Freezer Peaches

This year we got a box of Yakima's Princess peaches and we decided to try freezing them the way Michelle's dad had last year.

So thanks to Michelle's dad and Google;)

Some of the best peaches ever!!

Cut 'em in half and pit 'em..

slice..

throw 'em in 1 can of orange juice concentrate-thawed

you can add a bit of water if you want

but the peaches were pretty juicy on their own.

make sure to toss well to coat all with the OJ

we put about 5 cups per freezer bag

These are what we used to make our Peach Streusel Coffee Cake-Yummmmy!!

Happy Wednesday!!

Mozzarella Cheese Sticks

Who doesn't love a good fried cheesestick dipped in Marinara Sauce?!?!?!

Here is a little different take on how to make them at home

adapted from the Food Network Magazine.

Using a mozzarella cheese stick and an egg roll or spring roll wrapper

makes these cheese sticks simple to whip up!

Start by brushing one egg roll wrapper with an egg and milk wash.

Place cheese stick on wrapper in corner closest to you and start rolling....

Tuck in the ends and keep rolling!

Dip wrapper in the egg wash....

and then your bread crumb mixture.

(we double dipped ours for a little more crunch!)

Start stacking them up and move on to the next one!

Heat oil to 325° and fry cheese sticks.

Watch carefully so all the cheese doesn't ooze out!

Serve with Marinara/Pizza Sauce.

Grab one while they are hot... they will be gone soon!! :)

Printable Recipe

Foccacia Bread

This bread is sooooo delicious and-the best part-easy!!!

Remember those Italian Chicken Sandwiches from a couple months ago?

This is the bread from those yummy, yummy sandwiches:)

It's a really quick bread to make only takes an hour from start to finish!!

*recipe from allrecipes.com*

~

Here is what you'll need:

Honey, warm water, yeast-let it set for 5 mins.

Stir in salt, olive oil, and chopped onion.

Start adding in flour...

Until the dough comes together-then knead until smooth and elastic.

Lightly oil a large bowl and place dough in turning once to completely coat.

Cover with a damp cloth and let rise 20 mins.

Preheat oven to 415 degrees.

Place dough onto an oiled baking sheet, flatten and use fingertips to make indentations.

Drizzle with oil, sprinkle with rosemary, Parmesan cheese and end with a sprinkle of Kosher salt.

Let rise for 10 mins.

Bake for 20 mins or...

until golden brown.

Go ahead grab a slice;)

ENJOY!!!

Printable Recipe

Sausage Stuffed Meatballs

Ok-this recipe is a little gem to keep tucked right in the front of your recipe file;)

These are perfect to serve by them selves or piled on top of a mound of spaghetti.

So yummy and oozy with cheese-totally delish!!

Just change up the sauce and you have a completely different meal:)

Recipe rundown:

1 lb. chicken sausage

red onion

Italian parsley

salt

pepper

mozzarella balls

So first mix first 5 ingredients together and form into balls

Like above

then top each ball with a mozzarella

press down cheese

cover completely with meat

place meatballs in heated dutch oven or heavy pan

brown on all sides

like so:)

Reduce heat, add sauce and simmer until cooked through-about 7 to 10 mins.

Serve atop spaghetti

Enjoy!!

Printable Recipe

The Fastest Birthday Cake Ever!

Race Car Cake!!!

My son Max requested a race car shaped cake for his 4th birthday,

so Michelle and I... eagerly..hehee decided to give it a go;)

It was a white cake with cheesecake flavoring and strawberry filling.

This is how it went...

We started out with 2-13x9 inch cakes stacked with a layer of filling.

In hindsight I would have used a 4 layer cake;

this allows for more simplified shaping.

We cut off the back first and frosted a spot for the top of the car.

Then we cut off the front and placed it on top.

While we were shaping the cake we were really questioning the end result.

Then we did a base layer of frosting.

Tinted our fondant the requested color:)

Lay it over, smooth it out and cut away the excess.

Detailing the car,

using our mad piping skills, our creative genius and our ever helpful husbands, this race car is ready for the track!!

The end result!

VAROOOM!

We are getting better with our timing though-we only worked on this one 'til 4 am...the Princess cake however took us 'til 5 am;)

The birthday boy was very impressed with his cake and that is all that really matters:)

Easter Cake How To

Here is a step by step how to on the Easter Egg Cake. Let me know if you try it I would love to see yours:)

First make a white cake with egg whites for your actual cake.

I used 2 box mixes for the white part and 1 to color for the Egg part.

When mixing the cake for coloring use whole eggs so you have a little denser cake to work with.

Pour about 1 c. into ramekins or 1/3 of batter into 8 inch rounds whichever you like.

Bake cakes in usual way.

Once they come out of the oven use clean towel to press the cakes flat

This way you won't have to try to cut it straight;)

Place them on a cooling rack for about 15 to 20 mins.

Then pop them into the freezer for 20 mins.

Start baking the colored cakes-we did ours in loaf pans because the shape doesn't

matter.

In the meantime you can get the frosting ready. I made Buttercream Frosting click the link for a printable recipe.

Once these cakes are cooled crumble into separate bowls being careful not to get

the browned edges into the bowl.

Then add a spoonful of frosting to each bowl and mix in.

Then get ready to start carving the cakes, by measuring across to find the center

Then you use a spoon or knife-we used a melon baller-to start cutting in the shape.

The above cake is the top piece.

Below is the middle and bottom pieces.

You frost them and freeze them before cutting into them.

Here is the carved out shape.

Then you start layering in the colored cake in any order you like.

The above picture is the top.

Do the same for the bottom.

Frost the middle ring and make sure to bring the crumbled cake up to level with the frosting

so it matches up with the top piece.

Assemble and frost the whole cake and decorate however you want.

Top with the crumbled cake.

Last but not least you get to cut into the cake and see the shape :)

Have fun!

Printable Tutorial