Creamsicle Cake

 

1 box (15.25 oz) White Cake Mix

1 container (6 oz) non-fat Greek yogurt, plain

1 cup orange juice

freshly grated orange zest, optional

powdered sugar, optional

 

In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, Greek yogurt and orange juice. Include the zest of one orange, if desired. Pour batter into a greased 8 x8 inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-33 minutes. Slice into 9 pieces. Garnish with a dusting of powdered sugar and orange peel, if desired.

 

*I used a standard loaf pan, baked for 40mins or until toothpick comes out clean. 

 

**Could also try this with lemons or keylimes. 

Sorry, it's been awhile since I posted a recipe.  With the craziness of the holidays I just was tired of baking!  But I promise you this recipe is worth the wait!  It's soooo simple, and sooooo yummy I predict you'll be making this one over ad over again!  Enjoy! 

Carmelita Bars

Ingredients

o   2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

o   2 ½ cups oats ( quick or rolled)

o   2 cups brown sugar

o   1 ¼  teaspoon baking soda

o   1 teaspoon salt

o   1 teaspoon vanilla

o   1 1/2 cups butter ( melted)

o   12 ounces chocolate chips ( semi-sweet, milk, or a mix of both)

o   1 (12 ounce) jar caramel ice cream topping

Directions

Mix flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and melted butter.

Press half the mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 glass pan (coated with nonstick cooking spray).  Bake for 17 minutes at 325 degrees.

Remove from the oven and cover equally with chocolate chips and caramel topping. Crumble the rest of the oat mixture over the top and bake for another 20 minutes at 325 degrees or until top crust is lightly browned.

Cool for at least 3 hours before cutting.  Makes 24 squares.  Store in airtight container.

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Anyone who knows me well knows I love all things pumpkin!  This is one of my favorite recipes, and I can hardly wait to make it each Fall to celebrate the holidays.  It's so easy, and so yummy, you'll want this recipe for own! 

1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 cups canned pumpkin
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Spray 9x13 cake pan with non-stick spray.  Mix oil, sugar, eggs and pumpkin until smooth.  Sift dry ingredients and mix together with cake batter.  Spread evening into pan. Pre-heat oven to 350F; bake cake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the center of the cake.  Cool completely before frosting.    

Frosting:

6 tablespoons for soft butter
4 ounces soft cream cheese
2 cups of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese together, add vanilla.  Slowly mix in powdered sugar, until smooth.  May add a little milk if too thick.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Sopapilla Cheesecake
This isn't a new recipe, but has certainly become a favorite over the past year. I get asked to make this over and over, and really, why not?! This dessert is equal parts sublime cinnamon sugar and honey with flaky crust, with a rich sweet cheesecake filling. Easy to make, delicious to eat, what's not love?!   *recipe calls for making this in a 9x13 pan.  I’ve shown it here in a 10 inch stoneware dish.

Ingredients

• 3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 (8 ounce) mascarpone cheese, softened *see note below
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 (8 ounce) cans crescent roll dough
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup of honey

Directions
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F

Beat the cheeses with 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon, egg and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth. Unroll the cans of crescent roll dough, and use a rolling pin to shape each piece into 9x13 inch rectangles. Press one piece into the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining piece of crescent dough.
Drizzle the melted butter evenly over the top of the cheesecake. Stir the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar together with the cinnamon in a small bowl, and sprinkle over the cheesecake.

Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown, about 45 minutes. Drizzle warm cheesecake with honey.  Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 squares.

*note on mascarpone cheese.  Marscapone can be expensive and/or hard to find in some areas.  It's an italian cream cheese that is sweeter and richer than regular cream cheese and it makes a notable difference in recipes that call for it's use.  However, you can absolutely substitute 8 oz of regular cream cheese for the marscapone if you can't find it, or it's too expensive for your budget. 

 

Caramel Apples

Caramel Apples
What says Fall better than caramel apples??  It’s so easy; there is really NO reason to buy them! 

Ingredients:

1, 14 oz. bag of caramels
6 granny smith apples or any tart crisp apple
1 tablespoon of water
1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
6 popsicle sticks
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:

Insert popsicle sticks through the middle of the apple, stem up.  Refrigerate apples for several hours before making caramel apples.  This helps the caramel firm up more quickly after dipping, and prevents apples from starting the cooking process due to the hot caramel. 

Unwrap caramels (or buy new Kraft caramels in pea sized balls for faster and easier caramel melting), and place in a teflon coated sauce pan, add 1 tablespoon of water.  Melt over medium-low heat, stirring until completely melted.  Add 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract, and stir until complete incorporated.

Lay piece of parchment or wax paper on a flat surface.  Dip each apple, one at a time in the caramel, being sure to roll the apple through the caramel until coated.  Be sure to continue spinning the apple to remove excess caramel.  Roll apple in nuts as they come out of the caramel, if you choose.  Could also dip in chocolate.  Place apple on parchment or wax paper until cooled completely.  Store in air-tight container if any survive the 1^st hour.

Pistachio Muffins

Pistachio Muffins

Pistachios have recently become a favorite snack, and while looking for something new to make this morning for breakfast, I found a recipe for pistachio muffins that sounded delish. A few adjustments and here's what I came up with. I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy these moist, flavorful muffins as much as I did!

3 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 box instant pistachio pudding
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 tsp almond extract
3/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup chopped pistachios
2-3 drops green food coloring--optional

Topping:

1/4 cup finely chopped pistachios
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons sugar

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and dry pudding mix.  Combine eggs, milk, food coloring and oil; add to dry mixture and mix until just moistened. Fold in chopped pistachios.  Fill baking cups 2/3 full. Sprinkle tops of muffin with finely chopped pistachios.

Bake 15-18 minutes in preheated 365-degree oven, or until muffins test done.  Let muffins rest for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.  Brush muffin tops with melted butter, and sprinkle with sugar.  Serve immediately, or store in air-tight container.  Serving: 21 regular sized muffins.   

Caramel Apple Cake

CARAMEL APPLE CAKE

This warm apple cake is rich and comforting, perfect for fall! 

Ingredients:

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3 eggs 1 1/4 cups vegetable oil 2 cups white sugar 2 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon nutmeg 2 apple - peeled, cored, and chopped 1 cup shredded coconut 1 cup chopped pecans    Caramel Sauce: 1/4 cup butter 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/3 cup heavy cream 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

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	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Generously grease and flour a bundt pan.
	In larger mixing bowl blend eggs, oil, sugar, vanilla, salt, spices, and baking powder until creamy. Add flour, a little at a time. Blend well. Batter will be stiff. Fold in apples, coconut, and nuts.
	Pour into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool 30 minutes in the pan, then remove.  Poke holes all over the top of the cake, with the tines of a meat fork, or other long thin fork tines.
	Caramel Sauce: Melt butter, sugar, and milk in saucepan over medium heat. Bring to boil for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in vanilla until bubbles calm down.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes, and then gently spoon the caramel over the cake.  Serve warm or room temperature.