Buster Bars

in other words: oreo/ice cream/gooey chocolate goodness layer dessert.  With peanuts on top.

This recipe is an old family favorite.  My younger brother requested it for his birthday, instead of cake, for as many years as I can remember.  We all love it.  Who doesn’t love an oreo crust? with a sauce tastes almost like a chocolate/caramel.  and with the salted peanuts on top, oh man. I promise you’re in for a treat.

Buster Bars makes a 9”x13” pan

1 package Oreos (I used about 40 cookies from a Costco pack)

1 cube butter, melted

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream (or enough ice cream to make a layer), softened slightly

1 cube butter

1 can evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed)

1 C milk chocolate chips

2 C powdered sugar

Spanish peanuts

• Crush all the Oreos to a fine crumb and mix together with the melted butter. Spread across the bottom of a 9”x13” pan (that can go in the freezer)
• Once the ice cream is easy to work with, slab (not scoop) it to form a layer on top of the Oreo crust.  Freeze until firm.
• While freezing, melt cube of butter and chocolate chips in a pan over medium heat.  Add evaporated milk and powdered sugar, turn heat to medium-high, and bring to boil.  Boil for 8 minutes, stirring constantly.  Let cool.
• After the sauce is cooled, pour over the ice cream layer.  (if you’re too anxious, it will totally melt the ice cream, you want to make sure the ice cream is frozen, and the sauce is cooled.)
• Sprinkle with the peanuts, then throw it back into the freezer until it’s firm. (or, until you just can’t wait any longer to eat it.)

Macaroni & Cheese

I mostly just enjoy making treats, but there are a couple of dishes that I like to make, and this is one of them.  I also love to eat this.  it is delicious. 

I got this recipe from my sister-in-law.  She made it for me one night after I had my first baby, and it think it was one of the best things I have ever eaten.  I love pasta anyway, but this cheese to pasta ratio, with a crunchy breadcrumb top is just the best.

Since then, it has been a special dinner in our family, reserved for birthdays and other occasions.  But my family has grown to love it so much, that it has moved up the ranks and is now in our regular dinner rotation.  My kids don’t even like mac n’ cheese from a box anymore, they always request this.  I can’t say that I blame them.

Macaroni & Cheese

3 Tblsp butter

3 Tblsp flour

2 1/2 C milk (my vote is the fattier the better.  I’ve never used skim, but I’m sure it would be ok)

1 lb. sharp cheddar cheese (I always buy my cheese from Costco, we like the extra sharp)

1/2 lb. colby cheese

1 Tbslp dijon (I use this:. It’s our favorite)

pinch+ of cayenne pepper

salt and pepper to taste (I’ve started using white pepper, I like it.)

1 lb noodles (pick your favorite.  I usually use curly elbows, but we’ve made it with penne as well.)

2 Tblsp butter melted

3/4 C panko bread crumbs

• Cut the cheese into 1/2” cubes, and start a pot of water to boil for the pasta.
• Preheat over to 350 and butter a 2 qt baking dish
• Melt 3 T butter in a pot over med-low heat.
• Add the flour, turn to med-high heat and cook for two minutes, stirring constantly. 
• Slowly add the milk, whisking constantly and cook until thickened.
• At some point during this, add the pasta to the boiling water to cook according to package directions.
• Add about 2/3 of the cubed cheeses to your sauce, and cook over low heat until cheeses are melted.
• Stir in dijon, cayenne and s&p.
• After draining the pasta, stir together pasta, cheese sauce, and remaining cheese cubes in the 2 qt dish.
• Melt 2 T butter and mix with the panko crumbs.  Sprinkle over top of noodles.
• Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes until golden brown on top and bubbling.

I love that you don’t melt all the cheese cubes into the sauce.  Instead, they all melt while baking, so while you’re eating it, you get extra little pockets of gooey cheese. Yum.

This dish is also great for reheating, so don’t worry if there are leftovers, it will taste great the next day too!!

Flower Cupcake Tutorial

Have you ever been to the site i am baker? She has a seriously amazing blog, and that’s where I learned how to do this:

Aren’t they so cute? I’m am really happy with how they turned out, so I want to show you how I did it. 

You will need:

• Cupcakes.
• Frosting.  I used Swiss meringue buttercream, but you could easily use buttercream.
• At least 1 petal tip, I used Wilton #103 (yellow) and also #124 (purple)
• A bag to hold the frosting and petal tip (decorator’s bag, ziploc with a corner cut off…)

Start with the wide tip at the edge of the cupcake, add pressure to make a little dollop, then push the tip into the dollop a bit, and with continued pressure drag to the center of the cupcake.  Repeat all the way around.  Pushing the tip back into the dollop is what makes the line in the petal.  If that doesn’t make sense in words, I did make a video, I hope it’s helpful!

*note……  the only noises in the video are of my kids =) love them, but they are kinda loud….*

Hopefully your cupcakes won’t be sunken in like mine (it was a new recipe I need to change a bit) But even if they are, I actually kind of like the depth it gives to the flowers.

You can leave it with one layer of petals, or add another layer (or 2):same concept, just a smaller layerI honestly can’t decide if I like the single color, or 2-tone better.  What do you think?

How about some mini cupcakes?

I think this one might be my favorite little one:

on a random side note, Have you ever seen “The Swan Princess”? It’s an animated movie that came out in 1994.  and it.is.awesome.  It has great songs, that my siblings and I still sing sometimes, and now, so do my kids.  A part of one of the songs goes like this, “Practice, Practice, Practice!”  So to bring it back to cupcakes…..  That’s my best advice for piping.

If you decide to try this, (or any of the recipes on my blog), feel free to post some pictures on the www.facebook.com/fredellicious Facebook wall! I’d love to see it! Have a good day!

Swiss Meringue Buttercream

This frosting is super rich, smooth, and buttery. and I can’t lie, I love butter. So, I think this recipe rocks! It is a lot different than a typical buttercream, but it’s sturdy=great for stacking cakes and more elegant/gourmet=perfect for fancy cakes. It’s also great because you can add so many different flavors: lemon or strawberry for example.

This recipe can seem a little complicated, there are a few steps. I recommend reading the entire recipe before starting. And if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to comment or email!

Swiss Meringue Buttercream (adapted from a few different recipes I’ve found)

Things that will be helpful, but are not required:

• double boiler

• standing mixer

• candy thermometer

2/3 C Egg Whites (from about 5 Large eggs)

1 C Sugar (not powdered!)

1 pinch of salt

1 1/2 C (3 sticks) unsalted butter cut into 1T bits, room temp

1 tsp vanilla

Start with a double boiler. Don’t have one? Make one! That’s what I do. Start with a pot, and add an inch or two of water. Put it over medium heat. Then, place a non-plastic bowl (for 1 less dish, use the bowl from your standing mixer if it works) and place it in/on the pot:

the bowl needs to sit high enough so that the bottom is not touching the water.

Now add your egg whites, granulated sugar and salt, and whisk together

Keep whisking/stirring. It doesn’t have to be vigorous, just enough to keep it all mixed together, and to prevent the egg whites from cooking around the edges. Believe me, you don’t want scrambled eggs in your frosting. Continue until at least 1 of 2 things happens: 1. your candy thermometer reaches about 160 degrees F and/or 2. If you dip a finger in and rub it against your thumb, it is completely smooth, the sugar is dissolved:

it will probably take 3-5 minutes

Transfer this mixture to your standing mixer. (I definitely recommend standing mixer, but it’s doable with a hand mixer too!) Use the whisk attachment and turn it on high. Let whip until the egg mixture becomes room temperature (the bottom outside of the bowl no longer feels warm) and you have pretty glossy peaks forming:

this can take anywhere from about 5-10 minutes

If you’re using a standing mixer, while the mixture is whipping is when I cut my butter into 1T bits. I like to cut the butter when it’s cold, it seems easier, then lay them out on a plate and microwave it for just a bit to get it to room temp

note: those are 2 Tblsp slices, I cut them in half before adding.

Once your eggs/sugar mixture is room temp with the glossy peaks, turn your mixer to low, and start adding the butter 1T at a time. Only add 1 at a time, and be sure that each incorporates, probably 10 seconds, before adding another bit of butter.

after you’ve added all the butter, it might look kind of weird:

a little soupy and probably not what you were expecting. Fear not! We’ll fix it.

• Turn your mixer on high, and whip away!

It might take another 5-10 minutes to get the mixture to come together, and it will start to look like this:

Isn’t it pretty??

Once it looks like this you can add your vanilla extract (or another extract) and mix it on medium to incorporate it.

Now, to help with air bubbles, I suggest switching to the paddle attachment and mixing on low for a couple of minutes. Then you’re ready to use!!

Because of the high butter content in this frosting, you will want to store the frosted cakes/cupcakes at room temperature. Otherwise, it will probably melt, or if you refrigerate it, it will become hard. Also be careful if you’re piping with it, since you’re holding it in warm hands, it can melt even faster.

If you want to store for future use, you can store it in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a few weeks. Before using, bring to room temperature, and whip to get light and fluffy.

Raspberry & White Chocolate Cupcakes

I actually had a hard time naming this post, because they are white cupcakes, filled with raspberry jam, with a white chocolate butter cream.  Got it?

How about now?

I know it’s a long description, but these are tasty!!  And I really wish that I had thought to bake these in blue cupcake holders, because that would have been super cute for the 4th.  Blast.  But you could do it. Or white holders with blue sprinkles? Or forget what they look like and just eat them……  because they taste great.

I started with 1/2 batch of the same recipe for white cake as this post.  But you could make it with a white cake mix, just know that it will make more than this recipe.

Raspberry & White Chocolate Cupcakes (makes about 20)

1 stick unsalted butter, room temp

1 1/6 C sugar (I just filled my 1/3 C measurer half full)

2 XL or 3 L eggs room temp

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 C flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 C milk warmed in the microwave a little bit to bring to room temp

• Preheat oven to 350F and line the cupcake pans
• Sift together flour, baking powder and salt, set aside
• Cream the sugar and butter, then add eggs one at a time, letting each one mix in before adding another
• Add the vanilla and mix until incorporated
• Then, alternating between wet and dry, add the flour and milk
• Divide evenly between the cupcake holders and bake 15-18 minutes, until a toothpick comes put clean
• Let cool in pan for about 10 minutes then flip on a cooling rack to cool completely

 

• While the cupcakes are cooling, I like to make the frosting.  I made a white chocolate buttercream, it compliments these cupcakes perfectly.

White Chocolate Buttercream (if you made a box cake, I would recommend doubling this recipe)

1/2 C (1 cube) butter, room temp

1 1/2 C powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

4 oz white chocolate *to make sure it is truly white chocolate, the ingredients need to include cocoa butter.  If it’s made with palm kernel or some other kind of oil, it will have a vanilla/candy melt flavor not white chocolate.  I buy Baker’s white chocolate squares

• melt the white chocolate squares in the microwave, in 30 second intervals, stirring after every 30 seconds. Then let cool

• Cream butter.  Add powdered sugar 1/2 C at at time, making sure it’s completely mixed in before adding more.
• After adding all the sugar, add the vanilla and mix in.  turn on medium high and mix for a couple of minutes
• Add all of the melted/cooled chocolate and mix on medium high until all incorporated, scraping sides as needed

 

• When the cakes are all cooled, fill them with jam.  I used the seedless raspberry, but I’ve also made these with strawberry jam and that is delicious as well.  This is totally your preference.

After they are filled, go ahead and frost them! I (surprise) used a 1M wilton tip for frosting

Enjoy!!