Category Archives: Easy

Better Than Starbucks Lemon Cake

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Better Than Starbucks Lemon Cake

Better Than Starbucks Lemon Cake

This is going to be a short post because I want to get this up before the three or four people who read me, all of whom probably found me while bored at work, leave for the day and never realize I made them a delicious cake. I know, I know, you’ll miss my rambling, but I promise to ramble even more than usual when I come back.

I USED to love Starbucks lemon pound cake. So did my husband. Then they changed how they made it. I have no earthly idea what the Starbucks people thought they were doing when they changed up their recipes and added others. Their pumpkin bread is still good, but in my humble *looks humble* opinion, that’s about it. I tried their new salted caramel bar, all happy because salted caramel and was completely disappointed. And my husband, the man who happily ingests cans of overly processed, heavily salted orange stuff marketed as cheese dip, thinks the lemon cake is kind of yucky now too *she says as tactfully as she can*

So I made my own. I used an old lemon cake recipe I hand copied from food.com a billion years ago when it was recipezaar dot com and played with it. Dare I say it turned out better than the new Starbucks? I DID however accidentally overcook mine a tad so the edges (my favorite part) were a bit dry, but farther in, not at all and the flavor was delicious. This has the sweet lemon taste in the actual cake that the old Starbucks cake had and the tangy glaze. I upped the ante a little bit by doing the old trick of soaking the cake with some lemon syrup. I know; not technically like Starbucks, but that’s why I have the word better in the title 😛

You know the drill….

Love you guys! <3

Better Than Starbucks Lemon Cake

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs, room temp
  • 1/4 cup lemon zest
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 5 lemons worth, depending on size)
  • 3/4 cup milk, room temp
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons lemon oil (I like Boyajian brand) (you can sub lemon extract, but lemon oil is so much better in flavor with none of the chemically taste the extract can have)
  • Syrup-
  • 1/3 cup lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • Glaze
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons water
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8 inch loaf pans.
  2. In a medium bowl, combine the butter and two cups sugar. Beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy and the sugar has had time to dissolve, about 4 minutes.
  3. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  4. In a small bowl, whisk to combine the flour, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
  5. In a measuring cup, combine the milk, lemon juice, vanilla extract and lemon oil.
  6. Add the flour and the milk mixture alternately to the butter, starting and ending with the flour (flour, milk, flour, milk, flour), beating just until combined after each addition.
  7. Pour into the prepared pans; bake at 350 until a wooden skewer comes out clean, about 45 to 55 minutes. Cover lightly with foil near the end if it seems to be getting too brown.
  8. When done, let cool in pans for ten minutes, then turn out onto a rack that has been set over a large cookie sheet (to catch drips).
  9. While the cake cools, make the syrup- combine the lemon juice and sugar in a small pot. Cook over medium heat, stirring a few times, just until the sugar dissolves. Spoon the syrup evenly over the still warm cakes, letting each spoonful soak in before using more. You should be able to get it all soaked in, but if not, the rest is great in tea.
  10. Let the cakes finish cooling completely before glazing.
  11. To make the glaze, simply combine the glaze ingredients in a bowl; start with just the lemon juice as liquid and add water as you need to to get a pourable but not too thin glaze (mine was a bit thin… don’t follow my example 😛 )
  12. Let the glaze sit to harden a bit after you’ve used about half, then follow up with the rest. Then…. eat. Laugh at the Starbucks people.

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Better Than Starbucks Lemon Cake

 

 

White Chocolate And Lime Mousse Tart

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White Chocolate And Lime Mousse Tart 4



Most of my strongest memories of my father center around food. Dad was an….interesting cook, to say the least. I mentioned once (maybe twice or more… I’m getting old and forgetful) before that dad used to make things like chili or spaghetti sauce and besides adding jalapenos to both (yes, even the spaghetti sauce) and when I say adding jalapenos, I mean making it so hot, your tongue fell out of your mouth in protest, he also never ever drained the grease from his ground meat. So there you’d have some otherwise lovely (and mouth burning) dish, swimming in a pool of grease. But no one wanted to hurt his feelings or incur his wrath, so no one ever said anything. I got my opening one day however a couple of years after I moved him next door to me. He asked me why my spaghetti sauce was so much better than his and also, did I drain the grease off for some reason? I did a cheer inwardly and said that yes, I drained the grease off my ground beef and that that may be why mine was better, because too much grease makes it (I said politely) a bit heavy on the stomach. I didn’t mention that burning the stomach lining of people may not be smart. I knew when to shut up. 😀

Dad also loved jello. My kids though, as much as they loved Gramps giving them unlimited amounts of sweets when I wasn’t looking, weren’t jello fans. So he would make it for himself and me, just the same way he did when my brother, sister and I were kids. No plain jello for dad. Nope, nope, nope. He would drain some sort of canned fruit or a jar of maraschino cherries, use the juice from it as the liquid and then add the fruit when it was almost set. Then he would top it with about 4 pounds of Cool Whip and we were good to go on calories and sugar for about a year. It was utterly delicious and still how I like my jello. I think of him every…single…time I eat jello.

But sometimes I like to get a little fancier and not use the sugar laden flavored kind of gelatin and go back to the plain old fashioned gelatin that you flavor yourself. I have been, like most people, waiting not so patiently for Spring. Speaking of which, we are supposed to be getting an ample amount of snow here in Kentucky again tomorrow. But I’ll save that whining for later.

I have been heavy into anything citrus lately. It’s both my favorite sort of fruit, plus it makes me think of Spring. Spring…warmth…my garden.. warmth… fresh produce… did I mention warmth? Sorry. I’ll stop now. So, when I saw some pretty limes at the store, I got to thinking about what to do with the ones that jumped into my shopping cart. I got home and saw some white chocolate sitting out. I had bought it for something else, but who cares? When an idea hits, you run with it. 😀 I had seen a recipe for white chocolate mousse elsewhere that I couldn’t find now, so I improvised and completely messed around with using a mousse recipe I found elsewhere. What I ended up with was a delicious tart with both lime and white chocolate sharing the limelight (hehe… LIMElight) equally. This is rich and creamy and a small slice will do you just fine. Unless you’re a teenage boy. Then… make two. I originally planned on using graham cracker crumbs as the crust, but all I had were Oreos. And I love the way it turned out with them.

You know the drill….

Mrs. Cupcake, who is sobbing over the thought of more snow

White Chocolate And Lime Mousse Tart

  • Crust-
  • 14 oreos (NOT Double Stuffs)
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • Filling-
  • 8 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons lime zest (from about 3 limes)
  • 1 packet unflavored gelatin (sold with the other types of flavored gelatin in packs of 4, usually on the bottom shelf)
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. Make your crust- put your Oreos in the bowl of a food processor and process them down to crumbs. Add in the melted butter and pulse until it is combined. Pour the mixture into a buttered 9 inch tart pan (the kind with the removable bottom) and press it down onto the bottom of the pan.
  2. Bring 1/2 of the cream to a simmer. You can use a small pot or just do it as I do in the microwave.. When it comes to a simmer, remove from the heat and dump in the chopped white chocolate. Let sit for about five minutes, then stir until it is smooth. Let the mixture sit until it’s just barely warm.
  3. Meanwhile, sprinkle the gelatin over the lime juice in a small pot. Let it sit for about ten minutes to soften up, then stir it over low heat just until the gelatin dissolves. Let cool, then fold the gelatin mixture into the white chocolate/cream.
  4. Whip the remaining one cup of cream with the vanilla extract until it has soft peaks. Fold the white chocolate mixture into the cream, then pour this all into the prepared crust. Smooth the top and refrigerate for at LEAST 6 to 8 hours, but preferably overnight. Gelatin takes a few hours to set firmly anyway and the addition of a citrus juice in this one makes it set slower.
  5. When done, gently push it out from the bottom (it always helps to have someone else there to grab the pan bottom. Otherwise, you have this tart in one hand with no way to remove what looks like a huge cream covered bracelet dangling from your other arm. Don’t ask… just don’t ask.
  6. Garnish with more whipped cream and some lime slices.

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White Chocolate And Lime Mousse tart 3

Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

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Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadilla

Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadilla

Yesterday was….interesting. Russ and I had to go get some grocery shopping done so we decided to brave the snow and hope for the best. Mannnn, were we naive! First off, my car (his is totally snowed in and not going anywhere) was parked 1/2 mile away at a little general store that let him park it there. Why was it there, you ask? Because, the other day when he tried to get up our 1/4 mile driveway, he got stuck. Some kind strangers pulled my car back out to the road and he drove to the store and asked to keep the car there. Thank God for small town hospitality. Anywhere else would have had it towed, but they let him leave it there.

Sooo… we traipsed through the foot high snow, me in just a long sleeved shirt and a sweater, because I don’t own a coat and I don’t have gloves because the boys played with them and lost them. Did I forget to mention that it was 6 degrees with a wind chill of -2 out when we did this? You may now groan and feel pity for me. I’ll take the sentiment gladly. 😛 So, we got to the car, got to the main road, which was clear and made it into town, about 20 minutes away. Did our shopping and headed home. It was dark by this time. Now, the stupid part was our hope that we would be able to get the car up the driveway. Why did we think this when not a darn thing had changed since last time? I have absolutely no idea. Call it hunger induced idiocy… cabin fever induced idiocy. Whatever.

Well, we made it home. I had Russ let me off at the edge of the driveway so that I wouldn’t make him nervous gripping the dashboard and whimpering as he tried to get up the driveway. Then I slogged through to the house, and since I heard NO car following me, I grabbed a flashlight and went straight back out. By now the temp was about -1 with a wind chill of “Oh, crap, I can’t feel my face.” I made it back down to the car, which was stuck (gee, imagine that) about 30 feet in. We tried to get it out; no luck. So Russ went over to our neighbors house (the driveway belongs to both of us, with their house being up front near the road and ours way back). he has a truck, so we begged for him to chain us up and pull us home. He agreed. BUT… of course there is a but here…. he managed to get us about 35 yards or so from the house and that was it. He was afraid of getting stuck himself if he went farther in. So there we were; a trunk and back seat full of groceries at a distance that, at that moment, seemed like far enough to qualify as being in another state, with about 352,000 bags of groceries to get in. Uphill. Both ways. Did I remember to mention that it was about -400 with a wind chill 0f -2000? It seriously is uphill getting to the house though; thus one reason the neighbor was afraid of getting stuck. So we managed, after about 4 trips each, crawling on our hands and knees, as polar bears snapped at our heels to get the food and the blizzard raged around us (Yes, yes I AM planning on writing a nice fantasy story. Why do you ask?), to get the groceries back to the house.

I have never been…so cold…in my life. Sweater, hat, no gloves, sneakers that held out not one bit of snow or cold. My poor feet and hands threatened to divorce me and find another body to live on if I ever did that again. I didn’t blame them.

And…. we have another storm on the way that will bring either significant amounts of snow or significant amounts of ice. Woo….hoo…

These quesadillas were nice and warm however. Both heat wise and spicy wise. Right now, I so love the words warm and heat. If I had a raw habanaro in front of me, I’d eat it just to embrace the inner heat. These are crispy crunchy on the outside, cheesy and chickeny (think I’ve used enough c words now?) inside with wonderfully browned onions and peppers. Plus, there is a touch of heat from the jalapeno. Nothing major though. These are also extremely easy.  I have it set for three servings but this is simple to change amounts on.

You know the drill….

Love…. Mrs. Cupcake… who will never be warm again.

Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 small green pepper
  • 1 tablespoon finely minced jalapeno pepper
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
  • 8 ounces thinly sliced chicken breast (I made it easier and used the store bought chicken for tacos and the like, found in the lunch meat section. Feel free to use what makes you happy.)
  • 6 8 inch flour tortillas
  • vegetable oil
  • 3/4 to 1 cup shredded Colby jack cheese.
  • salt and pepper to taste
  1. Slice your onion in half, then cut it into thin half moon slices. Do the same with the green pepper.
  2. Pour the 2 tablespoons oil into a medium non stick pan. Add in the onions, green peppers, jalapenos and garlic. Cook over medium heat until the onions and peppers have gotten soft and browned, about 5 minutes. Put in a bowl, cover and set aside.
  3. Heat the sliced chicken in the same pan and heat just until warm. Set in the bowl with the veggies. Leave the pan over the heat while you prepare the tortillas.
  4. Brush one tortilla lightly with oil. You don’t want it dripping but you want enough on there to help crisp the tortilla. Lay it in the hot pan and immediately top it with a third of the veggies and meat and the desired amount of cheese. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Top with another tortilla and carefully brush that one with oil. Carefully slide a spatula under the bottom and lift to see if it is as browned as you want it to be. If so, carefully flip it over (hold the top one lightly with your hand as you flip) to brown the other side.
  5. Cook to desired doneness, remove to plate and cut into 4 wedges.
  6. Repeat with the other tortillas; serve with sour cream, salsa or picante sauce and some green onions.

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Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadilla

Cheesy Chicken Fajita Quesadilla

Mini Apple Cinnamon Pound Cakes With Crunchy Streusel

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Apple Cinnamon Pound Cake

Apple Cinnamon Pound Cake



I’ve been on a bit of a hiatus recently. I HAD been trying to post Monday through Friday, but some minor health issues have prevented that much posting. But… God willing, I’m back. Ok, so it’s not Monday yet, but I didn’t feel like waiting. Because I love you. And I wanted cake. Now. On a totally unrelated note, who had an awesome Valentines Day!? Neither my husband nor I are big on the whole “show your affection one day a year” thing, so I live vicariously through the roses and chocolates of others. I do however, tend to get small gifts for my kids on Valentines Day. I got the boys little boxes of chocolates for a buck apiece at Wal-Mart. Only young males could get those and then say “wow, this is awesome chocolate, momma. And it smells so good!” It takes a 5 pound box of Godiva to get that reaction from me.

I’ve said before that when it comes to cake, pound cake always tops my list. It’s buttery…since most of the recipes for it use about 42 sticks of butter. It’s rich; that could be that whole butter thing again. Yet, it’s not heavy and overly sweet as cakes with frosting can be. Which means you can eat more.

I got the original recipe for this from a Southern Living Magazine. No idea what month or year since it’s just a torn out recipe now. But it’s quite tasty. It didn’t turn out particularly pretty, nor did it rise as high as I’m used to pound cake rising, but it tastes really good and ultimately, isn’t that all that matters? This has a lovely apple cinnamon flavor and those yummy, crispity (yes, that’s now a word. Welcome to “Janet Language”) edges everyone loves. Plus, you get streusel and we all know how much I love streusel. it could be that whole butter thing with that, too. Butter is love. Butter is also big hips, greasy fingers and hardened arteries but I prefer to think of it as love.

You know the drill…. 😀

Mrs. Cupcake… who needs more pound cake.

Mini Apple Cinnamon Pound Cakes With Crunchy Streusel

  • 1 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 6 eggs, room temp
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup apple cider or apple juice
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Streusel-
  • 3/4 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • pinch salt
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • Glaze-
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 to 4 tablespoons of apple juice (can sub milk or water)
  1. In a small bowl, combine all the streusel ingredients. Mix well and set aside.
  2. Preheat oven to 350. Grease 6 mini loaf pans (the disposable foil ones are fine), set them inside a baking pan and set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, beat the butter until fluffy. Add in the sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  4. In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients; whisk well.
  5. Alternately add the flour mixture and the apple cider (juice) to the butter mixture, starting and ending with the flour (third of the flour, half the juice, third of the flour, rest of the juice, rest of the flour). Beat just until combined after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.
  6. Divide the batter between the 6 loaf pans. Sprinkle two to three tablespoons of the streusel over each pan (if you have any streusel left over, just bag it up and freeze it.).
  7. Bake at 350 until the tops are golden brown and a toothpick of wooden skewer inserted into the cakes comes out clean, about 35 to 45 minutes.
  8. Let cool in pans on a rack. Combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Drizzle over the pound cakes.

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Buffalo Roasted Chickpeas (Blogger C.L.U.E.)

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Buffalo Roasted Chickpeas

Buffalo Roasted Chickpeas



Hey everybody! Time for another month of Blogger Clue. You remember… it’s a group I’m a part of on Facebook where we peruse the blogs of one other member in the group and pick a recipe from their blog; one that fits a certain theme. This months theme was “Red”. I mean, Valentines Day and all; makes sense, huh?

I was having a hard time finding something to fit the theme on the blog I was given, which was Lemon And Anchovies run by a lovely lady named Jean. Jean’s blog is wonderful; lots of great recipes I wanted to try… just not many with red, lol. There was a gorgeous raspberry tart in her blog, but I couldn’t afford the berries right now and I will try that one in Spring when berries aren’t as high as a mortgage payment and aren’t shipped from another planet somewhere in a different solar system..

But lookee what I found! I know, chickpeas aren’t red, but these are Buffalo Roasted Chickpeas and anything buffalo style is red, right? Of course right :-p Other than in hummus, it was only fairly recently that I started using chickpeas in things. I may be weird, but to me, they taste almost exactly like boiled peanuts. Since I love boiled peanuts, that means I also love them. And they are, nutritionally, a wonderful source of protein and fiber. But who cares about nutrition. They taste good. 😀 I’ve always loved buffalo wings. I have been known to make a complete glutton of myself with them. We won’t talk about the time my son Cameron and I had a wing eating contest at Hooters once. We’ll just leave it at I won by ONE wing.

But since I don’t want to weigh 500 pounds, I have to find alternate buffalo fixes. These fit the bill quite nicely. A bit spicy, a bit garlicky and with a nice crunch. I was out of olive oil, so I used all butter with this recipe. I think it worked well, as butter is what is usually used in wings. It made it a bit less healthy, but… ummmm… this is me. I also used a touch of onion powder and I increased the oven temp to 425. Jean mentioned that hers didn’t get as crispy as she’d like so I thought a slight jump in temp might take care of that. I think my theory may have been right, because these were wonderfully crunchy.

You know the drill…

Buffalo Roasted Chickpeas

(My changes in parentheses)

 

  • 2 15 ounce cans chickpeas ,drained, rinsed and dried well.
  • 1 teaspoon melted butter (I used 1 1/2 tablespoons butter and no olive oil)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon granulated garlic (garlic powder not garlic salt)
  • (1/4 teaspoon onion powder)
  • Pinch salt
  • 4½ tablespoons Frank’s Red Hot Sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)
  1. Preheat oven to 400 (425 is what I did). Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl; toss to coat.
  2. Lay in a single layer in a pan and bake for 40 to 45 (only took 30 in a 425 oven) minutes, until browned and crispy.
  3. Hide them from everyone else and eat them all.
  4. Go to Jeans blog and tell her she’s wonderful.

Here are all the participants in this months Blogger C.L.U.E. Go check out what they made. Somewhere in there you’ll find one that made a recipe form little old me. Be scared for them. Be very scared.

 

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Participating Bloggers:

Peanut Butter Banana Cake With Chocolate Chips And Streusel

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Peanut Butter Banana Cake With Chocolate Chips And Streusel

Peanut Butter Banana Cake With Chocolate Chips And Streusel




Have I mentioned lately how much I adore all of you? Well, if nothing else gives it away, this post should. I have made absolutely NO secret of my distaste for peanut butter 😛 I think I burned out on it as a kid cause I just don’t much like it now. I do however love weird flavored ones, like Jifs smores one or a few flavors from Peanut Butter & Co. And I even get a craving for a PB&J like twice a year. But do I have the love for it that I hear many people talk of? Do I have a spoon permanently stuck in a jar of Skippy? Do I make recipes and then rhapsodize over the intense flavor of peanut butter? Do I make plans for a secret wedding and honeymoon in the Bahamas with a jar of Kroger brand? Ok, so maybe I haven’t really heard of anyone doing that, but give it time… give it time. I have a few peanut butter loving friends who are single.

But I realized I was being unfair to you, my faithful readers, my glorious compadres, my pals, my besties, my… sorry. I’ll stop now. Many of you like peanut butter. I have no idea why, but nonetheless, you do. 😀 And I love you in spite of this fatal flaw. So this is for you… and you.. and you. Out of my love for you, I suffered through the scent of baking peanut butter. I may now need intensive therapy (I’m pushing this, aren’t I?)

Moving on now… I adapted this from a cake in my Bon Appetit cookbook. I know the combo of banana, peanut butter and chocolate is popular, so I thought we’d go there.  According to my husband, who likes peanut butter (and I also keep him too, in spite of this fatal flaw), this isn’t a heavy peanut butter flavor. I tried a bit (SEE how much I love you?) and I disagree. I tasted peanut butter, banana and then there’s the chocolate chips. I like chocolate chips. 😀 This is a nice tender snack style cake, one of those that would go great at a church pot luck or t share with the neighbors. It has a nice texture thanks to the streusel.

You know the drill… 😀

Peanut Butter Banana Cake With Chocolate Chips And Streusel

  • 2 1/4 cups flour
  • 2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
  • 1 cup peanut butter (creamy)
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/2 cup mashed bananas (about 2 large)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon banana flavoring
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  •  1 12 ounce package chocolate chips
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 13×9 inch baking pan.
  2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, peanut butter and butter. Use a heavy spoon to mix well until it is blended and crumbly. Scoop out one cup of this mixture and set aside.
  3. Add the eggs, milk, mashed banana,baking powder, baking soda, vanilla and banana flavorings to the bowl. Beat on low speed with a hand mixer until moistened. Then increase the speed and beat until well blended, about 3 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Stir in one cup of the chocolate chips. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with the reserved streusel, then with the remaining chocolate chips.
  4. Bake at 350 until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes.
  5. Let cool in pan. Cut and serve. Store loosely covered at room temp.

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Easy Red Velvet Cupcakes- (Recipe Re-do)

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Red Velvet Cupcakes

Red Velvet Cupcakes



Sometimes I look back on my old photos. Then, I start to cry. Followed by hysterical laughter, embarrassed under the bed hiding and vows to pretend I don’t know who I am if I ever meet myself in public.

Mind you, I’m still far from a world class photographer. Bon Appetit isn’t going to be printing any of my photos anytime soon. Heck, sometimes I refuse my own photos and send myself haughty emails saying “don’t call us, we’ll call you”. But all of that aside, I like to think I’ve gotten a wee bit better over the years. Aside from all of that though, I have a couple dozen more readers than I did back when I started. Maybe. On a good day. And some of the things I did back in the day were quite tasty, but one would never know it based on the photos. I actually bake some of the goodies I made back when I started. So I’ve decided to periodically redo some of my older recipes. If they need revamped, I’ll do that. If they don’t, I’ll simply remake them and hopefully give them better photos.

The latter is the case today. I made these Red Velvet Cupcakes Christmas and Valentines Day are the times when everyone goes Red Velvet happy. I didn’t do anything red velvet for Christmas, so Valentines Day it is. Chocolate is the perfect food for romance and love. I know, some say oysters are, but I want one person to explain to me how something that looks like a lump of snot is romantic. Wait… too blunt and kinda gross? Sorry. But seriously (heh… *I* used the word seriously. Me. Feel free to giggle.), chocolate is romantic.

Are cupcakes, though? I think that depends on ones manners. if you are the type to eat daintily and offer bits to your s/o. maybe. If however, you shove the whole thing in your face and then burp and giggle, you may want to make alternate plans for your Saturday nights. Just sayin’

These are yummy cupcakes and easy as boxed mix. Wait. They are boxed mix. Guess what. They can also use Cool Whip in the frosting. That one is optional. You can also sub real freshly whipped cream. I’ve done both and prefer the whipped cream because it makes the frosting less sweet. But these are intensely chocolatey cupcakes with a rich, creamy frosting. Chocolate…romance…love… just leave oysters out of it. And burps.

You know the drill… 🙂

Red Velvet Cupcakes

  • 1 box red velvet cake mix
  • 1 4 ounce box of instant chocolate pudding
  • 1 8 ounce package of cream cheese, room temp
  • 4 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temp
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
  • 1 cup whipped cream or cool whip
  1. Preheat oven to temp suggested on cake mix box. Line 20 muffin cups with liners, or grease them well.
  2. Prepare cake mix as package directs, adding in the box of instant pudding and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla extract. Beat well for two minutes. The mixture will be thick. It will also be tasty…. don’t eat too much. 😀
  3.  Fill the prepared cups about half full. Don’t overfill; this batter rises like crazy. If you need to use more cups, just line more. But I got 20.
  4. Bake according to package directions. When done, turn out onto a rack to cool.
  5. While they cool, prepare the frosting. In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, butter and remaining vanilla extract until light and fluffy looking. Add in the powdered sugar; here is where I usually stir it with the beater OFF, just to prevent being covered in sugar dust. When it’s mixed, turn the beater to high and beat until the mixture is thick and creamy, about three to five minutes.
  6. Spread or pipe frosting onto the cooled cupcakes. Decorate as desired.

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Cheaters Easy, Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

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Cheaters Easy, Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

Cheaters Easy, Creamy Chicken & Dumplings



I was never a fan of chicken and dumplings growing up. It was a very heavy dish the way my mom made it. As southerners would say, “Bless her heart… she was a lovely woman, but she might could do something other than cook”.

I’ve said before, my mom made good lasagna considering she was a depression era southern woman. She also made excellent lemon meringue pie. And her fried chicken is something I still haven’t been able to match. But she had her flops too. Say “Garbage Soup” in my or my brothers presence and we’re likely to recoil away and gag. As for her chicken and dumplings, looking back, I can see why it turned out greasy and heavy. Mom just boiled up that chicken until it was tender and then made her Bisquick dumplings right on top, without getting rid of the grease.

While I’d give my right arm to eat her cooking again, I do make most things differently than she did. I used to make chicken and dumplings for the family her way and I could never eat it. So I started cheating. I had some leftover chicken and just started tossing things in a pot with it, then topped it with, yep, Bisquick dumplings. I love those far more than I do the rolled out ones. Over the years, it’s morphed into this dish and I finally can eat chicken and dumplings again. Plus… it’s so darn quick because you use either leftover chicken or a store bought rotisserie one!

You know the drill…

Cheaters Easy & Creamy Chicken & Dumplings

  • 1 rotisserie chicken, skin and bones removed, chopped into bite sized pieces (or about 4 cups of leftover chicken, chopped up)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 2 stalks celery, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 14 ounce cans chicken broth
  • 2 10.75 ounce cans cream of chicken soup, undiluted
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream or half and half
  • 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
  • 3 cups biscuit mix (Bisquick)
  • 1 1/4 cups milk
  • Black pepper to taste
  1. In a large pot, saute the chopped onion and celery in the 3 tablespoons butter until they are soft and limp, about 7 minutes. Pour the chicken broth and soup in with the veggies. Whisk to combine.
  2. Add in the chicken and poultry seasoning. Bring to a boil, then simmer over medium heat for ten minutes or so; long enough to heat everything up nicely. Stir in the cream and turn the heat up enough to bring the soup to a boil.
  3. Combine the biscuit mix and milk in a medium bowl. You’ll have a thick pasty sort of mixture. Use a large spoon to drop large balls of dumpling dough onto the hot soup. You should get about 8 to 10 dumplings. Snuggle them all in there right next to each other.
  4. Cover the pot and cook until the dumplings are tender and fluffy and cooked throughout, about 15 to 20 minutes.
  5. Serve with plenty of black pepper and there may be some out there who want to add some salt. I personally find it salty enough without adding extra.

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Easy Caramel Pecan Brownies

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Easy Caramel Brownies

Easy Caramel Brownies



I first saw this recipe back in like 1984 or 1985 or so, just after I got married to my ex. I was deep into the newlywed “cut out recipes and save them” phase. I got it from, of all places, TV Guide. This was back when TV guide was interesting. It was about the size of a Readers Digest magazine, had a fair amount of articles in it and a nice synopsis of practically every show that came on. They also had a piece at times highlighting celebrity recipes. This one came from John Davidson (yes, I realize fully half of you have no idea who he is, lol while the rest of you are googling his name as you think, “Wow. Is he even still alive? He’s like 200 years old, right?”)) and was aptly titled “John Davidsons Brownies”. The TV Guide people were somewhat lacking in imagination. I guess they used all their creativity describing episodes of M*A*S*H or The Waltons and had none left for recipe titles.

Since then, it has, as most recipes do anymore, swept the web under many different guises with some people (who obviously forget that the rest of us can google) going so far as to say they made these up. You can find it under “Turtle Brownies”, “Cake Mix Brownies” and 900 other names. But it’s still always the same basic recipe. This is one of those times when you don’t want to try to be fancy. No homemade caramel sauce here… no from scratch cake. Normally, I would balk at wrapped cheap caramels, but know what? They totally work here. I hadn’t made these in forever and I had forgotten how good they are. They are intensely chocolatey (in part because I use a chocolate fudge cake mix, not the German chocolate one originally called for), gooey from the caramel and they have a nice crunch from the nuts. I’m not usually a nut person (just nutty personally) but they also help cut the sweetness in the brownies. That way you can eat more of them! 😀

About all I do differently from the original is the cake mix flavor, plus I use half and half rather than the evaporated milk it used and I add about a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the batter.

So what do we have here? Intensely chocolatey brownies, gooey caramel and crunchy nuts. And they’re so easy you can let the kids make them and you can sit and watch old M*A*S*H reruns.  Yeah, you want these.

You know the drill…

Easy Caramel Brownies

  • 1 box dark chocolate fudge cake mix (or whatever chocolate flavor trips your trigger)
  • 1/4 cup half and half
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 14 ounce bag caramels (I use Kraft)
  • 1/2 cup half and half
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • 1 cup chopped pecans, lightly toasted in a 350 oven (the toasting is optional, but it’s a really good idea)
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 13×9 inch pan with foil and spray it lightly with cooking spray.
  2. In a medium bowl, using a wooden spoon (or whatever, just do this by hand) combine the cake mix, 1/4 cup half and half, vanilla extract and the melted butter.. It will be a fairly stiff batter; you didn’t do anything incorrectly. Press about half of this (may take a touch more) into the bottom of the prepared pan. It will be a thin layer.
  3. Bake at 350 for about 5 minutes while you prepare the caramels.
  4. Unwrap the caramels and put them, along with the 1/2 cup of half and half, in a small microwave safe bowl. Microwave for one minute, stir, then microwave in 30 second increments, stirring after each one, until they are melted and smooth. Mine take about  two and a half minutes.
  5. Take the brownies out, sprinkle the pecans on top of them, then the chocolate chips. Pour the caramel sauce in an even layer over this. Then, use your hands to break up small pieces of the remaining brownie batter and place it all over the caramel. It will NOT cover the whole thing. You’ll end up with a rather cobblestone look.
  6. Place the pan back in the oven and continue baking until the top is firm and set and the caramel is bubbly, about 15 to 20 minutes.
  7. Let cool for at least an hour, then pull them out using the foil and cut into pieces. They are fairly rich, so it doesn’t take much to satisfy anyone but the most addicted chocoholic. In other words, me. Heck, just cut big squares. Who am I kidding?

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Cheesecake Filled Blueberry Citrus Muffins

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Cheesecake Filled Blueberry Citrus Muffins

Cheesecake Filled Blueberry Citrus Muffins



I realized a few days ago that I haven’t done a muffin post in a while. GASP! Forgive me!? I mean, my blog IS called From Cupcakes To Caviar and what are muffins (in my world anyway) other than cupcakes without the frosting? Because Lord above knows that they aren’t healthy when made by me. I’m the only person alive who can take what should be a wholesome breakfast style food and make it into a caloric mine field, sure to clog your arteries and send you into a sugar coma. I like to think of this ability as one of my finer, more endearing qualities, along with my innate ability to make stuffed animals talk,  charm old people with my politeness and toss and turn in bed so much that my husband can’t sleep. Ok, so maybe that last one isn’t so endearing.

I have been craving fresh fruit lately and am knee deep into a huge orange phase. I can’t get enough of them. This usually hits me about this time of the Winter. Unfortunately though, about the only fresh fruit WORTH eating are the orange varieties. The rest are all shipped in from places like Mars or Venus, not to mention who in their right mind pays 5 bucks for like 25 blueberries in a carton so small an ant couldn’t make a home in it?

So, since I was craving blueberries (in January. Don’t use me as a food role model) and citrus, and knew I needed to make some nice healthy muffins *coughcough*, I combined the ideas, just using frozen berries. But then I totally blew the calorie budget (and I have a really really really really high budget. Call me the Donald Trump of calories.) on a cheesecake filling. But it’s so worth it. These are moist, tender blueberry muffins, with a lovely citrus edge, then you break one open and there lies a creamy cheesecake-ish filling. You can thank me later. For now, go make muffins. And don’t get involved in playing Monster Busters on facebook and forget your muffins and slightly overcook them. I…ummm… heard of someone who did this once. Yeah, that’s it. Heard of someone.

You know the drill…. 😀

This makes 24 muffins so feel free to cut it in half. I make a lot so that we have some to give away but if that’s not your thing, just make half. Or make them all and freeze half for another time.

Cheesecake Filled Blueberry Citrus Muffins

  • 4 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 tablespoon +1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
  • 1 tablespoon lemon zest
  • 4 eggs, room temp
  • 1 3/4 cups milk
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1 12 ounce bag frozen blueberries
  • 1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened
  • 1/2 cup blueberry or other berry preserves
  • 1 teaspoon orange zest
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon flour
  1. Line 24 muffin cups with paper or foil liners. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
  2. In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese, blueberry preserves, teaspoon each of orange and lemon zest and flour. Stir well to combine and then set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange and lemon zests. Whisk to combine.
  4. In a large measuring cup, combine the eggs, milk, melted butter and extracts. Stir just until combined; it will still have lumps.
  5. Carefully fold in the frozen blueberries.
  6. Fill the prepared muffin cups half full. Add a dollop (about 2 teaspoons or so) of the cream cheese mixture on top of the muffin batter. Use the rest of the batter to finish filling the muffin cups to the tops of the cups. Sprinkle with coarse sugar if desired.
  7. Bake at 375 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes, until the tops are a nice golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  8. Let cool in the tin for about a minute, then turn out onto a rack to finish cooling.

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