The best chocolate cake...

Forget that this heavenly slice of cake was a Super Mario Brothers Mushroom two seconds ago. Don't let that sway your love for this cake. Forgive my picture...this was the last piece left after our party at Chuck E Cheese. My son just turned three and is obsessed with Super Mario Brothers. He's equally obsessed with chocolate (I have no idea where he gets that)...so there was no other option but to make him this cake.

I searched around for a good chocolate cake and found this one that everyone raved about. I actually am not a huge chocolate cake fan which is strange since I adore chocolate but I really loved this cake. It will be my go-to chocolate cake from now on. I dare you to prove me wrong that it's not the best. This cake is rich, moist and decadent. Just so you know, this is in a different category than a milk chocolate cake...it's a darker cake so don't compare the two. Even though my gigantic cupcake pan cooks a little unevenly I loved it. One of our friends said it tasted like a big Oreo. So if you like Oreos...you will like this.

I posted the frosting recipe even though I am not sold on it. The frosting has shortening in it and you know how I feel about that. I prefer butter but the shortening did give me a pure white frosting that you can't get with butter. Maybe if I didn't know it had shortening in it I would have liked it...

The Best Chocolate Cake

by Kevin and Amanda

1 box devil’s food cake mix

1 small box Jello instant chocolate pudding mix (not the sugar or fat free kind!)
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 cups mini semisweet chocolate chips (you can use regular too)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a VERY large bowl (4 qt), mix together everything except chocolate chips. Batter will be thick. Stir in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into cake pan of choice (I normally use two 9-inch pie pans). You could use this batter to make any kind of cake: sheet cake, cupcakes, bundt cake, etc. For cooking time, use the cooking times on the back of the devil’s food cake box as a guide and add around 10 minutes to whatever it says. Do the toothpick check, and if it’s not done, I check on it every 5 mins after that. It usually takes around 45 mins for two, 9-inch pie pans.

Buttercream Frosting
1 cup shortening or butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

In a mixing bowl, cream shortening or butter until fluffy. Add sugar and continue creaming until well blended. Add salt, vanilla, and whipping cream. Blend on low speed until moistened. Beat at high speed until frosting is fluffy.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter

I do over my fair share of food blog browsing and therefore I see the trends in the food world...and my friends ASPARAGUS is the new BLACK.

Pair it up with a pork tenderloin, as an accessory to your salmon, or wrap it in proscuttio for an appetizer. Really it goes with everything and is the most popular vegetable this spring. My family loves it so I'm always trying different ways to serve it and we really liked this. This recipe comes from my sister-in-law Kristy who served this at Easter.

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Browned Butter

by SweetTreatsandMore

40 asparagus spears, trimmed (about 2 pounds)
Cooking spray
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400°.

Arrange asparagus in a single layer on baking sheet; coat with cooking spray. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until tender.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium heat; cook for 3 minutes or until lightly browned, shaking pan occasionally. Make sure not to burn it just get it to a point where the butter has a nutty smell. Remove from heat; stir in soy sauce and vinegar. Drizzle over the asparagus, tossing well to coat. Serve immediately

Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles

I'm a little obsessed with holidays so I have this website bookmarked that has all of the National Days listed for every day of the year. It just gives me an excuse to have a party or bake something for that special day. Today happens to be National Pretzel Day and in honor of that I made these fabulous peanut butter pretzel turtles. This were dangerously too easy to make. Most likely you will have all of the ingredients and can whip them up right now. Something about the salty pretzels and the sweet chocolate combo is to die for.

Peanut Butter Pretzel Truffles

adapted from How Sweet it is

1/2 cup natural peanut butter (I used Costco's brand)

1/4 to 1/2 cup finely chopped salted pretzels
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips, melted

Combine peanut butter and pretzels in a small bowl. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 15 minutes (this step not necessary if you use more pretzels).

Roll the peanut butter mixture into 10 balls about 2 teaspoons each. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper and freeze until very firm, about 30 minutes.

Melt chocolate morsels in the microwave for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for additional 20 second intervals if necessary.

Roll the frozen balls in melted chocolate. Refrigerate until the chocolate is set, about 30 minutes.

Recipe Notes: I added only 1/4 cup pretzels at first but the mixture was way to wet so I increased it to 1/2 cup. Start at 1/4 cup and depending on how wet your peanut butter is continue adding. Also, I used a mini-food processor to chop my pretzels finely but you could definitely do it my hand as well.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

I know what you are thinking...ham and cheese sliders; does that really require a recipe? The answer is YES it does. These have so much flavor. Sure you have your classic ham and cheese sandwich as the base of the recipe but then you top it with a flavorful poppyseed sauce. The sauce is a combo of Worcestershire sauce, onion, mustard, and butter that makes these anything but ordinary. These can be made ahead for a party and are kid friendly because they are small and familiar.

My son hates mustard but couldn't taste the little bit of mustard in the sauce. I don't know about you but sometimes I just want to cook something that I know my kids will eat without complaining about it. This definitely would qualify for a "No Cooking" Friday meal because it's so easy.

I made these right after Easter and used my leftover ham...sorry I didn't post it sooner so you could use your leftover ham too! These are great as an appetizer or make it a meal.

Ham and Cheese Sliders

adapted slightly from the Recipe Club

24 good white dinner rolls

24 pieces good honey ham
24 small slices Swiss cheese
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup miracle whip

Poppy seed sauce (you probably could half this...I had plenty extra)
1 Tablespoon poppyseeds
1 1/2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 Tablespoon minced onion
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise and miracle whip. Spread onto both sides of the center of each roll. Place a slice of ham and a slice of Swiss inside of each roll. Close rolls and place them into a large baking dish or heavy cookie sheet. Place very close together.

In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the poppy seed sauce ingredients. Pour evenly over all of the sandwiches. You do not have to use all of the sauce! Just use enough to cover the tops. Let sit 10 minutes or until butter sets slightly. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for 2 additional minutes or until tops are slightly brown and crispy. Serve warm.

** sandwiches can be assembled a day ahead and kept in the fridge ready to bake.

Strawberry Cream Puff Cake

Here in Florida, they are practically giving strawberries away. We had an unusually cold winter which delayed the strawberry crops. Usually in January Florida is the main strawberry provider for the country...but since they were delayed and being sold now, the same time as California strawberries, the market is saturated. Thus giving us really cheap strawberries. I'm not complaining.

This is a great light dessert. It reminds me a little of Eclair Cake because of it's cream puff base. This has a hint of orange that gives it a fresh spring feel. Yes, more orange zest. That's what happens when you buy a huge carton from Costco. 

I actually made this for the missionaries who were helping John with the yard. I wanted to taste it but how ghetto would it be to give it to them with a slice missing. Lucky for me the container I sent this home with them in was a little too small so I had to cut a big piece out to make it fit. John and I gobbled it up and he said, "Why didn't we keep more?!!"

Strawberry Cream Puff Cake

by MyKitchenCafe

2 cups or one carton of strawberries, sliced

Cream Puff Base:
5 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
2/3 cup flour
3 eggs

Cream Cheese Mixture:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2/3 cup powdered sugar

For the cream puff layer, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Bring the butter, water and sugar to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the flour all at once and stir quickly until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove the pan from the heat and stir the mixture until smooth. Let cool for 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until the mixture is shiny with a satiny sheen. Don’t overbeat. Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan (or in a pinch, you could use a 9-inch circle cake pan).

Using an offset spatula, spread the mixture on the bottom and one inch up the sides of the prepared pan. Don't look at my picture. I skimmed the instructions and put it 2 inches up the side instead of one. This part can be tricky. I've found sometimes it's easier to spread with clean hands.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and prick pastry with a toothpick 10-12 times. Return to the oven and bake 5-10 minutes more until golden brown but not overbaked (you can insert a toothpick into the center and if it comes out with sticky dough, it still needs longer in the oven). Cool completely.

For the cream cheese mixture, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar (sift if necessary)and beat with the cream cheese until mixture is smooth and light. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until stiff peaks form. Spread onto the cooled cream puff shell.

Top with fresh sliced strawberries. Keep in the fridge until serving. My strawberries weren't that sweet so I put the sliced strawberries in the fridge with a couple tablespoons of sugar for an hour and they made their own sauce.

Bowtie Chicken Caesar Salad

My church calling has kept me really busy lately. Every couple of weeks it seems like we have a stake function where we are feeding between 100 and 200 people. Only four of us make up the stake RS presidency so even though the food assignments are divided, each of us are still making a lot of food!

This past week I was in charge of salad for 150 women. I remembered a recipe my cousin Amy had sent me a while ago for a salad that fed a crowd so I went searching for it in my emails. I made it 3 times last week: once for the missionaries, for the RS event, and then I made it for a BBQ.

This Caesar salad has chicken, almonds, croutons, parmesan cheese and a little twist...bowtie pasta. People are always surprised to see it in a green salad. I like the addition of the pasta in the salad because it adds more substance and you can add more pasta to make the salad stretch. All the measurements are approximate...you can adjust it however you like.

No dressing on this salad...I didn't want to put it on too early and have it get soggy!

Bowtie Chicken Caesar Salad

by Amy Bench

2 bunches green leaf lettuce, chopped

1 bag Marie Calendars Fat Free Croutons
1 bag Almond Accents/ Roasted Garlic Caesar
2 Chicken Breasts, boiled with an onion and salt and pepper
2 cups bowtie pasta, cooked
4 - 6 oz. shredded parmesan cheese
Brianna’s Asiago Caesar Dressing

Toss all the above ingredients with Caesar dressing right before serving. Serves 20-25.

*I like Brianna's dressing because it is potent and you don't have to use a lot but you could substitute another quality Caesar dressing as well.

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

Ahhh...spring is here. Do you remember those orange creamsicle popsicles as a kid? Well these taste just like them. Cookies with a hint of orange and creamy vanilla morsels. The center of the cookie just melts in your mouth.Take some time out from doing your taxes and make these instead.  Don't they just scream SPRING!

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons orange zest (for me that was the zest of 2 oranges)
2 cups Guitard Choc-Au-Lait Vanilla Chips (I used Ghirardelli white chips)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth. Gradually add flour mixture until combined. Stir in orange zest and chips.

Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Do not flatten cookies; it will make them dry. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until golden brown around edges. Do not overcook! Cookies will be plump. Cool for several minutes on cookie sheets before transferring to rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container.

Source: by Baked Perfection

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Oh Spring Break...just thinking about it brings back memories of the crazy things we did during Spring Break in high school. My friends and I would lay by the pool for hours with no thought of skin cancer or wrinkles. My friend "D" even lathered herself up in cooking oil.

One Spring Break may have involved Dairy Queen soap and a fountain but that's a whole other story. I remember one Spring Break my friends were spending the night at my house and we snuck out of my bedroom window, rolled the car in neutral all the way down my long street, then popped it into gear and drove off to Filbertos.

Filbertos was the meeting place for any and all high schoolers who were up to no good, looking for something to do. At any hour of the night someone would be there to hang out with or talk to since it was a 24hour restaurant...if you could call it that. It was a hole in the wall and the food was...well...questionable. I usually stuck with something safe with no meat in it like a cheese quesadilla. Every once in a while my friend Meaghan would get their taquitos and we would split them. Chewy, greasy, taquitos. Hey maybe taquito grease makes for a good tan?

SO when I first saw these taquitos, that's what I thought of...Filbertos mystery-meat-greasy taquitos. How pleasantly suprised I was when my friend Heidi told me to try these. These are on the other end of the spectrum. Baked, creamy, flavorful chicken taquitos. We tried both corn and flour tortillas. We slightly favored the taste of the flour tortillas and they were easier to roll. These can be an appetizer or add some beans and rice and you have a meal.

Baked Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Recipe by OurBestBites.com

1/3 cup (3 oz) cream cheese
1/4 cup green salsa
1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
3 Tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 Tablespoons sliced green onions
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup grated pepperjack cheese
about 12 small corn or flour tortillas (we liked flour better)
kosher salt
cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and lightly coat with cooking spray.

Heat cream cheese in the microwave for about 20-30 seconds so it's soft and easy to stir. Add green salsa, lime juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and garlic powder and mix well. Add cilantro, green onions, chicken and pepperjack cheese and combine well.

You can prepare up to this step ahead of time. Just keep the mixture in the fridge.

The corn tortillas are harder to roll without cracking. For the corn tortillas: work with a few tortillas at a time and heat in the microwave until they are soft enough to roll without cracking. It helps to place them between damp paper towels. Usually 20-30 seconds will do it. If you find yours are cracking when you roll them or come unrolled right away, just try heating them longer and try the paper towel thing.

Place 3 Tablespoons of chicken mixture on the lower third of a tortilla, keeping it about 1/2 inch from the edges.

Then roll it up as tight as you can.

Place seam side down on the baking sheet. Lay all of the taquitos on the baking sheet and make sure they are not touching each other. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray or an oil mister and sprinkle some kosher salt on top.

Place pan in oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until crisp and the ends start to get golden brown. Makes around 12 taquitos.

Dip in salsa, sour cream, guacamole, or Tomatillo Dressing. They would be great with black beans and this Cilantro Lime Rice.

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

I read that they've done studies that found that the smell that attracts men the most is the smell of cinnamon rolls. So ladies start baking some cinnamon rolls! I must have more testosterone in me than I thought because every time I go to the mall I walk by Cinnabon and literally have to talk myself out of sprinting over and buying one. I have a recipe for cinnamon rolls that tastes just like Cinnabon but if cooking with yeast intimidates you then these cookies are for you.

Jenny at Picky Palate is a wicked genius to come up with these. The recipe below is adjusted so it only makes a half batch because 6 dozen of these cookies lying around would be dangerous.

I used my sugar cookie recipe instead of Jenny’s since they’re similar but hers called for 3 eggs which made the recipe hard to cut in half. Have you ever tried to half an egg? Um…I have and it’s pretty impossible. These are definitely best after they have chilled in the fridge.

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

adapted from PickyPalate

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup butter, slighty softened

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla

3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Brown Sugar and Butter Filling (I kind of eyeballed this part and added more of each)
6 tablespoons softened butter, (slice 2 Tablespoons 3 times totaling 6 tablespoons)
3/4 Cup packed light brown sugar, divided into 1/4 Cups
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon, divided (1/4 teaspoon for each batch)

Frosting

8 oz softened cream cheese

1/2 Cup powdered sugar

2-4 Tablespoons milk, to thin icing

1. In an electric or stand mixer, cream the sugar and butter. Add eggs, vanilla and sour cream until well combined. Slowly add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt until well combined.

2. Place in plastic wrap in a disc shape and chill for at least 2 hours for best results. I always get impatient and stick mine in the freezer to speed it up!

3. Once chilled, cut disc into thirds and roll into a 1/8 inch thick oval, about 12 inches X 5 inches.

Spread each rolled pieces of dough with 2 Tablespoons softened butter, 1/4 Cup packed brown sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon. Start rolling from the long end closest to you, rolling into a log shape. If your dough is too soft at this point put it back in the fridge to get harder. Using a VERY sharp knife, cut 1/2 inch pieces of dough then placing onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. You are going to want to try to cook them longer. DON'T! Remove and let cool for 5 minutes before removing from baking sheet.

4. To prepare frosting, beat the cream cheese until softened and smooth, slowly add powdered sugar and milk until desired consistency. I put mine in a ziplock bacg and snipped the corner off to pipe the frosting. Frost cookies then place in refrigerator until ready to serve. These are 100 times better chilled, trust me!!

Makes at least 3 dozen

Banana Cream Pie the easy way...

I'm frustrated. The last three things I have made have either been total flops or just average:

• I made a carrot cake for Easter that was okay. I'm still looking for a carrot cake that tastes like Costco's.
• Then I made dinner rolls so hard and dense that they could have been used as serious ammunition for my boys to fight a war.
• I made a Baked French Toast casserole that was completely soggy on the bottom and hard on top. The flavor was still good so I'm trying to figure out how to fix it.

So this fabulous banana cream pie was made by my best friend Heidi brought over for Easter dessert. Thank goodness since my cake wasn't that great. We practically licked the pan.

Heidi said she got it from OurBestBites so I knew it would be good.  The girls over there get it. They get that something good doesn't always have to take hours or have to be from scratch.  I liked that it this pie wasn't just a gushy mess...it held its form.

 The pic isn't that great because it was almost 7 at night.

Banana Cream Pie
by OurBestBites

1 4-serving size box of instant vanilla pudding
1 c. cold water
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 cookie crusts: graham crackers, Nilla Wafers, shortbread, even Oreo (Or you can use one large crust. I like traditional graham cracker crust)
Lots of bananas
1 pint whipping cream (2 cups)
1/3 c. powdered sugar

In a medium bowl, combine pudding mix, cold water, and sweetened condensed milk. Mix well and place in the refrigerator to chill for a few minutes. In another bowl, whip 1 c. of whipping cream until soft peaks form.
Slice the bananas (probably 4 small bananas or 2 large bananas) and layer them on the bottom of the crusts. Be sure and save the plastic domes that come with the pie crusts--you'll need them later!
 
Set aside. Remove pudding from the fridge and gently dollop the whipped cream on top of the pudding. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pudding mixture until well-combined.
 
Now divide the mixture between the two pies.
Make sweetened whipped cream with the remaining whipping cream (1 cup) and 1/3 c. of powdered sugar and spread it on top of the two pies. Place the clear plastic shells back on the pies and allow to chill for several hours. This is actually really important--I tried eating it right away once and the pie wasn't banana-y at all and the moisture hadn't absorbed into the crust, so the crust just fell apart.

And there you have it--the best AND the easiest banana cream pie you'll ever have or need!

Chunky Monkey Variation: Blend 1/2 c creamy peanut butter into the pudding/water/sweetened condensed milk mixture (before you fold in the whipped cream). Continue as directed but place in a chocolate cookie crust. Sprinkle with honey roasted peanuts just before serving.

Copycat Macaroni Grill's Penne Rustica

This week was Spring Break for us here so I have been at the beach, the movies, and hanging out with my kids. Happy Easter tomorrow!

This recipe is not healthy by any means...but it is good. It's not easy...but it's worth the time. It smelled unbelievable while it was cooking.

The recipe listed below is the recipe cut in half. It fed our family of 4 with leftovers so unless you are planning on feeding all the neighbors, stick with the halved recipe.

Copycat Macaroni Grill's Penne Rustica

by Recipezaar

Gratinata sauce ( use 4 1/2 cups )

1 teaspoon butter

1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon dill
1/2 teaspoon chopped rosemary
1/2 cup marsala cooking wine
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cups heavy cream

Penne Rustica
1/2 ounce pancetta or bacon (I used an ounce which was 1 strip of bacon for me)
9 raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
6 ounces grilled chicken breasts, sliced (1 large breast or 2 small)
8-12 ounces penne pasta, cooked
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped pimiento (optional)
3 Tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon chopped shallot
 pinch salt and pepper
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon paprika
3 sprigs fresh rosemary (for garnish)

1.For Gratinata Sauce: Saute butter, garlic, and rosemary until garlic begins to brown.
2.Add Marsala wine and reduce by one-third.
3.Add remaining ingredients, reduce by half of the original volume.
4.Set aside.
5.For Penne Rustica: Saute pancetta or bacon until it begins to brown.
6.Add butter, shallots, and shrimp.
7.Cook until shrimp are evenly pink but still translucent.
8.Add chicken, salt, pepper, and mix thoroughly.
9.Add gratinata sauce and 1/4 cup parmesan cheese.
10.Simmer until sauce thickens.
11.In a large bowl, combine shrimp and chicken mixture with the cooked pasta.
12.Pour into a large casserole dish or roaster.
13. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup more parmesan cheese, pimientos and sprinkle with paprika.
14.Bake at 475 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.

15.Remove and garnish with fresh rosemary sprig.