Lemon Cream Cake

source: http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=336868Posted by : Lisa

Every time we go to Olive Garden, I make sure to leave room for a slice of their Lemon cream cake.  It is one of my favorite desserts.  I searched for a copy cat recipe with little hope of re-creating it successfully.  I made this recipe with a homemade cake instead of a box cake and I couldn't be more pleased!  It has a wonderful light lemon flavor and is very satisfying.  I hope you give it a try.  Very easy to make.
This is a copy of Olive Garden's Lemon Cream Cake. "Delicate white cake and lemon cream filling with a vanilla crumb topping."

Number of Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 white cake mix,prepared ( I used a homemade white cake recipe instead)

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 cups powered sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped to stiff peaks
3 tbsp. lemon juice

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup powered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 tbsp. butter

Directions

Prepare cake as directed in a 10" round cake pan or 10" round spring form pan. 

Blend cream cheese, powered sugar, and lemon juice together.

 In a medium bowl, whip heavy whipping cream to stiff peaks. 

Gently fold into cream cheese mixture and blend by hand. Chill until needed.

 Mix flour and powered sugar in small bowl.

 Crumble butter in and dribble in vanilla extract. The crumbles should be no larger than pea size.

 If you have trouble crumbling mixture, chill for a few minutes. Chill until needed.

After cake is cooled, cut in half. 

Spread cream cheese mixture, saving 1/2 cup, on bottom half and carefully place top layer back. 

Spread rest of cream cheese mixture on the sides of cake. 

Press crumb topping into sides gently. 

Sprinkle the top with powdered sugar

Chill for 3 hours. Cut into 12 pie shaped slices. Makes 12 servings.

Number of Servings: 12

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user RYSMOM06.

Cake Doughnuts

Posted by Lisa

source:  Food Network Magazine September 2013

I saw these in the newest issue of the Food Network Magazine and was curious if I could get them to turn out like the picture.  I am happy to say that these were surprisingly easy to make.  Just mixed it up, piped them, stuck them in the fridge till I had time later to fry them....and then wallah!  Delicious donuts!  Quick and easy is what I like to make!  They were dense and very much like a good bakery donut.  The nutmeg was very noticeable but I liked it.  If you are uncertain about that, maybe cut the amount in half.  Good luck!

Ingredients:
2 1/3 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg (I used dried spice)
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 c sugar
1 large egg plus 1 egg yolk
1/2 cup whole milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

vegetable shortening for frying

for the glaze:
1 1/2 c confectioner's sugar
3 tbsp whole milk
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest (I didn't use this)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt

Directions:

1.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.  Use a 3 inch round cookie cutter and trace 12 circles on the parchment, leaving space between them.  Turn parchment over and use as a guide.  Lightly coat with cooking spray.

2. Fit pastry bag with 1/2 inch round tip, or cut corner of resealable bag 1/2 inch.

3.  Sift flour, baking powder, nutmeg and salt into bowl.

4.  Beat butter and sugar until well combined.

5.  Add eggs and mix until it turns pale yellow.

6.  Beat in milk and vanilla until mixture is smooth, scraping sides as needed.

7.  Beat in flour mixture just until incorporated (do not over mix).

8.  Transfer to the piping bag.  Using the circles as a guide, pipe the batter into the circles.  If you have extra batter, you can make some 1 inch size donut holes.  (I had enough for 9 donuts and 8 holes)

9.  Refrigerate while you heat oil to 340.  You want about 2 inches of oil.

10.  Use scissors to cut the parchment into squares around each donut.

11.  Carefully place 2 or 3 donuts face down (parchment up) into the oil and using tongs, remove the parchment.

12.  Fry until golden about 1min 30 sec each side.

13.  Remove when golden all over and drain on paper towel.  While warm, dip each donut into the glaze and set aside to set.

Chocolate Cake

I saw a picture of Martha Stewart's cake and thought that was a great cake for Easter!  So I set out to make it.  The above picture is my attempt at it.  It doesn't quite look like her elegant one, but the taste was amazing.  The quality and texture of the cake was wonderful.  The frosting was sweet but that was because I substituted milk chocolate for the bittersweet.  Next time I would probably use the bittersweet.  Definitely a keeper!

Source: www.marthastewart.com  Chocolate Cake with Crepe Paper Flowers and a Phyllo Nest

Posted by Lisa

• For the Cake

  • Unsalted butter, room temperature, for pans
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for pans
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
  • 2 large eggs, plus 1 large egg yolk
  • 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
  • 3/4 cup warm water
  • 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup dark rum
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Make the cake: Butter two 10-by-2-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment cut to fit, and butter parchment. Dust with cocoa, and tap out excess. Sift flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a mixer. Add remaining ingredients. Mix on low speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Divide batter among prepared pans.
• Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until a toothpick inserted into centers of cakes comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Let cool in pans on wire racks for 45 minutes. Run a knife around edges of cakes to loosen, and turn onto racks. Remove parchment, turn cakes right side up, and let cool completely.

• For the Frosting

  • 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 18 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
  • 1 1/2 cups sour cream
• Make the frosting: Sift confectioners' sugar, cocoa, and salt into a bowl. In the bowl of a mixer, beat cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Gradually add sugar mixture, beating until combined. Beat in melted chocolate and sour cream until combined

• For the Garnish

  • 1 thick 16-ounce block bittersweet chocolate, room temperature
  • Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)
  • Phyllo nest
  • Small candy-coated chocolate eggs
• Make the garnish: Using a vegetable peeler, scrape chocolate at a 45-degree angle. Using a spatula, transfer curls to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (or up to 4 days).
  (I tried this and it did not work...at all.  I ended up tempering my own chocolate and then spreading it on the back of a cookie sheet, and using a small metal spatula, scraping it up before it set completely and making curls.  It actually worked. Surprised me!  Beware that the chocolate sets up pretty fast so you have to move quickly)

• For the Nest

  • 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for mold
  • 1/2 ounce ( 1/2 cup) kataifi (a type of phyllo), thawed
  • Cocoa powder, for dusting
• Make the nest: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly brush a 1/3-cup-capacity round silicone mold with butter. In a bowl, gently toss butter and kataifi to combine.
• Lift kataifi out of bowl, gently stretching strands to form a loose rope. Lay 1 end in the cupped fingers of 1 hand. Gently spiral rope to shape into a nest.
• Fit nest into mold, pulling up edges to rest over rim. Place on a baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely in mold on a wire rack. Unmold. Dust with cocoa.

I tempered good quality chocolate and made the curls that way.

1. To assemble: Using a serrated knife, trim tops of cakes to create level surfaces. Reserve trimmings

1. Place 1 cake, cut side up, on a cake stand. Spread 2 cups frosting over top. Top with remaining cake, cut side up.

1. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides

1. Using tweezers, gently press chocolate curls to sides of cake. Dust top with confectioners' sugar if desired. Decorate with nest, chocolate eggs, and flowers

1.  Finely grind cake trimmings in a food processor

1. Sprinkle crumbs over top of cake.

"Kevin's Bread"

Submitted by Lisa

(Kevin made the bread in this picture)

I am calling this bread "Kevin's bread" because Kevin is the one who taught me how to make it!  I don't know where the recipe comes from other than that, but it was delicious.  Kevin is a 14 yr old boy from church.  Yes, you read that right.  He is the bread maker in his family.  I am not too proud to have a child teach me!


3 c hot water
3 tbsp yeast
1 tbsp sugar
*mix*  and set aside

12 cups flour
1/2 c sugar
2 tbsp salt
1 c powdered milk
*mix*  and set aside in a bowl.










Take the ingredients below and add to the dry mix above.  With your hand, gently mix it around until it is all incorporated.
1 1/2 c warm water
1 c oil
yeast mixture

Once it is mixed together, cover with plastic wrap and set in an undisturbed place until it has risen to double it's size.

When it has doubled, DO NOT PUNCH IT DOWN!!

Gently break it into 3 sections.  Shape each section by hand into a loaf shape and set into a lightly sprayed loaf pan.  Cover with the plastic wrap and set aside.  Turn the oven on to 375 at this point to preheat.

When the oven has reached temp,(this should only be about 15 minutes of rise time in the bread pans)

 remove the plastic wrap and put the loaves into oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until browned 

and hollow sounding.  

*do not cut into the loaves for at least 30 minutes after baking...they are still cooking while resting*

This is a picture of the bread I made!!  I did it and it was so easy!

Thanks Kevin!

Mix by hand.

Pizza - Homemade

This pizza was really good.  I had some family over and needed a quick meal.  I decided to make pizza for them, but I didn't have any meat...no pepperoni, or sausage or ham...nothing!

I did however have some delicious fresh baby spinach in the fridge so I went with that.  It was really good.

Take about a grapefruit size of the Boule dough, and roll  it out thin onto a piece of parchment paper.  This is important because you aren't going to be able to pick it up and move it to the pizza stone after you top it.

If you don't have a pizza stone, then just roll the dough out and place it on the baking sheet before you top it.

Ingredients:

Dough  (click for recipe)
1 can chopped tomatoes (or fresh chopped tomatoes)
1/4 cup sauce (I used some spaghetti sauce I had in the fridge)
1 can artichoke hearts chopped
1 handful of baby spinach, rolled and sliced thinly
2 tbsp of Tastefully Simple Garlic Garlic (if you don't have that, then some fresh garlic smashed and smeared)
2 tbsp of parmesan cheese
2 tbsp of Pizza Spice from Penzy's Spice Store  (the best! look them up online)
Mozzarella cheese to your liking
Olive oil

Pre Heat oven to 450 degrees.  Roll the dough out thinly, it will rise some when cooked.

Brush drizzled olive oil over the dough, and edges of dough.  Sprinkle the pizza seasoning, garlic garlic, and parmesan cheese over the dough.  ( the measurements are approximate..I just sprinkle each of these until I have some sprinkled over the whole dough)

Spread the sauce and tomatoes evenly.  Add the artichokes and spinach.  Now cover with the cheese to the thickness you prefer.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the edges are browned and the center is bubbly.

A Daily Loaf (Pain Ordinaire Careme)

Submitted by: Lisa

This is out of the book:  Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads.  I love this book.  I made this bread yesterday and didn't realize that it was an all day process.  I started at 1:30 in the afternoon and didn't get it baked until 9:00 that night.  So, start this early in the morning.  The reason it takes so long is because it has 3 rises.  It isn't complicated or really time consuming, it just needs a little attention in between the rising's so you do have to be around.

Verdict:  We like it a lot.  I just made it into 2 different peasant type loaves.  You can form it in many ways including baguette.

I have some whole wheat stored and decided to grind some of the white wheat up into flour and use some in this recipe.  I used 2 cups of the ground white wheat and the 4 cups regular all purpose flour.  It worked very nicely.

Ingredients:


6 cups bread or unbleached flour
2 pkgs dry yeast
2 1/2 cups hot water (120 - 130 degrees)
2 tsp each salt & water


Mix by hand or mixer (only if you have a very sturdy, tough mixer):  Measure 3 to 4 cups of flour into the mixing bowl and add the yeast and hot water.  (actually take the temp of your water, it makes a difference)


Put on the flat beater if using the mixer and beat for 10 minutes.  If the mixer is sounding strained, stop and do by hand.  The batter will be smooth and pull away from the sides as the gluten develops.

When finished, dissolve the salt in the water and add to the batter and mix for 30 seconds longer.

Put on the dough hook.  Continue mixing with it and add additional flour 1/4 cup at a time.  Knead for 10 minutes.  Again, if this is taxing your mixer, do it by hand.

1st rising:  Place the dough in a large greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temp for @ 2 hrs.  The dough could be more that triple it's size.

2nd rising:  Turn back the plastic wrap and knead briefly, about 3 minutes.  Return to the bowl and re-cover with the plastic wrap.  Allow to rise to more than triple its volume, about 1 1/2 hrs.

Shaping:  The dough will be light and puffy.  Turn it onto the floured work surface and punch it down.  Don't be surprised if it pushes back, for it is quite resilient.

Divide inot as many pieces as you wish loaves.  One quarter of this recipe will make a baguette 22" long and 3" wide.  Or 2 large round loaves.  Allow the dough to rest 5 minutes before shaping.

3rd rising:  Cover the loaves with a cloth so they will still get air.  They should either be on the pan they will be baked on, or if using a baking stone, have then on parchment paper so you can move them without flattening them.  Leave about 1 hr to rise.

Preheat oven to 450.  Bake 25 to 30 minutes.  They are done when golden brown and if the bottom crust sounds hard and hollow when tapped.

Final step:  Place on a rack to cool.  Enjoy!