Gooey Butter Cake

Cake:

1 yellow cake mix

1 egg

8 tbs butter, melted (1 cube)

Filling:

1 8 oz cream cheese, softened

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

8 tbs butter, melted (1 cube)

1 15 oz box powdered sugar

Preheat oven 350

Lightly grease 13 x 9 baking pan

Cake: Combine cake mix,egg and melted butter. Pat batter into the bottom of pan.

Filling: Beat cream cheese until smooth add eggs, vanilla and melted butter. Add powdered sugar and mix well.

Spread over cake batter.

Bake for 40-50 minutes. It should look golden brown and is best served chilled. Serve with whipped cream or cherry pie filling or fresh fruit.

My notes: Becky INSISTS that it's best served chilled but I ate it at room temp and it was so good I wanted to commit suicide! (But I didn't)

From: Becky Tucker

"The Best Frosting I've Ever Had"

(As reported by pioneerwoman.com. I've actually never tried it.) **Does the period go inside or outside the parenthesis? I always get this mixed up and it bothers me!

• 1 cup Milk
• 5 Tablespoons Flour
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• 1 cup Butter
• 1 cup Granulated Sugar (not Powdered Sugar!)

Bake your favorite chocolate cake and let it cool.

In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. (If I’m in a hurry, I place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools.) Stir in vanilla.

While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Then add the cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture and beat until it all combines and resembles whipped cream.

Homemade Ingredients

Check out this link!

The Tasty Kitchen

Chickpea Noodle Soup

serves 6 (can easily be halved)

1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
8-10 cups chicken broth --can use vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 lb pasta (I used whole wheat angel hair, broken in half)
2 15.5-oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
black pepper, to taste
shaved Parmesan or Asiago cheese
(I think if you have fresh parsley--that would be good too)

In a large pot, heat olive oil, garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Saute for a few minutes, then add broth. Bring broth/ garlic mixture to a boil, over high heat. Stir in pasta. Reduce heat to medium-high, and add chickpeas. Gently boil, 8-12 minutes (depending on what pasta you use), until pasta is cooked through. Season to taste with black pepper.

From: sisterscafe.blogspot.com

Faux-tisserie Chicken

1 whole chicken, small enough to fit in your slow cooker

Salt-based seasoning (Seasoning salt, Cajun seasoning, lemon pepper with salt in it, etc. Just make sure salt is one of the first ingredients on the label.)

OPTIONAL:

Whole garlic cloves, peeled
Fresh herbs

Make 3 balls of aluminum foil and place them in the bottom of your slow cooker. These hold the chicken off the bottom so the hot air can circulate all around the chicken and so it's not stewing in its own juices.


Rinse chicken, including the cavity, and pat dry with paper towels. Place the chicken on its back so the breast is facing up and the legs are on the plate. If you want (and I actually strongly recommend that you do UNLESS you're looking for a neutral flavor), pull the skin up all around the chicken. This does involve sticking your hand between the skin and the breast. Oooh, sounds dirty. Slice a few garlic cloves in half lengthwise and stick them under the skin. You can also arrange a couple sprigs of fresh herbs like rosemary, thyme, and/or sage under the skin. This makes a very pretty chicken when it's all cooked and adds a lot of flavor.

Rub salt-based seasoning VERY liberally onto the skin of the chicken. Place chicken breast-up on the foil in the slow cooker, cover, turn heat to low, and leave it alone for 7-8 hours.

From: ourbestbites.com

Ruby Tuesday® Strawberry Tallcake for Two

Strawberry Mousse and Sauce
1 10-ounce package frozen strawberries in syrup
1 3/4 cups water
1 3-ounce package strawberry Jell-O
1 cup heavy cream

Sponge Cake
5 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cold water
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

12 to 18 scoops vanilla ice cream (1/2 gallon)
1/2 pint fresh strawberries, sliced
1 can whipped cream

1. Defrost the frozen strawberries and pour the entire package, including the syrup, into a blender or food processor and puree for 10 to 15 seconds until smooth.

2. Combine the strawberry puree with 1 1/2 cups of the water in a small saucepan over medium heat.

3. When the strawberry mixture comes to a boil, add the entire package of Jell-O, stir to dissolve, and remove the pan from the heat to cool.

4. When the strawberry mixture has cooled to room temperature, divide it in half into two medium bowls.

5. Beat the whipping cream until it is thick and forms peaks. Fold the cream into one of the bowls of the strawberry mixture until well combined. This is your strawberry mousse. Cover and chill.

6. To the other bowl, and the remaining 1/4 cup of water. This is the strawberry syrup. Cover and chill this mixture as well.

7. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

8. Beat the egg yolks until they turn creamy and a much lighter shade of yellow.

9. Add the sugar and blend it well into the yolks.

10. Add the water and vanilla and combine well with the yolks mixture.

11. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and add it to the yolk mixture. Mix well until the batter is smooth.

12. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until smooth, then add the cream of tartar. Continue beating until the whites are stiff and form peaks.

13. Fold the egg whites into the batter and mix slowly just until well combined.

14. Pour the batter into an ungreased 17 x 11-inch cookie sheet (with turned-up edges all the way around) and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the top of the sponge cake is a light brown color.

15. When the cake has cooled and the mousse has firmed up, you are ready to assemble the cake. First divide the cake into three even sections by cutting down the width of the cake twice with a sharp knife. Be sure the cake has come loose from the pan. You may need to use a spatula to unstick the cake sections.

16. Divide the mousse in half and spread each half onto two sections of the cake. Carefully place the layers on top of each other so that the mousse has been sandwiched in the middle between the three layers. This cake can be stored in the refrigerator for several days until you need it.

17. When you are ready to assemble the dessert, slice the cake into 6 even sections. Put a slice into a medium-sized bowl (or a large goblet if you have one), then arrange 2 to 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream around the cake. Pour a sixth (just over 1/4 cup) of the strawberry sauce over the top of the cake and ice cream, sprinkle some sliced strawberries on top, then cover the thing with whipped cream. Repeat with the remaining servings.

From: topsecretrecipes.com

Ricotta Cheese Seasoning

Season your ricotta cheese when making lasagna to add a sweet touch that is divine.

To be mixed with 32 oz ricotta cheese:
1 egg
2 T Parmesan cheese
sprinkle parsley flakes
1/4 c sugar
sprinkle of cinnamon