Strawberry Cake

Strawberry Cake

Perfect for Mother's Day

I'm kicking off my Mother's Day recipes with this killer cake: strawberry! It is a delicious white moist cake with a strawberry buttercream. The taste is just delicious, and the frosting? Amazing. The pink hue is from blended strawberries which makes the cake beautiful and represents what kind of cake it is. These would also make really good cupcakes; just a thought...

So, I'm sure you're wondering why I would showcase a homemade cake that you, as a mother, would have to make in order to take part in eating. 

Well, here's the deal. 

I truly believe that in order to have the best Mother's Day in the world, with all of your favorites, you might need to help. And, if you are planned by preparing ahead of time, by making and freezing, and all you have to do on Mother's day is frost the cake, this whole cake to honor you will be easy and so worth it!

Or...

You can make this for your own mother. Either way, plan, make and freeze the layers, and frost on your special day. Simple and delicious.

Adapted from Southern Living's Special Garden Magazine issue

Strawberry Cake

Makes 10-12 servings

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Ingredients:

Cake layers:

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

2 1/4 cups granulated sugar

7 egg whites, at room temp.

3 1/2  cups cake flour

4 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Strawberry Frosting:

3/4 cup butter, softened

5 cups powdered sugar, sifted

3/4 cup finely chopped fresh strawberries

Garnishes:

Halved fresh strawberries, edible flowers

Directions:

Prepare cake layers: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat 1 1/4 cups softened butter and 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until fluffy. Gradually add egg whites, on -third at a time, beating well after each addition. 

Sift together cake flour and baking powder; gradually add to butter mixture alternately with 1 cup water, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Stir in vanilla ans almond extracts. Pour batter into 2 greased and floured 8-inch round cake pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks, and cool completely about 30 minutes.

Using a serrated knife, cut each cooled cake layer evenly in half to make 4 even layers. 

Prepare strawberry frosting:

Beat 3/4 cup softened butter at medium speed 20 seconds or until fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar and 3/4 cup finely chopped strawberries, beating at low speed until creamy. Spread frosting between layers and on top and sides of cake.

Garnish and serve and enjoy!

Happy Mother's day to all you mamas out there!! (My number 8 baby is due to arrive in July; Happy Mother's day to me too!)

quick, easy and nutritious breakfast ideas for kids

Get your aprons ready girls! Your baking day agenda is all about creating homemade, nutritious breakfast foods for your family.

Breakfast is the hardest meal to prepare because we're usually in a hurry and/or just plain tired. Sugar cereal is usually the go-to food because it's easy. Well I am here to show you an alternative to that cereal and/or fast junk food for breakfast. And I know you and your family are going to love them. By devoting one day each week to baking you can feed your family well, save money, and control your ingredients by just devoting one day in your week to baking. And you will have ready-made homemade foods on the quick! No matter what your family's particular diet needs are, a baking day will serve you well and keep you organized!

muffins, buttermilk biscuits, and pancake prep. ready for the week

Just one day of hard work will pave the way for nutritious, easy, homemade breakfasts from scratch that normally would take most of the morning. Here's what I've made for the week and how I've prepped, prepared, froze, and set my week up for easy success:

My breakfast baking for the entire week (or two) that can be simply paired with nutritious eggs, sausage or bacon included:

2 batches of white sandwich bread made:

• 2 loaves of cinnamon raisin bread
• 1 loaf sandwich bread
• 1 dozen Nutella swirl rolls

Basic buttermilk muffin recipe made three different varieties of muffins:

• Blueberry
• Cinnamon and Sugar
• Granola, almond, and dark chocolate with an oatmeal streusel 

1 dozen, make-and-freeze, buttermilk biscuits

white sandwich bread
Bakes up two loaves at a time in this recipe. Light crispy crust on the outside and soft and delicious on the inside, this bread is perfect for toast and eggs, you can turn this recipe into cinnamon rolls, and/or raisin bread, too.

Cinnamon Sugar Raisin Swirl Bread

This amazing loaf is made with my basic white bread recipe, cut the dough in 

Nutella Swirl Rolls

Using the white sandwich bread recipe I made this Nutella swirl bread using one half to make a regular loaf of bread the other for these rolls.

Basic Muffin Recipe

I made 3 different varieties of muffins with one recipe:

sugar and cinnamon 
granola
blueberry

Make and Freeze Buttermilk Biscuits

Buttermilk biscuits made-up, not baked, and frozen for fluffy biscuits quick! Simply bake frozen biscuits until golden brown. These biscuits are wonderful with some fruit and scrambled eggs, or a for a sausage, egg and cheese biscuit!

Pancake Prep

Simply prepping my fluffy, thick pancake recipe by keeping the dry ingredients in a airtight container with the wet ingredients on a sticky note, attached to the top lid, makes whipping up pancakes a snap!

Each recipe link will not only take you to the recipe but my baking day tip on how you can either freeze, prep, or create several adaptations of a single recipe! 

Enjoy your baking day girls. Embrace being a domesticated Diva; wear your prettiest apron, buy yourself some new baking supplies, and have a wonderful time creating magic in your kitchen! 

Leave comments on your baking day success below!! I'd love to hear.

Nutella Swirl Rolls

I'm not going to lie. These are over-the-top insane good!! By simply following my white sandwich bread recipe on your next baking day, you can whip these up by simply spreading some Nutella, rolling, cutting into 1 inch rounds. 

Make these rolls out of this amazing white sandwich dough recipe

So delicious! A great variation to my cinnamon rolls or raisin cinnamon rolls.

Ingredients:
Nutella
2 tbsp. granulated sugar
Baking sheet

Directions:
These directions are for using half of the white sandwich dough, making approx. 8-10 rolls.

Following the white sandwich bread recipe and after its second rise, roll out into a 6x12 rectangle and spread a thin layer of your Nutella leaving a 1-inch border. Roll-up jelly roll fashion and pinch close. Cut into 1-inch rounds using a serrated knife and placing on a greased baking sheet leaving room between each other.

Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes until slightly risen. Sprinkle with granulated sugar and place in 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes and golden brown.

delicious basic muffin recipe

This is my favorite basic muffin recipe that can be use to fill and top with anything you choose. This will be your new go-to recipe! These recipes provided are 3 different variations: blueberry, granola, and cinnamon sugar. 

You can double your recipe, bake and freeze for the ultimate in Breakfast Baking Day organization. Simply take out the night before for a quick simple breakfast that can be served with alone, fruit, eggs, bacon or sausage.

Adapted from Joy of Cooking

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Basic Muffin Recipe

Ingredients:
Whisk together in a large bowl:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Whisk together in another bowl:
2 large eggs
1 cup milk or cream
2/3 cup suga ror packed light brown sugar
4-8 tbsp. warm melted butter or vegetable oil
1 tsp. vanilla

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Grease a standard 12-muffin pan or line with paper cups.

Add to the flour mixture and mix together with a few light strokes just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Do not overmix the batter should not be smooth. Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in a 1- 2 of the muffins comes out clean, 12-15 minutes or longer for variations with fruit. Let cool for 2-3 minutes before removing from the pan. 

Cinnamon Sugar Muffins:
Dip the warm muffins into a small bowl of melted butter and dip into another small bowl of 2 tbsp. 1 tbsp. granulated sugar.

Blueberry:
Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries to your batter and lightly stir with a wooden spoon until incorporated. If using frozen blueberries rinse under cool water and shake dry before adding so the blueberries don't create a blue batter.

Granola:
Add your favorite granola to your batter and top with streusel if you'd like before baking. I used my favorite granola cereal that had granola, almond and dark chocolate pieces. So yummy!

Streusel topping:

• 6 tablespoons regular oats
• 5 tablespoons all-purpose flour (about 1 1/2 ounces)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• In a bowl add all the ingredients and cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter until crumbly.
• Sprinkle on muffins before popping into the oven.

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Raisin Cinnamon Sugar Swirl Bread

I grew-up making this bread since I was fourteen years old and can make it with my eyes closed. It is so easy, so delicious , and so versatile! With my white sandwich bread recipe you can make raisin bread, cinnamon rolls, Nutella rolls; almost anything!

Use my white sandwich bread recipe to create this delicious raisin cinnamon sugar swirl bread

Ingredients:

2 cups raisins
2 tbsp. softened butter
1-2 tbsp. cinnamon
2-3 tbsp. granulated sugar

Makes 2 loaves

Directions:
Follow the white sandwich bread recipe adding the raisins to the white bread recipe along with the second round of flour. On its second rise, roll out to about a 1/4 inch rectangle: about 6 inches high and about 12 inches wide. Spread with softened butter, a sprinkling of cinnamon, and sugar. Beginning at the longest end toward you, roll up tightly and pinch close at the end. Slightly roll under the two ends pinching together and place into a greased loaf pan. 

Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 30 minutes. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes until golden brown.

Take out of pan and let cool on a cooling rack. 

Variation Tip:
This white sandwich bread makes 2 loaves. You can cut the dough into two equal portions to make any of the following variations:

White bread
Raisin bread
Cinnamon rolls 
Nutella rolls
raisin cinnamon rolls

Click here for my Breakfast Baking Day Madness, tip, that will keep you organized for up to 2 weeks of wholesome, quick breakfasts.

easy homemade barbecue sauce

Homemade barbecue sauce is so stinkin' easy and tastes, hands down, better than any store-bought variety. Apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, not name a few; it's ingredients you most likely already have in your pantry and fridge and takes just a couple minutes to make. Then let the sauce do its work to simmer for about an hour until ready and you've got yourself some homemade barbecue sauce. Pour extra sauce into a mason jar to keep in your fridge for later meals.  

We love to use this tangy delicious sauce over our smoked pulled pork, hamburgers, baked beans, and grilled chicken. It is divine! 

Adapted from the Neely's at Food Network

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Ingredients:
2 cups ketchup
1 cup water
1/2 apple cider vinegar
5 tbsp. brown sugar
5 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tbsp. granulated garlic 
1/2 tbsp. ground mustard 
1/2 tbsp. ground black pepper
1 tbsp. worcester sauce

Directions:
Put all the ingredients into a saucepan on high heat, whisk, and let come to a boil. Let simmer for about an hour. 

pasta primavera

This is the perfect food to get your kids to eat their veggies. Tricolor pasta, red bell pepper, broccoli and peas all wrapped in a garlic and butter parmasen sauce. The garlic toasts crisp up in seconds under the broiler and perfect for sopping up the buttery cheesy-ness. 

all the veggies in the pot boiling for the last 3 minutes with the tricolor fusili

This dish is heaven! Perfect for lunch. Perfect for dinner. Perfect anytime. 

Enjoy!

Adapted from the Food Network

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Total time to make: 25 minutes| Serves: 4

Ingredients:
Kosher salt
12 ounces tricolor fusilli
4 cups broccoli florets
3 carrots, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 cup frozen peas
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup grated parmesan, plus more for topping
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley or basil

Directions:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook as the label directs, adding the broccoli, carrots, bell pepper and peas during the last 3 minutes of cooking. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain the pasta and vegetables and return to the pot.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: Heat 2 tbsp. butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until it begins to soften, about 1 minute. Add the broth, 1/2 tsp. salt, and pepper to taste: bring to simmer adn cook until slightly reduced, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the remaining 2 tbsp. butter until melted and the sauce is thickened, about 1 more minute. 

Pour the sauce over the pasta and vegetables and add the cheese, and parsley. Cook over low heat, stirring, until the cheese melts, aout 1 minute ,adding enough of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce. Season with salt and pepper and top with more cheese. 

Garlic Toasts:
Heat your oven to broil and placing the oven rack up to the top.
Italian Artisan loaf cut into 1/2 thick slices. Place your slices on a baking sheet, spread with butter, sprinkle with granulated garlic, dried basil and parsley and a dash of kosher salt and cracked black pepper.

Place under the broiler until lightly toasted. Keep an eye on it; it should only take a couple minutes.