Icebox Cake - A Salute To Summer

What yells summer more than a cool summer dessert? Particularly one that requires no baking. Icebox cakes seem to be popping up lately. Dating back to the 1920's and 30's, the cake consists of graham crackers, vanilla or chocolate wafers, and whipped cream or pudding. Left overnight in the refrigerator, the cookies absorb the moisture from the pudding and turns into a tasty summer treat.

Banana Split Cake (adapted from Taste of Home)

16 oz frozen whipped topping, thawed
 1 cup sour cream
1 pkg. instant vanilla pudding
1 (8 oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
24 to 30 graham crackers
 4 bananas, sliced
chocolate syrup, sliced strawberries

1. Mix whipped topping, sour cream, and pudding until blended. Fold in pineapple.
2. Arrange 4 to 5 graham crackers in the bottom of 9X13 pan. Spread 1/3 pudding mixture on top of crackers. Top with 1/3 of sliced bananas. Repeat the layer two more times. Cover and refrigerate.
3.  Before serving, top with syrup and strawberries.

Speaking of summer...A fellow teacher asked me to make a teeny, tiny little mermaid outfit for a photo shoot. It was so tiny, I wasn't sure a newborn would fit in it. Well, I was wrong. My first attempt to crochet something for a newborn photo shoot went from this

 to this...

Isn't it precious? (Photo by Snap! Photography)

Enjoy...

And So It Begins

After 37 years of this....

I can officially say that I am done. Hello, retirement. So happy to meet you!

Off the Radar

Life is a strange thing. It can take you from one month to another in a blink of the eye. It was just yesterday that we were sitting outdoors on a crispy October afternoon enjoying the wedding of my nephew and his beautiful bride.

Congratulations, Thad and Kelly! And thanks, Lisa for the best Molasses Cookies recipe. My new favorite cookie.

Now it is April! What do I have to show for the last 5 months? Oh, the usual...sewing, knitting and baking.

 Molasses Cookies

3/4 cup butter, melted and cool

1 cup sugar

¼ cup molasses

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon grounded cloves

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

1. In mixing bowl, add sugar, molasses and egg to melted butter. Mix well.

2. Add remaining ingredients and mix until combined.

3. Roll into small  balls, roll in sugar and place on greased pan.

4. Bake 350° for 7 to 10 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Enjoy...

Two (plus 3) Shall Become One in Love

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. 1 Corinthians 13:7-8

Recently my husband and I attended a wonderful event in the life of our family. We witnessed the joining of this man,

this woman,

and these precious children

together as a family.

 

Kasey and WC

May God be with you and bless you.
May you see your children’s children.
May you be poor in misfortunes
and rich in blessings.
May you know nothing but happiness
from this day forward.

 

7-Up and Tots

I recently came across two recipes that peaked my curiosity simply based on their names - 7-Up Biscuits and Zucchini Tots. Now I have heard of using 7-Up to make a delicious lemony cake. In fact that is one of my favorite cakes. However, I've never heard of 7-Up Biscuits. Apparently, this recipe and similar recipes have been floating around the internet for a while. So I had to try it.

7-Up Biscuits (adapted from All Recipes)

4 cups Bisquick

1 cup sour cream

1 cup 7-up

½ cup butter, melted

1. Place butter in pan and allow to melt in the oven as the oven warms up.

2. Mix Bisquick, sour cream and 7-Up. Dough will be sticky.

3. Slowly add a little Bisquick at a time while kneading the dough until it becomes easy to handle.

4. Cut out the biscuits and place on top of melted butter. Bake at 425° for 12-15 minutes or until brown.

The second recipe's name drew my attention simply by the word "tots." I'm a huge fan of tater tots and have even made homemade tots. The fact it used zucchini was a plus. I'm always looking for different ways to use this abundant summer veggie.

Zucchini Tots (adapted from Skinny Taste)

1 cup zucchini, grated

1 egg

¼ onion, diced

¼ cup cheddar cheese, grated

¼ cup panko bread crumbs

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Place grated zucchini on paper towel and squeeze as much access water as possible.

2. Place in a bowl and add remaining ingredients.

3. Spray a mini muffin pan and fill each section with the zucchini mixture. Fill each section to the top.

4. Bake at 375° for 16-18 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Both of these recipes made the "keeper" lists in this house.

 Enjoy...