Fruit Soup

¾ c. sugar
1 c. water
1 c. peach juice (or another cup of water, which is what I always do instead)
3 Tb tapioca (be sure to use the “minute brand” quick cooking tapioca!)

6 oz orange juice concentrate
1 ½ c. water

2 cans mandarin oranges (with or without juice)
1 quart sliced peaches - (you can use 1 large can of peach slices, but I would not add the heavy syrup – I always try to use Lite peaches that have been bottled with pear juice and water, in which case I add the juice. Also, cut up the slices so they are bite-size.)
2 c. fresh strawberries, sliced, just before serving
2 bananas, just before serving
1 bag frozen raspberries, thawed but still cool and firm (or an equivalent amount of fresh) or other berry mix (raspberries give the juice a red tint, without raspberries it is an orange color. I almost always use a tri-berry mix which includes raspberries, blueberries and blackberries.)


Bring sugar, water, peach juice and tapioca to a boil. Continue boiling on medium high for about 10 minutes, stirring often. Some tapioca will be clear and other granules will have a white center. Take off heat. Let sit for 30 minutes. (This is when the tapioca will become more clear.)
Add 6 oz orange juice concentrate and 1 ½ c. water. Chill overnight.

Add mandarin oranges and peaches. Before serving add strawberries, bananas, and raspberries.

From: sisterscafe

Fiesta Chicken Pasta Salad

1 pkg Hidden Valley Fiesta Ranch dip mix
½ c. oil
½ c. vinegar

1 lb cooked, shredded or cubed chicken (about 1 ½ to 2 breasts)
3/4 box garden rotini
1 can black beans
1 can black olives, halved
2 -3 tomatoes, chopped
Frozen corn

Mix dressing mix, oil, and vinegar in small bowl and set aside. Combine chicken, cooked pasta, beans, olives, and tomatoes in large bowl. Add dressing and frozen corn about 20 minutes before serving. Be sure to toss again just before serving, as the dressing will seep to the bottom.

From: sisters cafe

Chocolate Cobbler

• 1 cup All-purpose Flour
• 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
• ¼ teaspoons Salt
• 7 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder, Divided
• 1-¼ cup Sugar, Divided
• ½ cups Milk
• ⅓ cups Melted Butter
• 1-½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• ½ cups Light Brown Sugar, Packed
• 1-½ cup Hot Tap Water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

First stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, 3 tablespoons of the cocoa, and 3/4 cup of the white sugar. Reserve the remaining cocoa and sugar.

Stir in the milk, melted butter, and vanilla to the flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Pour the mixture into an ungreased 8-inch baking dish. I prefer my small oval Corning Ware glass dish.

In a separate small bowl, mix the remaining white sugar (it should be 1/2 cup), the brown sugar, and remaining 4 tablespoons of cocoa. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the batter.

Pour the hot tap water over all. DO NOT STIR!

Bake for about 40 minutes or until the center is set.

Let stand for a few minutes if you can hold yourself back. Serve with homemade ice cream using the gooey sauce to spoon over all.

From: tastykitchen.com

Perfect Cupcake Frosting and Filling

The Vanilla Version
3 T Flour
1/2 C milk (whole milk is best, but I used non-fat when it's all I have and it's actually fine)
1/2 C real butter
1/2 C sugar (that's granulated sugar, not powdered sugar)
1 t vanilla extract, or other flavor if you wish.

Whisk together the flour and the milk. Heat in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk continuously until it starts to thicken. I think this is the critical point for any of you who have had problems with this recipe. I have a feeling people are under-cooking this part. Let it cook, while stirring, until it looks like pudding (you should be able to see the bottom of the pan when you stir it). Even though it's thick, you can still strain it through a mesh strainer (just whisk the mixture in the strainer to push the thick stuff through) and then let it cool completely to room temp. or chill it in the fridge. It needs to be cooled completely. If you don't let it cool completely, it will melt the butter and you'll have runny frosting.

It an electric stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugar for a minute or two until well combined and fluffy. You'll want to use the whisk attachment on a stand mixer, not the flat paddle. Then while beating, add in the thickened milk mixture and the vanilla. Beat on the highest speed you can get to without it spraying all over the place for 7 minutes. Yes, 7 whole minutes, maybe even 8 or 9. I know that seems like a long time, but that's when the magic happens!

You will be scared because it will look like a weird goopy mess at first and you'll wonder what on earth you did wrong. Keep beating and something amazing happens. It goes from that goopy mess to something thick, velvety smooth, and perfectly fluffy.
Use it to fill cupcakes or other pastries, or as a frosting on top. You can't go wrong putting this on just about anything :)

One batch makes enough to frost 12 cupcakes with BIG tops. If you're just spreading a little on top, it will do 24.


After trouble-shooting with a lot of people, here are some helpful Notes:

1. Use real butter, and a good name-brand. Cheap butter does weird things.

2. If you beat for the 6-8 minutes and the mixture still looks strange, beat longer and at a higher speed if you can. It should come together, but it takes a little patience!

3. Store at room temperature in a sealed container. Frosting may separate in the fridge, but you can store it overnight if left at room temp and in a well sealed container.

The Chocolate Version
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
1 cup real butter, softened
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, melted
Optional: Additional cocoa powder as needed

Melt your chocolate chips if you haven't already and set aside to cool.

In a small saucepan, whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, salt and milk; bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Boil 1-3 minutes or until thickened like a thinned pudding. Remove pan from heat and strain mixture into a small bowl. Cool completely in the refrigerator or freezer.

When chocolate flour mixture is cooled, beat the butter until creamy, about 1 minute. Beat in the cooled chocolate mixture until well combined fluffy, about 1 minute. Finally add in melted chocolate and beat again until well combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes. If desired, add additional cocoa powder to taste, up to 4 tablespoons. Spread or pipe frosting on to cupcakes or cake.

Makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes.

Storage: Store unused frosting in fridge and bring to room temperature before using again. If needed, beat with an electric beater before using.

From:ourbestbites.com

Homemade Mayonnaise

Ingredients:
1 egg
1/2 c oil (any kind will do)
1 tsp salt
3 tsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp prepared mustard (optional)

Equipment Needed:
Whisk/Beater/Mixer/Immersion Blender
AND a Deep Cup or Bowl

OR Food Processor/Blender

Instructions:
Step 1. Beat (I'm using this word to mean whatever it is you'll be be doing with your beater, blender, mixer, or food processor) your egg for one whole minute or longer. Do not skip or cut short this step, or your mayonnaise will fail.
Step 2a. If you're using a blender, food processor, or mixer on a stand, or if you have an assistant to give you an extra set of hands, after that first minute is up, pour a very slow steady stream of oil into your egg while it is still being beaten.
Step 2b. If you don't have your hands free, because, like me you're using an immersion blender or beater or whisk, pour one teaspoon of oil into the egg, beat for 10 seconds, add 1 more teaspoon, beat some more, until all the required oil has been combined with the egg.

Note: When you've already poured in a quarter of your oil, the egg should start thickening up. If it is still as runny as when you started, the mayonnaise has most likely failed- but don't throw that out yet- see the flop fix tip at the bottom of this post.

Step 3. When you've finished adding all your oil, you should have a mayonnaise, albeit a very bland version, the same texture and consistency as the store bought variety. If it looks like mayo but is a little looser, add more oil, incrementally, until it is the thickness you desire. (Yes, paradoxically, the more oil you add, the thicker it will be, provided you don't add the oil too quickly.)
Step 4. Mix in the salt, lemon juice, and mustard, adding more or less to taste.

Notes:
Oil types- Any oil or fat will work for this, provided it is at a liquid state when preparing the mayo. Vegetable oils, coconut, palm, nut, olive oils can all be used, as can liquefied animal fats such as lard, beef tallow, ghee, or chicken fat. Keep in mind that if you plan on refrigerating this condiment or anything made with the mayo, that only oils that remain liquid when cold will allow the mayonnaise to keep its texture once refrigerated. Mayonnaise made with more solid oils, like tallow or palm oil will develop a butter like consistency once refrigerated, and therefore should be prepared right before consumption.

Flop Fix Tip- If your mayo flopped, you'll have a thin runny liquid instead of the desired condiment. This isn't a problem. For your re-do, you can reuse the same ingredients as before, just add an extra egg. To fix your flop, beat your new egg, but for longer this time than you originally did. Now you simply use the flopped mayo instead of the oil this recipe calls for. This time, add the oil much more slowly than last time. Adding too much oil at one time is usually the reason for the flop. To ensure that the mayo doesn't flop the second time around, make sure to beat the egg longer, and beat the mixture for longer in between each time that you add your very scant teaspoon of oil.

Given up on making mayo once it flopped? I can understand. Once it took me till try number 3 to get it right!Instead of throwing out the flopped mayo or trying again to make mayo, you can use the flopped mayo in most recipes that call for oil. The flopped mayo works especially well in salads, etc.

From: pennilessparenting.com