Frozen strawberries and cream dessert

Here I am, back at home in Minnesota, where the beach is no longer in sight. Vacation was wonderful! The house we rented looked directly out onto the ocean. I got better sleep than I have in months and I was in the very best company. It was a lovely and very much-needed trip. But I am always happy to come home, thanks to the wonderful little family that I have been blessed with. I got home after 1am, yet jumped eagerly out of bed at 7am to hug my monkeys. And now I have to start switching modes. Tomorrow Elijah will be having his 8th heart cath at Children's Hospital. So long vacation, and hello hospital.

Can I share one of my favorite photos from my trip? These are the beautiful, fun ladies I spent the majority of my time with.

This frozen dessert seemed like the perfect one to share since it screams warm weather. Although, the weather wasn't exactly warm the entire time we were in California. That's ok. The ocean made up for it.

(Recipe adapted from: she wears many hats)

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Coat an 8x8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

In a food processor, combine:

1/4 cup pecans, toasted

4 whole graham crackers, broken into pieces

Process until finely ground.

Add the crumbs to a large bowl, along with:

10 tablespoons butter, melted

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

Mix well. Spread the crumbs evenly on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes, stirring once half way.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine:

2 egg whites

1/2 cup sugar

Using a hand-held mixer, mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. 

Add:

1 cup heavy whipping cream

Mix on medium speed for an additional 6 minutes.

Add:

Juice from 1 lemon

4 oz. cream cheese, softened

Mix on low speed until creamy.

Coarsely chop 2 cups of hulled strawberries.

Gently fold the strawberries into the cream mixture. 

Press half of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.

Top with the strawberry-cream mixture.

Top with the remaining crumbs.

Cover with foil and freeze for a minimum of 3 hours before serving.

I made another pan of this, substituting the strawberries for blueberries. Both were fresh and totally yummy!

Printable recipe: Frozen strawberries and cream dessert

Lemon cream bars

I have a funny story about lemon bars. The first lemon bars I ever made were from a box. I was newly out of college, and I had my own kitchen for the very first time. I misread the directions and added double the amount of butter, so I think I added like 4 sticks total. The end product was greasy and oily-lemony, but strangely delicious. I called them my Artery Cloggers. Being just out of college, money was tight so I refused to let them go to waste. I clogged up my arteries properly by finishing the entire pan! Mmm! 

And these lemon bars are so much better, even sans tons of butter. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat an 8x8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine:

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine:

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 cup light brown sugar

Using a hand-held mixer, mix until combined. Gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until incorporated.

Press half of the crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan.

Add 1/2 cup oats to the remainer of the crumb mixture in the bowl. Mix together and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine:

One 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1/2 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice

Zest from 1 lemon

Whisk until creamy. Spread over top of the pressed crumb mixture in the pan.

Top with the other half of the crumb mixture.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool for 30 minutes before serving. Cut into squares and store in the refrigerator.

See? Way better than Artery Cloggers!

Printable recipe: Lemon cream bars

Chocolate cream cakes

Somehow, in some way, I was able to keep from licking my fingers while making these cakes. If you know me and my intense love for sweets, you will find this to be a small miracle. The down side of being on a strict diet while running a food blog is not being able to test everything I make, which is something I am very particular about. If I make something that I believe to be average, I do not share it here. Not having tried these cakes myself, I made an exception since they received such a raving endorsement from my husband and a handful of other people. Besides, aren't they just cute?

(Source: delish.com)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Coat four 4-inch nonstick individual springform pans with cooking spray. 

In a medium bowl, combine:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, combine:

3/4 cup sour cream 

1/3 cup canola oil

1 egg

1 1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Flour mixture

Mix until incorporated. Spread into the prepared pans and bake for 28 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the wire rack and remove the sides and bottoms from the pans. Cool completely.

Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of cold water to a small saucepan. Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of unflavored gelatin over the water and let stand for 1 minute to soften. Gently warm over low heat, stirring, until gelatin dissolves and is clear. Add 2 ounces of finely chopped white chocolate and stir until it is melted and mixture is smooth. 

In a medium bowl, add 3/4 cup heavy cream. Add chocolate from the saucepan to the heavy cream and stir until combined. Chill for 15 minutes in the refrigerator.

Beat with a handheld mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form. Transfer the filling to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain tip.

With a knife, slice the cakes open from the sides. Cut them into 2 even layers, but stop three quarters of the way. Pipe the filling into the middle of each cake. 

Press the cakes together gently. Place on a wire rack set over a jellyroll pan.

Chop 6 ounces of bittersweet chocolate.

Place the chocolate in a small bowl.

In a liquid glass measuring cup, bring 1/2 cup heavy cream and 2 tablespoons light corn syrup to boil in the microwave. Pour the mixture over the chocolate.

Let stand for 2 minutes and whisk until smooth. Spoon the glaze over the cakes, allowing the excess to run off into the jellyroll pan.

Refrigerate to set glaze.

Place 2 ounces of finely chopped white chocolate into a resealable Ziploc bag and seal. Place bag in a bowl of very hot tap water. Let stand for 5 minutes until chocolate is melted.

Snip off one corner of the bag and drizzle the melted chocolate over top of the cakes. Refrigerate to set.

I'm going to have to make these again. They look way too good not to try myself.

Click here for a printable recipe!