Apple Cake with Rum Sauce

It was a very snow-y day today....and more to follow. LOTS more! A few posts back, I asked what do you do when you are snow-bound? Well, my answer was bake! And that is exactly what I did this evening.

It is especially comforting for me to have the aroma of cinnamon filling the house when it is cold outside. It is a warm and cozy, home-y feeling. I fixed a nice dinner and then we were able to savor the result of the beautiful fragrance that had been wafting around. This is a very simple but elegant dessert. You can substitute rum flavoring for the real thing. If you like the taste of almond, substitute Amaretto or almond flavoring for the rum. I like to add a few golden raisins to the rum sauce while it is cooking. And if you are using Amaretto, sprinkle some toasted sliced almonds on top of the warm sauce. Serve with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla if you want to be more decadent!

Apple Cake with Rum Sauce

Makes 6 servings

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp salt

4 Tbsp butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

2 cups grated, unpeeled Granny Smith apples

Rum Sauce: 1/2 cup butter

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup half and half

Dash of ground nutmeg

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

2-3 Tbsp rum

In small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In large bowl, cream butter, sugar and egg until light and fluffy. Stir in grated apples. Blend in flour mixture. Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan. Bake at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes. May be cooled and stored, covered, in baking pan. Before serving, reheat at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Cut into squares and serve with Rum Sauce. In top of double boiler, combine butter, sugar and half and half. Cook over boiling water, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes Cool slightly. Add nutmeg, vanilla and rum. Serve warm over heated cake. Makes 1-1/4 cups.

Apricot Puff Pastry Twists

I have often made cheese twists to put out on an appetizer table. They are so savory, as well as being easy finger food! I have made them from scratch and also used puff pastry.

I recently came across Food Network's Robin Miller's recipe for Apricot Puff Pastry Twists. And wow, how easy and good these sound!

We are having a sweets table at work where some coworkers are raising money for the Heart Association. Each Thursday during February, these three women have been baking their little hearts out and raising lots of dough which they will donate to our local event, America's Greatest Heart Run and Walk. This week I am going to donate my baking skills to their selection and make some of these twists, using Sugar Free Apricot Preserves. This will be a calorie friendly treat! Plus they go great with coffee or tea, and if you make these for dessert at home, serve them along with some good vanilla ice cream or low-fat frozen yogurt. I also plan to make some butterscotch chip cookies. They have had some wonderful treats over the past weeks, and I want to help them out so they can maximize their contribution to this very worthy cause.

Robin Miller's Apricot Puff-Pasty Twists
1 sheet of frozen puff pastry dough, thawed according to package directions
1/2 cup apricot preserves
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using rolling pin, roll out puff pastry into rectangle about
17" X 14".
Spread preserves over one-half of dough yo within 1/4" of edges. Fold dough in half over preserves, like a book. Pop this into the freezer for a few minutes for easy cutting. Using sharp knife or pizza wheel, cut dough crosswise into 1/2-in. thick ribbons. Take each ribbon by ends and twist into corkscrew. Arrange corkscrews on large baking sheet and press down the ends against sheet (this prevents them from untwisting during baking). Bake until puffed up and golden brown, about 10 minutes. These twists are super warm or cold.

Orange Creamsicle Pudding Parfait

One of the really yummy treats I found while following the South Beach Diet a few years ago was made with part-skim ricotta cheese, It gave me the feeling that I was being indulgent while dieting. I still love it, and recently I came across a recipe for a delicious citrus-y parfait using ricotta that would make the perfect ending for dinner. What I really like about it is that it uses Greek yogurt and oranges in it, along with the ricotta. Winter in the northeast doesn't provide much in the way of wonderful fruits, and what there is, is usually expensive. However, oranges are plentiful and since they are so good for you in helping to ward off colds, I think this is a perfect way to use some "winter" fruits. Stonyfield recently provided me with some great coupons for their Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt is creamier and thicker than regular yogurt and the plain version provides a wonderful base for cool desserts, baking and cooking.
Stonyfield began in 1983 in New Hampshire and if you don't know their story or have ever tried their products, click here http://www.stonyfield.com/stonyfield/index.jsp.
They have exceptional quality products and I am sure you will like them once you try them.

Now as for my special dessert, here is the recipe. Remember those great orange creamsicles you ate as a kid? Well, here is a grown-up version. It is healthy and delicious and a good way to get your Vitamin C and calcium, without adding a lot of calories.

Orange Creamsicle Pudding Parfait
2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
2 pkgs sugar free fat-free white chocolate pudding mix
1/4 cup (1%) milk
1/2 cup (2%) plain Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 orange
20 drops yellow and 3 drops red liquid food colorings
2 cups thawed frozen fat free whipped topping
Orange slices and mint sprigs to garnish (optional)
In food processor combine 1 cup ricotta, 1 pkg. dry pudding mix, milk, 1/4 cup yogurt and vanilla; process until very smooth. Transfer to bowl; cover. Grate 1 tsp. orange zest and squeeze 1/4 cup juice from orange into food processor. Add food colorings and remaining 1 cup ricotta, 1 pkg. pudding mix and 1/4 cup yogurt; process until very smooth.
Transfer to separate bowl; cover.
Refrigerate both pudding mixes 2 hours or overnight.
When ready to serve, fold 1 cup topping into each pudding mixture. Transfer to separate food storage bags; snip one corner of each. Place both bags, cut corners down, into a large pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. Pipe mixture into 6 glasses. If desired, garnish with orange slice and mint. Or, if you are lazy like me...just alternate the layers in your parfait glass!!

Strawberry Cupcake Fame!

Imagine my surprise, a couple of months ago, when I was asked if a recipe that I had posted on my blog, could be used for a big event taking place in our city. The event is called "Makeover My Heart" and this is its second year. It is a day put aside to raise awareness to the number one health issue for women...heart disease. I attended last year's event and this year's was even better. Here is a link where you can see how fun the day was. http://www.flickr.com/photos/makeovermyheart/sets/72157623377804340/show

It was clear that the organizers did a lot of work to make it an exceptional day. An interesting note is that the day before it was Go Red For Women day, another heart related event. Hence, all the red you see in the pictures at this event!

Click here to visit the Makeover My Heart Blog http://www.makeovermyheart.org/

Anyway, back to the cupcakes. In her search, the director of the event found my blog and these yummy cupcakes which were the luncheon dessert this year. I am honored and they were a hit. Thank goodness I didn't have to make them all for almost 400 people! But I thank Lisa for this wonderful opportunity and putting on a wonderful day for women. I personally had a hand massage, a chair massage, met some wonderful women and ran into some I haven't seen in a while. It was a great day! As for the cupcakes? Give them a try...easy, delicious and very easy on the calories! This is worth a repost!!

STRAWBERRY CUPCAKES

1 box Betty Crocker white cake mix

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

3/4 cup water

3 egg whites

1-1/2 cups fat free strawberry yogurt

3/4 cup Lite Cool Whip

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 cupcake tins with paper wrappers.

Remove Cool Whip from freezer to let it thaw.

Mix together the cake mix, 3/4 cup of the yogurt, the applesauce, the water and the egg whites. Beat on medium speed until smooth.

Pour into 24 prepared cupcake tins lined with papper wrappers. Each tin should be about 3/4 full.

Bake for 20-26 minutes ir until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Remove and let cool.

Mix together the Cool Whip and the remaining 3/4 cup of strawberry yogurt. Spread on the cooled cupcakes.Serve with sliced strawberries on top if desired.

Fruit Squares...Easy as Pie

This recipe is as old as the hills for me! It goes back at least 25 years and it is always a hit. It's great for a crowd or a takealong. I know...one pound of butter! But let me tell you, you don't have to cut these in huge squares. They are so delicious and taste just like pie, only without the crust. The best part is that it takes very little time to prepare. You can top this with a dollop of fresh whipped cream or vanilla ice cream....YUM!

Kuchen Fruit Squares

1 lb. Margarine or butter
6 cups flour
2 cups sugar
2 tsps baking powder
2 different canned pie fillings, like strawberry and blueberry, pineapple and blackberry

Melt butter or margarine; mix with other ingredients in a large bowl. Mixture will be slightly crumbly. Using ½ of the mixture, pat half of the mixture for a crust on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Cover each half of the crust with a different pie filling. Take the remaining mixture and sprinkle over the top of the pie fillings. Bake at 350 degrees until golden brown. Cool completely and cut into squares.