Sweet 'Marbled' Poke Cake

Pudding Poke Cake

(8x13 cake pan)

(cake part)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter

2 eggs

4 tsp vanilla extract

1-1/2 cups flour

1-3/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup milk

(pudding part)

1 pkg chocolate pudding mix

1 cup powdered sugar

4 cups milk

*Also will need whipped cream!*

      Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In medium bowl, cream together the sugar and the butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Mix together your baking powder and flour, then add to your mixture and mix well. Now add in the milk slowly, beating until creamy and smooth. Pour into greased 13x9 cake pan and bake 30-40 minutes or until cake springs back upon touching.

     Let sit for about three minutes before taking the back end of a wooden spoon and plunging it into the cake over and over, spacing the holes an inch apart (should be nice neat rows in the end). Mix the pudding mix and powdered sugar together and then stir in the milk. Pour about 1/2 of this mixture over your cake, making sure to pour it evenly over all the holes. Place both the cake and the remainder of the pudding mix in the refrigerator and wait about 30 minutes. 

 

   After 30 minutes the remainder of your pudding mixture should have thickened some. Use this like an icing and frost the top of the cake with it. You may have a little left over to lick clean from the bowl, and since there are no raw eggs this is the perfect job for a little helper! ;) Place the cake back in the refrigerator for 30 more minutes. Top with whipped cream (I did fun designs on each bowl) before serving. 

*Only add the whipped cream to each serving as you serve them as it will not hold up in the fridge well.

Asian Inspired Food Night

FRIED RICE NOODLES

(serves 6-7)

1 pkg rice noodles/rice sticks

1/2 bunch of scallions, chopped

2 eggs

1 tbs vegetable oil

soy sauce to taste
pinch of ground coriander 

    

     Follow the instructions for softening on the package of rice noodles. (Add them to hot water and let soak 10 minutes or until soft.) Drain and set aside. Heat vegetable oil over high heat in wok or frying pan and then quickly add both eggs. Scramble for about thirty seconds, then add to noodles and mix to coat (there will be pieces of egg, you want to mix and disperse these the best you can throughout). Add chopped scallions and mix well. Sprinkle with ground coriander and add soy sauce to taste and this is ready to enjoy!

OVEN TOASTED BROCCOLI

(serves 3)

1 crown of fresh broccoli

olive oil

salt/ pepper

garlic powder

ground ginger

    

    Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut broccoli into medium to large pieces. Lay out on foil lined baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil over each piece, then dust each of the remaining ingredients over all of them. Bake for 15-2 minutes or until the bottoms of the pieces turn brown and caramelized (Just carefully lift one up, you will easily be able to tell!) Turn off the oven when the are just about complete and you can leave them in there while you finish preparing the rest of this meal. This helps the crisp factor and also, obviously, with keeping them warm. Otherwise, be warned: they will get cold fast!

SPICY BBQ ASIAN BEEF

(serves 3)

1 lb of sirloin tip steak, cut into short thin strips

6-7 tbs soy sauce

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

4 tbs sweet and spicy bbq sauce

(We got ours locally at a festival...Support Your Community, Shop Local Small Businesses!)

6 tsp minced garlic

pepper
5-6 shakes of ground ginger

handful of fresh snow peas, ends cut off

1 fresh jalapeno, sliced then cut the slices in half

2 tbs vegetable oil

     Marinate your steak strips in a large freezer bag for 30 minutes in your refrigerator prior to frying. 

Marinade: 5 tbs of your soy sauce, the Worcestershire, the bbq sauce, 4 tsp of the garlic, a few shakes of pepper, and 3-4 shakes of ground ginger

     Heat the vegetable oil over high heat in your wok or frying pan. Add the marinated meat. Stir and allow to cook until meat turns brown in color. Add the last of your soy sauce, minced garlic, and ginger, plus a couple more shakes of pepper. Throw in the snow peas and jalapenos. Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Plate it all as shown above and dig in!

Yummy Not - So - Bad - For - You Cheese Sticks

Baked Cheese Sticks

(made 8 sticks)

4 cheese sticks

(We use jalapeno cheese sticks because we love everything spicy!)

1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs

2 eggs whites, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons flour

salt and pepper

marinara/pizza sauce (for dipping)

     FREEZE YOUR CHEESE STICKS PRIOR TO MAKING! Sorry to yell, but I ignored this and I regret it very much. (It helps keep your cheese from melting out all over and burning to your pan/foil!) Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Put flour, breadcrumbs, and egg whites in separate dishes. Add a few shakes of salt and pepper to your flour. Cut each of your 4 cheese sticks in half. 

One 1/2 stick at a time follow these steps:

                                   1. Coat with flour mix.

                                   2. Coat with lightly beaten egg whites.

                                   3. Dip into breadcrumbs and roll around.

                                   4. Repeat steps 2-3, pinching the 
                                                breadcrumbs to help them stick.

                                         *Make sure each stick is thoroughly 
                                                          coated, don't forget the ends!!*

 Place each fully coated cheese stick on a foil covered baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes, turning once about 8-10 minutes into cook time. Dip in preferred tomato sauce and yum yum yum!! :D

The Best Roast Ever (Dr Pepper Roast)

Dr Pepper Crock Pot Roast

(Serves 6-7)

5-qt Crock Pot

3 lb boneless round roast

can of Dr Pepper (12 oz)

cup of water

1 onion, chopped or quartered

4 lg carrots, sliced (or 2-3 handfuls of baby carrots)

4 stalks of celery, sliced
2 potatoes, skinned and diced

5 -6 tbsp minced garlic (I always like more garlic in near everything!)

several shakes of Worcestershire

2 packets of onion soup/dip mix

salt/pepper (just a shake, shake, shake!) 

     Place all ingredients in your crock pot. Turn on heat to low and let cook for 7 hours before switching to warm and serving when are ready. Stir every few hours. When the meat started to fall apart I went in with a fork and sharp knife and broke it all up into close to bite size pieces. (I feel like this lent to the overall juiciness/tenderness in the end, so I would recommend it.) Hope you love it as much as I did! Super easy, super yummy! And if you get crock pot liners, clean up is a breeze!!! Would serve well with mashed potatoes and green beans or on rolls as sandwiches!

Mmm ..... Sunday Morning Breakfast

FRIED EGG SKILLET

(served 3 adults)

eggs

can of corned beef hash

sausage links, thawed

     Open the can of corned beef hash and dump it out (or rather scoop it out usually) into a large skillet. I actually like using my wok for this because it is deeper and easier to stir without making any unnecessary extra mess.Slice your sausage links as thick or thin as you may like them and mix in with the corned beef hash. Stir every minute or so to keep from sticking, but let the hash and sausage mix fry for a few minutes. I like mine to get a little crispy so I leave it be for a little longer than I normally would, over a slightly higher temperature. (Be careful if you do this, a few seconds too long and it will burn and stick!) As soon as this mixture is hot and cooked to your desired crispiness, crack three eggs over the top. Let sit while you watch the white solidify. You will know when it needs to be stirred by looking at the edges of the pan where you see the egg whites. (They begin to look like the edges of a finished fried egg.)  Once you begin stirring, give it a complete stir once every ten seconds or so until the yolks and whites have been mixed throughout. You will easily be able to see that the egg is cooked thoroughly, if they are runny at all they are not done! It will look, in the end, like a fluffy breakfast stuffing and it will taste wonderful. Enjoy!

Crispy Pizza-dillas and Funfetti Cookies

CRISPY PIZZA-DILLAS  

(made 2 meals or feeds 6)

(Necessities...)

dozen flour tortillas 

pizza sauce 

shredded mozzarella cheese 

vegetable oil 

(plus your choice of pizza toppings; these were ours...)

pepperoni 

black olives, sliced

fresh jalapenos, diced 

bacon bits 

.

      Get all your ingredients ready to go first. You don't want to be fumbling around while these fry up in your frying pan because it is a fairly quick process! I spread some pizza sauce on a tortilla and then covered it in shredded mozzarella cheese.I then placed it in my frying pan, which had been coated with a couple tbsp of vegetable oil and had been heating over medium-low heat for 1-2 minutes. Quickly, I added all other desired ingredients, topped by a couple more ounces of mozzarella cheese and then finished off with another tortilla on top. As I saw the edges start to brown (literally maybe a minute or two), I carefully flipped the whole thing over in the pan. This was much easier said than done but with a firm steadying hand on top, a wide spatula underneath and a very quick flip, I got it done. (Be careful and ready for the worst, an uncoordinated turn will result in a sloppy, tiny little leaning tower of Pizza-dilla, if you will ;) The reverse side will brown even quicker, probably in half the time. As they finished, I lifted the finished product up on the spatula and I flipped a paper towel lined plate upside down on top of it. I then flipped so the plate was right side up with the finished Pizza-dilla on top. After one final flip and a ditching of my greasy paper towel, I had a delicious Pizza-dilla begging to be eaten.The boys were gracious enough to fulfill their wishes, nearly licking the plates clean before requesting "16 more please." :) After all was said and done, one Pizza-dilla was enough to satisfy each of us, even with no sides, and I have enough of every ingredient (almost exactly enough actually) left to make us each another later this week. 

For dessert tonight.....

FUNFETTI CAKE MIX COOKIES 

(made approx 24 cookies)

eggs
vegetable oil
Funfetti cake mix
sprinkles

      Mix 2 eggs, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, and one box of cake mix together. Form into small balls and dip each ball in sprinkles on its way to being laid out on your foil-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes, removing from the oven when you notice the edges browning. They will still be very very soft and light on top!! Let them sit on the pan for about a minute before transferring with a spatula to a cooling rack and allowing to set for another minute. After that, they should be stable enough to pick up without crumbling, but warm enough to melt your heart and sweet tooth. :D Don't forget to make sure you have milk!! You are definitely going to want some!

Oh, where to begin?

I love to bake and cook, I try and be as frugal as I can manage, and I love to be creative and put my own twist on everything I do; it's no surprise that stocking my pantry and feeding my small family has become quite the exciting adventure for me! I love to tell anyone that will listen about the delicious concoctions that wander across our tongues and so I have decided to write them all here for anyone in need of some easy, yummy recipes to enjoy. Being in only my early twenties, and sharing a small home with my boyfriend and our roommate, I have been working on mastering keeping satisfied bellies and full wallets. I get my ideas from tons of places, so if you see something you have posted somewhere before, do not be offended by the lack of specific credit. Instead be flattered that I found it so delicious and check it out to see if I made any changes to its (already wonderful I am sure) flavor or cooking process. Hope you all enjoy this like I do! :D I would love to hear if you try any of these ideas and how you liked them!!!!! If you make any changes I would also be curious to hear of them :).