Showing posts with label guest post. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guest post. Show all posts

Raspberry Lemon Yogurt Popsicles


This this summer is different from most summers for our family. I am working part time so I only have 2 says a week to bake & do other leisure day things. It's hard to believe we are already into week two of summer vacation!! 

The kids love to help try new things in the kitchen. So, when I was out the other day, I saw these Popsicle molds at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. I remembered that we always talked about wanting to try different types of Popsicles. So, I picked them up and searched for a recipe. We tried these... 


Raspberry Lemon Yogurt Popsicles aka Ice Lollies: 

¼ cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoons (approx. 1 lemon) lemon zest
½ cup (approx. 2 lemons) fresh lemon juice
1 ½ cups plain yogurt
6 ounces fresh raspberries

Divide the raspberries between ice pop molds. Cut the raspberries in half if needed. Set aside while you combine the lemon zest and sugar by smooshing it together with a fork. Add the lemon juice and yogurt - stir until combined and pour into the molds with the raspberries. Last but not least put the stick/lids on and freeze for at least 4 hours, possibly longer depending on your freezer.





My kids loved them. They are very lemony...sour yet sweet from the raspberries. My oldest loved how creamy they are because of the yogurt. The kids want to try them with blackberries, blueberries and strawberries next. 

We can't wait! :-) - Janet 

 recipe adapted from www.theslowroasteditalian.com

If you liked this try these Mango Ice Lollies

And we're back!!

I need to say a big Thank You to Janet, Missie, and Isaiah for being guest posts on my blog while I was away!!

If you missed it Janet shared Chocolate Glazed BakedDoughnuts


Missie provided a recipe for Goulash from The Poision Kitchen and a book review of the Daughter of Smoke and Bones series by Laini Taylor.


 11 year-old Isaiah made a special treat, Chocolate CoveredKey Lime Pie on a stick!


While in Scotland I found Dark Chocolate Tunnock’s Tea Cakes and we went to Lochness and had a good time visiting with family.


We got back a couple days ago and made some fun Easter crafts from Sainsbury’s.



I also have a recipe for leftover Easter chocolate so, don’t eat all those Easter eggs!!


notes: I bought the Tunnock’s Tea Cakes myself but the Easter crafts were provided by Sainsbury’s opinions are my own. 

Baking with Isaiah! Chocolate Dipped Key Lime Pie on a Stick

Here in Minnesota there has been too much snow and it has been too cold for too long, so I decided to bring back some memories of warm times.  

When I was 7 I spent the summer with my dad it Key West Florida. With the sandy beaches and calm waters this is the perfect place to remember when it is too cold.

The best dessert I had when I visited Key West was key lime pie. Once I had chocolate dipped key lime pie I loved it.

Adding chocolate makes it 10 times better. The first time I tried chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick is when we stopped along the way to Key West at a gas station that sold it.

Ever since that I have been waiting for an excuse to make chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick. ~ Isaiah

Chocolate dipped key lime pie on a stick

Crust:
1 ½ cups graham crackers or crumbs
1/3  cup sugar
6 Tbsp butter, melted
½ tsp ground cinnamon

Filling:
1(14oz) can sweetened condensed milk
3 egg yolks
½ cup KEY lime juice
 ¾ cup sour cream
2 Tbsp KEY lime juice
3 Tbsp sugar
9-14 Popsicle sticks


The first thing you do is crush your graham crackers. You can also use the pre-crushed graham cracker crumbs. I used my food processor to crush my graham crackers but you don’t have to. You should get the crumbs fairly fine.


Now in a large bowl combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, cinnamon, and butter.


Next with the back of the measuring cup or you fingers gently press the crust into the pie pan and bake at 375F degrees for 7 min.


Now mix together sweetened condensed milk, egg yolks, and key lime juice. Pour filling in to pie crust and chill in fridge for 10 min.


In a smaller bowl mix together sour cream, key lime juice, and sugar.


Pour and spread the second mixture over the first mixture and bake at 350F for 30 min. Then let cool and freeze until rock hard. (This is very important.)


Cut small slits every 2-3 inches and insert the Popsicle sticks in them. Place back in the freezer.


Cut the pie into slices and spoon melted chocolate on then then flip over and repeat. Make sure the chocolate goes over the sides and covers to whole thing, let chocolate harden.

 Enjoy!

note from Lisa: First off I want to say a big thank you to Isaiah for sharing these amazing and delicious looking Chocolate Dipped Key Lime Pie on a stick on my blog! Isaiah happens to be a friend of my sister's! When I asked her if she knew anyone who would want to guest post on my blog she sent me Isaiah's name. He writes the blog Baking Adventures of a Ten-Year-Old where he shares his adventures learning to bake and cook. He was recently featured in his city's newspaper The St. Cloud Times Newspaper and he has his own YouTube Channel

Poison Kitchen


There are those places in books that you long to go, but sadly they live in the author’s mind and not in the real world. In the series, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor is such a place. Laini has created Poison Kitchen with such vivid detail that I really thought the restaurant had to be real. 
Here is an excerpt from the book:

Down by the Devil’s Stream, Poison Kitchen was a place rarely stumbled upon by chance; you had to know it was there, and duck under an unmarked stone arch into a walled graveyard, beyond which glowed the lamp-lit windowpanes of the cafe.
Unfortunately, tourists no longer had to rely on chance to discover the place; the latest edition of the Lonely Planet guide had outed it to the world—
The church once attached to this medieval priory burned down some three hundred years ago, but the monks’ quarters remain, and have been converted to the strangest cafe you’ll find anywhere, crowded with classical statues all sporting the owner’s collection of WWI gas masks. Legend has it that back in the Middle Ages, the cook lost his mind and murdered the whole priory with a poisoned vat of goulash, hence the cafe’s ghoulish name and signature dish: goulash, of course. Sit on a velvet sofa and prop your feet up on a coffin. The skulls behind……the bar may or may not belong to the murdered monks…. 
—and for the past half year backpackers had been poking their heads through the arch, looking for some morbid Prague to write postcards about.
This evening, though, the girls found it quiet. In the corner a foreign couple was taking pictures of their children wearing gas masks, and a few men hunched at the bar, but most of the tables—coffins, flanked by low velvet settees—were unoccupied. Roman statues were everywhere, life-size gods and……nymphs with missing arms and wings, and in the middle of the room stood a copy of the huge equestrian Marcus Aurelius from Capitoline Hill.
“Oh, good, Pestilence is free,” said Karou, heading toward the sculpture. Massive emperor and horse both wore gas masks, like every other statue in the place, and it had always put Karou in mind of the first horseman of the Apocalypse, Pestilence, sowing plague with one outstretched arm. The girls’ preferred table was in its shadow, having the benefit of both privacy and a view of the bar—…

Two of the main characters, Karou and Zuzana, frequent Poison Kitchen to eat their world famous goulash! The traditional Czech goulash is a soup or stew of meat, noodles, and vegetables seasoned with paprika and other spices. It originally is from the Hungarian culture.

As a child I grew up eating a goulash made by my step-father that was a bit more modern and could be made with ingredients already in our kitchen. He wasn’t the best cook, but the goulash did taste like home! In honor of my love for Poison Kitchen and the third book in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series release, Dreams of Gods and Monsters on April 8th, I decided to share my goulash recipe! - Missie



Ingredients
  • 1 lb (500g) ground/mince beef
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 large green pepper, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 28 ounces (800g) petite diced tomatoes
  • 15 ounces (425g) tomato sauce
  • 1 lb (500g) elbow macaroni
  • 1 cup Monterey jack cheese, shredded 

Instructions
  1. Brown ground beef, onion and pepper.
  2. Season with garlic salt, paprika and pepper.
  3. Add tomatoes and tomato sauce.
  4. Simmer 10 minutes while macaroni is cooking.
  5. Boil macaroni al dente, drain, rinse.
  6. Return macaroni to pot, add beef mixture and stir in cheese until melted.
  7. Serve in bowls (makes great leftovers, the ingredients really meld together!)

note from Lisa: Thank you Missie for making this yummy Goulash and sharing it on my site! Missie and I have been friends since university! Even though it's been years since I last saw her, I know that the next time I see her it will be like I saw her yesterday. We always had the same taste in books, TV shows, movies etc... so we would have plenty to talk about! For more posts like this check out Missie's site: A Flurry of Ponderings!

Mickey Mouse Birthday Cake!! {guest post}

My next cake was for my youngest son's 2nd birthday.  I wanted to make a rainbow cake as I really wanted to surprise our guests by doing the big reveal as the cake was cut, but my husband said it was "a bit excessive" for a two year old (spoilsport!).  So it was back to the drawing board for me.  My son is a chocolate cake lover, so I thought I'd start with that. But I didn't have a clue how to decorate it.

For the cake, I returned to Jo Wheatley's A Passion for Baking as I have always found her recipes reliable. The Chocolate Birthday Cake recipe I have made several times, so knew it would be the perfect moist chocolate cake. Instead of the ganache, I filled and covered it with chocolate buttercream, as I felt this would be more suitable for the occasion. I then completely covered it in Sainsbury's soft chocolate flavour icing, which comes ready to roll (cheat, I know...but I'm still getting to grips with making icing from scratch!).

I was planning to finish the decoration by just cutting some star shapes from different coloured ready-to-roll icing, when my husband reminded me about the small Mickey Mouse cookie cutter I'd recently purchased and was yet to use. As Mickey Mouse is another of my sons favourites, this seemed like the perfect addition.  The stars and Mickey shapes were easily attached to the cake just by painting a little water on the back and gently pushing them on to the cake.

The end result was a simply but effectively decorated moist chocolate cake...and something I've already been asked to make for another birthday!

Before I end this chapter of my baking journey, I must admit to a slight mistake!  The decorated cake was actually the second one I made as I over-baked the first one!  To be fair, it would still have been delicious if it was just for tea, but I wanted the birthday cake to be perfect. It did not go to waste though!  Oh no, it became the most perfect Black Forest Trifle!

To make the trifle, I sliced each sponge in half horizontally and sandwiched them back together with a good quantity of Red Cherry Conserve (I used Sainsbury's Taste the Difference). I then cut each sandwich into large chunks and placed a layer of these into a trifle bowl. Next I drained a tin of cherries, reserving the syrup.  I mixed some of the syrup with a couple of tablespoons of brandy and drizzled half of this over the sponge in the bowl.  Next I added the cherries and then another layer of the sponge, finishing by drizzling the remaining brandy/syrup mix over.  This will sit quite happily in the fridge for a good few hours or overnight.

Before serving, whisk some double cream until thick and layer this over the sponge base.  Finish with a generous grating of dark chocolate.  The perfect way to salvage a chocolate cake.

Sadly, I didn't get a picture of the trifle. But I hope you like the cake!

~ Sharon 


notes: You've seen Sharon's cakes on here before! Check them out here & here

The Best of Bakeries in the Heart of London {guest post}

The city of London has a vibrant mosaic of cultures. Thanks to the esta propelled agility in travel laws today, people bring with them a plethora of fresh and innovative ideas and tastes for us to savor. When it comes to desserts, cakes are a no match. The city itself stands out in terms of the quality and uniqueness of the bakeries it has. Preparing a concise list of the best of the all that the city boasts of is indeed a daunting task. Here are the names which people adore for more than a single reason:

Wild and Wood, Bloomsburry: For those who seek a small break from their daily chores, the ambiance here is perfect. With wood carvings and antique decoration items the food is always ready to complement. It is renowned for its cronut across the country which is usually coupled with a coffee. The impeccable blend of butter and lemon-cream makes the cronut a symbol for the bakery. The presentation is beautiful and in unison with the antiques, done on a wooden slate.

Cocomaya, Paddington: This place is a delight for art lovers. The innovative minds behind the bakery food are always up for experiments and unique approaches to be tried. They have been aptly titled the Gucci of bakeries and every single food item on offer is going to make one's taste buds go restless. Chocolates are their forte and the finest cocoa is their secret ingredient, hence the name. The Silicon Lemon from them is an all time people's favorite.

E5 Bakerhouse: If there is a place which has the best sourdough on planet earth, it's this. They preserve the lineage in the competitive world today; preparing it from local ingredients and organic means, which are considered at the epitome of good hygiene, it is amongst the myriad of items on the menu. They have courses to pass on their secret recipe to the inquisitive. Being situated near to the fields, it is the perfect drop-point for the picnic bounds one to grab a loaf and the famous coffee to complement it.

Patisserie Belle Epoque: Their secret behind the perfect pastries remains undisclosed in the oven today. Adjectives like 'mouth-watering', 'divine' and 'mystical' adorn this bakery as testimonials from returning customers who have fallen in love with the pastries from this place. Cafe au lait along with a slice of tart are more than sufficient for a leisurely hour spent praising the place. Since its inception in 2002, the traditional French bread has never dropped off the popularity charts.

Ayers the bakers: This place defines variety when it comes to the best of breads in particular. The Breakfast platter is heavily sought throughout the week. If you are a cronut fan and running low on money, this is the place to be and relish the best on offer. The flaky pastry layers and the custard blends in the cronut is their signature.

Since the options are endless and the city is growing as a cultural pot, the establishment of
ESTA, further aids the tourists to travel and savor these delights. Visiting one would make you come back to the place is what the natives and tourists heartily opine.

Author's Bio: 
Amy Lawson has been writing contents on the web professionally since 2005. She has workedas a tech and business marketing copy writer on various topics. Before she is got into writing, she lectured as a professor on various business topics. She is currently researching on ESTA.

NY Crumb Cake!! {guest post}


I've always loved cake! Baking it. Eating it. Discussing it. I like to try new recipes but until recently haven't been that adventurous; inspired by Lisa and all things sweet I thought I'd like to bake a cake a little different to anything I have before.

A few months ago I had the pleasure of visiting Outsider Tart with Lisa (it was her birthday treat!) What an amazing experience - if you haven't been you really should!! There were lots of sweet treats to tempt us and I chose NY crumb cake. It looked amazing and I'd never heard of, let alone tried crumb cake. It was delicious. a sweet, dense sponge with a cinnamon "crumb" topping and icing. Having thoroughly enjoyed the experience I bought the book Baked in America and was thrilled to discover the recipe for NY crumb cake.

It is different to anything I've baked before but the recipe was easy to follow and I followed it to the letter. The only difference being the cake tin. I used a round tin which made a deeper cake which meant it took longer to bake than I expected but the extra wait was worth it! Once baked and cooled I made a simple icing using sugar, milk and vanilla (as recommended in the recipe) and this added the finishing touch. I was extremely pleased with the outcome and will be baking the cake again.

 ~ Lauren

Check out our visit to Outsider Tart!!

Crumb Cake Revisited:
check out the post here!

Spider-Man Birthday Cake!! {guest post}


For years, my sister and I have complained about the bland birthday cakes we've been overcharged for in the supermarkets. So this year, I thought I'd make a big change!

I'd like to think of myself as a competent cook, inspired by my big sister (sadly my mum has never enjoyed cooking, so taught me very little). But baking was something I attempted...well...not that often!  So I set myself a challenge. This year, I was going to make my son's birthday cake!

Okay, so where do you start?  I've been able to turn out a fairly decent cake before, but never really decorated one. But for a birthday cake, it needed to be just right. And so I opened A Passion for Baking by Jo Wheatley. Her vanilla birthday cake is just divine!

My son is really in to Spider-Man, so the design was simple...something even I should be able to manage!  I did cheat by ordering a spider-shaped cookie cutter, but other than that, it was an amazing journey of discovery in to what a complete amateur could do! Okay, it wasn't perfect, but my confidence was boosted when I realized how much I could achieve. So this is the result of my first ever attempt at covering a cake in sugar-paste and piping icing. I would like to think it's not a bad first attempt!

So, confidence boosted, I'm already planning my next cake....


~ Sharon

notes: A Passion for Baking by Jo Wheatley available at Sainsbury's and Amazon


Biscuits for Mum!! {Guest Post}

Mother's Day is only a week away! It's another holiday where everyone is told to buy their mother this or that, but sometimes making a gift is even more special. Holly Arnold, recipe editor @ goodtoknow has contacted me again to share with you her fun and flavourful biscuits she's created for Mother's Day!! 

Biscuits are a perfect way to show your mother you care! Just make sure you or someone else is willing to clean up the mess in the kitchen after you're done! Down below are some amazing ideas for different flavours, shapes, and decorations! 

Before you go... if you have a family recipe that has been passed down to you, from your mother and you think it's amazing- why not send goodtoknow Recipes your mum's best dish & win!! You have until 12th of March to send it in!! Can't wait to see all the entries!! ~Lisa 


Biscuits for Mum 
By Holly Arnold, Recipes Editor, www.goodtoknow.co.uk

I never fully appreciated just how versatile biscuits are until we spent a day creating  new Mother's Day biscuits for goodtoknow.

A simple, vanilla biscuit recipe can be decorated, shaped and flavoured in so many different ways - the only thing holding you back is your imagination!

Flavours
A basic biscuit dough (flour, egg, butter and sugar) can withstand extra flavours. Chunks of chocolate, fudge, even popcorn (trust me, it works!) add a extra burst of flavour to the mixture. Try hiding a raspberry inside some cookie dough for a delicious hidden centre.

Shapes
We asked ourselves what do you give your mum on Mother's Day that would be much better as a biscuit - and voila, the Mother's Day biscuit card was born! If you give your biscuit dough about 20 mins in the fridge to cool, it can be kneaded and shaped into almost any creation you can think of.

Decorations
We have our good friends at Dr Oetker and Lakeland to thank here! Sprinkles, food gels and gold shimmer spray, there is a product to turn every crazy idea you have into a reality. Our flower pot plants were dreamt up when we saw these incredible muffin pots.


So why got give a go yourself? You'll be surprised how much fun you can have with plain old biscuits!! See all 17 of our new Mother's Daybiscuit creations.

note: Happy Mother's Day!! Treat your mom to something nice on Sunday ... like biscuits! ;0) 

Weird and Wonderful Pancake Toppings!! {Guest Post}

Pancake Day is a few short days away. It is one of those days that always seems to creep up on me. I see all the pancake ingredients and pans for sale by the end of January and tell myself not to forget. I usually end up forgetting. Last year I ended up buying a few pre-packaged pancakes from M & S!! Which is silly as I usually have all the pancake stuff in the cupboard! Sometimes it comes down to time. 

Other people I know are all over Pancake Day and prepped and ready to go days in advance! If you are one of these people and looking for something fun and new to add to your pancakes Holly Arnold, Editor of Good to Know Recipes has a few ideas on how to top your pancakes!!

Once you've topped your pancakes you can send a picture on over to goodtoknow recipes and enter to win a prize! Full details here! Enjoy! ~ Lisa


Weird and Wonderful Pancake Toppings

By Holly Arnold, Recipes Editor, www.goodtoknow.co.uk

Pancake Day is coming and it’s time to talk toppings. While traditional lemon and sugar is always a winner, the simplicity of pancakes lends them to many interesting topping combinations and I've found that some obscure mixtures really do work together.

You've probably all heard of baking ham in Coca-Cola, but a really delicious idea is to add a fizzy drink to your pancake batter. Cream soda, Fanta and Dr Pepper all work really well and they taste super delicious when you serve them with ice-cream for a double sugar hit.

If you don’t like things too sweet, how about introducing a touch of spice? Chilli and chocolate is a tried and tested combination, which also translates well to pancakes. Toss a little cocoa powder in the batter with some chopped chilli or chilli powder and see who can handle the heat!
My next suggestion may seem bananas but it really does work! The Americans love to combine bacon with maple syrup, but if you add slices of banana to that duo, it tastes even more sensational.


As well as getting creative with toppings, there’s plenty of scope to get creative with decoration as well. I made this burger pancake in an instant – sandwiching two chocolate chip cookies between the pancakes.

Before you can start on your crazy combos, make sure you have a good pancake recipe - the rest is then up to you. Happy flipping!

notes from me: If you are in need of a pancake recipe please follow the link above! And if you're interested my silly post on M & S pre-packaged pancakes! Thank you Holly for the lovely guest post!! Hope to have you again sometime!! 

update: picked myself up a copy of the current mag! Inside there is an article titled "Stacks of Pancakes"! Plus plenty of more fun and creative ways to spruce up your pancakes here!!! Also if you happen to be an iPhone/iPad user you can take cake recipes with you every where! Check out their goodtoknow Cake Corner app!! 

Golden Snitch Brownie Bites!! {Happy Birthday Harry!}


I made brownies from a box. But you could make your own; delicious brownie recipes can be found here. When the brownies were cooled, but still warm, I removed them from the pan, cut off the crusts and rolled them into 1-1 1/2 in balls.  Then I dipped them in the gold candy melts. I inserted the wings on either side and sprinkled them with the gold and iridescent sprinkles. (See how to below). Let them cool and enjoy!!
 Happy birthday Harry! Love, Janet


I tinted white candy melts with yellow, a dab of orange, a tiny drop of red and brown. I asked the kids for advice on when the color came out gold.  :) I drew wings on notebook paper then traced the wings on wax paper with the gold candy melt. 
The candy melt was in an icing piping bag with a number 1 Wilton's tip. I added a 'stem' so I could insert the wings in the snitch. Before they dried I sprinkled them with yellow and iridescent sprinkles!


Pink Lemonade Cake!!


This cake was surprisingly easy! My only slip was that I got anxious and put the first layer of frosting on the cake when it was still warm. The frosting melted between the bottom two layers and seeped out. While it still tasted fantastic, it made the bottom layers look mushed together. Other than that, the cake tasted absolutely divine! The cake is light and lemon-y and the frosting is super creamy and delicious! I found this recipe in Better Homes and Gardens May 2012 issue. Have a great weekend!! ~Janet


Pink Lemonade Cake: 

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter
4 eggs
3 1/2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sugar 
red food coloring
1 1/3 cups milk
1/4 cup frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
1 tsp lemon extract
(recipe for lemonade butter-cream frosting below)

Allow butter and eggs to stand until room temp. Grease 2 9x2 in. round pans. I used a baking spray made with butter and flour so I didn't need to flour them. Line bottom of pans with parchment paper.
In a bowl mix flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside.
Preheat oven to 350F/180C
In extra large bowl beat butter then add sugar until combined. Add 1/8 tsp of food coloring, Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each egg.
In another bowl, stir together milk, lemonade concentrate, and extract- it will curdle, but that's okay.
Alternately add flour mixture and milk mixture to butter mixture beating on low.
Remove 1/2 (4 cups) of tinted batter and spread in 1 pan. Stir in 1/4 tsp of red food coloring in remaining batter and spread in other pan.
Bake about 35 minutes...mine took longer because one of my cakes was a little bigger than the other. I knew they were done when they sprung back when I touched them. 
While baking, prepare frosting:

pink lemonade butter-cream frosting
  • 3 cup unsalted butter (6 sticks-at room temp) (1 stick is about 114g) 
  • 2 16 oz. jars of marshmallow cream (or 2 13 oz or 1 1/2 cups)
  • 1/4 cup frozen lemonade concentrate (thawed)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tsp lemon extract
In a large bowl, beat butter about 30 sec. Add marshmallow creme and frozen concentrate. Beat until smooth. Add sugar and lemon extract and beat until light and fluffy.

to finish the cake: 

To make the different layers, slice the cakes in half with a serrated knife, sawing gently back and forth.  Alternate the colors. Put a scoop of frosting on top of each cake layer, spreading the frosting all the way to the edge. Frost entire cake and garnish with lemon slices.


This cake was made by Janet 
and this post was written by her! 
For more cakes like this click on the button in the side bar!


Strawberry Shortcake!!


Strawberry Shortcake:

·         1 1/2 pounds strawberries, stemmed and quartered
·         3 tablespoons sugar
·         2 cups all-purpose flour
·         2 teaspoons baking powder
·         1/4 teaspoon baking soda
·         1/4 cup sugar
·         3/4 teaspoon salt
·         1 1/2 cups heavy cream

Mix strawberries with 3 tablespoons sugar and refrigerate while juices develop, at least 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Sift together the flour; baking powder, baking soda, remaining sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Add heavy cream and mix until just combined. Place mixture in an ungreased 8-inch square pan and bake until golden, 18 to 20 minutes. 
Remove shortcake from pan and place on a rack to cool slightly. If using an 8 in pan, cut into 6 pieces and split each piece in half horizontally. If you use a 9-inch pan you can just pile all of your toppings on top of the shortbread rather than slicing them. 
Spoon some of the strawberries with their juice onto each shortcake bottom. Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream and then the shortcake top. Spoon more strawberries over the top and serve.

whipped cream!

Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream:

·         1 1/2 cups heavy cream, chilled
·         3 tablespoons sugar
·         2 vanilla beans scraped or 2 tsp paste (1 1/2 tsp extract)

Whip ingredients until stiff peaks form.








Made by Janet!

Ooey Gooey Cinnamon Rolls!!



2 (1/4 ounce) packages active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon sugar
2/3 cup butter
2 teaspoons salt
2 eggs, slightly beaten
7 cups flour
1 cup warm milk

Filling

1 cup melted butter
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts (optional)
1 1/2 cups raisins (optional)
Topping
1 cup butter or 1 cup margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Karo syrup
2 cups pecans, chopped (optional)

In a cup, combine yeast, warm water and 1 tsp sugar. Stir and set aside.
In a large bowl, mix milk, remaining sugar, butter, salt and eggs. Stir well.
Add yeast mixture.
Add half the flour and beat until smooth.
Stir in enough of the remaining flour until dough is stiff.
Turn out onto a well-floured board.
Knead for 10 minutes.
Place in a plastic bowl and cover.
Let dough rise in a warm place until double in bulk. This may take 1 1/2 hours.
Punch down dough and let it rest for 5 minutes.
Roll out on a floured surface into a 15x20 inch rectangle.

 To prepare filling----------.
Spread dough with half cup butter.
Mix together 1 1/2 cups sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over buttered dough.
Sprinkle with walnuts and raisins.
Roll up and pinch edge together to seal.
Cut into 12 slices.
Coat bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking pan and an 8 inch square pan with remaining 1/2 cup melted butter.
Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
Place cinnamon roll slices close together in pans.
Let rise in a warm place until dough is doubled in bulk i.e. for about 45 minutes.

Topping----------.
In a saucepan, place all ingredients except for pecans.
Melt these ingredients on range top.
Mix in pecans and then pour over the top of rolls.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Bake for 25 minutes or until done.
Cool.



This recipe come from food.com Recipe #9533 by Charishm Ramchandani