Chocolate Flan Cake

I have wanted to make this cake for years. For some ridiculous reason it intimidated me. Much like Macarons do .... one day I will make those my b*tch too!

The best part of this cake is you can use box cake mix. And you'll definitely need a 12 cup bundt cake pan. I suggest making this cake the day before you plan on serving it. The longer it cools the easier it will release from the pan.

Ingredients:
2 cups of sugar (for caramel sauce)

1 Devils Food cake mix box (plus the ingredients on the box to make it)

1 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1 12oz can of evaporated milk
1/2 cup of cream or half & half
1 tsp of vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and coat your bundt pan with cake release or spray heavily with a baking spray. 
Make your caramel sauce. In a saucepan over medium heat cook the 2 cups of sugar until it golden colored....DO NOT BURN IT! You'll know it's burned because it will have a burnt smell lol.  Once its a nice amber color and all the sugar has melted then it's ready.
Pour it onto the bottom of your prepared bundt pan.

Now combine your cake mix ingredients according to box directions and pour into your bundt pan over the caramel.

In a separate bowl mix your three milks, add your vanilla extract. Slowly pour this into your bundt pan over the cake mix. Don't worry, it will magically separate while it bakes. Then cover it tightly with foil.

Now find a pan big enough to fit your bundt pan into....a roasting pan works well for this. Place your bundt pan into the roasting pan and add hot water in the roasting pan, couple of inches of water is fine. I add the water while it's all in the oven so I don't have to carry it.
Bake it for 1 hour and 10 minutes. When time it up place the roasting pan with the bundt pan still in it on the counter and let it cool for a couple of hours. Take it out of the roasting pan and chill it overnight in the fridge. This is why I like to make this cake the day before. The cooler it is the better it will release from the pan.
When you're ready gently loosen the sides with a knife...careful not to scratch your pan. Then say a prayer to the baking gods and invert on to a large platter.

 This beautiful cake can be enjoyed with fresh fruit, whipped cream or just as is.....it's so good! I can't believe it took me so long to make this! It's delicious!!  I hope you try this....Enjoy ♥️

Products used to make this cake~

 

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Best Cake Release!

I found this recipe a while back and when I tried it I was amazed. I have not had a problem with a cake sticking to a pan since!

I've been told that it's used it many culinary schools. Wish I would have known years ago. Would have saved me money on those aerosol cooking sprays that don't always work.

The formula is simple.

Mix 

1/2 cup of flour

1/2 cup of shortening (I used good ole Crisco in a can)

1/2 cup of vegetable or canola oil

 

 After mixing it thoroughly I stored it in a pretty jar I purchased at the dollar store.

And that's it! You can store this for up to 6 months in your cabinet. No need for refrigeration. You just use a pastry brush to coat your pans when making cakes, cupcakes, muffins and everything else you would use cooking spray with. It's works great! Especially on those heavy cast iron bundt pans that have lots of details. 
You can double even triple the above recipe, depending on your needs. During the Christmas holidays I just make a double batch and still had plenty left over.

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Spicy Chocolate Fudge

There's something wonderful about the combination of sweet and spicy to me. I've been a fan of the "sweet and savory" combination for years.

When I first came across this recipe years ago I loved it and saved it. I tend to write down recipes, put them away and forget about them. So as I was going through my recipes, that I keep in a giant binder, I found this one and decided to give it a try.

After I made it I realized that I could improve it and make it less work by doing something differently. Sometimes when I film my videos it will often be the first time I've made the recipe because I want my subscribers to get an honest opinion of it. Which is evident in my Oopsie Bread video. 
The next time I make this fudge, or any other fudge that requires similar ingredients, I will definitely add them with the condensed milk. 

The ingredients are simple
1 can (14oz) of sweetened condensed milk
3 cups of milk chocolate or you can use semisweet chocolate or a combination of both. In my video you'll see that I used 2 cup of milk chocolate and 1 cup of semi sweet chocolate.
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. You can add half of that 1/8 tsp, if you want it less spicy. I didn't think that 1/4 tsp made it too spicy but some people have a different tolerance spicy foods so you can certainly make it less spicy if that what you like.
1 cup of chopped walnuts (or add your favorite type of nuts) 

Here's the instructions
Line an 8x8 pan with foil or parchment paper and set aside. 
In a heavy bottom saucepan over low heat, heat the condensed milk. In the video I add the chocolate after this point. But when I make it again, and if you decide to try this recipe, I suggest you add the cinnamon, cayenne and vanilla and make sure it's well incorporated into the milk before you add the chocolate. 
After all the ingredients are added cook on a very love heat until all the chips are melted. take it off the heat, add the nuts and put it into your pan that you've set aside. 
Let it chill for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator. After it's set pull it out of the pan, remove the foil or parchment and cut into bite size pieces.


     

Check out the video I made for this Spicy Chocolate Fudge

Here's a link to a site that will give you ideas on.... How to store and keep your fudge fresh.

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Chocolate Raspberry Tart

This is not only an easy dessert... but it's also so versatile. I've made it using different types of cookies for the crust and using all kinds of different fruits.

I want to add that this is a very rich dessert, so I always serve small slices. And I love that there's no baking involved.

The tart pan I used comes in different sizes. I used the 11 inch. Here's a link where you can purchase one. 

Check out the video I made showing how to make this fabulous tart

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Chocolate Covered Oreo Molds

I've had these molds for over 15 years and they're still in great condition.
They come in a wonderful variety of designs and are made of a very sturdy plastic. 
It's a nice way to put together something pretty for parties, bake sales, or holidays without doing so much work. And it's great for getting kids involved too.

I used the Smiling Face, Dragonfly and Flower molds

Here's a video I made demonstrating how to use these molds

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Roasted Garlic Mushrooms

I love this recipe. The way it tastes, the way my house smells when I make it.. 

O.M.G.     So good!

And it's so simple to put together.

Here's the ingredients and instructions.

20 to 25 medium size button mushrooms
1/2 cup of butter (1 stick)
3 or 4 cloves of garlic very finely minced
2 TBS of fresh thyme finely minced ( if you’re using dried thyme only use 1 TBS)
2 TBS of lemon juice
1/4 tsp of pepper
1/4 tsp of salt
1/4 cup or less of Panko crumbs or regular breadcrumbs

Clean your mushrooms. Cut the stems of the mushrooms so that they’re level to the caps. Place them in an oven proof dish. You can even use a pie plate or any shallow oven proof dish that you have.
Drizzle the butter mix over the top of the mushrooms. Sprinkle the Panko (or breadcrumbs) over the mushrooms.
Bake at 400 or 425 for 10 to 15 minutes. If you like you can also broil them towards the end of the cooking time to brown the topping even more. Just be sure to watch them so they don’t burn!
Enjoy ♥

Here's a video I made showing how to prepare these fabulously delicious mushrooms

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Flower Stones

I'm starting a vegetable garden this spring. I don't know what took me so long to start one...but it's never to late. My neighbor started one last year and she did a great job for her first time. She inspired me to start my own garden. I wanted to create a unique border for it. I found these rocks and after looking at them for days I thought ...Nah too plain. So I thought why not put to good use all these pressed flowers and leaves that I have.
I have this great flower press that I bought years ago made of heavy slate (can't remember where I got it) and every summer I collect and press various leaves and flowers that I find.

 

I started by washing and scrubbing the rocks. Then painting the rocks black. I just used regular acrylic flat black paint.

 

Then I carefully glued flowers and leaves on the rocks. I used a spray glue by Elmers on the underside of the leaves to stick them to the rock. Then added another craft glue to make sure they were really secured.

 

I just kept adding leaves and flowers until I got the look I wanted.

 I made sure to put plenty of glue, let it dry a for about a 1/2 hour and then placed the rock upside down on wax paper over a thick towel to make sure it flattened all the leaves onto the rock. Don't forget to use wax paper so it doesn't stick.

 

I let the glue dry for a few hours. Then painted a clear outdoor seal. I started by painting the underside of the rock first with two coats. After I let it dry overnight I painted the seal over the flowers. 

I used a gloss outdoor sealer. Don't worry about the white film you might get under the sealant when you first paint it. That's from the glue. Once it's completely dry it will go away. 

I put 2 coats under the rock and about 3 on top.

 

And here they are all done! I LOVE IT!  I've made quite a few of them to add to my garden border and I'm still working on some more. I plan on using some for my outdoor patio table too. I thought they'd be great for keeping napkins and paper plates from flying away when we eat outside. 

Leave a comment and let me know what you think of this project! ♥

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