Norwegian Cream Cake

Recently, we had Mom, Meg, and Tim over to our new house. For dessert, I decided to make a recipe that might not travel well because I could just serve it at home. So I found this layer cake recipe that fit the bill. This cake is delicious, especially after being refrigerated for a day or two.

When I made this recipe, I used fresh strawberries because we are in the height of strawberry season. Because some of the strawberries were so large, they had to be sliced. Try to keep the slices of equal thickness. Meg suggested that for the whipped cream mixed in with the strawberries would benefit from having some strawberry juice mixed in to enhance the strawberry flavor. I will have to do so the next time I make this recipe.

Norwegian Cream Cake 

• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour or cornstarch
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 packages (10 ounce) frozen strawberries or raspberries
• 1 1/2 pints whipping cream
• sugar to taste

Mix eggs and sugar in a large bowl. Use mixer for about 15 to 20 minutes, until eggs and sugar are mixed well. Prepare a 9 or 10 inch springform pan by greasing it slightly and sprinkling flour in the pan. Sift flours and baking powder and mix well. Add to batter, making sure all flour is mixed in. Pour into baking pan and bake at 350 for 35 to 40 minutes, until light golden brown. Do not open the door before the time is up. Let cool. Cut in two layers. Whip the cream with a little sugar to taste. Fill bottom cake layer with thawed fruit mixed with a little whipped cream. Put top layer back on and decorate top and sides with whipped cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Double Chocolate - Chocolate Chip Cookies

This cookie recipe is so easy to make and eat. The trick is that the recipe uses a package of cake mix. I recently made these cookies for Lorelei's and Patrick's eighth grade graduation party. The cookies were a hit. Because they are so easy to eat, they slowly disappeared during the party and not many were left at the end.

I made these cookies on the small side because I like having small cookies that are easy to grab and eat. Jenny mentioned that she recently came across a similar recipe that used these cookies to make ice cream sandwiches. These cookies would make excellent ice cream sandwiches, but you might want to make larger cookies for such use. When I made these cookies, I left out the walnuts because not everyone likes nuts in cookies. 

Double Chocolate-Chocolate Chips 

• 1 package devil's food cake mix
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1 package chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Combine all but the chips and walnuts. Blend thoroughly. Stir in chips and walnuts. Drop by teaspoonful onto lightly greased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 10 to 12 minutes. Enjoy!

Pot Roast in Onion Gravy

Pot roast may be intimidating to make, but takes very little effort. It does take some time, mostly unattended while simmering. I started this pot roast just after breakfast, and it was ready for lunch. When I made this recipe, I also sauteed some vegetables as a side dish. Mashed potatoes would also be a great side dish for this pot roast.

When I made this recipe, I found a chuck roast that was slightly under three pounds. Any size roast will work, but larger roasts might require longer cook time. This recipe makes a hearty meal and excellent leftovers. The onion gravy adds a nice flavor and is so easy.

Pot Roast in Onion Gravy 

• 3-4 pound boneless chuck or round roast of beef
• 2 cups water
• 1 envelope onion soup mix
• 2 Tbsp. flour

In a Dutch oven or heavy saucepan, brown meat well. Add two cups water and onion soup mix. Simmer, covered, for three hours or until meat is tender, turning occasionally. Blend flour with 1/4 cup water; blend into gravy and cook until thick. Allow the meat to cool for a few minutes before slicing. Enjoy!

Grandma's Lemon Cookies

For the family Mother's Day get-together, I made these delicious lemon cookies. Mom told me that the recipe is from her mother. The cookie dough is a classic Italian cookie that is heavy on egg. The lemon flavor comes the glaze. And dipping the cookies into the glaze, rather than spreading the frosting, is a classic technique. These cookies were a hit and may make it into our cookie rotation.

The recipe calls for using lemon extract for the frosting, but I did not have lemon extract on hand. Instead, I used some lemon juice and lemon zest. And the cookies could be easily modified by using different flavors in the glaze, such as vanilla, anise, or mint.

Grandma's Lemon Cookies 

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 baking powder
• 1/4 cup soft butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Lemon Frosting

• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 to 2 tsp. water
• 1/2 tsp. lemon extract

Preheat over to 350. Sift flour with baking powder. Work butter in a bowl until creamy. Add sugar and beat until well-blended. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat well. Gradually add dry ingredients and mix well after each addition. Drop slightly rounded teaspoons of dough two inches apart on a ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Remove and cool. Prepare the frosting by mixing together the ingredients, until thick and smooth. Dip tops of cooled cookies into lemon frosting and let dry. Enjoy!

Sponge Cupcake

Sponge cake is a well-known, light, and fluffy cake that can be enjoyed plain or with a variety of toppings such as fruit or cream. True to its name, the sponge cake will absorb the toppings added. When I was looking through Mom's recipe box for an easy recipe, I found this one and thought it would work well. I also liked that it called for making it in cupcake form, but any cake batter can be used for cupcakes.

Sponge cake recipes often call for egg whites, but I followed Mom's recipe and just used the full egg. I think that it resulted in slightly less spongy cupcakes, but they were delicious nonetheless. I also did not add any topping because this cake is delicious on its own.

Sponge Cupcakes 

• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup very hot water
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla

In a large bowl, beat eggs until light and lemon colored. Sift flour with sugar, baking powder, and salt into beaten eggs. Mix well at lowest speed, beating 1 1/2 minutes or 225 strokes with a spoon. Slowly add water and vanilla. Continue beating 1 1/2 minute at low speed. Fill cupcakes 2/3 full. Lightly sugar tops. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Enjoy!

Easter Lamb Cake

Having lamb cake on Easter is a tradition that cannot be missed. Usually, we get lamb cake from a bakery. And there are so many bakeries in the Chicago area that sell delicious lamb cakes for Easter. But this year, I decided to make a lamb cake recipe that I found in Mom's recipe box. Lamb cake is made from a pound cake batter. Mom's recipe called for using some grated lemon peel, but I did not have lemons on hand, so I used orange peel. The slight citrus flavor made this cake extra delicious.

Using a lamb cake mold, the cake bakes itself into the standard lamb shape. I do not actually own a lamb cake mold. Instead, I used two loaf pans--one to make the base and the other to cut out the head to recreate the lamb shape. I think the resulting lamb looked much like a lamb. The cake is then frosted with vanilla buttercream frosting and decorations can be used to finish the lamb cake.

Easter Lamb Cake 

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups cake flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• Grated rind of 1 lemon

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time; beat well after each addition. Slowly add sifted dry ingredients, blending well. Stir in lemon rind. Generously coat baking pan with butter and coat with flour. Spoon batter into baking pan. Bake at 350 until toothpick comes out clean. Let cake cool and remove from pan. Allow to fully cool before frosting.

Buttercream frosting

• 6 Tbsp. butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
• 3-4 Tbsp. milk

Cream butter with vanilla. Add salt and gradually add powdered sugar, beating thoroughly after each addition. Stir in milk and beat until good spreading consistency.

Refrigerator Potato Rolls

Like everyone in my family, I love bread, especially fresh bread right out of the oven. MDS said that he could not even taste the potato. I did taste a subtle potato flavor which was not overwhelming. These rolls were amazing directly out of the oven, but they were also good as leftovers when toasted lightly.

This recipe is another good use for leftover mashed potatoes. The recipe calls for using instant mashed potatoes, or use leftover mashed potatoes. The dough can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator for up to three days. When making the rolls, you can easily adjust the size of the rolls to meet your needs. The rolls should double in size after the final rise and baking, so keep that in mind as you are forming the rolls.

Refrigerator Potato Rolls 

• 1/2 cup mashed potatoes
• 1 1/2 cup warm water (115 degrees)
• 2 packages active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup soft butter
• 6 1/2 flour
• melted butter or 1 egg beaten with water
• poppy or sesame seed

If using instant mashed potatoes, prepare but leave out salt and butter. Sprinkle yeast over water; add sugar and salt stirring until dissolved. Let stand a few minutes until bubbly. Add two eggs, soft butter, warm potatoes, and three cups flour. Beat until smooth. Add two cups flour; beat until flour is incorporated. Add remaining one and a half cup flour mixing with hands until dough is smooth and stiff enough to leave side of bowl. Brush top with one tablespoon melted butter. Cover and let rise in the refrigerator for two hours or until double in size. Pinch down dough. Cover and refrigerate for up to three days, punching down dough once a day. 

About two hours before serving, remove dough and shape rolls. Brush with butter and place on greased sheet about two inches apart. Allow to rise until doubled for about one hour. Brush with butter or egg with water, then top with seeds. Bake at 400 for about 12 minutes. Enjoy!