Bake Sales and Owl Pops

Happy November!  Today is the first day of NaBloPoMo!  To kick off this worthy endeavor, I'm starting out with owl pops.  Are these owl pops completely one of the cutest things you've ever seen?  Well, maybe not cutest ever... but I thought they turned out pretty adorable. 

Tomorrow, my work is having a bake sale to help raise money to support the local chapter of the United Way.  I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to make these adorable little pops, since not only are they fall festive (thus meaning they needed to be made, bake sale or not) , but they will be going to help out a good cause as well. 

When I originally decided to contribute something to the bake sale, I searched high and low on pinterest to find an idea of some sort of fall idea that was unique enough that it wouldn't get lost in the sea of goodies I expect to abound tomorrow at work, but something that was relatively simple as well.  This is when I stumbled across these jewels.  They originally were done by Bakerella in her book, but I found them on Ms. Fox's Sweets.  One look at these, and I was sold.  Owl pops were going to the bake sale.

The first thing I did to get these little guys going was to collect all the ingredients used in them.

I used a box mix of cake and canned frosting, since I didn't want to invest too much time in them in case they turned out hideous.  I also used Dark Chocolate Candy Melts, Reese's pieces, Candy necklaces, chocolate chips, orange sprinkles, and flower sprinkles.

Bake the cake following the directions on the box.  Any homemade recipe would work too if you prefer to not use a box.  Once the cake is baked and cooled, crumble it up until it is just a bowl of fine crumbs (A crummy cake is a good cake).

Then add about 2 tablespoons of frosting to the crummy cake and mix it until the cake forms a sort of dough almost.  Once the cake has reached a dough consistency, it is ready to be formed into the owls.  I used a sort of triangular shape for the owls body/head.  It really doesn't need to be perfect, the candy coating will cover any little lumps or bumps. 

Then add chocolate chips to the top corners of the owl bodies.  These can be 'glued' on with a small amount of melted candy coating.  This will end up being their ears when it is all said and done. Then dip the lollipop stick tips into the melted candy coating and stick them into the owl bodies.  Then refrigerate for a few minutes to help the candy firm up. 

While the owl pops are in the fridge, get out the chocolate candy coating and melt it.  It should be thin with no lumps in it.  When the candy coating is all melted, bring the cake pops out of the fridge.  Using a spoon, carefully pour the chocolate coating over each owl pop until there is a solid coating all around the cake.  Once the cake pop is coated, put in a cake pop stand (Styrofoam or a box with holes in it would work as well) until the candy coating is firm and dry to the touch.

Once the cake pops are dry to the touch, line them up on a cookie sheet.  Using a clean paint brush, dip the wrong side of the brush into the candy coating and use that to glue on the candy necklace pieces (for eyes), the Reese's pieces (wings) the candy sprinkles (the nose), and the flower sprinkles (the feet).

Once all the owls have all of their pieces 'glued' on, let them dry and then package or store them however you plan on keeping them!

I am so excited to bring these to the bake sale; although I'm not sure how I feel about them actually being eaten.  I suppose that is to be their owl fate though.

How about you?  Have you ever tried making cake pops?  How did they turn out?  Have you ever made character/animal cake pops?

 I'd love to see pictures of your baking creations!

Are you new to Angela, Herself?  Feel free to follow me on facebook or by email!
(Linking this up over at Mandatory Mooch's Tasty Thursday, and onto "Your Great Idea" Link up Or So She Says...)

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Can you smell the fall in the air?  No?  Truthfully, neither can I.  It has still been in the high 80s low 90s this week and truthfully, it doesn't really look like it's going to break quite yet.  But I am counting down the days until autumn begins.  (Only 30 more days!!!!!)

Fall is one of my favorite seasons.  The leaves falling, the cooler temperatures, and just the feel of the season.  The return of pumpkin spice lattes, jumping in leaf piles, and pretty much everything about the season.  I love it ♥!

In honor of the upcoming autumn season (as well as to hasten the time) I decided we needed some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies in our house.

These delicious cakey cookies will keep me occupied (while only momentarily) and hopefully keep my mind off of the 30 long days left until fall.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
from allrecipes.com

1 cup canned pumpkin
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. milk
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg.  In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt.  Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir in.  Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well.

Add vanilla, chocolate chips and nuts.

Drop by spoonful on greased cookie cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for approx. 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm.

Then kick back, relax, and enjoy a cookie, or two, or ...

 

 

**Linking this up over at the Mandatory Mooch for another Tasty Thursday.  Also linking up over at Six Sister's Stuff Strut Your Stuff Saturday**

Perfectly Peachy

I love peaches.  Especially ripe just off the tree peaches.  Those are the best.  About 10 minutes from my house there is a u-pick orchard full of these beautiful, juicy, delectable palmfuls of fleshy goodness.  Unfortunately, once picked, they really don't seem to last long enough.  That of course is where my new love for canning kicks in.

This past week, I've canned about 12 pints of peaches in a light syrup.

I've frozen several pounds of peaches for some nice smoothies or peach cobblers later this year.

I've made some really delicious peach butter.

As well as some jam, of course, was whipped up as well.  Although I love peaches plain, I think my favorite thing that was done with the peaches was the peach butter.  It came out perfectly!  The only change I think I may make the next time around is possibly adding some vanilla bean to it.  It is so good, I could almost eat it out of the jar by itself.

**8/17/12 - I made the peach butter and peach jelly with vanilla bean the other day.... AMAZING! The vanilla adds some real depth to the jelly/butter!**

Here's the recipe for the peach butter, if you want to give it a whirl, trust me, it is worth the effort!

Peach Butter

slightly adapted from The Smitten Kitchen

4 lbs. peaches

1 cup water

2 cups granulated sugar

1/4 cup lemon

1 1/2 Tbs. cinnamon

Cut a small "x" in the bottom of each peach.  Dip each peach into a pot of boiling water for 30 - 60 seconds, and then into a bowl of cold water for a minute.  The peels should slide right off (as long as the peaches are completely ripe).

Halve your peaches and remove the pits, then cut each half into quarters.  Place peach chunks and water in a large bowl and bring to a boil.  Simmer until peaches are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure they cook evenly.  Once cooked, puree in a blender or food processor until it is the consistency you prefer.  (Be super careful on this step, the mixture is very hot!)

Return the peaches to the large pot, add the sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice and bring to a good simmer/gentle boil, cooking them at this level for 30 to 40 minutes, stirring occasionally in the beginning and more often near the end, as it thickens up and the fruit masses risk scorching on the bottom of the pot.

There are several methods to test for doneness:  You can drizzle a ribbon of sauce across the surface; when that ribbon holds its shape before dissolving into the pot, it is done.  You can also dollop a spoonful onto a cold plate.  If no water forms a ring around it within a few minutes, it is done.  Others use a spoon; if the butter remains rounded on a spoon for two minutes, it is done.  You can also check the pot itself; the butter is usually done when a wooden spoon leaves a clear train when scraped across the bottom.

If you are canning it, follow the normal canning procedures.  The processing time for these is 10 minutes.  Otherwise, let the butter cool and put it in an airtight container in the fridge.  It should be good for at least two weeks.

Makes approx. 4 cups

**Linking this up over with the Mandatory Mooch's Tasty Thursday.  Also over at the Six Sister's Stuff Strut Your Stuff Saturday.  Go ahead and check out some of the delicious things posted over there**

(On a completely non-peach related note, I now have a facebook page, so go ahead, follow me on facebook)

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta

AMAZING!  That is one of the many words I would use to describe this pasta.  It is so creamy and delicious.  I don't know where this recipe has been all my life, but is is so good.

In fact, it was so good, both of the kids had two helpings.  In fact, I had two helpings too!  That is actually pretty unusual in my house (I'm more of a junk food person, not real food).

Ashton's initial response to this dish was that it was "The bomb."

Sydney rolled the noodles around in her mouth a bit and then declared is delicious.

I think we've found a keeper.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pasta
from The Chef in Training

10-12 oz. penne or ziti pasta

2 cups heavy cream

1 (8 oz) block cream cheese

1/2 tsp. onion powder more or less to taste

1/2 tsp. garlic salt more or less to taste

1 1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese separated

2 chicken breasts cooked and cut into strips

3/4 cup bacon cooked and chopped

3/4 cup diced ham

1/2 cup bread crumbs

Cook pasta according to its package's directions. Drain.
Heat cream cheese on stove over medium low heat until melted. Stir in heavy cream. Stir until completely combined. Add onion powder and garlic salt until it tastes how you would like it to. Stir in one cup of the cheese until smooth consistency.
In a 9x13, layer noodles, chicken, bacon and ham. Pour sauce over top. Sprinkle top with 1/2 cup cheese and bread crumbs.
Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes or until heated through.

(I've linked this recipe up over at Mandatory Mooch's Tasty Thursday, The Six Sister's Stuff Strut Your Stuff Saturday, and The Dedicated House's Make It Pretty Monday.  Check out the great stuff at all of these sites!)

Something New Saturday: Homemade Poptarts

I don't know about your family, but I know in mine, one of my kids favorite snacks/treats/morning on the go breakfast is Poptarts.  Those delicious little pastries frosted with sugar and filled with high fructose corn syrup and who knows what else.  When we have these in our pantry, they disappear like they are going out of style.  Due to this predicament, and the fact that they are completely not healthy for you at all, I decided to test out a new recipe I found for Homemade Poptarts.

This recipe actually only had a few ingredients and was actually really simple.  It used whole wheat flour, butter, sea salt, yogurt (I used Greek yogurt since it has more protein in it than regular), and jelly (Great way to use some of the homemade jelly that has been whipped up in my kitchen lately).

The first step was to mix up the dough for the poptarts.  Measuring out the flour, salt, yogurt, and melted butter, dump them all in a bowl and mix until everything is all good and mixed.  Then, knead the dough a few times to show it who's boss (and to make it workable).




 After the dough is ready to be worked with (it's been kneaded into submission), roll the dough out onto a well floured surface. 

The dough should be rolled pretty thin.  The original recipe I used said that they made about 15-20 poptarts, but I only got 8 out of the batch so I may have rolled mine too thick.  I'd say it was about 1/4" thick, so maybe try slightly thinner if you want to get more poptarts per batch.  After the dough is all rolled out, cut into a rectangular shape.  Try to keep them roughly the same size.  This will facilitate the sealing process once the filling has been put into the pastries.

Next, put the jelly of your choice onto half of the cut out rectangles.  I used blueberry and cherry jelly on the ones I made, but it really is up to you.  I think cinnamon and sugar would be pretty tasty as well.   Once half of the rectangles are jammed up, put an unjammed rectangle on top of it and seal the edges shut.  Then place the sealed pastries onto a cookie sheet and bake in the oven for about 25 minutes or until they are golden brown.

Then remove from the oven.  Once they are out of the oven, you can enjoy immediately, or they can be frozen for later use too.  They toast up great in the toaster.

Now onto the reviews:

Ashton said that these poptarts are pretty tasty.  He said that the blueberry ones were very good and that he thinks that they should be packed into his school lunches once he goes back to school.

Sydney straight up refused to eat them.  She said that they looked gross.  I think the lack of shiny wrappers sort of was a turn off for her.

Personally, I thought that they tasted good.  They weren't exactly like a poptart, but a decent substitute.  While I can see myself making these occasionally, they were a little labor intensive for only 8 poptarts.  I may stick to buying them for now.  Or perhaps I'll try another recipe to see if it yields better results (appeal wise with Sydney as well as quantity wise for myself).

Have you ever tried making homemade poptarts?  If so, how did they turn out? 

Here's the recipe I tried, in case you want to give it a whirl ☺

Homemade Healthy Poptarts
from Heavenly Homemakers Blog

3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup melted butter
1 cup plain yogurt
About 5 ounces fruit jelly or jam

Begin by mixing the flour, salt, butter, and yogurt.

Knead the dough just a little bit to make it nice and workable.  Roll out the dough on a large, well floured surface.  Use a knife to cut the dough into the desired poptart size you would like.

Place about 1/2 tsp. of jelly on half of the dough rectangles.  Spread the jelly around, leaving the edges free.  Find a second rectangle that closely matches with each jellied one.  Place it on top and use a fork to seal the edges.

Lay each poptart in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned.

Then remove from oven and enjoy.

Something New Saturday: Chicken Pitas

I am a huge fan of food on the go.  Even if I'm not eating on the go, I like a food that uses limited dishes, and I can walk around while eating it. 

The other day while wandering around Yokes, I saw a bag of pita bread.  While I've never actually made anything at home using a pita, I thought to myself, "That pita could be packing some serious deliciousness.  And I could eat it without dishes."  This may sound like a sort of random thought, but I like the idea of being able to not be confined to the limiting constraints of things, like plates and forks.  I want to be free while I eat.  So the idea to make chicken pitas was birthed.

To make these delicious pockets, I basically just cooked some chicken up, threw some seasoning in it.  Then I packed chicken, and other items into the pocket to create a mixture of awesomeness.

My kids, being plain janes, simply had chicken and cheese in their pitas.... boring.

I went a little crazy and mixed black beans, corn, chicken, lettuce, and some cheese.  I even added tapatio and sour cream.  Talk about wild, huh?

Here's the gist of how we made them:

Chicken Pitas

Pitas
Chicken
Assorted Toppings, depending on your tastes (I had cheese, lettuce, corn, black beans, sour cream, and tapatio)
Fajita seasoning

Dice and cook chicken until there is no pink (cooked all the way through).  Then season with fajita seasoning.

Once the chicken is all prepared, heat the pita bread until it is soft and pliable. 

Then stuff to your hearts content with whatever toppings you desire.

Easy Peasy.

What type of toppings do you like to stuff in your pita?

"Jam"-ing Out

I have always wanted to make homemade jam or jelly.  I think the whole idea of being able to make your own jelly and can your own fruits is such a neat thing to do.  Very domestic. 

My bestie April, and her mother in law came over today to teach me just that (Thanks again April for sharing your mother in law with me today), to make homemade jam.   April and her mother in law brought over apricots and plums and we got busy 'jamming' out.

I was truly surprised at how easy it really was to make and can jam.  The only ingredients we used were sugar, pectin, lemon juice and fruit.

The first step was to sanitize the jars.  We did this by putting the jars in boiling water.  This santized them and prepped them for the jam.  While the jars were being sanitized, April and I chopped up the apricots and pineapple (the plums were already done).

The next step was to cook the fruit.  The apricots, pineapple, pectin, and lemon juice all got put into a large pot.  The plums were cooked with pectin in a separate pot.

This cooked until it came to a rolling boil. Then the sugar was added.

After the sugar was added, the fruit mixture was brought to a rolling boil.  Then the mixture was ready to be poured into the sanitized jars.

The jam should be filled up to about 1/4 inch from the top of the jar.  Then the rim of the jar needs to be wiped down (otherwise the jar won't seal right).  Then put the lid and seal on.  This then needs to be put into the large pot of boiling water that was used to sanitize the jars (if you have hard water, then new water should be used to avoid hard water stains on the jars).

Once the water has bubbles starting to come up from the bottom, set a time for ten minutes.  Once the ten minutes is up, the jars are ready to be removed.  Remove the jars, being careful to not tip them sideways (this can break the seal),   Put the jars in a place where they won't be disturbed for about 24 hours.  This will allow the seal to set up correctly so that the jam is botulism free.

Then feel free to enjoy the fresh homemade jam however you want.  We started off by drizzling the warm jam over vanilla bean.  So delicious!

I think I'm going to be on a canning kick here soon.   I've already googled about a dozen different recipes I can make (different types of jam, canning fruits, etc.).   I just cannot wait to get started on them!

So what about you?  Have you ever tried canning, or making your own homemade jelly?  What recipe's have you tried in regards to canning your own foods?