Rainbow Cake in a Jar

I apologize in advance for all of the parentheses, but here goes.

Rainbows are special.

They make everyone happy! When I see a rainbow outside, it feels like a good omen for the fresh start that the rain gives. (I love rain too.)

That was really cheesy. But it's true! When someone sees a rainbow in anything (giant lollipops, t-shirts, signs) it immediately catches their eye.
That's why I decided to make this:

It's rainbow. It's cake. It's in a jar! 

So many good things about this jar of happiness. Oh yeah, and it only takes 15-20 minutes to whip up, and a half hour to bake. So here's how:

First you want to mix up some plain white cake mix, according to the box directions.

Then, you split the batter up into 5 small-ish bowls (a little over a half cup in each bowl).

Mix up food coloring into the bowls (the recipe suggests neon coloring, which I didn't have) until desired colors are reached.

Here's a tie-dye version (also known as me being too lazy to try on the 2nd cake):

I just messily poured in the colors, and took a fork and mushed them together for that one.

I made another cake for my other friend's birthday a few weeks later, and I thought it was really cute! I just used 4 colors instead of 5, and different shades of the same color to create an ombre effect.

Pour about 3 Tbs of each color of batter into each jar (the recipe suggests three, I only made two, though I suspected that I could have squeezed out a third, more proof of that is later in the recipe) and make sure it's not too full. I didn't measure exactly. I also didn't use baking spray and nothing was different, that I noticed.

Then, place in a shallow baking dish (I used an 8 inch square baking dish) with about 1/4 inch of water in the bottom. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Here's where the mistakes come in.

I didn't show a side picture of the batter, for how much you put in, because it was too much. About 3/4 through baking I checked the cakes, and this is what I found! The one I didn't try very hard on actually was the perfect size.

Let's compare sizes:

and

It's kinda hard to tell because of how messy it is, but the second one is a teeny bit more than halfway. The first one is about a half inch more full-- small amounts extra apparently do make a difference! But the nice thing is, is that if you just keep baking the overflowed cake until it bounces back to your touch (it might bake a bit longer than it normally would because it's more full) it will be totally ok! Just make sure you wipe off any spilled cake batter on the outside of the jar at least while it's still warm; once it's baked it will be rock hard (personal experience right there) and be really difficult to scrub off. After it's cooled, scoop off the extra cake on top, enough so that you can close the jar lid.

And there you have it! Rainbow Cake in a Jar (with lots and lots of tips).

By the way, the one pictured above is the tie-dye one. I didn't mess with the other one (except for scooping the extra cake off) because it was for my friend's birthday. I brought it to school for her (super convenient to put in your backpack!) and everyone was commenting on how cool it was. My friend thought it was delicious too! Rainbow cakes have so much more magic that plain white ones. You could totally send it in the mail too! You should probably find out how to do that by looking it up, because I have no idea how you would send a jar in the mail. 

Rainbow Cake in a Jar

Ingredients:

• 1 box white cake mix made according to package instructions
• Neon food coloring in pink, yellow, green, turquoise, and purple
• 3 one-pint canning jars
• 1 can vanilla frosting
• Rainbow sprinkles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thoroughly wash and dry the inside of each canning jar. Spray the inside of each jar thoroughly with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

2. Scoop about 1/2 cups of cake batter into five small bowls. It doesn’t have to be perfect, don’t panic if you get a little more of less of one color than another.  Tint each bowl of cake batter with the food coloring until very vibrant.

3. Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the purple batter into the bottom of each jar.  Spoon equal amounts of turquoise batter, then green, yellow, and pink.  Place the jars in a shallow baking dish, add about 1/4″ in water in the baking dish. Place the baking dish in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.

4. Remove jars and allow to cool completely before adding a hefty dollop of vanilla buttercream to the top, and a spray of sprinkles.

(adapted from babble.com)

Melting Roasted Potatoes

These were so good.

Not only are they potatoes, which are (in my opinion) the ultimate comfort food, they also have delicious flavors. And the best part...

They are so soft they just melt in your mouth. The outside is nice and crispy, but you bite into it and it's just so smooth and just perfect.

Just thinking about them makes my mouth water. 

Anyone want to make me some potatoes?

Melting Roasted Potatoes

YIELD: SERVES 6-8

INGREDIENTS

• 3 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 garlic cloves, finely minced

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, making sure one of the oven racks is in the upper-middle position. Square the ends off the potatoes by cutting off the rounded edges (you don't have to chop off a lot, but you want the ends flat) and then cutting the potatoes into about 1-inch thick slices.
2. In a large bowl, toss the potatoes with the butter, thyme, salt and pepper. Place the potatoes in a single layer in a 9X13-inch ceramic or metal baking dish (don't use glass as it can shatter when adding the chicken broth later).
3. Roast the potatoes for 20-22 minutes, until the bottoms are browning around the edges. Remove the baking pan from the oven and flip the potatoes with a flat spatula. Return to the oven and roast for another 15 minutes.
4. Remove the pan from the oven, flip the potatoes again and add the chicken broth and garlic. Roast once more (last time, promise) until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has reduced just slightly, about 15 minutes.
5. Serve the potatoes with the sauce drizzled over the top.

(source: http://www.melskitchencafe.com/melting-roasted-potatoes/)

I can easily say that this is the best sorbet I've ever made.

(it's also the first.)
My pickiest sibling (so picky that at fast food restaurants we have to request a "cheese bun" rather than anything else on the menu) proclaimed it to be "the best sherbet I've ever tasted!" which is a rare compliment.
(if you were wondering, there really is a difference between sherbet and sorbet. You're welcome.)
This could be a total crowd-pleaser because it's really refreshing, hardly any prep time at all, and is a fun, summery treat!

First, you zest and squeeze your lemons. (get a microplane zester, they make your life so much easier!)

Mix the zest, water, and sugar to make a simple syrup and boil until the liquid is clear.

Add in the lemon juice, more water, and a bit of salt. (I didn't add the salt, and liked it just fine)

Chill for 2 hours (I left it in the fridge overnight) to prepare it for the ice cream freezer.

Pour into the container of your ice cream freezer

and freeze according to the manufacturer's directions. 

It is really lemony and tart, so if you want a less strong flavor, I would try adding more water (I'm going to try that the next time I make it) and make sure you look for sales on lemons, this recipe uses quite a lot! I thought the lemon flavor was a good reason to only eat a little, my family of 8 thought this was a perfect amount (even though everyone only got a couple small scoops) and it was really cold and sweet and perfect for a warm spring afternoon.

It's also a fun idea to reuse your lemons for little cups. Cut them in half when you juice them, and freeze on a pan in the freezer for a couple hours.

Enjoy!

Frozen Lemonade

(adapted from cookingchanneltv.com)

This dessert strikes just the right balance between drinkable and icy dessert. If you really want to honor the spirit of this treat, do not eat it with a spoon, just serve in a cup and squeeze it into your mouth until it melts enough to drink.

TOTAL TIME: 2 hr 15 min

Prep: 10 min

Inactive Prep: 2 hr

Cook: 5 min

YIELD: 1 quart

INGREDIENTS

• 9 lemons (about 1 1/2 cups of lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of zest)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups water (divided)
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Peel the skin off of the lemons with a vegetable peeler, being careful not to get any of the bitter pith, or use a zester for the same thing. Chop the peels into the size of large sesame seeds. You should have about 2 tablespoons.

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, bring 1 cup water,sugar and lemon zest to a boil until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is clear. Remove from the heat, stir in 1/2 cup water, fresh lemon juice and salt; this will help bring the temperature of the liquid down. Chill completely in the refrigerator, 2 hours.

Freeze the mixture in an ice cream freezer according to manufacturer's directions.

Cook's Note: It is very important to the flavor that you freshly squeeze the lemon juice for this recipe; store-bought lemon juice often has an extremely metallic taste.

funfetti birthday cake ice cream sandwich

phew! That's quite a name, isn't it. Well, that looong name leads up to something that is worth saying all those words--

yep. I knew you would like it.

and if you're reading this, don't ask, "How did you eat that huge chunk of calories?" because I really don't know.

but seriously.

who cares about calories when they're in a funfetti birthday cake ice cream sandwich? It's like a mini birthday celebration for when you feel like you need an instant party. If you wanted, you could even put a little candle on top and sing yourself "Happy un-birthday to me..." if you're feeling especially like having a little celebration. 

now, on to the recipe.

you put this-

with this-

 

and voila! (I can say that without feeling guilty bc I take French ahaha) you've got yourself a mini birthday party.

(and if you're wondering, yes you can make it with chocolate. But I'm not sure why you would do that. If you ask me, birthdays are more fun than... chocolate. Don't get me wrong, I loove chocolate though)

I got this recipe from http://sallysbakingaddiction.com/ which is definitely another of my favorite baking blogs.

Ingredients:

• 1 box (18.25 oz) vanilla/white cake mix, such as Duncan Hines
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup vegetable/canola oil or melted coconut oil
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup sprinkles

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix and baking powder. Set aside. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, and vanilla by hand. Add the egg mixture to the cake mixture and stir to form a dough- stir vigorously until all of the pockets of dry cake mix are gone. Gently mix in the sprinkles - you do not want to dye the cookie dough by overstirring the sprinkles.

Drop rounded 1-inch balls of dough onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 9 minutes - do not let the cookies get brown. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes; they will be very soft at first. As they cool, the tops will settle down so you will not have to press the cookies down yourself. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container, for up to one week. Cookies freeze well, up to 2-3 months.

(in my version, I added birthday cake ice cream--one scoop--to the middle of two cookies and pressed down.)

April Favorites

I have a few things that I really like this month. Here are some of them:

Women's Revel Charley Sandals

These are really cute! They look pretty nice quality for the price (no more slipping around!) and they would go with lots of clothes. And they're from Target... so you can spend all your other money on completely unnecessary but amazing things.
Update: I bought these in black and I love them! They are super comfy with a lot of support and I've gotten multiple compliments on them.

Boyfriend Roll-up Shorts

It looks like most of these colors aren't in stock right now, but they are my favorite. They are long enough that I feel comfortable in them, and can wear them at school, but short enough to be able to feel summer-y.

Nest by Esther Ehrlich

This is my favorite book right now. It was so nice to read a book about the realities of life, not the junk food drama of  middle school girl's boy problems. It's a good mix of  happiness, sadness, and recovery, that it becomes a compelling page-turner. I stayed up really late finishing this because I could not possibly put it down! 

Crown Braid Chignon

All types of braids are popular right now. This one is especially cute, and the website has a step-by-step tutorial as well as pictures for each of the steps. Perfect for practicing my (non-existent) doing hair abilities!

Mango Body Sorbet

This is my favorite lotion-esque thing, especially since the warmer days are coming up. I have the mango sorbet, but they all smell amazing! On a hot day, they are super cooling on your skin, and they aren't sticky either! If you put one in the fridge for 15-30 minutes, it will cool you off even more. Check out their whole store, their products are all great (the raspberry body butter is another of my favorites!!)