BTS Cake (Better than S)

 BTS Cake

This cake is so delicious, devilish, decadent, put you in a diabetic coma delicious! You might be wondering why I (a diabetic) would post this picture and this recipe. Well, I never said I was perfect at keeping a healthy life style, plus if you don't indulge every once in a while, you won't be able to keep up the healthy eating, you'll feel like it's not worth it. So I had a small piece of my son's birthday cake. This is only made about once or twice a year. It is so delicious that dreams and the eye roll back in your head feelings exist! 

My eldest son has an affection for chocolate. A strong one. Maybe it dates back to when I was pregnant with him and I had extreme cravings for chocolate brownie sundae's from Baskin' Robins, with chocolate peanut butter ice-cream with hot fudge sauce, whipped cream and a cherry on top. That was several times a week, while pregnant with him. He loves peanut butter and chocolate... what can I say, he still does. :)

We make this and we all go in a slight coma... not really, but it definitely gets really quiet when everyone is eating their slice of this heavenly cake.

 Ingredients:

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 box chocolate pudding mix
4 eggs
1 1/4 c water
1/2 c oil
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
1 bottle chocolate syrup
1 bottle caramel sauce
1 bag Heath bar pieces
1 can praline almonds
1 large tub of non dairy whipped topping

Directions:

Make the cake mix with the pudding, eggs, water and oil listed... Do NOT follow ingredient list on back of the box mix. Bake 30-35 min in a 13X9 pan. Once it's baked and hot out of the oven, poke holes on top of the hot cake with the small end of a wooden spoon. placing holes all over the top of the cake. Once you have a "holey" cake, pour the sweetened condensed milk on top of the hot cake. Then set in the refrigerator to cool. Once it's about halfway cooled off, add the chocolate sauce and caramel sauce to the top of the cake, Leaving some of each for the top of the cake later. Place back in the refrigerator to complete cooling. Once completely cooled off, add the whipped topping, sprinkle with the almonds and Heath bar pieces and drizzle with chocolate and caramel sauce.  Dig in and enjoy...

This cake is so decadent and rich. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Enjoy!

Jello Cake

This dish is a deliciously sweet EASY cake. I know how easy can it be? you may be asking yourself. But it really is. I like this dish on a hot summer day. It's cold and delicious. It's sweet and light. It is also fruitie (is that really a word, for me it is) without adding any fruit to it. I also like to make jello cakes to go along with some holidays like St. Patricks day, or Easter. Even the 4th of July!  This cake will make you want to add jello to almost every cake you make. At least for me it does. I don't make this very often because I tend to forget about it sometimes, or I don't want to wear it out too much.

Ingredients:
1 cake mix (preferably white, yellow, butter or french vanilla)
1 box jello mix (plus hot water to help dissolve, and cold water - per package instructions)
whipped cream/non-dairy whipped topping
1 bamboo skewer

Directions:
Make cake mix per box instructions in a 13X9. Make jello per package instructions in a medium bowl - set aside (do not refrigerate yet). After cake is removed from the oven-HOT- poke holes all over the top of the cake with the bamboo skewer. Next - Pour the whole bowl of dissolved jello on top of the HOT cake. (Yes, I said pour the whole thing). Then place the pan in the refrigerator for 4-5 hours to let the jello set, and the cake cool. After jello has congealed, and cake is cooled. Spread the whipped cream or non-dairy whipped topping on top. And dig in!

Verdict!
So delicious, and tasty. I have used strawberry jello, lime jello, and even mixed jello flavors (I don't use all of it then. But it tastes delicious. These are light, yet flavorful cakes without adding too much to the waist line. Always a winner in my book.

Easter Dinner

Our Easter Dinner 2011
Shrimp cocktail, breaded pesto chicken, instant mashed potatoes and sweetened corn-microwavable

I know most of you are thinking that I would have some delicious, wonderful dinner prepared. Unfortunately, that was not the case this Easter. I had a final due in one of my classes, and spent most of the day preparing and finishing the paper, after I went to church. That, and when I went to purchase a ham or lamb at the grocery store, they were all sold out. I guess when you snooze you loose. :( I thought I'd have time, I guess I was wrong. So instead, we had my shrimp cocktail, breaded pesto chicken cutlets, instant mashed potatoes, and sweetened corn (cooked in the microwave). I know some of you may be thinking that sounds pretty awesome... It was. It took me about 45 minutes to make. All in all it was a nice dinner, we all sat around the table having dinner and eating shrimp cocktail. I know it was our little extravagance for Easter...shrimp cocktail.  Unfortunately, no pictures were taken of dinner. But it was very delicious... I will try to do better with pictures of my meals. I have been just a little more lax on that part lately since I'm so busy with school. I will get a little busier these next 9 weeks, as I finish up my last three classes to complete my associates degree. I will hopefully be able to get back to making delicious meals with pictures by then. I may have more slow cooker meals coming your way as I'll be very busy with the kids finishing their school for the year, my final term in school, and to top it all off, I may be starting a new job... pray I get it. I could really use the experience :) I have included the recipe for the sweetened corn. It's heavenly!

Sweetened Corn - Microwavable

Ingredients
1 bag frozen white corn kernels
2-3 Tsp white sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 stick of butter/margarine

In a medium microwavable bowl, add the white corn kernels with the butter, set the microwave on full power, and microwave for 3 minutes, take out of the microwave, then add the milk and sugar. Then stir to incorporate the sugar and milk. Then microwave another 4 minutes. Stoping the time at 2 minutes and stirring again. Check temperature of the corn, may need 2 more minutes to cook. (depending on the temperature of your microwave), Serve as a side dish. Delicious.

VERDICT - My kids and husband said it tasted like it was straight off the cob, and oh so sweet. They LOVED it!

4 Cheese Fancy Baked Mac N Cheese

As i was searching the web today after my schoolwork was completed, trying to get ideas for dinner. I went to one of my favorite cooking blogs The Pioneer Woman. I was searching through her expansive recipes, and came across what looked like heaven in a pan. Yes, I said heaven in a pan. She calls it Fancy Macaroni. I altered it a little, so I'm calling it 4 Cheese Fancy Mac N Cheese. And yes, if you read her post on it... she is right, it is a very decadent dish should be reserved for a special occasion, like Tuesdays :) That's my excuse for making it. I even went to the store to purchase some of the cheeses she lists so I could try to replicate it as closely as her recipe. But of course as I go along, I realize that something else would make it yummy too, so I add it to it.

Is that so wrong? I wanted to call this Heavenly Mac N Cheese. Which is probably a better description, but I think I should let someone else have that one,... the originator... The Pioneer Woman... She is an amazing cook and when I grow up I want to be her! She does amazing things with food, and it makes my mouth water just by reading her blog posts. I'm so not worthy, but I did my humble best. Thanks Pioneer Woman for helping me create the BEST Baked mac n cheese I've ever had! You ROCK!!! (if you ever read my humble blog, I am truly honored!)

Ingredients

• 4 cups Macaroni
• 8 Tablespoons Butter (Salted Butter)
• 2 whole Medium Onions, Cut In Half And Sliced Thin
• 10 slices Regular Bacon
• 1 Tablespoon Bacon Grease (reserved From Bacon Slices)
• ¼ cups All-purpose Flour
• 2 cups Whole Or 2% Milk
• ½ cups Half-and-half
• 2 whole Egg Yolks, Beaten
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• ½ cups Grated Gruyere Cheese
• ½ cups Grated Fontina Cheese - I used Romano cheese
• ½ cups Grated Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese - I used Asiago cheese
• 4 ounces, weight Chevre (soft Goat Cheese) - I used crumbled goat cheese (3.5 oz)
• 1 Tbsp pesto

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cook macaroni for half the time of the package instructions. Drain and set aside.

Fry bacon until slightly, but not overly, crispy. Drain on a paper towel. Reserve grease.

Melt 4 tablespoons butter and 1-2 Tbsp bacon fat in a skillet and then saute onions over medium-low heat for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown and soft. Set aside.

In a pot, melt 4 tablespoons butter (and add 1 tablespoon of the reserved bacon grease for good measure!). Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat for 1 minute. Pour in milk and half & half, then cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until thick. Reduce heat to low. Add salt & pepper to taste. (Do not undersalt!)

Beat egg yolks and drizzle 1/4 cup hot mixture into the yolks, stirring constantly. Stir to combine. Pour egg mixture into sauce and cook for another minute.

Add cheeses, pesto and stir until melted and combined. Add onions and bacon (reserving some for topping) and stir. Taste for seasonings and add more salt if needed. Add cooked macaroni and stir to coat.

Pour into a baking dish, Cover with reserved onion and bacon and 1/4 cup shredded Gruyere and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until sizzling and hot.

Serve with red meat or a green salad.

I served it with pesto breaded chicken cutlets and brussels sprouts. 

** All italics are things I did differently from the original recipe. So yummy!

I thought this was a fabulous dinner. Very flavorful and definitely good on a Tuesday after eating a week of crock pot meals. I really enjoyed making this dish. It was really tasty! I hope you like it too.

Broccoli Cauliflower Artichoke Casserole

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I can hardly believe that it's March already. I love the color green. I am part Irish, and I love thinking of today as GREEN DAY! :) I love that band too. :) Well, I'm trying my hand at theme cooking. I know shocker! I don't usually do anything for St. Patricks day except wear green. Today however, I feel more in the spirit of St. Patricks Day so today I am having a Green Meal planned for dinner tonight. Well, all except for the meat, it's marinated chicken legs (store bought). I participate in something called Bountiful Baskets and I got some green colored cauliflower and I thought to my self, what am I going to do with this? I had bought some broccoli earlier in the week so it was still good. Realizing today was GREEN DAY! I thought, "why don't I make a green dish for dinner". So that's just what I did. I searched online for broccoli casseroles, I didn't find one that I thought I had everything for, so I combined two with ingredients that I already had on hand. So here's hoping it turns out. I also made a green jello cake for dessert. Fun huh!? I think so.

Ingredients:

2 heads of fresh broccoli

1 head of cauliflower (mine was colored green)

1/4 of a red onion (I would have used yellow if I had any)

1 can artichoke hearts (rinsed and chopped)

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 can cream of broccoli cheese soup

1 cup sour cream

salt, pepper and paprika to taste

1/8 tsp celery salt

2 tsp butter (melted)

2 cups herb stuffing mix or (8 oz)

Directions:

Boil the broccoli and cauliflower to desired tenderness, then chop. Add the chopped red onion, artichoke hearts 1 cup cheddar cheese sour cream, salt and pepper in a bowl. Stir in the broccoli and cauliflower. In a 9X9X2 pan, spread mixture in the pan.

Then melt the butter and stir in the stuffing mix to incorporate, the sprinkle or spread on top of the broccoli mix the stuffing and butter mixture.

Bake in preheated 350F oven for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top of stuffing mixture and bake an additional 5 minutes until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Serve warm.

St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Rolls

Many of you know by now that I make bread from scratch and I love to utilize my bread maker in a pinch. Well, today was that day I used the bread maker in a pinch. I had to be at the boys school today for several hours, and So when I got home it was too late to start my bread so I started dough in the bread maker. I have a recipe for my bread maker rolls here. I used that recipe to make my shamrock rolls. All I did was add about 6-7 drops of green food coloring to the dough as it mixed together. Then when the bread maker was done, I rolled the dough into small balls and placed them in a muffin pan. Let them rise til about double in size.

Bake in the oven 350F for 12-15 minutes. Browned on top.

I think that next time I will add it to the water in the beginning instead of in the dough stage. But I think they look pretty :)