Christmas Candy

I was very sick for several days leading up to Christmas, so I didn't get to make all the goodies I wanted to (sorry cake ball lovers!). I was able to make these a few days after Christmas though. Pretzel rods dipped in caramel and then chocolate, chocolate covered oreos (with a snowflake chocolate transfer), Ritz cracker peanut butter sandwiches dipped in chocolate, Ritz crackers dipped in mint chocolate (taste like a Thin Mint!), snowman hats (oreo with large marshmallow dipped in chocolate), chocolate covered caramels & chocolate covered pretzels.

Father's Day is a Bakerella Day!

My favorite blog to follow is http://www.bakerella.com/. She has some super cute ideas and this is where I learned to make the cake pops. She has a whole book of cake pops coming out in September and I can't wait! :) For Father's Day I tried a couple of her recipes I had wanted to try for a while. She does such a good job of documenting the recipes step by step, so I am just going to give you the link for each one.


Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls

These cinnamon rolls looked so good that I just had to try them. Although I did think twice after I saw the recipe called for "plenty of melted butter" rather than an exact measurement. Considering 6 out of 7 of us at the table were in a wedding party 3 weeks later, it probably wasn't the best thing to make, but they were SO good! And the recipe does make a TON. I had either 6 or 7 pans of rolls, but they are freezable. Here's the recipe/instructions: http://www.bakerella.com/swirls/


Congo Bars

I love chocolate chip bars and these looked delicious so I made them to take to my grandma's house. I think I overbaked mine a little, but they were still good and the plate was empty at the end of the afternoon, so I guess they were a hit. Here's the recipe/instructions: http://www.bakerella.com/i-hope-you-have-chocolate-chips-handy/


Mini Maple Pancake Muffins

I also recommend this recipe: http://www.bakerella.com/mini-maple-pancake-muffins/ Laura made them for our brunch and they were very tasty. She used regular syrup rather than pure maple syrup (which is pricey) and it worked fine. I would recommend the mini chocolate chips rather than the regular ones because it was a little too much chocolate for me. Next time Laura said she wants to try blueberries.


Homemade Almond Joys

This recipe was not from Bakerella, but it was part of my dad's Father's Day present. They were pretty easy to make, but were time consuming because you had to wait after each step. I followed Variation 1 in the recipe below.

3/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups light corn syrup
1/2 cup water
3/4 package flaked coconut (14 oz)
1/2 teaspoon almond extract, or vanilla

Combine sugar, corn syrup and water in a large saucepan.
Cook, stirring constantly, just until sugar is dissolved.
Cook without stirring to 236 degrees (soft ball); remove from heat.
Stir in coconut and flavoring; cool.

Variation 1: Chocolate Coconut Almond Drops (otherwise known as Almond Joys)- Shape cooled coconut mixture into 1-inch balls, flattening bottoms.
Top each with a toasted almond. (Toast raw almonds on cookie sheet in oven for about 10 minutes)
Chill at least 1 hour.
Dip in melted chocolate.

Variation 2: Acorns- Shape in balls, tapering one end to cone shape.
Chill 1 hour.
Dip large end into melted chocolate.

Easter

French Toast Casserole

I made brunch for my parents and Scott and I on Easter Sunday. My mom had foot surgery a few days before, so I needed something that I could cook at their house and not make a huge mess. At first I wasn't sure how this would go over because my dad hates casseroles, but I think he ate 5 pieces. Sometimes I think he doubts my cooking abilities, but I am pretty sure he liked this one. ;) I served this with hashbrowns, fresh pineapple and a Butter Braid.


1 loaf French bread
8 eggs
3 cups milk
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
Cinnamon to sprinkle
Butter

Spray 9x13 pan with Pam - cut bread about 1½” thick and lay in pan. Mix eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and a little cinnamon in a bowl. Pour mixture over bread and sprinkle cinnamon on top. Refrigerate overnight.

Next day, put a pat of butter on each slice of bread and bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes.

Note: Don't cut the bread too thick or it will take forever to cook. Make sure you cook it long enough since it has so many eggs. Better to cook a little longer to be on the safe side.


Easter Goodies

I took a candy class right before Easter and got a lot of good ideas.

I made everything on this plate, except the edible Easter grass (which is disgusting, by the way, tastes like paper).

Cake balls and chocolate covered marshmallows. (See instructions below for cake balls.)

Solid, flat white chocolate bunnies. The detail was done with a toothpick.

Little eggs are filled with caramel and big eggs filled with rice krispies.

Solid 3D bunnies

3D lamb cake decorated with rosettes and my leftover flowers from my course 2 final cake. He turned out so cute that no one wanted to cut him.

Cake Balls

I stumbled upon a recipe for these right before Christmas and decided to give them a try and they were a huge hit with everyone. The week before Easter I had a cake completely fall apart on me and I hated to throw it away so it sounded like a perfect excuse for another batch of cake balls. I have seen several variations on how to make these, but this is how I do it:

Bake a cake, 9x13 works best and it probably works with any flavor cake, but I have only tried white. Let the cake cool and then crumble it into tiny pieces. Mix in a can of frosting, again you can probably use any flavor but I have only tried vanilla. Put the cake in the refrigrator for about 30 minutes to make it easier to work with then shape into balls. I use my cookie scoop to get the right size and then roll in my hands. Put the balls in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Melt chocolate, I use candy coating wafers (from Michaels or candy supply store) and dip balls in chocolate. Retrieve the ball from the chocolate with a fork, lightly tap fork on the side of the bowl and gently scrape the fork on the edge of the bowl to remove excess chocolate and then put on wax paper to set. If you want to put sprinkles on top you have to work quickly because the frozen cake makes the chocolate set very fast. Put the cake balls back in the fridge or freezer until completely set. It is best to only work with a few at a time so that the cake does not thaw before you dip it.

Notes: You can keep the cake balls in the freezer for weeks before dipping them, so you don't have to use the whole batch for 1 occasion (it makes a ton). I keep my chocolate on top of my pancake griddle (set to warm) to keep the chocolate melted while I am working with it. It will stay melted all day long, but make sure it does not get too hot and burn. I also add paramount crystals to my chocolate to thin it out. You can buy these at any candy supply store. You use about 1 tbsp to each pound of chocolate. Basically you want your chocolate to smoothly run off your spoon. If you have never been to Fischers Cake & Candy in Florrisant, it is a wonderful place!

For more details on this check out http://www.bakerella.com/. I LOVE this website, she has a lot of great ideas and she gives step by step instructions with pictures. I wish I would have found this site before I made them for the first time!

Truffles

I took a truffles class a few weeks ago and couldn't wait to try out what I learned. In the class, we learned 2 different ways to make the ganache for the truffles. One is quick and easy and creates truffles with a short shelf life, so you have to be prepared to eat them within several days. The other version is still easy, but calls for a few more ingredients, the most important being invert sugar. I am still not sure what invert sugar is, but it looks like granulated sugar mixed into corn syrup and it gives the truffles shelf life.


Quick and Easy Truffles

There are only two ingredients for these truffles: heavy whipping cream and chocolate (chocolate wafers, I don't know if chocolate chips will work). As our instructor said, these aren't healthy by any means, so go for the 40% heavy whipping cream.

For the truffles, you use 1 cup of cream for every pound of chocolate. All you have to do is bring the cream to a slight boil and then pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for a couple minutes while the chocolate begins to melt then stir to combine. Put the chocolate in the refrigerator until it is easy to handle. Form the chocolate into small balls and roll in your desired topping (nuts, sprinkles, cocoa powder, etc.) Store in the refrigerator. The date on your cream carton is a good reference for how long the truffles will stay good for.

Now, lets say you are tired of rolling all the truffles and you think you have made plenty, but you still have extra chocolate. That is where the next idea comes in.....


Chocolate Stuffed Strawberries


Use the same recipe as above, but this time whip the chocolate with a mixer until it is light and fluffy and then put it in a piping bag (or ziploc bag with corner cut off). Haul out the inside of the strawberries and let them sit out until they are dry. The instructor said you can use a hair dryer to dry the strawberries quicker, but that seems a little odd to me. Also cut the bottoms off the strawberries so they will stand up on their own. Then pipe the chocolate mixture into the strawberries. These will only stay good for a couple of days before the strawberries go bad, so plan accordingly.

I used 1/2 cup cream and 1/2 pound chocolate and I was able to make 22 strawberries.


Chocolate Truffles with Ganache Center

These were pretty easy to make and they turn out very nice. At first glance everyone thought they were store bought. The heart design comes from a chocolate transfer sheet. It is a sheet of plastic with the design painted in cocoa butter. You cut out the size you need and then dip the truffle in chocolate and then place on wax paper. Wait about 30 seconds or so for the chocolate to settle (but not harden) and then place the chocolate transfer on top and press down lightly. The heat from the chocolate pulls the design off the plastic and onto the chocolate. Let it sit for a 5-10 minutes (or until set) then carefully peel away the plastic.

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 tsp corn syrup

1 pound chocolate, melted

1 tbsp invert sugar

1tbsp butter, softened

Additional chocolate to dip the truffles

In a heavy saucepan, bring cream and corn syrup to a boil. Add butter and invert sugar. Cool to at least 98 degrees. Melt chocolate in the microwave. Blend with a wire whisk until a smooth consistency is reached. Pour in a 9x9 pan lined with parchment paper, keeping the top as smooth as possible. Chill for several hours in the refrigerator. Remove from pan and use a pizza cutter to cut 1x1 squares. Dip in melted chocolate. Place on wax or parchment paper until set.

You can also use a cookie scoop to shape the truffles and then dip them, or you can mold them in a chocolate mold.

Enjoy!