Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle

This Fourth of the July the dessert we made was this Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle. This dessert is super easy and looks very festive. The best parts about this recipe is that it requires no baking and can be prepared a day in advance. Check out this super easy recipe below!

Red, White, and Blueberry Trifle:

Ingredients:

1 Angel Food Cake

2 tubs of Whipped Topping

1 box Vanilla Instant Pudding plus milk

1 container of Strawberries

1 container of Blueberries

Directions:

1. Break or cut Angel Food Cake into pieces.

2. Place on bottom layer.

3. Mix pudding as directed on box, place in fridge to set.

4. Then fold in 1 tub of Whipped Topping.

5. Spoon over cake layer.

6. Then slice and add strawberries and blueberries on top of pudding.

7. Add a layer of Whipped Topping, about ½ the container. 

8. Then repeat layers.

9. Top with blueberries and strawberries.

10. Chill, eat, and enjoy!

Lots of Love, Natalie

For the Love of Strawberries Cake Recipe

This cake is bursting with Strawberries and flavor! I love Strawberries and for Easter lunch this year I made this from scratch Strawberry cake with Strawberry Frosting. This cake is so packed with Strawberries that I thought the perfect name has to be "For the love of Strawberries Cake". Anybody who loves fresh strawberries needs to make this cake. This cake turned out so good that it is now a staple for me to make at least once every Spring. I hope you have a wonderful Monday and I will be back here all week!

For the love of Strawberries Cake:

Ingredients:

Approx. 8 oz strawberries, either fresh or frozen

1/4 cup milk, at room temperature

4 eggs, at room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 1/4 cup cake flour

1 3/4 cup sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

12 Tbsp unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), at room temp

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese

½ cup butter, room temp

3½ cup confectioners' sugar

¾ cup fresh strawberries, mashed or chopped fine

 

Directions:

1. Place strawberries in a food processor or blender and process until completely smooth.  Measure ¾ cups of strawberry puree and return to the blender

2. Add egg, vanilla, and milk to the blender and mix on medium speed until smooth and creamy and set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix to combine. Continue beating at slow speed and add butter.

4.  Mix until combined and resembling moist crumbs.

5. Add strawberry mixture and beat at medium speed for about 1 minute.

6. Stop mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl, mix for 30 seconds more.

7. Divide the batter evenly among the pans or cupcake tins.

8. Bake for about 25 minutes for layer cakes or 18 minutes for cupcakes.

9. Let cakes rest in pan for about 10 minutes and turn out onto wire racks.

10. Let cakes cool completely before frosting.
11. Mix 1 1/2 stick butter and cream cheese together until smooth.

12. Mix in the rest of the butter and the confectioner's sugar.

13. Lastly mix in the strawberries until it is smooth and tasty.

14. Frost your cake and top it with any extra strawberries you have left over.

 

See you tomorrow with a tasty recipe to help celebrate Cinco De Mayo!

 

 

Lots of Love,  Natalie

Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberries

As a little Valentine happy I made my homemade Dark Chocolate Dipped Strawberries with White Chocolate drizzle. I took these to work for my last full day as the manager at Fresh Ink. Before you lose you mind I have not left them for good. What does that mean for you? It means there will still be fun pictures of fabulous stationery and all of my favorite new candles and small gifts! I couldn't leave them just yet. I should also let you in on the wonderful news I received last week...I got accepted into Nursing School!!! Also along with that I started a new job with an amazing and very accomplished doctor here in Jackson. Anyway lets get down to the recipe since I know that is what brought you here!

Dark Chocolate Covered Strawberries:

Ingredients:

1 bag Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips

1 bag Nestle Premier White Morsels

2 packages of strawberries

Directions:

1. Use a double boiler to melt your dark chocolate chips.

2. Melt them over a medium heat, that way the chocolate melts and stays smooth and not clumpy.

3. Use a damp paper towel to clean your strawberries.

4. Then dip your strawberries into the melt chocolate.

5. Let cool on wax paper.

6. Once cooled, melt the premier white chocolate.

7. Use a fork to drizzle the melted white chocolate over the strawberries.

8. Let cool.

9. Enjoy!

Lots of Love,  Natalie

Strawberry Cream Cake

As you know my friend Liz's 21st birthday was last week. She asked for a Strawberry Cream Cake so I flipped through some of my Southern Living magazines and came across a Strawberries and Cream Cake (found here). I decided that I would use their recipe for the Strawberry Jam filling but other than that I came up with my own combination of flavors. For the cake I figured a vanilla cake would be wonderful with the Strawberry filling. Lastly, I topped it off with a Cream Cheese icing with two drops of red dye to get a light pink color. Add a few sprinkles and tada a girly Strawberry Cream Cake.

 

Basic Vanilla Cake:

Ingredients:

 

1 1/2 cup(s) sifted cake flour

1 1/2 teaspoon(s) baking powder

1/4 teaspoon(s) salt

1/2 cup(s) (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup(s) sugar

2 large eggs, room temperature      

1/2 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract

1/2 cup(s) whole milk

 

Directions:

 

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly coat an 8-inch cake pan with butter and dust with all-purpose flour. Sift the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a large mixing bowl.

2. Beat in the butter one heaping 1/4 teaspoonful at a time, using an electric mixer set on low speed, until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Beat in the sugar a tablespoon at a time, until the mixture resembles fine damp sand. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Add the vanilla and milk, and beat on medium-high, just until blended. Do not over beat.

3. Pour into the prepared pan and bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean 30 to 35 minutes. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes.

4. Un-mold and cool completely

Strawberry Jam Filling:

Ingredients:

4 cups mashed strawberries

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 (3 oz.) package of strawberry gelatin

 

Directions:

 

1. Stir together strawberries and sugar in a large saucepan; let stand 30 minutes.

2. Bring strawberry mixture to a boil over medium heat; boil 5 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in gelatin until dissolved; cool completely (about 1 hour). Cover and chill 8 hours.

 

Cream Cheese Frosting:

Ingredients:

 

4 ounces unsalted butter, softened

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

Directions:

 

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Beat in the vanilla extract.

 

 

I know that is a lot of different recipes but remember you could always use a boxed cake mix and store bought frosting. I promise it will still taste amazing either way!

 To make this cake layered I cut my two 8 inch cakes in half and then put three layers of the filling. Finally, I frosted the whole cake. 

Enjoy!

 

 

Lots of Love,  Natalie

Party Prep Time

Today is one of my good friend's 21st Birthday! She is the second to the last one in our group to turn 21 so it means we need to celebrate. I will be making a Strawberry Cream Cake today for her. I am also making the Tissue Tassel Garland in the top left corner to decorate just a little bit. I honestly love planning, decorating, and hosting a party! Check back in tomorrow to see how the cake turned out!

Lots of Love,  Natalie