Blueberry Cake

Not too sweet and so easy! You can make it with frozen blueberries, but it's best with fresh ones.

Blueberry Cake

1/4 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 T. baking powder
1/4 t. nutmeg
2 1/2 c. flour (I recommend all white for this one)
1 c. milk
2-3 c. blueberries

Cream butter and sugar, add egg. Beat until light and fluffy. Stir in baking powder and nutmeg. Add 1 c. flour, stir. Add 1/2 c. milk, stir. Add another cup of flour, stir. Add the rest of the milk. Add the last 1/2 c. flour with the blueberries. Stir gently to mix.
Grease and flour a bundt pan. Do this well or it will stick! Pour the batter into the pan. Bake at 350°F for 45-50 minutes.
Let cool in the pan for about 10 minutes before turning out onto a serving plate.

Thursday Recipe - GF DF Hot Fudge Sundae Slow-Cooker Cake

So, I was bored the other day and wanted hot fudge cake, but wanted to make some my daughter could eat, too. This turned out so delicious, and it was so easy. Just dump into the crockpot and let it cook. Serve it with ice cream, whatever your choice.

It's ugly, but oh so tasty.

GF DF Hot Fudge Sundae Slow-Cooker Cake

1 box Betty Crocker GF chocolate cake mix
1 c. milk, I used coconut drinking milk
1/4 c. oil
2/3 c. brown sugar
1/3 c. cocoa powder
2 c. boiling water

Turn the crockpot to high. Dump dry cake mix into a 3 or 4 quart crockpot. Add milk and oil, stir until smooth. Spread out into the crockpot. Sprinkle the brown sugar and cocoa over the top. Pour the boiling water over that. Slap a lid on it and let it cook on high for 3-4 hours, until the cake is done. There will be a thick fudge sauce underneath, that's the hot fudge part of the recipe. Serve hot with ice cream.

Thursday Recipe - Lazy Cheesecake

My daughter offered to write up a post for me. Sounds very yummy, and perfect for a warm summer afternoon. No-bake cheesecake, anyone? Take it away, Becca!

There's nothing better than a cheesecake on a lazy summer afternoon. It's even better with fresh berries.

First things first, the crust. Lazy: make a graham cracker crust. Lazier: buy a pre-made graham cracker crust. Even lazier: place cookies in pan instead of crust. Laziest: skip the crust.

Now for the filling. About an hour before you want to put any effort into it, place 2 8 ounce packages of cream cheese on the counter. You're waiting for them to get soft. 

Once the cheese is softened, get a small microwavable bowl and fill it with 1/4 c of water, 1/4 t salt, and 1 package of unflavored gelatin. Let that small bowl sit for 5 minutes.

Add your cream cheese to your stand mixer along with 1/2 c sugar and 1 t vanilla. Beat the cream cheese on medium speed until nice and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Take the small bowl you set aside earlier, it should now look like a pile of grainy goop. This is ok. Microwave it for 30 seconds, then remove it and stir. If all the gelatin has dissolved, you're done. If not, give it another 15 seconds.

Add the gelatin mixture to your stand mixer, and beat for another 2 minutes.

Use a spatula or other device to spread the cheesecake on top of your crust (or empty bowl). Refrigerate for about 1 hour, or until set before eating.

Optional, garnish with chocolate sauce, caramel, fresh fruit, or anything your heart desires.

Notes: I like to use the cheesecake filling on it's own and pipe it into strawberries for a nice treat.

Thursday Recipe - Fruit Cobbler

This is what I do with fruit that a bit too soft or bruised to eat fresh. Or those apples that get all soft and mushy. Or the little bit of fruit cocktail in the back of the fridge. The point is to use up whatever fruit you've got sitting around that needs used.

Apples, pears, and berries are traditional, but why not throw in that lone kiwi fruit or those few slices of pineapple or that peach? I'm not sure bananas would work, and melon is probably not a good choice, but go ahead and be adventurous with your leftover fruit. What have you got to lose here?

Fruit Cobbler

5-6 c. cut up fruit - apples, pears, plums, berries, rhubarb, peaches, pineapple, etc, whatever you have lying around
1/2 - 1 c. sugar, depending on how sweet the fruit is and how sweet you like your cobbler
1/4 c. cornstarch
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger
1/4 t. nutmeg
2 c. oatmeal
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. melted butter

Prepare fruit - Wash thoroughly and peel if desired, I usually don't. Remove pits and seeds. Chop it into bite-size pieces. Drain canned fruit and discard the juice. Don't bother thawing frozen fruit or berries. They cook just fine from frozen.

Mix fruit with sugar, cornstarch, and spices. Spread in lightly greased 9x13 cake pan.

Mix oatmeal, brown sugar, and melted butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over the fruit filling.

Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes, until fruit filling is bubbly and oatmeal topping is browned.

We eat this for breakfast as well as dessert. Top with whipped topping or ice cream or yogurt.

Thursday Recipe - Applesauce Bundt Cake

Referring to Monday's post: Talk about frustrating! Karina Fabian’s I Left My Brains in San Francisco would be up on Audible by now, but sometimes, there’s no rushing Amazon. To make up for the wait, she’s offering the first 3 chapters free and a chance to win the audiobook of Neeta Lyffe, Zombie Exterminator, the first in the series. Go to http://karinafabian.com/freezombiefiction. Hurry! This offer goes when Audible finally posts the book!

Bundt. Such a fun word. Every time I say it, I think of that scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding where the mom "fixes" the bundt cake.

Anyway, bundt cakes can be fun. The key to getting them to look pretty is to grease and flour the pan well so they slide right out. Nothing wrecks the cake faster than sticking in the pan. It still tastes good, so if it sticks, mix it with pudding and call it dirt cake. Or make those cake pop thingies out of it. Or just eat it as crumbs on ice cream or all alone.

This cake made my house smell so delicious while it was baking. Cinnamon and apples and all the smells of fall. Now I'm hungry again...

Applesauce Bundt Cake

1/2 c. butter
1 1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. salt
3 t. baking powder
2 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ground cloves
1/4 t. ground cardamom
2 eggs
3 c. applesauce
3 c. flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add salt, baking powder, and spices. Cream until very fluffy. Add eggs. Cream again until light in color and silky smooth, about three minutes. Stir in applesauce. Mix very well. Add flour and stir just until mixed.

Grease and flour a bundt pan. Scoop the batter into the pan and spread just enough to even it out if needed. Bake at 300° for 90 minutes.

Flip the pan upside down on a cooling rack. Let it sit for about five minutes, then lift the pan. The cake should slide right out. Let the cake cool for at least an hour. Transfer to a plate.

Serve with lemon sauce, whipped cream, cream cheese, or caramel sauce. Or just eat it plain. For breakfast. Come on, be a rebel!

Thursday Recipe - S'more Quesadillas

No, not "some more" quesadillas. S'more quesadillas. Sort of. More like s'more buneulos, but not quite either.

My command of Spanish is limited to names of foods and a few numbers and simple things like "buenos dias". Buneulos, according to the all-knowing Google, are fried dough balls, but I know them as crispy tortilla strips coated in cinnamon and sugar.

This recipe is a cross between s'mores, buneulos, and quesadillas. It's also delicious. And fast. And easy.

S'more Quesadillas

2 T. cinnamon
1/2 c. sugar
butter
flour tortillas
mini marshmallows

Mix cinnamon and sugar together. (I keep this mix in my cupboard at all times. It's amazing how fast it disappears at my house.) Set aside for now.

Heat some butter in a large frying pan over medium to medium low heat. Somewhere between a teaspoon and a tablespoon will do it. You want to keep the heat on the lower side; butter burns easily if it gets too hot and burnt butter is not the flavor you want here. Fry a tortilla in the butter one to two minutes on the first side, just until it starts to turn golden brown. Flip it over. The toasted side should be coated with melted butter. Sprinkle it generously with the cinnamon sugar. Let the tortilla cook for another 1-2 minutes. Transfer it to a microwaveable plate.

Sprinkle about a dozen marshmallows over the cinnamon sugar. Microwave for 10-15 seconds just until the marshmallows melt. Fold it in half and serve.

Repeat as often as necessary. You could add in chocolate chips, too, to make it more like a s'more.

Thursday Recipe - Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

These really hit the spot, not too sweet but plenty for a tasty treat. And the frosting? It was really good, enough that now I want to figure out how to make peanut butter twinkies with it as the filling.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/4 c. honey
2/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs
4 c. oatmeal
1/2 c. jelly

Cream butter and peanut butter with sugars. Add baking powder, salt, and eggs. Beat until very creamy. Stir in oatmeal. Spread in a greased 9x13 baking pan. Spoon jelly over the top. Bake at 350° for 25 minutes. Let cool.

Top with peanut butter frosting.

Peanut Butter Frosting

2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. shortening
1/2 c. peanut butter
3 T. milk

On very low speed, cream powdered sugar, shortening, and peanut butter. Add milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is light and fluffy.

Top bars with frosting and serve.

Thursday Recipe - Almond Vanilla Bread Pudding (Milk-free)

This is a variation on my bread pudding recipe. It turned out really really tasty. Even my picky child devoured it.

Almond Vanilla Bread Pudding (Dairy-free!)

1 t. cinnamon
1/4 c. sugar
3/4 loaf of store-bakery French bread that was forgotten and dried out until it flaked crunchy bits when you touch it
3 eggs
1/4 c. brown sugar

3 T. softened butter

3 c. vanilla almond milk

Mix together the cinnamon and sugar, set aside. Cut the French bread into cubes about 3/4-1 inch on a side. Spray a large pie pan or 9x13 cake pan. Spread the bread cubes into the pan. Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs until mixed up, like for scrambled eggs. Add the brown sugar and butter. Mix until smooth. Stir in the almond milk. Beat smooth.

Carefully pour the milk-egg mixture over the bread cubes.

Bake at 350° for 45-60 minutes, until the custard is set but not dry. It will be gooey and wet in the bottom. Let the bread pudding cool for 30 minutes to help it set up more and the bread to absorb more of the milk. Refrigerate it overnight for the best results.

You can serve it cold, but it's best warmed up in the microwave. It comes out creamy, more like a pudding or custard than bread.

Thursday Recipe - Kitty Litter Cake

This is a great recipe. So yummy looking. NOT! It resembles a cat box that hasn't been cleaned for a while. But it still tastes great. It's a great one for Halloween parties. Or office parties if you want to take most of it home with you and never be asked to bring a dessert ever again.

*Note: this is not my original recipe. It's been floating around for years. This is just my version of it.

Kitty Litter Cake

1 box yellow cake mix + ingredients called for on the box
1 box spice cake mix + ingredients called for on the box
3 large boxes vanilla pudding + milk as called for on the boxes
12 oreo cookies, smashed into tiny bits
12-20  Tootsie roll candies, the bigger ones not the midgees

Make the cakes according to the directions on the box. It doesn't matter what shape cake pan you bake them in or if they stick. Once they are baked and cooled, crumble them up, then set them aside.

Unwrap the tootsie rolls. Microwave two at a time for about 10-15 seconds, just enough to soften them. Be careful not to microwave them too long or they will be too hot to handle. You want them warm enough to soften up, not cooked. Smoosh and twist them until they resemble a cat poop. Set them aside. Make as many of these as you want.

Toss crumbled cakes with smashed oreos. Add just enough pudding to make it start clumping together.

Take a large foil tray pan that looks like a litter box. Just make sure it's a clean one, not one that you have used as a litter box. I had a friend who used an actual cat litter box she bought new, but I wouldn't go quite that far. A foil tray works just fine.

Spoon the litter chunks and crumbles into the foil pan, adding most of the cat poop  with the bigger clumps. Drape a few artistically over the side. Leave some half-buried on top. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Great to serve with a brand-new, clean cat litter scoop.

Thursday Recipe - Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

When I was back in grade school, back when dinosaurs still roamed the earth if you ask my kids, the lunch ladies used to bake cookies from scratch. They also made soups and stews and all sorts of good things that don't happen anymore. We had a short little Dutch lady as the lunch lady for a while who made the most delicious split pea soup. But that's beside the point.

These peanut butter bars are the same ones the lunch ladies used to serve. Moist and delicious and slathered with chocolate frosting, these are fast and easy. They don't last long at my house.

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

1/2 c. shortening (you can substitute 1/4 c. butter for half of it, but if you just use butter, the cookies don't stay nice and soft)
1/2 c. peanut butter, crunchy or smooth, your choice
1/3 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 t. vanilla
1 egg
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 c. flour, white or wheat
1 c. oatmeal

Cream shortening, peanut butter, and sugars until nice and fluffy. Add vanilla, egg, baking soda, and salt. Beat a couple more minutes until very smooth and fluffy. Stir in flour and oatmeal. Spread in a greased 9x13 pan. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes, until set and barely brown. Let cool.

Spread with chocolate frosting. Let it sit for a while to set up. Slice and serve. Pizza cutters are great for slicing these.

If you double the batch, spread it out on a large baking sheet. They'll be thinner so bake them the shorter time.

Chocolate Frosting (or use this recipe)

1/2 c. butter, softened (not melted if you can avoid it)
1/4 c. baking cocoa
1 t. vanilla
2 c. powdered sugar
2-4 T milk

Cream butter, cocoa, and vanilla. Add powdered sugar. Drizzle in milk while beating. Add just enough milk to make it spreading consistency. Beat for another 2-4 minutes until very light and fluffy.

Thursday Recipe - Graham Sandwiches

Two pictures on Facebook triggered this post:

 Remember playing quicksand as a kid? That's the lovely game where you try to move through the house without touching the floor because the floor is QUICKSAND and you will DIE if you touch it. Yep, good times. And a few broken pieces of furniture and lots of bruises. This is what childhood used to be. Before video games.

And sorry for the bad pun picture. Yeah, breast cancer awareness has even hijacked kid food. I love s'mores but sometimes I just don't want to mess with marshmallows and the microwave. And my kids have usually eaten all the chocolate chips. With my help.

My mom used to make treats using graham crackers and leftover frosting. I adopted this for easy s'mores. Mom used to tuck them into the freezer so they were perfect for hot summer days. No, we didn't have central air conditioning. We had a big old swamp cooler that usually wasn't working right so we either hid in the basement, played outside, or just dealt with the heat. Don't get me wrong. I love my AC but it was a lot easier to tolerate heat when I was younger.

So, here's the recipe, such as it is.

Graham Sandwiches

1 package of your favorite graham crackers - plain, chocolate, cinnamon, whatever you like
OR
1 recipe of these delicious ones if you have the time and inclination to make them, just do it a day or so ahead so they can get all crispy and delicious

1 can thingie of frosting (kind of nasty but sometimes it so easy it's worth it)
OR
1 recipe of your favorite frosting (Try marshmallow frosting or to-die-for frosting or cream cheese frosting or fudgy chocolate frosting or vanilla-rum frosting or meadow cream) (I think I have a frosting addiction)

Anything else you'd like to add - peanut butter, mini M&Ms, coconut, sprinkles, sliced strawberries, etc.

Take the long graham cracker and break it in half to make two squares. Spread one square with frosting. Spread the other square with extras if you want. Put them together to make a sandwich. Stick in a baggie and put it in the freezer.  Repeat until you either run out of graham crackers or frosting. Eat when frozen. Or eat immediately. Repeat until they are all gone. Feel guilty and vow to exercise off all those extra calories. Right after you eat the last one...

Thursday Recipe - Pear Cake

I'm going quietly insane. I'm beyond busy with school, work, and family. We shall not speak of the house or laundry lately. Cooking only happens because I like to eat and my diet is so restricted I can't do take-out, not to mention I can't afford it. So I'm finding myself making dishes that are quick and easy to throw together. Cooking time doesn't matter so much. If I can chuck dinner in the oven at three then forget it until six, I'm all for that. If I can dump things into my crockpot in the morning before I walk out the door, even better.

This recipe is fast and easy. It does use a cake mix, something I don't usually do, but it turned out so tasty I thought I'd share it with you. Fast and easy plus it can use up those pears or apples that are slowly going mushy in your fridge. (And one of these days I might remember to pull out my camera and take pictures so the blog is a little more exciting and visual. Ha! My classes on design are rubbing off on me...)

Pear Cake

1 box yellow cake mix (or white or spice or carrot or butter)
1/2 c. butter, softened
4 eggs (use large, extra-large, or jumbo for this recipe)
3 - 4 ripe pears or apples, cored and cut into bite-size chunks, don't bother peeling
3 T. sugar
1 t. cinnamon

Mix cake mix, butter, and eggs. Spread in greased 9x13 cake pan. Spread pears over the top. Mix sugar and cinnamon, then sprinkle over the top of the cake. Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes until the cake is done. (Stick a toothpick into the center. If it comes out with batter on it, bake for another 5 minutes or so.) Let cool.

Serve plain or with whipped cream or ice cream.

Thursday Recipe - Boston Cream Pie

I love Terry Pratchett. I love his Discworld books. And I especially love his character, Nanny Ogg. I want to be her when I grow up, after I'm done being Han Solo and Ursula the Sea Witch. Maybe I can be all of them at once. A girl has to have ambitions, you know.

I had the great honor of meeting Sir Pterry in person a couple of years ago at the first North American Discworld Convention. He's as charming and sweet in person as I imagined him to be. And funny.

One of my prized possessions now has his signature - My copy of Nanny Ogg's cookbook. It really is a cookbook with all sorts of entertaining and suggestive dishes. And all sorts of Nanny Ogg wisdom. She's a witch, the Mother in the group. Granny Weatherwax is the crone, but don't tell her I said that or she might curse me. The Maiden changes depending on what's been happening in the stories. I loved Magrat Garlick in the role. If you want to know what I'm talking about now, read Wyrd Sisters. These witches are REAL witches.

My post is starting to resemble a Discworld novel - rambling and disconnected and who knows where it's going but yes it does have a point and I'll get there and you'll see how all of it fits together.

Nanny Ogg owns the most horribly fascinating cat ever conceived. Greebo is a cat among cats. He lives by one rule: everything exists either for eating, mating, or killing. Things that don't fit in those three categories are scenery. Nanny Ogg loves the beast. He grows on you. Nanny Ogg also has lots of sons who exist to provide her with daughters-in-law who exist to cook and clean and provide grandchildren for her to spoil.

Nanny Ogg is a very British woman. She knows the words to all of the suggestive ditties. She cooks suggestive dishes. And she has a heart as big as her stomach.

Since I try to keep this blog at a PG rating, I won't post my favorite recipes from her cookbook (Bananana Surprise and Strawberry Wobblers, anyone?). I'll post my husband's favorite dessert instead. Valentine's Day is coming up and what's that special day without a special dessert?


Boston Cream Pie (as close as I can get to my mother-in-law's version)

1 yellow cake, made according to the box directions
1 6 oz box instant vanilla pudding
3 c. milk
1 c. chocolate chips
1 t. butter

Bake cake according to directions. If you have a serving plate that holds a 9x13 cake, do it as a rectangle. If you're like me and don't own one, do it as two rounds. Each round will make one cake. Let it cool completely before assembling the pie. In fact, refrigerate the cake layers for at least an hour before you start.
Mix pudding with milk. Whisk until thick and smooth.
Carefully split the cake layers in half horizontally. Place one half on a plate. Spread half the pudding over the cake. Put the other half of the cake on top. Repeat with the other round.
Put chocolate chips and butter into a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for about 30 seconds. Stir. If it isn't completely melted and smooth, microwave it for another ten seconds. Don't overcook! It will go nasty and grainy. You want it just melted and smooth and shiny. Pour it over the top of the cake and pudding layers.
Refrigerate the whole thing for at least three hours before serving.

Since I can't make this right no matter how hard I try (ask my husband, it's okay, though, I'd have to be his mom to make it right), I came up with lots of my own variations. This dessert can go from basic and simple to elegant and elaborate.

Try these:
Black Forest - use a dark chocolate cake mix, fill it with whipped cream cheese and cherry pie filling. Top with the chocolate glaze.
Strawberry Bliss - use a vanilla cake mix. Fill with sliced fresh strawberries and chocolate pudding. Top with whipped topping.
Pineapple Pistachio - Use a white cake. Use pistachio pudding, but use 1 18 oz can of crushed pineapple to mix up the pudding. You can add 1/2 c. of shredded coconut if you want. Reserve 1/2 c. of the filling to spread on top. Decorate with maraschino cherries and whipped topping.
Death by Chocolate - use a chocolate cake mix, chocolate pudding, and add 1/2 c. chopped chocolate candy bars or chocolate chips to the filling. Top with the chocolate glaze and more chocolate bits.
Snickers cake - Use a chocolate cake mix. For the filling, melt 2 c. caramels over low heat until until spreadable. Spread 1/2 c. whipped cream cheese over the bottom layer, then 2/3 of the caramel. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts. Spread the rest of the caramel over the top and sprinkle on more nuts.

Have fun and don't be afraid to be creative and try something new. If the cake gets soggy or crumbles, just serve it as a crumble - scoop a serving into a bowl and add whipped topping. Pretend that's the way you intended it to turn out.

Here's pictures of my version:

Ingredients, minus the eggs, oil, and milk. So simple.

Grease and flour the pans so your cake will look like this:

See? Pretty. And filled with chocolate pudding.

Frost with whipped topping and decorate with chocolate chips.

Delicious!

Then drop the cake while putting it in the fridge.

Not delicious. *sigh*

Thursday Recipe - Easy Apple Cake

Looking for something simple but delicious? Try this cake. So simple anyone can make it.

Apple Cake

1 box butter pecan cake mix
1/2 c. butter, melted
1 c. apple juice
1 can apple pie filling
(Or you can use 1 quart of bottled apple slices instead of the juice and pie filling)

Heat oven to 350°. Dump everything in a mixing bowl. Stir it together. Grease a 9x13 cake pan. Pour in the cake mixture. Spread it out just a bit until it's even. Bake for about 45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool for about 15 minutes then serve.

If you want to get fancy, drizzle it with caramel sauce and serve with vanilla or butter pecan ice cream.

Thursday Recipe - Hogwarts Cherry Tarts

Just in case someone calls about it, I'm not affiliated in any way with JK Rowling or her book series. I just liked the idea of creating a mini-Hogwarts university course for my children. I've been posting recipes for the last few weeks from this. These cherry tarts are the last I've got for this particular theme. They are luscious and rich and creamy and I really really REALLY want some right now but I don't want to make them even though they are easy. I'm just that lazy today.

Hogwarts Cherry Tarts

4 c. powdered sugar
2 c. cookie crumbs (vanilla wafers or chocolate sandwich cookies, smashed and smooshed into crumbs)
1/2 c. cocoa
1/4 c. milk
1/3 c. cream cheese
1 t. vanilla
1/4 t. almond extract
1/2 c. candied cherries, cut up

Mix 2 c. powdered sugar, cookie crumbs, and cocoa. Sprinkle milk over and stir just until it holds together. Press crust mixture into paper lined miniature muffin pans, it should make about 24. Beat cream cheese with vanilla and almond extract. Gradually add the other 2 c. of powdered sugar. Beat well. Stir in cherries. Spoon into the shells. Chill until firm.