Strawberry Shortcake Birthday Cake

This is a very special cake for one of the most special people in my life. Just a little pressure that I put on myself. But anyway, when I asked my very special person what she would like for a cake for her 14th birthday, she replied, " Um mm, chocolate cake, No.......chocolate cupcakes, No... can I have a Strawberry Shortcake?"  I responded, "Okay, so would you like a Strawberry Shortcake Cake?"  She exclaimed with much glee, "Yes please!!" Well that settles that. I have made strawberry shortcake ump-teen times ( it just so happens to be my husband's favorite dessert- go figure?), but a Strawberry Shortcake Cake.....not a one. I checked out what the Internet would have to say about that and up popped The Pioneer Woman's recipe----Strawberry Shortcake Cake! I am really excited now because I keep up with the famous food blogger and I have made a couple recipes of The PW's and they have been really delicious. The PW gets her shortcake recipe from The Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten, another one of my favorite chefs...I am starting to get goosebumps, I know, it really is the little things.

It really is a pretty cake.

I think I took more pictures of the cake than my daughter. Yes, I am sure of it.

This is a delicious fun cake to eat, since there is a pound of strawberries in one cake, it really is a healthy cake!

I like the look of the cake, no one cake has the same look with strawberries mixed in the icing.

Refrigerate cake to keep frosting from being soft.

My daughter said her cake tasted like, " Strawberry Deliciousness".

Stop for Cake Candles- It's true- we all should, stop for cake, that is.

This is one of my favorite cakes now. I knew it would be great, but I didn't know it would be this great!

Ingredients:


Cake

1-1/2 cups Flour
3 Tablespoons Corn Starch
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
9 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, softened
1-1/2 cup Sugar
3 Large Eggs
1/2 cup Sour Cream, Room Temperature
1 teaspoon Vanilla


__________


Icing


8 ounces Cream Cheese, Room Temperature
2 sticks Unsalted Butter
24 ounces Powdered Sugar, Sifted
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 pound Strawberries


Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two- 8" pans.
• Sift together flour, salt , baking soda, and corn starch.
• Cream 9 tablespoons butter with sugar until fluffy.
• Add eggs one at a time, mixing well each time. 
• Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined. 
• Add sifted dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just barely combined. Pour into cake pans. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes or until no longer jiggly. Remove cake from pan immediately and place on cooling rack, allow cake to cool completely. Cake will be golden brown on the outside.
• Stem strawberries and slice in half from top to bottom. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with 3 tablespoons sugar. Stir together and let sit for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, mash the strawberries wit a fork into two batches. Sprinkle each half with 1 tablespoon sugar and allow to sit another 30 minutes.
• Make icing: combine cream cheese, 2 sticks softened butter, sifted powdered sugar, vanilla and a dash of salt. Mix until light and fluffy.
• Spread strawberries evenly over each cake. Then place cake topped with strawberries in the freezer for 5-10 minutes, just to make icing easier.
•  Remove from freezer. Use a little less than 1/3 of the icing to spread over the top of the strawberries of the bottom layer. Place the second layer on top. Add half of the remaining icing to the top spreading evenly, then spread the remaining icing around the sides.
• IMPORTANT:Cake is best when served slightly cool. The butter content in the icing will cause it to soften at room temperature. For best results store in fridge.

Recipe Adapted from The Pioneer Woman and The Barefoot Contessa
  Serves 10

This recipe may be linked with:

Monday: Mingle Monday (Add a Pinch), Joy of Desserts. Tuesday: 2 Maids a Baking (2 Maids a Milking), Tea Party Tuesdays (Sweetology), Mushki Loves My Stuff (Mushki Loves), Totally Tasty Tuesdays (Mandy's Recipe Box). Wednesday: Cast Party Wednesday, Made It On Monday (Lark's Country Heart), This Chick Cooks.  Thursday: Sweet Treats Thursday (Something Swanky), Chic-and-Crafty (Frugal Girls), Turning the Table Thursdays (Around My Family Table), Tasty Thursday (The How-To Mommy). Friday: Sweet Tooth Friday (Alli-n-son), I'm Lovin' it Fridays (TidyMom), Friday Favorites (Simply Sweet Home). Saturday: Sweets for a Saturday (Sweet as Sugar Cookies), Seasonal Inspiration (Crumbs and Chaos). Sunday: A Well-Seasoned Life,Sharing Sundays (Everyday Sisters)       

    

Hurricane Cookies

Easy No- Bake Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Oats Cookies- otherwise known as HURRICANE COOKIES. Do you remember when Hurricane Irene was coming up the Coast? Well I kind of panicked about our food situation. What were we going to eat if we lost power for days???

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Okay, I have to calm down, let's check my emergency list here.

1. Flashlights, check. 
2. Batteries, check. 
3. Candles, check. 
4. Charge IPod, check.
5. Charge Kindle,check.
6. Water, check. 
7. Hurricane Cookies, check, check, check!!! So I figured, if we lose power, I'll have these made and we should be fully sustained through dinner!

In a saucepan, add sugar, milk, butter and vanilla.

Bring to a rolling boil and let boil for 1 minute.

In a separate bowl, combine Oats and Cocoa Powder.

Add coconut and peanut Butter, stir it up Lil' Darlin, stir it up.

Stir it up, I think I need to link the song here....

Add peanut butter mixture to saucepan mixture. After all ingredients are combined, drop by a heaping teaspoon on wax paper- lined baking sheets. Make sure to taste them before your family does, taste another one just in case, you are the protector after all.

  Ingredients

•  1/2 cup ( 1 stick) butter
•  2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup milk
• 3 Tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup sweetened coconut
• 3 cups quick-cooking oats

Method

1. In a sauce pan over medium heat, combine sugar, milk, butter and vanilla. 
2. Bring to a rolling boil, boil for 1 minute. 
3. Remove from heat and stir in oats, cocoa, peanut butter and coconut. 
4. Drop by heaping teaspoon onto wax paper-lined baking sheets.

Let cool until set          Yield: 2 to 3 dozen cookies  ( Recipe adapted from Ezra Pound Cake)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Easy One Pot Beef Stew

Easy One Pot Beef Stew. One pot meals are a this cook's dream. I really don't care for cleaning a lot of bowls and pots. One pot is enough to clean. With no cleaning to do, I have more time for eating and cooking! On this rainy, cloudy day, comfort food is number one on my list. Easy one pot beef stew is a perfect comfort meal. This is an easy meal that you can cook in the oven or slow cooker. It will be one of your favorites too. Serve with a chunk of French Bread or serve over egg noodles. Delicious!

Here's what you will be needing for yummy beef stew: Beef Chuck, Tomato Paste, Balsamic Vinegar, Flour, Salt and Pepper, Onions, Garlic, Potatoes, Carrots, Celery, Beef Stock, Water, Oregano, Rosemary, Thyme and flat leaf parsley.

Place beef, tomato paste, flour, salt and pepper in pot.

Chop onions into slices.

Cut potatoes into chunks

Cut carrots into chunks.

Cut celery into chunks.

Place vegetables and herbs into pot.

Fresh herbs and fresh veggies, make the perfect stew.

Pour in beef stock and water.

Stir up all ingredients for stew.

Make sure you have enough liquid to cover beef and vegetables.

Cook until meat is fork tender. About 2 1/2 -3  hours.

Ingredients

• 3 pounds Beef Chuck, trimmed of visible fat and cut into 1 1/2 -inch cubes
• 1/3 cup tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar
• 2 tablespoons flour
• Grey salt and fresh ground Pepper
• 1 pound medium onions ( about 2) cut into slices
• 1/2 pound Yukon Gold potatoes ( about 3) well scrubbed, cut into chunks
• 5 stalks celery with leaves, cut into chunks
• 1 pound carrots, well scrubbed, cut into chunks
• 6 garlic cloves smashed
• 4 cups water
• 2- 26 ounces low -sodium beef stock
• 4 sprigs oregano
• 2 sprigs rosemary
• 4 sprigs thyme
• 4 sprigs flat leaf parsley

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. In an 11 quart roaster/ broiler pot, with a tight fitting lid, combine beef, tomato paste, vinegar, flour and salt and pepper. 
3. Add chopped vegetables and herbs, water and beef stock. 
4. Stir stew every 1/2 hour or so.
5. Cook for 2 1/2 - 3 hours or until meat is fork tender. 
6. If desired, season with salt and pepper. 
7. Remove herb stems.
8. Serve beef stew with crusty French Bread.

8 servings

Adapted from Martha Stewart Living


I have linked up to these fabulous blogs!

                                                                             

ON

Easy Crispy Potatoes

Slice 2 baking potatoes.

Over the sliced potatoes, drizzle Olive Oil and season with Provencal spices, French salt and freshly ground pepper.

Toss potatoes to coat with Olive Oil and Seasoning.

Place potatoes on a baking sheet. Bake at 450 F for 12-15 minutes or until brown.

Perfect Easy Crispy Potatoes!  Serves 2

Easy Wok Salmon

Easy Wok Salmon, Easy Crispy Potatoes and  Easy Tomatoes.

" Baby please don't go, Baby please don't go, Baby please don't go down to New Orleans, you know I love you so, Baby please don't go......."

Without Me!! 

Where I love to eat and shop and eat. Some of my favorite things-Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, Beignets, Pralines, Crawfish Etouffee, Jumbalaya, Gumbo, Boudin. Time to make Easy Wok Salmon....But let's take a look down memory lane in wonderful New Orleans............

French Quarter- this is where you can buy: Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning.

Beautiful homes.

Incredible window boxes.

Strolling around French Quarter.

Palm Reader- Looks about right. You will be doing a lot of traveling. You love to cook. You love to eat. You will be writing a Cooking Blog.

You will be painting. You will be traveling. You will be doing an awful amount of eating, better start running again!

Dinner with the GU Chimes.

A carriage ride around French Quarter.

I really love New Orleans, and they do have amazing window boxes.

Taking a stroll, walking off the Beignets.

These are the window boxes that I aspire to have.

Salmon with Slap Ya Mama Cajun Spices straight from New Orleans- pronounced: NOR- Lin's.

My barbecuer's dream apron, equipped with a bottle holder, stretchy attached bottle opener and oven mitt.

Cook your salmon in a Wok outside, so your house doesn't smell fishy the next day.

Pour in some vegetable oil to your heated wok.

Cook Easy Wok Salmon on Medium High Heat.

When oil is hot, carefully place salmon skin side up.

Flip over when brown and crispy about 7-10 minutes, cook skin side another 7-10 minutes.

Ingredients

• 1 pound salmon
• Slap Ya Mama Cajun seasoning ( or any other spicy seasoning)
• Lawry's seasoned Salt
• 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 teaspoon Wasabi Powder
• 2 teaspoons Water
• Lemon slices

Method

On outdoor grill on medium - high gas heat, heat wok, add 1/4 cup vegetable oil.

Season salmon with Slap Ya Mama and Lawry's seasonings. Carefully place salmon in oil. Flip after 7 1/2 minutes each side. Cook until salmon is crispy brown.

To make Wasabi Paste: Add 1 teaspoon Wasabi powder to 2 teaspoons water, add more water if you like like a thinner paste.

Drizzle Wasabi Paste and a squeeze of lemon over Salmon.

Serve with Easy Crispy Potatoes and Easy Tomatoes.

Serves 2


Link: www.slapyamama.com