Raspberry Cream Cheese Danish Braid

Raspberry Cream Cheese Danish Braid

Ingredients

RASPBERRY SAUCE

• ¾ cup raspberries
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1½ Tablespoons cornstarch
• ½ cup sugar

CREAM CHEESE FILLING

• 1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
• ⅓ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon Almond Extract

PASTRY

• 1 box puff pastry (2 sheets), thawed to room temperature

FROSTING

• 1¼ cup powdered sugar
• ¼ Heavy Cream
• 1 teaspoon Almond Extract
• pinch of salt

Instructions

RASPBERRY SAUCE

1. In a medium sauce pan, combine all the raspberry sauce ingredients ingredients and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 minutes. Set aside

CREAM CHEESE FILLING

1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, and almond extract. Beat until smooth and creamy and set aside.

ASSEMBLY DIRECTIONS

1. Open thawed puff pastry sheets on a flat working that has been sprinkled lightly with flour surface.
2. Roll dough to make the square even. You aren't rolling to hard though, just lightly enough that you can get all the sides even. The dough will still look like a trifold with creases.
3. With kitchen scissors, or a pizza cutter, make 9 even slits on both sides of the puff pastry, leaving the middle third of the 'trifold' untouched. BE CAREFUL NOT TO GO PAST THE FOLD LINES. Do this to both pastry sheets.
4. Divide the cream cheese filling in half and carefully spread down the center of the pastry sheet of both pastries.
5. Next carefully spoon some of the raspberry sauce over the cream cheese layer. Repeat for both pastures.
6. Next starting at the top of the pasty fold the flaps diagonally and alternately over the raspberry layer. When you get to the end, tuck the ends under the pastry sheet. Repeat with remaining pastry. Place on cookie sheet line with parchment.
7. Bake at 375 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Cool for 10 minutes.

WHILE COOLING, PREPARE FROSTING.

1. Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Drizzle the frosting over the top of pastry after it has been allowed its cooling time.

Yum! And Wow! This was super easy and looks so pretty!! Plus it's delicious. Puff pastry is amazing! I've never used it before and I'm hooked now. I liked making the raspberry sauce but you could also just use jam if you were in a pinch. I want to try different flavors like lemon and blueberry!

https://www.chef-in-training.com/2016/07/raspberry-cream-cheese-danish-braid/

Lemon Lush

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
• 1 cup white sugar

• 2 (3.4 ounce) packages instant lemon pudding mix
• 3 1/2 cups milk
• 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, combine the flour and butter using a pastry cutter until a ball forms. Press into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
3. In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and well blended. Spread evenly over the cooled crust. In another bowl, whisk together the lemon pudding mix and milk for 3 to 5 minutes. Spread over the cream cheese layer. Chill until set, then top with whipped topping.

I think it's time to start up my food blog again. Sean requested this and, wow, it's delicious! It's like a mix between lemon bars and lemon pie. I love the cream cheese filling and the crust. 

Brownie Mix Truffles

Brownie Mix Truffles

• 1 box fudge brownie mix + ingredients on back of box (or any fudgy homemade brownie recipe)
• 12oz Baker's chocolate (I used 6oz each semi-sweet and white)
• sprinkles/embellishments

Directions

1. Bake brownies according to package directions then cool completely. Cut off edges then fluff cooked brownies with a fork. Scoop out brownies by the Tablespoon then roll into a balls and place on baking sheets lined with wax paper.
2. Add chocolate to a microwave-safe bowl just big enough to hold it (makes for easier dipping) then microwave for 1 minute and stir. Microwave in 20 second increments, stirring between increments, until chocolate is melted. Dip brownie truffles in chocolate then transfer between two forks to let excess chocolate drip off. Transfer back to wax paper then add embellishments on top. Place into refrigerator to harden then package. Store on the counter or in the fridge.

So fun to make these!! They look like they'd be hard to make but it was so easy! And really fun for the kids. And of course they were delicious. 

Peek-a-boo Pound Cake

Valentine's Day Peek-A-Boo Pound Cake

• 2 (16 ounce) boxes Betty Crocker Pound Cake mix
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, divided, softened
• 4 eggs, divided
• 1 1/3 cups milk, divided
• red food coloring

Vanilla Icing

• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 350. Coat a 9×5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
2. Prepare your first pound cake: combine 1 box of cake mix, 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) softened butter, 2 eggs, and 2/3 cup milk in a large bowl. Whisk together with an electric mixer or by hand. Add in your food coloring until you reach the desired color (I think I used 25 drops.)
3. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 8-10 minutes less than instructed on box (about 50 minutes.) Let cool, remove from pan and refrigerate for up to 4 hours. Cut cold cake into slices the thickness of your cookie cutter. Cut heart shapes from the slices. Set aside.
4. Prepare your second box of pound cake mix the same as the first, except omit the food coloring. Coat a 9×5 loaf pan with cooking spray and pour just barely enough batter to cover the bottom. Align your heart cut-outs down the center, keeping them tightly together. Poor the remaining batter over the heart cut-outs in the pan, making sure to cover the sides and tops. (Careful the batter doesn’t overflow.) Bake according to the directions on the box, about 1 hour. Let cool when done.
5. Meanwhile, prepare your icing. In a medium bowl, mix all of your ingredients together until combined and creamy. Add more powdered sugar if it appears too runny or more milk if it seems too stiff, until you reach the consistency you like.
6. Remove baked and cooled pound cake from pan and top with icing. Let set; cut into slices and enjoy! Adorable, right!? Serves 10

So adorable right?? I tried making 4 mini loaves with it and it turned out pretty good. Would have been much easier to just make one big loaf like the recipe says. Could do this for any holiday!!

Black Bean Brownies

• 1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, divided
• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup baking cocoa
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 
  

• Place the beans, 1/4 cup chocolate chips and oil in a food processor; cover and process until blended. Add the eggs, brown sugar, cocoa, vanilla, baking powder and salt; cover and process until smooth.
• Transfer to a 9-in. square baking pan coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out
• clean. Cool on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Yield: 1 dozen.
• Nutritional Facts: 1 brownie equals 167 calories, 7 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 53 mg cholesterol, 131 mg sodium,

I never thought I would ever make anything like this. It sounds so gross. But, honestly, I couldn't taste the beans at all! They tasted like brownies. The texture did throw me off a little bit and they did taste a little bitter to me and Sean. I've heard people suggest using milk chocolate chips to help the sweetness and I think I would do that next time. And maybe use part brown sugar and part white sugar. The kids LOVED these though. And that's what's most important. Trying to get more fiber into them. Yay!

Read more: http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/black-bean-brownies#ixzz3CUejLdS1

Orange Buttermilk Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Orange Buttermilk Cake with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

2 cups flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

Zest of 1 orange (1 T.)

½ tsp vanilla

1 cup buttermilk

¼ cup butter, melted and cooled

Frosting:

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

4 T butter, softened

2 T orange marmalade

½ tsp orange extract

½ tsp vanilla extract

2 cups powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Mix together sugar and eggs until combined. Add orange zest, vanilla

extract and buttermilk. Mix until combined. Add cooled melted butter. Add flour, baking powder

and salt until just combined. Don’t over mix.

2. Line bottom of 9x2 round baking pan with parchment paper or foil and butter top of lining

and pan sides. Pour batter into pan, smooth with rubber spatula, and bake for 30 minutes or

until toothpick in center comes out clean. Allow cake to cool in pan for 30 minutes before

removing from pan. Allow to cool completely on wire rack.

3. For frosting: combine first 6 ingredients and beat until smooth. Add powdered sugar and

beat until combined and smooth.

4. Cut cake in half, lengthwise. Spread bottom half with ¼ of cream cheese frosting. Place the

top half of the cake on the bottom half. Frost cake with remaining cream cheese frosting.

YUM!!! This was my first time zesting and I had no idea how much flavor comes from the zest. So awesome. Most of the time when I make cakes the frosting is always too sweet and too much. But this frosting was not. I would say put half of the frosting in the middle and the rest on top of the cake. It was just perfectly sweet. 

Lemon Squares

Lemon Squares
1 c. flour 1/2 c. butter 1/4 c. powdered sugar 2 eggs 1 c. sugar 1/2 tsp. baking powder 2 1/2 T. lemon juice dash of salt Cream together flour and butter. Mix in sugar with fingertips. Press into an 8x8 baking dish. Bake for 20 min at 350F. Beat together remaining ingredients. Pour over crust. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cool completely and cut into bars. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Banana Crumb Muffins

Banana Crumb Muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup butter, melted

Crumb topping:

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup packed brown sugar

Directions:Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place 15 muffin liners in muffin cups.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.
Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

I am falling more and more in love with Six Sisters' Stuff. Especially since Sean and I started counting calories. They include the nutrition information on just about every recipe. Makes it so much easier for us to make sure we're eating good. And everything is easy and good. Awesome.

Anyway, these muffins are delicious. This recipe didn't include any nutrition information but I figured it out on my own. These have 124 calories and 9 g fat per muffin. Awesomer!!! I don't have a tool to "cut butter" so I just used a fork and it was alright. By the way, I think you're supposed to use cold butter for the crumb topping. And my muffins took a little longer to bake; about 23 minutes. The toothpick came out clean after 20 minutes but when I took a bite there was still some uncooked batter at the bottom. 

Banana Cake

Banana Cake
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (3-4 bananas)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
Frosting:
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
3-4 cups powdered sugar

In a large bown, cream the butter and sugar until li ght and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each egg. Beat in bananas and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; add to creamed mixture beating well after each addition.
Pour into a greased 9x13-inch baking pan or cooking sheet (15x10x1in.). Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean). Cool.
For frosting: In a large bowl beat cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Gradually add powdered sugar until smooth. Spread over cake.

Nutrition: Calories: 238, Fat: 8g, Saturated fat: 3g, Protein: 4g, Carb: 40g, Fiber: 2g, Cholesterol: 39mg, Sodium: 146mg

I LOVE this cake. This has been a favorite of mine growing up. Normally I make it in a cookie sheet but I made this for my birthday cake this year so I halved the recipe and made it in an 8x8 pan. I'm sure you could make cupcakes out of this too. Just reduce the time it bakes in the oven. YUM!

Crock Pot Chocolate Lava Cake

Crock Pot Chocolate Lava Cake

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 1/4 C milk
1/2 C vegetable or canola oil
3 eggs
1 (3.9 ounce) instant chocolate pudding
2 C milk (I used 1 %)
1 (12 ounce) bag milk chocolate chips
parchment paper

1. Grab a 3-4 quart crock pot and line it with parchment paper. Spray the inside of the paper with cooking spray. The parchment paper helps the cake cook without burning along the edges. You can make it without the paper, just be sure to watch it closely.
2. Find yourself a nice chocolate cake mix and pour it into your stand mixer or medium-sized mixing bowl.
3. Add 1 1/4 cup milk, 1/2 cup oil and 3 eggs. Beat on low-speed for 1 minutes. Scrape the bottom of the bowl and beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes or until the batter in nice and glossy.
4. Pour the batter into the lined crock pot.
5. Pour one small box of chocolate pudding into your stand mixer or medium-sized mixing bowl. Add 2 cups cold milk and beat it until the pudding thickens. Should take about 3-4 minutes.
6. Pour the pudding over the top of the cake batter. Don't stir it. Really, cross my heart and hope to die. It will cook up best if you leave the layers be.
7. Grab a bag of milk chocolate chips and pour the pretty little things all over the top of the pudding. Again, please do not stir it.
8. Cover the crock and cook on low for 2 1/2 hours, or until the top of the cake is set. The bottom layer of the cake will be all gooey and soft. Yum.
9. Place some on a plate and add a  cool scoop of ice cream or whipped cream right on top.

The original recipe says to cook this on low but it was not even close to being ready after 2 hours so I turned it up to high for another hour and it was perfect. So if you cook this on low I'd say it needs 3 or 4 hours to cook.
The bottom of the cake will be gooey and it's supposed to be. Make sure to get all that gooey goodness with your cake. Delicious with ice cream! It was so fun making cake in a crock pot!

Ultimate Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

Ultimate Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake
Ingredients:
For the Chocolate Cake Layers

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as canola, soybean or vegetable blend
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
For the Peanut Butter Frosting

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter
For the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 cup half-and-half
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 9-inch round cake pans.
Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and butter the paper.
For the Chocolate Cake Layers
2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them
well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the
vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the
bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.
3. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center
comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully
peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely. Wrap the cakes in plastic wrap and place in the
freezer for at least half an hour, or up to a couple of days, in advance.
For the Peanut Butter Frosting

4. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.

Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and
scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3
to 4 minutes.
5. Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended.
For the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

6. In the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut

butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is
smooth.
7. Remove from the heat and whisk in the half-and-half, beating until smooth. Use while still warm.
Assemble the Cake
8. To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3
cup cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last
layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Refrigerate the
frosted cake for at least half an hour to set the frosting.
9. To decorate with the Chocolate–Peanut Butter Glaze, simply pour the glaze over the top of the
cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down
the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze
and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving.

Wow this cake was intense. And way more work than I was expecting. If I ever get to take cooking classes I would love to learn more about making layer cakes. I suck at it. I did take a picture of the whole cake but it looks terrible so I just didn't post it. It turnout pretty on the inside though :)

This is one of those recipes where you need to read through the whole thing first before you start cooking. There were a lot of things I messed up on. And it probably wouldn't have felt like so much work if I did what the blogger suggests and make it over a couple of days.

When you make the chocolate glaze, let it cool/set for a few minutes before pouring it on the cake. Mine was all runny and warm so it just spilled over the top of the cake and pooled up on the plate. So hideous.

It was very rich and delicious though. The kids gobbled it up! It's a lot like the strawberry cake I made where the frosting in the middle would have been plenty.

Strawberry Cake

Strawberry Cake

 1 (18.25-ounce) box white cake mix
1 (3-ounce) box strawberry-flavored instant gelatin
1 (15-ounce) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
Strawberry cream cheese frosting, recipe follows
Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (10-ounce) package frozen strawberries in syrup, thawed and pureed
1/2 teaspoon strawberry extract
7 cups confectioners' sugar
Freshly sliced strawberries, for garnish, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 (9-inch) round cake pans.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and gelatin. Add pureed strawberries, eggs, oil, and water; beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Pour into prepared pans, and bake for 20 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks.

For the frosting:

In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in 1/4 cup of the strawberry puree and the strawberry extract. (The rest of the puree is leftover but can be used in smoothies or on ice cream for a delicious treat.) Gradually add confectioners' sugar, beating until smooth.

Spread frosting in between layers and on top and sides of cake. Garnish with sliced fresh strawberries, if desired.

This was a super easy cake! And way good and moist. A couple of things though:

1. I couldn't find frozen strawberries in syrup so I used canned pie filling. I ended up using 1 whole can plus 1/4 cup of another can. It's really thick so I would suggest diluting it with a bit of water. Then you would only need one can.

2. There was a lot of frosting on this. I'm kinda thinking this cake would be better as cupcakes with a thin layer of frosting on top. And you could probably half the frosting recipe. For me, the frosting in the middle of the cake was all I needed.

3. This recipe says to bake for 20 minutes. Mine took 30 minutes to bake.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies

Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies
1 cup peanut butter
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa


Make peanut butter crust:
Blend peanut butter, 3/4 cup sugar, and 1 egg. Press bottom of 8x8 pan.

Make brownie:
Beat butter, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, vanilla, cocoa, and flour. Spread over peanut butter mixture in pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

When Sean and I took a bite of these we both said, "Oh crap. That's good!" The brownie stayed moist and gooey. Perfect!!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch

Strawberry Rhubarb Crunch
1 cups flour
1 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup cold butter, cubed
1 cups quick oats
3 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb (thawed)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 pkg. strawberry gelatin powder (1/2 cup)

Combine flour and brown sugar in food processor. Add cold butter. Stir in oats and press half into a greased 8x8 baking dish. Top with rhubarb.

Combine in ia saucepan: sugar, cornstarch and water. Stir until smooth, boil for two minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla. Pour over rhubarb. Sprinkle with gelatin powder. Top with remaining crumb mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until rhubarb is tender and topping is golden brown. Serve with ice cream or whipped topping. Serves 6-8.

Yum-o! This is a favorite recipe of my mom's. THIS is what summer is all about. I don't know why you can't buy rhubarb in the store though. My MIL was kind enough to give me some of hers that she got from a neighbor. And my mom always grows it. But seriously, the crunchy sweetness of the crust and the tartness of the rhubarb is heavenly.

Almond Poppy Seed Bread

Almond Poppy seed Bread
3 c. all-purpose flour
2 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/8 c. canola oil
3 eggs
1 1/2 c. milk
2 tsp. poppy seeds
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 tsp. butter flavoring
1 1/2 tsp. almond flavoring

 GLAZE
3/4 c. white granulated sugar
1/4 c. orange juice
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. butter flavoring
1/2 tsp. almond flavoring

Preheat oven to 350. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs, oil, sugar, and flavorings and beat for 2 minutes. Alternate adding in flour mixture and milk and then mix until just combined. Add poppy seeds and mix until just combined. Pour into prepared pans (5 mini pans or 2 regular loaf pans) and bake (35-40 minutes for mini pans, 1 hour for large pans; keep an eye on them). When done, place on a cooling rack for 15-20 minutes and then remove from pans and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack. While cooling, prepare glaze by combining all glaze ingredients. Drizzle over loaves and allow to harden.


**Update 6/12/13
10 minutes doesn't seem to be long enough for these to cool in the pan. I just made another batch and the bottom sticks to the pan and the rest falls out in a crumbly mess. Sad. I suggest letting them cool in the pans for 20 minutes and then remove from the pan to cool completely.

Dirt Cups

Dirt Cups/Worms in the Dirt

1 pkg.  (3.9 oz.) JELL-O Chocolate Instant Pudding

2 cups  cold milk

1 tub  (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

15  OREO Cookies, finely crushed (about 1-1/4 cups), divided

10 worm-shaped chewy fruit snacks

  
BEAT pudding mix and milk in large bowl with whisk 2 min. Let stand 5 min. Stir in COOL WHIP and 1/2 cup cookie crumbs.
SPOON into 10 (6- to 7-oz.) paper or plastic cups; top with remaining cookie crumbs.
REFRIGERATE 1 hour. Top with fruit snacks just before serving

*Sand Cups

Prepare using JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding and 35 NILLA Wafers.

 I made these for my little Joy school kids today and they all loved it. I had to keep reassuring them, though, that it wasn't real dirt. :)

Eclair Dessert

Mmmm. This is a favorite of mine and I wanted this for my birthday cake this year. So good. I halved the recipe and made it in an 8x8 pan. Perfect amount for our little family.

Elciar Dessert
Crust: Boil 1 square butter and 1 cup water. Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup flour with a fork. Add 4 eggs one at a time, beating with electric mixer after each. Spread in a greased 12x16 jelly roll pan and bake at 400F for 25 minutes. Flatten any bubbles. Cool.

Filling: Mix in blender two 3-ounce packages instant vanilla pudding mix, 3 cups milk, and 8 ounces cream cheese. Blend well and spread on crust -- chill.

Top with 12 ounces whipped topping, chill over night. Drizzle with chocolate syrup just before serving.

Brownie Mix

Thanks, Mom for the Make-a-Mix cookbook! These mixes make great gifts and they're delicious. I never knew how easy it is to make brownies! (Find out how I decorated the jar here.)

 Brownie Mix
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups sugar
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

In a large bowl combine flour baking powder, salt, sugar and cocoa.  Stir with wire whisk until evenly distributed. Put in a large airtight container. Label with date and contents. Store in a cool, dry place for 10-12 weeks. Makes 7 cups of mix.


To make brownies:
1/4 cup melted butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups Brownie Mix

Preheat oven to 350F. Combine butter, eggs, vanilla and brownie mix. Beat until smooth. Pour into greased 8x8 pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, until edges separate from pan.

Blueberry-Poppyseed Muffins

Blueberry-Poppy seed Muffins
1 1/3 cups vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
3 cups flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
2 1/2 cups sugar
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups milk
3 eggs
1 1/2 T. poppy seeds
1 1/2 t. almond extract
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
1 cup blueberries

1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Set aside. Beat the milk, 1 1/3 cups oil, eggs, poppy seeds and almond and vanilla extracts until combined. Gradually beat in the flour mixture until will combined. Fold in blueberries with rubber spatula.
2. Fill greased muffin cups 2/3 full with batter and bake at 350F for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Remove from pan and cool completely. Makes 48 mini muffins.
(For loaves, fill two greased loaf pans and bake for 60-70 minutes)

I got the recipe from Food Network but it is similar to a recipe found on Our Best Bites called Almond Poppy Seed Bread. Mmmm

Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Glazed Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup Sour Cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 Tbsp grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
2 tsp poppy seeds
 Glaze:
1 teaspoon melted  butter
powdered sugar
4 tsp lemon juice

 Preheat oven to 350°F.  Line muffin tins with paper liners.
Whisk flour, baking powder, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, and baking soda in medium bowl. Whisk sour cream, buttermilk and lemon juice in small bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, and lemon zest in large bowl to blend. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until mixture is light and fluffy, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in dry ingredients in 3 additions alternately with sour cream/buttermilk mixture in 2 additions. Mix just until blended. Stir in poppy seeds. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
Bake muffins until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 20 – 22 minutes. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Remove muffins from pans and cool on rack.
Mix together melted butter, lemon juice and enough powdered sugar to make a glaze.  Drizzle or pipe glaze over tops of warm muffins.

Makes 48 mini muffins or 12 large muffins.

 I can't actually tell you if these tasted good or not because I have a cold and can't taste anything. But Brandon really liked them so they must have tasted good. Oh, and I forgot to add the poppy seeds...

It's hard to see the glaze but I did make it and put it on top. I should have used more powdered sugar and made it thicker. Most of it ended up on the counter.