We celebrated my husband’s birthday this past weekend. I wanted to make him a special cake to celebrate his big day. I decided to go with a double layer chocolate cake with a cool whip strawberry fruit filling, coated in cream cheese frosted goodness. It was a hit. He loved it. This cake is sooooo easy, and makes a great presentation. Here is how I made it:
I started with a chocolate fudge box mix (Yes, a box mix). I wanted to keep it easy. I baked two round cakes in 8″ round pans.
Once the cakes cooled, I placed the first round on my cake stand.
A few tips: 1. I placed paper towels around the edges of the stand first to keep the stand clean (pull the pieces of paper towel out once you are finished frosting the cake and you have a clean stand). You can use parchment paper too- I didn’t have any on me. 2. I also like to put a dab of frosting in the center of the stand to keep the cake glued to the stand. 3. I like to flip the cake round so the bottom becomes the top to give a nice flat top for the filling to sit on.
Once your first cake round is on the stand, spread some cool whip on top of the first layer.
Next place some sliced strawberries on top of the cool whip.
Lay second cake round on top. Frost the cake with whatever frosting you like, I used cream cheese frosting.
To make the strawberry flower for the top of the cake, I used thin strawberry slices and started with the outside going in. Just layer the pieces as you make your way to the center of the cake. This is fool proof.
The bottom berries are just halved strawberries stuck to the sides of the cake. Hope you enjoy this as much as we did! Makes for a beautiful cake for any occasion!
Julia Child is the queen of French cooking, if not the queen of all celebrity chefs. Julia discovered her love of French food when she and her husband Paul moved to France, and she enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. She eventually launched her own informal school out of her kitchen called “The School of the Three Food Lovers.” Child authored numerous cookbooks throughout her life, including Mastering the Art of French Cooking and The French Chef Cookbook. The latter was based on recipes she shared with audiences in her first television show, The French Chef. Julia went on to host several additional TV programs, including Julia Child & Company, Julia Child & More Company, Baking with Julia, Cooking with Master Chefs, and Dinner at Julia’s. In 1981, Child founded The American Institute of Food and Wine in an effort to help others understand and appreciate quality food and wine pairings. Julia passed away in 2004, but her delicious recipes will forever live on.
This eggplant and zucchini gratin recipe from Julia Child is a true classic. It makes a great side dish or can be served as the main meal. The dish is colorful and is great for entertaining or bringing to an event when you are asked to contribute. It is also fairly easy, which can be a pleasant change of pace for fans of Julia Child recipes.
Eggplant dishes are usually heartier than other vegetable based recipes. Eggplant is a common substitute for meat dishes and adds some bulk to this gratin. Like zucchini, it has a distinctive taste that many consider less bland than many vegetables. It also pairs well with many seasonings. The vegetables are packed with vitamins and nutrients, but the dish still seems indulgent. It is a favorite of vegetarians and vegans, but also pleases meat eaters as a side dish. Of all the eggplant dishes out there, this is one of the most interesting and elevates simple ingredients to something special.
This tasty dish is made even better with a sprinkle of Herbs de Provence or a similar spice mix. It provides a distinctly French flair without creating a traditionally French dish, filled with heavy sauces or creams.
Check out these Julia Child books:
Don’t miss out on the latest and greatest from Skinny Ms…
8 sheet very thinly sliced prosciutto, cut in thirds lengthwise
1 large garlic clove
⅓ cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon each Kosher salt and black pepper
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
Make vinaigrette by whisking garlic, vinegar, mustard, and salt and pepper in a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup. Slowly whisk in oil until you reach the 1-cup mark.
Drizzle asparagus with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Working one spear at a time, roll each one in a piece of prosciutto.
Grill over direct heat on a charcoal or gas grill turning them only once until prosciutto is crisp and the asparagus are crisp-tender, 5 to 6 minutes.
Arrange spears on each plate and drizzle with balsamic vinegar or vinaigrette. Serve immediately.
I made something kinda cool, and I want to share it with you all!
Some wonderful friends of mine recently started a local publication called Wolftree. It’s a publication “that aspires to encourage and share the stories of sincere artists, dreamers, and adventurers of the Midwest.” It’s pretty darn neat. Go check it out! Maybe even think about buying it…
Last weekend was the launch party of Wolftree’s volume 1, and I was presented with the exciting and challenging opportunity to make a cake for the party. Brooke, my friend and one of Wolftree’s creators, asked me, “Could you do an actual tree cake?! Earthy like?!” My first thought was, “Oh dear… I don’t know if I have the skills or tools to do that.”
However, I did lots of research– mostly scouring pages and pages of tree cakes on CakeCentral.com– and the dim light began to grow brighter, giving me hope that I could do this. I wrote down all the ideas I could think of and narrowed it down to the best one: Make the trunk out of rice krispies covered in chocolate, and use angel food cake for the leafy top.
What do you think? Did I do okay?
It was quite a long process, and there were many moments of doubt, but I knew that even if it didn’t turn out perfectly, I would give it my very best shot. To be honest, though, staring at that obviously-not-a-tree form in the beginning stages, it was a little disheartening. I’m no arborist, and I really didn’t know if I’d be able to make that ugly green mass look like a tree.
Fortunately, there was reassurance in knowing that at least it couldn’t look any worse. Haha. I also had some rock solid encouragement and motivation from my better half. Thanks for keeping me going, Rob.
So if you’re wondering how I made a tree out of cake, here’s a bit more detail for you.
First, Rob so kindly engineered the structure that would hold everything up. Two wooden circles and a wooden dowel were connected with screws and gorilla glue. Though it’s not pictured, I then wrapped it all in tin foil to keep things sanitary. Next, I mixed green food coloring into angel food cake and baked it in varying sizes.
While the cakes were baking and cooling, I made some rice krispie treats by simply stirring the cereal into melted marshmallows. Then, with wet hands, I formed the cereal around the dowel into a shapely trunk.
After the cakes had cooled, I tore off any browned edges and arranged the layers to mimic a treetop. The underside of the bottom-most cake layer was cut away slightly to fit over and cover up the top wooden circle which it was resting on.
Here comes the trickiest part. Using a combination of snipping with scissors and tearing with my fingers, I pruned the cake. It’s harder than it sounds.
When the cake/treetop had a nice shape to it, I added accents with gel food coloring and a pastry brush. It really made a difference, don’t you think?
The tree’s roots came next. They’re just made of more rice krispie treats.
To make the bark, I melted chocolate chips, stirred chocolate frosting into it, and added some light grey cream cheese frosting to make the color more realistic. Using melted chocolate is actually what created the “bark” look; that didn’t even require any special technique. Since chocolate solidifies as it cools, but frosting doesn’t really, the combination of the two was perfect for the texture I wanted.
Lastly, I used some leftover buttercream and dyed it green to make the grass with the grass tip on a piping bag.
(Photo credits for the three above go to the amazing Robert, my husband.)
Since this tree didn’t much have a whole lot to offer hungry guests at the party, I also made some cupcakes to go with it. I made Lemon Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Buttercream and Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Cookie Dough Frosting.
Words can’t explain how joyous I was to be, for the first time ever, baking with REAL VANILLA BEANS. My gosh. So much excitement. Seeing all those little black specks in the batter and smelling that, sweet, pure aroma… I was in vanilla bean heaven. SO GOOD. The Lord has blessed me richly.
Here’s everything all put together at the party!
(It’s just a little Instagram phone picture, so sorry for the less-than-fantastic quality.)
Well, I think that’s about it. And, um, I also think this is my longest post thus far…
If you actually made it all the way through, I commend you!
If you have any questions or comments on this creation, or if you want to share something you’ve created, add to the comments below!
4 beef round (sirloin) tip side steaks, cut 1 inch thick (about 8 ounces each)
1 pound fresh asparagus
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
Marinade:
2/3 cup prepared balsamic vinaigrette
2 tablespoons Dijon-style mustard
Directions
Combine marinade ingredients in small bowl. Remove and reserve 2 tablespoons. Place beef steaks and remaining marinade in food-safe plastic bag; turn steaks to coat. Close bag securely and marinate in refrigerator 15 minutes to 2 hours.
Place asparagus in shallow microwave-safe dish; add 1/2 cup water. Cover and microwave on HIGH 3 to 6 minutes or until crisp-tender. Drain asparagus. Add reserved 2 tablespoons marinade to asparagus; turn to coat. Set aside.
Remove steaks from marinade; discard marinade. Place steaks on grid over medium, ash-covered coals. Grill, covered, 12 to 14 minutes (over medium heat on preheated gas grill, 13 to 14 minutes) for medium rare (145F) doneness, turning once. (Do not overcook.)
During last 3 minutes of grilling, arrange asparagus on grid around steaks; grill 2 to 3 minutes, turning once. Season steaks and asparagus with salt and pepper.
What is a Pool Party with out some delicious Pool Party Foods?
Welcome to another Monday Round Up! With pools being opened and summer in full swing, we thought we would share some Fun Pool Party Foods! Whether you are a host or a guest, these adorable and yummy treats are sure to be a big hit! Let jump right in..
Check Out How To Make Delicious Gummy Bear Ice Pops!
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”NiMJJ6SN” upload-date=”2018-05-23T15:12:43.000Z” name=”Gummy Bear Ice Pops” description=”Not only are these homemade Gummy Bear Ice Pops The Perfect Summer Snack, but they’re also super fun to make and put a smile on everyone’s face. “]
Aren’t they just to-die-for? The hardestest part might be picking which one to make! Guests of all ages are going to love these Pool Party Foods, and there won’t be any left over! Why not make 1 or 2 for your next party or get-together?
