Food Network's a Birthday Cake For Every Month. April's Lemon Meringue Cake!

Well here it is! You can find this recipe HERE and you'll need the Basic Vanilla Cake recipe which you will find HERE.

I vowed, only last month, to never ever attempt meringue again. I had a disastrous go at meringue cookies in early March and it was horrible. Looking back, I'm certain the recipe was flawed, because this meringue actually thickened and formed it's peaks like it was supposed to. Although, it took a full 15 minutes of beating instead of the 6 to 8 minutes the recipe promised. I'm glad I kept at it really, I had started to think how I could persuade my mom to make it for me at the 11 minute mark.
It wasn't that hard to make, a little time consuming sure, but not very hard. I don't own a double boiler, or a bowl suitable to set on top of a sauce pan of boiling water for that matter, so the only really horrible part was having to literally hold a smaller pan above the water in a larger pan and stir with my other hand for like 10 minutes. It occurred to me that the bowls I put super hot stuff in are metal on the inside but they are the non skid rubber on the outside, so obviously that wouldn't be fantastic to use as a double boiler bowl, all my other bowls are glass and I'm not willing to risk breaking them. Because I'm super impatient, I put my lemon filling in the freezer instead of the fridge and made the meringue. By the time it was done the filling was "set" and ready to go. I ended up using only half the filling that I made, if I ever made this again (which I won't) I would totally cut that recipe in half. The meringue was super easy to spread over the cake, much easier then I thought it would be, easier then using frosting. I'm a horrible cake froster, don't even get me started.  You're supposed to brown this one with a kitchen torch but considering I'm pretty accident prone I felt it was best just to not use a torch in my kitchen, or inside my house at all actually. I like living indoors and not in a tent, in my yard, outside the smoldering ruins that used to be my home. So I just left it as is. The vanilla cake wasn't like cutting cardboard freakishly dense like it was the first time I made it. I actually followed the instructions this time, so that probably helped. The lemon filling turned out delicious with just the right hint of sourness, my only regret is that I should have heated it on low for longer instead of turning the heat up and rushing things. It turned out a little gritty because I don't think all the sugar melted. It still tastes awesome though!  I think if I were to make this again (which I won't) it would be fun to dress it up with some candied lemon slices or maybe some colored large crystal sugar.

One thing I really really love about this challenge is that I'm making cakes that I wouldn't look twice at. I would have changed this recipe to use raspberry or strawberry filling, I definitely wouldn't have used lemon, but I was pleasantly surprised at how tastey this was!

I also wonder if food coloring would turn the filling into more of a happy lemon yellow color instead of the over cooked egg yolk color it is... Not that it's that big of a deal, it's just a thought.
Well enjoy!

Spring Test Tube 2013!

I just received my spring test tube. I'm slightly disappointed with this one, because it included only a few things I could actually use. But, I think I've received about 6 test tubes now and this is the first one I've been a little sad about, definitely not enough to make me cancel my subscription.  I got the NewBeauty magazine which always promises to be an interesting read, and 3 coupon codes to spalook.com.  I also have....

Luxurious Volume Fine to full blow out spray by John Frieda.
A full size is 6.7 oz and retails for about $9.99 you can find it HERE if it interests you. It says, "to get salon quality body without the appointment" "Transforms fine, flat hair into big beautiful locks."
 I have hair that rivals a lion's mane. I feel a volume spray is a really horrible idea for me. Plus you have to use heat and I almost never heat style my hair. I'm slightly afraid to try this, just because of the sheer amount of hair I already have on my head. I'm not sure if I'll attempt to try this or not. Stay tuned.

Suki Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser.
A full size is 4 oz and retails for about $32.95, you can find it HERE. This says it's an "Award winning deep cleansing, synthetic free, alphahydroxy complexion rejuvenator brightens and evens tone, smooths lines and wrinkles, and eliminates blemishes and impurities from pores while jump starting collagen production." "Perfect for almost all skin types, natural sugar crystals, powdered rice, and pure foamers"  Now the first thing I noticed about this is that all the sugar settled on top and all the liquid settles at the bottom. No amount of shaking would penetrate that sugar crust on top and mix these two back together. I attempted to stir with my finger and it worked ok. I think it'll work better with a toothpick. I also noticed the smell. Mine says lemon grass (which I love) but it smells like straight up lemons in a jar. It's amazing! I love it, it's strong but because it's lemon scented it doesn't seem bad, it also smells like real lemons, instead of a soapy sugary "lemon scent" like so many others have. I'm excited to try this.

(Not pictured) Clear Total care nourishing shampoo and nourishing daily conditioner
A full size shampoo is 12.9 oz and a full size conditioner is 12.7 oz (Ah ha! That's why the conditioner always runs out first eh!?) This says "discover stronger, more beautiful hair in only 7 days with this cleansing duo that starts at the scalp where 99% of hairs natural strength and beauty come from." They retail about $4.99 - $5.99. You can find this at Walmart or online. Check out their facebook for more information HERE.  I've mentioned before that I have thick hair and colored hair, so I'm not going to try this. I certainly couldn't make those tiny sample bottles I received last 7 days. They'd be more of a single use for me. My mom is trying this out though so yeah, atleast someone can use it. It smells nice, that's my thought on it.

Paula Dorf Baby eyes enhancer.
The full size of this is .4 oz or 1.1g, just for a comparison a full size Urban Decay eye liner is 1.2g, I'll do a side by side picture of the sample I got and a full size liner for when I do my review.  This retails for $20.  You can find it HERE if your interested. It says " With this ultranourishing liner, add a touch of radiance to the eyes and lips, accentuating the natural beauty you were born with."
I've never had a nude colored eye pencil before, so I'm excited to try this out. But at the same time I've never been super interested in having a nude colored eye pencil so it'll be different. It also says you can use this as a highlighter so I'll try that out as well.

Phyto Phytodfrisant hair relaxing balm
This full size is 3.3 oz and retails for about $26. you can find it HERE.  It says "tame unruly locks and instantly detangle color treated hair with this leave in conditioner (I dont' have this) and chemical free straightening treatment (I have this) which soothe and restore for shiney, sleek strands that last."
I'm on the fence about this. I'm a little weirded out using a "relaxing balm" but I'm also excited thinking of the results if it doesn't jack up my hair in the process. I'm also not excited about the fact that this is also heat activated. I'm just not a heat style kind of person. But I'll try it, maybe.

June Jacobs Papaya purifying enzyme masque
The full size for this is 3.7 oz and retails for $62. You can find it HERE.  It says, "Treat your skin to a "supernatural" facial with this anti oxidant rich mask that leaves skin radiant and refreshed with every use."   This smells amazing! It's like apricot and papaya had a super delicious smelling baby. When I was young and stupid and went tanning I had this fantastic tanning lotion called Foxy in a velvety bottle (bad idea for tanning lotion honestly) but it smelled exactly like this mask. I'm completely in love with this scent. So I'm super excited to try this as well!

I also got 2 full size Forever Young face wraps
They come in one size and they retail for $5 each. you can find it HERE.  It says, "for a spa like treatment that can be had at home, try an ultrahydrating facial wrap that leaves skin looking and feeling refreshed and rejuvenated."  It suggests placing in a bowl of warm water or putting it in the fridge for a warm or cool facial.
I like that these are single serving size, and it comes in a sheet that you just place on your face instead of having to deal with the mess of cream masks. This would be fantastic for travel, throw one in your bag and use it before you go to bed, or on a plane, or wherever really. 

Stay tuned for reviews of these products and individual photos! I'll have them up in a couple of weeks!


*New Beauty Test Tube is a sample box that I purchased with my own money, everything in this review is my own and true opinion of the product, I do not get paid to write glowing reviews.*


If you are interested in receiving your own Test Tube you can check it out HERE

Spring Favorites!

Since it's technically, according to the calendar, spring I thought I throw out some spring favorites.  I say technically spring, because I'm not sure if spring will actually hit us here in the Midwest.... I watched in horror as it snowed last night and we are expecting more snow later today. It's APRIL, Go home winter, you're drunk.  Now they are predicting snow later this week, up to 10 inches. Um again, it's April. I mean, just because we didn't have much of a winter last year doesn't mean it can just hang out as long as it wants this year. I have giant pumpkins and mammoth sunflowers to grow. I need it to be spring soon. Plus, I'm tired of it being so dark and cold and sad. I'd like to see the grass again at some point. I've forgotten what it looks like.

I've got a variety of favorites this time! We'll start with hair and work our way down yeah?




 Garnier Fructis Sleek and Shine Intensely smooth leave in conditioning cream.
I believe I paid somewhere around $4 for this. You can get it at walmart, target, and pretty much anywhere Fructis products are sold. It's part of the "Sleek and Shine" campaign, I hope they keep it. If I hadn't dyed my hair, I would have kept buying the "Sleek and Shine" shampoo/conditioner but I switched to the Garnier Fructis color treated shampoo/conditioner, but I'm soooo not impressed with it. It's thin and slightly pink, as a platinum blonde my stylist told me not to use colored hair products. I need to switch, obviously. Back to the leave in conditioner. It says that it has "Argan oil from morocco and apricot". You can smell the apricot, it's glorious. It also says that you can use it on damp or dry hair. Now I had no results what so ever when I used this on my dry hair. It didn't control frizz, help my flyaway, condition my hair, or leave it greasy and limp. My lion's mane of hair was unchanged. I use this at night, after my shower, I smooth some over and under my hair, and throw a little extra on the ends, then brush it out, and go to sleep. I wake up with super soft, manageable, waves every time. It's fantastic!

Yon-Ka Masque N 1 Time release Intense Moisture, This is a little more of a splurge for me, considering that it's about $45 a tube on Amazon.  I'm loving the jasmine florally scent, it reminds me of spring and I forget about living in this winter wonderland for a second, my skin is much less red, and fully moisturized when I use it at night. I have noticed a little goes a long way with this product, it is on the thin side, and it spreads out very easily. I like to throw it on right after I get in bed, read a couple chapters of whatever Harry Potter book I'm reading and by the time I'm ready to sleep it has all absorbed. It takes about 10 minutes for it to full absorb on my face and my skin is on the dryer side. I had tried using this in the daytime, before putting on my make up, but even after waiting 10 minutes my foundation was still streaky going over the top of this. I originally wrote this off as a bad moisturizer until I started using it at night. So glad I did!

My Urban Decay Roller Girl eye shadow palette. This isn't available anymore but, thanks to the build your own palette option, you can recreate it if you'd like.  It had 4 colors in it, Woodstock, Verve, Suspect, and Darkhorse. It came with a 24/7 eyeliner in Whiskey I believe.  Everything is available in singles at Urban Decay. The pink really makes it easy to create some fun looks with a little spunk. I also love pink, so yeah. Nothing feels like spring then a soft brown smokey eye with a hint of bright pink! I don't generally use the brown eyeliner, except to line my lash line and smudge it underneath. I always always have black on my waterline. All the colors are shimmery and exceptionally blendable, as you would expect from Urban Decay. Again, with their build your own palette option you could recreate this palette with all mattes if shimmer isn't your thing. I prefer shimmers, I feel they are more forgiving on my face, but it's all personal preference.

I recently bought some super fantastic t-shirts at Old Navy, the vintage v neck tees. Hello most comfy shirt I've ever worn in my life. I love Old Navy, the prices and the styles, but their shirts never seem to fit me right. On me they look boxey and strange. But these t-shirts are great! They are all worn and soft, so they move and fit wonderfully without being clingy or too loose. They didn't shrink in the slightest when I washed and dried them.They are also on the thin side, which is a must for me because I'm ALWAYS warm. You can get them at Old Navy for $9.50 but, as any Old Navy shopper knows, there are always sales going on. When I bought they they were 2/$10, but $9.50 isn't bad for a t-shirt at all.

My rainbow Sketchers! I need the shape up Sketchers because being on my feet all day causes me major foot, leg, and back problems without them. I got them for about $45 on the Sketchers website. Normally I find shape ups at Kohl's or our local shoe store in the hopes that they will be $30 or less, but that means I'm pretty limited when it comes to color selection. I went on the Sketchers website thinking I wouldn't find anything, imagine my surprise when I discovered that they came in so many colors. I don't hate my gray ones, but I certainly would like them better if they came in mint or rainbow. So I bought a couple of pairs and was done with it. I got these beauties in the mail though and couldn't even contain my excitement! They are sooo cute! (and functional!)

Well, that's it for my spring (even though there's snow still covering my entire yard) favs!

Whoops! I totally forgot my Revlon Color Burst Lip Butter in Lollipop! I've been wearing this every day! I love the lip butters, they go on super smooth, they never settle into the creases in my lips, the color pay off is fantastic, and the wear is about 6 hours for me.  Lollipop is a great slightly darker pinkish red, not so dark that it feels like a fall color but not light enough that it's an obvious spring color either. I feel it's a nice surprise with all the bright hues of spring.  I tried really hard to get a nice swatch of this, but the tiny shimmer in it was all my camera would pick up. It's funny because this shimmer hardly shows on my lips but it's crazy in the swatches. It's pretty much the exact same color as it is in the tube though so that helps.

Food Network's February and March Cake!

February's cake had us in chocolate heaven! It's a chocolate cake, with a chocolate pudding type filling, a chocolate whipped frosting, and a chocolate ganache poured over the top.  I made it for my family on valentine's day, everyone enjoyed it. But be warned, it is super rich and very chocolaty. I do love that it uses semi sweet chocolate though, I found it easier to enjoy then some milk chocolate cakes that tend to be too rich and you can't thoroughly enjoy your treat.  I thought this was rather time consuming, but pretty easy to make. It took me several hours (maybe 4 including cake cooking time and waiting for the chocolate to cool) just to complete the frosting, filling, and topping, I won't lie it was super annoying and made me never want to make this cake again. However, once I tasted it, I immediately thought "I need to make this again". It's that yummy. Enough to make me forget how long it took me to make it and want to make it again.  With the topping, I ended up just pouring it all in the middle top and using a spatula to spread it out over the edges. Make sure you let it set before you cut it! And try not to eat too much of the frosting before you actually frost it.  I had initially planned on putting candy hearts on this, but once I tasted it I knew any other embellishments were unnecessary. If you like chocolate, you'll LOVE this cake. Even my plain jane vanilla loving dad enjoyed this cake.

You'll be using the basic chocolate cake recipe, which you can find it on the Food Network website HERE

Chocolate Blackout Cake (Food Network Magazine)
You can find this recipe on the Food Network website HERE

Enjoy!

 

 

March gave us a Grasshopper cake. It was good, but not in a, "I'd like to eat this entire cake" way. It was more of a "I'll have one piece and never touch this again" cake. I did have a good time eating my way through quite a bit of the frosting though. It's basically whipping cream and sugar with little chocolate chips on top. Hello awesomeness! I wasn't going to dye the filling until I saw the boogery khaki gray color it really is. I ended up ransacking the house for our food coloring. Obviously I'm all for dying the filling. If you want it to look as yummy as it tastes, then you'll want to dye the filling. I also added like half a bag of mini chocolate chips to the filling, instead of the 3 tablespoons it says in the recipe. Um, pretty sure more chocolate chips is always a wonderful thing. I also added about half the peppermint extract that the recipe called for and didn't put any in the topping. It was more then enough peppermint. This cake was super easy to make, although the most frustrating for me because I didn't lay out my ingredients ahead of time and most of them were hidden in the Christmas cookie box. Note to self: Find your ingredients ahead of time!   I found this one the least visually appealing, I think because it was only supposed to be frosted on the top, the sides were supposed to be completely bare. This bothered me though so I put way too much filling in and pushed down so it would ooze out and pulled the topping down to the sides of the top layer. You'll see, there is more then enough topping to pull down and cover the entire cake, but I had a hard time getting the whipped topping to look right. You can't see the back but it was a mess, I tried to frost the entire cake and it was not happening. So I settled for the top layer. So, if you're into mint and chocolate this is the cake for you! I wouldn't make this for a birthday cake though, unless the person I made it for was super super into mint and chocolate, but it's a fun fresh cake just for the heck of it!

You'll need the Grasshopper frosting/filling recipes which you can find HERE 
And the Basic Chocolate Cake recipe which is HERE

Enjoy!

Food Network's A cake a month and January's Cake!

In my December issue of Food Network magazine they had "a year's worth of birthday cakes" article that I took as a challenge.  Basically it's a cake a month.  I loved that they are all double layer cakes made from scratch, with filling from scratch, and each has it's own frosting, again, from scratch. The flavors were interesting as well. There's a grasshopper cake and a pina colada cake in there. I would consider myself an average baker. I can whip up some chocolate chip cookies that would rock your world, but I'm not one to really eat cookies and cake, so I don't make it very often. I've attempted to make my daughter's birthday cakes every year with interesting results. Lets just say, luckily the nugget is young enough that her childhood won't be traumatized by my horrible cake decorating skills. They've always tasted just fine though, and I never burn them, so I feel that puts me slightly above the awesomeness of people who literally burn everything. I'm better then a novice but it's stretching it to call me an expert.
I didn't own a round cake pan, but found two very easily at our local dollar store for about $3 each. Like I said, we aren't huge sweets people in our home but I felt a cake a month might be yummy. It's turning out to be a lot harder then I thought it would. After 3 months of cakes, I'm actually tired of making them.
But, like I said, I took this as a challenge so I'll continue this cake junk. You can check out food network HERE

First we need to start with the basic cake recipes which you can find HERE for the chocolate and HERE for the vanilla.

Both the basic cake recipes are way more complicated then I generally come across. With their bunch of different steps and mixing in like 20 different bowls, but the cakes always turn out lovely so it's totally worth it!  I do get lazy and end up chucking everything in the bowl just to cut down on my steps, the first time I did this the cake tasted just fine but came out the density of cardboard, so follow the directions. Unless you want a freakishly dense cake, which is still totally edible, but it's different to say the least.

So Challenge accepted Food Network Magazine!


If you're interested in subscribing to Food Network magazine, which I highly recommend you do if cooking at all interests you it's a wonderful magazine, you can check that out HERE

 

 It worked out that the January cake was vanilla on vanilla because January just happens to be the month my dad's birthday is in and he's a very vanilla guy.  We wrote on ours because I made it for an actual birthday. After this one we won't have a birthday, birthday cake until my birthday in May, so no writing. I'm horrible at putting letters on cakes and I find it super tedious, I have absolutely no patience when it comes to decorating anything to be honest.  This cake turned out just fine, I must have gone wrong with the actual cake recipe because it turned out super freakishly dense. Not in a horrible way, it tasted just fine, but it was like cutting cardboard it was so dense. If you're into vanilla, you will LOVE this cake! It's so rich and full of vanilla deliciousness. I would totally make this again, probably for my dad's birthday next year. Everyone enjoyed it and it was fun to customize. You could really use any sprinkles you'd like, it would even work with candy, it's a wonderful basic cake.

You can find this recipe HERE Ultimate Vanilla Cake (Food Network Magazine)

You'll use the basic vanilla cake recipe for this one, you can find it  HERE on the Food Network site.

Enjoy!

3 Ingredient Chicken Tacos!

We had a problem in our house about a month ago, my dad had a heart attack. So we immediately adopted a heart healthy lifestyle before he even came home from the hospital. One thing my dad loves are beef tacos, you know, made with the wonderful sodium filled taco seasoning packet and coated in cheese. So I ended up creating this dish with him in mind. He still gets his taco fix but it's a more healthy lean chicken without all the salt from the seasoning packets.  It's super simple and turns out, my dad loved it.  It's only slightly spicy, so don't worry about that.

You'll for sure need 3 things,
1 package of Boneless, skinless, chicken boobies. (if using frozen thaw them first)
1 Jar Newman's Own medium salsa
1 (or 2) package of your favorite tortillas
(small amount of olive oil, so I guess 4 ingredients eh?)

First you'll want to throw the salsa in a food processor or a blender if you don't have a food processor and blend until smooth. Set this aside.



Take the chicken boobies and slice them into strips, then cut those strips in half.  Cook these until almost done in a skillet with a little olive oil.   Then pour in your salsa, fill up half the salsa jar with water, give it a little shake, and pour that in as well.

Stir until it's all blended together and bring to a boil on high heat. After it's boiling, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about an hour.

Remove the cover, and turn the heat back on high and stir every couple of minutes until the liquid has reduced to your liking. I like to reduce mine until almost all the liquid is gone, but it's fine if you'd like some juice in yours.

It should end up looking something like this. I generally continue cooking mine but this is fantastic as well.

Place a tortilla on a plate (Yes, I'm using paper plates here.), put some chicken on that, and fold it up! If you'd like cheese, sour cream, lettuce, onion, whatever you put on your tacos normally go for it!

Woooo! Chicken taco on a tiny tortilla!

This makes about 2 regular sized tacos per person for 4 people (we use the small tortillas, I found we actually eat less when we use them) so adjust the recipe accordingly if you have a larger family.

Enjoy!

Not my grandma's pineapple delight

My grandmother just moved into a new home, I volunteered to unpack her kitchen since most of the things she owns are over 50 years old and I love seeing these versions of gadgets I have now. I came across her recipe tins, it was like Christmas came early! Being the lovely grandmother that she is, she insisted I take the tins so that I can copy whichever recipes I like, while I browsed, I found a wonderful sounding recipe for Pineapple Delight. Dated 1920, so in all fairness my grandmother probably didn't write this, her mother more then likely did. I normally read ingredients and decide if the recipe is any good from there. Often I won't read directions until the moment I'm going to make something. I decided it would be in my best interest to read the directions before Easter dinner when I attempted to make this dessert, lucky I did, they were confusing and not in order. So if I would have followed them as I read them I would have had a random blob of pineapple mess. I decided to change it up. I opted not to use raw eggs in my version and just avoid the food poisoning risk all together, and sugar instead of cornstarch.

 

Obviously mine's been cut. I took this after Easter....

So here it is, enjoy!!

Not My Grandma's Pineapple Delight

Crust
1 box using only 2 packages of honey graham crackers (finely crushed, I put mine in the food processor)
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter (melted)

Filling
1 can crushed pineapple
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons cool whip (or see other whipped topping options below, the measurement is the same for this step though)

You'll also need
a small bag of crushed walnuts
1 extra large tub of cool whip, or 2 cans of spray whip, or 1 quart whipping cream + 1/2 cup powdered sugar mixed until whipped cream consistency.
About 1/4 cup of finely crushed graham crackers (dry, not the stuff you mixed for the crust)

So to make the crust you'll want to toss all the crust ingredients into a plastic zip lock bag and mix it well.  Crust isn't an exact science really, if your crumbs feel like they need a little more liquid add a couple more tablespoons of melted butter (one table spoon at a time!). Your crust should stick together when you squeeze it in your hand.

I used an 8X11 sized pan, you can use a smaller one, circular one, or a larger one (but you'll have to adjust your crust accordingly) In a foiled lined, and greased, cake pan press your crust mixture into the bottom. Make sure you push down on it or it won't stick together. Put it into the oven at 300 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes. Remove and let cool.

In the mean time add your filling ingredients (except cool whip) in a medium sauce pan and set on medium/high heat until it thickens to a pancake syrup consistency. If it gets too bubbly and you don't want pineapple juice on everything or burning the skin off your hands, obviously turn it down to medium/low heat.
So when that's thick, mix your cool whip into it, and pour it on top of your crust. Sprinkle the top of that with some crushed graham cracker crumbs and sprinkle the walnuts on top of that. Then spread the remaining cool whip over the top of all of that and throw it in the fridge overnight.  Serve cold.

If you want more filling you can certainly double the filling ingredients! I had more then enough room in my pan for more filling and less cool whip topping. You could also try pecans/macadamia/brazil nuts if you aren't into walnuts. This recipe would be super easy to use any fruit packed in liquid such as peaches/pears/cherries/mango/even grapefruit would be yummy in this!

There you are! I hope you enjoy! Let me know what other fruit you would use with this! I'm always looking for new desserts.