raspberry lemonade cupcakes

I know, it's been over two months since the last post. But forgive me! Being the last semester in my fourth year of school, it was so crazy that I didn't even have time to make a piece of toast. That being, I came home in late April for the summer, and had made some new recipes that I intended to post on here. But another wrench in the plans: my computer died. Completely crashed, taking all my files and my ability to upload my pictures. So here I am, two months later, finally giving you guys another recipe that I love. These cupcakes are sweet yet tart, and flavourful with a nice texture. Fresh raspberries and lemon juice give them a special, fresh flavour that make you completely forget that these cakes came from a box mix.

Raspberry Lemonade Cupcakes with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing

1 box French Vanilla or Yellow cake mix
Additional ingredients following cake mix box

(generally 3 eggs, 1 cup water, 1/3 cup oil)

1 package (4 serving) Lemon instant pudding mix

1/2 tbsp lemon juice

2 cups fresh raspberries

Icing:

1 8oz. package cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup butter, softened

4 cups powdered sugar (additional if needed)

2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Line two cupcake pans with 24 paper liners. Beat together cake mix, eggs, oil and water until smooth. Mix in lemon pudding mix and lemon juice until completely smooth as well. Gently fold in raspberries, allowing them to break apart a little bit. Make sure each raspberry has at least been halved (you don't want any raspberries to remain whole). Fill cupcake liners 1/2 to 2/3 full, and bake according to cake mix package directions (usually about 20 minutes). Let cool completely.

Icing:

In a mixer, beat butter until fluffy. Beat in cream cheese and vanilla extract. Mix in powdered sugar gradually, adding a cup at a time until smooth. Add in additional powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency (more sugar = a stiffer icing). Ice cupcakes and garnish with whole raspberries, if desired. Store in an airtight container. Makes 24 cupcakes.

chocolate chunk pumpkin pie bread

So it's been over a month since my last post. Needless to say, it's been ridiculously busy in the house of sugar and chocolate the past little while. Final assignments and midterms are bearing their ugly, yellow teeth at us, and baking and cooking has taken the backseat to textbooks and group meetings. But finally, I've had enough of pre-packaged food and quick meals. I want the good stuff. The makes-my-house-smell-good treats and dinners that I haven't had for over a month. So in comes one of my favourites: Pumpkin Bread. I'm sadly allergic to bananas, so I painfully miss out on the joys of banana bread but this bread is totally better in my opinion. Spiced up with cinnamon and nutmeg, pecans tossed in, and rich chocolate chunks scattered throughout take this bread so far from plain. Now, as I mop up the drool that is now sloshed all over my keyboard, I give you the coveted recipe.

Just warning you now; this recipe makes 3, count 'em, 3 loaves of bread. The quantity is large, but if you don't want to waste a half a can of pumpkin, then just freeze the other loaves for later! Problem solved!


Chocolate Chunk Pumpkin Pie Bread


3 cups white sugar

1 15 ounce can pure pumpkin puree

NOT pumpkin pie filling

1 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup water
4 eggs
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 - 2 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 3 - 9x5 loaf pans. In a large bowl or mixer, combine sugar, oil, pumpkin, water and eggs. Beat until smooth. In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Blend dry ingredients together with the pumpkin mixture until well combined. Fold in chocolate and nuts. Fill the loaf pans about 3/4 full. Bake for 1 hour, or until an inserted knife comes out clean (no gooey pumpkin should come out on the knife. Melted chocolate is okay.). I needed to bake mine an extra 15 minutes before there was no pumpkin on my knife. Cool on wire racks completely before removing from pans.

Note:  I bought two aluminum loaf pans for the two loaves I was going to freeze since I only have one real loaf pan. It worked out perfectly! No time adjustments required. ALSO!: you can make muffins using this recipe. I've done this where I made two loaves and 12 muffins (1 loaf = about 12 muffins). Adjust the cooking time of the muffins to about 30-45 minutes.

Enjoy!

barbecue chicken flatbread pizza

Using the Herb & Garlic Flatbread recipe shown earlier, my boyfriend and I decided to improvise and use the simple crust as a base for pizza one night for supper. We've used it before to use up leftover pepperoni lunch meat to make a pizza and it turned out great, so we decided to try it again but switch it up a little. I'd never had a barbecue chicken pizza before, but I see them everywhere.. mostly in the frozen pizza aisle (and I was always way too chicken to try them .. *pun totally intended). This pizza is so simple to make and is surprisingly tasty. It was definitely refreshing to have something totally different for supper, and I'll absolutely be making this one again. Actually, I may even use the leftover taco meat in the fridge to make a taco pizza for supper tonight.. omg. Help me. I'll be eating pizza for the rest of my life.

Barbecue Chicken Flatbread Pizza

1/2 Recipe of Herb & Garlic Flatbread
(I left out the herbs and the garlic just to make a plain crust)
       1/2 a recipe makes 2 individual size pizzas
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1 1/2 cups cooked, diced chicken
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
1 cup shredded cheese
Any additional toppings of your choice (ie. green, red, yellow pepper, black olives, bacon, etc.)


Pardon the awful lighting, please!



Prebake crusts from the Flatbread recipe just until slightly puffed and just barely beginning to get golden around the edges. Leave the oven on for baking to continue after dressing the pizzas. Spread a thin layer of barbecue sauce over each crust. Layer toppings onto the crusts, starting with the chicken and layering the finer toppings on top. The measurements for the toppings are easily adjustable and optional, depending on what you like. Sprinkle each pizza with cheese, and bake until the cheese is melted and edges are golden brown, about 5 minutes or less. Serve with ranch dressing for dipping. Serves 2.



homemade turtles

So this is another recipe that is super easy, quick and painless. I had a box of Townhouse crackers from the holidays that I hadn't opened yet, and wanted to get rid of them. So I thought to myself, "What Would Grandma Do?" This woman has so many recipes that I will never be able to find a big enough recipe binder to hold them all, so consulting her is just the right thing to do. She had made these treats over the holidays, and although she used Ritz, because that's what the recipe calls for, I decided I'd use up these crackers instead. These "Turtles" took about 20 minutes to make, when compared to the cheesecake I was going to make instead is like lightning speed. They're made with only 4 ingredients too. Did I mention this recipe was easy? And fast? Trust me, you'll love them either way.

Homemade Turtles

1 container (12.5 ounces) caramel topping
1 cup finely chopped pecans
3 dozen round, butter-flavoured crackers (Ritz)
1 package (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

 

In a medium saucepan, combine caramel topping and pecans over medium heat. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil and cook 3 to 5 minutes longer or until mixture thickens. Remove from heat and allow to cool, about 10 minutes. Spoon about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the caramel mixture on top of each cracker (I laid out the crackers on a foil or wax paper lined baking sheet for easiness). Refrigerate the crackers while your melting the chocolate to firm the caramel. In a small saucepan, melt chocolate chips over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Now, there are two ways you can apply the chocolate. One method is, using tongs, dip the bottom of each cracker in the chocolate, leaving the top middle part of the cracker leaving the caramel and pecans peek out. The way I did it was to let the chocolate cool a bit until just warm, and fill a ziploc bag with it. Then I cut a very small corner off the bag and piped the chocolate onto the tops of the crackers, leaving the bottoms bare ( I personally like bare bottoms ;-P ). Refrigerate the cracker for about an hour or until the chocolate is firm. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Makes about 3 dozen crackers.



This poor turtle isn't going to make it!



better than sex cake

Ok, so I don't know the truth about the name given to this cake, but I will say that it's pretty darn good. It's super moist, sweet, and satisfies a chocolate craving like you wouldn't believe (which is why I made this in the first place.. intense chocolate craving). So if you're not into anything sweet, chocolate, gooey, or delicious, then this cake's not for you. So get outta here!.. kidding. Oh, and the best thing about this cake? It's easy. Yep. I said it. Easy. And just look at it. The way the milk and caramel soak into the top of the cake is ridiculous, and then the cool whip/caramel/toffee/chocolate combo on top is enough to kill me. Seriously kill me. I'll need to follow up this recipe with a savoury or salty one just to even out the sweetness. But it's so good!

Better Than Sex Cake

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar caramel ice cream topping
1 package of Skor bits, or 3 Skor bars, chopped finely
1 container Cool Whip (either size, depending on how much you want)

Bake the cake according to baking directions. After pulling the cake out of the oven, using a fork, stab several holes in the top of the cake. Pour the condensed milk over the entire cake. Follow with the caramel topping, making sure to reserve some of the caramel for the garnish. When the cake is completely cooled, spread the Cool Whip over the entire cake evenly. Sprinkle the top with the skor bits and drizzle the remaining caramel on top. Store in the refrigerator. Makes 1 9x13" cake.

oreo cheesecake cookies

Aren't you just getting tired of all the sweet, fattening, totally calorie and sugar laden treats that are a must over the holidays? .... Nah, me neither. I've been craving cheesecake lately, which isn't really a surprise since I crave all things sweet, when I ran across this recipe. Cookies go faster than anything else in this house, so it seemed like the perfect compromise. Well I think I made the right choice. These cookies, while sweet, are so freakin' delicious that it's hard to eat just one. And who can resist the classic combo of Oreos and cheesecake? I sure can't. These can be made just to eat, or as a special dessert, like a scoop of ice cream sandwiched between two cookies with a drizzle of chocolate syrup on top. Why didn't I think of that before we ate them all!?! You'll just have to try it, and tell me how amazing it was.

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

½ cup unsalted butter, softened

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup mini chocolate chips

1 cup Oreo cookie crumbs (no icing), or crushed whole Oreos (w/ icing)

Preheat oven to 375 and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and cream cheese until well combined. Add the sugar, salt and vanilla; mix well. Add flour and mix until incorporated. Stir in mini chocolate chips. Scoop the dough into 1 inch balls ( I used my TBSP measuring spoon, and scooped a heaping spoonful, then rolled it ) and roll in cookie crumbs so cookie is covered. Place onto parchment lined sheets. Flatten a little bit with a flat spatula or fork. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges are very lightly golden and slightly puffed. Cool well and store in airtight container. Makes about 20 cookies.

holiday pictures

Even though I took about 200 pictures while at home for Christmas, I still feel like I didn't take enough. I think I may have picked up my camera 3 times during those two weeks, which actually really disappoints me because I feel I could have captured so much more if I was actually paying attention. But I guess I have Easter next, right? Anyway, here are a few favourites of mine that I managed to snap despite my lack of effort over the holidays.

Karsyn, manhandling the Christmas tree.

All of the kids on their new snowmachine.

Kylynn

My cousins daughter, Ava.

A shot of the tree's star.

Loved the swirls and sparkle of this ornament.

My favourite tree ornament.

Hope everyone had a happy holiday!