Looks like a donut!!

My son has been into baking recently... wonder who he gets it from! I bought him a baking book called Cake Love by Warren Brown. It's filled with recipes of yummy cakes and he's already made several. This one deserves special attention because he wanted to make a cake that looked like a donut!! He made 2 ring-cakes and put frosting and sprinkles on it. It's a very moist chocolate cake.

Julien's Donut Cake



Lemon Chiffon Cheesecake

I found this photo and thought I'd share the recipe with you today. I made this yummy cheesecake last spring. The recipe is from an old Pillbury booklet dated April 1999, but it was still a hit!

Crust
1 3/4 cups gingersnap crumbs (about 30 cookies)
1/4 cup butter, melted
Filling
3 x 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 x 15oz can lemon pie filling (I used a jar of lemon curd)
1 x 8oz container sour cream
1 tsp grated lemon peel
Topping
3/4 cup raspberry jelly
2 tsp lemon juice
2 cups halved strawberries, 1 cup blueberries, 1 cup raspberries
2 kiwi fruit, peeled, sliced
Strips of lemon

• Heat oven to 350F. In medium bowl, combine crust ingredients, mix well. Press in bottom and 1/2 inch sides of 10" or 9" springform pan. Bake at 350 for 5 minutes (I bake a little longer).
• In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and sugar. Beat at low speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Reserve 1/2 cup of pie filling for topping, refrigerate. Add remaining pie filling, sour cream, and grated lemon peel, blend well. Pour filling over crust in pan, spread evenly.
• Bake at 350 between 1h 10 min to 1h 20 min. Cool on wire rack for 1 hour. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Combine jelly and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Heat on low and stir until smooth. Cool completely.
• When ready to serve, remove cheesecake from pan and spread reserved pie filling.
• Arrange berries around the edge of the cheesecake, and drizzle with jelly mixture. Arrange slices of kiwi fruit on top. Garnish with lemon strips.
• Enjoy!

Lovey Dovey Brownie Bites

Yummy! I made these a while back (must have been around Valentine's day!). Looking at them makes me go "YUM"! They are simply homemade brownie bites covered with pink icing and raspberries.

Cookies

I love baking!!
I made a batch of jam sandwich cookies and brought them to Penny's Valentine's Stamp Camp!

 

Here's the recipe:

• 1 cup butter (or margarine), softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp salt

 Beat butter a medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.

Add sugar, beat well. Add egg and vanilla, beat well again. Add flour and salt gradually, beat until blended. Divided dough in half, cover and chill for an hour at least.
Roll each portion to 1/4 inch thickness and cut out shapes. Make 2 batches: 1 plain and 1 with the cutout shape of your choice.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes, until the edges are barely browned.
I use parchment paper so I can slide the cookies on my countertop and they cool quickly.
To make the sandwiches, just add about a teaspoon of jam in between. I like to sprinkle powdered sugar to make them pretty (and extra sweet!).
Enjoy!