - a perfect way to celebrate the first official day of summer!
While this recipe needs a little bit of time to chill, 3-4 hours, the ingredients are simple and it doesn't take long to put together.
Best of all - it just looks beautiful

Wash and hull 20 +/- medium to large sized strawberries.
Cut into slices approx. 1/8-1/4 inch thick, and lay slices on a paper towel to absorb the extra water & juices.

In a mixing bowl, cream 8 oz. cream cheese, and gradually add 1/4 c. sugar
Add 1/2 c. sour cream, and 1 t. vanilla
Mix thoroughly
Gently fold in 1 c. cool whip topping

Place a layer of strawberry slices in the bottom of a graham cracker crust
(Pastry crust may be used, but it just isn't as amazing without the graham crust)
Top with cream cheese mixture
Arrange strawberries on top
Chill for 4 hours before serving

Boston Baked Beans

Pantry challenge #4.
Yesterday was a cheat day.  We had a garage sale, and then tuna fish sandwiches (from the pantry) for lunch.  Dinner was out of town with a cousin.
Day #5 - Sunday after church chili, and we'll be having pancakes for dinner  :)

Truly however, this post is about Boston Baked Beans - yum

Our daughter was baptized last week and we fed the troops for a couple of days.  We decided to have barbecued pork sandwiches for dinner Sunday evening, and I was looking for the perfect complement.  

I came across this recipe at all recipes.com. 

Here's what my kids said:

"Wow mom!, I've been looking for these beans my whole life.  Always trying them at different places, but this is the first time I've found them - these are my favorite!"

"Mom, these beans are awesome!!!" 

Need I say anything more?  

Honestly, my kids were literally begging me to let them at them 2 days before I was ready to serve them. 

Afterwards, we headed out camping for a family reunion, and I got requests from my brother in law to bring the left overs along.  

Definitely a hit. 

So, as I prepare to move, I thought I'd get them onto my online cookbook here so that I don't lose them.  I used pinto beans because that's what I had on hand.  I can imagine that navy beans would even be that much more amazing.  This recipe is scaled to feed about 12 people (but I found that it makes much more than I expected in reality)

• 4 cups navy beans
• 1 pound bacon
• 2 onions, finely diced
• 1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 
  
• Soak beans overnight in cold water. Simmer the beans in the same water until tender, approximately 1 to 2 hours. Drain and reserve the liquid.  
• 
  
• OR - rinse and sort beans, then place in pot - covered with water.  Bring to a boil.  Let boil 3 minutes.  Cover with lid, remove from heat and let steep.  
• Drain water, cover with fresh water (this helps de-gas beans too) and boil for 1-2 hours until softened.  (This is the speedy method I used). 
• 
  
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Arrange the beans in a 2 quart bean pot or casserole dish by placing a portion of the beans in the bottom of dish, and layering them with bacon and onion.
• 
  
• In a saucepan, combine molasses, salt, pepper, dry mustard, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil and pour over beans. Pour in just enough of the reserved bean water to cover the beans. Cover the dish with a lid or aluminum foil.
• 
  
• Bake for 3 to 4 hours in the preheated oven, until beans are tender. Remove the lid about halfway through cooking, and add more liquid if necessary to prevent the beans from getting too dry.

Food Pantry Challenge

We are moving in about a month.
So - I'm starting a food pantry/storage challenge.
We have a BIG (enormous, gigantic - you get the picture) food storage.  Just in case of emergency.
My goal is not to go to the grocery for anything other than fresh produce, milk, eggs, & bread.  I'm focused on using up what I have, before I go buy more stuff so that I'll have a ton to pack and move.

Anything in my fridge, freezer, pantry or food storage is game.
We'll see if I can last a month!  

I cleaned out my pan cupboard.  I now have about 4 pans to last me a month.  We'll see how I do - I should have remembered to keep a frying pan out.  Oh well.

Here's my progress so far:
Day 1
Tacos
I found old shells in my pantry - still in the plastic (even though they had passed their expiration date - shh..my family doesn't know that part).
Hamburger from the freezer - already cooked - just defrost and add taco seasoning.
Chopped lettuce, tomatoes, onions, & shredded cheese.
10 minutes  prep. (To bake and crispen up those taco shells and chop everything) and wallah! 

Day 2
Mexican Cheese Enchiladas
I found a brick of Mexican cheese in the fridge
Onion in the pantry
Enchilada sauce in the pantry
Corn tortillas on hand (I store them on top of the fridge)
Here's a link to the recipe, but the condensed directions follow.

10 minutes to prep - fry tortillas in olive oil.  Dip in enchilada sauce. Fill with cheese and onions & roll.
Bake 15 minutes to melt cheese.
Serve with shredded lettuce, sour cream, chopped tomatoes.

I'm liking this - and amazed (only day 2 you know) at what I'm coming up with so quickly!

Big Top - Giant Cupcake Cake & Tips

It all started with a cupcake pinata. It was all they had.
Well, other than sponge bob - which wasn't an option.

I bought the pinata, and tried to come up with a theme idea to work with the pinata.

We came up with Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice.
Lots of pink and white
Lots and lots of sugary sweet candy too.

I facebooked all of my peeps to see if anyone had the giant cupcake pan.
Luckly someone did, and let me borrow it.
She also told me that when she tried it - it didn't work.

A silicone cake pan with a somewhat sketchy history.... a little daunting.
I spent a lot of time online trying to figure out the secret to these cakes.

Many people said that pound cake recipes work great.
I don't have one of those.

I improvised.
Here's what I learned:

Use 2 (yes 2) regular cake mixes.
Instead of 3 eggs, use 2 for each mix. This will make the cake a little more dense, and not so light and fluffy. (Still good though)
Follow the rest of the cake directions as directed.
Liberally grease (spray) and flour silicone pans.
Preheat the oven to 325*. Make sure it reaches this heat before placing anything in the oven.

Fill top cake pan with about 2.5 cups of batter.
Fill bottom cake pan with approx. 3.5 cups of batter.
(Make cupcakes for the kids with remaining batter - I got about 9)

Place silicone molds/pans on a cooling rack.
Place cooling rack into a cookie sheet - preferably one that is smaller than the cooling rack.
Yes, it may seem a like it is perched a little precariously.
This helps ensure airflow and even baking.

Place both in the oven.
Remove top cake after approx. 45 minutes. Prior to removing from oven, check for doneness with a toothpick.
If the toothpick comes out clean when you poke it, the cake is done. If not, give it some more time.
Bake the bottom cake for at least an hour, and possibly and additional 10 minutes as well.
Give it the ol' toothpick test as well.

Remove from oven, and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.
Gently twist and it should pop right out of the pan.

Allow to cool.

Cakes can be placed back in the pans once cooled. To remove inflated cake that rounds over the top of the pan, simply cut across, leveling knife with the top of the pan.  Use a serrated knife.

Assemble with frosting and decorate any old way you choose!
We thought it turned out great!

Here's my daughter's rendition.

Barbecue cookies, Memorial Day treats

I'm a stealer.  Yep, found these on a close acquaintance's blog (that would be one of my sisters). 

I really love novel foods.  This is one of them.  

I think we are going to make these for a barbecue - Memorial Day possibly? 

Simple, quick, novel...right up my alley. 

Thanks Ames.  I know...thou shalt not steal.  But then, how could I resist? 

What you need:

Vanilla Wafers

Grasshopper cookies

Frosting

Coconut 

What to do:

• Scoop out frosting into three bowls.  Leave one bowl white and add red food coloring to one, and yellow food coloring to the other.
• Take a vanilla wafer and spread white frosting on the bottom.  Make it sloppy.  You want the white to spill over the edge a bit.
• Put one of the grasshopper cookies on top of the white frosting.
• Spread yellow frosting on half the grasshopper cookie.
• Spread red frosting on the other half of the cookie.  Remember, you want it to be sloppy and spill over the edges.
• Put your shredded coconut in a bag with green food coloring and mix it all around to coat evenly.
• Sprinkle some of the coconut on top of the red and yellow frosting. 
• Put another vanilla wafer on top of the whole ensemble. 
• Eat.
• Repeat.

Southern Scramble - with Grits

My husband and I recently spent some time in South Carolina.  There we tried a myriad of foods.  Among them, fried pickles, fried okra, sweet potato french fries, sweet potato souffle, hash, ribs, barbecue (how could you visit the south without ribs or barbecue?), and my favorite GRITS.   
Honestly, several years ago I thought I'd try my hand at grits and had a disastrous experience with them.  We all thought they were pretty gross.

For some unknown reason, I put the box in the pantry and forgot about them.
When we returned from SC, I pulled out the box determined to figure out how to make these the right way since I'd enjoyed them so much.

Here's a recipe I found on the back of the box, that I just happened to have ingredients for on hand.

1.5 c. water

1/2 c. Quaker Quick Grits, uncooked

1 T. margarine or butter

1 c. shredded Swiss cheese

6 beaten eggs

1 c. cubed ham

2 T. sliced green onions (or whatever is on hand)

1/2 t. salt (optional)

1/8 t. pepper

In large skillet, bring water to a boil, and slowly stir in grits.  Reduce heat and simmer 3-5 minutes, or until thickened - stirring frequently. 

Stir in margarine. 

Combine 1/2 c. cheese with remaining ingredients; mix well. 

Pour into grits, stir lightly. 

Cook over medium heat until eggs are soft set and cheese is melted, stirring occasionally. 

Sprinkle with remaining cheese. 

Note - Once grits and egg mixture are combined, do no over mix.  

Serves 6

German or Puff Pancakes

This morning I decided to make something domestic for my family since I've been out of town a lot in the past couple of weeks. It is nice to get back into my routine, and put something tempting on the table for my family.

While I have several recipes for german pancakes, most of them have a ton of butter and turn out super greasy.

I went in search of something new this morning, and happened across a recipe from The Food Network.

I actually followed this recipe almost to the T (not a common occurence), and I loved how it turned out. Due to the addition of a little bit of sugar and vanilla, this didn't taste eggy, and had more of a custard like taste.

Here's a link. 

Here's the recipe~hope you enjoy it as much as my family did - we'll be making this one over and over!

• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup milk, warmed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (OR I Can't believe it's not butter)
• 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons vegetable shortening
• Confectioners' sugar, canned peaches or pears, berries, or maple syrup

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.  Place a well seasoned 10 inch cast iron skillet in the oven for 10 minutes (or as oven is preheating.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt, sugar, milk, vanilla, and butter. Whisk in the flour to make a smooth batter.

Remove skillet from oven, and brush the inside with the shortening. Pour in the batter and bake for 15 minutes.

Lower the oven to 350 degrees F. and continue baking until puffed and golden brown, about 13 to 15 minutes more. Run a knife around the edge of the skillet. Sift the confectioners' sugar over the pancake. Serve immediately in the skillet with maple syrup, marinated berries, or glazed apples and pears.

Bumble Bee Birthday Cake

My daughter wanted a bumble bee birthday party, complete with the bee hive cake. After spending a lot of time on line checking out ideas, here's what I ultimately came up with.

I used two cake mixes - yellow and chocolate and reserved about 1/2 c. of each, then added the yellow to the chocolate, and the chocolate to the yellow and swirled it to create a marbled effect.  

I baked the cakes in 3 separate pans/dishes.  

For the base I used a glass pyrex bowl.  For the next layer, I used a cake mold I've had for several years.  You know, the doll or princess cake mold that makes the skirt, and you slip the doll top into...I just covered the hole at the base with parchment paper.  The top layer was a pyrex like small dish that I use to serve salsa or sour cream etc. in...all greased and floured liberally.  

I baked the smallest bowl for about 40 minutes and the larger ones for an hour.  After they'd cooled for 10 minutes, I removed them from the pans and let them cool completely.  

I ended up slicing the second layer in half (where it coned the most) and used it for a higher layer.  I assembled it all using a butter cream frosting.  

(And yes - this photo is sideways - I don't know why, and I don't know how to fix it.  I had other photos here, and they all 'broke') But, you get the picture. 

One of the ideas I found online suggested heating or melting my frosting (I just used a yellow buttercream - about 3 cups) and pouring it over the cake.  While it was a little weird, that's what I ended up doing.  At first, I thought it was a little gloppy (could've been too hot?) but it poured right over, but wasn't smooth or even, and left a few holes as it dripped down.  I decided a real beehive isn't truly symmetrical and perfect, and really liked the effect.

I placed it in the fridge and let it set.  The frosting actually became quite hard, and the flavor changed - it became yummier!

As the cake cooled, I went to work on the little bumblebees.  I'd seen several ideas online, but was still waiting for my inspiration.  I decided to use almonds and cover them with chocolate.  Just as I was ready to melt the chocolate, I had found my inspiration.  Instead of brown with yellow strips, I decided to go the other way.
I melted white chocolate bark and colored it yellow.  Then I dipped roasted almonds into the chocolate, and the placed them on parchment paper to dry.
I melted semi-sweet chocolate chips and drew stripes on each bee, and added yellow and white gumdrop slices for wings (I preferred the yellow in the end because the white looked too much like houseflies) - the chocolate stripes easily secured the wings.
I piped 2 white dots for eyes using royal frosting, and then added pupils with a toothpick and melted chocolate.  Really, they were super cute little guys, and really fun to make.  They reminded me of sesame street characters with their googly eyes.

And yes, some turned out better than others.  I was able to re-adjust them knocking off extra bits after it had dried.  

Today I affixed the bumblebees to the cake.  While I started out using royal frosting, I found that melted chocolate seems to glue things better in this case.
As a final touch, I added a few daisies.
The best part of all was that the cake was super cute, and tasted great too!

Ice Cream Tacos

Ice Cream Tacos??!!
I know - it just doesn't sound very appetizing - What a weird combination...

Although it doesn't sound great, we found this recipe many years ago in a 'Kid's Cookbook' by Pillsbury.  This is the second time we've taken these babies to school for a birthday treat and the kids were fascinated by the unusual prospect, and loved them.  As odd as the idea seems, the corn tortilla offsets the sweet ice cream, adding a delightful salty flavor as well as a fantastic crunch.

We made these the first couple of times strictly using chocolate chips for the chocolate part, but then I started using crushed up almond brittle, instead of the peanuts, and we REALLY love it this way.  Here's a link to the almond brittle. The almond brittle uses butterscotch chips which add a profound depth that satisfies without overpowering the chocolate.  Finally, this is a really fun kid friendly recipe - nothing too complicated for a kid.   Of course double or triple or quadruple this recipe as needed.   

 8 taco shells 

1/3 cup almond brittle, crushed

1/4 c. chocolate chips 

2 cups ice cream (any flavor)

 Heat oven to 350 degrees. 

Stand taco shells up in baking dish/pan. If needed, crumple up pieces of foil into balls, and stick them in pan to prop up taco shells. 

Heat taco shells for 5 minutes or until they are crisp and look light golden-brown. (If freezing these for a longer period of time or over-night, bake for 8-10 minutes to help retain crispness).  

Remove from oven, and let taco shells cool in pan for 10 minutes or until they aren't warm when you touch them. Leave taco shells in pan. 

Measure out almond brittle. Spoon 1 teaspoon into bottom of each taco shell. Reserve extra for later.  

Melt chocolate chips and spoon  into a small sandwich size plastic bag and set aside for a moment.   

Measure out 1/4 cup of ice cream. Carefully spoon 1/4 c. ice cream into each taco shell.  Sprinkle remaining brittle liberally over taco shells.

Snip a very small opening in the corner of the plastic bag of melted chocolate and drizzle chocolate over taco shells decoratively.  

Cover with foil and freeze for at least 15 minutes prior to serving.