Strawberry Swirl Cream Cheese Pound Cake

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Spring has sprung here in the Southeast. I don't know what that means to you but for me it means strawberry season!  For many years, my parents grew strawberries on a commercial level. So as you can imagine, I've eaten a lot of strawberries, in almost anyway imaginable.  One of my favorite ways to use strawberries is to macerate them. Are you impressed by that term?? It's not nearly as impressive as it sounds. It's just sliced berries with sugar that sit until the juices release. We like to mash the berries slightly (I use a potato masher). We called mashed strawberries....fancy, I know, but that's just how we are around here.  At this point you can do anything with the mashed strawberries. They're delicious on top of ice cream, yogurt, pancakes, the list goes on, but pile them on top of a hunk of buttery pound cake maybe a bit of freshly whipped cream...simply wonderful!   

Last month's Southern Living featured a pound cake with strawberries swirled through it, on the cover.  When I read through the recipe it sounded delicious but called for a strawberry glaze for the swirl. I'm not a fan of strawberry glaze. It has a kind of artificially taste that I don't like. I decided to cook down some berries and make my own glaze to swirl in the cake. I was going to strain the berries and make a syrup more like the original recipe called for but I decided I liked the idea of having strawberry pieces baked into the cake. I could have my mashed berries baked right into the cake...perfect!

Strawberry Swirl Pound Cake

Source: Nancy H. Test, West Chester, Ohio, Southern Living 

MARCH 2011 (adapted)
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups butter, softened
3 cups sugar
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
6 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon zest

2/3 cup strawberry glaze
1 (6-inch) wooden skewer

Method:
Preheat oven to 350°. Beat butter at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add cream cheese, beating until creamy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Gradually add flour to butter mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition, stopping to scrape bowl as needed. Stir in the lemon zest, almond, and vanilla extracts. Pour one-third of batter into a greased and floured *10-inch 14 cup tube pan (about 2 2/3 cups batter). Dollop 8 rounded teaspoonfuls strawberry glaze over batter, and swirl with wooden skewer. Repeat procedure once, and top with remaining third of batter.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack, and cool completely (about 1 hour).

Notes:*the original recipe said to use a 10-inch 14 cup tube pan but I used my 10-inch 12 cup bundt pan.

Strawberry Swirl

Strawberry Swirl

Ingredients:
2 cups strawberries(about 1 lb), quartered
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon corn starch

Method:
Combine the water, strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice in a large saucepan on high heat. Stir and bring up to a boil.
After the mixture begins to boil, reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for 5-8 minutes, until the strawberries have completely broken down.  As the strawberries soften, use a wooden spoon or potato masher to break up the berries. (At this point you could strain the strawberries through a sieve for a smooth glaze, but I decided to leave the bits of strawberry in mine.)
Meanwhile, whisk the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons of water in a small bowl. Then, pour into the strawberries.
Increase heat to high, and continue to whisk the mixture until it thickens and the cornstarch becomes clear and loses it's cloudy appearance, approximately 3-5 minutes.
Remove  from heat, and pour into separate bowl to cool down. Use 3/4 a cup to swirl in the cake. Any leftovers are great served along with the cake.

This is a BIG cake when it's done. With that lovely swirl of berries running through it, this cake would be perfect for our family Easter gathering. Can't wait for an excuse to make this again!

Strawberry swirl!

Bacon Cheddar Whoopie Bites

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I found this recipe while searching for new party food ideas. The name caught my attention first...bacon cheddar whoopie bites?! Whoopie pies are sweet, right? Ok so they're not actually anything like a whoopie pie but they kind of look like a whoopie pie so why not? After reading through the recipe, I thought they sounded  like a Southern style cheese straw, kind of a cheesy savory shortbread.  These cheese straws have one up on ordinary cheese straws. These are sandwiched together with a cream filling. It sounded like a great combo to me. Besides they have bacon in them so they're already "Winning"....(hmm maybe it's the whoopie part that brought that Charlie Sheen quote to mind...;)  

 

Bacon Cheddar Whoopie Bites

Source: Teresa Smith, Santa Rosa, CA, Bake-Off 2012 (adapted) 

Printable recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup ricotta cheese, room temperature
6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons heavy cream or milk
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
3/4 cup butter, cut into pieces
2 cups finely shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
8 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
2 to 3 tablespoons ice water

Method:
Heat oven to 400°F. Spray large cookie sheets with no-stick cooking spray or line with cooking parchment paper. To make filling, in medium bowl, beat ricotta cheese and cream cheese with electric mixer on low speed until blended. Add milk; beat on medium speed 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Stir in lemon peel. Cover; refrigerate.

In food processor, add flour, baking powder and red pepper. Process until well blended. Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add cheddar cheese, pecans and bacon. Process with on-and-off pulses until mixture is consistency of fine crumbs. With food processor running, gradually add enough water through feed tube and process just until dough pulls away from side of bowl and forms a ball.

Shape dough into 1 1/4–inch balls; place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Using fingers, press each ball into about a 2-inch round.

Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool completely, about 10 minutes.

Spread or pipe about 1 tablespoon filling on bottom of half of the rounds. Top with remaining rounds, bottom sides down. Store covered in refrigerator. Assemble these bites a couple of hours before you plan to serve them to let the flavors blend.

These savory whoopie bites just maybe the hit of your next party!

Banana Chocolate Mousse Pie

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After making it, I wasn't sure what to call this pie. I thought about calling it Clean Out the Fridge Pie but that name didn't sound very appealing, even though that is how this pie came to be. I had chocolate mousse and chocolate ganache, leftover from other baking I had to do this week, that I wanted to use up. I had also over purchased banana's...yet again. So what to do? Make a Nilla wafer crust and throw everything in and call it a Too Many Bananas, Leftover Chocolate Mousse and Ganache Pie...hmmm a bit of a mouthful! Although this pie was born out of a necessity to use up some leftovers, I'll be making this pie again, even if I don't have leftovers to use up. So I guess, Banana Chocolate Mousse Pie it is!

Banana Chocolate Mousse Pie

Printable recipe

For the pie:

1 nilla cookie crust, cooled (recipe below)

1/2 cup chocolate ganche (recipe below)

chocolate mousse (recipe below)

2 medium bananas, thinly sliced

whipped cream, for garnish, (optional)

Vanilla Wafer Crumb Crust
3 cups vanilla wafer cookies
1 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp butter, melted and cooled

Preheat oven to 350F.
In the food processor, pulse vanilla wafer cookies until reduced to crumbs. Add in the sugar and melted butter and pulse to combine. Mixture should resemble wet sand.
Pour into a 9-inch pie plate (or 9-inch square baking dish) and gently spread into an even layer over the bottom and sides. Press crumbs in firmly to create a tight crust.
Bake for 10 minutes, or until crust just begins to turn golden brown around the edges.
Cool completely before using.

Makes 1 pie crust.

Chocolate Ganache

3 ounces chocolate, finely chopped (if you're using chocolate chips, this is 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a microwave-proof bowl, heat all ingredients at full power for 30 seconds. Stir and heat again at full power for 10 seconds. Remove from microwave. The chocolate will still have some unmelted pieces, stir chocolate until completely melted. If it doesn't melt completely place it back in the microwave for another 10 seconds. Take care not to overheat the chocolate. The chocolate it will seize up and become very stiff if overheated. If this happens add a bit more cream and heat for in 10 second increments, stirring in between, until the chocolate is smooth.

Chocolate Mousse

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups cold, heavy cream, plus an additional 1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine the confectioners' sugar and 1/2 cup heavy cream. Stir over low heat.
Add the semisweet chocolate chips, stirring frequently as they melt and the mixture becomes well blended.
Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla and set this mixture aside.
In a separate, large bowl, beat the remaining 1 1/2 cup heavy cream on medium speed and gradually add the granulated sugar. When all the sugar has been incorporated, beat the mixture on high speed until stiff peaks form.
Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture, taking care not to overmix.

Whipped cream for garnish 

2/3 cup whipping cream, cold

2 tablespoons sugar

In a chilled bowl, whip cold cream with a hand mixer. When it's slightly thickened slowly add in the sugar and continue whipping until the cream holds peaks. Place whipped cream in a pastry bag fitted with a star tip and pipe border around the edge of the pie. 

Assembling the pie:

Make the pie crust, while it is cooling make the ganache. Pour the ganache, while still warm, into the pie crust. Using an off-set spatula, spread the ganache evenly on the bottom of the pie crust. Make the chocolate mousse. Slice the bananas layer them into the crust. Top with the chocolate mousse and pipe around a whipped cream border, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight before slicing.

Now that's my idea of using up leftovers!

Knock-Off Salted Chocolate Caramel Candy

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Since Hubs and I have been married, we've had the good fortune to have been able to travel to many places. One thing I've noticed during our travels is that no matter where you go, if it's a place that attracts tourist, there will most definitely be someone there trying to sell you something. Most often they're hocking a knock-off of some expensive name brand item. You can pick up a look alike Rolex watch, a Louis Vuitton purse, and a Hermes scarf, all for under $100.00, sometimes all from the same person. Some of the people selling these faux items can be pretty persistent. A firm "no thank-you" as we quickly walked on usually did the trick and the hawker would simply move on to some else. However, while we where visiting Rome, we had gotten lost while searching for what was supposedly the best pizza in Rome.(Finding the "best" whatever is a theme in our travels!) We ended up somewhat off the beaten path and ended up in a fairly secluded area where we ran into a man selling purses. We walked past him quickly and then realized we were going the wrong direction and had to walk back by him again. He took this as a sign that I really wanted a purse and began to try to get me to stop and look at the purses. Hubs and I hesitated just long enough that the purse hawker was sure he could close the deal. He began pulling out Prada's', Louis Vuitton's, etc... explaining what great quality they were and that they were the real deal. When Hub's said he knew they were fakes, the man got very animated. How dare we question the authenticity of these wonderful purses. Of course they were the real deal and very good quality as well. He insisted we feel the leather and all but forced me to take a Prada bag from him and hold it. At this point he felt he'd sealed the deal and began hounding Hubs to buy me the purse. I gave the bag back to him and tried to walk away. He grabbed a second bag and began to try to barter with Hubs on a price for not only a genuine Prada bag but he was going to throw in a Tom's bag practically free. He followed us down the mostly deserted street and long story short, I ended up with not one but two knock-off purses that day. I gave the "Prada" to my little sister, who loved it, and I kept the "Toms" bag. I still give Hubs a hard time about giving into the purse guy, but truthfully I used the "Toms" bag as a travel bag until the handle broke off several years later. 

These candies are like the knock-off Toms bag. I know homemade caramels are fantastic, way better then the cellophane wrapped knock-offs, but they are time consuming to make. So if your looking for a quick chocolately caramely fix, you can be popping this knock-off version in your mouth in almost no time flat. Since no one needs to know how easy they are to make, you can impress your family and friends with your confectionery prowess!

I'm not sure that a recipe is really necessary for these. It's pretty simple but here's a basic guide:

Salted Chocolate Caramel Candy

Ingredients:

Semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips (I used about 1 cup)

Caramel candies, unwrapped 

Sea salt

Method:

Put the amount of chocolate chips called for in the recipe into the microwave-safe bowl and place the bowl in the microwave.
Set the microwave to 50 percent power for one minute. Chocolate burns easily and must always be melted using low heat.
Stir the chocolate chips after one minute. When melted in the microwave, chocolate chips hold their shape until pressed with a spoon. Don't rely on how the chocolate chips look to determine if they're adequately melted.
Return the chocolate chips to the microwave for 15 to 60 seconds, depending on how close they are to being melted. Stop heating the chocolate chips when they're slightly more than half melted and stir until smooth. Residual heat from the melted chocolate will melt any remaining un-melted pieces.

Drop the unwrapped caramels, one or two at a time into the melted chocolate. Roll the caramels in the chocolate until they are completely covered. Using a fork, lift the caramels out of the chocolate and place on a cookie cooling rack to set up. (If you place the rack over a cookie sheet it will keep the caramels from dripping chocolate all over your counter tops.) Sprinkle the tops of each caramel with a pinch of sea salt. Allow the chocolate on the caramels to cool until the chocolate sets. Enjoy!

I made these for Valentine's Day so I added a little heart sprinkle!

Happy World Nutella day

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It's one of my favorite days of the year! No not Super Bowl Sunday...It's World Nutella Day!

 Nutella truffles

So celebrate by spreading some Nutella love...or just eat from the jar!

 Nutella is more than just a “chocolaty hazelnut spread,” it is a way of life.

From childhood memories to oozing hot crepes, from breakfasts on vacation to free-spooning sessions on the couch, Nutella is prominent in the memories of many children and grown-up children in the world.

In 2007 we gave Nutella its own holiday, and this year we’re continuing the tradition.

Sara from Ms. Adventures in Italy and Michelle from Bleeding Espresso solemnly declare Sunday, February 5th “World Nutella Day 2012″ – a day to celebrate, to get creative with, and most importantly, to EAT Nutella. Go to the World Nutella Day website for even more ways to enjoy Nutella!!

Double Dark Chocolate Cherry Cookies

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Growing up, my mom would on occasion, usually around the holidays, buy a bag of Hersey's mini chocolate bars. My sisters and I would play this game where we'd have to reach into the bag without looking and take out a candy bar. You had to take the one you got. I remember there was a very specific pecking order in the way us kids ate those chocolate bars. Krackel was King. All of us wanted the Krackel bars. If we got a Krackel bar out of the bag, would it eat slowly with great relish. All this was done to cause as much torture and jealousy as possible to those that didn't have a Krackel bar. The Hersey bar was next in line, followed by the Mr. Goodbar. That left the Hersey's Special Dark, which none of us wanted. Those were the only bars that we allowed each other to toss those back into the bag to try our luck again. Mom always offered to eat the Special Dark bars. We thought she was a great mom for settling for the reject candy,while we feasted on Krackels. Nice job, Mom. We all fell for it. You had us fooled for all those years, but no more!  Now I'm with mom, you can have the Krackel, the milk chocolate, even the peanuts, I'll happily take those Special Dark Chocolates off your hands. These cookies are like those Special Dark bars, they are for serious chocolate lovers. They are a delicious dark chocolate cookie studded chocolate chips and tart cherries,  The perfect balance of bittersweet. All that's needed is a glass of ice cold milk.

Just for fun, I dipped  some fresh cherries in chocolate and then into sprinkles. Cute and tasty!

Double Dark Chocolate Cherry Cookies
Source: The Sweet Melissa Baking Book
Printable Recipe
Ingredients:
1 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
1/3 cup dried sour cherries

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add the egg, mixing well. Stir in the vanilla.
With the mixer on low speed add the flour mixture n three batches, mixing until incorporated after each addition. Stir in chocolate chips and cherries down the sides of the bowl.
Refrigerate the dough for a few hours until firm.
Turn the dough onto a clean work surface and divide it in half. Roll out into 2 uniform logs about 12” long. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate again until firm enough to slice. At least 1 hour. (I left mine overnight).   At this stage you could wrap the log again in foil and freeze for up to 1 month.

Place one rack in the top third and one in the bottom third of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Line the bottom of 2 rimmed cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Place the slices about an inch or so apart.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until the dough looks just baked . Don’t over bake, the cookies should be tender. Transfer the pan to a rack and let the cookies cool.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Great for Valentine's Day!

Ombre Petal Cake

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Ombre is in, in a big way. Ombre, which just means a gradation in color, has been everywhere in fashion this this year.  Even in hair color. Which is great for me because now I can just pretend that the three different shades my hair has grown out is because I'm totally on the edge of fashion. It's not at all the fact that I'm several weeks overdue for a visit to the salon. Think anyone will buy that?? Anyway, like most popular fashion trends, it's not long before you start seeing some form of it translated into cake. Ombre cakes have started popping up all over the internet. I love the look of the fading shades of color and wanted to try it for myself.

I had a small cake and a lot of purple butter cream leftover from another cake I made this week, so I decided to play around with and attempt an ombre cake. I loved the effect.

I started with a  basic white cake that I filled and crumb coated. Then divided the frosting into three equal parts (you could do more shades if you want but I think three colors gives a nice effect.) and tint the frosting with gel color. Tint each one a shade darker than the one before, until you have three shades of the same color.

I used a simple confectioners sugar butter cream for the frosting.

Confectioners Frosting:


4 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 tablespoons milk or light cream

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth.Mix in the vanilla extract. With the mixer on low speed, gradually beat in the sugar.Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the milk and beat to combine. Then, on high speed, beat frosting until it is light and fluffy.  If not using right away, cover with plastic wrap.


I decided to pipe around the cake with a petal design. It's a simple but pretty pattern that I saw on My Cake School's blog. Here's the link to her tutorial .

 When I finished the cake it looked a little naked so I threw some sprinkles on the edge. So cute! Wouldn't this cake be perfect for Valentines Day?

 Have fun and get your ombre on!!