Chocolate Eclairs- Recipe #6

Who likes chocolate eclairs!!!???  We do!  I'm ashamed to say that this was the first time I've ever made these yummy little bites. Majority of the ingredients were eggs, flour, butter, and sugar, all the basics, even the homemade cream filling had mostly basics.  I actually made two cream filling recipes and used two different icings, then sent them off with my boyfriend to his place of work for some extreme taste testing and critiquing; this way I could get ratings on which recipe was better. They preferred the eclairs with the milk chocolate icing, I personally liked the semi-sweet icing..........

The Pastry Dough

 

Baked Pastries

Eclairs With Milk Chocolate Icing

Eclairs With Semi-sweet Chocolate Icing

Cherry Pie- Recipe #5

This was a cherry pie I made. Quite delicious, the down fall was that canned cherry filling is NO-WHERE as good as fresh cherries, it didn't have that sweet, tangy, zing to it. I was definitely spoiled with fresh fruits on the farm.  I'll have to wait and buy fresh cherries, or at least buy frozen cherries next time.  I was impressed with the crust on this one.  I was able to roll it without tearing it. I used 1/2 cup of Crisco and 1/4 cup of butter for the crust. I was also able to make more crust this way, it was much easier to roll out.

Apple and Peach Pie- Recipe #3 & #4

Well, I've made two pies, apple and peach. The apple had more Crisco in it and the peach had less. Though it was less than a  1/4 cup difference, I could definitely taste the difference. I think the natural butter taste is more flavorful than the Crisco taste, but I've yet to find a way to make the perfect crust. Of course I'm in my early stages where no matter how I make it, I can't make it as well as my mother. And that crust can be darn hard to roll out and keep in one piece! Both pies were consumed, so... success. I just need to practice a bit more, especially since pies are one of my favorite desserts. ;)

My Apple

Cake Pops -Recipe #2

Cake pops- The first time I actually saw these darling little sweets, they were on the Starbucks menu, then I did an internet search on the best way to make them because they looked so fun. I've learned a lesson on which almond bark to use for the smooth look. The pink almond bark (Wilton Candy Melts) dried making an interesting texture. The chocolate almond bark (Baking Classics) was creamy and smooth. The recipe called for a lot of icing mixed in with the cake so you could roll it into shape. I added half the amount of icing and the other half pudding because after being dipped into icing again it was too sweet. These were just as yummy as they looked and the cool thing is you can make many flavors, shapes, and designs. Instead of cake balls I made cupcake shapes with the help of my sister.  Working on these alone would probably be a little time consuming. They were rich and balanced enough so that just a couple will suffice in place of a piece if cake. I think I'm going to try a banana flavor next time!









Watkins Incorporated

It's all about Watkins!

Ever since I was a little girl I remember a drawer FULL of Watkins extracts. Especially the small 2 oz. bottles with the rounded base and tiny handle on the neck. The vanilla extract as in the picture above was and still is my favorite, it smelled so yummy but packed a bitter bite. My siblings and I found this out after we convinced our mother to let us taste it; we were sure it would taste as good as it smelled! This products will never lose it's authenticity. I'm looking into ordering new 2 oz. extracts in the new old fashion yet modern bottles. They come in many convenient sizes and cost greatly ranges. The new 2 oz. bottles of vanilla from the online store http://www.watkinsonline.com/jenkins/?gCatalogLocale=USA&ECredit=081200N is $5.59, 11 oz. is $13.99, and the gallon jug for those die hard bakers is $119.99. If you're looking for the best flavorings for your goodies I highly recommend this product to bring out the best taste possible. Watkins all the way!

Strawberry Cheesecake Torte from Taste of Home -Recipe #1

Strawberry Cheesecake Torte

I whipped this pretty lady up one evening after work. It felt like it'd take a lot more effort than it actually did. It was a very simple and light dessert. I'm not a huge fan of cream cheese so my boyfriend brought a tasty surprise to work! Critics say it was not too sweet or rich, but light and creamy, the fruit packed the right punch to top it off. The filling between the angel food cake layers was a mixture of cream cheese, vanilla pudding, and whip cream (all low fat). The angel food cake mix was prepared on a 15x10 1in deep sheet. The parchment paper used on the bottom of the sheet was a life saver! This is the perfect spring dessert.

To round it up I.....

1. Prepared the cake
2. Let it cool
3. Glazed with a gelatin mixture
4. Chilled it in the fridge
5. Made the filling
6. Cut the cake into 3
7. Spread the filling into the layers
8. Topped with fresh strawberries and kiwi

http://videos.tasteofhome.com/video/Strawberry-Cheesecake-Torte