Margarita Flan Cake Recipe

Miracle Margarita Flan Cake

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk
3 eggs
3 tablespoons Grand Marnier
1 teaspoon very finely grated orange zest
Vegetable oil cooking spray
1/2 cup cajeta (Mexican caramel sauce) or caramel ice cream topping
1 (18.25 ounce) box butter cake mix, plus ingredients called for on box
1/2 cup Sauza Gold tequila
1 teaspoon very finely grated lime zest
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut

Heat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl, whisk the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, eggs, Grand Marnier and orange zest together. Set aside.

Generously spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with vegetable-oil spray. Spread the cajeta or caramel sauce in the bottom of the pan. Set aside.

Prepare the cake mix according to the package directions, substituting the 1/2 cup tequila for 1/2 cup of the required water, and adding lime zest. Fold coconut into the cake batter. Pour the batter on top of the cajeta in the pan. Gradually pour the milk mixture over the batter (the milk mixture will sink and the batter will rise).

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Unmold onto a serving platter. Let cool completely.

Makes 12 to 14 servings.

Per serving: Cal 366 (23% fat) Fat 9 g (5 g sat) Fiber trace Chol 58 mg Sodium 359 mg Carb 58 g Calcium 226 mg

Picture Puzzle DIY Craft

I don't know about the rest of you, but my son has become crazy about puzzles...especially when it's of something he loves.  So this is a great way for you and your children to make your own puzzles cheaply and with some great images as well.

Supplies:
Print out on letter sized paper (8 1/2" x 11") any photo you want (can be a family photo, a coloring book page off a website, a picture from a magazine...go crazy!)
8 1/2" x 11" piece of cardboard
Glue
Markers
Safety scissors

What to do:
Glue your photo onto the cardboard piece, making sure to spread the glue out evenly to get a solid connection.
On the back of the cardboard draw puzzle lines.  Make them as big or as small as you'd like, the more wavy and creative the more it will stimulate your child's mind.
Once the glue has dried, cut out your pieces along the lines you drew.
Flip it over, and your puzzle is ready to be reassembled over and over.

French Toast Bread Pudding Recipe

I've been craving bread pudding lately, and my son has been on a breakfast all day long kick (I swear, the kid goes thru a box of waffles a day!).  So, when I recently bought a box of Farm Rich Cinnamon French Tast Sticks at Sam's Club, it had this recipe on the side.  So I tried it out (with a few modifications of course) and man is it yummy.  In fact,my husband described it tasting like "cinnamon raisin french toast and apple pie had a love child". So here you go (and warning, it is best if you prep it the night before, which actually makes breakfast easy...just pop in the oven and eat!).

Ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar (not packed)
1 16ox box Farm Rich Cinnamon French Toast Sticks
1 cup heavy cream
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup raisins
1 apple diced


Cut the toast sticks into 1 inch pieces.
Layer the bottom of a 9" x 13" baking pan with brown sugar
Sprinkle raisins and apples over the brown sugar
Lay the toast sticks onto the sugar (cinnamon sugar side up)in a single layer.  Press any extra pieces into the sides and corners, filling any gaps.
In a large bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, eggs, vanilla, salt, and water.
Pour mixture over the toast sticks, pressing them down to wet them thoroughly.
Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 350*
Bake for 30-40 minutes.
Raise temperature on your oven to broil and cook an additional 2-3 minutes to carmelize the sugar.
Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes.
Invert onto a serving plate and dig in!

Pina Colada Fruit Dip Recipe

As I sit at my computer working all night on networking and orders and the such, I realize I am STARVING!  So, I go to my recipe box, and found this one hiding.  Yes, I know I have to let it sit for 30 minutes before I eat it, but it is so worth it.  Plus, with all that I am doing, 30 minutes will fly by.  So for those who want to join me in my late night snack....

Ingredients:

1 20oz can crushed pineapple (don't drain)
1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
1 4-serving size instant vanilla pudding
1 cup cool whip
fresh fruit
graham crackers

Mix pineapple, coconut, and dry pudding mix together. 
Gently fold in the cool whip. 
Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Enjoy with fruit dipped in, on graham crackers, or with a huge serving spoon ( my favorite way :)  )

Baked Pancake & Hash Brown Casserole Recipes

Wow! Things have been so crazy around here lately, that I have completely neglected posting things for everyone, and for this I apologize. But, it has been good crazy, so I'm not too sorry :)

So, to make up for it, here Are two recipes to try out this weekend. They take awhile, but trust me, they are soooooo worth it!

Apple Dutch Baby Pancake

Ingredients:
2 tbl butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbl brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup thinly sliced granny smith apples

Heat oven to 400*
Melt butter in a 9" pie pan, brushing butter on the sides
Sprinkle brown sugar and cinnamon on top of the melted butter, and then arrange the apple slices on top.
Beat eggs slightly with a whisk
Beat in remaining ingredients until throughly mixed
Pour into pie plate on top of apples
Bake 30-35 minutes or until puffy and deep golden brown
Immediately loosen from pan and turn upside down onto a serving plate
Serve with powdered sugar


Hash Brown Casserole
1 2lb package frozen Hash Browns (or you can grate 2lbs of potatoes in a food processor for fresh...that's what I do!)
16 oz sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 stick butter cut into small cubes
1/2 cup chopped sweet onion
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup bacon pieces
Salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350*
Place potatoes in a greased 9x13 baking pan
Season with salt and pepper
In a bowl, mix together the onions, sour cream, and soup mix.
Pour soup mixture over the potatoes
Sprinkle with the cheese and butter cubes
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until all is completely cooked and cheese is bubbly
Allow to cool for 5 minutes before serving

Tie Dyed Cake Recipe

For my father's 60th birthday, I wanted to do something special. I had decided to make him a psychedelic cake (since long ago, my now middle school math and social studies teacher was actually a long haired hippie). I planned on doing a tie dyed fondant, but I really didn't want to stop there. So I searched and searched, and finally found a tie dyed cake recipe. Now I of course substituted the box cake mix with my own secret homemade cake recipe, and it still turned out perfectly tie dyed. So, you can either use the recipe below, or substitute your own cake recipe and just skip to the dying part. Either way it's a fun cake to make...and eat!

What you need:
1 box white cake mix
12 oz Sprite
6 different colors food gel dye (I used primary rainbow colors: red, orange yellow, blue, green, purple)
2 9" round or 8" square cake pans, greased
6 bowls
White frosting
either:
White fondant plus two other colored fondants of your choosing
Spray food dye in two colors

Preheat oven to 350*
Whisk together cake mix and Sprite until thoroughly combined (it will foam at first, but will go away as you mix)
Separate batter into the 6 bowls. Bowl one should have the most decreasing to bowl six having the least.
Add individual colors to each bowl slowly, mixing well and adding more until each color is vibrant and bright.
Pour half of bowl one into the center of your first pan. Next pour half of bowl two into the center of the pan, layering it on top of the first bowl's batter. Don't worry about spreading it out, it will do it on it's own as you add more batter.
Next add half of bowls 3-6 into the center of the pan, layering on top of each color.
Repeat in the second pan using the remaining batter. ***(see notation at the bottom for a different option)
Now slowly tilt the pans a bit to allow the batter to spread to the edges.
Take a toothpick, and gently run it across, allowing some of the colors to criss cross.
Bake 15-20 minutes, or until your toothpick comes out clean.
Let cakes cool, and they are ready to be decorated!

Option 1: Frosted only
Put a thin layer of frosting (or any other topping you want in between the layers) on the top of one cake.
Put the second cake on top, and frost completely.
Using 2 different (but complementary) colors of spray food coloring (which is easily found at any grocery store), spray a tie dyed effect onto the frosting.
Be creative, doing circles, lines etc.
Add any other decorative pieces (like a peace sign, happy face etc) if you want, and now your cake is ready to be enjoyed.

Option 2: Fondant 
Put a thin layer of frosting (or any other topping you want in between the layers) on the top of one cake.
Put the second cake on top, and frost with a light skin coat (also known as dirty frosting since the layer of frosting is thin enough to see the cake thru it).
Now is when you get creative. There is no wrong way...just like tie dying clothes, it's meant to be natural, organic, and fun!
Roll some of your white and 2 other complimentary colored fondants out in tubes (think play dough snakes).
Lay them side by side, and press together gently (and being creative, mush colors into another in some areas so they bleed together like tie dye).
Now roll them together into a spiral and put aside.
Repeat multiple times until all the colored Fondant is individually spiraled, leaving some of the white to the side to fill in any gaps.
Now put all the spirals together side by side to form a giant circle.
Press them together gently, filling in any gaps in between spirals with the left over white fondant.
Now, using a non stick rolling pin, roll it all out flat and smooth until it is the size you need to cover the cake.
Lay it on top of your cake and smooth down so it adheres to the dirty frosting.
Now decorate further as you wish (I let my then 2 year old son help with this.  He loved making flowers and smiley faces out of the fondant, and the "toddler touch" just added to the psychedelic look).


***when I made mine, I wanted it to be big. So I used larger pans, doubled the recipe, and double layer the batter. So in each pan I placed 1/4 bowl 1-6 and the did a second layer of a 1/4 bowl 1-6 on top. Below is a photo of how it looked prior to going into the oven.

Pasta E Fagioli Soup Recipe

I thought winter was over, yet with all the posts I've been reading from friends up north, apparently the cold and snow is now quite over. So, to help everyone combat the cold (even for those of us in the south who are dealing with some nasty rainy days) I decided to post my favorite Pasta E Fagioli recipe. This is one of my favorite hearty soups, and I order it often, yet in ever seem to find one as yummy as this.

 

Ingredients:
3 tsp olive oil
2 lb ground beef
12 oz chopped sweet onions
14 oz diced carrots
14 oz diced celery
48 oz canned diced tomatoes
2 cups cooked red kidney beans
2 cups cooked white kidney beans
11 cups beef stock
3 tsp oregano
3 tsp pepper
5 tsp chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce
6 cups marinara sauce
8 oz ditalini pasta uncooked
Parmesan cheese freshly grated
Garlic bread

Sauté beef in oil until beef starts to brown.
Add onions, carrots, celery and tomatoes and simmer about 10 minutes.
Drain and rinse beans and place in large soup pot.
Drain beef and vegetables and add to pot.
Add remaining ingredients (minus the cheese and bread) and stir all together.
Simmer until carrots and celery are tender, about 45 minutes.

Makes about 9 quarts of soup
Serve hot with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on top and a slice of garlic bread.