Banana Nilla Pudding Cake

Hello Everyone!  My grandma came to visit this week, and I made quite a few desserts during her stay.  The one I am posting today was her favorite.  This Banana Nilla Pudding Cake is best if you allow it sit to overnight (if you can wait that long!), but it will still be enjoyable to serve as soon as it has set up properly.

 

Banana Nilla Pudding Cake

1 vanilla cake box mix, and ingredients for it(excluding oil!), I used 1 egg

2 ripe bananas, mashed (instead of oil in cake)

1 french vanilla instant pudding mix

1 banana instant pudding mix

enough milk to prepare puddings according to directions

1 (8 oz.) container of cool whip

30 crushed Nilla wafers

Directions

Prepare cake mix according to package directions for a 9x13 cake,  remembering to substitute the oil called for with mashed bananas.

Let cake cool for a few minutes, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke  holes evenly throughout the entire cake.

Blend vanilla and banana puddings together with milk, preparing according to package directions. Allow to set for about two minutes, or until only slightly thickened.  Pour over cake, taking care to fill in holes as much as possible.  It might be helpful to spread pudding over the cake with the back of a spoon.  Place pudding cake in fridge to cool and fully set.

Once the pudding has fully set, spread cool whip evenly over the top of the cake.  You may choose to sprinkle the top of your cake with Nilla wafer crumbles right away, or you may sprinkle them on just before serving (they will remain more crunchy that way).  

Enjoy!

Cheesecake Bars

Hello, everyone! :) I was looking for a good recipe for someone in our church, and I found this delicious recipe for Cheesecake Bars! I changed a few things, such as pecans in the crust instead of walnuts, I used vinegar instead of lemon juice, and I drizzled caramel sauce on top for some extra flavor (and because I simply cannot eat anything without caramel). I loved these, and I hope you will try them and like them too! :)

                                      Cheesecake Bars
                           
                       Crust:
                                1/3 cup butter
                                1/3 cup brown sugar
                                1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
                                1 cup sifted flour
                             
                         Filling:
                                1/4 cup sugar
                                8 oz. cream cheese
                                1 Tablespoon vinegar
                                2 Tablespoons milk
                                1 egg
                                1/2 tsp. vanilla

                                Caramel Sauce


Preheat oven to 350*.
Cream butter and brown sugar. Add in the flour and pecans. Press gently into an 8x8 pan, and bake for 12-15 minutes. Set aside to cool.
For the filling, combine the sugar and cream cheese. Mix until smooth. Add in the vinegar, milk, and egg, and mix well. spread over the baked crust and bake for 25-30 minutes. Meanwhile, make the caramel.
Let it cool, then drizzle the caramel sauce over it. Store covered in the refrigerator. Yummy!!

The Five Cs Recipe

Hello out there!  Today's recipe is a favorite.  Cranberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake.  See the five cs?  I thought it would be a fun title for this recipe.  My mom was out of town this week, and we had cranberries to use up.  This is best warm, with coffee.

Cranberry Coffee Cake

Cake:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 egg

3/4 cup orange juice

1/4 cup melted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups chopped fresh cranberries

1 T. grated orange zest

Cream Cheese Layer:

1 package softened cream cheese(8 oz.)

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon orange extract

Topping:

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup cold butter

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the first four ingredients. Whisk the egg, orange juice, butter and vanilla; stir into dry ingredients until well combined. Fold in the cranberries and orange peel. Pour into a greased 9-in. springform pan.

In a small bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Spread over batter. Combine flour and sugar; cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over top.

Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 70-75 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before removing sides of pan.  Enjoy!

My mom has had many people ask for this recipe!  I hope you all enjoy it as well!

Leftover Candy Cookie Bars

Hello Everyone!  Today's recipe is not good for you.  It mixes Halloween candy and cookies.  Not the healthiest.  When I made these, my mom was happy I got rid of so much candy until she had one.  Then she couldn't stay away(neither could I, but that isn't the point)!  She had commissioned me to get rid of the candy.  Isn't that kind of ironic?  I got rid of the candy, and it was even more irresistible! I thought I should share that story, because I thought you all might find it amusing!

Halloween Cookie Bars

1-1/2 cups light brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup butter

2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine salt

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

12 snack size candy bars about 1-1/2 cups (I used whoppers, snickers, and three musketeers)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease a 9x13-inch glass baking dish.

Cream the sugar and butter until fluffy.

In another bowl whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together.

Beat the eggs and vanilla into the sugar mixture.

Add the flour mixture a bit at a time and mix until a smooth thick batter forms.  Add chopped candy.

Pour the batter into the prepared dish and spread evenly .

Bake until the cookie bars are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center come out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.  Enjoy!

I enjoyed these bars.  They are a great way to get rid of leftover Halloween candy.

Homemade Granola

Hello, everyone! This is our 100th post!! Yeah! I hope you all have been enjoying our blog! :) 

One of my fondest childhood memories was my mom's homemade granola. I found the recipe recently, and decided to make it. While it was baking, it made the whole house smell wonderful. It was like smelling memories. (If that's possible...) :) 

Anyways, this granola was a hit! I will definitely be making more in the future! I hope you enjoy it!! :) 

                              Homemade Granola

                               1 cup honey
                               1 cup butter (you could use shortening, but it changes the flavor)
                               1 cup brown sugar
                               8 cups oats
                               1 Tablespoon flax seed
                               1 cup raisins or some kind of dried fruit, nuts, or anything else you prefer

Preheat the oven to 300*.
Melt the butter and combine it with the brown sugar and honey over medium low heat. Stir until the sugar is almost dissolved. Don't let it boil. In a large bowl, mix the oats, flax seeds, and nuts. Pour the liquid mixture over the oats and stir it well. 
Pour the granola into a sided, non-stick pan or cookie sheet. (I use a roasting pan, simply because this recipe makes a lot and the pan is non-stick.) Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes. Be really careful not to over-bake, because granola burns fast. Remove from the oven and add the raisins or dried fruit.  Mix it well and let it cool. Store in an airtight container to keep it fresh, and enjoy! I love granola, and this is a very yummy recipe! I hope you have a great week! :) 

Malt Turtle Bites

Hello Everyone!  Today's recipe is super easy.  I made these for my youth group and they were gone within 5 minutes!!!  This is a very quick recipe as well.  It is a good one to do with kids.

Malt Turtle Bites

1 twelve oz. bag of rolos

56 pretzels

56 whoppers

Directions

Preheat oven to 350*.

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil

 Place one pretzel for each malt turtle desired on prepared sheet. Top each pretzel with one unwrapped rolo.

 Bake 3 to 5 minutes or until caramel piece begins to soften, but not melt. Remove from oven; top with whoppers. Cool completely.  Enjoy!

As I said before, these were a hit!  I hope you all enjoy them.

Bacon Onion Deviled Eggs

Hi Everyone!  My family and I have 15 chickens.  14 of them are hens.  Thus, the egg recipe.  We have eggs coming out of our ears.  There are 3 dozen in our fridge and another 4 dozen on our counter top.  The reason it is ok to have fresh eggs out on our counter top is because of the protective coating that is on the egg when the hen lays it.  This protective layer is washed off of commercial eggs.  Our eggs can sit out for weeks and stay fresh.  I enjoy deviled eggs greatly.  When I make them, I always change the recipe.  Today, they are completely different from the traditional deviled eggs.

Bacon Onion Deviled Eggs

5 hard boiled eggs

2 T. mayonnaise

1 teaspoon mustard

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon onion powder

2 teaspoons bacon bits

Directions

Halve the hard boiled eggs and remove the yolks.  Combine the yolks with the rest of the ingredients.  After all the ingredients are smooth, put back into the cooked whites.  Enjoy!

Yum!!!  My mouth is watering.  I hope you all enjoy these! 

Austrian Apple Twists

Hello everyone! I hope everyone has been staying warm this winter! This recipe is for these delicious apple twists that I made. I was flipping through my Taste of Home cookbook, trying to find a good recipe, and when I came across these, I had to make them. I brought them to youth group for a snack, and there were no leftovers! The dough does have to be refrigerated overnight, but other than that, the recipe is not extremely complicated. I hope you guys enjoy it! Happy Eating! :) 

                                   Austrian Apple Twists

                       Dough:
                                 1 Tablespoon active dry yeast
                                 3 cups all-purpose flour
                                 1 cup butter, softened
                                 3 egg yolks
                                 3/4 cup buttermilk
                                 1/3 cup melted butter
                        Filling:
                                  3/4 cup sugar
                                  3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
                                  2 medium apples
                                  1 tsp. cinnamon    
                         Icing:
                                  1 cup powdered sugar
                                  5-6 tsp. milk
                                  1/4 tsp. vanilla
                                           
Preheat oven to 350*.
In a medium mixing bowl, mix the yeast and the flour. Add the butter and mix thoroughly. Add the egg yolks, buttermilk, and melted butter. Shape into four balls and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out each ball into a circle. Cut each circle into about 14 wedges. Combine the sugar, pecans, apples, and cinnamon and sprinkle onto each slice. Roll up from the wide end and place point side down on a greased baking sheet. Bake for 17 minutes, or until browned lightly. Remove from the cookie sheet immediately and place on wire racks to cool. Meanwhile, make the icing.
In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. Stir until well combined and smooth.
Drizzle the icing over the cooled twists and enjoy! :)

Blackberry Cobbler

Hello everyone!  Today's recipe was really yummy.  My family and I finished this within two days!  My grandpa picked the berries this summer, and gave my family some.  We froze them, and I used them for the cobbler.  I used them when they were still frozen, and had quite a bit of excess juice.  It may need a little extra cooking time to evaporate the juice.

Blackberry Cobbler

4 cups blackberries

1 cup granulated sugar

Topping:

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 stick cold butter, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/4 cup chopped pecans

Directions

Preheat oven to 350*.

Mix together blackberries and granulated sugar.  Pour into 9x13 pan.

In a medium sized bowl, combine flour and brown sugar.  Cut in butter until crumbly.  Add oats and pecans; mix well.  Sprinkle evenly over blackberry mixture.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until topping is golden brown.  Enjoy!

Yum!  My moth started watering while I was typing this out!  I hope you all like this as much as my family and I did!

Hot Cocoa Mix

Hello everyone!  Are you all keeping warm?  If not, let me help!  Today's recipe is a delicious homemade hot cocoa mix.  We keep this in a jar by our "Hot Cocoa Bar" that my mom puts up in the wintertime.  That way, everything is ready for warming up when we come in from the cold!

Hot Cocoa Mix

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cups powdered milk

3/4 cups powdered sugar

1/2 cup granulated vanilla sugar*

1/2 tsp. popcorn salt

Directions

Combine all ingredients until it all looks the same.  When ready to make hot cocoa, add 2-3 rounded tablespoons of mix to a mug of hot water.  Enjoy!

This was a really great hot cocoa mix.  I like because it has a darker chocolate flavor.  It is perfect!!!

If you want to make your own Hot Chocolate Bar, you could offer some jars of the fun mix ins that we have:

·       French vanilla, peppermint, or regular marshmallows

·       Peanut butter, Andes mint, and regular chocolate chips

·       Cinnamon imperials (Red Hots)

·       Individual French Vanilla or Hazelnut coffee creamers

·       Candy Canes

·       Whipped cream (ready in the fridge of course!)

·       Chocolate sprinkles

·       Believe me, this Hot Chocolate Bar is as fun as it sounds!

*You can make vanilla sugar very easily by following this recipe.  The vanilla makes ALL the difference!

Vanilla Sugar

Easy Caramel Sauce

Hello everyone! I don't know about where you live, but it has been extremely cold where me and Koko live! I have never seen temps this low before in my area! Today's recipe is a very easy, yet super yummy caramel sauce. If you have seen alot of my other posts where I've talked about making caramel sauce, I always went through a complicated process to get it. I have figured out a very easy way to make it now, without all the bubbling and overflowing! This is the perfect addition to hot cocoa too. That is how I've been using it lately. In fact, Koko and I just recently enjoyed a cup of caramel hot cocoa together, and it tasted so yummy that I had to post the recipe. Enjoy! :) 

                             Easy Caramel Sauce

                     1/2 cup (1 stick) butter

                     1 cup brown sugar

                     2/3 cup heavy whipping cream

In a small saucepan, melt the butter, then add the brown sugar and mix until smooth. Add in the heavy whipping cream and continue to whisk until it is well combined and there are no more white streaks. 

You can store it in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. It will also seem thin when it is still hot, but it thickens when you cool it. Oh, so yummy! 

Double Doozies

All right everyone!  Today, I am just melding to recipes that are already on here!  Last week, I posted butter cream frosting.  Closer to the beginning of this blog, I posted chocolate chip cookies.  Today's recipe is....Double Doozies!  These were made for my youth pastor's son's birthday party.  He was turning ten, and requested double doozies.  All the kids that went to his party kept saying how yummy these were!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Now for the frosting!

Buttercream Frosting

These were so delicious!  Oh, make sure to share with a friend!  Eating a whole one is difficult.  They are very rich! 

Buttercream Frosting

Hello Everyone!  Unfortunately, I do not have a picture for this recipe.  I could not figure out how to take an attractive picture of frosting.  While  we are on the subject,  do any of you have any ideas on how to take a pretty picture of frosting?  I am clueless.  Oh, before I forget,  this is an extremely large recipe. 

Buttercream Frosting

3 sticks butter

5 teaspoons vanilla

7 cups powdered sugar

Directions

Beat all  ingredients until fluffy and enjoy!

I love frosting recipes.  They are super easy.  This one I think is my new favorite!  

Triple-Layer Banana Caramel Cake

Happy New Year everyone! Sorry this post is late! I was out all day yesterday and forgot! 

For this post, I have a delicious cake recipe to share with you! It is a great way to use up overripe bananas in your house. Thanks to Faith Durand, you can make good use out of those bananas that you would otherwise throw away! Mine doesn't look as pretty as hers did, but it still tasted yummy. The original recipe also says to bake it for 40 minutes, but I found that mine were not cooked all the way through then. It ended up being an hour for mine, so that's what I'll put on this one. 

 I hope you try this recipe, and let us know what you think! Happy Eating! :) 

                        Triple-Layer Banana Caramel Cake

 Caramel Sauce:
                        2 cups cream (half-and-half) 
                        1 1/2 cups white sugar
                        1/2 cup water
                        1/4 cup butter
                        pinch of salt

                Cake:
                        3/4 cup butter, soft
                        3/4 cup white sugar
                        3/4 cup brown sugar
                        3 eggs
                        3 cups all-purpose flour
                        1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
                        1/2 tsp. salt
                        1 1/2 cups milk
                        2 tsp. vanilla
                        5 ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
                        1 1/2 cups caramel sauce

Caramel Icing:
                        1/2 cup unsalted butter
                        1/2 cup caramel sauce
                        1 tsp. vanilla
                        1/4 tsp. salt
                        1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
                        
                        extra sliced bananas for on top (optional) 
For the Caramel Sauce:
This is probably the most difficult part of the whole recipe. Once you get through this, the rest will seem easy! :)
Warm up the cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Keep it warm, making sure it doesn't boil. 
Combine the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over high heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Let it boil until it becomes slightly darker, then begin swirling it around, making sure it doesn't burn. When it reaches a dark color, turn off the heat. Be really careful! Don't let it burn.  
Slowly pour in the cream, constantly stirring the mixture. Be really careful! It will bubble up ferociously. Mine ended up overflowing out of the pot. 
Once the cream is mixed in well, and all is once again calm, stir in the butter and the salt. Return it to medium heat, continuing to stir until everything is mixed in well, and it is smooth. 
Turn off the heat and allow the caramel to cool. It will be used a few times later in the recipe. 

For the cake:
Preheat the oven to 325*, and grease and flour three 9-in. cake pans.
Using a mixer, cream the butter and sugars until well combined. Add the eggs one at a time, and mix well. 
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, and salt, then set them aside.
In another bowl, mix together the milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas, then pour into the creamed mixture alternately with the dry ingredients. Mix on medium speed until smooth. 
Divide the batter evenly between the three pans. Pour about 1/2 cup of caramel sauce in each one, and swirl with a knife. 
Place them in the oven and bake for about 1 hour. (I used a spring-form pan for the third layer, and it became rather mangled, as you can probably see by looking at the middle layer in the picture.) 
Once the cakes are done baking, take them out of the oven and let them cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then take them out of the pans and transfer them to wire racks to cool completely. Meanwhile, make the icing. 
In a mixer, whip the butter, vanilla, caramel sauce, and salt until smooth. Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix it until it is well combined and spreading consistency. 
Now it is time to assemble the cake! Spread a small bit of the icing onto your cake stand or cake board as kind of a glue so the cake doesn't slide. Place your first layer on the board, and spread a thick layer of icing on top. Stack all of the cake layers in this way, then spread the rest of the icing on top. You can put the banana slices on top now, if you want. Drizzle the rest of the caramel sauce on top, and enjoy! 
This is a complicated recipe, but it is a lot of fun to make and totally worth it! :)

~Nutmeg