Tartlets

I previously posted this recipe but I wanted to make finger food for a party, and since I enjoy this recipe SO much I played around and instead of using a large tart pan I used a mini cupcake pan, they turned out to be a hit. I will say it was a little time consuming to make them all but worth it!

I put the filling into a large ziploc bag and just cut off the tip, it made it very easy to fill the little tart crusts.

The sweet end... These would be great for a baby or bridal shower, so yummy!

Lemon Bundt Cake

I have to apologize for the extreme lack of posts, but their are two very good reason for my absence. 1, I just signed my two year old up for swim lessons and do not want to be the 'chubby' mom in the pool every day! 2, I started training for a half marathon that I will be running in august, and cupcakes and rice pudding are not a runners diet (although I wish it was!)

Tonight me and my friend Lacie hosted a Scentsy party and I had to make a few goodies for it. I got this recipe from a family friend and I LOVE it! Super easy, it is what some people would call cheating, but its so good who really cares!

This picture is awful, but you can't judge a dessert from its picture!!

1 box lemon cake

1 package lemon pudding

1 cup water

4 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

Combine all ingredients and mix until smooth. Pour into a bundt pan, bake at 350 degrees for 50min or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

For Glaze:

4 Tbls. frozen concentrated lemonade

1/4 cup water

2 Tbls melted butter

2-2 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Combine all ingredients adding powdered sugar to desired consistency. While cake is still warm, and in the pan poke holes all over and pour half of the glaze into holes. Let cool ten minutes then turn out cake onto plate. Poke holes all over the top and pour remaining glaze.

More Aprons...

I love aprons if you haven't noticed and yet again their is another giveaway! This time it is an apron from Boojiboo! So cute! Check them out and enter at http://stepmomextraordinaire.blogspot.com

Aprons

I LOVE Good Things Utah!! I also love blogging and cooking, and a miracle happened and all those things came together! PheMOMenon was featured on GTU, and her along with Bloom-n-Blush are giving away an apron! You can check both of them out at http://phemomenon.blogspot.com and http://bloomnblush.com

Citrus Meltaways

The first time I made these light little cookies was for a baby shower I hosted and they were a hit. I got the original recipe online from Martha Stewart and it calls for limes. But I have made MANY variations from her recipe. This time I used oranges, I have also used grapefruit and lemons!! I enjoy making them cause they are very simple and a fun twist on a cookie.

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup powdered sugar

zest of two limes

2 Tbls. lime juice

1 Tbls. vanilla

1 3/4 cup + 2 Tbls sifted flour

2 Tbls. corn starch

1/4 tsp. salt

Beat butter and 1/3 cup of the powdered sugar till pale and fluffy. Add lime juice, lime zest and vanilla beat till blended. On low speed at flour, corn starch, and salt. Divide batter in half and roll into 1 1/4 inch logs on parchment paper. Refrigerate for at least one hour. Cut into 1/4 inch rounds and bake at 350 degrees for 12-13 minutes. While still warm toss in remaining powdered sugar!

Pan biscuits

I am so sad to admit it, but I am horrible at making breads! My best friend always makes fun of me cause I cannot even get Rhodes rolls to turn out perfect. It is something with the whole yeast, rise, and wait part that goes horribly wrong!! I came across this recipe on Cafe Johnsonia and figured since there was no yeast involved I will give it a try.

1/3 cup butter

2 1/4 cups flour

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 Tbls. fresh chopped herbs

1 Tbls. sugar

1/2 tsp. salt

3 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put butter into a 9" square pan, melt in heated oven, remove and set aside. Combine all dry ingredients (cheese included) create a well in the middle and add milk. Stir till just moistened, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead ten times. Roll into a 12"by 4" rectangle and cut into 1" strips to make 12 rolls. Dip into butter and arrange in pan two across and six down. Bake 20-25min.

I apologize for not having a picture of he finished product but my son got into them before I could. I did do a few things different from the recipe, but only cause I did not have all the ingredients on hand. Instead of parmesan cheese I used shredded cheddar. I also find it very hard to always keep fresh herbs on hand. Around Thanksgiving I came across freeze dried herbs that you store in your fridge and have been using those ever since, but only use half of what the recipe calls for.

My Fave

One of my all time favorite desserts is rice pudding!! I could eat it every day, my brand of choice has always been kozy shack cause it has that homemade taste. So instead of battling the incredible snow storm today I made my own for the first time! I looked over probably twenty different recipes and read the reviews for all of them, and after all that research I decided I didn't need a recipe I'll just do it myself!! So of course it did not turn out perfect, but it tasted AMAZING, almost like kozy shack :) The problem I ran into was that it did not thicken up as much as I would have liked. So the recipe I'm giving is the changed one, the one I will use when I make it again:

3/4 cups Basmati rice

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 1/2 cups water

3 1/2 cups half and half

1/2 cup carnation cream

1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg (beaten)

1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Using a heavy bottom sauce pan boil rice, salt, and water. Once it reaches a boil reduce heat, cover and simmer on low for 8-9 minutes or until most of the water has been absorbed. Then slowly stir in the half and half, and sugar. Once it reaches a boil again reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered for 25 minutes stirring occasionally ensuring your rice is not sticking to the pan. Slowly stir in beaten egg and cook for 2 more minutes (At this point you could also add in any other flavorings or ingredients; raisins, nuts, coconut, cinnamon, extracts. Although if you would like to add fruit I would do that very last) Remove from heat and add vanilla, then add carnation cream to desired consistency. Remember as it cools it will thicken so you can always add more cream later. Refrigerate with plastic wrap pressed onto the top of the pudding so it does not form a skin. SO yummy!

More giveaways!

I have a friend who does all sorts of fun giveaways on her blog. Right now she is giving away a face mask product from Pure Naturals, you can check her out and enter at stepmomextraordinaire.blogspot.com! She is also doing a few other great giveaways :)

Relax

Sweet life in the Valley is doing another great giveaway this time it is a $100 gift card to Primrose Retreat in Spanish Fork. You can check her out at sweetlifeinthevalley.com

Saturdays

Every Saturday morning I make breakfast with the help of my two year old son Kaluna. Normally we just use what we can of the leftover ingredients from the weeks meals, like the veggies, cheeses, and meats. But this week I had made Macaroni n' cheese and had some left over ricotta cheese so I whipped up this! Once again I apologize, I don't have measurements for this quick creation but its very simple.

ricotta cheese, cream cheese, and powdered sugar was all I used to make this yummy breakfast. I didn't have very much cream cheese left but if you make this I would use equal parts of both cheeses then just add powdered sugar to taste, I probably used 3Tbls. Refrigerate it while you make your french toast. I ALWAYS make my french toast the same, I use cream instead of milk, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice :)

Sweet give away

Designs by Vanessa is giving away these cute magnets and hair accessories by Just add Charm

designsbyvanessa.blogspot.com

Fruit Tart

Since spring is in the air I wanted to make a light and fruity dessert. I got this recipe from my aunts neighbor, now for those of you who have gotten recipes from me before you know I NEVER follow them and I never have exact measurements! I think of recipes as more of guide lines. But this one was SO good I only changed a few things. This is a great recipe because you can do so many different things with it....

For the crust you will need a 10" tart pan, preferably with a removable bottom. Or you can use several mini tart pans:

3/4 cup unsalted butter (softened)

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups flour

Mix all ingredients to make a dough and press into tart pan. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown, about 10-15 min. Now if your in a real hurry, or just want less work you can buy the pre-made sugar cookie dough in the plastic tubes and just follow the baking time as directed.

For the filling:
8oz. cream cheese
1 1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla till smooth. In separate bowl beat heavy whipping cream until stiff. Fold in with cream cheese mixture, and spoon into tart shell (make sure you tart shell is completely cooled) Refrigerate for at least two hours.

Now for the creative part!! You can do any fruit combination that strikes your fancy. I originally wanted to do peaches with blackberries, but peaches are not really in season. I got this fruit combination idea from a fruit salad my aunt made. Now you can used canned fruit if you don't want to take the time to wash and slice everything, but since canned fruit tends to be pretty sweet I would cut back on the amount of powdered sugar you put in your filling!! In all honesty you can throw your fruit on top in no order and it will still taste the same. Let me know if any of you get around to trying this recipe out!!