Patriotic Fun with Betty Crocker

Happy Tuesday, friends! As I mentioned yesterday, I really got into the patriotic cooking spirit this weekend. I didn't stop with the fruit salsa and pita chips. Instead I decided to attempt to create a red, white, and blue cake thanks to Betty Crocker. Let me just say, I followed her directions word for word. Betty said, "jump!" I replied with, "how high!?" It was a wonderful afternoon. 

Click here to follow the recipe to make your very own Red, White, and Blue cake for the holiday! In the mean time, here is how my cake turned out!

Red, White, and Blue Cake Shopping List:

White cake mix

Eggs

Vegetable Oil

Red and Blue food coloring

Bundt cake pan

Fluffy Frosting (you'll end up melting it, so the fluffy kind works well!)

Sprinkles if you wish!

Notice the mess in the background? Pretty standard.

After dying the cake red and blue, my fingers had started to change colors. Good thing I was wearing an apron otherwise my guests wouldn't have recognized me.

Viola! I drizzled the icing all over the cake and topped it with fancy star sprinkles. If you look closely, you can see the chunk missing from the middle of the cake. That cake was definitely left in the bundt cake pan. 

Usually I'm alone cooking the kitchen, so I took this opportunity to pose with my puurty cake. I was very excited after it was finished and I didn't want anyone eating it soon. We waited until later that night to dive into the yummyness.

Red, White, and Bluuuue!

 The MU plate adds a little Mizzou flair to the patriotic spirit of this cake.

On another note, remember when I posted about meeting scientists with my students? Click here if you want to refresh your memory. Barbara over at The Corner on Character posted about John and his Girls on a Misson presentation. Check it out! 

Linking up here with Tuesday Talent Show!

Blue Dabba Dee Dabba Dah

I've always wanted an adorable cake stand. Lately, I have been searching for one that tickles my fancy. Of couse, I've found really neat stands on Etsy.

Graduation Themed Cupcake Stand, Etsy

Aedriele Orignials, Etsy

The problem is, I don't make enough cakes to fork over $50.00 for a cake stand! I found an awesome tutorial on Centsational Girl to make your own cake stand. Using spray paint and dishes from Goodwill she make bright colorful stands for less that $15.00! Using guidance from Centsational's blog, I scurried over to the Dollar Tree (where everything is $1) and picked up a large white plate and martini glass. 

I tried out a few "techniques" on plates before I decided on my final one. The plates were only $1 so I wasn't losing much by testing out things. I attempted to:

1. Create a zigzag pattern on the plate using a template from my Cricut (FAIL)

2. Use duct tape to create a pattern (FAIL)

3. Use hot glue to add a swirl pattern around the edge of the plate (FAIL)

I failed three times before giving up and deciding to just make a simple bright blue stand. The doilies will make it fancy!

The grass was blue dabba dee dabba dah after this

cake anyone?

I wish I had a neat cake to display on my new stand, but all of my dishes are in boxes and my pantry is empty. Soon enough, my cake stand will have yummy goodies standing on it. 

WORD OF CAUTION! If you make this project, make sure you put doilies underneath your food. I would hate for your cake to taste like spray paint. Yuck!

Anti-Diet Post

My new found "free time" has given me the opportunity to be creative in the kitchen. Lately, I've been trying out new recipes and forcing unsuspecting people to try them. Now, it's your turn!

First, we can all thank my good friend Abby for this yummy dish.

a true celebration in Scottsdale! 

Last summer, when I visited Abby in Dallas she made me the most delicious "Welcome to Texas" treat and of course I begged her for the recipe. 


Introducing: Mississippi Caviar!


1 (15 oz) can black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can black beans drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained
2 lg tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 med onion, diced
1 medium green bell epper, diced
3 tablespoons minced garlic (about 8 cloves)
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chooped
1-2 tbs fresh lime juice (1 1/2 limes)
1 tsp italian seasoning (i left this out and never even noticed)
1 package dry italian dressing mix
1/2 c extra virgin olive oil
1/2 c vinegar

Combine first 11 ingredients (peas through seasoning) in a large bowl & stir well. Then, combine dressing mix, oil, and vinegar. Pour over pea mixture. Stir well. Chill at least 2 hours. Serve with tortilla chips. Makes 8 delicious cups!

As usual, I couldn't find a few of the ingredients at the store...so my "caviar" wasn't perfect, but it was quite delicious! 

Next up, we have Cinnamon Swirl Bundt Cake from Crepes of Wrath. This cake was delicious, but full of s-u-g-a-r. Next time, I think I will do some splenda substituting. 

My Grandma Grace has always been known for making the most delicious bundt cakes. So, I have always had a special love for the cake. I decided to continue with the family tradition and make bundt cake. I started mixing the ingredients and quickly realized that I did not have a bundt cake pan. I have an angel food cake pan but no bundt cake pan. Ah! The agony! I quickly tracked one down from Jolyn and got back to business. 

The cake was definitely a success. I highly recommend it, because it was pretty easy (once I had a pan of course!)

Lastly, with a little inspiration from my friend Layla I decided to mimic their donut making adventure! Faux Made Donuts

Using four simple ingredients, I whipped up some pretty tasty donuts! I might be able to give the famous Papa Jakes a run for their money. Okay, okay... I'm lying. My donuts will never top Papa Jakes! If you're not sure what "Papa Jakes" is or what I'm talking about, you should probably drop everything and be in Sedalia, Missouri at 4:30 AM to get some donut holes. If you're there any later... they'll be sold out!


For my donuts, I rolled them in splenda and cinnamon. The result was yummy!

Not too shabby for me!

That's all for now. Perhaps I should look into some healthier recipes? Nahhh, you only live once!