Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Cream Puff in a pan...



Fall has arrived. momLife has begun. (A ministry at our church that I am very involved in and keeps me pretty busy.) And now maybe I will have some regular time to begin blogging again???

Here is a yummy favorite of mine. I found the recipe originally in a Pampered Chef cookbook. Jason's aunt makes a version too - it is a recipe that works great for diabetics because it can be done with a sugar free version of pudding. Marilyn makes it that way so that Jace's grandma can enjoy it. I hope you'll give it a try. The cream puff is made in basically the same way as the top layer of Swedish Pastry.

The recipe:

1 c. water
1/2 c. butter
1 c. flour
4 eggs
8 oz of cream cheese softened
2 (4 oz each) packages of vanilla instant pudding mix
2 c. milk
12 oz frozen whipped topping thawed
1/4 c. chocolate syrup (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Bring the water and butter to a boil in a 2-quart sauce pan, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and stir in flour. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking them in as they are added. Add a dash of salt and a 1 t of almond flavoring if you like.

Spread the batter in a greased 10 x 15 baking dish (I like to line mine with wax paper and grease that). Bake for 25 minutes. Cool. It will look like this:



Beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the pudding mix and the milk. (Add the milk first, then the mix - it will help you avoid lumps in this layer.) Beat until well combined.

Spread this mixture unto the baked layer. Top with the whipped topping. Drizzle with chocolate syrup if desired.

Makes 36 servings.

Enjoy!!!!

Link

Monday, July 4, 2011

Hurry, bake this while you can still find some rhubarb....



I want to blog more regularly and instead I seem to blog more irregularly or let's face it, never. Sigh. I have taken several photos of recent and even not so recent things I have made; they just never seem to make it to the blog. Here's to trying to remedy that somewhat. First up:

Rhubarb Bread...

This is a recipe that my mom always made for us when we were kids. A yummy treat to make when rhubarb pies and rhubarb crisps have been over done. :) Which is really never but this bread is really good so find a little rhubarb before it's too late to come by and try this recipe.

The recipe:

1 1/2 c. brown sugar
2/3 c. oil
1 egg
1 c. sour milk or buttermilk
1 t. soda
1 t. salt
1 t. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1 1/2 c. raw, diced rhubarb
1/2 c. nuts (if you like them - I skipped them, I think my mom always used walnuts)

Mix together and pour into two greased bread pans. This time I baked mine in one 7 x 10 inch glass pan, like a cake. It worked out great. For all the baking I do, I really don't have any good bread pans. But I liked baking this in a cake form. And it baked at the same temp for basically the same amount of time. Just slightly less.

Top with 1/2 c. sugar and 1 T butter pinched together. Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit for 50 to 60 minutes; or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

This is a slightly sour bread but it mixes with that sweet topping and it's so good topped with a little bit of butter! And as it sits the sweetness increases because that sweetness on top melts into the bread. Enjoy!!!!

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Cupcakes with Libby



I had the fun of helping a young friend, who has found she loves making cupcakes, learn to decorate them in some fun and special ways today. We had a great time talking about the different pastry bag tips and techniques. We made some lovely, yummy treats.



Thanks Lib for a fun morning!!!!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Pretty Packages...

Wrapping something with an extra special tag and ribbon can turn an ordinary bar cookie into a beautiful valentine...



Find the basic recipe for these cookie bars here. (If you look up this post, also take note that I have been very unsuccessful at posting more often to this blog :( Maybe someday, I'll get more in the habit.) Instead of mixing in white chocolate chips and dried cranberries, substitute 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips. Allow to cool completely and cut into hearts with a cookie cutter. Wrap in plastic wrap and add a tag and a bow. I know your Valentine would enjoy this pretty package...