Desserts

Salted Caramel Corn | Make Ahead Mondays {GIVEAWAY CLOSED}

December 3, 2012 by Rebecca 280 Comments

Update: The Pick Giveaway Winner plugin chose Christi P. as the winner of the Whirly Pop and Coconut Oil. Look for the email I’ve sent you, Christi! I can’t even wait for you to get to try these things. Congratulations!

My Grandma is one of my biggest cooking heroes. She has spent the majority of her life feeding people. My Grandpa, her husband, was a pastor who couldn’t walk away from someone who looked hungry, and everyone looked hungry to Grandpa. I’ve mentioned it before, but it bears repeating that one of my most treasured possessions is my collection of recipe cards handwritten for me by Grandma in my first years of marriage. There is just nothing to compare to road-tested recipes written by the hand of someone you love bigger than the bay. The only drawback? Well, maybe I get just a touch weepy whenever I make her recipes. In other words? I weep a lot.

The recipe I’m sharing today is a holiday staple. I only allow myself to make it from December first through January thirty first because otherwise I’d be the size of a house. We give bags of this to friends, Romans and countrymen. In other other words? We give it to EVERYONE. If you walk near my house in Advent, you’re getting a bag full of Salted Caramel Corn shoved in your hands. It’s just the way we do things, because it’s how Grandma does it.

And since we’re talking about Grandma, let me tell you, she was ahead of her time. Grandma was doing Salted Caramel WAY before anyone else. As in decades. When salted caramel hit the food scene I was all, “What? You mean other people DIDN’T salt their caramel?” Honestly. I was agog. Aghast. Alarmed. Arsey-versey. Shall I stop now? Please say yes. I’m all out of words that mean agape that begin with ‘A’. Oh, no I didn’t. Oh yes, I did… Astounded, awestruck, astonished, amazed…

We were, however, talking SALTED Caramel Corn. On the back of the recipe card, Grandma wrote about the final step of the process, “This is what makes it crisp and it does not stick to your teeth-” I’m neither an orthodontist nor have I played one on t.v., but many of my kids’ braces wearing friends are able to eat this with no issues! If you’re looking for a caramel corn that fits the bill for your favourite dental appliance sporting pals, this is the one!

Think of this as the ultimate in caramel corn. It’s perfectly caramelled (new word. I made it up), just a touch salty, crispy and not at all sticky and is totally simple to make. I promise you many accolades and much affection (more ‘A’ words!) if you make a batch of two of these to give away. Here’s where ‘Make Ahead Mondays’ comes into play. This caramel corn is good for about ten days after it’s made. One batch makes roughly eight quarts. Make a batch, bag it up and give it away for the next few days. If it starts softening a bit, crisp it up in a 250°F oven for a few minutes. This is a room-temperature storage item. You want to spread some joy? ” The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear” AND give them a bag of this stuff. I’m pretty sure Buddy would approve. (My final ‘A’ word.)

If you want to try a sample of this good stuff, I’ll be selling it as a fundraiser for Cookies for Kids’ Cancer at the 26th Annual Arts and Crafts Fair at Houghton College in Houghton, New York tomorrow (Tuesday, December 4th) and Wednesday the 5th. Come on down and see me!

Salted Caramel Corn | Make Ahead Mondays

There is nothing that can compare to Grandma's Salted Caramel Corn with its brown sugar, nutty browned butter and touch of salt. Grandma is a genius.

Ingredients

2 cups brown sugar
1 cup butter
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
8 quarts plain (unseasoned, unsalted) popcorn in a very large mixing bowl

Instructions

Line 2 half-sheet pans with silpats, parchment paper or non-stick foil. Preheat oven to 250°F.

Combine brown sugar, butter, corn syrup, vanilla and salt in a heavy, medium-sized saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the pan from the heat and add the baking soda. It will foam up big time! Don't worry, it's to be expected.

Pour the molten caramel over the popped corn in the bowl and stir gently but thoroughly to evenly coat the popcorn. Split the popcorn between the two prepared pans and spread it out evenly. Bake in the oven for 1 hour, stirring well every 15 minutes. Grandma says "Watch it closely during baking to ensure it doesn't stick and burn. If it tends to do this, lower the temp a tad. This step is what makes it crisp and it does not stick to your teeth!"

Let the caramel corn cool on the pan (if it is sufficiently done, you'll hear it crackling as it cools!), then store in an airtight container at room temperature.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/12/03/salted-caramel-corn-giveaway-and-make-ahead-mondays/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Now the GIVEAWAY! This one is sponsored by ME! Just me! No one else! Several years ago, my Aunt Molly sent my family a Whirly Pop. Have you ever heard of one of these? I hadn’t until she sent me one. It is, in short, the ULTIMATE popcorn popper. It’s a funky pan with built in stirring mechanism that makes up to SIX QUARTS of theatre style popcorn in under THREE MINUTES. I’m telling you, this is on the short list of things I would replace the same day if it broke, not that I see it breaking any time soon. Honestly, folks… it has a 25 year warranty on all moving parts. Can you beat that? We’ve put this thing through its paces for almost seven years and it’s still going strong! We seriously use this every. single. day. Sometimes we eat three batches a day! Oh! And you can make the best kettle corn of all time in these bad boys, too!

It is so much more inexpensive and incredibly healthier to pop your popcorn this way. Plain bagged popcorn is FAR less costly than and contains none of the weird, nasty preservatives found in the microwave stuff. You can get away with using much less oil when using the Whirly Pop than you would using a big pot on the stove. It’s pretty much the best way ever to make popcorn.

So here’s what I’m giving away. ONE WHIRLY POP…

and ONE JAR OF EXTRA VIRGIN COCONUT OIL.

Believe me, you haven’t had popcorn until you’ve had it popped with coconut oil in a Whirly Pop.

Here’s how to enter! (Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry method you use so each one is counted!)

Mandatory Entry:

What’s your favourite popcorn topping? Hot sauce? Plain old salt? Sardines? (What? Could happen!) Nutritional yeast? Talk to me!

Optional Entries:

Like Foodie with Family on facebook.

Follow Foodie with Family on Instagram.

Follow Foodie with Family on Pinterest.

Follow Foodie with Family on Twitter.

Tweet the following, “I want to win a Whirly Pop and coconut oil for the perfect popcorn from @foodiewithfam ”

Disclosure: This giveaway is sponsored by me and paid for by me. Sadly, I can’t ship this package outside of the continental US, so this giveaway is only open to residents of the aforementioned!

Filed Under: Appetizers & Snacks, Desserts, Make Ahead Mondays, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: budget friendly, Christmas, Christmas cookies, dessert, family-friendly, Food gifts, frugal gifts, kid friendly, party food, quick and easy, Vegetarian

Peppermint Mocha or Hot Chocolate and a {GIVEAWAY CLOSED}

November 29, 2012 by Rebecca 231 Comments

Update: The Pick Giveaway Winner plug-in chose Pamela and Miranda as the winners. Congratulations, ladies! Please respond to the email I just send to you with your mailing addresses and details and I will send it onto our friends at Korin.com!

I promised a Peppermint Mocha to end all Peppermint Mochas today and I am a girl of my word. I also promised a giveaway, and that’s coming up, too, but first a word or two about the ne plus ultra of mochas.

This was inspired by my poor friend who went to a place that rhymes with Flickschmonalds and ordered a seasonal Peppermint Mocha because it sounded cozy and warm and Christmasy. She left with the impression of having consumed a cup of coffee laced with vinegar and sugar immediately after brushing her teeth. I knew I could do better for my friend.

And I did.

Oh. I diddlydiddid.

Flickschmonalds, Blartucks, and Punkin’ Gonuts have nothing on my Peppermint Mocha. It screams CHRISTMAS, and WINTER, and CUDDLY, yes, but it also screams I’M AFFORDABLE ENOUGH TO DRINK EVERY DAY. …though given the quantity of half and half in it, it may not be a well-advised decision. Mmmm. Half and half.

My word people. If I carry on like this there’s gonna be trouble in the fitting-into-my-pants realm. These taste so darned good that I don’t really care, though. On the plus side, there is some coffee in it (which turns me into MRS. HYPER which is why I keep TYPING IN CAPS. Somebody stop me.) which is supposed to boost your metabolism. So there. And also, can someone come scrape me off of the ceiling where I’ve been parked since beginning working on this recipe?

It’s not enough just to have the half and half, AND the Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce AND the coffee AND a thick cap of whipped cream. I sprinkle the top with crushed candy canes and use a chocolate covered peppermint stick as a swizzle stick. Apparently I have a thing for swizzle sticks these days.

Drive right past that drive-through window and straight to the store to buy your ingredients. I use Bogdon’s Chocolatey Candy Sticks for the job, but use whatever little peppermint sticks you can find. If it’s coated with chocolate? Well, buy two boxes -no- buy four. Those little puppies are seasonal and Peppermint Mochas are good all winter long!

Peppermint Mocha or Peppermint Hot Chocolate and a {GIVEAWAY}

Try this ultra decadent, rich, creamy Peppermint Mocha for a wintery treat. There simply isn't anything better to have on Christmas morning than this frothy treat!

Ingredients

2 tablespoons Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce
6 ounces half and half (Whole milk can be substituted for a less decadent mocha)
1 shot of espresso or 2 ounces double-strength brewed coffee (omit coffee if you're making a Hot Chocolate.)
whipped cream
2 peppermint sticks (or 2 small candy canes), divided

Instructions

Brew the espresso into a standard sized mug (or pour the still-hot double-strength coffee into your mug.) Omit the espresso or coffee if you're making a Peppermint Hot Chocolate.

Heat the hot fudge sauce and Half and Half together in a canning jar in the microwave or a small saucepan until steaming hot. Use a small whisk or a milk frother to vigorously combine the two until the hot fudge sauce is thoroughly melted into the mixture and it is slightly frothy. Pour it over the espresso or double-strength coffee in the mug. Dollop a generous amount of whipped cream on top of the drink. Crush one of the peppermint sticks or candy canes and sprinkle over the whipped cream. Use the remaining peppermint stick or candy cane to gently stir the drink and leave it in place as garnish.

Enjoy!

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/11/29/peppermint-mocha-or-hot-chocolate-and-a-giveaway/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Now for the giveaway! Do you see that gorgeous mug that’s holding the decadent mocha? Korin.com -one of my favourite online kitchen wares retailers- sent those Mugtails to me about a month ago. They have scarcely had an empty moment since. They’re so charming and so sweet and so pretty I haven’t wanted to put them on the shelf. The mugs are a beautiful stark white and the fawn and squirrel impressions in the mug are slightly thinner than the rest of the mug. When held up to the light, it comes through the shapes slightly. If you were to drop a tea light into the mugs, they’d be stunning!

For those of you who -like me- are mug crazy, these are the sort you wrap your hands around. The tail on the fawn mug is obviously not designed as a method to hold the mug. The squirrel mug’s bushy tail is perfect for holding the mug, but you can still cup your hands around it if that’s your preference.

Korin.com has kindly offered to give away one of the Fawn Mugtails (pictured above: ARV $16) and one of these adorable Squirrel Mugtails (ARV: $16).

The Fawn Mugtail is a standard sized mug that holds a generous mocha or tall cup of coffee while the Squirrel Mugtail is more of a demi-tasse, espresso sized cup. You’d still have room for a goodly cap of whipped cream in the squirrel cup if that dings your chimes… Just imagine these beautiful cups for holiday entertaining! How do you win? I’m glad you asked! Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry method you use so they’re all counted!

Mandatory Entry

Leave a comment here telling me which of the two mugs you’d prefer and tell me what you’d use to fill the mug!

Optional Entries:

Like Foodie With Family on facebook.
Follow Foodie With Family on Twitter.
Follow Foodie With Family on Instagram.
Follow Foodie With Family on Pinterest
Like Korin Knives on facebook.
Follow @korinknives on Twitter.
Visit Korin.com and look around. Come back here and tell me what you wanted the most from their wide selection of goodies!

You have until 9 a.m. EST on Monday, December 3rd, 2012 to enter! Winners will be announced here sometime on Monday. Good luck, everyone!

Disclosure: Korin Knives provided mugs for me to review and is giving two mugs away, but I was not compensated for this post and all opinions are mine alone!

Filed Under: Beverages, Desserts, Rebecca, Recipes, Uncategorized Tagged With: budget friendly, Christmas, family-friendly, party food, quick and easy, seasonal, winter

Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce

November 28, 2012 by Rebecca 27 Comments

I’ve spoken before of my deep, deep love for the hot fudge sauce made by my stepmom, Val. Grandma Val’s Hot Fudge Sauce is a staple around the Foodie With Family household. It goes on ice cream, to be sure, but it is also drizzled on cake and stirred into hot milk for fabuloso hot chocolate. On days when I feel particularly frazzled or mom’ed out, a spoonful of it applied directly to my mouth is sometimes the only thing standing between me and stark raving lunacy.

The other day, a friend complained loudly about the quality of the peppermint mocha she purchased at a big name restaurant. Her description was:

If you’re considering trying McD’s peppermint mocha drink cuz it looks good and nice and warm and holiday-ish with the oncoming cold weather, here’s a tip to save some money: Make a pot of coffee, and while that’s brewing, go brush your teeth (some mouthwash after is good too). Then come back to the pot, pour some sugar and vinegar into it, pour yourself a mug, and drink up! Voila! Now you don’t have to go buy one.

Blech. That was enough to dissuade me. With all that, though, I still wanted a Peppermint Mocha. I decided to turn the ubiquitous Grandma Val’s Hot Fudge Sauce into the vehicle for the world’s best Peppermint Mocha. I turned it into Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce.

Mercy.

I’ll share the Peppermint Mocha recipe tomorrow, but first? First you must make this Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce. Believe me. All by itself it is a holiday treat second to none. If you can resist eating this by the spoonful then you’re a better animal than I am. But when you drizzle this over a bowl of Perry’s Mint Tingaling or Peppermint Stick ice cream? Oh Holy Night. It is something to remember.

When it’s still hot it’s a deep, fudgy, smooth, thick-yet-pourable, minty sauce with a hint of vanilla. When you pour it onto cold ice cream, it turns into a chewy caramel candy that keeps you coming back for more.

…Speaking of coming back for more, be sure to check in tomorrow for a Peppermint Mocha recipe that DOESN’T taste like toothpaste, vinegar and bad drip coffee and a GIVEAWAY that you will NOT want to miss.

Peppermint Hot Fudge Sauce

When it's still hot it's a deep, fudgy, smooth, thick-yet-pourable, minty sauce with a hint of vanilla. When you pour it onto cold ice cream, it turns into a chewy caramel candy that keeps you coming back for more. This is also the base for the best homemade Peppermint Mocha of all time!

Ingredients

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 cups granulated sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
¾ cup boiling water
1½ teaspoons peppermint extract
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (homemade is best! )
pinch of salt

Instructions

Melt the butter and unsweetened chocolate together in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Stir in sugar, corn syrup, and boiling water. Increase heat to medium and stir mixture until it reaches boiling. Boil without stirring for 8 minutes. Really. Do not stir that stuff.

Remove from heat and stir in the peppermint extract, vanilla extract and salt. It will bubble up violently, so be careful. Let rest for 5 minutes before pouring into a heat-proof container with a tight fitting lid. (A canning jar works perfectly for this situation.) Be certain the container you use is small enough to fit into the microwave for reheating purposes. Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in a tightly lidded, heat-proof container.

To Reheat:

Remove lid from the jar and microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir. Heat in additional 10 second bursts until the hot fudge flows freely when poured.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/11/28/peppermint-hot-fudge-sauce/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Condiments, Desserts, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: budget friendly, dessert, family-friendly, Food gifts, Frugal Food, frugal gifts, kid friendly, party food, quick and easy, seasonal, Vegetarian

Zombie Apocalypse Tres Leches Cake | Chocolate Tres Leches Cake

November 14, 2012 by Rebecca 5 Comments

Mamas, don’t let your babies grow up to be zombies. Isn’t that how the song goes?

Something like that, yes?

My eldest baby is just about to turn fifteen. It’s kind of freaking me out a little bit. I hit major freak out territory when I realized -thanks to his observation- that he’ll be old enough to vote in the next presidential *CHOKE* election *HACK*. I’m sorry. It’s just kind of giving me respiratory distress to think that this sweet little chubby boy I birthed is not only nearly old enough to vote, but is only a year away from driving. (Another of his observations, thankyouverymuch.) Eek!

I’m going to fan myself for a minute. Or get some smelling salts. Do they sell smelling salts any more? I kind of think they should come standard issue for mothers of sons.

The aforementioned son had a few of his best and biggest friends (because WHEN did they all get taller than me? Salts. Gimme my smelling salts.) over to celebrate ahead of time. The guys had a few simple requests.

Food. Lots of food. Mostly Cheddar Tailgating Bread, please.
They wanted to watch Napoleon Dynamite and Inception.
More bread? Maybe more than one loaf per person?
They wanted an epic Nerf battle.
They wanted cake.
They wanted to play Zombie Apocalypse.

I was all in ’til they got to the last part and said, “What?” Zombie Apocalypse, it was explained to me, was pretty much just tag. Well, except that it had to be after dark and the one who was it pretended to be a zombie and eat others’ brains turning them into zombies and thereby… Blah blah blah. That’s where I tuned it out. I asked a the only question I could think of other than ‘why?’ , “Does anyone actually get hurt?” They assured me no one’s brains were actually eaten in the process, so I gave it my stamp of approval and started baking a cake.

Chocolate Tres Leches sounded about right to me. My plan was to hit it with a little chunky strawberry sauce before plating. I got a little distracted by the screams of horror from the faux zombies inmy front yard while I was blending the strawberries with the other ingredients, though, and ended up with a silky smooth puree. Those Vitamixes are super efficient.

When the Zombie Apocalypse was finished, the newly minted un-dead came in for the cake.

As I drizzled the strawberry sauce over the cake, someone remarked, “HEY! That looks like BLOOD!” and thus, Zombie Apocalypse Tres Leches was born.

Clearly the zombies hadn’t been satisfied by their recent brain feast, because I got exactly zero pieces of the cake before they polished it off.

Nine out of nine zombies agree, this cake is better than brains.

Zombie Apocalypse Tres Leches Cake | Chocolate Tres Leches Cake

This chocolate tres leches cake is decadent devil's food cake topped with chocolate pudding, whipped cream and drizzled with a smooth and punchy strawberry sauce.

Perfect for special occasions and birthdays for your favourite zombies.

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Cake:

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, softened to room temperature
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup dutch process cocoa powder
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk (can substitute whole milk if necessary)
For the Good Stuff on Top:
3 cups of your favourite chocolate pudding (I use a double batch of Nana's Spanish Style chocolate pudding.
3 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Zombie Apocalypse Strawberry Sauce:

1 pound frozen strawberries, partially thawed
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Instructions

To Make and Bake the Cake:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Grease and flour a 9-inch by 13-inch by 2-inch baking pan.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a batter blade, or with a hand mixer in a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, salt, baking soda, and vanilla until it is fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, stopping the mixer and scraping down the sides after each addition.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour and cocoa powder until no lumps remain. If you can't whisk out the lumps, push it through a sieve or sift it.

Add about 1/3 of the flour mixture to the contents of the mixing bowl. Beat it in on medium low until no dry pockets remain. Add 1/3 of the milk and beat until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and continue adding the flour and milk alternately, mixing until combined and scraping down the sides of the bowl each time. The last addition should be milk. Mix just until evenly combined.

Spoon the cake batter into the pan. Smooth the top of the batter and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cake pulls away from the edges of the pan a bit and a skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the cake cool in the pan on the rack completely before proceeding.

When cake is cool, use a skewer or chopstick to poke holes all over the cake. Pour the pudding on top of the cake, cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the cake and let it soak for at least an hour but up to overnight before proceeding.

To Make the Zombie Apocalypse Strawberry Sauce:

Put the partially thawed berries, granulated sugar and balsamic vinegar together in the blender and blend on high until smooth. Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator until you're ready to serve the cake.

To Top and Serve the Cake:

When ready to serve, whip the heavy cream, confectioner's sugar and vanilla extract together until you reach soft peaks. Spread the whipped cream over the cake evenly. Cut the cake into pieces of desired size. Drizzle individual servings with the Zombie Apocalypse Strawberry Sauce.

Store leftovers tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/11/14/zombie-apocalypse-tres-leches-cake-chocolate-tres-leches-cake/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

P.S. Don’t feel too badly for me. I made another one and ate a third of it by myself.

Filed Under: Cakes, Desserts, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: budget friendly, dessert, family-friendly, kid friendly, party food

Chocolate Nutter Butter Cake

October 31, 2012 by Rebecca 16 Comments

For years I had that thin, “shatterproof” tableware because I thought it was easier to care for, cheaper, and whatnot. Over the years, I realized -with the help of my built in high stress advanced material test laboratory that I call my five sons- that those things weren’t shatterproof. Or break proof. Or even remotely capable of standing up to five very energetic and twitchy little boys. Not only were they not sturdy, but they seemed to be built to explode into a million pieces like a Mission Impossible assignment when giving up the ghost.

I carried on, though, because they were dishwasher safe and I already had them on hand. Well-meant gifts of the stuff from people who were weeding it out of their own cabinets kept me going for years although I was becoming disillusioned after cleaning up a bajillion shards of soup/yogurt/spaghetti sauce/ice cream coated, microscopic, razor sharp daggers of shatterproof dishes. Because honestly? Those things never broke when empty and dry. They almost invariably had the messiest most splashy contents to enrobe the little beastly foot jabby bits of glass. I told you we were an advanced materials testing lab.

Yeah. Traumatized? Noooo. Not me. (She says while cradling her poor scarred feet and rocking back and forth.)

A couple of years ago, I slowly but surely started pitching the other tableware: aided by the fact that they kept exploding in the most not-delightful way and replacing them with something ANYTHING other than what I’d had. Salvation Army stores became my haunting grounds. I didn’t care if NOTHING on my table matched… It was better than what I’d had before.

Then, oh mercy, I discovered the joys of pottery. What was mere admiration has grown into a full-fledged fixation that is nudged along by my friendship with a honest-to-goodness potter: Staci Curry of Firefly Pottery in Angelica, New York. Her stuff is beautiful, whimsical, colourful, STURDY, pretty, oven, microwave and dishwasher safe. Did I mention sturdy? Oh Staci… You’re my hero. I want to live in the show room of the store she shares as part of the Three Clay Sisters (including Mud Puddle Pottery and Creek Bed Pottery).

Staci recently made a guh-huh-huh-huh-hooooorgeous cake plate for me. Naturally, I had to make a cake worthy of being on that fabulous cake plate to break (ohdearmedon’tbreak. DON’T BREAK.) it in properly. It had to be an epic cake for an epic cake plate. Enter the Chocolate Nutter Butter Cake… inspired by my perty new cake plate.

Super moist chocolate cake layered and topped with a truly majestic amount of… wait for it… PEANUT BUTTER CREAM CHEESE BUTTERCREAM. It combines crunchy peanut butter (for texture and flavour) AND cream cheese AND butter AND heavy cream. Mmmmmm. It’s so indulgent I almost kind of sort of feel like I should apologize. But then I take a little fingerful (or a paw full) of the frosting and that little spark of worry that was showing disappears in a eye-rolling-to-the-back-of-my-head, fluffy, creamy, sugar rush…

Whether you have a fabulous cake plate or not, though, I want you to make this cake. Nay, I INSIST you make this cake if you have one ounce of cake love in your body. I might go so far as to say it’s the best cake I’ve ever made in my life.

Seriously.

I think I did this cake plate proud.

Chocolate Nutter Butter Cake

Super moist chocolate cake layered and topped with a truly majestic amount of... wait for it... PEANUT BUTTER CREAM CHEESE BUTTERCREAM. It combines crunchy peanut butter (for texture and flavour) AND cream cheese AND butter AND heavy cream. Mmmmmm. It's so indulgent I almost kind of sort of feel like I should apologize. I would, but my mouth is full of frosting.

Ingredients

For the Chocolate Cake:

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter, softened to room temperature
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup dutch process cocoa powder
4 large eggs
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk (can substitute whole milk if necessary)

For the Frosting:

8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 stick butter (8 tablespoons), softened to room temperature
3/4 cup crunchy peanut butter (if you want super smooth frosting, use creamy peanut butter)
1 tablespoon real vanilla extract
1 1/2 to 2 pounds (6 to 8 cups) powdered sugar
2-4 tablespoons heavy cream
For Garnish:
15 Nutter Butter Cookies, crushed
1 package Reese's Miniature Peanut Butter Cups

Instructions

To Make and Bake the Cake:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Grease and flour three 8- inch round cake pans.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour and cocoa powder until no lumps remain. If you can't whisk out the lumps, push it through a sieve or sift it.

Divide the cake batter evenly between the three pans. Smooth the tops of the batter and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until the cake pulls away from the edges of the pan a bit and a skewer or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the cakes rest in the pans for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

To Make the Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Buttercream:

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, or in a mixing bowl with a hand mixer, beat the cream cheese, butter, peanut butter and vanilla extract on HIGH until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Add the powdered sugar to the mixture and combine, starting the mixer on low and stopping it a couple of times until most of the sugar is moistened to prevent a big pouf of sugar. Again, beat on HIGH until smooth and combined. Turn off the mixer and add 2 tablespoons of the heavy cream. Beat on high until smooth. If you want thinner frosting, add more cream, 1 teaspoon at a time.

To Frost the Cake:

Lay 1 of your cakes on a cake plate or large platter (make a square of 4 pieces of parchment paper to lay your cake on to keep the plate clean while frosting if you want.) Add about 3/4 to 1 cup of frosting to the middle of the cake and spread to the edges. Lay another cake on top and repeat with the frosting. Lay the final cake on top and go to town with the rest of the frosting. Spread it thickly over the top and sides. Rim the cake top with mini-Reese's peanut butter cups then sprinkle the crushed Nutter Butters into the center.

Remove the parchment, if you used it, and refrigerate for an hour or so before slicing.

Enjoy!

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/10/31/chocolate-nutter-butter-cake/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Cakes, Comfort Food, Desserts, Rebecca, Recipes Tagged With: dessert, family-friendly, special occasion

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake

October 18, 2012 by Rebecca 8 Comments

I’m not sure where the time went, but my fourth born just turned nine a couple of weeks ago. I’m a little freaked out by it, honestly. Seemingly overnight, he went from a teensy little bundle of squirmy boy to this:

WHAT?!? Are you kidding me? This little guy -or big guy, I should say- of mine is as easy on the heart as he is on the eyes. Sweet, kind, considerate and slow to anger is my boy. Don’t get me wrong; he’s plenty spunky. He’s a total stinkpot. This is the boy who in one day sat on the couch crying a little because he loves dogs so much and “kind of wants to be one” and wanted five more dogs (in addition to the three we already have) then five minutes later gave his baby brother an impromptu and unasked for haircut.

He’s my little drummer boy. He’s a wild man. He doesn’t walk; he bounces. One time my little sister said, “Can you imagine what great shape we’d all be in if we acted like Leif all the time?” She then tried for five minutes before giving up exhausted.

Remember Leif Ericson, the Viking? Do you also remember his nickname was Lucky Leif? Maybe it’s something about the name… This Leif of mine is THE four-leaf clover finding champion. As in, every time he goes out into our yard and there’s no snow cover, he finds at least five or six of them. There’s been a time or two that he’s found them even when there WAS snow. He finds them in other people’s yards. This is my Lucky Leif.

I like him.

I’ll keep him.

When asked what he wanted as his birthday cake, he exclaimed, “STRAWBERRY CAKE! With that chocolate shiney stuff!” Yes, sir. I’d do anything for you, you sweet little wild child. Well, except get another dog. That’s out. Sorry. The cake though? No problem.

Happy Birthday, Sweet Lucky Leif.

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake

This festive, fun, moist strawberry cake is covered in rich dark chocolate ganache. It's like a chocolate covered strawberry truffle!

Ingredients

2 cups granulated sugar
1 (3 ounce) package of strawberry flavoured gelatin mix
1 cup butter, softened to room temperature
4 eggs, room temperature
2 3/4 cups cake flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature
1 cup strawberry puree made from frozen and thawed strawberries
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
butter and flour for the pan

For the Ganache:

1 pound dark chocolate chunks (or chopped dark chocolate)
2 cups heavy cream

Instructions

To Bake the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter and flour two 8-inch or 9-inch cake pans. Set aside.

Cream together the butter, sugar and dry strawberry gelatin until light and fluffy using a stand mixer or hand mixer. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine the flour and baking powder in a mixing bowl with a whisk. In a measuring cup, blend together the strawberry puree, milk and vanilla extract.

Add about 1/3 of the flour blend to the butter and beat in, scraping down the sides after mixing it in. Add about 1/3 of the strawberry mixture and mix in. Repeat with the flour then strawberry mixtures until done. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.. Cool the cakes in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Gently turn the cakes out onto the wire rack to finish cooling completely before icing with the ganache.

To Make the Ganache:

Put the chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate into a heatproof bowl. Pour the heavy cream into a small saucepan over medium to medium high heat until bubbles form around the edges. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let sit, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Use a whisk to stir gently in one direction until thick and glossy. Remove the whisk and place the bowl, uncovered, in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes, stirring and scraping the edges every couple minutes, just until thickened enough to spread instead of pour.

To Assemble the Cake:

If necessary, level the cakes by trimming off any domed top.

Place one cake round on a cake plate. Scoop about 3/4 cup of the chocolate ganache into the center of the cake. Spread gently over the cake to the edges. Center the second cake over the first one. Spread the remaining ganache over the top and sides of the cake.

Let stand long enough for the ganache to firm up. This can be sped up by placing the cake in the refrigerator.

Store uneaten cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. It tastes best if served at room temperature.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/10/18/chocolate-covered-strawberry-cake/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com

Filed Under: Cakes, Desserts, Recipes Tagged With: family-friendly, kid friendly, party food

Big Batch Crisp Topping and Any Fruit Crisps | Make Ahead Mondays

October 8, 2012 by Rebecca 12 Comments

Desserts are the big to-do. The thing over which you slave for hours or -in some cases- even days and present with a flourish to ooooohs and aaaahs. I’m as guilty of that as the next food-obsessed gal, from time to time.

But really? Desserts are supposed to be a relaxing thing. Grab a spoon or a fork, a plate or a bowl of the good stuff, plop down somewhere comfortable and give a good ahhhhhhhh. They’re supposed to feed your soul without taxing it first. In fact, ‘DESSERTS’ are ‘STRESSED’ spelled backwards. Tell me if this has ever happened to you.

I’m going through my day getting done what needs to be done. I make dinner and think to myself, “Oh, we don’t need dessert tonight. We have a big dinner and that’ll do the job.” Then after dinner, when it’s just me and my honey sitting on the couch, I think, “I wish I’d made dessert. I could go for something a little sweet right now.”

Is anyone with me? I know it can’t be just us with should’ve-made-dessert regrets. ‘No desserts’ backwards is ‘stressed on’. See?

I have a solution.

Make a big batch of crisp topping -essentially, this is sugar, oats, flour, a little spice and a lot of butter- drop it into canning jars or other airtight containers and pop it in the freezer.

When you hit the dessert-regret stage of the evening, fill a little ramekin or two or a big pan with fresh fruit or even canned pie filling. In a pinch, you could put jam in the ramekins.

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting and Apple Cider Caramel

September 18, 2012 by Rebecca 23 Comments

Fall.

Autumn.

It’s just around the corner. As in, it’s four days away. Could you pardon me for a moment?

(FALLFALLFALLFALLFALLFALLFALL YAY! WAHOO! WHOOPWHOOPWHOOP! Zippity hippity hoppity doo dah! YEEHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!AU-TUMN! Uh huh, uh huh, uh huhuhhuhuhhuh. Happy DANCE! )

Um, thank you. I kind of needed to get that out of my system. I wait from February fifteenth (there’s something so romantic about snow on Valentine’s Day) to -oh, say- September twenty first of every year to get to fall. I love pumpkins and apples and squash and brightly coloured leaves and crisp air and apple crisps and oh my gosh… I just love everything about it.

I love drizzly, cold days and grey skies. I love driving down the road and seeing all the pumpkins for sale. I am passionately insane over winter squash. Butternut squash makes me swoon. Pumpkin. Pumpkin makes me flip my lid. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin custard, little bitty pumpkins stuffed with rice and sausage, pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin soup. I’m like the Benjamin Buford Blue (a.k.a.the Bubba in Bubba Gump) of pumpkin.

I could eat pumpkin in just about any form, but my favourite is dessert. There’s something about pumpkin desserts that bridge that savoury/sweet line with such ease. It’s a vegetable so it almost feels like desserts made from it are health food. Hoo-yeah.And this cake I’m about to show you today… It has a vegetable and a fruit. That’s so healthy it’s almost disgusting.

It’s everything autumn; super moist pumpkin spice cake with a maple sugar glaze and apple cider caramel. Rawrrrrrrrrrrrrr. Just look at this.

Can you guess how long that cake lasted at our house? I can’t give you an exact time, but I can tell you it was less than twelve hours and probably less than eight. Time is a little fuzzy. We were kind of on a bit of a pumpkin high…

There’s a bonus -as if the cake wasn’t good enough by itself- the apple cider caramel portion of the recipe makes more than enough for the cake. In other words, you have some apple cider caramel leftover. In other other words, EXTRA CARAMEL for more cakes later or for drizzling on oatmeal or stirring into coffee or tea or hot cider or over ice cream or just plain on a spoon.

Oh gosh, I so love fall.

Pumpkin Cake with Maple Frosting and Apple Cider Caramel

Super moist pumpkin spice cake -redolent with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves- topped with a silky smooth maple sugar frosting and drizzled with tangy, sweet apple cider caramel. This is pure fall!

Ingredients

For the Cake:

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) or homemade pureed pumpkin
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature

For the Maple Frosting:

*Note: If maple sugar is not available, substitute dark brown sugar for a brown sugar frosting.)
1/2 cup maple sugar
1/4 cup butter
3 tablespoons milk (preferably whole milk)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar

For the Apple Cider Caramel:

1/2 cup Boiled Cider Syrup also available through Amazon.com or King Arthur Flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons of butter, cut into four pats

Instructions

To Make the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Grease a bundt pan with oil or non-stick cooking spray then flour the pan. Tap out the excess and set the pan aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the batter blade (or in a bowl with an electric mixer) cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and add the eggs, one at a time, blending and scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. When the eggs are fully incorporated, blend in the pumpkin and vanilla. It may look curdly and horrid, but that's okay! Keep going!

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour with the rest of the dry ingredients. Add about 1/3 of the flour to the butter mixture and blend until incorporated. Add 1/2 of the buttermilk and blend in completely. Repeat with another 1/3 of the flour and blend. Finish mixing the batter by adding the final 1/2 of buttermilk, mixing, then adding the final 1/3 of flour.

Spoon the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan, gently smooth the top and bake the cake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the thickest part of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly with your finger.

Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let rest for 5 minutes before carefully turning out onto the rack to cool completely. While the cake cools, make the caramel...

To Make the Apple Cider Caramel:

Bring the boiled cider syrup and brown sugar to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 3 minutes. Whisk in the heavy cream and return to a boil. Boil for 2 more minutes then drop the heat to low. Add the butter one pat at a time, whisking it in until it's fully incorporated. When all of the pats of butter have been added and incorporated, pour the hot caramel into a clean pint jar, reserving any excess for drizzling over the cake. Let cool completely before drizzling on the cake.

To Make the Maple Frosting and Assemble the Cake:

Bring the maple sugar, butter, and milk to a boil, whisking constantly. Boil for 1 minute, still whisking constantly. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Be careful, it will boil up!

Gradually whisk in the powdered sugar. Continue whisking it gently until smooth, cooled slightly and thick, about 3-5 minutes.

Place the cooled cake on a cake plate or serving platter and immediately pour warm maple frosting over the cake. Let the frosting rest for 5 minutes, then drizzle with the apple cider caramel.

Store leftovers, well covered, at room temperature for up to 3 days.

http://www.foodiewithfamily.com/2012/09/18/pumpkin-cake-with-maple-frosting-and-apple-cider-caramel/

Recipe printed from Foodie With Family | Rebecca Lindamood http://www.foodiewithfamily.com