Carrot Cake III

The past few weeks Scott has been having to work nights (luckily not anymore), so finally Thursday night I was bored out of my mind and decided to attempt not only my first layer cake, frosted cake, but also my first cake from scratch. And we think it turned out well! Scott really liked it aside from all the pecans, so he will compliment it - it must be good!

Keep in mind that this was my first ever layer cake so I made some simple mistakes like frosting too soon and um...not having a cake stand! So I just had to make due with a regular plate. But it tasted good so that's all that really mattered. ; ) Also, my spring-form pan was an inch smaller than recommended so I made some cupcakes with the extra batter (sp?).  

I got the recipe off of allrecipes.com and followed all the adjustments from the first review. Any additional adjustments I think I'll make later will be under Notes.

Notes:

• I used 2 8x8 cake pans (all the store had) and then made 4 cupcakes from the leftover batter. 
• Next time, I'll use less pecans, if any, in the batter for Scott, and probably won't add the pineapple either, simply because of texture.

Yield: 1 9x13 cake, 1 2-layer 8x8 or 9x9 inch cake

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups grated carrots (~ 1 lb.)
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 1 8-oz. can of crushed pineapple, juice squeezed out
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• Cream Cheese Frosting recipe below.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour either a 9x13 or 2 9x9 cake pans.

In a large bowl, beat together eggs, oil, applesauce, both sugars, pineapple, and 3 t of vanilla extract. Mix in flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir in carrots. Fold in pecans. Pour into prepared pan(s).

Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cook in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

Frosting:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 3 1/2 c confectioner's sugar (poster measurements vary from 3-4 cups)
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 1 c chopped pecans

Directions:

In a medium bowl, combine first 4 ingredients. Beat until smooth and creamy. Stir in chopped pecans (I reserved all for garnish.) Frost the cooled cake. 

My Chicken Parmesan

I have become incredibly picky when it comes to Chicken Parmesan since I started making my own. I finally got the original recipe off my old computer, just to find out that I've deviated from it a lot, so I'm providing what I do because I love it too much to go back to the original.

 

Notes:

• This is my own homemade recipe, so if it's hard to understand just let me know and I'll try to fix the problem!
• The measurements of the flour, buttermilk, breadcrumbs, and cheese are total estimates b/c this is the one recipe that I don't measure out anymore. So take them with a grain of salt and adjust to what you need. ; ) This is not a picky recipe at all.
• I always serve with a marinara sauce, on a bed of spaghetti, and with a side garlic bread; but Ina Garten serves hers with a Lemon Vinaigrette.

Yield: 2-4 servings, but can easily be adjusted

Ingredients:

• 2 sk/bn less chicken breasts (3/4 - 1 lb.)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs (I actually really like Shurfine)
• 1/4 cup Mozzarella cheese, extra for garnish
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ~ 2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and whole or minced
• salt and pepper

Special tools: Parchment paper, meat tenderizer (with flat side) or rolling pin.

Directions:

Between two pieces of Parchment paper, pound chicken breasts to a uniform 1/4" thickness.

Combine butermilk, mozzarella, and parmesan in good dish for dredging. Lay out breadcrumbs in dish or parchment paper. Set aside.

Heat oil and garlic in heavy, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Keep an eye on the garlic, you don't want it to burn!

Dust chicken with flour --  a thin, uniform coat and shaking off excess -- and then s&p both sides. Dip both sides of chicken in buttermilk-cheese mixture, allowing excess to drip off. Dredge in Italian breadcrumbs.

Remove garlic from oil. Saute chicken 4-5 minutes until golden brown. Turn and saute another 3-4 minutes, or until brown and chicken is cooked through. 

Tip: 

B/c my pans tend to get and stay very hot, I allow the oil to heat up on med-high heat until the first side of chicken is a light brown, then I lower the temp to med, med-low so that the chicken can cook through, without burning the outside. This is especially helpful if the breasts are large. Just don't drop it too much because you want your oil to stay hot, so the breasts don't get soggy.

Enjoy!

"Four Cheese and a Tissue Please" Lasagna

I don't have a pic because I haven't made this in a long time because the recipe was on an old computer, but I finally got it back! I actually saw it in a Seventeen magazine years ago in a V-day special and got it off their site, but it's not there anymore so I don't have a link for the original.

This is hands down the best lasagna I've ever had and I can't wait to actually make it again. It's pretty labor intensive, but it's worth it.

Notes:

• This is a personal, homemade recipe (hence why I can't find it online anymore) from the girl's family, so there's a lot of seasoning to taste and also may not be written the best.
• At the end, make sure you sprinkle Parmesan cheese as the very last, top ingredient. If you put it under the mozzarella you'll get a nasty, hard Parmesan crust. Trust me, it's not tasty.

Yield: ? Sry, idk, but it makes a lot.

Ingredients:

• 1 16-oz. package of lasagna noodles
• 1 large diced onion
• 1 hefty Tablespoon minced garlic
• 3 hefty Tablespoons brown sugar 
• 6oz. tomato paste
• 28 oz. can diced tomatoes
• Lots of sliced mushrooms
• Dried oregano, Fresh Basil, s&p, (any herbs you like really) to taste
• 1 lb. minced meat (your choice: beef, sausage, etc...)
• 2 cups grated Parmesan cheese, divided
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 tub Ricotta cheese
• 1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella cheese, to be sliced
• 3 cups heavy cream, or whipping cream

Directions:

Saute the minced garlic and onion until transparent. Add minced meat and cook through. Add canned tomatoes and tomato paste. Season with oregano, basil, s&p. Add brown sugar and stir well.cLet simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes and then add the mushrooms. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat heavy cream in a saucepan over low heat. Stir constantly. Once warm to the touch, add first cup of Parmesan cheese and stir until smooth. Add cup of of cheedar and stir until smooth. This mixture should be fairly thick.

Assembling the lasagna:

1. Spoon small amount of meat sauce in bottom of a large deep casserole dish ( FYI: will fill 9x13 Corningware dish to the brim). 
   
2. Add 3 sheets of uncooked lasagna noodles.
3. Pour a layer of cheese sauce
4. Layer of meat sauce
5. Layer of noodles
6. Layer of ricotta cheese
7. Meat sauce
8. Lasagna
9. Mozzarella

Repeat steps until out of ingredients or dish is full. Lasagna noodles and cheese sauce should be last 2 layers.

Top with leftover grated cheddar cheese and Parmesan.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 40 minutes. Removed and let stand for 1 hour.