Fourteen Layer Cake - Happy Birthday to Me!

For my 22nd birthday, I decided to indulge the crazy side (the one that always finds a more difficult way to do something) and make a 14-layer cake. I'm not going to lie - I am a huge fan of funfetti cake from a box, which contradicts almost everything I love about cooking and almost everything anyone knows about me. I'm also a huge red velvet cake fan. But, when it comes down to it - nothing beats yellow cake and chocolate frosting, especially when it's made from scratch. And a rainy Saturday with boyfriend in tow makes for the perfect day to make it a little bit more complicated.

When I announced with great excitement to my little sister and her friends about the 14-layer adventure, suffice it to say a little mockery ensued with the general idea that 14-layers is absurd and why stop there? After all, I did turn 22 and an equal number of layers only seems appropriate. After doing some quick mental calculations (and receiving a little, much needed discouragement from boyfriend), I decided that 22 layers was too much of an undertaking for the day, possible ever.

Anyways, the result of my endeavor was a spectacular seven pound cake. Absurd? Yes. Delicious? You bet.

Recipe adapted from Oprah and Bakerella.

Cake Ingredients:
4 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. (3 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 c. sugar
6 large eggs at room temperature
3 c. milk
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Frosting Ingredients:
1/2 c. butter at room temperature
8 oz. cream cheese at room temperature
1/2 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 box (1 lb) confectioner’s sugar
2 tsp. vanilla
3+ Tbsp. milk

Cake Directions:

1. Preheat to 375°. Spray cake pans with Pam and line bottoms with rounds of parchment paper (having an extra set of hands aka boyfriend around to do this while you prepare the batter makes the experience much more enjoyable). Shake flour in  the pans to lightly cover the bottom and the sides. Tap extra out. (Note: I purchased 14 aluminum 9 inch round pans from Walmart and baked all of the layers at once, but you can bake them in batches as well.)
2. Stir together flour, baking powder and salt.
3. Beat the butter and sugar in a bowl until light in color and texture. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl and be sure the mixture is well-blended. On low speed, add the flour in 3 additions, alternating with 2 additions of the milk, beginning and ending with the flour, and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl often with a rubber spatula. Beat in the vanilla. Using a scant cup for each layer, spread the batter evenly in the pans. It will make a thin layer. (Note: When I filled the pans with batter, it didn't spread to the edges completely evenly despite my many attempts so the layers came out a little bit uneven.)
4. Bake the layers until they feel firm when pressed in the centers and are beginning to pull away from the sides of the pans, about 12 minutes. (Note: Because I baked all 14 layers at once, I checked the cakes after 6 minutes and rotated them at 9 minutes.)

 Frosting Directions:

1. Cream the butter and cream cheese with a mixer.
2. Add the cocoa and vanilla.
3. Add the confectioner’s sugar in small batches and blend on low until combined. Scrape down sides with each addition.
4. Add 3 Tbsp of milk and increase it 1 Tbsp at a time until you get the consistency you desire.
5. Frost cake with a relatively thin layer between the pieces of cake. Use remaining frosting to thickly cover the outside and top of cake, filling in any gaps. (Note: Because the layers of my cake were uneven, I tried to fill in the gaps with frosting. Another unfortunate side effect - my cake began to lean, so after assembling all the layers of the cake, I inserted two skewers to hold it together. Also, in the future I would use more frosting in between layers - I was conservative for fear of running out of frosting.)

Double Blueberry Muffins

There are blueberries everywhere. I don't even like blueberries that much and I can say these muffins are delicious. Easily the best blueberry muffins I've ever had. I thought the blueberry preserves would act as a filling, which I was not excited about, and much to my surprise it worked very differently. These are so yummy that I've made them twice in the last week and have to plans to make them 2-3 more times in the coming weeks - an unprecedented occurrence.

Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients:
2 c. flour
3/4 c. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
3/4 c. buttermilk
6 T. butter, melted
1 c. fresh blueberries
1/2 c. blueberry preserves
1 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. lemon zest
2 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners (or parchment paper!)
2. Stir together flour, the 3/4 c. sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture; set aside.
3. Whisk together eggs, buttermilk and 6 Tbsp. melted butter (note: the butter may congeal upon being mixed with cool eggs and buttermilk, this is OK). Add all at once to the flour mixture and stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in blueberries. Remove 1 1/2 c. batter.
4. Spoon remaining batter into prepared muffin cups. Spoon 2 tsp. of blueberry preserves into the center of each muffin. Top with remaining batter to cover the preserves. Bake 20 minutes.
5. Stir together orange zest, lemon zest and 2 Tbsp. sugar. Remove muffins from oven; brush with 2 Tbsp melted butter and sprinkle citrus-zest on top.

Strawberry Muffins

Nothing says spring like strawberries. Nothing says perfect-ending-to-a-stressful-week-slash-sad-night-after-watching-the-dead-poets-society-which-is-not-a-comedy like muffins. I also really enjoy finding ways to use up ingredients that are on their last legs (or about to grow legs). We had these very sad, sad strawberries that were not going to be eaten, so I turned them into muffins.

Recipe adapted from Feisty, Frugal & Fabulous

Ingredients

• ½ c unsalted butter, softened
• ¾ c sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 c flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ c milk
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 1½ c chopped strawberries
• 3 Tbsp sugar
• ½ tsp cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl.
3. Add egg and mix well.
4. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
5. Next, alternately add the flour mixture and milk to butter mixture in the large bowl.
6. Add vanilla, then gently fold in the strawberries
7. Spoon batter into muffin pans (this makes approximately dozen muffins).
8. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over muffins. You will have a lot of sugar, but this allows you to be as generous as you like.
9. Bake at 400º for 20 minutes.

Cupcake Puppy Chow

I'm a puppy chow addict. I never make it anymore because I could sit down and eat the entire thing in about an hour. (For those of you who are unfortunately living under a rock, puppy chow or muddie buddies is a chocolate peanut butter chex snack that is highly addictive). For my college roommate's birthday this year, I tried a cupcake puppy chow recipe - which tasted surprisingly like cupcakes!

Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

Ingredients
12 oz white chocolate
6 T butter
3 T milk
5-6 cups rice Chex cereal*
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
SPRINKLES

Directions

1. Melt butter, white chocolate and milk in a saucepan over medium low heat.
2. Remove from heat and stir in milk, vanilla and almond extract (use almond extract sparingly and vanilla generously).
3. Pour white chocolate cereal over Chex cereal and mix.
4. Pour coated Chex into bag and add 1 1/2c. powdered sugar. Shake until Chex is covered. Add sprinkles.

*next time I'm going to try to corn Chex - as the rice Chex got a little soggy

French Onion Soup Stuffed Mushrooms

I really like the idea of like mushrooms. They're kind of like tomatoes. I know they're good for me and I really really want to like them. So, I'm sneaking them into things and hoping that I either won't notice or will eventually start to like them. It's been working, so I've started to get a little more adventurous. French onion soup is one of my absolutely favorite things at absolutely any time of year. On debatably more than one occasion, I turned the air conditioning all the way up (or down? I'm not sure how that works - basically I made it cold), so that it would be soup weather inside even if it wasn't outside. When I saw these french onion soup stuffed mushrooms come across my Pinterest page I knew I had to try them at some point. They fit right into the menu for my winter board game night. Now, it's beginning to seem a little silly that I'm posting about a winter board game night in spring. Oh well.

Recipe adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:
2 T Butter
2 whole Large Onions, Halved And Sliced Thin
1/4 c Beef Broth
7 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
Splash Of Red Or White Wine
1/2 c Grated Gruyere Cheese (can Use Swiss)
Kosher Salt
24 whole White Or Crimini Mushrooms, Washed And Stems Removed
Minced Parsley

Directions:

1. In a medium skillet, melt 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat. Add onions and saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until very soft. Splash in wine, broth, and Worcestershire. Cook for another 5 minutes, or until liquid is cooked down. Set aside.
2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Throw in mushrooms and toss around for 2 minutes, just to start the cooking process. Sprinkle mushrooms with salt.
3. Place mushroom caps face down in a baking dish. Heap cavity with sauteed mushrooms, then sprinkle Gruyere over the top. (I forgot to grate the Gruyere, so I just shaved pieces off using a vegetable peeler and quite liked the look). Bake at 10 minutes on 325 degrees. Turn on broiler and broil for a couple of minutes, until the top of the Gruyere starts to bubble and slightly turn brown.
4. Sprinkle minced parsley over the top and serve.

Spanish Paprika Wings

Another appetizer from a winter game night. These have a very subtle heat with a crispy, flaky outside, so they're good for a large crowd. I'm kind of a wings fanatic. I might beef up the spices for a little bit more flavor next time, but they were cooked to perfection.

Recipe adapted from The Nest

Ingredients:
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. granulated (or powdered) garlic
1 tsp. paprika, preferably Spanish smoked paprika
1 tsp. salt
2 lb. chicken-wing pieces
2 Tbl. olive oil

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.
2. Mix together the cumin, garlic, paprika, and salt in a small bowl. Rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry. Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken. Pour the olive oil onto a large baking sheet and spread it around. Roll the chicken pieces in the oil until lightly coated on all sides, then arrange them neatly in a single layer without touching.
3. Bake for 20 minutes. Flip the pieces over and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes. They should be slightly crisp and golden on the outside. Serve hot or at room temperature

Crispy Brussel Sprouts with Garlic Aoli

These tasty little treats were a yummy appetizer for a winter game night. The perfect combination of healthy and indulgence with a tangy garlic aoli.

Recipe adapted from Costa Kitchen

Brussel Sprouts Ingredients:
20 frozen Brussel Sprouts, partially thawed cut into halves
Canola Oil
Salt & Pepper

Aoli Ingredients:
6 tbs mayonnaise
1/4 tsp garlic minced fine
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tbs flat leaf parsley chopped fine


Brussel Sprouts Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400.
2. Place brussel sprouts on a baking sheet and drizzle with canola oil. Crack some fresh salt & pepper to taste. Mix around brussel sprouts on pan to ensure they all get nicely coated in the oil.
3. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown on at least one side.

Aoli Directions:

Mix together mayonnaise, garlic, parsley and lemon juice. Serve in a ramekin.

Best Cinnamon Rolls Ever

Over the last year I've found several excuses to make these including preparation for Hurricane Sandy and for the morning after a New Year's Eve party. When the power is out and the house is cold and you're forced to make coffee using a french press a homemade cinnamon roll can go a long way (man that was a crazy party - JK oh, Sandy.)

 Recipe adapted from Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen

Dough Ingredients:

1 cup warm milk

2 eggs, room temperature

1/3 cup margarine, melted

4 ½ cups all purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup white sugar

1 package active dry yeast

Filling Ingredients:

1 cup brown sugar, packed

2 ½ tablespoons ground cinnamon

1/3 cup butter, softened

Frosting Ingredients:

3 ounces of cream cheese, softened

¼ cup butter, softened

1 ½ cups confectioners’ (powdered) sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1.       Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk in a large bowl. Mix in the sugar, margarine, salt, and eggs. Add the flour in quarters and mix well. It will get a little tough, but keep at it until it’s well mixed! If it starts to get way too hard to mix anymore, dust your hands with some flour and finish mixing it by hand.

2.       Knead the dough into a large ball and put it back into the bowl. Cover it with a dish cloth and let it rise in a warm place for about an hour, or until doubled in size.

3.       Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F

4.       Roll dough into a large rectangle (Make sure not to roll it too thin, or it will rip when you roll it up). Spread dough with the softened butter and sprinkle the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture evenly over it. Roll the dough up and cut into rolls about 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick (I always end up making a different number). (Dough can be stored in the fridge at this point for later use.)

5.       Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan (or two). Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about thirty minutes.

6.       Bake rolls in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together the ingredients for the frosting. Spread or drizzle it on warm rolls before serving.

Stuffed Red Bliss Potatoes

I love twice baked potatoes. Big and Small. and these tiny ones are so yummy - even left over.

Ingredients:  
8 small red bliss potatoes, about 2" diameter
1 tbsp light Mayonnaise
2 tbsp fat free sour cream
4 tbsp olive oil
6 cloves garlic
2 tbsp fresh thyme (or rosemary)
3 tbsp grated parmesan or asagio cheese
salt and pepper to taste
paprika

Directions:

1. In a medium pot, cover potatoes in water and add 1 tsp of salt. Bring to a boil and cook until soft (about 12 minutes). Drain and run under cool water. Set aside.
2. While the potatoes cook, in a small pan, add oil and garlic and cook on very low heat, about 12 minutes, till soft. Remove garlic and discard oil. Mash garlic.
3. In a medium bowl combine garlic, thyme, cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, salt and pepper. Mix well.
4. Preheat oven to 350°. Using a teaspoon, scoop out potato leaving 1/4 inch shell.Mix the potato with the other ingredients and fill potato shells. Sprinkle with paprika. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes.

Best Sugar Cookies

This Valentine's Day I wanted to make heart shaped sugar cookies with leftover dough from Christmas. However, when I defrosted it and tried to roll it out, it just crumbled. So, I quick got on the interweb and found this gem - buttery sugar cookies that don't require any fridge time.

And then I found the perfect icing. It dried hard and shiny, but was still yummy and sweet.

Cookie recipe adapted from Food.com; Icing recipe adapted from AllRecipes.com

Cookie Ingredients
1 c. butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 T vanilla
2 3/4 c flour
2 t baking powder
1 t salt

Icing Ingredients
1 c. powdered sugar
2 t corn syrum
2 T water
1 T vanilla
food coloring

Cookie Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400
2. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla.
3. Mix dry ingredients; add to wet ingredients 1 cup at a time
4. Don't chill dough. Roll out dough and cut cookies.
5. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet lined with parchment paper for 6-8 minutes until golden brown.

Icing Directions

1. Mix all ingredients and add water as needed.

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

I seriously love nothing more than cinnamon crunch or coffee cake or cinnamon swirl or whatever you want to call it muffins/bread/cake. I found this delicious recipe while preparing care packages to send to friends who are still in school. I knew immediately that I would have to double the recipe to keep some at home.

Recipe adapted from Mangio da Sola

Bread ingredients:
1 and 1/3 c. sugar
1 heaping Tbsp. cinnamon
2 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 c. milk
1/3 c. oil

Glaze ingredients:
1 c. powdered sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Bread

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9x3x13 loaf pan.
2. Mix 1/3 c. sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.
3. Mix flour, remaining sugar, baking powder and salt in another bowl.
4. In another bowl, beat egg. Add milk and oil. 
5. Add egg mixture to flour mixture and mix until just incorporated. Batter will be lumpy. Do not overmix.
6. Pour half of the batter into the pan. Sprinkle half of the cinnamon sugar on top. Pour remaining batter on top and sprinkle with remaining cinnamon sugar.
7. Bake 40-50 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

Glaze

1. Mix all ingredients together.
2. Pour over the top of bread.

Red Velvet Brownies

I love red velvet. You might say that I have a red velvet obsession. Normally I bake red velvet cupcakes or red velvet cake roll, but I feel these demand a cream cheese frosting - which you just can't mail. So for my Valentines' Day or Singles Awareness Day care packages I made red velvet brownies and decorated them with a white chocolate heart.

Recipe adapted from How Sweet It Is

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder

2 tablespoons red food coloring

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Line pan with parchment paper for easy removal (I used a 9x13 for maximal brownies you can use an 8x8 or 9x9 for thicker brownies).
2. In a small bowl, combine cocoa powder, red food coloring, and 1 teaspoon vanilla to create a paste.
3. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, then add remaining teaspoon of vanilla. Add in cocoa powder mixture. Beat until batter is completely red. (If at this time your batter is NOT red, you can add a little more food coloring if desired.  Add flour and salt, mixing until just combined. 
4. Spread in pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool completely before decorating.