Funfetti Cake & Whipped Cream Frosting

For Rylee's 1st birthday I wanted to make her a little funfetti cake from scratch- not that she even ate any of it..she was ready for bed by the time we gave it to her. Anyway, it turned out pretty good! I used a whipped cream frosting from a website that has healthy recipes for baby's 1st bday cake. I don't think I would use it on this cake next time. It wasn't bad though, I just think I could find a better one for it. I love how funfetti looks. Except I didn't even think to take a picture of it..here's the only one I have (even though you can't see the cake itself). I think this picture is so funny. If you don't know what funfetti looks like, well, shame on you. jk. It's pretty much like a white cake but with sprinkles mixed into the batter.

Funfetti Cake

Ingredients:

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon sal

t1 1/2 cups white sugar

1/2 cup shortening

3 egg whites

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 TBLS. (more or less) of rainbow sprinkles/jimmies

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sift together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar. Then cut in shortening until fine crumbs are formed. Next add the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Beat at low speed for 1 minute, then on high for 2 minutes, scraping the bowl frequently. Stir in sprinkles.
Bake for 25-30 min.

Egg whites may be beaten separately before adding to mix for a lighter cake.

Whipped Cream Frosting

Makes 1 frosting for a 2 layer cake

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 cup white sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Directions:

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar salt and vanilla until smooth. In a small bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold into the cream cheese mixture.

Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls & Bake Sale!

These cinnamon rolls are amazing! I'm not sure if they're actually "Cinnabon" cinnamon rolls, but to me they're just as good and I would rather make a batch of these than spend the money on one from Cinnabon. I first made this recipe back in 8th grade home-ec and i've made it many times since then. I made these really huge this time since it was for a bake sale we did for the activities fair at Matt's school. I also made chocolate chip ice cream cookies but this time I used Ben & Jerry's Cookies & Milk ice cream (I loveee that ice cream!) instead of vanilla. And I made peanut butter rice krispie topped brownies. The bake sale went great! We sold almost everything I brought. One guy said the brownies were the best dessert he ever had! Then tried to recruit other people to try them and ended up buying one for someone else just so they could experience it.

So I have to tell you about something, it's pretty nasty though..stop reading now if you don't want to hear about it. I have flour in a metal canister I keep on the kitchen counter. It ran out yesterday so I went to refill it and grabbed the flour bag off the shelf and took it to the counter. Opened it and looked inside to find a bunch of little bugs! Gross!! I checked the rest of the bags of flour I had on the shelf and they had bugs in them too! I looked it up on the internet and they're called Weevils. I've never heard of them or had this happen before.. I guess they're pantry bugs that like to live in things like flour, cereal and pasta. My cereal and pasta was fine, thankfully. But I learned that they can already be in your flour when you buy it. The larvae and bug parts are allowed in small amounts. So it's best to keep the flour in the freezer or the fridge or atleast freeze it for 4-5 days after buying before using (to kill any eggs that might be in it). Also I guess they don't like the smell of bay leaves, so I layed some of those around the area where I keep my flour on the shelf. So I hope there's no more bugs or eggs still around! I bought new flour and have it in the freezer now. And don't worry, these were made with the 'good flour.'

Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls

For the rolls:

1 1/4 oz. active dry yeast

1 c. warm milk

1/2 c. granulated sugar

1/3 c. margarine, melted

1 t. salt

4 c. all-purpose flour

2 eggs

For the filling:

1 c. packed brown sugar

2 1/2 Tbls. cinnamon

1/3 c. margarine, softened

For the icing:

1 stick (8 T.) margarine, softened

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1/2 c. (2 oz.) cream cheese

1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/8 t. salt

Directions:

For the rolls, dissolve the yeast in warm milk in a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon.

Add the sugar, margarine, salt eggs and flour. Mix well.

Knead dough into a large ball, using your hands lightly dusted with flour. Put in bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hr.

Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until approx. 21 inches long and 16 in. wide. It should be about 1/4 in. thick.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

For the filling, combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Spread softened margarine evenly over the surface of the dough, and then sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar evenly over the surface.

Working carefully from the top (21 in. side) roll the dough down to the bottom edge. Pinch edges to keep seam closed. (May need to wet fingers)

Cut the rolled dough with a thread into 1 3/4 in. slices and place 6 at a time on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 10 min. or until lightly brown on top.

While rolls bake, combine the icing ingredients in a bowl. Beat well with an electric mixer until fluffy.

When the rolls come out of the oven, coat each generously with icing.

Yield: 12 rolls

*When cutting cinnamon rolls, use a piece of thread. Place it under dough and cross over top to slice. Using a knife will squish them, this will prevent that from happening.

Samoas Bars

This recipe came from Baking Bites and when I saw it I knew I had to make them! I love the girl scout samoas cookies! These were really really good and tasted a lot like the cookie, but in bar form. Matt doesn't even like coconut but he tried these and thought they were really good. I think because the coconut was toasted so it had a different texture. Either way, that's success to me. The only downfall was they took some time to complete. It's not one of those things you can whip up and be eating soon.

Ok, so I have a few tips. First of all, if you've never toasted coconut before (like me..before this recipe) it's really easy but it burns fast! I checked it several times and it was still white, then I checked again just a couple minutes later and some of it was burned. I was able to use most of it but I had to do a second small batch. Also don't forget to stir it so it's evenly toasted. Next, when it came to dipping the bottoms in the chocolate, I found it a lot easier to just coat the bottom of the bar using a spoon rather than dipping. When I dipped, some of the bottom would crumble off. I made these the night before I needed them and just stored them in the refrigerator then let them warm to room temperature when I needed them. Anyway, I really think you should go make these!

Homemade Samoas Bars

Cookie Base:

1/2 cup sugar

3/4 cup butter, softened

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

First, make the crust.Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 9×13-inch baking pan, or line with parchment paper.In a large bowl, cream together sugar and butter, until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla extract. Working at a low speed, gradually beat in flour and salt until mixture is crumbly, like wet sand. The dough does not need to come together. Pour crumbly dough into prepapred pan and press into an even layer.Bake for 20-25 minutes, until base is set and edges are lightly browned. Cool completely on a wire rack before topping.

Topping

3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)- I used sweetened

12-oz good-quality chewy caramels

1/4 tsp salt

3 tbsp milk

10 oz. (I needed more) dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips are ok)

Preheat oven to 300. Spread coconut evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet (preferably one with sides) and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.Put dollops of the topping all over the shortbread base. Using the spatula, spread topping into an even layer. Let topping set until cooled.When cooled, cut into 30 bars with a large knife or a pizza cutter (it’s easy to get it through the topping).

Once bars are cut, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. Dip the base of each bar into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment or wax paper. Transfer all remaining chocolate (or melt a bit of additional chocolate, if necessary) into a piping bag or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle bars with chocolate to finish.

Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.

Note: You can simply drizzle chocolate on top of the bars before slicing them up if you’re looking for yet an easier way to finish these off. You won’t need quite as much chocolate as noted above, and you won’t quite get the Samoas look, but the results will still be tasty.

Blackberry Cobbler

We found blackberries and raspberries on sale today and snagged them So we made a cobbler, of course. We used 1/2 blackberries and 1/2 raspberries and had berries left over. I like cobblers because they taste the same as a pie to me but a lot quicker and easier to make. So here's a great recipe we tried out, i'll be keeping this one!

Blackberry Cobbler

Serves 6 Prep: 15 min. Bake: 25 min

1-½ cup All-purpose Flour
1 cup Sugar, Divided
1-½ teaspoon Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
9 Tablespoons Cold Butter, Cut In Cubes
⅓ cups Boiling Water
2 Tablespoons Corn Starch
¼ cups Cold Water
1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
4 cups Fresh Blackberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
For the dough, mix the flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Cut in the butter until you have a coarse, crumbly mixture. Pour in the boiling water and stir together well so that all of the dough is wet. Set aside.

For the berries, dissolve the cornstarch in the cold water in a medium bowl. Add the lemon juice, berries, and remaining sugar. Mix together well. Transfer berries to a 10-inch cast iron pan.

Heat mixture over medium heat until boiling, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
Drop spoonfuls of dough over the berry mixture and place the cast iron pan on a foil-lined cookie sheet and place in the oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the dough is golden brown and the berries are thick and bubbly.
(If you don’t have a cast iron pan, bring to a boil in a sauce pan and bake in a 9×9 baking dish.)

Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies

When I saw this recipe on pickypalate I knew I had to try it..soon. Ice cream..in cookies?? Sounds amazing! And they were! They were veryy soft and chewy, but they weren't too different than a typical chocolate chip cookie. I used vanilla ice cream like the recipe calls for. The ice cream maybe just added an extra hint of vanilla since cookies normally have vanilla extract in them anyway. But I wonder what other flavors would do to it. I keep thinking of all the flavors you could try, I think I want to do rocky road next time.

Ice Cream Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 sticks softened butter
1 Cup granulated sugar
3/4 Cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 Tablespoons pure vanilla
Heaping 1/2 Cup vanilla ice cream (frozen from container)
4 Cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 bag chocolate chips (I used milk choc.)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add in eggs and vanilla until well combined. Add in ice cream until combined.
2. Place flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl; mix. Add to wet ingredients along with the chocolate chips; mix until just combined.

3. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop dough onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until cookies are cooked through. Let cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack.
3-4 dozen cookies

Cookies 'N Cream Cupcakes

Sorry, no story today, just recipe. I found this one on Annie's Eats. She has tons of cupcake recipes. Also, her photos are a lot better. Someday though i'll get a nice camera with super fancy lenses. Until then, this is what you get. We really liked these. I liked how there's half an oreo on the bottom of the cupcake. Usually i'm a huge chocolate fan, but the oreos in these were enough that I didn't feel like it was lacking. If you're going to wait a little while before eating these, I would say to wait to put the 1/2 oreo garnish on top. I noticed they started to get soft after a while. Maybe because I had them in the fridge for a little while? I'm not sure. I also found an oreo cupcake recipe that i'll have to try next time. It's quite different since it has a chocolate base and oreo frosting.

Cookies N Cream Cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the cupcakes:

24 Oreo halves, with cream filling attached

2¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

8 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 2/3 cup sugar

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

2 tsp. vanilla extract1 cup milk

20 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped (I quarter them)

For the frosting:

8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tbsp. vanilla extract
4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

2 tbsp. heavy cream

For garnish:

Oreo cookie crumbs

24 Oreo cookie halves

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line the wells of two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners. Place an Oreo halve in the bottom of each liner, cream side up. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; stir together with a fork to blend and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar and beat together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Blend in the egg whites one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, beat in half of the dry ingredients just until incorporated. Add the milk and beat just until combined, then mix in the remaining dry ingredients. Gently fold in the chopped Oreos with a rubber spatula until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over-mix.

Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pans 5-10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting, combine the cream cheese and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 minute. Blend in the vanilla extract. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar until incorporated and smooth, 1-2 minutes. Add the heavy cream to the bowl and beat on medium-low speed just until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium-high and whip for 4 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Frost the cooled cupcakes as desired. Sprinkle with Oreo crumbs and garnish with Oreo halves.

Yield: 24 cupcakes, I had quite a bit more though, like 32

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