Red, White, and Blue Trifle Cake

Happy birthday, America!

I hope you all have a great day today and enjoy celebrating the birth of our great nation! I'm so very proud to be an American and am greatly looking forward to today's festivities!

It's been a while since I shared a recipe here on the blog, so I'm going to do so today. This one is a red, white, and blue trifle cake that works great for any holiday celebrating the American spirit (Memorial Day, 4th of July, Veterans Day, etc).

Red, White, and Blue Trifle Cake
Adapted from: Skinny Taste

Ingredients:

• 2 pints of Strawberries, sliced
• 2 pints of blueberries
• 10 oz of angel food cake cut into 1 inch cubes
• 6 tbsp of fat-free sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 tsp vanilla flavoring
• 1 1/2 cups of cold water
• 1 4oz package of white chocolate instant pudding mix
• 12 oz of frozen whipped topping  
• Trifle bowl (not a necessity but it's pretty for showcasing your beautiful dessert!)

Directions: 

Rinse and drain strawberries and blueberries. Slice strawberries and trim off tops.

Prepare and bake angel food cake as instructed on packaging. (If using a store bought angel food cake, skip this step.)

Whisk the wet ingredients together in a bowl - condensed milk, vanilla, and water. Once mixed, add white chocolate pudding mix and whisk until combined. Let stand 2 minutes, then fold in whipped topping.

Cut angel food cake into 1 inch cubes.

Begin arranging ingredients in trifle bowl as follows: start with half of the angel food cake followed by blueberries and strawberries on top. Gently spread half of the cream mixture over the layer of fruit. Layer the remainder of the angel food cake next followed by another layer of strawberries and blueberries. Top off with remainder of the cream mixture and sprinkle blueberries and strawberries on top.

Chill for 2 hours in fridge.

Serve and enjoy!

Ingredients

Cream mixture

Ready for layering!

Beginnings of the layering process

 All done!

So tasty!! I seriously can't wait to make this dessert again! If you try it, I hope you enjoy!! :)

Have a safe, happy, and blessed 4th!

Workouts & Desserts

I can’t believe it’s Monday already. Where did the weekend go? I had a great two days off work and really enjoyed spending time with friends!

On Friday night, I had nothing to do…so I worked out! I decided to expand on Thursday’s Cross Training routine, so I created my own.

 

• 1 mile run
• 50 jump ropes
• 15 pushups (I’m a wimp and have no upper body strength at all!)
• “Lawnmower” pull – 10 pounds & 15 reps each arm
• 25 squats
• 20 walking lunges each leg
• 20 sit-ups
• Biceps curls, 10 pound weights & 20 reps
• 25 squats
• 15 pushups
• 50 jump ropes
• 1 mile run

Good night and a great workout!

Saturday morning, I met my running group for a long run around town. Heather and I were supposed to run 10 miles, but the humidity was so bad and we were so miserable, we cut it down to 6 miles instead.

Train? I was having flashbacks. Never. Again.

We were given another gorgeous sunrise to enjoy

Post run, we were naaassst-eeee!

I attended a family wedding shower on Saturday afternoon, then I met up with Mackenzie. It’s been a loooong while since we saw each other, so we spent the night just talking away!

Our original plan was to make some sort of meal out of Disney Parks food (see, I have Disney obsessed friends, too…it’s not just me)! Instead, we landed dinner at Olive Garden, then baked a dessert of Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake from Liberty Tree Tavern instead.

This stuff is DELICIOUS, y’all. For. Real. Don’t stare too hard at the ingredients, you might talk yourself out of baking it – which is why I don’t make it, like ever. The good news is, this recipe makes enough for two pie dishes, so it’s a pretty big recipe (if you decide to make it, you can cut it down by half). Want the recipe? Click here.

Our friend Melissa was working on Saturday night, so we decided to bring a little Disney surprise to her at work!

We even made our own Mickey bowl. Adorbs, right? :)

Off we go!

She was SO surprised and she loved it!

I’m glad I had a good workout and a nice run this weekend…and I LOVED spending time with friends!

How was your weekend? Do anything exciting? Have you tried any Disney recipes at home? What’s your favorite?

Recipe: Disney’s Artist Point Berry Cobbler

As I’m still recovering from my “Marathon Fog”, please enjoy this delicious recipe in the meantime! :0)  My Rock ‘n Roll New Orleans Marathon recap will be up on the blog early next week.

During last weeks crazy southern Winter storm, I went into a baking frenzy.  Confined to the house with “nothing” to do (I use the term “nothing” loosely) can make a person like me go mad. Instead of twiddling my thumbs (I really DID have things I could have done), I decided instead to bake.

I love Disney recipes. Yes I know, the majority of them are NOT healthy…but every once in a while, a taste of my favorite place in the world is a nice touch.

After flipping through my cookbook, Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs, I landed on a recipe from a restaurant at my favorite resort – Berry Cobbler from the Wilderness Lodge’s Artist Point. I had all of the ingredients at home already, so why not? The results were a warm, delicious, tart, berry amazingness. The best part? This recipe was super easy to follow!

Disney’s Artist Point Berry Cobbler
Adapted from: Cooking with Mickey and the Disney Chefs

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) plus 2 tbsp cold butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg
1 cup heavy cream
12 oz fresh blueberries
2 tbsp light brown sugar
1/2 pint each fresh raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries for garnish (may substitute 1 can of berry pie filling)

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. With a pastry blender, 2 knives used scissor style, or your hands, blend in 1/2 cup butter until crumbly. With a fork, stir in the egg and mix just enough to blend. Add cream and mix just enough to incorporate; do not over mix.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 inch cake pan, line the bottom with waxed paper and grease the paper.

Press the dough evenly into the bottom of the cake pan – reserve a little bit for the topping. Place the berries on top of the dough, add remaining dough on top of berries and sprinkle with brown sugar. Place the remaining 2 tbsp butter pieces over the berries.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown (may need longer than this, just keep checking it every five minutes or so). Cool on a wire rack. Remove the cake from the pan, cut into wedges, and serve with raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries (or ice cream!)

Makes: 9 servings

Whisk together dry ingredients.

Cut stick of butter into tiny cubes (also reserve 2 tbsp on the side)

I don’t have a pastry blender, so I used two sharp knives to blend the butter in with the rest of the ingredients.

Cut wax paper to fit your desired pan and grease it.

Fill the bottom of your dish with batter and reserve a little bit of batter on the side to use for the topping.

Instead of fresh berries, I used a can of berry pie filling I had in the pantry. Yes, it adds extra calories but it’s a Disney dessert…those don’t count, right? (wink wink)

Pour berry pie filling (or fresh cut berries) onto the top of your batter. cover with drops of reserved pie filling, reserved chopped butter pieces, and sprinkle with brown sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-45 minutes. My recipe required more than the 25 minutes listed above, I think it actually baked for a total of 45 minutes.

Warm, gooey, and delicious – straight from the oven!

I served my Berry Cobbler warm, with a scoop of Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream on the side.

Pure deliciousness!

Next on my list is Ohana Bread Pudding with bananas foster sauce – but I’m sure nothing beats the original! Just a few days and I’ll be basking in the glow of my favorite Disney dessert…can’t wait!

What’s your favorite Disney dessert? Have you ever made a Disney recipe at home?

Recipe: Birthday Cake Bark

During the planning process for my mom’s Surprise 60th Birthday party, I began to put together items for a sweet/salty appetizer table.

I love the idea of Funfetti type treats for birthday parties, so as the wheels began to turn, I dreamed up my very own creation of Birthday Cake Bark.

I tweaked my favorite Christmas Peppermint Bark recipe, and voila, Birthday Cake Bark was born!

Please note, this recipe is not healthy in any way, shape, or form. :0)

This recipe was too easy and too delicious not to share, so here you go!

Birthday Cake Bark

Ingredients:
3 tbsp of white cake mix (dry)
1 package of almond bark or white chocolate
25 Nilla Wafers
Sprinkles for garnish

Crush Nilla Wafers in a bowl, leaving a variety of sizes (some large, some small). Spread Nilla Wafer pieces on parchment paper. I like to put the parchment paper on a pan – this makes it easier to place in the fridge for cooling purposes.

Melt almond bark using method of choice. I like to melt mine in the microwave, some choose a double boiler. In order to melt in the microwave, break almond bark blocks apart and place in a bowl. Heat in microwave on high for 30 seconds. Remove bowl from microwave and stir. Repeat this process, 30 seconds at a time until almond bark is full melted. Be careful, it is possible to burn the almond bark – do not overheat.

Once almond bark is fully melted, stir in 3 tbsp of white cake mix until fully incorporated.

Pour almond bark mixture over Nilla Wafer pieces, being careful to spread your batter out as you pour.

Spread almond bark around until Nilla Wafers are fully coated (they will mix together with the almond bark fairly easy).

Top with sprinkles, then place in the fridge/freezer to harden.

Once almond bark has hardened, break apart into pieces and enjoy!

Crushed vanilla wafers

Ready to freeze!

All done – such a yummy birthday treat!

During yesterday’s run, I began thinking of many different ways to use almond bark – Cookies and Cream bark with chunks of Oreos, almond bark coated granola…the list is endless!

Do you have a favorite almond bark recipe? I’d love to hear about it! Please share! :0)

A So Delicious Treat

Looking for a cold, refreshing, delicious treat on a warm Spring afternoon?

If you are as much of a Frozen Yogurt fan as I am, then you gotta try this one!

I stumbled across my last remaining So Delicious Coconut Milk Yogurt container while cleaning out the fridge one Thursday afternoon and noticed that the expiration date was approaching. I placed the container in the freezer with big plans for a yummy treat the following afternoon.  I wasn’t sure how my “creation” would turn out, but my brain sure liked the idea. I love to experiment with food, so I decided to give it a whirl…and boy am I glad I did!

Here’s how I made my own “So Delicious Fro-Yo”!

Chocolate Banana Frozen Yogurt

Ingredients:

1 container of So Delicious cultured coconut milk, frozen
1 ripe banana
Splash of So Delicious coconut milk
Handful of Cacao nibs for sprinkling on top

Directions:

Place yogurt in freezer and leave until frozen solid (mine stayed in the freezer all night). When ready, remove container from freezer and gather your ingredients. Remove yogurt from container (I had to cut mine out with scissors) and place in blender along with banana and a splash of coconut milk.
Blend until all ingredients are mixed well.
Pour into a dish, sprinkle with cacao nibs. Serve and enjoy!

Frozen yogurt and banana of choice – you can see where I began cutting with scissors on the side!

So Delicious coconut milk.

Mixed and ready to pour!

Almost too pretty to eat…but I devoured it anyway! :0)

This afternoon snack was so delicious (literally speaking), I even tweeted about it!

While writing this blog post, my brain came alive with endless possibilities of frozen yogurt opportunities!  Any type of yogurt (Greek, coconut milk, regular, etc…) mixed with fresh fruit, almond butter, dark chocolate, honey…sprinkled with dark chocolate chunks, almond pieces…..the list goes on and on!

Have you ever created your own Frozen Yogurt? If you have or if you try out a new combination, please let me know what you came up with!

Disclaimer: So Delicious is a dairy free brand of milk. I had all of these ingredients on hand and was not compensated or provided free product for this review. All opinions expressed are my own.