Another cake!

It seems like I'm usually making cakes for children, but occasionally there is an opportunity to make one for a friend of mine! For my friend Laura's 30th birthday (on VERY short notice) I tried to think of something simple but elegant! I figured chocolate is always a safe bet! I like the contrast of the white against the chocolate. Enjoy!

Oh heavenly day....

These chocolate lava cakes were TO DIE FOR! I can't even tell you how amazingly good these were. I served them to a group of friends at a bunko night and we all sat around and mmm'd and ahhhh'd about them! My little kids liked them equally well. This recipe is definitely a keeper and very impressive! Much easier than you would think too!

6 TBL margarine spread

3 squares bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate

1/2 C. sugar

6 TBL flour

pinch of salt

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

powdered sugar (for dusting)

Grease 4 custard cups and set aside. Microwave margarine and chocolate for 45 seconds or until chocolate is melted: stir until smooth. Beat in granulated sugar, flour and salt until blended. Beat in eggs, yolks and vanilla. Spoon into prepared cups. Refrigerate 1 hour or until ready to bake.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Arrange ramekins on baking sheet. Bake 13 minutes or until edges are firm, but centers are still slightly soft (DO NOT OVERBAKE). Cool 5 minutes. Unmold onto plates and dust with powdered sugar. Serve with ice cream immediately! Get ready to make a second batch.... Mmmmmmm!

*recipe comes from "100 Best Chocolate Recipes"

Valentine's Day Baking!

Okay, so I love baking! And holidays are a perfect time to try out some new and fun baking ideas! I sure had fun this year. Between school parties and other gatherings, there was ample opportunity for me to try some new things! Here are some pictures of some of my sugar cookies, and cupcakes I made this year!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Recipe

Here is a dinner dish that everyone in my family loves, even the little ones. It's a bit time-consuming, but worth every minute! And it makes a lovely presentation at the table. This recipe can be easily doubled or halved to fit your family's needs.

4 chicken breasts (thawed and pounded to 1/2" thickness)

4 slices of thinly sliced ham (I used a lunch meat ham)

4 slices swiss cheese

2 eggs, whisked together in bowl

1 C. bread crumbs (canned kind is fine- you can add crushed corn flakes or ritz crackers to spruce it up a bit)

*place 1 slice of ham and one slice of swiss cheese on each piece of chicken, and roll chicken up as tightly as you can (the thinner it is, the more easily it will roll.) Secure with a couple toothpicks to maintain the rolled shape.

*Roll each chicken breast in egg, and then in bread mixture. Place seam side down in a greased casserole dish. Cover and bake at 350 for about an hour. Check that chicken is no longer pink. When rolled up like this, chicken can take awhile to cook because of its thickness, so make sure to test it in the middle of a thick roll to make sure its done. Covering the chicken will keep it from drying out.

(while chicken is cooking, prepare the following sauce)

2 TBL. Butter

2 TBL. Flour

2 Cups milk

1 tsp. dry mustard (regular mustard would work too)

a few dashes of salt and pepper to taste

4 slices swiss cheese

*Melt butter in saucepan over stove. When melted, whisk in the flour and add the milk. Cook until milk is frothy and just about boiling (be careful to continue stirring and watch it closely so it doesn't overflow). Turn heat to med/low and add the spices and cheese (break up the cheese into small pieces to ease the melting process). Stir continuously over low heat to prevent burning or sticking! As soon as cheese is melted, pull off heat or keep warm until ready to serve. Spoon sauce over chicken and enjoy!

Doggie Birthday Cake

My baby turned 2 this week! He had a dog party because he loves all things dog. He loved this cake, and even recognized it as a dog! Wow- I guess that was a compliment :-) I had to add some bone shaped cookies!

Valentine's Day Window Cookies

This is one I'd been wanting to try for awhile. I think I first saw this idea in a Family Fun magazine, and I had to try it out! The kids were asking to make Valentine's cookies and they seemed a bit skeptical of my idea, but they absolutely loved these. They enjoyed peeling the candies for me and eating a few in between! I was telling my oldest son about them on his way home from school, and his reaction was "yuck. Jolly Ranchers and cookies don't mix!" But as soon as he saw them he had to have one, and yes... he loved it. He took them to a party they were having today to share with his friends. Here's how you do it... You can use your favoite sugar cookie recipe. I'll include the one I used below.

1 C. Butter (softened)

2 C. Sugar

2 eggs

2 T. Milk

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/2 tsp. Salt

2 tsp. Baking Powder

4 C. Flour

*Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, milk, vanilla, salt and baking powder. Mix until incorporated. Slowly add in the flour. Chill for 1 hour.

After your cookie dough is ready, roll it out on a floured surface. Find a large and small heart shaped cookie cutter (or you can use a round one with a heart shape in the middle.) Cut out your large heart, and then cut the small heart from the center. (I used the small leftover hearts to make regular sugar cookies to frost later). VERY CAREFULLY transfer your cut out heart onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (the candy will stick, so I highly recommend the paper). Place a jolly rancher (or other hard candy) in the center. When your tray is full, bake at 350 for about 8-10 minutes. The candy doesn't melt until the end, so don't worry. Let them cool for awhile for the centers to firm up. I think I will try these again at St. Patricks Day. They were a big hit with the kids!

No Bake Cookies

So last night I got the baking bug, and decided to pull out an old favorite. I hadn't tried it for years, but they turned out really good! My kids don't like coconut, so I left it out of 1/2 of it, but I really prefer them with coconut. Here's the recipe. 2 C. Sugar 1/2 C. Milk 1/2 C. Butter or Margarine (I always use real butter) 3 TBL. Cocoa 1 tsp. Salt *Melt these together on stovetop, and boil for 1 minute. Then stir in... 1 C. Coconut 3 C. Oatmeal 1 tsp. Vanilla 1/2 C. nuts (optional- I didn't use them this time) Stir all together until chocolate mixture is incorporated. Scoop into 1" balls and place on cookie sheet. Refrigerate until firm. Enjoy!

Number 8 shaped birthday cake with monster trucks

This cake was created (obviously) for my son's 8th birthday. He had a monster truck theme, so I tried to incorporate the shape of an 8 with a monster truck smash theme. I used 2 angel food cake pans and trimmed one of the edges of each to place them together to form an 8. I think it turned out pretty well, and it was quite easy!

Darth Vader Birthday Cake

I made this cake for my son's 10th birthday. He so badly wanted something Star Wars, and I finally decided to attempt this Darth Vader mask. It's a bit lopsided, but he was happy with it! I didn't want to do black frosting and stain all the kids' faces, so I went with a dark chocolate and it worked out okay! I started with a 9x13 pan and carved out the shape. Then I used some of the trim pieces to fill in and add relief to his helmet and nose piece. I also carved some spaces out so they would be indented.