Vanilla Bundt Cake

One thing I love about Trinity is that I can try a new recipe out on our friends here, and they are always appreciative (or at least forgiving). I served this at our Lenten Fish supper on March 21.  I had received a jar of Dark Chocolate Sour Cherry sauce (from Tait Farms) as a gift, and thought it would make a good cake topper, so I scoured the internet for recipes that included things I had in my pantry and wouldn't have to leave the house to find. I saw various incarnations of this recipe over and over again, so I figured I likely wouldn't strike out with this one.

I was right. The cake was super moist and tasty, and didn't have that "box cake" flavor. (But it was from a box!) The sauce complimented it perfectly; not too sweet, but interesting and flavorful. It would also be great with fresh berry coulis or a drizzle of nutella. I think this method would work with just about any flavor of cake mix. It really made it rich and delicious.

Vanilla Bundt Cake
made by Ronica, recipe from various internet sources

1 (18.25 oz) package yellow cake mix
1 cup sour cream
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs
(original recipe included a teaspoon of vanilla extract, but I had my kids helping me and forgot about that. It had plenty of flavor without it.)

Preheat oven to 350F, and lightly grease a bundt or 9x13 pan.
Combine all ingredients in large mixing bowl and mix on low speed about a minute. Increase speed to high and mix about 2 minutes, until well mixed, scraping down bowl as needed.
Pour into pan, and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean (or with a few moist crumbs), about 30-35 minutes for a 9x13, 40-42 minutes for a bundt.
Let cool, and if bundt, turn out of pan after about 10 minutes.

Frost as desired or just serve with sauce or topping of choice.

Lemon Blueberry Crumb Bars

Lena made these for a recent coffee hour, and they were absolutely delicious! (I had 2.) She got the recipe from the Kraft foods site, linked at the bottom. Nice to have a taste of summer--right now, I think we could all use that!

Lemon-Blueberry Crumb Bars

What You Need

1/2 cup butter
1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix
2 eggs, divided
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. zest and 3 Tbsp. juice from 1 lemon
2-1/2 cups fresh blueberries

Make It

Heat oven to 350ºF. Line 13x9-inch pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides. Microwave butter in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1 to 1-1/2 min. or until melted. Add dry cake mix and 1 egg; beat with mixer until blended. Press 2/3 of the dough onto bottom of prepared pan.
Beat cream cheese and sugar with mixer until blended. Add remaining egg, zest and juice; mix well. Pour over crust; top with berries. Pinch small pieces of the remaining dough between your fingers; press lightly into cream cheese layer.
Bake 48 to 50 min or until center is set. Cool completely. Refrigerate at least 1 hr before cutting. Use foil handles to lift dessert from pan before cutting into bars.

http://www.kraftfoods.com

Party Meatballs

by Kathy Sikorski Brasier

I may have gone back for seconds of these. And thirds. And maybe the one on my 2-year old's plate that she didn't eat, I ate. Just maybe.

Party Meatballs
Mix together:
2 eggs, beaten
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
½ teaspoon pepper
Add and mix together:
3 lbs ground beef
Shape into 1-inch meatballs. Place into 3 greased 13x9 baking pans.

Sauce: 2 cups ketchup
1 ½ cups packed brown sugar
½ cup chopped onion
Mix together; pour over meatballs. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour or until cooked through. Yield: about
7 dozen meatballs

Fruit Fluff Parfait

By Priya Poehner


Priya served this at a recent coffee hour, and it was a big hit--the bowl was nearly licked clean! She found it  here via Pinterest, so thank you to the original poster. It is light and delicious, and could not be easier.

I know this one is going in my file for the holidays--simple and tasty!


Ingredients:

• 2- 6 oz. raspberry yogurts (or your favorite flavor)
• 1- package vanilla instant pudding mix (3.4 oz. powder)
• 16 oz. whipped topping (Cool Whip)
• about 16 oz. your favorite fruits (Priya used frozen mixed berries, which gave it a delicious, frosty flavor)

Mix yogurt and vanilla pudding powder well, then fold in the whipped topping. You can either fold the fruit in or serve it over the top of the fluff, or in layers in a trifle dish if you want to get really fancy. ;-)

Creamsicle Fudge/ Marbled Orange Fudge

This was a hit at the Women of Faith Tea on May 1, 2011. All the fabulous flavor of a Creamsicle, without the tooth sensitivity! Delicious!!!

By Sue Ellen Krupa

This recipe is from Quick Cooking with some modifications.

3/4 c butter (no substitutes)

3 c. sugar   

3/4 c. whipping cream  ( I use evaporated milk) 

1 package (10-12 oz.) white or vanilla chips

1 jar (7oz.) marshmallow creme

3 t orange extract   

12 drops yellow food coloring   

5 drops red food coloring

Line a 9x12 pan with parchment paper, or grease with butter. In a heavy sauce pan, combine the sugar, cream,and butter. Cook and stir for 4 minutes. Remove from heat: stir in chips and marshmallow creme until smooth. (I pour my boiling sugar mixture into a mixing bowl, add my chips and marshmallow fluff and mix it at high speed with my mixer.)

Remove one cup and set aside. Add orange extract and food colorings to remaining mixture: mix until blended. Pour the orange mixture into prepared pan. Drop reserved marshmallow mixture by tablespoonfuls over top. Cut through mixture with a knife to swirl. Cover and refrigerate until set.

Yield about 2 1/2 pounds.

7 Layer Bars (One Pan!)

By Ronica Skarphol Brownson

These were taken from my Mom's KMOT TV Minot ND cookbook from the 70's. There were 3 versions of this recipe in there, and probably a million like it on the web. I figured that must mean they are good. I was right! Some people call these Dolly Madison bars, or 7 Story Bars. I love how easy they are, how great the house smells when they are done, how quick they go together, and of course, how delicious they come out!

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 small (7 oz.) bag sweetened coconut
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup chopped nuts
1 can Eagle brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Put the stick of butter in a 9x13 pan and put it in the oven to melt. When melted, swirl it around to coat the bottom and sides. Sprinkle the rest of the ingredients, in the order given, as evenly as possible in the pan. Do not stir. Drizzle the milk evenly over the whole works. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool well before cutting. Store in the fridge.

Some tips I read:

If the coconut goes on last (or you save some for the top) it will get all toasty.
You can put half the milk over the crumbs, then the rest over the toppings to make it hold together better. I didn't have any trouble with mine, but it's a variation.
Line the pan with parchment paper or non-stick foil for ease of release.
You can mix the butter and crumbs in a bowl, then pat in for a more firm crust. Again, I had no trouble with mine, so I would skip this step.
Change the chips, nuts, etc. for your own variations. This week mine used peanut butter, milk chocolate and semi-sweet chocolate chips with pecans. Mainly this is because someone stuck the wrong kind of chips in the butterscotch spot on the shelf at Wegman's and I grabbed the wrong bag. But they were delicious so that was fine with me!

Fast and Easy Tailgate Apps

by Viki Stumbers

Here’s a non-recipe favorite:

Arrange on a large platter:

·         fresh apple wedges
·         pretzels
·         crackers
·         small slices of cheddar cheese

Serve with 1 jar of Herlocher’s Dipping Mustard and 1 container of Caramel Apple dip (found in the produce section).   Set out two spoons (for the dips) and toothpicks.  Just about everything goes with everything else, and prep time is nearly nil.

Ways to stretch/expand the apps (and still just about everything goes with just about everything else):

1.        Need to make it heartier?  Add cubes of ham and cubes or cracker slices of Swiss cheese.
2.       Heartier than that?  Also add chunks of kielbasa or smoked sausage and a small container of horseradish.
3.       Need it to be sweeter?  Add plain store-bought cookies (sturdy/crisp) and a jar of Nutella (chocolate-hazelnut spread—find it near the peanut butter).
4.       Need it to be healthier?  Add natural peanut butter, raisins and celery sticks.
5.       Need to feed a crowd?  Add all items from 1-4 to make a super-platter.
6.       Need it to be faster?  Buy the cheese pre-sliced for crackers (near the shredded cheese section) and the apples pre-cut (in produce aisle)
7.       Need it faster than that (as in, you’re on your way to the tailgate/party/whatever and realized you forgot to get anything)?  Almost all items are available at Sheetz—grab and go!

Easy Fresh Fruit Cobbler

by Lora Price

2 cup fresh fruit (peaches, blueberries, blackberries, etc.)
¼ cup sugar
½ stick margarine
½ to ¾ cup sugar (to taste)
½ cup milk
1 cup all purpose flour
1 ¼ teaspoon baking powder
pinch of salt

Mix fruit and ¼ cup sugar in bowl. Let stand 30 minutes or until juice forms.
Melt margarine in 2 quart baking dish. Make batter of remaining ingredients.
Pour batter over butter. Do not stir. Pour fruit and juice over batter. Do not stir.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until brown.