Snow Skiing Fondant Cake

by penji1

Snow Skiing Fondant Cake

A cake for my friend Rockets in honor of her late husband who loved to ski.  Courtney made the little skier for me and I pretty much did the rest of the cake.  I really like the trees along the front, they are also on the back which you can’t see.  The cake is lemon from the White Almond Sour Cream cake recipe, the frosting is of course my favorite buttercream icing and the fondant is Wilton brand from Michaels.  It’s a topsy turvy cake which is a little hard to see from the picture but he is skiing down the front of the cake.

Rustic “Naked” Wedding Cake with Sunflowers

by penji1

"Naked" Sunflower Wedding Cake

Here is my first attempt at a “Naked” cake which refers to the fact that the cake has little or no frosting and is therefore naked!  This was a wedding cake for my neighbor Andrew and his new wife Jamie.  I was pretty excited when she requested the naked cake because I’ve been wanting to try it.  There are various degrees of naked with some having only frosting between the layers and then others having only a little frosting on the sides.  Basically I frosted the cake like I normally would and then carefully scraped and smoothed it off.  It was harder than it looks.  The cake is a vanilla cake from the White Almond Sour Cream Cake recipe and the frosting is buttercream icing.  Jamie provided the flowers and her cousin put them on the cake.  I really like this naked cake and hope to make another.  Congrats to Andrew and Jamie!

Speedy Minestrone Soup

by penji1

Speedy Minestrone Soup

And just like that, soup season is here, hurray!  I’ve been wanting to make some soup and this one was so quick and easy as I threw it together for dinner last night, not to mention yummy!  The recipe comes from “The Cook’s Pyjamas”.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, pressed

1 carrot, sliced

1 celery stalk, sliced

33 ounces chicken broth

1 bay leaf

1 can diced tomatoes with garlic, basil and oregano, undrained

1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

8 ounces pasta of your choice

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 tablespoon basil

1 teaspoon oregano

1  Heat olive oil in large pot then add onion and saute until onion starts to soften.  Add garlic, carrots and celery and continue to saute until all veggies start to soften.

2  Add chicken stock and bay leaf and bring to a boil then reduce to simmer.

3  Add remaining ingredients and simmer until pasta is cooked through.

Eating our way through Disneyland!

by penji1

Pulled Pork Hot Dog

I wanted to blog about some of the food we ate while on our Disneyland trip so that I could remember the good stuff for the next time we go.  (Not all of these photos are mine, I had to Google some since people were too hungry to wait and let me take a picture!)  We ate lunch at the Hungry Bear Restaurant in Critter Country on our first day in the park, it’s one of our favorites.  We ate burgers and fries and Courtney and I shared a yummy Turkey Caesar Wrap but by far the winner was this Pulled Pork Hot Dog that Bob ate, it was a thing to behold.

Zach and his giant turkey leg

Zach wanted a turkey leg that was as big as his head so we looked all over and asked every “cast member” that we could find and finally found the giant turkey legs over by Big Thunder Railroad in Frontierland.  He said it was everything he dreamed it would be and more!

Mickey Pretzel

Cort decided that she needed a Mickey pretzel which was also at a food cart right by Big Thunder Railroad in Frontierland.  I had a bite and I have to say that it was the best Mickey shaped pretzel I’ve ever eaten.

Jolly Holiday Bakery Caprese

We ate a couple of times at the Jolly Holiday Bakery which I highly recommend!  If you are walking down Main Street towards the Castle, it is at the very end of Main Street on the left hand side, right before you can walk off to the left into Adventureland and the Tiki Room.  The kids ate at a corn dog cart right on the other side of Main Street from the Bakery and were very happy about it but I am rarely up for a corn dog so Bob and I went to the Bakery where we had sandwiches.  I had this Caprese which was really good.

Jolly Holiday Bakery Eclair

I also couldn’t resist this eclair at the bakery which was delicious!  I only got half though cause Cort came and stole the rest!

Ocean Beach Sea Salt Caramel Sundae

The whole trip I had been dying to go to the Ghiradelli Soda Fountain and Chocolate Shop over in California Adventures in the Pacific Wharf area and it did not disappoint!  We ordered two sundaes this Ocean Beach Sea Salt Caramel Sundae

The Intense Dark Espresso Escape

and this Intense Dark Espresso Escape.  Now we all know what a chocolate lover I am but I actually think I liked the Sea Salt Caramel better!

Jolly Holiday Bakery Chocolate Croissants

We went back to the Jolly Holiday Bakery on our last morning in the park for some breakfast.  I can’t remember what everyone else had but I had a chocolate croissant and it was the perfect breakfast for our last day in Disneyland!

Disneyland Churros

So I will end this post by fessing up that on our last day in the park, on our way out, we all kind of headed in different directions and I went over to a churro cart right in front of the castle and had a churro, the perfect ending to the Disneyland trip!

Top Notch Waffles

by penji1

Top Notch Waffles

We always have chili on Halloween but this year I decided to kick it up a notch by serving the chili on cornbread waffles.  This waffle recipe is from the Food Network and is a straight up for breakfast recipe with alterations for all kinds of waffles.   The alteration I made for cornbread was slight so I’ll give you the basic recipe and the 1 tiny change for cornbread.  I’m sure I’ll get around to trying the basic recipe for breakfast one morning and will add a picture when I do.  The chili I made is called Family Favorite Chili and it really is a fam fav!  These were delicious, just make sure you let the waffles cook until really crispy.

2 cups flour (for cornbread waffles, replace 1 cup of flour with 1 cup of cornmeal)

1/4 cup powdered sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 sticks cooled melted butter

2 eggs

1  Whisk flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda together in a large bowl.

2  In a separate bowl, whisk together milk, butter and eggs until combined then pour into flour mixture and stir just until combined.

3  Preheat waffle iron and lightly grease.  Fill with batter according to waffle iron specifications and cook until waffles are golden and crisp.

Yield:  8 – 12 waffles

Here’s a picture of the basic waffle recipe which I made for breakfast the other day; it is now my new favorite waffle recipe, crispy on the outside, light and airy on the inside

IMG_4978

Top Notch Breakfast Waffles

Peach Pie with Almond Crumble

by penji1

Peach Pie with Almond Crumble

I am a pretty good cook and a pretty good baker but I would not consider myself a very good pie maker but I did volunteer to make a pie for a luncheon and this was the result.  It looks pretty good and it smelled even better but, once again, I don’t know how it really turned out or how it tasted since I made it for someone else.  Hopefully it was ok!  The recipe comes from “Love Grows Wild” and was surprisingly easy to make.

pie:

1 refrigerated or frozen pie crust (or homemade if you’re daring or an experienced pie maker, I used frozen)

2/3 cup sugar + 2 tablespoons

1/3 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

6 cups peaches, peeled and sliced which is around 6 – 8 fresh peaches if they are in season or you can use frozen if not just make sure to thaw them completely and drain any juice before using

1 teaspoon lemon juice

crumble:

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

1/4 cup almonds

1  For the pie:  Place peach slices in a bowl and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar.  Gently stir until peaches are coated with sugar and let sit for 10 – 15 minutes.  While waiting on peaches, make crumble topping.

2  For the crumble:  Add flour and salt to food processor and pulse until combined.  Add brown sugar, butter and almonds and process again until well combined.

3  Drain any juice from peaches and then toss slices with lemon juice.  In a large bowl, combine remaining 2/3 cup sugar, flour and cinnamon.  Add peach slices and stir until evenly coated.

4  Heat oven to 400.  Line pie pan with your choice of pie crust and flute edges.  Spoon peaches into crust and top with crumble.

5  Loosely tent pie with foil and bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil for last 15 minutes.  Cool on wire rack at least 2 hours before serving.

Candy Corn Poke Cake

by penji1

Candy Corn Poke Cake

Here’s a cute and easy Halloween dessert that you can throw together quickly if you’re needing a treat for tomorrow.  I took this to a neighbor so can’t show you the inside but there is a yellow cake layer and then an orange cake layer and then Cool Whip on top so ta da!  Candy Corn!  Cute, right?  You can get a look at the inside here on “Wine and Glue” where I got the recipe.

1 white cake mix plus ingredients to make cake

yellow and orange food coloring

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (8 oz) tub Cool Whip

candy corn

1  Prepare cake batter as directed on box.  Divide cake batter evenly into 2 bowls and color 1 bowl of batter yellow and the other orange.

2  Spray bottom of 9 x 13″ pan with cooking spray.  Spread yellow cake batter evenly over bottom of pan and place in freezer for 20 minutes.

3  Remove from freezer and carefully spread orange batter over yellow layer.

4  Preheat oven to temperature called for on cake mix box and place cake pan on top of oven while oven is preheating.

5  Bake according to package directions.  As soon as cake comes out of oven, poke top all over with a wooden spoon then pour sweetened condensed milk all over top especially into the holes.

6  Refrigerate overnight or until cake absorbs milk.  Right before serving spread Cool Whip over top and then sprinkle with candy corn.

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins

by penji1

Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Muffins

I’m behind in my blogging and that is due to the fact that I have been working on a tv show for ABC called “Blood and Oil”.  I’ve been doing some baking and cooking on the weekends but haven’t had a chance to post until now.  It’ll take me a little while to catch up.  I was wanting chocolate chip muffins for breakfast so made these guys on Saturday and they are delicious!  The recipe comes from “Something Swanky”.

1 cup milk

1/4 cup vinegar

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Turbinado sugar for sprinkling (I get mine from Trader Joes)

1  Preheat oven to 425 or 400 for darker colored pans.  Line 24 muffin cup with paper liners.

2  Stir together milk and vinegar in small bowl and let sit while preparing remaining ingredients.

3  Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a large bowl.  Add butter, eggs, vanilla and milk/vinegar and stir just until batter with lumps forms.

4  Fold in chocolate chips.

5  Fill each muffin cup with about 1/4 cup of batter and sprinkle generously with sugar if desired.

6  Bake for 5 minutes at 425/400 then decrease heat to 375/350 and bake for another 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes in pan before removing.

Fresh Tomato Soup

by penji1

Fresh Tomato Soup

Still trying to use up all the yummy tomatoes from my garden.  This recipe is great comfort food and was so warming on Sunday night for dinner.  It would be great with a grilled cheese sandwich.  The recipe comes from “Raising Generation Nourished”.

1/4 cup olive oil

2 medium onions, chopped

2 large carrots, chopped

3 – 4 garlic cloves, chopped or pressed

1 quart chicken broth (or vegetable broth for vegan)

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons basil

about 2 cups chopped tomatoes, cored and seeded

salt and pepper

2 teaspoons honey (omit for vegan)

1  Saute onions and carrots in olive oil and a little salt for about 10 minutes.

2  Add garlic and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

3  Add tomatoes, basil and chicken broth and bring to a boil.

4  Reduce heat and simmer for about 25 minutes.

5  Remove soup from heat and add honey.

6  Puree in blender.

Lemon Cake

by penji1

Lemon Cake

Lemon cake for my friend Justin at work.  Can’t tell you how it tasted cause I gave him the whole cake but he did tell me that he was eating it for breakfast, lunch and dinner so it must have tasted somewhat good!  The recipe comes from “Grandma’s Desserts”.

cake:

1 box lemon cake mix

1 small box lemon instant pudding mix

3/4 cup oil

3 eggs

1 cup Sprite

glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1  Preheat oven to 350.  Spray bundt cake pan with nonstick cooking spray with flour.

2  Mix all ingredients on low until well combined.  Pour into pan.

3  Bake for 40 minutes.  Remove from oven and let sit for 15 – 20 minutes before turning out of pan and letting cool completely.

4  Make glaze by mixing powdered sugar and lemon juice together with a whisk.  Drizzle over cake.

(I topped mine with Pampered Chef Lemon Sprinkles.)