From Scratch

I have lots of eggs right now!

Using them up can be a challenge.

 

I've been making Angel Food Cake from scratch for years!

They are not hard to make despite what many people think.

I always have a lot of yolks left over when I make an angel food cake, so I found a recipe to use them up as well.

 

I made these two cakes a couple of weeks back.

Angle Food Cake on the left and Sponge Cake on the right.

Angle Food Cake

 

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup of all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups egg whites (about 12)

1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp vanilla extract or almond extract

1 cup sugar

 

Sift together powdered sugar and flour; repeat the sifting three times. I actually sift over a sheet of wax paper and it works very well. Then for the final sift, I sift it all into a bowl. In a large mixing bowl beat egg whites, cream of tartar and extract and 1/4 tsp salt at medium speed till soft peaks form. Gradually add granulated sugar, about 2 to 3 tblsp at a time. Continue beating till stiff peaks form. Sift about 1/4 of the flour mixture over the whites; fold in lightly by hand using a spatula. Repeat, folding in remaining flour mixture by fourths and be very gentle with the batter. Turn into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan. Bake on lowest rack in a 350 degree oven for about 40 minutes or till done. Invert cake in pan; cool completely. I actually have a stand that I rest my cake pan upside down on but a bottle will work just as well. Loosen cake from pan; remove. Serves about 12. Freezes well. Top with strawberries or fresh berries.

 

 

I used this recipe for the Sponge Cake.

I added an Orange glaze icing to the cake when done.

Mix powdered sugar, orange juice and a dash of orange extract in a bowl until it is of drizzling consistency, then pour over cake or serve over slices.

 

Both of these cakes freeze very well.

Cut them into slices and wrap slices in plastic wrap then slide into freezer bags and freeze.

 You can have cake whenever you desire!

Homemade cake at that! 



Jumbo Muffins

Last weekend I made jumbo blueberry muffins. 

I followed a basic recipe that I found on a new baking blog, sally's baking addiction.

The original recipe was for jumbo raspberry chocolate chip muffins.

I only had blueberries and thought I had chocolate chips, but ended up being out of those.

I just added more blueberries and some pecans to sub in for the chocolate chips.

These muffins were so good!

Two people could easily share a muffin over coffee or for breakfast. 

Sally's Baking Addiction is a great baking blog.

Check it out!

If you make the muffins, I hope you enjoy them!

We did! 

An Upside Down Cake of a Different Sort

In last weeks Bountiful Basket produce, we received rhubarb and strawberries.

We use to have rhubarb plants when we lived in the "hill" house in our valley twelve years ago.

I was never a fan of rhubarb until I had an abundance of it and had to use it up.

I learned to can strawberry-rhubarb jam, made this cake, muffins, and rhubarb-strawberry pie.

We ate a lot of rhubarb-strawberry goodness during those years it grew in abundance at the hill house.

I made this cake recipe eleven years ago and it became a favorite.

Long story short, I lost the recipe and had not made the cake in years!

I remembered it had been in a Taste of Home magazine, but couldn't remember which one.

I finally went to the Taste of Home website and did a search for it.

It came right up!

I made the cake last weekend and once again, it was a hit!

It is an easy cake to make and very good!

Even if you don't think that you like rhubarb, you will enjoy this cake!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

5 cups cut fresh or frozen rhubarb (1/2-inches pieces), thawed and drained if frozen
1 package (6 ounces) strawberry gelatin
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups miniature marshmallows
1 package white or yellow cake mix (regular size)
whipped topping, optional

Place rhubarb in a greased 13x9 inch baking pan. Sprinkle with the gelatin, sugar and marshmallows. *Note: I added a cup of fresh strawberries to the pan with the rhubarb. Prepare cake mix according to the package directions; pour batter over marshmallows.
Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes; invert cake onto a serving platter or large baking sheet covered with foil. Serve with whipped topping if desired. Yield: 12-16 servings.
**This recipe originally appeared in a 1998 copy of Quick Cooking

Happy eating! 

A Little Lemony Goodness

My parents made a quick trip to California recently.

They stayed with my brother and his wife for the duration of their visit.

My brother has a Meyer lemon tree and an orange tree in his yard.

He shares the bounty of those trees with us whenever he can.

Sometimes he will bring the lemons and oranges when they come to visit,

or he will send them home with someone who comes to visit.

I got a nice bag full of lemons and oranges.

We have been eating the oranges for breakfast and snacks and they are so good! 

The lemons have been waiting for me to "do something" with them.

Like make lemon pie, which is my husbands favorite!

So on Sunday, I  got all artsy-fartsy in the kitchen and made Meyer Lemon Pie Sliders!

Oh Yes!

They are easy to make and so, so good! 

 (Just a side note: I use farm fresh eggs and that is why the filling is a bright yellow color. The yolks in farm fresh eggs are darker yellow to orange in color and make the filling a more vibrant color)

I started by making a traditional pie crust recipe.

You can use any recipe you so desire or you could buy some little pre-made mini crusts or you can use the recipe below.

Single Pie Crust Recipe

1 1/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/3 cup shortening

3 to 5 Tblsp very cold water

Add flour, salt and shortening to a bowl. Using a fork or a pastry blender, mix shortening into flour mixture until it resembles small peas.

Add water, one tablespoon at a time, just until dough comes together in a soft ball. 

Turn the dough out on a floured board or counter-top.

Roll out until you have a 9 to 10 inch circle.

Cut large circles out of the large circle using a large glass or in my case, I used a large round plastic container to cut with. You will end up with 6 to 9 smaller circles. (I had to roll my dough out twice to get 9.)

Take the smaller circles and place inside a large muffin tin (the kind you use to make giant muffins with)

Press into the tin, prick holes in the bottom and up the sides.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes or until the mini crusts are light golden in color.

Remove to a rack to cool.

For the filling you can make your own or buy pre-made filling. 

Meyer Lemon Pie Filling

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup corn starch

1 1/2 cups cold water

3 egg yolks, slightly beaten

grated peel of 1 lemon (use a micro-plain to do this)

1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice (2 lemons squeezed well should yield this or a bit more. If you can't find Meyer lemons, just use regular lemons.)

1 Tblsp butter

In a medium saucepan combine sugar and corn starch. Stir in water until smooth. Stir in egg yolks. Turn on burner to medium/low heat. (I use a heat between 5 and 6 on my stove)

Stirring constantly, bring to boil over medium/low heat; when mixture comes to a gentle boil, stir and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the lemon peel, lemon juice and butter. Spoon hot filling into the cooled mini pie shells. 

Meringue topping

eggs whites (left over from separating the yolks )

1/3 cup sugar.

In a bowl beat the egg whites until foamy, slowly add sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. 

Top the mini pies with meringue and seal to the edge. Make little mini peaks in the meringue to make them look "fancy". 

Place all of the mini pies on a baking sheet. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until meringue is lightly toasted.

Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Store left over mini pie sliders in the fridge on a plate covered with plastic wrap. You can place a toothpick in the middle of the pies to help keep the plastic wrap from sticking to the meringue. 

Eat!

And most of all...

Enjoy! 

The Cake and 63

I made this cake last weekend.

I had seen it on Pinterest and thought it would be fun to try out.

We were supposed to have company last weekend, but plans changed.

I made the cake anyway.

I used a lemon cake mix, lemon filling and white frosting.

It was fun to make.

It's been fun to eat.

We like to call it the "toothache" cake!

 

 

I had planned to take the cake to town on Sunday to share with my parents who were celebrating their 63rd wedding anniversary!

But the cake is not one that will travel well!

So the cake stayed home and I picked up a pie to share with them instead.

We had a wonderful dinner with them on Sunday.

My husband grilled some amazing ribs, which happen to be my dads favorite meal.

The wine flowed freely. Some really good wine too!

I got a bit carried away during a conversation and broke a wine glass. Oops and Ouch!  

 

Dad picked up an orchid and some hand dipped chocolates to give to mom for their anniversary.

 When he went in to pick out the candy, he told the gal that he thought 63 pieces might be a bit much.

She asked why he would need so many pieces as that was a lot of candy.

He said, well it's also a lot of years to be married too!

Too cute!



On the Rise

Sometimes I get on a roll and bake things like this!

These are baked donuts and they were very good!

I found the recipe on Pinterest...here

I used my bread machine and it worked out great!

We liked the cinnamon topping better than the glazed.

I also like to make homemade french bread.

I had not made it for awhile due to the fact that I had removed gluten from my diet.

After a long conversation with my doctor this past summer, I slowly added gluten back into my diet and removed most of the dairy. 

I must say that I really missed bread! Good homemade bread!

I have used a bread machine recipe for years and it turns out perfect every time.

The machine does all of the kneading and then I shape by hand, let it rise and bake. 

Fresh bread hot from the oven....Yum! 

Apple Goodness

I'm convinced I could become an apple pie junkie!

After much debate (in my mind), I have come to the conclusion that apple pie is my favorite pie.

 

Several weeks ago we had to run out to my parents place to do a bit of winterizing.

Mom and I went out to pick some apples off their tree.

They didnt' have a bumper crop this year, but there were a few nice size apples on the tree.

Since I'm tall, I was able to reach the apples that mom couldn't get to.

 

The following day, I made a pie with apples that I already had on hand and I added a few of the freshly picked apples as well.

 

I love making pie!

There is something very comforting about the entire process!

And the eating part...yeah well, I've got that part down pretty well too!

Yep, I LOVE apple pie!

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I tweaked an old recipe and made these fall favorites a couple of weekends back.

Snickerdoodles have long been one of my favorite cookies.

These pumpkin snickerdoodles went perfect with a cup of hot cider.

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

3 3/4 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cream of tarter

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/3 cup canned pumpkin

1 tsp vanilla

6 Tblsp sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

freshly grated nutmeg

Blend together flour, soda, cream of tarter and salt in a medium bowl. In a mixing bowl, beat butter for 30 seconds; add 2 cups sugar and beat until fluffy. Add eggs, pumpkin and vanilla; beat well. Add dry ingredients to beaten mixture, beating until well combined. Form dough into 1 inch balls; roll in a mixture of 6 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Place on cookie sheet; flatten slightly with the bottom of a glass  dipped in sugar mixture. Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes or until cookies are set and light golden in color. Makes about 5 dozen cookies.

Enjoy with hot cider or hot chocolate! 

Are You Ready?

After a weekend of shopping and baking, I'm still not ready for Christmas! There are still gifts left to purchase and goodies to be delivered to friends! Will it ever get done!? Don't even mention Holiday cards.....we are getting them, but I doubt I'll be sending any! Maybe everyone will get a New Year's card......LOL! Are you all ready for Christmas or are you still scurrying around to get last minute stuff done?

Bitten by the Baking Bug

I was bitten by the baking bug this past week! I made homemade donuts, a cake with homemade frosting and cookies all in one day. The donuts below are Cinnamon-nutmeg cake donut. As they came out of the cooking oil, I dropped them in a bag of Cinnamon sugar. Yummy, Yummy goodness!The frosting is a butter cream, an easy recipe that I have used for years. It is so good, you don't even need anything to spread it on!The frosting covered Hayman's favorite cherry-chip cake! The sugar cookies are an old time favorite in our house. The recipe came from my mom and again, I have been making them for over twenty years now!

We had sweet treats to enjoy all week. It was a busy week indeed and coming home to some extra goodies was nice.

Lovely Lemons!

My brother and his family came to visit over Memorial Day weekend. We look forward to his visits, not only because we get to see him and his family, but also because he brings these wonderful lemons to us. He has this amazing lemon tree in his backyard in California. I call it amazing because it produces some of the biggest lemons I have ever seen! I can't even begin to describe how wonderful these lemons are...nothing like what you get in the store at all! Hayman has a love for Lemon Meringue pie, so some of the beauties above became these below...

My dad and brother also love Lemon Meringue pie. My mom makes the best lemon pies ever and I learned from the best! I gave one of the pies above to Hayman's boss, Mr. B. and we ate the other pie.

Lemon Meringue Pie

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup corn starch

1 1/2 cups cold water

3 egg yolks, slightly beaten

grated peel of one lemon

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 Tblsp. butter

1 baked 9 inch pie crust

3 egg whites

1/3 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In medium saucepan combine 1 cup sugar and corn starch. Stir in water until smooth. Stir in egg yolks. Stirring constantly, bring to boil over medium heat; boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Stir in lemon peel, juice and butter. Spoon hot filling into pie crust. In a small mixing bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until foamy. Gradually beat in remaining 1/3 cup sugar; continue beating until stiff peaks form. Spread meringue evenly over hot filling, sealing to edges of crust. Bake 10 minutes in preheated oven or until golden. Cool on wire rack, refrigerate. Makes one yummy pie! Enjoy!