Red Velvet Poke Cake

Red Velvet Poke Cake - Daughter's Craving.

Red Velvet Poke Cake

Hi everybody : )

Remember the Carrot Poke Cake with Cheesecake Filling I did a while back? Well..my daughter doesn't share my love for carrot cakes. She's a red velvet cake lover, (like hubby). Hey all you carrot cake fans. we got traitors in our mist! : ) I love red velvet too, but if I had to choose....carrot cake takes the prize.

This cake is the basically the same as I did for the carrot poke cake, just subbing out the carrot cake mix for the red velvet cake mix. So here it goes.
 
Ingredients:
Cake:

1 box red velvet cake
ingredients needed to make cake (eggs, oil, & water)
Filling:
2 (3.4 oz.) boxes instant Cheesecake-flavored pudding
4 cups milk
Topping:
1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip, thawed
4 oz cream cheese ( 1/2 of 8-oz pkg.) (softened) 
2 tablespoons powdered sugar  (or a little more if desired)
1/2 cup chopped nuts or coconut if desired
  
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Prepare cake batter as directed on package. Pour into 13x9-inch baking pan.

Bake 35 to 40 min. or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven.    Let cool for a few minutes. Then, with a wooden spoon handle, large fork or skewer poke holes in the warm cake at 1/2-inch intervals. Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake. You want holes big enough so that the pudding has plenty of room to get to the bottom.

Cake with holes

In a medium bowl, prepare instant pudding with milk, whisking until all the lumps are gone. Pour pudding over cake. Making sure to get right into the holes as much pudding as possible. Cover and put in the refrigerator to set for about 2 hours.

BEAT cool whip, cream cheese, and powdered sugar in large bowl with electric mixer until well blended. Spread onto cake. Sprinkle with nuts or coconut if desired. Eat! Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Oh by the way, my daughter made this one; she's a very picky eater and thinks that since carrots are vegetables, they don't belong in cakes. She doesn't know what she's saying, I think law school is affecting her taste buds : )

Cake with Cheesecake Filling

I didn't get a chance to take a picture of the finished cake. They woofed it down too fast. The piece above is the ONLY slice I ate : (  The cake was good obviously.

Before you go....

 Make A Difference:  Justice for Brandon C. Jackson

I like to call your attention to the new widget I have on the top left side of my blog. It's about the injustice treatment of Brandon C. Jackson. I don't know him, but his story have touched my heart.  I like to implore you to take a little time, if you will, to read his story, sign his petition and pass it along.

ENJOY! Come again.....

Fish Fry Coating Mix with Tilapia & A Bonus Recipe

Fish Fry Coating Mix with Tilapia & A Bonus Recipe

Hi  everybody :)

I love the idea of making your own anything, so I was happy to find this recipe while browsing through one of my cookbooks,  Gifts That Taste Good . If you been reading my posts, yeah I'm still sticking to doing at least 1 recipe out of each book, I'm gonna do them one better, this is the second one from the same book! YEAAAA!!!! The first was Jamman' Muffins mmmmm MUST make again soon!  Alas, back to what I was saying, as the old adage goes, "homemade is best made". So with that in mind I gave this recipe a try. I was very pleased with the result, a flavorful crispy crust.

Fish Fry Coating Mix from Gifts That Taste Good


1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lemon pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon onion powder (I used Mrs. Dash Onion & Herb Seasoning)
1/2 teaspoon paprika

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients. Store in an airtight container.

Yield: about 1 3/4 cups of mix

frying the fish

To prepare fried fish: Dip fish in buttermilk and roll in coating mix. To cook, pour oil into a Dutch oven to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Heat to 375 degrees. Fry coated fish, one piece at a time, about 4 to 6 minutes or until golden brown.

From Gifts That Taste Good, page 45

I didn't forget I promise y'all a bonus recipe, so here it is.....roasted potatoes. I know most people like fries with their fish; I like roasted potatoes. I know it might sound kinda of strange, but it's great. This is a very simple basic recipe with less roasting time in the oven.

Roasted Potatoes

2lbs. golden potatoes
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 - 2 tsp. Mrs. Dash Onion and Herb Seasoning 
1 tsp. Garlic Salt
To serve:
butter
chives
sour cream

Cut potatoes in chunks and microwave (see note). Drain water. Place in large pan and drizzle with oil. Sprinkle with seasonings and bake 20 -25 minutes until tender in a 375 degree oven.

Note: Microwave potatoes in microwave about 10 minutes means less time in the oven. I roasted my potatoes for about 20-25 minutes or until tender in a 375 degree oven; after microwaving.

water & potatoes for the microwave

ENJOY! Come again....

Macadamia Nut Cookies

Macadamia Nut Cookies: Freezing Cookie Dough

 Hi everybody : ) 

My daughter is going back to law school soon : (  I'm making these cookies because macadamia cookies are her favorite. I so happy I found this recipe because it allows you to freezes cookie dough for later usages. With this, she can have her favorite cookie whenever and think of mom : )

I won this book Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms by Jane Doiron, her blog is wonderful, from Lark's Country Heart  another great blog.


Macadamia Nut Cookies from Make-Ahead Meals For Busy Moms

2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups macadamia nuts, chopped
1 cup vanilla chips

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt: set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars. Add the egg and vanilla and beat on medium speed until thoroughly combined. Add the flour mixture on low speed. Stir in the nuts and vanilla chips. Prepare a large sheet pan with parchment paper. For each cookie, shape 1/4 cup of dough into a ball. Place the cookie dough 2 inches apart on the sheet pan and flatten the dough slightly with your fingers. Bake at 350°F for 13 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Makes 20 large cookies

cookie dough

-Freezer Directions for Uncooked Dough-
Place the cookie dough balls on a large sheet pan in a single layer. Cover with plastic wrap. Freeze for 2-3 hours. Place the frozen cookie dough in labeled freezer bags and freeze up to 2 months. Be sure to write the cooking directions on the bag.

freezing the cookie dough

Thawing Out the Dough on Baking Day-
Cover a large sheet pan with parchment paper and place the frozen cookie dough on it about 2 inches apart. Thaw the cookie dough at room temperature for 45 - 60 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350°F and bake for 13 minutes.

measured frozen cookie dough

I used my medium OXO Good Grips Cookie Scoop. I packaged 2 bags of dough! A dozen in each bag.

I cooked 5 cookies with the dough I had left over from the 2 dozen. The cookies was great, moist and chewy. Make sure you leave plenty of room for the cookies to spread, these babies are BIG!

ENJOY! Come again....

Linking to:
Melt in Your Mouth Monday Recipe Blog Hop #77  
Katherine Martinelli: Nut Blog Hop  
Sweet Tooth Friday @ Alli-n-Son