Rainbow Heart Cake

I love the inside of this cake.  I love rainbows.  I think they are beautiful.  This is Elle's 3rd Birthday cake.  It was a heart cake with the rainbow inside.  It's a bit of work, but not too hard.  It's such a beautiful finished product.  I hope to never do sprinkles on the side again though...that was a nightmare!

Rose Cake

I was terrified to make this cake because of all the roses, but it turned out not to be too bad.  I made the roses the day before (yes, they look good from a distance, but up close they weren't as pretty...).  Once the roses were made the rest was pretty easy!)

Basic Chocolate Cake

This is my usual Birthday Cake.  It's the Hershey's recipe for the cake and a chocolate buttercream frosting.  My other favorite is Carrot Cake!

Ice Cream Snowman

Make the snowman body then allow to set in the freezer for a while.  Decorate as you wish with whatever you can think of!  We used pretzel sticks, rolled out and shaped star bursts for the scarf, hat & nose.  This was a hit.

This was Elle's 2nd Birthday Cake.  It's 2 basic chocolate cakes (each divided in half...4 layers) with a chocolate buttercream frosting.  I did 2 layers of regular buttercream in the middle (one tinted pink and the other blue) to complement the butterflies).  The butterflies are made out of melted chocolate.  They were a bit of a pain to make, but overall it came together nicely.  It tasted fantastic!  The key to a good cake is to let it sit overnight so the flavors blend.

Bowl of Spaghetti Cake

This cake was so good.  It's made with cupcakes.  Tint the icing to make it look a bit more like pasta then let it just fall all over (use a decorating tip) so it looks like spaghetti.  Ferrero Rocher chocolate balls make the meat balls and the sauce is sugar free jam (sugar free has the brighter red color...).  Grated white chocolate for the Parmesan cheese.

Best Chocolate Cake Ever

This is my husband's annual birthday cake.  It is so rich and yummy that you only need to make it once a year to be satisfied (twice a year on a good year!)  The cake recipe is the one of the Hershey's Coco Powder container and it's iced with a mousse and a ganache.

Giant Cupcake Cake

This was Emmy's 3rd Birthday Cake.  It's made with a Giant cupcake pan and accessorized with cupcakes and sugar cookies.  It was a very easy cake.

Cream Tuna on Toast

2 TBSP butter
2 TBSP flour
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon pepper
1 ½ cups milk
1 can tuna

Melt butter over low heat in 1 ½ quart saucepan.  Add flour, salt and pepper.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and bubbly; remove from heat.  Gradually stir in milk.  Heat to boiling, stirring constantly.  Boil and stir 1 minute.  Add tuna.  Serve over toast.

I grew up with this one.  If I had to describe my mom's cooking it would be "Create what you can out of what is available then add a can of corn."  My mom says she hates cooking and is a terrible cook...I loved her cooking.  True, the same meal usually didn't turn out the same way twice, and my mom does have a knack for going one step too far, but I love her cooking!  Except she does like to cook in leftover bacon fat...and I just can't dig that.  Anyways, this is one of her creations I grew up with.  It was one of the few things I could make in college.  Honestly it isn't my husband's cup of tea, but the girls eat it and so do I.  Since my husband isn't a fan we don't eat it often.  It's quick though and easy!

Tilapia with Homemade Pesto

Source

1 ½ cups fresh basil (lightly packed)

4 ounces toasted pine nuts
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 pieces (6 ounces) fresh tilapia
1 TBSP olive oil

Preheat broiler.  Grind the basil, pine nuts and grated Parmesan cheese with a blender or food processor until a smooth paste forms.  Slowly add ¼ cup of olive oil, grinding until a smooth sauce forms.  Season the pesto to taste with salt and pepper.  Season the tilapia with salt and pepper on both sides.  Heat a large pan over medium-high heat.  Add the oil and cook the fish for 1 to 2 minutes on the flesh side or until it turns light golden brown.  Flip the fish over and spoon the pesto generously over the fish.  Transfer pan to the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes or until the fish is cooked through.  Remove fish from broiler and allow to rest on a plate.  Serve fish hot.

Fast, Fast, Fast.  Tasty too.  Our children like fish, so this is always a good one when we're crunched for time.  Especially since the Pesto lasts for a bit when refrigerated.

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan

I think this is the original recipe

½ cup Parmesan cheese
¼ cup butter, softened
3 TBSP mayonnaise
2 TBSP lemon juice
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon onion powder
⅛ teaspoon celery salt
2 lbs. tilapia fillets

Preheat your oven's broiler. Grease a broiling pan or line pan with aluminum foil.   In a small bowl, mix together the Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise and lemon juice. Season with dried basil, pepper, onion powder and celery salt. Mix well and set aside.   Arrange fillets in a single layer on the prepared pan. Broil a few inches from the heat for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip the fillets over and broil for a couple more minutes. Remove the fillets from the oven and cover them with the Parmesan cheese mixture on the top side. Broil for 2 more minutes or until the topping is browned and fish flakes easily with a fork. Be careful not to over cook the fish.

Another fast and easy one.  I like this one a lot.  The mayo mixture lasts for a while in the refrigerator, so it can be used again and again.  Just be sure not to double dip when spreading the mayo mixture on the fish...that way the mixture doesn't get...fishy.

When it Calls for Butter

You get use to being Lactose Intolerant.  Really, you do.  You learn your limits.  You learn what you can tolerate, and what is an absolute no-no.  I do okay with small amounts of Parmesan Cheese and smaller amounts of Swiss Cheese.  I do okay with cream cheese and sour cream.  I can't do straight milk, ice cream, butter, or other cheeses not listed above.  But, butter is one of those Must haves with cooking.  Here's the hint...they have lactose free butter...you have to look for the magic words "Parve" and "Kosher" or K.  These are the butter alternatives I keep in our house:

• Fleischmann's Unsalted Butter (it's Pareve)  - This is what I use for all my stick butter alternatives.
• Smart Balance Butter (in the small twin pack tubs) - I don't cook with this butter, but use it as a spread.

You have to be watchful with these brands to make sure you get the Pareve or Kosher stuff.  Regular Fleischmann's is not Pareve.  Also with Smart Balance, the stick butter version isn't Pareve.  Some of the tub stuff isn't Pareve either.  Read your labels.  There are other brands that have Pareve versions...you just have to find them.  It tends to vary from store to store.  Yes I realize this stuff isn't as good as butter, but that's kind of the point.  I can't have butter.  This stuff can be found in a regular grocery store and works as a great alternative!

Waffles

3 eggs

1 ½ cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon soda

1 ¾ cup flour (sometimes I substitute ½ of whole wheat flour in for some of the white)

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup oil

 Mix together and use waffle iron to make.

Since they don't sell lactose free buttermilk at my grocery store, I substitute by adding 1-1 ½ tablespoons of lemon juice in my measuring cup than adding enough milk to make it 1 ½ cups.  I LOVE these waffles!  They are seriously so good...and unlike the store bought premade waffles, these fill you up for HOURS!  Our girls love these too.  We eat them a couple times a week (I usually make them once a week, but make enough to have leftovers for another morning).



Maple Syrup

2 cup brown sugar

2 cup white sugar
2 cup boiling water
1 teaspoon maple syrup flavoring
½ cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon butter flavoring (optional)

Boil water and add sugar.  Allow to simmer lightly for 10-20 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients.

One morning I made waffles only to discover I didn't have syrup.  Instead of running to the store, my ingenious husband recommended we make some syrup.  The idea had never occurred to me.  After reading a bunch of recipes online I meshed them into this recipe.  In my opinion, it is so much better than store bought syrup! 

Fun Food Ideas

Nothing special...these are just PP&J sandwiches my husband made for our girls on one of the birthdays.  He's creative that way.  One is a monkey (or a bear...we never really decided) and the other is a lion.

Apple Pie

By Grandma Ople (not my grandma...click here to see the original recipe posting)

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

8 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored and sliced

2 Roll out frozen pie crusts

Preheat oven to 425º F. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add water, white sugar and brown sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer.  Place the bottom crust in your pan. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Cover with a lattice work crust. Gently pour the sugar and butter liquid over the crust. Pour slowly so that it does not run off.  Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 350º F and continue baking for 35 to 45 minutes, until apples are soft.

This is the best apple pie I've ever made.  I really love it.  The way the filling is poured over the lattice crust makes it so yummy.  If you don't know how to make a lattice crust, look it up on youtube.  Its not too hard.  It reminds me a bit of the weaving things I use to do as a girl.  There is also an "easy lattice" you can do where you put on the horizontal bars of lattice down first then put the vertical bars on top.  Easy.  This pie is especially delicious right out of the oven with some vanilla ice cream!  Yummy!

Tostada's

⅛-¼ cup oil

1 heaping teaspoon chili powder

½ teaspoon cumin

6 flour tortillas

1 can refried beans, heated

Toppings:
Cheddar cheese, shredded

2 sliced avocados
Shredded lettuce

Chopped tomatoes

Green Onions

Picante Sauce

Sour Cream

Preheat oven to 350°.  Mix first 3 ingredients and brush on both sides of the tortillas.  Bake on cookie sheet for 4-5 minutes on each side or until tortillas are crisp, not floppy.  Turn oven off.  Spread heated beans on hot tortillas.  Top with cheese.  Return to oven until cheese is slightly melted (1 minute).  Remove from oven and let everyone top their own tostada.

 

These are SOOOO good.  This is my mom’s favorite and a favorite all around at our house.  Be warned though, they are messy!  But as my mom always told me growing up, the messier the better!

Not-So-Sloppy Joes

Source: I got this recipe from a friend years ago, and she got it somewhere online but I couldn't find the link.  If I find it I'll add it!

1 TBSP olive oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 lb. ground beef
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 ½ teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 hamburger buns, toasted
½ cup grated Cheddar
½ cup sour cream

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and red pepper. Sauté until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add the ground beef and brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, black pepper, cinnamon, and salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened slightly, about 12 minutes. Spoon onto the buns, sprinkle with the Cheddar, and top each sandwich with a dollop of the sour cream.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

After giving birth to my second daughter a friend brought a meal over for us...and this was it!  I loved them so much.  I think these are so much more flavorful than regular boring sloppy joes.  Our children really love these too.  Its one of those fail safe meals we can put on the table and have them gobble up.  It is also an easy, quick meal.  I use my little food processor to chop up the onion, garlic and red pepper.

Honey Butter

Source: TW

1 cup Butter
2/3 cup Honey
3/4 cup Powdered Sugar

Soften butter slightly.  I use a blender to then mix all ingredients together. 

I got this from my sister-in-law and its probably the best homemade honey butter recipe I've had.  Great on banana bread, homemade wheat bread, scones, or whatever your little heart desires!

Jacques Torres' Secret Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Picture of my cookies

Click here for the source.

Makes twenty-six 5-inch cookies or 8 1/2 dozen 1 1/4-inch cookies

1 pound unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons pastry flour
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 pounds bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats; set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Reduce speed to low and add both flours, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, and chocolate; mix until well combined.  Using a 4-ounce scoop for larger cookies or a 1-ounce scoop for smaller cookies, scoop cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.  Bake until lightly browned, but still soft, about 20 minutes for larger cookies and about 15 minutes for smaller cookies.  Cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Okay, I played around with the baking of these cookies quite a bit.  As a disclaimer I should say that my oven is from the dark ages.  It took me months to learn how to bake in it.  But, that's a whole other post.  Anyways, I baked the smaller cookies for the recommended 15 minutes and they were way too over done for my taste.  I reduced it to 12 minutes and still thought they were too done.  Then I went to 10 minutes...they seemed very slightly under done.  But if I had to choose, that would be the way I'd go.  Then I baked them for about 10 1/2 minutes and let them sit on the cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes.  Those seemed pretty good.  So, anyways, find what works for you, but I would recommend anything from 10-ish to 12 minutes.  Also, I think I like my cookies a little less chocolaty...like 1 1/2 lbs of chocolate for the recipe, but that's my preference.  Oh, I also halved this recipe which made 4-5 dozen.  Good recipe, but I still think cookie dough is better than any cookie ever baked!