Strawberry Swiss Cake Roll

Let me preface this post by saying I'm not really a fancy kinda girl. (And now I have "Fancy" by Reba going in my head!) I'm a hillbilly, and quite happy about it. Once in a while though, I have the desire to try something that's fairly fancy. 

I've never made any "roll" before. No pumpkin roll, etc. However, I got silicon mats recently (some just before Christmas, and more for Christmas) and I thought that would make it easier, so.... I jumped out of my box. 

And whoa, was it worth it. This swiss cake roll is heavenly. You can use any freeze-dried berries or fruit, so you can change the flavor as desired. (I found strawberries at Aldi's, so that's what I went with.) Personally, I think that it could use more strawberry flavor, but that's a preference thing. 

I do think the use of silicon mats made this process much easier than without. If you don't have any, sub parchment paper in the pan and a clean towel for after the cake is done. 

Comments are loved! What's your favorite "fancy" dessert?

Printable Recipe

Strawberry Swiss Cake Roll

Ingredients

For the batter:

• 4 eggs, separated
• ½ cup + ⅓ cup sugar, divided
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup flour
• ⅓ cup cocoa powder
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ⅛ teaspoon salt
• ⅓ cup water

For the Filling:

• ½ cup freeze dried strawberries, crushed finely
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup powdered sugar, divided
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

For the Ganache:

• 3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

For the Topping, optional:

• Redi-whip or cool whip
• fresh strawberries, chopped

Directions

For the cake:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 10”x15” jelly roll pan with a silicon baking mat and grease heavily.
2. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Slowly add in ½ cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks. Beat for 3 minutes, then add remaining ⅓ cup sugar and vanilla. Beat for 2 more minutes.
3. In a separate bowl, mix flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Alternately add flour mix and the ⅓ cup water to a large bowl with the egg yolks. When thoroughly mixed, fold the batter into the egg whites a little at a time.
4. Spread batter into the prepared pan and bake for 12-15 minutes until toothpick come back clean and cake springs back when lightly touched.
5. Meanwhile, coat a silicone baking mat with powdered sugar.
6. When the cake is done, immediately invert it onto the mat. Remove the first silicone mat, and then roll up the cake starting at the narrow end. Let it cool completely.

For the Filling:

1. In a large mixing bowl using a whisk, beat heavy whipping cream and ¼ cup powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Remove to a separate bowl.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add in ¾ cup powdered sugar, strawberry powder, vanilla, and salt.
3. Fold in whipped cream until combined.
4. Carefully unroll the cake. Spread the filling evenly over the entire surface and then roll the cake back up.
5. Place cake roll on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

For the Ganache/Finishing:

1. Heat the whipping cream in microwave for 45 seconds or until hot, then add the chocolate chips. Cover and let it sit for two minutes; stir until smooth. Let the ganache cool slightly before pouring and spreading over the cake.
2. If desired, top with more redi-whip or cool whip and strawberries.
3. Slice and serve. Store leftover cake in the fridge.

Yield/Time

12 servings

5 ½ hours (start to finish)

Nutrition Facts

324

Source (for original): Spend With Pennies

Strawberry Cinnamon Muffins

I love strawberries. When strawberries are in season here in northern Michigan, we usually buy at least 2 flats... so over 20 pounds. At least. I make 3 or more batches of jam, we eat strawberries for days, and then I freeze whatever is left. Last year, Gabriel & I picked some vs doing the pre-pick, but I think this year I'll have to just buy some that are already picked. I'm due June 25th, so... picking probably isn't going to work out. I'm still hoping that making strawberry jam & freezing strawberries is going to be doable. If baby comes early, this might get interesting. ;) 

After starting to buy local, fresh strawberries a few years ago, I just can't buy them in the store anymore. They just aren't comparable! 

The best thing about getting so many and freezing them in the summer is having strawberries all winter! Then, when I stumble across a strawberry recipe... I don't have to use mediocre ones from the store. 

This recipe is fabulous! These muffins are perfectly sweet, and full of strawberries! My one complaint is that, using frozen strawberries, they seem to be a bit soggy. That didn't stop anyone else from devouring them, though! (Didn't stop me, either.) I always warn people if I'm slightly less than satisfied with the way a recipe is turning out, and everyone told me with this that they will gladly take my rejects. ;) 

If you use frozen strawberries, cut down slightly on the milk. If you use frozen sugared strawberries, the 1/4 cup sugar is not needed! (Unless you want it, in which case I won't judge.) 

Remember, comments are loved! What's your favorite summer strawberry recipe?

Printable Recipe

Strawberry Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup sugar *cut out if using sugared strawberries
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk *cut down if using frozen strawberries
• 2 cups strawberries, chopped into pieces
• Cinnamon Sugar Filling/Topping:
• 3 tablespoons melted butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Grease or line a 15 cup muffin tin and set aside.
2. In a large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. In another bowl, combine applesauce, egg, and milk. Add to the dry ingredients, and fold in strawberries.
3. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter. Reserve half and fold the other half into the batter. Fill each muffin cup with about ¼ cup of the batter. Top with remaining cinnamon sugar filling.
4. Bake for 12-20 minutes or until lightly brown. Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

Yield/Time

15 muffins

45 minutes

Nutrition Facts

163

Source (for original): The Recipe Critic

Berry (or Fruit!) Crumble Bars

I know, I know. I live in Michigan.

It's not berry season. Or fruit season. It's cold, and everything is covered in inches (or feet, for the unlucky) of snow.

But let's be real: after the holidays, we all need something that makes us feel good about eating it. Even if it's not really healthy, we can at least pretend.

Well, I'm pretending this morning. (And my little pregnant self thought it sounded good.) 

This is really similar to most other crumble recipes, but I think it's my favorite now. I used it a bit this summer, and it's definitely wonderful. I've only ever used it with berries, but I think it would be awesome with peaches. (Which is going to be my next attempt!)

This is something that, regardless of the weather, will make you feel like summer! 

Remember, comments are loved! What's your favorite reminiscent-of-summer recipe?

Printable Recipe

 
Berry (Or Fruit) Crumble Bars

Ingredients
Crust and Topping

• ½ cup butter, melted
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup old-fashioned oats
• ½ cup light brown sugar, packed

Berry Layer

• 2 cups berries
• ⅓ cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray an 8” square pan with cooking spray; set aside. 
2. Combine all ingredients for crust; mix well. Set aside 1 heaping cup for topping. Press remainder evenly into prepared pan. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, toss together all ingredients for berry layer. Evenly distribute over the crust.
4. Sprinkle the reserved crumble over berry layer. 
5. Bake for about 45-60 minutes, or until edges are set and crumble is a golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes before serving.

Yield/Time

16 pieces

1 ½ hours + cooling

Nutrition Facts

140 (using a mixture of blueberries & strawberries)

Source (for original): Averie Cooks

Brownie Dessert Pizza

The 4th of July is, truthfully, one of my favorite Holidays. Easter & Christmas being my absolute favorites (Jesus!), but 4th of July is next. For us, it doesn't have the craziness of the big holidays, but it's still so much fun. So much small town fun! My hometown might be tiny, but we put on a great 4th of July. Best fireworks in the area, followed by a nearly hour long parade the next morning. Then, my family has a picnic at Mama's house. I always have to bring something fun, and I wouldn't be me if I didn't make something sweet. Two years ago it was this Chocolate Chip Cookie Dip, last year it was cookies, this year I decided to do something patriotic!

I love Pinterest for things like this. A quick search and tons of ideas with great pictures instantly comes up! Only problem is that there is WAY too much to choose from. I finally settled on Brownie Dessert Pizza, as you can never go wrong with brownies! We had some strawberries from a local farm, too, which was another deciding factor. Fresh & local is best!

One of the great things about this is you have to feel a little good eating it. Sure, there is a ton of sugar, but there is a lot of fresh fruit, so that makes it good for you, right? ;)

I opted to use strawberries and blueberries on my pizza, and skipped using anything white. Bananas or apples would be great if you wanted them (depending on desired texture), but I didn't want to risk getting to the parties and having the bananas be browned.

We were invited to a cookout at a friend's house that weekend too, and this was great for both events! I made two small pans, instead of one big one, and took one pan to each. Only problem is that one of these, if you do two pans, is awfully small. People get cranky when they can't go back for seconds! ;)

Printable Recipe

Brownie Dessert Pizza

Ingredients

1 boxed brownies mix
2 eggs
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup oil
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 bananas, optional
lemon juice, optional
1 1/2 cups diced strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries
8 ounces Cool Whip, optional

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a 12" round rimmed pizza pan with nonstick spray; set aside. (Alternately, may use two small round cake pans.)

In a medium mixing bowl, combine the brownie mix, eggs, water and oil. Stir until just combined. Pour into the greased pan and spread evenly with a spatula. Bake for about 18-25 minutes (depending on size of pans), or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the brownie pan from the oven and allow to completely cool.
In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Spread evenly over the top of the cooled brownie. If desired, slice the bananas and sprinkle with lemon juice. Place the banana slices evenly over the top of the cream cheese layer. Sprinkle with strawberries and blueberries.

Slice into wedges and serve immediately with a dollop of Cool Whip, if desired.

Yield/Time

12 servings

30 minutes + cooling

Nutrition Facts

342 (12 servings), 257 (16 servings) *I calculate nutrition facts for my use only, this is not done scientifically

Source (for original): Seeded at the Table


Remember, comments are love! What is your favorite thing to take to a gathering?

Jam Tarts! (Or, what to do with leftover pie crusts)

So, do you remember all those pies I've been making? Well, I don't know about you, but every time I make pie crust, I always have extra. I'll eat a bit of it just plain, but my all time favorite thing to do with extra pie crust is make jam tarts.

This is something I would do at my Grandma's house, when I was little. If she was rolling out pie crusts, she would let me use to extra crust. It was always fun, and they tasted so good with the hot pastry shell & jam! It's like a mini, Serena-sized blackberry pie! (Because, of course, you have to use blackberry jam!)

I don't remember exactly how we did it then, but now I roll out the extra, use a cup to cut out muffin tin sized circles, and place the pastry in a muffin tin. Press it in slightly, then add a bit of jam. Maybe 1 to 2 tablespoonfuls? I just plop some in there; there is no measuring. (And, of course, homemade jam is best. I've made them with blackberry, strawberry, & apple jelly; blackberry & strawberry being my favorites of course!) Bake it at whatever you are baking the pie at (350 or 375 usually) for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the pastry is as browned as you want it to be & the jam is hot & bubbly.

Then try not to burn yourself when biting into that warm deliciousness.

(But if you don't succeed, I don't judge you. I burn myself every time. Every. Time. You would think I would learn to wait like a grown-up.)

Do you have something fun you do with leftover pie crust?