Molten Lava Cakes

These were York's Father's Day treat.  They were so yummy, too rich and way easy.

Molten Lava Cakes
from:  The White Library via Pinterest

1 cup of chocolate chips 
1 stick butter
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour

Melt the chocolate and butter together until smooth in the microwave, or over the stove on low (be sure not to burn it). Set aside to cool slightly. Whisk the eggs, yolks and sugar in a large bowl. Add in the chocolate mixture. Slowly whisk in the flour. Pour equally into 4 ramekins and bake on a cookie sheet for 11-13 minutes at 450 degrees (time varies on the oven, so the first time you make this keep a eye on it and take note to the time). The center should be runny and the outside should be a brownie consistency. Let cool for 15 minutes.  

Banana Pudding

I watched a friend's kids today and her oldest loves to cook so, we made this banana pudding I've been wanting to try for a few weeks.

NOT YO’ MAMA’S BANANA PUDDING

Revised from a Paula Dean recipe and found on:
Pearls-Handcuffs-Happyhour
by way of Pinterest

4 bananas, sliced

3 cups milk

1 box Nilla Wafers

2 small boxes instant FRENCH vanilla pudding

1 {8 oz.} pkg. cream cheese

1 {14oz.} can sweetened condensed milk

1 {12 oz.} container Cool Whip

Layer the bottom of a 9x13 pan with Nilla Wagers.  Slice your bananas and layer evenly on top of the wafers.  

Combine the milk and pudding mix and blend using a handheld mixer.  

In a separate bowl, mix together cream cheese & condensed milk until smooth.  Gradually fold in whipped cream.

Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mix & stir until well blended.

Pour the mix evenly over the bananas.

Layer the remaining Nilla Wafers on top.

Peanut Butter Sheet Cake

Pinterest is making cooking fun again.  

I found this linked to The Girl Who Ate Everything...one of my favorites.

The only reason it is iced so pretty is because my sister-in-law actually made it.

Peanut Butter Sheet Cake

by Nina Jones

Mix in pan and bring to a boil:
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup water
1/2 cup butter

Sift the following and add to the above mixture:
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp soda

Mix and add to the above mixture:
2 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla

Stir well and pour into greased or parchment lined cookie sheet pan (jellyroll pan). Bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees.

Frosting
Mix in pan and bring to a boil:
3/4 cup butter
6 Tbsp buttermilk
1/2 cup peanut butter
Take off stove and add:
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar and 1 Tbsp vanilla. Pour over warm cake.

Pumpkin Sheet Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

Pumpkin Sheet Cake With Cream Cheese Frosting

From:  Mommy's Kitchen

15 oz. can pumpkin

2 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, beaten

2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. salt

In a mixing bowl, beat the pumpkin, sugar and oil.  Add eggs and mix well.  Combine the dry ingredients and add to the pumpkin mixture, beating until well blended.  Pour into a greased 10x15 inch baking pan.  Bake for 25-35 minutes at 350 degrees.  Cool the cake completely and then frost it with the cream cheese frosting. 

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 stick butter, softened (1/2 cup)

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

2 1/4 cups powdered sugar

5-6 tsp. milk (I did not need this)

Beat the butter and cream cheese together.  Add the vanilla and blend until smooth.  Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix well.  Add the milk a bit at a time until you get it to a spreadable consistency.  Spread on top of the sheet cake.  You can also top this cake with some chopped pecans or walnuts. 



Heath Bar Cake

The picture does not do this cake justice. It was delicious!

Heath Bar Cake

Printable Version with PicturePrintable Version
*Serves 8-10

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 cups flour

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened

1 cup buttermilk

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

5-6 (1.4 ounces each) chocolate covered toffee bars (like Heath), chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and center a rack in the middle of the oven. Lightly grease a 9X13-inch pan and set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the brown sugar, white sugar, flour and butter. Crumble these ingredients together with a pastry blender, whisk or two forks until the mixture is crumbly and coarse. Remove 1/2 cup of the crumbs to a small bowl and set aside. To the large bowl with the remaining crumbs, add the buttermilk, egg, vanilla, baking soda and salt. Mix well.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing it to the edges. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the reserved crumbs and chopped Heath bars. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the center is no longer gooey but a toothpick inserted comes out with moist crumbs. The cake may fall slightly in the center leaving the edges raised. No fear! It will still be delicious.

Pumpkin Rolls

I've always been a little scared to try anything like this. I'm not good at details, everything sticks when it shouldn't, and my finished product is never pretty.

I was pleasantly surprised when these turned out to be really easy to make. And even more surprised when my end result didn't look like I had let my 6 year old make them.

Pumpkin Rolls The Girl Who Ate Everything

Beat 3 eggs on high speed for 5 min
Slowly add 1 Cup Sugar
2/3 C Pumpkin
1 t. Lemon Juice

Add:¾ C Flour
2 t. Cinnamon
1 t. Baking Powder
½ t. Salt
1 t. Ginger
1 t. Nutmeg

Filling:
1 8oz Cream Cheese
¼ C Butter – soften
1 C Powder Sugar
½ t. Vanilla

Grease and flour cookie sheet – pour batter rectangular shape (don’t fill the sheet) Bake 350 for 15 minutes. Sprinkle ¼ C Powder Sugar on terrycloth towel. I would put more just to ensure that your roll doesn't stick to your cloth. Loosen with spatula and flip on to the towel, gently roll with towel and let cool in fridge. When cooled unroll, put in filling, and roll back up and refrigerate. It's really hard to not crack the dough when rolling but if it does don't stress. Also, slightly dampening the cloth helps. It'll all go back together when you put it in the fridge. It is way better the next day after it's been completely refrigerated. Cut into 1 inch slices to serve.

Sugar Cookie Bars

Excuse my cooking...I overcooked these and they were not nearly as moist as they should have been. They are much better than they look, I promise. A friend made these one day and I could have sat down and eaten the entire tray. I had my cousin's little girl do all the making of the icing and the decorating completely on her own, the whole time trying to invision my own daughter totally making icing on her own without supervision...it would have been a disaster.

Sugar Cookie Bars
Source: BreeAnn Fankhauser/The Girl Who Ate Everything

1 cup butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
5 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp lemon zest (optional)

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each egg. Add vanilla and mix well. In a separate bowl combine flour, salt, baking soda and stir with a whisk to combine. Add to wet mixture and mix just until combined. Spread on a greased baking sheet (use a 13 x 18 pan). Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 min, until light golden brown or until a toothpick comes out clean (they won't look done so do the toothpick test). Cool completely and frost.Frosting1/2 cup butter, room temperature4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 of an 8 oz block) softened 1 tsp vanilla (I used almond extract for half of the frosting)¼ tsp salt4 cups powdered sugar5 Tbsp milkfood coloring (if desired)For frosting combine butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Add vanilla and salt. Add powdered sugar in 1-2 cup increments until combined, then add milk a little at a time and mix until smooth and spreading consistency. You may not need all the milk! Spread over cooled cookie bars.

S'mores Bars

TGWAE is my absolute favorite blog. It's always yummy and usually fairly simple and stuff that everyone in my family eats. I love her!

These were no exception.

Smores Bars
Source: Lovin In the Oven

1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 king-sized Hershey's milk chocolate bars (if you want a more subtle chocolate flavor use regular sized chocolate bars; enough to fit)
1 1/2 cups marshmallow creme/fluff (7 1/2 oz jar)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and vanilla. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at a low speed until combined.
3. Divide dough in half and press half of dough into an even layer on the bottom of the prepared pan. Place chocolate bars over dough. 2 king-sized Hershey’s bars should fit perfectly side by side, but break the chocolate (if necessary) to get it to fit in a single layer no more than 1/4 inch thick. Spread chocolate with marshmallow creme or fluff. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff. This part can be tricky. I made little disks with the dough and formed them into a sheet on some parchment paper then transferred it over. Spread it around gently.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into bars.
Makes 16 cookie bars.

Sherlyn's Lemon Bars

I love lemon bars. I want to just eat an entire pan all by myself. My friend Sherlyn makes them all the time for gatherings. I'm pretty positive that it's just for me but, I do share them with everyone else.

Somehow when she makes them they turn out much prettier. She recommends using a large cookie sheet and doubling the recipe. I had recently thrown mine away so, used a regular cake pan. Not so pretty. Oh well, they were still delicious.

Sherlyn's Lemon Bars

3/4 cups butter
1 1/2 cups flour

Mix like pie crust dough. Pack into the bottom of 9x13 pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

3 eggs
4 T. flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice

Mix together and pour over hot crust. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes or until no longer giggly in the middle. Sprinkle powdered sugar over the top after it is out of the oven.

Super Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I started out this week planning on making one of my sister-in-laws fabulous cheesecakes. I even had her go through the trouble of sending me the recipe. Darby's seminary teacher's birthday was today and I wanted to bring her a cake. Anyone who has to teach teenagers at 6 in the morning on their birthday deserves cheesecake. But, I also spent the entire day learning how to make tamales (post coming soon) so, by the time that was done, I didn't have the energy or nerve to attempt one of her infamous cheesecakes. Carrot cake became the second best choice and after slaving over that, the seminary teacher wasn't even home and I knew I was not going to venture out in my car one more time today so, Ford's tutor became the proud winner of a cheesecake. Congrats!

Super Moist Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Gina's Weight Watcher Recipes
Servings: 16 • Serving Size: 1 slice • Points: 6 pts Calories: 301.1 • Fat: 8.1g • Protein: 4.4 g • Carb: 38.2 g • Fiber: 0.4 g

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp canola oil
2 large eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups grated carrots, peeled
20 oz. can crushed pineapple in juice, drained
1/4 cup chopped walnuts plus 1/4 cup for topping

Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz 1/3 fat Philadelphia Cream Cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, coconut, baking soda, salt, and spices; stir well with a whisk.In a medium bowl, combine oil, eggs, and vanilla; stir well. Add grated carrots and pineapple; mix well. Fold wet ingredients with the dry ingredients, batter will be stiff and dry but keep folding it and it will all come together. Fold in 1/4 cup chopped nuts.Spoon batter into an 8" x 3" cake pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for about 40-50 minutes, depending on pan size or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and cake is pulling away from sides of pan. Cool cake completely on a wire rack.To prepare frosting, beat together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cake. Garnish with remaining chopped walnuts.

Kim's Chocolate Sheet Cake

Chocolate Sheet Cake

Kim Taggart

Cake:

1 c. margarine

1 c. water

1/4 c. cocoa

2 c. flour

2 c. sugar

1 tsp. soda

1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 c. buttermilk

Boil margarine, water and cocoa. Pour into bowl. Add flour, sugar, soda, salt, eggs, vanilla and buttermilk. Beat with electric mixer and pour into a greased and floured jelly roll pan. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.

Frosting:

1/2 c. margarine

1/4 c. cocoa

6 T. milk

4 c. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

In saucepan, mix margarine, cocoa, and milk. Stir and boil 1 minute. Add powdered sugar and vanilla. Frost cake while warm.

Lemon Lime Cake

I was in charge of book club last month and was in the mood for something light and springy since we are finally experiencing warm beautiful weather. This cake was perfect.

Lemon Lime Cake
Lick The Bowl Good
adapted from Duncan Hines

Cake:
1 pkg Duncan Hines® Moist Deluxe® Lemon Supreme Cake Mix
1 (3.4 oz) pkg lemon instant pudding
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup lime juice

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup lime juice
2 tbsp water
2 tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 10-inch Bundt or tube pan.
For cake, combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, 3/4 cup water and 1/4 cup lime juice in large bowl. Beat at low speed with electric mixer until moistened. Beat at medium speed 2 minutes.
Bake 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool in pan 25 minutes. Remove cake from pan onto cooling rack then immediately return cake back to pan. Poke holes in top of warm cake with toothpick, wooden skewer or long-tined fork.

For glaze, combine 2 cups powdered sugar, 1/3 cup lime juice, 2 tablespoons water and melted butter in medium bowl.
Pour slowly over top of warm cake and allow it run along the sides of the pan. Cool completely while still in pan.
Invert onto serving plate. Dust with additional powdered sugar or glaze (recipe below). Garnish with lime slices, if desired.

Banana Pudding Pie

I love banana pudding so, to find a recipe that puts it in a pie...my kind of heaven! This was really yummy and I learned all sorts of new things, like pudding can be made from scratch. I guess I should have know that but, always just assumed that was one of those magical box things. That being said, this could probably be made easier using the actual box style pudding and I did skip the homemade cream part of the recipe and used cool whip.

Banana Pudding Pie
Lick The Bowl Good
adapted from Southern Living

Vanilla Wafer Crust (recipe below)
Vanilla Pudding (recipe below)
Whipped Cream (recipe below)
3-4 medium bananas, cut into slices
20 vanilla wafers plus more for decoration (see note)

Vanilla Wafer Crust:
2 1/2 cups (about 30) crushed vanilla wafers
1/2 cup butter, melted

Vanilla Pudding:
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
4 egg yolks
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Whipped Cream:
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

For the crust: In a medium bowl, stir together crushed vanilla wafers and butter until blended. Firmly press on bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie plate.
Bake at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack, and let cool 30 minutes or until completely cool.

For the pudding: Whisk together sugar, flour, eggs, yolks and milk in a heavy saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly, 10-12 minutes or until it reaches the thickness of chilled pudding. (Mixture will just begin to bubble and will be thick enough to hold soft peaks when whisk is lifted. It must be thick and slightly bubbly to set up properly!) Remove from heat, and stir in vanilla.
Transfer to a medium bowl and cover with plastic wrap, making sure to press the plastic directly on top of the custard so it doesn't get a "skin" on it. Refrigerate til completely cool. (Can be made up to a day in advance.)

Whipped Cream: In a medium bowl, whip cream on medium high speed til soft peaks form. Slowly add the sugar and vanilla and continue to beat til thick and stiff. Don't overbeat or you'll have butter!

Assembly: Arrange half of the banana slices evenly over bottom of cooled crust. Spread 1/3 of cooled pudding over bananas, then layer with 20 vanilla wafers. Spread 1/3 more pudding over vanilla wafers, then add the remainder of the banana slices and cover them with the last of the pudding. Spread the whipped cream over the entire pie and decorate with more vanilla wafers if desired.
The layers from the bottom up should be: vanilla wafer crust, bananas, pudding, vanilla wafers, pudding, bananas, pudding, whipped cream
Refrigerate at least for 4 hours. Overnight is best. Consume within 2 days.
NOTE: It's best to prepare the pudding in advance to allow it to chill properly. If you prefer this pie be topped with a meringue then there's no need to refrigerate the filling. See the original recipe here.
Also I used an entire box of vanilla wafers for the pie. If you want to decorate with additional wafers then get a second box to be on the safe side.

Chocolate Sheet Cake

I got this recipe off of Pioneer Woman after rave reviews from my friend Suzanne. I've made it a couple of times and it is really good. Although, I do recommend reading the directions and actually cooking the ingredients before throwing them all in the mixer. I kind of skipped that part this time and realized too late that I'd completely over looked a major part of the recipe. Amazingly enough, it still turned out pretty good although, not as good as the first time I made it. It's great for serving a large crowd. I'm not sure I completely agree with the "Best ever" title it was given but, than again, I haven't tried that many sheet cakes in my time.

Best Ever Chocolate Sheet Cake
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: 24

Ingredients
CAKE Ingredients
2 cups Flour
2 cups Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
2 sticks Butter
1 cup Boiling Water
½ cups Buttermilk
2 whole Beaten Eggs
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Vanilla
_____
FOR FROSTING:
½ cups Finely Chopped Pecans
1-¾ stick Butter
4 Tablespoons (heaping) Cocoa
6 Tablespoons Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 pound (minus 1/2 Cup) Powdered Sugar
Preparation Instructions

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.
In a saucepan, melt butter. Add cocoa. Stir together.Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.
In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture. Pour into sheet cake pan and bake at 350-degrees for 20 minutes.
While cake is baking, make the icing. Chop pecans finely. Melt butter in a saucepan. Add cocoa, stir to combine, then turn off heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir together. Add the pecans, stir together, and pour over warm cake.
Cut into squares and eat!

Our Favorite Pumpkin Pie

I've been making this pie for years. Every Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is the most requested dessert of my family. Cream cheese and pumpkin...proceed with caution. It doesn't get much better than this.

Double Layer Pumpkin Pie

1 extra-serving size graham cracker crust
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 T. milk or half and half
1 T. sugar
1 1/2 c. cool whip

Mix cream cheese, milk and sugar together. Fold in cool whip. Spread in bottom of graham cracker crust.

1 cup milk or half and half
2 pkgs. (4 serving size) instant vanilla pudding and pie filling
1 (16 oz) can pumpkin
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Pour 1 cup milk into bowl. Add pudding mix. Beat with wire whisk until well blended, 1 to 2 minutes (mixture will be thick). Stir in pumpkin and spices with wire whisk; mix well. Spread over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 3 hours (I don't always do this). Garnish with additional whipped topping and almonds, if desired.

Pumpkin Bars

We had friends over for lunch the other day and someone brought these pumpkin bars that were fabulous. She e-mailed the recipe but, it never came through so, I had to go in search of it on my own. I don't think these were the exact same but, they were pretty darn good anyway. They were more of a bread than a bar but, I later remembered that I had misread the recipe and instead of doubling the required amount of baking soda, I quadrupled it. Maybe that's why? Didn't matter in the end, it was still good.

Pumpkin Bars

4 eggs
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
15 oz. can pumpkin
2 cups sifted all purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda

Icing:
8 oz. package cream cheese softened
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 359 degrees. Using an electric mixer at medium speed, combine eggs, sugar, oil and pumpkin until light and fluffy. Stir together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and baking soda. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and mix at low speed until thoroughly combined and the batter is smooth. Spread the batter into a greased 13 by 10 inch baking pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting. Cut into bars.

To make the icing: Combine the cream cheese and butter in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and mix at low speed until combined. Stir in the vanilla and mix again. Spread on cooled pumpkin bars.

I actually wanted a lighter icing so went with a whipped icing:

1 cup (1/2 pint) cold heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Whip the heavy cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla and continue to whisk until you have firm peaks.

Tres Leches - Remake

I used to hate Tres Leches cakes. I'm not a fan of milk and these cakes were a little too milky for my taste. I've come a long way...still don't drink milk but, have learned to tolerate it in my deserts and have even learned to love a good Tres Leches.
I posted a recipe for one of these cakes a few weeks ago that I found on the Pioneer Woman's blog. You usually can't go wrong with anything she makes (or does for that matter) and while it was good, it was a little heavier than I like.
My friend Suzanne told me that she had a much better Tres Leches recipe and her daughter posted it on her blog so, I stole it and tried it. They were right...much better. Lighter and fluffier! So, I'm doing away with my previous attempt at Tres Leches and sticking to this one. Thanks girls!

Tres Leches Cake

1 box white cake mix
3 large eggs
1 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
1 cup milk
Cool whip
Strawberries for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch pan with cooking spray and set aside.In a large bowl, beat the cake mix, eggs, water, oil and vanilla until smooth. Pour into prepared pan. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove cake from oven and let cool 10 minutes.Meanwhile, stir together the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk and regular milk til well blended. Poke cake all over with a skewer and pour milk mixture all over cake, pressing lightly to make sure milk is completely absorbed. It may seem really full, but it will all get absorbed.Frost cake with cool whip and place sliced strawberries on top. Keep refrigerated. Enjoy!!
Recipe and picture are from Lick the Bowl Good.

Coconut Cake

My friend Sherlyn has made this for us a couple of times and I love it. It is so moist! It is my new favorite cake.

Sherlyn's Coconut Cake

1 yellow or white cake mix (made as directed on box)

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Poke holes in the cake with a fork and pour whole can of sweetened condensed milk on top of cake.

1 regulare size container of cool whip

1 can of coco lopez (I think this is found with the pina colada mixes)

coconut

Mix cool whip and coco lopez together well and spread on cooled cake. Sprinkle top with coconut. Refrigerate.

Blackberry Cobbler

Another favorite of mine is blackberry cobbler. I loved this growing up and again, I swear my mom made the best. I found this recipe on PW's and it looked to be the same as my mom's. My mom did somehow get a lot more juice into her cobblers but, my favorite part is the breading so, this was perfect for me.

4th of July Crepes

York has brought a lot of great things into our marriage but, my very favorite is crepes. Pronounced like it is spelled...crepes not, crapes. He will correct any mispronunciations...apparently we Americans bastardize the word.

My very favorite way to have crepes is with a little vanilla yogurt and some sugar sprinkled on top...absolutely delicious and so light that you can eat 50 without feeling full.

The next best way is with nutella and bananas.

However, for the 4th of July, I asked him to make some so, we could make my friend Kim's version. She introduced us to adding fruit.

After our last trip to Paris, York came home and ordered one of the really large crepe makers.

York's Crepes

(learned somewhere in the land of France)

1 cup flour

1 cup milk

5 Tbs. sugar

2 Tbs. oil

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. baking powder

Mix flour, baking powder and sugar. Add eggs and mix well. Add milk slowly, 1/4 cup at a time. Add oil last.

You will need a crepe maker. Add making the crepe is actually an art I choose not to learn...so, have fun figuring that one out!

Kim's Fruit Dip

1/2 of a large container coolwhip

8 oz. cream cheese

1/2 c. powdered sugar

Mix these together. Spread on top of your crepe and add any fruit you like. For this holiday weekend, we stuck with blackberries, strawberries and bananas. Other recommendations: blueberries, raspberries, kiwi