Mini Cherry Lattice Pies

Oh these are just too freakin cute! I am falling more and more in love with my mini muffin pan with every recipe I make. I am also a huge new fan of the blog Picky Palate . I have around 10 of her recipes starred in my googlereader and had to stop myself at that, otherwise, I would have added everything in her blog! It has also been a secret new goal of mine to bake a pie. I say secret because I'm not a big pie fan and pretty much swore to myself that I would never make one! It's slowly creeping into my interest for the sole fact that I love the look of a lattice top. Hopefully, these have cured my desire for a little while as I weed through the other 100's of desserts I have on my, 'to make' list.

The original recipe called for peanut butter and jelly instead of cherry, but I'm in spring fruit mode and not a huge fan of PB&J so I opted for a little change. The lattice tops didn't turn out quite as cute as I had hoped because when they were baking, they rose and lifted the tops. I softly patted a couple of them down when they came out of the oven and it helped. Overall, the slightly wonky tops didn't throw off the yummy taste and I strongly encourage you to try these when you have a pie craving!

Mini Cherry Lattice Pies

Source: Inspired by Picky Palate

Ingredients

1 roll Pillsbury pie dough

1 small jar of cherry pie filling

1 egg white whisked with 1 teaspoon of water for egg wash

powered sugar for sprinkling on top

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Unroll pie crust onto a lightly floured surface. Use a 2 1/2 in round cutter to cut out circles in dough (I used my 1/4 c measuring cup). Lightly press dough rounds into a greased mini muffin tin. Roll remaining scraps of dough to an even thickness then use sharp knife to cut thin 1/8 inch strips to create lattice tops.

Spoon 1/2 tablespoon of cherry pie filling into each of the pie crusts. Using the pie strips, form lattice top. Cut excess dough from edges and brush tops lightly with egg wash. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from tins with the tip of a knife. Dust with powered sugar and enjoy!

Yields 12 mini pies.

Fudge Ribbon Cake

It is finally spring break and I am so excited to have a few days off! My plans for spring break are pretty uneventful because my partner and I hope to mostly wrap up our thesis! That will be such a good feeling. I do plan to throw some fun into the week though as we have a girls shopping trip planned to the outlet mall (hello, Coach store!) and I have quite a few new recipes I want to try! I haven't been spending much time in the kitchen lately due to school and the hubs has been working out of town during the week, so suppers have consisted of cereal or Jimmy John's.

I began my return to the kitchen in pursuit of filling my craving for cheesecake. I found this recipe and decided to give it a try. It was very easy and tasted pretty good!

Warning: Use spray on the bunt pan. I was in a hurry and left out this step...it did not end well and resulted in me remaking the cake. When I was teenager I remember having multiple fights with my mom because I REFUSED to use cooking spray on the pans, insisting that it made no difference. I think it was my attempt to rebel and ever since then, when I cook, I typically do not use cooking spray. Well mom, are you happy?!? I don't think I will forget again.

Fudge Ribbon Cake

Source: Bake Me More

Ingredients for the cake:

1 box chocolate cake mix, plus ingredients called for on the box

1 8oz package cream cheese (I used 1/3 fat)

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Ingredients for the ganache:

3 oz bittersweet chocolate (I used Ghirardelli chips)

1/3 cup heavy cream

1/2 tablespoon corn syrup

1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees. SPRAY 10 inch bunt pan with no-stick cooking spray

Prepare cake mix according to package directions. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Beat cream cheese, butter and cornstarch in a medium bowl until smooth. Gradually beat in sweetened condensed milk, egg and vanilla until smooth. Pour evenly over cake batter. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes and remove from pan. Allow to cool and apply chocolate ganache.

Ganache directions:

In small saucepan, bring cream to a boil. In separate bowl, combine 3 oz of chocolate and 2 tablespoons of butter. Pour hot cream over chocolate. and let stand until melted, about 5 minutes. Stir, if not all lumps are dissolved, place in microwave for 10 second intervals. Let ganach sit until think but still pourable. Pour ganache over cooled cake. Let set for 30 minutes or until glaze is set before serving.

Reese's Peanut Butter cake

Wow, school is crazy! I am sitting here with a bunch of backed up posts and hope to get a couple more out this week.
This cake was pretty much amazing. It was rich and definitely tasted like peanut butter. Since Reese's Peanut Butter cups are the hubs favorite candy, I made this cake for the hubs on Valentines day and boy did he eat!
I was impressed how easy it was to make this cake and how visually appealing (I thought) it turned out.
I followed the recipe exactly so I am just going to link it back to the original. Enjoy!

Reese's Peanut Butter cake
Source: Annie's Eats

Peach Crunch Cake

Believe it or not, I can control myself around chocolate. Yes, I think it is one of God's gifts to man but it is also something that I can take a couple bites of a set aside. Now fruit desserts on the other hand, are a major weak spot. One of my all time favorite desserts, besides cheesecake of course, is my Grandma L's apple bars! Amazing! A pan of those little devils never last long. The other day I had a mouth watering craving for a fruit dessert and came across Bakerella's recipe for Peach Crunch cake. I made it, ate it, gave some away and polished off the dish by the weekend. Ouch! Like I said, bars, cookies and cakes can get stale but I planed my day around when I would get to have another piece of this amazing treat. I anticipate myself making this several more times and probably for a couple pot lucks...served warm...oh my goodness, I am struggling not to make this again right now!

Enjoy, I dare to say that you will not regret making this!

Peach Crunch Cake

Source: Bakerella

Ingredients:

24.5 ounce jar of sliced peaches in light syrup (The jar I found was a little bigger and used it all. Still good)

1 yellow cake mix

1/2 cup butter (1 stick) cut into tablespoons or smaller

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place ingredient in a 9x13 and layer ingredients in order as listed above, starting with the peaches.

Cook for 40 minutes

Can serve warm or cold and with or without ice cream. But believe me, warm with ice cream...ahhh...did you hear my stomach growl?

Wilton Cake Class, Course 1, Class 2

Three friends and myself recently began the Wilton cake decorating course. After receiving a set of decorating tips for Christmas and not being able to manipulate them, I knew a course would be my best chance for success! Class 1 we learned what supplies we needed, a demonstration of how to frost a cake and a quick preview of some of the things we are going to learn in the following sessions. For Class 2, we got to bring a cake to decorate! I began the night before by attempting to make a rainbow cake. I was SO excited for this cake! However, just like so many other recipes I try, I always manage to fail once before succeeding, hence the picture below.

My rainbow cakes ;(

I believe that I did not cook them long enough because they FELL apart when I tried to remove the pan and place on the wax paper. Up side, (there always has to be an upside, right?) they tasted really good and when I have more time I plan to attempt again. At that point I will list the recipe!

Onto plan B at ten o'clock at night...I made another cake. Just a basic cake mix, Devil's food. When I get a little better at decorating, I plan to make a cake from scratch, but at this point in the semester and in the middle of the week, it just wasn't happening.

The class was a blast and can't wait for the next one. I do have to miss class 3 though as I will be out of town for an internship, but I plan to have one of my friends show me what they did in class and I will try to post that cake later.

My first decorated cake!

Chocolate Turtle Cake

Happy Valentines Day!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful day full of love and appreciation for their significant other! In our household, we celebrated last night with dinner, a movie and exchanged gifts! The hubs scored HUGE brownie points because he got me a kitchen torch and the cutest apron decked out in pink polka dots, rhinestone buckle and embroidered, "Domestic Diva."

I got him a movie and baked a cake. Wow, that boy is hard to buy for!

This Valentine's Day was our eighth 'love day' together! It does not seem like we have been together that long...yet I can barely remember my life before him. Valentine's Day is always one of my favorite holidays because it brings with the lowest amount of stress. I know some people feel that it is a Hallmark holiday, and to each their own, but I don't think it's a bad idea to have an extra day each year to tell each other how much you love them!
Today we celebrated by me cooking a meal, funny how that has become my idea of a good time. We rented movies and I enjoyed listening to the hubs laughing at them as I was in the kitchen. I made us a full meal of turkey, ice cream potatoes, cream cheese corn and homemade buns. It was my first attempt with a turkey and let's just say, "it was falling off the bones."

For dessert I made, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup cake, which I will post in a few days because that is the hubs favorite candy!

Now onto the actual post!

I know that this breaks one of the biggest rules in the cooking world but I LOVE box cake mixes. Maybe it because of my minimal skills, poor attention or limited patience but I have yet to make a cake from scratch that I like as much as a cake mix. Eek! I know, I will probably be banished to some far away cooking island, left with only a spear and my imagination, being forced to create a Wilson-like friend to speak to for the rest of my days. Horrible, I know. In time, I do hope to enjoy made-from-scratch cakes more than I do mixes but until that day I found a nifty little cookbook by Miss Betty herself titled, "Ultimate Cake Mix Cookbook." The entire book is filled with bars, pies, cookies and cakes that have some sort of mix as their base. I think the recipes are amazing and perfect for a quick fix!


Chocolate Turtle Cake
Source: Betty Crocker's, Ultimate Cake Mix Cookbook


Ingredients:
1 package Devils food cake mix
1 1/3 cups water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 bag (14 ounces) caramels
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chopped pecans
1 bag (6 ounce) semi-sweet chocolate chips (1 cup)


Directions:
1) Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom and sides of 9x13 in pan.
2) Make cake mix according to box using water, oil and eggs. Pour half the mixture into the pan. Bake 25 minutes.
3) Meanwhile, heat caramels and milk in 1 quart saucepan over medium heat about 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until caramels are melted. Pour and spread caramel over warm cake in pan. Sprinkle with pecans and chocolate chips. Spread with remaining batter.
4) Bake 30 minutes. Run knife around side of pan to loosen cake. Cook completely, about 1 hour. Serve with ice cream. Store at room temperature.
5) To reheat, place piece of cake in microwave for 10-20 seconds and serve with ice cream.

Boston Cream Pie

Boston Cream Pie is one of the greatest mixtures ever created! Cake, custard and chocolate are all you need for a delish dessert. I originally developed this craving when thinking of my mom's Boston Cream Pie. Somehow she managed to make a cake that tasted even better 3 days later as leftovers, if it lasted that long! I have also been wanting to attempt a layered cake and with this pies simple ganache, it was perfect to try because I didn't have to worry about messing it up!

Now I do have to admit that I was running short on time and patience and substituted a yellow cake mix...I know I know, it would have been better homemade but it did still taste pretty amazing. If you are interested in making the cake from scratch, which I will try next time, just use the original recipe. My comments are in bold below.

*Caution*-utilize control! The hubs devoured this cake in 2 days, no joke! He keep asking for more pie and far be it from me to stop the man! I was so glad I found something that he liked so much. His stomach on the other hand wasn't too happy with me ;)

Boston Cream Pie
Source: Annie'sEats

Ingredients:

For the pastry cream:
2 cups half-and-half
½ cup (3.5 oz.) sugar
Pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
3 tbsp. cornstarch
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces1
½ tsp. vanilla extract

For cake:
Yellow cake mix (or make your own through original recipe)

For the ganache:
1 cup heavy cream
¼ cup light corn syrup
8 oz. semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

To make the pastry cream, combine the half-and-half, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, and salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat until simmering, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Meanwhile, combine the egg yolks and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl and whisk until the sugar has begun to dissolve and the mixture is creamy, about 15 seconds. Whisk in the cornstarch until combined and the mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 30 seconds.

When the half-and-half mixture has reached a simmer, slowly add it to the egg yolk mixture to temper, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula. Return the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture is thickened and glossy, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla. Strain the pastry cream through a fine mesh sieve set over a medium bowl. (I did not have a mesh sleeve but since the pastry was placed between cakes, you couldn't tell a difference, not the best but it works until I pick one up). Press plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming and refrigerate until cold and set, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.

Prepare cake mix according to box. Spray 2 9 inch pans with PAM cooking spray. Divide the batter between the 2 pans. Bake and let cool only slightly in pan before removing. (My cakes came out great by just placing my hand over the cake and inverting pan, then gently placing on wax paper to cool completely.)

To make the glaze, combine the heavy cream and corn syrup in a medium saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate; cover and let stand for 8 minutes. (If the chocolate has not completely melted, return the saucepan to low heat and stir constantly until melted.) Stir in the vanilla extract very gently until smooth. Cool the glaze until tepid so that a spoonful drizzled back into the pan mounds slightly. (Feel free to place in the refrigerator to speed up process, stirring frequently. It took me around 10-15 mins.)

To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on a cardboard cake circle or serving surface. Place 1 rectangular piece of wax paper (torn into 4 smaller rectangular pieces) underneath the edges of the cake all the way around the perimeter. If desired, reserve about half a cup of pastry cream for decorating. Use a sharp knife and cut out a VERY slight indent in the bottom cake layer, or at least make it level, creating a space for the pastry cream to set. Spread the remaining pastry cream in an even layer on the first cake layer, all the way to the edges. Top with the remaining cake layer and press down gently. Pour the glaze onto the middle of the top cake layer and let it flow down the sides of the cake. Use a spatula, if necessary, to help cover the sides completely. Let the cake sit until the glaze fully sets, about 1 hour. This cake is best served the day it is made.