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I am addicted to cooking and baking. I love to find and make delicious recipes. Sometimes I create my own and I post them here. Other times I find a recipe and adapt it. I have posted those recipes here as well. Enjoy.

Saturday, April 26, 2014

ORANGE CREAM POUND CAKE




INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter, softened
½ cup shortening
3 cups white sugar
5 eggs
½  teaspoon orange cream flavoring LorAnn Oils
1 ¼ cups milk
3 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
2  teaspoons orange zest
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
Orange food coloring, optional
Glaze Ingredients:
4 tablespoons milk
¼ teaspoon orange zest
¼ teaspoon orange cream flavoring
2 cups powdered sugar
3 oz. cream cheese (or cream cheese/Greek yogurt)
Orange food coloring, optional

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease and flour Bundt Pan.  Sift together flour, baking powder and salt.  Set aside. 
Cream butter, shortening and sugar.  Beat in Eggs one at a time – then stir in flavoring .  Add orange zest.  Beat in Flour alternately with milk.  Pour 1/3 of the batter into a small mixing bowl.  Set aside.  With the remaining 2/3 of the batter, add a few drops of orange food coloring and stir in.  Pour orange batter into prepared pan.  With the remaining  1/3 of the batter, pour on top of the orange batter in large dollops and swirl into the orange batter with a knife. 
Bake 80 – 90 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean.  Let cool 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool.  Glaze:  In a mixer, blend cream cheese, milk, orange zest, flavoring and coloring (optional) until smooth.  Add powdered sugar and mix well. Carefully pour over warm cake.  Cool completely before serving.
Ingredients

Orange Cream Flavoring

Creamed Butter and Sugar

Adding Egg One at a Time

Adding Milk and Flour, Alternately

Adding Flour

All Mixed

Orange Batter

In Pan, Ready to Swirl with remaining 1/3 of batter

Swirled and Ready to Bake
Just Out of the Oven

Glazed

Glazed

Top View Glazed





Friday, April 25, 2014

CARAMEL APPLE PIE - NEW IMPROVED VERSION



This is hands down, the best apple pie I have ever made.  The Thick Gel (modified cornstarch is the best pie thickener and sauce thickener I have ever used.

Ingredients for pie filling:
8 medium apples, peeled and sliced
A splash lemon juice
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¾  teaspoon apple pie spice
¼ cup sugar
2 tablespoons thick gel or corn starch Where to buy Thick Gel?
¼ cup pecan chips, optional
2 pie crust shells (Pillsbury)
1 recipe caramel sauce*

Ingredients for Caramel Sauce*:
3 tablespoons caramel ice cream topping
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup butter
½ cup powdered sugar
¼ cup THICK GEL

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  In a large bowl, add a splash of lemon juice.  Wash, peel and slice the apples.  Stir apples in bowl after each apple is sliced.  Add the cinnamon, apple pie spice, sugar and thick gel (or corn starch) and mix well.  Roll out bottom crust in a pie dish.  Fork around the bottom and edges.

*Directions to Make Caramel Sauce:
In a medium  sauce pan, add all the Caramel Sauce ingredients.  Cook on low heat until ingredients are dissolvedTurn up to medium heat and bring to a boilBoil for 5 minutes (you are making caramel candy).  Do not let cool.


Immediately pour ¼ of the hot caramel sauce in the apples and mix in.  Then, quickly pour apple and caramel mixture into prepared pie dish.  Pour the remaining hot caramel sauce over the apples.  Place the top pie crust over the pie and crimp the edges to seal the pie.  Bake for 35 – 45 minutes in the preheated oven on 400 degrees F.  Check after 15 minutes…depending on your oven, turn down to 375 degrees F if the crust looks like it is getting too brown, too soon.  Let cool completely.  Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipping cream.
Making Caramel Sauce

Boiling Caramel Sauce

Caramel Sauce over apples in pie shell

Ready to Cook

Just out of the oven with the pie shield

Just out of the oven


A serving...it is impossible to get a good slice of pie on the first try

Sunday, April 20, 2014

FROZEN COTTON CANDY SWIRL PIE




INGREDIENTS:
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 ½ drams  = 1 ½ teaspoons (.125 oz. bottles) LorAnn Super Strength Cotton Candy Flavoring LorAnn Oils
1 ¼ cups whipping cream, whipped
Pink food coloring , 2 drops (optional)
Blue food coloring, 1 drop (optional)
1 cup whipping cream, whipped (for garnish)
Purple Sixlets , for garnish
1 shortbread crust (9 inches)

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk and the cotton candy flavoring.  Mix well.  Whip 1 ¼ cups whipping cream. Fold a fourth of the whipped cream into cotton candy mixture; fold in remaining whipped cream.  Pour ¾ of the mixture into a medium bowl.  Set aside.  With the remaining ¼ of the mixture stir in optional blue food coloring,    In the medium bowl with ¾ of the mixture, stir in 2 drops of pink food coloring. Spoon pink mixture into crust. With a spoon, pour dollops of blue mixture onto pie.  Swirl around with a knife.  Cover and Freeze over night.



Remove from freezer 10-15 minutes before serving.  Garnish with the reserved whipped cream and purple Sixlet Candies.





FROZEN SOUR RASPBERRY PIE



INGREDIENTS:
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 ½ drams  = 1 ½ teaspoons (.125 oz. bottles) LorAnn Super Strength Raspberry Flavoring (LorAnn Oils)
4 teaspoons Tart & Sour  Fruit Flavor Enhancer – LorAnn Gourmet  LorAnn Oils
 Pink food coloring , 2 drops (optional)
1 ¼ cups whipping cream, whipped
1 cup whipping cream, whipped (for garnish)
Raspberries , for garnish
1 shortbread crust (9 inches)

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, combine the sweetened condensed milk, raspberry flavoring and tart and sour.  Mix well.  Add a few drops of pink food coloring and mix in.  Add more or less food coloring depending on the desired shade and intensity of pink.   

Whip 1 ¼ cups whipping cream. Fold a fourth of the whipped cream into raspberry mixture; fold in remaining whipped cream.  Spoon into crust.  Cover and Freeze over night.



Remove from freezer 10-15 minutes before serving.  Garnish with the reserved whipped cream and raspberries.




PISTACHIO ALMOND ICE CREAM (HOMEMADE)



Ingredients:
1 cup Half and Half, well chilled
¾ cup sugar

2 cups Heavy Cream, well chilled
¼ teaspoon Pistachio Flavor  (LORANN OILS)
¾ Teaspoon Xanthan Gum where to buy xanthan gum? click here
Green Food Coloring, optional
¼ cup shelled pistachios, toasted**
¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted**

Directions:
In a Large bowl, Mix Half and Half with ¾ cup sugar.  Mix until sugar dissolves (about 1 – 2 minutes).    Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until thick and creamy.  Pour into your ice cream maker’s freezer bowl and let operate according to manufacturer’s directions.  Meanwhile, place the container you will be freezing your ice cream in into the freezer to chill. About 5 minutes before the ice cream is finished churning, add the toasted nuts.   Once the ice cream has finished churning, pour ice cream in your prepared container and freeze for 5-8 hours.  Enjoy.


**To toast the nuts, put them on a baking sheet in a single layer.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 3 minutes.  Stir, then bake for 2 more minutes or until roasted.