Angel Icing

When I was a kid, my mom used to always make angel food cake with this fluffy whipped frosting. It has been YEARS since she made it, but she needed to whip up a cake quickly for my daughter's fifth birthday. For some reason angel food with this easy frosting came to mind.

It's so easy! It's just a 12 oz (the big one) tub of Cool Whip with a small box of Jello Pudding mixed in! 

And it even looks pretty!

As we were discussing how good this frosting STILL is, we were talking about how many different Jello Pudding mixes there are from the "dark ages" (ie the 80s) when she used to make it. One of these days I'm going to test out some of the other flavors -- Pistachio? Pumpkin? Oreo Cream? Can you even go wrong???

Lemon Meringue S'mores

We had a little a little back to school party tonight, and it was super fun! I "borrowed" an idea from Pinterest to make Lemon Meringue S'Mores by subbing lemon curd for the usual chocolate. OMG. So good! I'm usually not a fan of S'mores because, even as much as I like sweets, they are too sweet! But...I can get in to Lemon Meringue S'mores. Delicious!

Skinny Cake Batter Dip

Variations of this recipe have definitely made the Pinterest rounds! We really like it, and it is worth sharing, for sure!

I made cake batter dip for the first time quite awhile ago. My kids REALLY like Cool Whip and whipped cream, so I knew it would be a hit with them. Last time I made it, I made it with regular vanilla yogurt, and it was definitely not as impressive. This time, I made it with plain Greek yogurt, and it was awesome. The Greek yogurt gives it more of a cheesecake/cream cheese type flavor and texture. I definitely recommend sticking with the plain Greek yogurt. It is still plenty sweet!

For the 4th, I had planned on making it with red, white and blue funfetti mix, but I had a hard time finding it! I ended up finding it at Aldi at the last minute. I'm definitely going to try to remember that for the future! I know they always have red and green for Christmas too and probably other variations for other holidays too! Wouldn't they be fun for a Halloween or Valentine's Day cake batter dip for a school party???

Here is how I made it...

1 box funfetti cake mix
2 cups fat free, plain Greek yogurt
1 cup Cool Whip
Sprinkles, for garnish (optional)

Directions,

First, with a whisk, whip Cool Whip and Greek yogurt together until smooth. Then, gently stir in cake mix.

DONE!

I served mine with animal crackers, but it is awesome with grahams, Nilla wafers, a spoon...you get it!

Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

A few weeks ago, I ran across this recipe for Mint Chocolate Chip Cupcakes on Pinterest, and I thought it would be perfect for my husband's birthday. I'm normally not a fan of making cupcakes. I think they're a little bit of a pain, but these looked worth it! Oh my gosh, were TOTALLY worth it! My husband's family expects me to go all out dessert-wise when we get together, and everyone loved these! They really were very easy too, especially since I "cheated" and used a boxed cake mix. (Seriously though, is that really cheating??? Why wouldn't you use a boxed cake mix??? Who can really tell the difference???)

Here is the recipe,

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes -

1 box of Dark Chocolate Cake Mix

Mint Chocolate Chip Frosting -

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

3-4 cups powdered sugar

2 Tablespoons half and half

1/4 teaspoon pure mint extract

2 drops green food coloring

a pinch of salt (Don't omit this! It really made a difference in the flavor!)

2/3 cup mini chocolate chips

 

Instructions -

1. Prepare and bake the cake mix as instructed for cupcakes. Cool completely.

2. Beat softened butter with a hand mixer. Slowly add the powdered sugar and mix in the half and half, mint extract, green food coloring and salt. Beat for 2 or 3 minutes. If the frosting is too thin add more sugar. If the frosting is too thick add, a little more half and half. You can also add more mint extract and/or green coloring to adjust the flavor and color if necessary.

We really enjoyed this recipe, and I would definitely make it again. I think it would be a fun addition to a bake sale or a kid's party of any kind. It's not that much harder than using a prepared frosting, but it is so much more impressive!

Whipped Cream and Cream Cheese Frosting

For my second Christmas dessert, I made a red velvet ice cream cake. I really did not care for the red velvet cookie or the homemade cream cheese ice cream that made up the actual cake, but the frosting was AMAZING and surprisingly easy! It is a must have for your recipe collection! Here is how I made it,

Ingredients,

8 oz of cream cheese
1 cup of white sugar
1 tsp of vanilla
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream

To begin with, whip 8 oz of room temperature cream cheese until it is light and fluffy. Then, whip in 1 cup of sugar, 1 tsp of vanilla and a pinch of salt. In a separate chilled bowl, whip the heavy cream to very stiff peaks. Then,gently fold your cream cheese mixture and whipped cream together. The frosting is done, and you can use it to frost your favorite cake, cookies or cupcakes!

Paula Deen's Strawberry Shortcake Trifle

I typically am in charge of holiday desserts, and I had a really hard time deciding what to make for Event #1 this year. I wanted something a little lightish because that is what sounds the most appealing to my pregnant self. : ) I definitely don't think of strawberries for Christmas, but hey, they're red! Also, my kids love them, and the only way I would spring for them at $3.99/lb is for Christmas. So, I decided to create a less diabetes inducing version of the Paula Deen original. Here is my recipe,

Ingredients

• 1 frozen pound cake

For the custard:

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

For the glaze:

• 1 cup sugar
• 6 tablespoons cornstarch
• 6 tablespoons strawberry gelatin (recommended: Jell-O)
• 2 cup water
• 3 lbs of strawberries (if berries are extra large, they can be cut into quarters) 

Directions

Slice cake, using a serrated knife, horizontally into 3 equal layers.

For the custard:

Mix together cream cheese, condensed milk, and whipped topping in a bowl; set aside.(Note, I recommend whipping the cream cheese first. I didn't, and I couldn't get my mixture totally smooth.)

For the glaze:

In a medium saucepan, stir together sugar, cornstarch, and gelatin; add water. Cook stirring over medium heat until thick. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Add slowly to your strawberry mixture and stir until they are lightly coated. I used about 2/3 of the mixture. I didn't want my cake to be soggy!

For assembly:

Place 1 layer of cake in a large clear bowl. Top with a layer of glaze, followed by a layer of custard mixture. Repeat layering in this order for remaining cake, glaze and custard.Chill and serve! YUM!

See more recipes at beautyandbedlam.com.

My favorite apple crisp recipe...

I'm sure I've mentioned before how much I lovvvvve fruit crisp. This year for Thanksgiving, instead of attempting another apple pie, I decided to go with a crisp. I just really love the buttery crunch. In my opinion, it gives it an extra special kick that apple pie doesn't have. Whenever I make a crisp, I loosely follow Ina Garten's recipes. However, over the years, I've found a few tricks that I like better. Here is my apple crisp recipe,

Ingredients

• 5 pounds crisp, tart apples (I used Granny Smith here.)
• Grated zest of 2 oranges
• 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Crumb Topping

• 1 1/2 cups flouf (Half white with half whole wheat is great, if you have it.)
• 3/4 cup granulated
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup oatmeal
• 2 sticks of unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts (You may be able to use less. Just make sure all of the crumb topping is "wet" with butter.)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9x13 baking dish

Peel, core, and cut the apples into large wedges. Combine the apples with the zests, juices, sugar, and spices. Pour into the dish.

To make the topping, combine the flour, sugars, salt, oatmeal, melted butter and walnuts in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. Scatter evenly over the apples.

Bake for 1 hour until the top is brown and the apples are bubbly. Serve warm.

Heath Bar Ice Cream Cake

It was almost 80 degrees here in Kansas City today, so we're flashing back to a summer recipe I never got around to sharing. When my husband turned 35, he requested an ice cream cake. It just happened to work out that ice cream sandwiches were on sale for $1.99 a box, so I decided to use this fake-out ice cream cake recipe instead of paying a fortune for a DQ cake.

This is the recipe,

24 ice cream sandwiches
8 oz Cool Whip
1 cup of Heath candy bar chips (You really could substitute any candy, but the Heath chips are easy!)
1 bottle of chocolate syrup
1 jar of caramel syrup

Directions,

1. First Layer: 12 ice cream sandwiches, placed over bottom of an 8x13 pan
2. Second Layer: half the container of Cool Whip
3. Third Layer: half of the Heath chips, topped with half of the chocolate syrup and half of the caramel topping
4. Fourth Layer: the rest of the ice cream sandwiches
5. Fifth Layer: the rest of the Cool Whip
6. Sixth Layer: the rest of the Heath chips, topped with the rest of the caramel topping and the chocolate syrup
7. Freeze for 6-8 hours and eat as desired.

Caramelized Pineapple Sauce

This weekend I was looking for a fast and easy dessert for our family Labor Day dinner on Sunday. I decided to go with banana splits, and I used this recipe for caramelized pineapple that I saw on $10 Dinners. It was REALLY easy and delicious. I might have cooked it a little too long, as it wasn't very "saucy," but no one complained! We all agreed that it tasted like pineapple upside down cake without the cake, and it was just great for banana splits! I was actually really pleased with how nicely it pairs with chocolate syrup too, and it made for a very affordable dessert for our whole family!

Here is the recipe,

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
• One 20-ounce can crushed pineapple
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch salt

Melt the butter and sugar in a medium skillet over medium heat. Stir until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Increase the heat to high. Add the pineapple and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and coated in caramel, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and add the vanilla and salt. 

Enjoy!

Brown Sugar and Butterscotch Scones

Here is another version of my amazing scone recipe. They were so great! My husband said they were his favorite yet!

Scones:

• 4 cups flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla
• 1 cup room temperature butter, cubed
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cups milk
• 1 cup of butterscotch chips

Combine the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Cube the butter and mix in to the mixture until the butter is pea sized. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together. Stir into the flour mixture until the dough is moist, do not over mix. Knead in the butterscotch chips. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead a couple of times. Divide dough into two equal balls. Pat each ball into an 8 inch circle. (Be careful to make sure it is not too thick in the center.) Place each ball onto a parchment paper lined or greased cookie sheet. Score each circle with a knife into 6 wedges. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25-30 minutes, or until done and lightly golden. Allow the scones to cool.

Bunny Munch

This week I was challenged to find a good and inexpensive treat to take to my daughter's preschool bake sale. I had all kinds of fun ideas, but the need to wrap something up is a particular challenge for bake sales! I ran across this recipe on Pinterest, and while I'm not much of a white chocolate OR popcorn fan, I thought it fit the cheap, easy and cute criteria. I was so surprised by how good it is that I had to share the recipe!

Ingredients:

2 packages of microwave popcorn

12 oz. (1 package) of Wilton's Candy Melts

1 bag of Easter M&Ms

Easter or pastel candy sprinkles

4 oz. Pink (or other pastel)Wilton's Candy Melts

(Side note, I was really on the fence about using buttered popcorn or plain salted. I used Orville Redenbaccher's lower fat butter, and it was PERFECT. I also used Wilton's white melting chocolate, and they were very easy to use. The flavor was pretty good too!)

After I popped the popcorn, I had my little people transfer all of the popped kernels to a new bowl, which left the unpopped kernels in the bottom of the first bowl. Then, I melted the Wilton's chocolates in a bowl in the microwave on half power in 30 second intervals. (This is Ina Garten's tempering method, and I find it to work really well.) Once your chocolate is melted, stir it in to the popcorn. Once your popcorn is pretty well coated, add sprinkles and M&Ms and fold them in. I let my popcorn cool overnight on a sheet of wax paper, and we finished packing the popcorn up in cellophane bags for the bake sale this morning. We packed a dozen bags, and priced them at $2 a bag. This if for sure a great and easy winning bake sale recipe!

For more recipes see www.beautyandbedlam.com and www.lifeasmom.com.

Caramel Apple Crunch

I'm a big fan of the old Snickers Salad with Granny Smith apples, frozen Snickers bars, and Cool Whip, so when I heard someone say the other day that they love Snickers bars melted over apples, I thought, "I can SO do that!" I went out on Saturday night after dinner time to our school's auction on Saturday night, so I made a small little pan as a special treat for my girls to snack on while they watched a movie. Of course, I had to try a taste, and it.was.GOOD.

Here's how I did it,

Ingredients -

2 Granny Smith Apples
1 Snickers bar

Directions -

Chop ingredients. Gentle combine in a mixing bowl. Transfer to a baking dish. Bake in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes or until melted. Top with ice cream and caramel sauce, if you wish!

Peeps, could it be any easier???

See more recipes at beautyandbedlam.com.

Caramel Frappuccino Bombe

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Ya'll know I'm a big fan of Ina Garten, but I have to reserve her recipes for a special occasion!  Since she always calls for "good" (ie the best money can buy) ingredients, I wanted to wait and use the really good stuff! I was able to catch Haagen Dazs on sale this week for $2.99 a pint. It was perfect timing to make Ina's bombe for a Valentine's Day dessert. I switched mine up from her fruit flavors to a "caramel frappuccino" flavor I knew my whole family would love. Here are Ina's instructions (wiith my flavors!)

***

Ingredients

• 2 Pints Coffee Ice Cream, softened
• 1 1/2 Pints Dulce De Leche Ice Cream, softened
• 1 Pint Vanilla Bean Ice Cream, softened

Freeze an 8-inch bowl. When it's cold, place the coffee ice cream in the bowl and press it against the sides of the bowl. If you have a 6 1/2-inch bowl the same shape as the 8-inch bowl (such as from a set of nesting bowls), cover it with plastic wrap and press it into the ice cream to make the layer even. Freeze the ice cream for 30 minutes or until firm. Remove the 6 1/2-inch bowl.

Spread an even layer of softened dulce de leche on top of the coffee ice cream (a 4 1/2-inch nesting bowl wrapped in plastic wrap helps with this) and freeze for another 30 minutes or until firm. Remove the 4 1/2 inch bowl. Finally, spoon in enough softened vanilla bean ice cream to fill the empty space. Freeze until hard.

To unmold, dip the bowl up to the rim in warm water. Run a knife around the edge to loosen the bombe and unmold upside down onto a flat plate. You may need to run a flexible metal spatula along the edge of the bombe to release it. Freeze until ready to serve. Drizzle with caramel sauce. Serve in wedges with freshly whipped cream.

Yield: 1 1/2 quarts; 6 servings

Here is a picture of Ina's in case you were wondering what it looks like on the inside! Mine started melting too quickly for a good photo!



See other recipes at Inside BruCrew Life.  www.beautyandbedlam.com.