banana caramel cream dessert

Need I say more? After a wonderful brunch with Hero Hubby's parents (I made this strata), I put the ladies down for a nap and began to stare blankly at my mac wondering what to post about. So, I began to wander the web. All good things come from surfing food blogs, and so I share with you this delicious recipe from Glorious Treats. This banana caramel cream dessert looks so pretty in individual cups! I may finally have a use for those stemless martini glasses I have kicking around (though I'm never opposed to acquiring more glassware). Or, perhaps I might try this dessert in some stout Ball jars...

boston cream pie birthday cake

Hero Hubby's birthday is swiftly approaching (as in tomorrow) and I am making his favorite dessert, Boston cream pie. This recipe for classic Boston cream pie is from the Omni Parker House in Boston where the dessert originated. The different ingredients can seem intimidating, but once you have all the components, the assembly is easy! I'm going to skip the part about fondant and slivered almonds and just go for a nice chocolate ganache instead. I'll post pictures of the results, aflame with all the birthday candles (and there a lot this year). Hehe...

cake image via martha stewart
poster image via allposters

vegan chocolate cake

Happy March! As typical New England Weather would have it, there are about four inches of snow on the ground. To think we almost go out of February unscathed by Old Man Winter. Ah, well... I'm still obsessed with these sandals and painting my tootsies this color in my excitement for spring. Anyway, on to that scrumptious looking cake pictured up there. Made with the very basic of ingredients (you probably have them all in your kitchen at this very moment), baking this chocolate cake is on my to do list this weekend. And, it's vegan! Not that we're vegan... couldn't even begin to think about life without dairy (or hamburgers), but it looks like an easy recipe to whip up when the need for something crowd-pleasing arises, or your vegan friends pop by for a visit. Check out the recipe for vegan chocolate cake.

image via joy the baker

best chocolate cupcakes ever

I would not make such a dramatic claim if this were not true. Of course, we all have different ideas of what "best ever" really means everything is relative. Since I'm a sweets junkie, I cannot be relied upon to objectively rate baked goods, so I put these chocolate cupcakes to the test by swaying my Hero Hubby to try one (the man does not like sweets, crazy right?!) They passed with flying colors. Thus, this recipe is now filed in the "best ever" section in my recipe book. Try them with vanilla buttercream frosting and you and your sweet (or not-so-sweet) tooth will not be disappointed. My little sweet liked them too!

recipe via SimplyRecipes

move over, June

Someday I will wield a glittery pink spatula while wearing an apron with frilly white trim that nips my waist in and makes me look like a baking goddess while I effortlessly make (from scratch!) cookies in all sorts of ingenious flavors. Someday.... or, perhaps never now that I have found a prepared cookie dough that tastes like it came from the oven of June Cleaver and is made with all natural ingredients. Joy! After a weekend of drunken debauchery (perhaps just a few too many cocktail parties), house chores and general child related chaos, The Hubs and I were ready to relax. It's almost physically impossible for me to relax without quelling my voracious sweet tooth. Since the oven was still hot from having cooked dinner, I decided to pop a few (ok, eight) little rounds of Triple Chocolate cookie dough by Immaculate Baking Co. How liberating it felt to simply break off however many cookies I wanted to bake, plop them onto a pan and bake for ten minutes. Yum! Considering the speed at which we ate these cookies, they could very well be re-named Vanishing Triple Chocolate. Enjoying a treat without having to clean up a cataclysm of batter and bowls was a divine way to end the weekend. No frilly aprons necessary.

image via muffintopmommy

cappuccino update

 Remember this post? Well, I just made myself a mid-afternoon treat using chocolate almond milk in place of regular old milk. It foamed up beautifully and tastes so good I just had to share this little side of sparkle with you!

 {Perhaps these cappuccino brownies will be a splendid chocolatey-coffee fix for dessert tonight}

who wants some Schweddy Balls?

Leave it to Ben and Jerry's to mint an ice cream with such a, well, ballsy name. Schweddy Balls is coming to a supermarket freezer near you and it boasts the well-rounded flavors of vanilla, rum, fudge and malt balls. For those of us who don't quite get the reference (and that included me) the flavor is based on the old Saturday Night Live skit where Alec Baldwin plays Pete Schweddy on a fake NPR show, Delicious Dish, where he makes holiday treats such as cheese balls, rum balls, and his signature Schweddy balls. Ben & Jerry's spokesman Sean Greenwood stated, "we've always been a company that has had a sense of humor."

Though it sounds unappealing (unless you're into that sort of thing), once I understood the flavor's pop culture connection, I admit my intrigue and will seek out a pint. I imagine I'll smirk every time I open the freezer and catch a glance of the words "Schweddy Balls" peeking out amidst the bags of frozen peas, broccoli and meatballs.

original story via npr

strawberry cupcakes + coconut frosting {= yum}

During my hurricane Irene induced web-surfing I landed onto uncharted blog territory; how sweet it is is a wonderfully composed food blog that just so happens to have a recipe for cupcakes that combine two of my favorite flavors: strawberry and coconut. Usually the stuff of smoothies, strawberries and coconuts rarely couple up in a recipe. Thus, my love of the two tastes compels me to share this recipe with you. We are in the thick of canning season and I intend to splurge on some organic strawberries just for these (and I simply must have some pink sprinkles to decorate the tops). 

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes
makes 12 cupcakes
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped strawberries
1-2 tablespoons milk, if needed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla extract and mix until combined. Add flour, baking powder and salt with the mixer on low speed, then gradually increase speed. Add in chopped strawberries and beat on medium speed until the strawberries break down – about 1-2 minutes. At this point, the strawberries most likely have enough liquid that you don’t need to add any milk to the batter. If you batter seems dry and is not like typical cake batter, then add milk 1-2 tablespoons at a time, beating until incorporated.

Pour into cupcake liners, filling 2/3 of the way full, and bake for 20-25 minutes or until cake is set. Let cool, then frost.

Note: I would not suggest using frozen strawberries because of the high water content. If you must, make sure they are completely thawed and as dry as possible. Even the fresh strawberries have a high water content, so if yours seem very wet, blot them with a paper towel. Also, if you can get your hands on some strawberry extract, it would probably be delicious in these. You can also add some food coloring if desired to give it the bright pink look.

Coconut Frosting
2 sticks of butter, softened (1 cup)
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar + more if needed
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of coconut extract (if you don’t have this, no big deal)
1-2 tablespoons of lite coconut milk
3/4 cup shredded, sweetened coconut

Cream butter in the bowl of an electric mixture until completely smooth and creamy. With the mixer on low speed, add in powdered sugar slowly. Gradually increase mixer speed and add vanilla and coconut extracts, then beat for 2-3 minutes, scraping down sides and bottom of the bowl. If frosting is too thick, add coconut milk 1 teaspoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. If it’s too thin, add powdered sugar gradually until it thickens. Fold in shredded coconut and mix until just combined.

individual jam cakes

Last week I snatched up a pound of organic strawberries and promptly forgot I stashed them in the crisper (shame on me).  They were looking rather drowsy when I dug them out a few days ago, but I'm not one to let such prized produce go to waste.  So, I made a batch of strawberry jam.  Yesterday I was searching for a simple, delicious dessert to make that night and came across this recipe for individual strawberry jam cakes.  I was tickled silly to use my very own homemade jam. These cakes are definitely addictive - I've already enjoyed one two today with my morning coffee.

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for tin
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
2 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup milk
6 tablespoons strawberry jam or preserves
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a standard 6-cup muffin tin; set aside. In a medium bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar, and zest until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks one at a time until creamy; set aside. Into a small bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture and milk in alternating batches to butter mixture; set aside.

In a clean bowl, whisk egg whites to soft peaks; fold into batter. Divide half of batter among muffin cups. Make an indentation in the middle of each; fill with 1 tablespoon jam. Top with remaining batter.
Bake until a cake tester inserted in top cake layer comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Unmold cakes, and transfer them to a wire rack to cool. 

In a small bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar and juice. Place rack over parchment paper; drizzle cakes with glaze. 

recipe via marthastewart.com