Spring Butterfly Cake: Fun, and Easy To Make With The Kiddos!

 

Spring Has Sprung!  Easter is on its way, and it's time to get into the spirit with some festive desserts!  This cake is not new, 40-something years ago my mom made it for one of my birthday parties and I still love making it in the springtime!
It's easy, and fun to do with your kids.  Plus, it has all the things they love, Nilla Wafers, sprinkles, whipped cream, cake and frosting!

 

What You Need:

1 pkg.   (2-layer size) yellow cake mix

2 cups  BAKER'S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut

3 or 4 drops   yellow food coloring

1 pkg.  (3.4 oz.) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding

1/2 cup  cold milk

1 tub  (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

2 oz.  BAKER'S White Chocolate

20 Mini NILLA Wafers

1/4 cup sprinkles (assorted colors)

How To Make It:

Step 1: PREPARE cake batter and bake as directed on package for 13x9-inch pan. Cool cake in pan 10 min.; invert onto wire rack. Cool completely. Meanwhile, tint coconut with food coloring.

Step 2:   CUT cake into pieces and arrange on platter as shown in photos. Beat pudding mix and milk in medium bowl with whisk 2 min. Stir in COOL WHIP. Spread onto cake pieces; sprinkle with coconut.

Step 3: MELT chocolate as directed on package. Use to decorate cake with remaining ingredients as shown in photo.

 Tips:

Use decorating icing to add the face, and add small pieces of black string licorice for the antennae.

Tinting Coconut:

Mix 1/2 tsp. water with a few drops of food coloring. Add to 1 cup BAKER'S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut in resealable plastic bag; seal bag. Shake until coconut is evenly tinted. Use more food coloring for a darker shade and less coloring for a lighter shade.

 

Enjoy and share!

~Bridget

Spring Daisy Cake Recipe

 He loves me, he loves me not…? It really doesn't matter, because there's cake. You'll fall hard for this lemony treat featuring sweet coconut and fluffy marshmallows.



This great recipe is from Kraft Kitchens and it's not only adorable but it tastes great too! 

What You Need

1 pkg.   (2-layer size) yellow cake mix

1 pkg.   (3.4 oz.) JELL-O Lemon Flavor Instant Pudding

1 tub  (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed

1/2 cup  BAKER'S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut

1 to 2 drops  yellow food coloring

2 cups  JET-PUFFED Miniature Marshmallows

2 bite-size bug-shaped chewy fruit snacks

1 piece  string licorice (8 inch)

Make It

HEAT oven to 350°F.
GREASE and flour 1-qt. ovenproof bowl and 9-inch round pan. Prepare cake batter as directed on package. Add dry pudding mix; beat 2 min. Pour about half the batter into prepared bowl. Pour remaining batter into prepared pan.
BAKE 9-inch layer 23 to 25 min. and bake batter in bowl 33 to 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool cakes 10 min. Loosen cakes from sides of pan and bowl with knife. Invert cakes onto wire racks; gently remove pan and bowl. Cool cakes completely.
CUT 9-inch cake layer into 16 wedges. Place inverted bowl cake on large serving board or tray; surround with cake wedges to resemble flower petals. Frost with COOL WHIP.
TINT coconut with food coloring. (See Tip.) Press coconut into COOL WHIP on center cake. Decorate with remaining ingredients to resemble photo.

Kraft Kitchens Tips

Variation

Prepare using JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Fat Free Sugar Free Instant Pudding and COOL WHIP LITE Whipped Topping.

How to Tint Coconut

Place coconut in resealable plastic bag. Add food coloring. Close bag; shake to evenly tint coconut.

Storage Know-How

Wrap any leftover cake with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator.

~Bridget

St. Patrick's Day Easy-To-Make Desserts: Cheesecake Bars, Irish Cake Pops, Pot o' Gold Cupcakes & Shamrock Sugar Cookies

  What's a sweeter find: A Four Leaf Clover or A Four Dessert Menu?



  Check out these treats and decide for yourself!

Green with Envy Cheesecake Bars recipe: http://bit.ly/1fW45zr
Luck o' the Irish Cake Pops recipe: http://bit.ly/PxLRcQ
Pot of Gold Cupcakes recipe: http://bit.ly/1gu2yvh
Shamrock Sugar Cookies recipe: http://bit.ly/1nVbZtH

~Bridget

Delicious Lemon Meringue Cupcakes

Lemon Filling:
3 egg yolks (reserve whites for meringue)
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
pinch of salt
3 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. lemon zest, loosely packed
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted

Cupcakes:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Meringue:
3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar

1) Make lemon filling: In small saucepan over low heat, whisk egg yolks, sugar, flour, and salt; whisk in lemon juice, lemon zest, water, and melted butter; increase heat to medium and, whisking constantly, cook until lemon filling is smooth and thick, about 7 minutes; remove from heat and set aside
2) Preheat oven to 375 degrees
3) Make cupcakes: In medium bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy; beat in eggs, lemon juice, baking powder, and salt; beat in flour until just combined
4) Divide cupcake batter between 12 cupcake liners in a muffin pan; bake 15-16 minutes until center of cupcakes firms up; remove cupcakes from oven and cool 5-8 minutes (do not turn off oven)
5) Meanwhile, make meringue: beat egg whites with salt until mixture begins to stiffen; add sugar and beat until meringue is stiff and forms pretty peaks (don't overdo it)
6) With a sharp knife, remove center of each cupcake (about 1" in diameter), leaving a layer of cupcake beneath cut out; discard cupcake core (or treat the weary baker to a tart little snack); fill cupcake centers with lemon filling
7) Divide dollops of meringue between cupcakes, spreading out to edges and gently tapping with back of spoon to form peaks; return cupcakes to oven and bake an additional 5-6 minutes until meringue peaks are golden brown; remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes; refrigerate an hour or more before serving
Makes: 12 absolutely delicious cupcakes

~Bridget

Mimi's Cafe' Dinner For 2 - Only $25!

Bonjour!  What a great (affordable) meal for 2!  Hurry on down to Mimi's Cafe before it expires!

~Bridget

Promo Code for 5 FREE Baby Leggings at Babyleggings.com!

These are the most adorable thing, I only wish I had baby girls to dress them in.  Darling leggings for FREE using the code below can be yours!  What a cute baby shower gift too!

VALENTINE'S SPECIAL  FOR 5 FREE PAIRS OF  BABY LEGGINGS! A $50 Value Use promo code "BEMINE14"  at BabyLeggings.com today! It's As Easy As 1-2-3! 1. Go to www.babyleggings.com 2. Click on "Shop Now" and select 5 Baby Leggings for FREE. Remember, after selecting your first 5 pairs of Baby Leggings you can receive each additional pair of Baby Leggings for only $2.00! 3. Once you have made your selection, you'll automatically be directed to your shopping bag. Enter the promo code "BeMine14" and we will deduct 100% off the cost of 5 pairs of Baby Leggings! Baby Leggings make great gifts! Selections dwindle quickly so order yours today! *Remember you can use the promo code "BeMine14" more than once, just open a new web browser to do so.

~Bridget

Candy Cane Coffee Cake

 

Braided and fruit-filled, these shapely coffee cakes are perfect for entertaining or giving as gifts. This delicious recipe is from the award-winning Betty Crocker’s Best Christmas Cookbook.

Candy Cane Coffee Cake
Prep Time: 30 min
Total Time: 1 hr 50 min
Servings: 3
Ingredients:

1. 2 packages regular or quick active dry yeast
2. 1/2 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
3. 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
4. 2 eggs
5. 5 1/2 to 6 cups Gold Medal® Better for Bread™ flour or Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
6. 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
7. 1/2 cup sugar
8. 2 teaspoons baking powder
9. 2 teaspoons salt
10. 1 1/2 cups chopped dried apricots
11. 1 1/2 cups chopped drained maraschino cherries
12. Coffee Cake Glaze
13. 1 1/2 cups red cinnamon candies, if desired

Instructions:

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water in large bowl. Add buttermilk, sugar, butter, eggs, baking powder, salt and 2 1/2 cups of the flour. Beat with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. (Dough should be soft and slightly sticky.)
2. Grease 3 cookie sheets. Turn dough onto well-floured surface; gently knead about 5 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Divide dough into 3 equal parts. Roll one part into rectangle, 15x9 inches. Place rectangle on cookie sheet.
3. Mix apricots and chopped cherries. Spread one-third of the apricot mixture in a strip about 2 1/2 inches wide lengthwise down center of rectangle. Make cuts in dough at 1/2-inch intervals on both 15-inch sides almost to filling. Fold strips over filling, overlapping and crossing in center. Carefully stretch dough until 22 inches long; curve one end to form top of cane. Repeat with remaining 2 parts of dough. Cover and let rise in warm place about 1 hour or until double. (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)
4.  Heat oven to 375°F. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Drizzle Glaze over warm coffee cakes. Decorate with cinnamon candies.

Notes:

1. Use holiday cellophane found in party stores to wrap the homemade specialties you plan to place beneath someone’s Christmas tree. Jingle bells attached to bright ribbons can tie up the package.
2. To keep dried fruit from sticking to your chopping knife, rub the sides of the blade with a little vegetable oil.

By bettycrocker.com

~Bridget