Orange Glad - September 2013 Unboxing

Recently, I've become slightly addicted to monthly subscription services.  I actually receive three of them at this point, although the Orange Glad Dessert Subscription is really on a trial basis at this point, this is the first month I've received it. 

 

Orange Glad is an organization that just recently began.  September is only their third month that they've been in business.  Orange Glad is a company that had a brilliant idea to deliver delicious confections to people's doorsteps.  The idea of home delivery, while not revolutionary (tons of companies deliver stuff to people's houses all the time), has been taken to the next level when they brought about the idea of delectable treats being delivered without having to get up off the couch to pick them up.  Absolutely brilliant in my opinion.

Anyways, as I stated before, September is sort of a trial month for me with this new confectionery treat box thing.  I thought I would give it a whirl, since I love sweets.  This month's theme was "cookies." 

The box arrived within a day or two of receiving the email from Orange Glad indicating it had shipped.  It came in a Priority Mail package that was stamped "Fragile:  I'm Perishable Keep Me in Shade."

 

Once opened, the goods were wrapped in tissue paper and confetti, as well as it had an ice pack in there to keep the items that could melt (chocolate) from doing just that.

 

 

Here's what arrived in the box:

 

Kelly's Kookies:  Chocolate Dipped Macadamia Shortbread

 

This was honestly probably the tastiest shortbread cookie I have ever eaten.  It was melt in your mouth good.  It had butter overtones with just the right amount of chopped macadamia nuts.  The chocolate just completed the cookie.  This was definitely my favorite item out of the box.  This is an item I would purchase again.

 

 

Cinderella Cakes:  Oreo Cookie Cake Push Pop

 

While I love the idea of a push pop with cake and frosting type fillings in it (completely could eat and do other stuff without sticky cake fingers...), I was not so impressed by the execution of this particular item.  The chocolate cake portion of it was okay, the cake was moist and tasted like your basic run of the mill chocolate cake.  The Oreo buttercream was not my cup of tea though.  It had a strong smell, sort of like fake vanilla extract?  It also had a slightly off flavor, compared to what I would expect an Oreo buttercream to taste like.  I was not impressed with this particular item.

 



Cinderella Cakes:  Lemon Sugar Cookie

 

This is another item I was not incredibly impressed with.  While the item itself had okay flavor, it wouldn't be what I would expect if I was purchasing an item from a bakery.  Neither the cookie or the frosting had a tart lemony taste.  It was a very neutral lemon flavor.  The outside of the cookie was touted as being slightly crispy with a chewy middle.  I found that the cookie wasn't particularly chewy, regardless of whether it was the middle or outside of the treat.  This item wasn't bad, it just wasn't something I would go out of my way to purchase on it's own either.

 

Modern Bite:  Designer Chai and Almond Spice Cookies

 

The Designer Chai and Almond Spice Cookies were a pleasant addition to the box.  Per the information card that came with the box, they can be custom designed or have a logo added to the top of the cookie to match whatever occasion you are celebrating.  The flavor on these were perfect.  The chai and almond spice flavors had just the right amount of presence in the cookies to make them a delicious addition to any cookie platter.  This is an item I would purchase again.

 

JJ Bakery:  Almond Nougat

 

While the fifth item that was supposed to be in the box was an almond nougat, this particular item was missing from the box.  I did contact the customer support from Orange Glad and I was pleased to see that they were very quick about responding to the issue.  They have emailed me already and indicated that they would be mailing the missing nougat to me promptly.  As I am writing this, I haven't received the lost nougat yet, but I have confidence that it is going to be arriving any day now.

 

 

Overall at this point, I am not overly impressed with the Orange Glad box.  While I very much enjoyed receiving sweets in the mail, I really was only impressed by one of the four I actually received.  The box is normally $15/month plus shipping, so I'm not sure each item in the box was worth, flavor wise, about $4 (taking into account the shipping, and the item I did not receive).   

 

I'm thinking maybe I'll give them one more chance to impress me.  They did have great customer service (Thanks Angela from Orange Glad Support...heehee she had the same name as me), and sometimes these subscription type services have a down month.  The first two months they've been around, the snacks looked delicious...so possibly month four will be better than month three.

 

Here's hoping October is more impressive than September.

 

 

 

Cake for Breakfast - French Toast Cupcakes

 

Breakfast is one of my all time favorite meals.  There are so many ways to mix it up and keep it fresh.  There's pancakes, eggs, omelets, crepes, and french toast. 

French toast is probably a favorite out of the bunch.   It can be jazzed up with different flavors such as vanilla, hazelnut, and peanut butter, to name a few.  It also is delicious just as it originally is, without any added bells or whistles.

That being said, I really love dessert.  Dessert is my favorite meal of the day.  My husband always gives me a hard time about the order in which I eat my meals, insisting I set a 'good' example by eating my dessert after I eat the actual meal.  Picky, picky.

With that being said,  I thought the only logical thing would be to make a dessert that (at least flavor wise) would fit into the meal category. 

After scouring the Internet for different breakfast flavored recipes, I settled on French Toast cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting.  I actually used two different sources for the recipes for the cupcake and the frosting, the original sources are noted by the recipes.  They turned out magnificent.  The kids liked them, and I really enjoyed them.  They were so delicious!  While we (we being my children) won't be actually eating these little cakes for breakfast, they certainly remind me of breakfast and the tasty french toast we often enjoy at our house.

French Toast Cupcakes
recipe from Life Is Better With Cake Blog

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
3 lg. eggs, separated
Maple Cream Cheese Frosting - recipe follows

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Line a muffin pan with paper cupcake liners (the original recipe says approx. 12 cupcakes for are produced from the recipe, I ended up with about 21).

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar.  Mix on low until it is just incorporated, and then raise the speed to high and mix for about 10 minutes until the butter and sugar mixture is nice and fluffy.

While the butter and sugar is mixing, combine the rest of the dry ingredients into a bowl.  Whisk them together and then set aside.  In a separate bowl, combine the milk and vanilla, and then set aside.

Add the egg yolks one at a time to the butter mixture, waiting until the yolk is completely mixed in before adding the next one.

Next, reduce the speed of the mixer and alternately add the flour mixture (3 additions) and the milk mixture (2 additions).  Add just a little of each at a time, waiting until it is fully incorporated before adding the next.  Once all the milk and flour have been added, speed up the mixer until the batter is smooth.  Transfer the batter into a separate bowl.

Clean the mixer bowl out and then put the egg whites inside.  With the whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed.

Fold the egg whites into the batter until just incorporated. 

Pour the batter into the lined muffin pan.  Fill each cup about 3/4 full. 

Bake until the cupcakes are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean (I baked ours for about 30 minutes, but I think 27 would have been sufficient).

Remove the cupcakes from the oven, cool completely, then frost.

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
slightly adapted from The Cupcakery Blog

8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
Pinch of salt
1 tsp. maple syrup
2 tsp. maple extract, more or less to taste
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Beat together the cream cheese, butter, and salt until creamy.  (I actually softened my cream cheese and butter in the microwave for a few seconds as I forgot to set it on the counter prior to making the frosting.  I also forgot to add the salt as the original recipe suggests, and the frosting still tasted delicious, in my opinion).  Add in the maple syrup and maple extract (again, here, I actually didn't use maple syrup, I used Mrs. Buttersworth.  Not sure if this makes a huge difference, but my family thinks real maple syrup is too sweet and I didn't want to purchase a whole bottle for just one recipe).  Beat this mixture until the extract and syrup is fully incorporated.

Add in the powdered sugar, about a cup at a time, until all of the sugar has been add in.  Mix the frosting on high in between additions.  Mix until the frosting has a light and fluffy consistency.

Frost cupcakes.

When I made these cupcakes, I simply garnished them with some edible grayish pearls.  They also are delicious when garnished with bacon "sprinkles."  I just wasn't in the mood to cook up any bacon when I made these though.

Enjoy.

Chocolate Chip Donuts with Peanut Butter Glaze

I recently came across this recipe both on Pinterest and Strut Your Stuff Saturday for Chocolate Chip Donuts with Peanut Butter Glaze.  Since I saw this recipe, I have been thinking about making them pretty much constantly.  It has been a constant buzzing in the back of my mind for probably a good solid two weeks.

So this weekend, I broke down, went out and bought a donut pan, and actually made them.  I have to say that normally I am completely happy with the Pinterest recipes I've tried, I was a little disappointed in this one.

I should clarify that my disappointment was not in the donut.  The donut was delicious.  I was letdown by the peanut butter glaze.  I'm not sure if I missed a step in the whole process of making it, or if it turned out how it was suppose to and just wasn't as tasty as I thought it should be?  Who really knows.  I think I may be trying the glaze again to see if it comes out differently, especially since my glaze looked nothing like the one in the picture at A Kitchen Addiction's blog, where I got the recipe.

While I was a little dissatisfied with my results, the kids were very pleased.  They both thought they were very tasty, and Sydney loved decorating them.  She thought it was pretty fun to dump the sprinkles on them.

 

Ashton's exact words were that they were good, good enough to have again, but that he likes the store ones better. 

That being said, I think that there is room for improvement, although I'm thinking I may just need to practice up and try getting my glaze on again.

Any who, here is the recipe for these little guys, just in case you want to give it a go. 

Peanut Butter Glazed Chocolate Chip Donuts
From A Kitchen Addiction's Blog
Makes 6 donuts (per A Kitchen Addiction, the recipe doubles well)

For the donuts

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1/4 cup chocolate chips (I used mini chocolate chips in mine)

Glaze
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs. butter
2 Tbs. milk
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbs. creamy peanut butter

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly spray donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in milk, vanilla, and egg until well-combined. (I ended up using slightly more milk than was called for, the batter was too dry at first)  Stir in chocolate chips.

Transfer batter to a pastry bag or gallon-sized bag with the tip snipped off. Fill donut cavities about 2/3 full.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until donuts just start to turn light golden brown. Do not over bake.  Remove donuts to wire rack to cool.

To prepare glaze, melt together butter and sugar over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil for 2 minutes. Add milk and boil for another 2 minutes. Be sure to continue stirring.

Turn heat to low and stir in confectioner’s sugar and peanut butter until smooth. Keep over low heat while glazing donuts to prevent glaze from hardening.

Allow glaze to cool before serving.   Store leftovers in an airtight container.

Enjoy.

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 Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

Happy first day of fall!  Today is the official beginning of one of my favorite seasons (the other being spring). I love the change of seasons, the fall colors, the falling leaves, and the comforting food that gets cooked as the weather starts to turn colder.  In my household, we are celebrating the beginning of fall with cupcakes.  Not just any cupcakes of course though, we are celebrating with Pumpkin Cupcakes with a Salted Caramel Frosting (very fall themed).  So Happy Fall, and enjoy celebrating however you and your family bring in this wonderful season.

Pumpkin Cupcakes and Salted Caramel Frosting
from Made in Melissa's Kitchen

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. coarse sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin puree

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line the cupcake pan with paper liners and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the brown sugar, white sugar, butter, and eggs.  Beat on medium speed until well combined.  Add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice.  Mix on low until smooth.  Fold in the pumpkin puree.  

Pour the batter into the cupcake liners, filling them about 2/3 full.  Put them in the oven for about 20 - 25 minutes, or until the tops spring back when touched and a cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the center.  Transfer to a wire rack and let them cool completely.

Makes ~ 18 cupcakes.

Salted Caramel Frosting

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 stick salted butter
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 cups powdered sugar

In a saucepan, stir together granulated sugar and water.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Cook without stirring until mixture turns a deep amber color, about 10 minutes.  Remove from heat and slowly add in cream and vanilla, stirring until very smooth.  Let caramel cool for about 20 minutes, until it is just barely warm and still pourable. Alternatively, you could use just under 1/2 cup of your favorite caramel sauce.  I actually used the one I made the other day.  You can find that recipe here.

In a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter and salt together until lightened and fluffy.  Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar.  Mix until thoroughly combined.

 

Scrape down the side of the bowl and add the caramel.  Beat on medium high speed until light and airy, and completely mixed (about 2 minutes).  Mixture should be ready to use without refrigeration.  If your caramel was too hot when added, it will cause your icing to be runny.  If this happens refrigerate for 15-20 minutes. 

Source:  Made in Melissa's Kitchen, 2010.

(Linking this up over at "Or So She Says" Link up Party)

Salted Caramel Sauce

The first day of fall is only a few days away... and I am pretty excited about it!  In order to celebrate, I am making a really great fall themed recipe.  But before I can make this tasty fall themed recipe, salted caramel sauce is in order.  So here is the recipe for some tasty, almost drinkable (it is that good), salted caramel sauce.  Enjoy.

Salted Caramel Sauce
from Heather's French Press Blog

1 cup of sugar
6 tablespoons of butter
1/2 cup of cream
1/2 tablespoon of fleur de sel (any coarse sea salt will be fine)

In a saucepan over medium-high, heat the sugar.  It will clump together at first, but then will begin to bubble and melt.  It actually looks pretty chunky and icky at first... but it gets better.

Stir often.  When it is melted and golden in color (do not burn), add the butter all at once.  This will hiss a little at you and possible splatter a little so be careful.

When the butter is completely melted, add the cream and stir the mixture well.  Finally, take the mixture off of the heat and add the salt.  Make sure it is mixed in completely, otherwise there will be a lone clump of salt, which really isn't very tasty by itself.

Let the caramel sauce cool some, and then pour into a jar with a tight fitting lid.  Store in the refrigerator.

Source:  Heather's French Press Blog, 2012

(This is being linked up over at Mandatory Mooch's Tasty Thursday)

Strawberry Blackberry Trifle

Dessert time is my favorite time of the day.  If I could skip every other entree and go straight to the finishing course, I would.  In fact, when I was pregnant with my 6 year old, I used to stash cookies under my bed, you know, just in case there was a cookie shortage.

Lately we have had soaring temperatures.  We've hit 100+ degrees the last few days, and even as I'm writing this (at 9:30 at night), it has only cooled to about 91 degrees.  This heat wave has really put a damper on my baking.  Who wants to turn on the oven when it is so hot outside?  So I had to come up with alternative ways to pacify my sweet tooth.  I turned to good ole' faithful Pinterest for help on this.  I actually found a recipe for an ice cream cake, which may be made later this week if this hot weather persists, but I settled on an adapted version of a strawberry trifle I had tested a few months ago.

This recipe is so simple, and only takes about 10 minutes to make.  It uses angel food cake, strawberries, cool whip, cream cheese, orange juice, blackberry, and sugar. 

The first step is to slice the strawberries and then mix them with in a bowl with about 1/2 cup of sugar.  This will cause them to start to ooze some syrup.  Set this bowl aside for later.

In your mixer, put the cream cheese, orange juice, and the remaining sugar, mix together until smooth.  Then add 3 cups of cool whip and mix until it is fully incorporated into the mixture.

Cut up the angel food cake into about 1 inch square pieces and set to the side until you are ready to put the trifle all together.  Put about 1 cup of the strawberries into a separate bowl and mush them up.  They will create a nice chunky sauce.  Then it's time to put everything together.

In a trifle bowl, put a layer of angel food cake.  You should use about half of the food cake you cut up.

Drizzle half of the mushed up strawberry chunks over the plain angel food cake.  Then put half of the cream cheese mixture over the angel food cake pieces.  On top of the cream cheese mixture, place the half of the strawberries and as many blackberries as you would like.

Then repeat with the remaining ingredients.

On top of the final layer of fruit, put the remaining 1 cup of cool whip.  Smooth it over the top so all the fruit is covered.  I put heart sprinkles and lemon flavored sprinkles on top, just to add a little pizazz.  I think lemon zest would have been a good substitute for the lemon sprinkles as well though.

Then serve up and enjoy.

Strawberry Blackberry Trifle

adapted from the Giveaway Bandit Blog

1 loaf of angel food cake, cubed into 1" pieces

1 1/2 cups sugar

2-3 pints strawberries, sliced

1 pint blackberries

2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese

3 Tbs. orange juice

4 cups cool whip

Heart Sprinkles and Lemon Sprinkles (optional)

In a bowl, toss sliced strawberries with 1/2 cup of sugar.  Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, orange juice, and remaining sugar until smooth.  Add 3 cups cool whip.  Set aside

In a separate bowl, add 1 cup of the strawberries that are coated in sugar.  Mush these up to drizzle over the angel food cake.  Set aside.

In a trifle dish, place half of the pound cake in the bottom.  Drizzle half of the mushed up strawberries over the angel food cake.  Cover with half of the cream cheese mixture and half of the strawberries and blackberries.  Repeat layers.

Then enjoy immediately, or put in the refrigerator for later.

Tiramisu Cupcakes

One of my favorite things to bake in the whole entire world is cupcakes.  They are single serving, come in so many flavors, and they just make me happy.

My husband was entertaining a group of friends today and so to end the evening, I decided cupcakes would be perfect.  I began scrolling through the numerous recipes I've made in the past, trying to find one that was not too rich, but not too plain Jane either.  I didn't really see one that jumped out at me, so I began looking at pinterest.  I saw the perfect one... Tiramisu Cupcakes. 

These are absolutely brilliant.  Tiramisu is delicious, but to package that big flavor in a little cup... GENIUS.

My children loved these cupcakes... and our guests thought they were pretty darn good too.  The filling was nice and creamy, but not runny, so it didn't really absorb into the cake portion of the dessert.  The whipped cream cheese frosting was perfect as well.  Not too sweet, but just enough.  This one is definitely a keeper.

Tiramisu Cupcakes

from Your Cup of Cake Blog

Cake:
1 box White Cake Mix
2 egg whites
1 egg
1/3 cup oil
3/4 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup sour cream
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup strong coffee
Filling:
8 oz. mascarpone
1 Tbs. strong coffee
1/2 cup powdered sugar
Whipped Topping:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pint heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line pan with cupcake liners. 

Sift cake mix into a small bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, gently whisk egg whites, egg, oil, buttermilk, sour cream, and vanilla.  Stir cake mix into wet ingredients.  Using half of the batter, fill cupcake liners about 1/3 full.

With the remaining cake batter, add the strong coffee and mix (I didn't end up needing it, but you may need to add 1 or 2 Tbs. flour to thicken).  Scoop the coffee cake batter over the regular batter so that each cupcake liner is filled about 3/4 (bottom layer of vanilla, top layer of coffee cake).  Bake for 16 - 20 minutes or until an inserted knife comes out clean.

Filling:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl using a spoon.

Topping:
Using a whisk attachment on your stand mixer, beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth.  Add vanilla.  Slowly add in heavy cream and beat until stiff peaks form.

To assemble, cut a cone shaped piece of cake out the top of each cupcake (they need to be cool before doing this).  Generously spoon in your filling.  Pipe your whipped topping over the hole with the filling.  Sprinkle with cocoa powder or other desired decoration.

Enjoy!

Rocking in the Fourth, Jello Style

To say that I am uber excited for this years 4th of July would be a mild understatement.

We aren't really doing anything extravagant or exciting this year that would cause this intense feeling of anticipation, it's just that this year, I actually will get to stay up and watch fireworks and enjoy the time with my family (Last year I was doing a paper route, so staying up late was not really an option).

Since I'm so impatient, I decided to get started with the celebration early with some holiday themed jello jars.

The ingredients used for this little project were Cherry Jello, Berry Blue Jello, White Chocolate pudding, milk, and blue food coloring.

I used the 8 ounce canning jars as the containers to make them in, since then there would be exactly 12 one cup servings (approx) when it was all said and done. 

Following the directions on the Berry Blue Jello Box, I prepared the blue Jello.  I actually added a few drops of blue food coloring to make sure that the blue really popped.  I didn't want any sky blueness going on in the finished product.  After the blue jello was all mixed, I divided the jello evenly between all 12 of the jars.

I immediately stowed these bad boys away in the fridge to let the jello set.  Although I could have done the quick set method and gotten them done quicker, I wanted to be sure that the jello was very firm before moving on.

Once the blue jello has set, I mixed up the White Chocolate Pudding.  I also could have used plain jello I suppose (unflavored), but who doesn't like white chocolate pudding?  I thought that flavor over no flavor wins any day.  Once the white chocolate pudding is all mixed and ready, evenly divide the white chocolate pudding into the 12 jars. 

I smoothed the top of the pudding mixture with a spoon to make sure that it would be a flat top to put the next layer on. Then throw those delectable morsels into the fridge again to let them set firmly.

Once the white chocolate pudding is firmly set, mix up the cherry jello using the box directions.  This layer was the trickiest to get right.  Once the jello is mixed, pour carefully into the 12 jars.  I actually poured the mixture over a spoon into the jar to ensure it didn't stir up the pudding (this was a trial and error learning process.  Notice the jar in the upper right hand corner of the picture).  I didn't want chunky looking red jello (that would be disgusting looking, although still delicious).

Once the red jello has been poured into the jars, put the lids on, and put them into the fridge until the final layer of jello is firmly set.

Then devour.

Patriotic Jello Jars

from the southernplate.com

6 oz. box Berry Blue Jello

6 oz. box Cherry Jello

2 - 3.3 oz. box instant white chocolate pudding

12 (8 oz) canning jars with lids

Blue Food Coloring

In a 2 or 4 cup glass measuring cup, combine one cup boiling water and blue gelatin powder while stirring constantly until dissolved. Add a few drops of blue food coloring until a patriotic blue is reached. Add enough ice to bring the water level up to two cups and stir until ice is completely dissolved. Divide gelatin evenly among the six jars (about 1/3 of a cup in each jar). Can use a canning funnel to make this less messy.

Place jars in original divider box they were purchased in (if you still have it) and put in the refrigerator for about thirty minutes.

Mix up white chocolate pudding according to box. Divide it evenly among jars by spooning it on top of blue layer. Cover jars again and return to the refrigerator for thirty minutes for pudding to set.

Remove gelatin jars from fridge and remove lids. Mix up red gelatin just as you did the blue and carefully spoon on top of white chocolate pudding. All other layers can be poured but this one needs to be spooned on top to avoid disturbing the pudding. Once all red gelatin is used, place lids on jars again and return to the refrigerator until ready to serve.



Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

One of my favorite pastimes is making cookies with my children.  It is fun to watch them mixing together ingredients and creating something delicious out of ingredients that really aren't that tasty by themselves.

My husband called me from work this evening and said he's been craving cookies lately, he even went as far as to say that if I left a recipe out, he would have the kids help him make them (That is really saying something, as he very rarely cooks, and never bakes!).

So after laying my youngest down to bed, my six year old, Ashton, and I buckled down and decided to make some cookies.   After some indecision (Ashton says that peanut butter cookies are the way to go), we compromised on Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies (truly not much of a compromise, as it is one of my favorites). 

The help (Ashton)

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth.

Ashton putting butter in the mixer

Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla.  Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. 

Mix in the quick oats, walnuts, chocolate chips, and butterscotch chips.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.   While the cookie dough is refrigerating, I usually wash up the dishes so there is less clean up.  Ashton really enjoys helping on this part ☺

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Drop cookie dough by heaping spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake cookies 14-16 minutes.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Then, devour in a horrifyingly violent manner.

 

Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

adapted from allrecipes.com

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 - 3 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup butterscotch chips

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until smooth.  Beat in eggs one at a time, then stir in vanilla.  Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended.  Mix in the quick oats, walnuts, and chocolate chips.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

 Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.  Bake for 14-15 minutes in the preheated oven.  Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.