Pink Lemonade Stand Cake

Yummy lemon cake and cream cheese frosting!

This cake sounds super special and worth the fuss in making it.  I would not suggest this cake for a beginner baker.

Such a pretty cake!

Ingredients

1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons seedless strawberry jam, warmed
2 tablespoons thawed pink lemonade concentrate
2 tablespoons grenadine syrup
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1-1/4 cups sugar
3 tablespoons grated lemon peel
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

FROSTING:
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons thawed pink lemonade concentrate, divided
Pink sprinkles

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°. 

Line bottoms of three greased 8-in. round baking pans with parchment paper; grease paper.

Whisk the first five ingredients until blended in a small bowl . 

Cream butter, sugar and lemon peel in a large bowl until light and fluffy. 

Add eggs, one at a time and beat well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. 

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in another bowl. Add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk mixture, beating well after each addition.

Transfer batter to prepared pans. 

Bake 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 

Cool in pans 10 minutes before removing to wire racks; remove paper. Cool completely.

For frosting, in a large bowl, beat butter, cream cheese and lemon peel until smooth. Gradually beat in confectioners’ sugar and 1/3 cup lemonade concentrate. If necessary, refrigerate until spreadable, up to 1 hour.

Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Brush 1 tablespoon lemonade concentrate over cake; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Repeat layers. Top with remaining cake layer; brush remaining lemonade concentrate over top.

Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake.

Decorate with sprinkles. Refrigerate until serving. 

Yield: 12 servings.

Nutritional Facts

1 slice (calculated without optional decorations): 732 calories, 39g fat (24g saturated fat), 172mg cholesterol, 291mg sodium, 91g carbohydrate (68g sugars, 1g fiber), 7g protein

Source

Cream Cheese Frittata

Cream cheese in a frittata is something I have never heard of, but it sounds delicious!

Love the combination of ingredients, however, you can add or remove ingredients to suit your taste.  Adding sliced tomato sounds good to me!

The recipe comes from Martha Stewart, so it has to be a good thing . . .

INGREDIENTS 

2 teaspoons olive oil 

2 ounces mushrooms, sliced 

1 small red bell pepper, ribs and seeds discarded, chopped into 1-inch pieces 

1/2 small onion, finely chopped 

1 small garlic clove, minced 

3 large eggs 

1/4 cup half-and-half

4 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese (1/2 bar), cubed 

2 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (1/2 cup) 

2 slices white sandwich bread, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (1 cup) 

Coarse salt and ground pepper


DIRECTIONS 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Heat oil over medium heat in a small (8-inch) ovenproof nonstick skillet. 

Cook mushrooms, bell pepper, onion, and garlic about 5 minutes, until almost tender. 

Transfer mixture to a bowl, cool slightly. (Reserve skillet.) 

Add eggs, half-and-half, cream cheese, cheddar cheese, bread, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper to mixture in bowl . . . stir until combined. (There may be a few chunks of cream cheese remaining.) 

Pour egg mixture into reserved skillet; and bake until set, about 30 minutes. 

Heat broiler, and broil until top is golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. 

Let stand 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving.

SOURCE

Frico with Potatoes and Montasio Cheese

This recipe comes from Lidia on Create TV.  We just watched the program that featured this frico and it looked so delicious that we had to find the recipe.

It is one of those versatile recipes that you can add whatever ingredients your family loves.  I would definitely add mushrooms!

Ingredients

• 1 medium baking potato, 1/2 pound
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small onion, sliced (1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/2 pound Montasio Cheese, shredded

Directions

Boil the potato in a pan of gently boiling water until it is easily pierced with a sharp knife, all the way through, but still intact and not mushy. Drain and cool the potato, remove skin, and slice into neat ¼-inch thick rounds.

Pour the olive oil into the skillet and cook on medium heat.  Add the sliced onion and scallions. 

Cook for a minute and scatter the potato rounds in the pan. Toss the potatoes with the onion and scallions and season with salt and black pepper. 

Cook for about 5 minutes, tossing frequently, until the potato rounds are lightly crisped and golden.

Pile the shredded Montasio on top of the vegetables. Slide a metal spatula under some of the potatoes and flip them over, incorporating some of the cheese. Turn all the slices over and over this way, until the cheese shreds are well distributed. With the spatula, clean the sides of the skillet and smooth the vegetables and cheese into a neat pancake-like disk, filling the pan bottom.

Lower the heat and let the frico cook about 5 minutes undisturbed as the cheese melts and crisps, until the bottom is very brown and nicely crusted.

Shake the pan to loosen and put a large plate on top and invert, dropping the frico onto the plate, then slide it back in the skillet, top side down. Cook until the second side is crisp and brown, about 5 minutes more.

Slide the frico onto the plate and blot up excess oil from the cheese with a paper towel. Slice into 6 wedges and serve immediately.

Source

Lemon Chicken with Potatoes

Looks easy, delicious and economical . . . great for a beginner in the kitchen.

What I would change . . . substitute thighs with boneless skinless chicken breasts or tenderloins.

This recipe comes from Pillsbury.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons packed brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 teaspoon salt

1 package (28 oz) boneless skinless chicken thighs

1 lb baby red potatoes, quartered

1/2 medium yellow onion, cut into large pieces

1 lemon, sliced

1/4 teaspoon pepper


Directions

Heat oven to 400°F. 

Spray 13x9-inch (3-quart) baking dish with cooking spray.

Meanwhile, in 10-inch nonstick skillet, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat. 

In small bowl, stir together brown sugar, Italian seasoning and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Sprinkle over chicken.

Cook chicken in skillet 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown and crispy.

Arrange chicken, potatoes, onions and lemon slices in baking dish. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter, and drizzle over mixture.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until potatoes are tender and juice of chicken is clear when thickest part is cut (at least 165°F).

Photo and recipe source