Valentine's Day Strawberry Angel Cake

Oh blog world, how I've neglected you! I cannot say I haven't attempted recipes for my blog, because I have. Last weekend, in fact, I attempted two types of candy, both resulted in a huge FLOP. Mostly due to the high humidity. At least I'm telling myself that.

Anyways...I figured it's almost V day, and whether or not you have a special someone to bake for, I think Valentines is an awesome excuse for more dessert!

So, I'm going to provide good vs. evil desserts for this occasion. Today I'm sharing the good. Strawberry angel food cake. Not only is it good because it's angel food, but it's also low fat. So, make this for the calorie conscious person in your life, and you'll score major points.

Start with a angel food cake mix. Betty Crocker or Duncan Hines will do. Most are just add water recipes. Easy. Or, make it even easier and buy an already made angel food cake.

I baked mine in two loaf cakes. I baked them on a cookie sheet just in case they overflowed. Which did happen. Once out of the oven, tilt them on the sides to loosen. Wait until cooled to remove.

Once cooled, cut your cake into 1 inch pieces, or close to it. Use a good bread knife (as seen) to make it easier on yourself.

Set your angel food aside for awhile. You'll need a 3 oz strawberry jello box, 2 containers of cool whip, and some frozen strawberries (or fresh works, if in season). 

Make the jello according to directions. Pour some of the strawberry juice from the frozen strawberries in, if you can. Allow jello to get thick in the fridge (about 30-45 min) just until it starts to thicken.

Whisk thickened jello, then fold in 1 container of cool whip and strawberries.

It'll look like this, kind of a hot mess, but it's okay.

Now you're going to make lasagna. Well, sort of. It is a layering process. I was clever and used a spring form pan so it would be easy to take out. You could also use a bundt pan. I don't have one of those. So start with your angel food pieces...

Then add a layer of jello-cool-whip mixture. 

..

And another layer of angel food followed by the rest of the mixture.

Then I topped with the remainder of the angel food.

Cover well with aluminum foil and saran wrap for at least 4 hours, to allow jello to set.

If you use a spring form pan, you can easily keep your cake form nicely when you release the spring. See?

Pretty cool, huh?

Now, you need that other container of cool whip. Use like icing to cover entire cake.

Pretty, huh?

You could top with fresh strawberries. I didn't have any, so I used sprinkles! 

Wouldn't this be cute for your valentine??

I found this recipe on the Duncan Hines website, here. This is a very easy recipe that will be quickly devoured by any guest. I made this for a youth leader meeting this past week and I only returned with one tiny sliver. That means it was good! You could even do these in individual ramekins for v day and impress your love. Plus, you won't feel guilty! Well, not too guilty. :)

Tomorrow I'll have the Evil portion of my valentine's dessert. That means devils food cupcakes with marshmallow cream filling and dark chocolate ganache icing. Anything but light!!

Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Stewed Tomatoes

Motivation. Ever loose it? I did big time this week. Things got super busy and, even when they weren't, I couldn't find the motivation to get this blog done. Times when motivation is lacking go hand in hand with this type of recipe. Comfort food. 

After a rough week, what else do you need? Something warm and nostalgic is the best medicine for lack of motivation. Right? Actually, it's probably enabling your lack of motivation even more, but who cares (says the counselor)?

Here's what you need: 1 lb box of macaroni (I used orecchiette), 2.5 cups of milk, plus an extra 1/4 cup, 1 stick of butter, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 4 tablespoons cornstarch, 1 bag of three cheese from Kraft  (8 oz or 2 cups), 1/2 block of extra sharp cheddar (4 oz), 2 cans stewed tomatoes, 1 cup of breadcrumbs (not pictured)

This is the cheese I used. You could do something different.

Boil pasta, strain and set aside.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat 2-3 cups of milk. I used low fat milk, and it didn't thicken as well as whole milk would have. But I didn't want those ridiculous extra calories. Also, the original recipe calls for 3 cups of milk, but I think you could get away with less. Add stick of butter and salt and pepper. Stir until butter is melted.

In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of milk with cornstarch and stir until dissolved, then slowly add to milk mixture, whisking constantly. Add cheese stirring until melted. Then combine pasta, two cans of tomatoes, and milk/cheese mixture, as well as 1 cup of seasoned breadcrumbs. Cut up blocks of cheese and place on top and sprinkle breadcrumbs across as well. 

Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until it looks like this!

Those tomatoes are like hidden jewels in all that cheese. If you've never had stewed tomatoes alongside your mac n cheese, you are really missing out!

The sad thing about food blogging is that by the time I actually get the blog up, all the delicious food is gone. I miss it. So does my tummy.

So, this weekend, instead of reaching for the box-in-blue, try some homemade mac n cheese that will comfort even your worst day.

Recipe adapted with minor changes from food.com recipe found here. 

Baked Mac n Cheese with Stewed Tomatoes

Ingredients: 

1 (1 lb) box of pasta, I used orecchiette because that's what Shawn picked out
2.5 cups of milk, plus 1/4 cup
1 stick of butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 tablespoons of cornstarch
2 cups of Kraft shredded Three Cheese (or just sharp cheddar cheese)
1 cup of seasoned breadcrumbs, plus extra for sprinkling on top
4 oz of block extra sharp cheddar cheese, cut in 1 inch pieces
2 cans of stewed tomatoes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook pasta as directed on package in a large pot, strain and set aside.
In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat 2/5 cups of milk, butter, salt and pepper, until butter is melted.
In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of milk with cornstarch and stir until dissolved. Slowly add to milk mixture, whisking continuously.
When mixture has thickened, remove from heat and stir in 2 cups of shredded Kraft cheese until melted. Mixture may be somewhat liquidy depending on type of milk you use, but don't worry.
Using large pot you cooked pasta in, add pasta, cheese mixture, 2 cans of tomatoes, and 1 cup of breadcrumbs. Mix until well combined.
Pour into greased 9x13 baking dish and top with remaining cheese pieces and a sprinkle of breadcrumbs.
Bake for 30-45 minutes, or until cheese on top is melted and the top is golden brown.


Some people like to chop up the tomatoes some before putting them in, but not me. I enjoy finding the big pieces among my pasta. When I was little, the idea of tomatoes and macaroni was yucky, and I hadn't tried it since. I'm very glad now that I decided to revisit this recipe and I guarantee it will remain a comfort food fav through the years.

Snow Cream

Oh the weather outside is...rainy? Well, unfortunately in Western PA, that's how it has been for the past week. But prior to that, we had a nice snowfall. During that time I collected some snow for snow cream! What is snow cream, you might ask?

Snow cream is more than a delicious dessert, it is also a memory for me. My Mamaw, who past away recently, would always talk about making snow cream during the winter. My aunts have also always made this wintery dessert, and I guarantee if you went to visit my Aunt Bonnie or Aunt Barrie at almost anytime during the year, they would have a batch of snow cream in their freezer. I figured it was time for me to past on the tradition.

Doesn't that look amazing? Like a pile of sweet, snowy heaven.