Your Daily Sweets: What Are You Making and Baking? (2015)

[rotuts]

nice  thanks

 

are there some w the 'pudding' addition ?

 

Im not that much of a baker, but I did make fantastic sour dough bread some time ago each

 

saturday

 

and

 

FD ; when I was a student, where I had a small kitchen and fed myself  .......

 

from time to time I  made Cake

 

always BettyC.  I split the box's contents carefully in to two amounts

 

I only wanted a singe layer.

 

baked that based on the Boxes insturctions

 

and then  .....

 

this is key  : used Betty's frosting mix  

 

which back then I think was powdered sugar and flavorings

 

with my own supermarket butter   ( no salt , please ! room temp etc )

 

to make a 'butter cream frosting'

 

not too often, after all, Im still alive today !

 

but that cake w that frosting,  

 

FD :  very thick frosting, BTW

 

with Ice Cold Milk or Vanilla Ice cream   ....

 

well .........

 

Ive never understood why this boxed powdered frosting mix disappeared ?

 

better to buy the "Tubs" of crisco frosting ?

 

and yes  ive seen people open these tubs in the store and eat them with their fingers.

 

Yum !

 

 

they were on the Large Size ........

Edited March 30, 2015 by rotuts (log)

[Thanks for the Crepes]

Hey rotuts,

 

I never used the Betty Crocker frosting mix, you're referring to for butter cream, but this brand also had a "Fluffy White Frosting Mix," I used to buy all the time. It has disappeared from everywhere I have looked.

 

I still make a cheesecake from the Betty Crocker cookbook, but now I substitute marshmallow fluff for the frosting mix it calls for. It's still very good. The recipe calls for extra sugar, but I never use any. I like to let the tang of the cream cheese get through.

 

I despise those tubs of trans fat frosting.

 

ETA: I think the reason the frosting mixes disappeared was that more women started working, getting stressed, and lazy about cooking, so standards dropped. I'm all for taking short cuts and doing things the easy way, but I'll never buy another tub of those gross pre-made frostings.

Edited March 31, 2015 by Thanks for the Crepes (log)

[Kim Shook]

That lemon cake wasn't made with lemon pudding, but it does have lemon gelatin in it.  Here's the recipe if anyone is interested: http://www.recipecircus.com/recipes/Kimberlyn/CAKESandPIES/Aunt_Eulas_Lemonade_Cake.html  Other than the gelatin, it is a scratch cake and two days later is still tasting fresh and moist.  

 

I confess to using the canned frostings from time to time.  I don't mind them at all.  I am not a fan of regular buttercream and when I don't feel like making a meringue-type frosting, I'll use the canned.  I also use them to make a combination frosting that I came up with - it is half fudgy-gooey frosting and half buttercream.  The fudgy frosting was too loose, so I started making the half and half.  I often sub in the canned frosting for the buttercream and I like it a lot.  It pipes well and tastes great.

[RWood]

RWood

 

do you remember what that lemon cake was like ?

 

things like this interest me.  do  you think it could be reproduced w cake mixes now available ?

 

im sure they have changed a lot.  also the pudding mixes.  and the proportions for the lemonade and powdered sugar ?

Mainly that it was very moist, soft like cake mix cakes are, and tart from the lemonade. My mom was trying to find the recipe not long ago, so I'll see if she did. It would work with any cake mix I'm sure. My grandmother either used one with pudding in it already, or it could have been that she added it. I have seen some done that jello was added in the dry mix, then mixed as usual. If I find it, I will post.

[Franci]

Today I made a crostata with almonds and amaretti

[ChocoMom]

No pics today...but I did make 2 lemon meringue pies---shortbread crust with lemon zest to amp the flavor up a bit;and a dark chocolate stout cake for my SIL. I some Oreo-fluff creme left over from the chocolate eggs,so that ended up as the cake filling. Then 72% dark chocolate ganache poured over the cake, and finished with yes...you guessed it! More chocolate! (My SIL is a serious chocoholic.)

 

And Rotuts...I'm with you.  I miss the BC frosting mixes,too. I hate that canned stuff.  When my Mom passed away,I ended up with her 1963 Sunbeam mixer. There were two bowls...one for cake; one for the frosting mix. I get so bummed when I see the smaller bowl and no frosting mix. Though....a terrific alternative to BC's mix, is the KAF buttercream frosting mix.  Its a powder, and tastes pretty doggone good!

[Shelby]

I made FatGuy's mom's recipe for lemon bars yesterday.  I didn't change a thing except I used a lot more lemon zest because I like 'em lemony.  They taste really good, but they are.....very short lol.  It's almost like I should have doubled the topping???  Or, is this how some lemon bars are?  

 

Here is the recipe

 

http://forums.egullet.org/topic/48757-lemon-bars-best-recipe/?p=693698

 

[BeeZee]

sort of a fail in the looks dept, but tasted good. For Passover instead of the leaden cakes that are the norm, I bought a pre-made pie "crust" made from macaroons and filled it with strawberry mousse made from fresh berries. Didn't set properly because I had a gelatin mishap, but it tasted good. And my Mom made macaroons topped with dark chocolate and chopped pistachios, which are 100X better than the canned ones.

[cookingofjoy]

Shelby, the lemon bars I've made are my mom's (from another relative from ....), and they're 3/4c butter, 1 1/2c flour for the base and 3 eggs for the curd in a 9x13 pan.  So I'm guessing they were probably a little thinner, but just how they are.  I've never made any with baking powder, though, so I don't know how the frothy part might affect the height. 

[Kim Shook]

Jessica made chocolate dipped strawberries for the post Easter Saturday vigil reception at our chruch:

She is currently looking for work and doing part time work at Godiva’s.  One of her jobs is dipping fruit.  I was her sous – she needed a little guidance since she’s used to working with professional equipment and supplies (a giant temperer, chocolate bits and pre-washed and dried fruit) and not a home kitchen.  These were very well received! 

 

Easter dessert included this lovely, goopy, creamy fruit salad that a young friend of ours makes for all gatherings:

It has fresh fruit, but the whole thing is swamped with Cool Whip.  A guilty pleasure!

 

Jessica’s best friend’s currant rolls:

Her family is from Trinidad and this is apparently a traditional sweet.  The crust is like pie crust.  These flew off the dessert table!

 

A friend brought her wonderful pound cake with a choice of chocolate sauce or fried apples (I missed getting a picture of this).

 

And I made coconut layer cake w/ cream cheese icing:

 

Detail of the top:

The curls were from Wilton and I found the flower gummies at Fresh Market.

 

Slice:

Great, as always.  More than one person said it was the best cake they’d ever eaten.  I usually get that with this recipe!

[Shelby]

Everything looks lovely, Kim.  I'll take a bite or...piece of each.  I'm now craving strawberries.

 

 

I won the March Madness bracket contest at work (I've played for 20 years lol it's about time) so I made everyone cinnamon rolls.  

 

[ChocoMom]

A great big THANK YOU to Kim and Shelby for posting those pics!    I gotta wipe drool off my keyboard  AGAIN!!!!! hahaha!

 

Seriously though, that coconut cake must be to die for! 

And those cinnamon rolls make me wish I had never heard of Atkins. Damn diet!

[rotuts]

maple glaze on those cinnamon rolls ?

 

if so , only one way to improve them : toasted pecans.

 

Yum

[Shelby]

maple glaze on those cinnamon rolls ?

 

if so , only one way to improve them : toasted pecans.

 

Yum

No, but there is maple syrup drizzled on the bottom of the pan with some cinnamon.  Don't tell anyone.....that's my secret ingredient

[rotuts]

I put a little maple syrup in my apple crisp.  just a little

 

cant really tell its there, and its a secret tool.

 

but it is the World's Best Apple Crisp.

[RWood]

Had time for a special this weekend-Goat Cheese Panna Cotta, Roasted Vanilla Rhubarb, Graham Streusel.

Really nice flavor, and I used the leftover graham cracker dough I had hanging out.

[CatPoet]

We had zebra cake with  quick chocolate frosting ( Whipped cream + drinking cocoa powder).

[jmacnaughtan]

It's finally strawberry season

 

 

Just a quick little fraisier.

[tikidoc]

Chocolate babka.

 

[emmalish]

Chocolate babka.

 

That's gorgeous! Do you have a good recipe? I've never made babka, but I've been requested to one of these days.

[tikidoc]

That's gorgeous! Do you have a good recipe? I've never made babka, but I've been requested to one of these days.

Thanks!!! This is the recipe I used. 

 

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2014/10/better-chocolate-babka/

 

It's a 2 day project but not a lot of hands-on time. Make the dough on day one, then into the fridge overnight. The next day, roll it out, spread the filling, roll it up, fridge again so the filling firms up in order to cut and shape, proof, and bake. It's actually fairly simple to make, and it tastes wonderful. The recipe calls for lemon or orange zest. I used orange. I will definitely make this recipe again.

Edited April 14, 2015 by tikidoc (log)

[emmalish]

Thanks tikidoc! I've actually already pinned that recipe as a potential – love Smitten Kitchen. :-)

[Thanks for the Crepes]

Hey Kim Shook,

 

I wonder if you'd be willing to share your coconut cake recipe with us. I searched on your blog and found mention of a "killer recipe" for coconut cake, but couldn't find the actual recipe.

 

Yours looks really beautiful, and I almost smelled it through my screen.

[Kim Shook]

Hey Kim Shook,

 

I wonder if you'd be willing to share your coconut cake recipe with us. I searched on your blog and found mention of a "killer recipe" for coconut cake, but couldn't find the actual recipe.

 

Yours looks really beautiful, and I almost smelled it through my screen.

Thank you so much, I'm terribly flattered!  Here's the recipe: http://www.recipecircus.com/recipes/Kimberlyn/CAKESandPIES/Coconut_Layer_Cake_w_Cream_Cheese_Frost.html  Make sure to read my notes.  

[JohnT]

Thank you so much, I'm terribly flattered!  Here's the recipe: http://www.recipecircus.com/recipes/Kimberlyn/CAKESandPIES/Coconut_Layer_Cake_w_Cream_Cheese_Frost.html  Make sure to read my notes.

Kim, thanks for posting a link to your recipe - just one question! What is sweetened coconut cream? Here in Darkest Africa we get cans of coconut cream and that is it! Would I have to add sugar to a can to get "sweetened" coconut cream or just use the natural cream as it comes? If I had to add sugar to sweeten it, about how much sugar would I add? And just to expand on the Darkest Africa bit, we have had loadshedding for the second time today - the first time this morning was unannounced and a whole batch of puddings flopped when the power went out and the ovens when "silent". Just need to figure out what to do with the result other than bin them.