Tag Archives: dessert

Sour Cream Pound Cake

Dessert December 7, 2025 Leave a comment

The history of pound cake dates back to the early 1700s.  It is believed that the pound cake is a Northern European dish and was traditionally made with a pound of each of four ingredients: flour, butter, eggs, and sugar.  Over time the ingredients for pound cake changed and everyone started adding different ingredients. For example, Eliza Leslie who wrote the 1851 edition of Direction for Cookery used 10 eggs and beat them as light as possible and mixed them with a pound of flour then adding the juice of two lemons or three large oranges, which changed the flavor and texture of the cake. Everyone had their own way and belief of making a pound cake. For instance, 5 years ago James Villas wrote in the 2008 issue of Saveur that flour won’t work in place of all purpose flour because it lacks the strength to support the heavy batter.

My recipe brings back many memories it has been handed down through the decades in my family.  I have tweaked it here and there to add my own flavors and touches, this recipe makes a very dense, rich and flavorful  pound cake. Wonderful on its own with its crunchy crust sprinkled with 10-x (powdered sugar), or glazed with a vanilla glaze.

SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 6 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon Almond extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 325 F.

  1. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
  2. Add the sour cream and mix until incorporated. 
  3. Sift the baking soda and flour together.
  4. Add to the creamed mixture alternating with eggs, beating each egg 1 at a time. 
  5. Add the flavorings and pour the mixture into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 1 hour 20 minutes.



Ambrosia Fruit Salad

Dessert, Fun Stuff, Salads, Side December 3, 2025 Leave a comment

Everyone has tried this summer salad at least once. There are many different recipes for Ambrosia available online, making it difficult to choose which one to make. In this blog, I have included the traditional version of the recipe, as well as a new variation that uses Greek yogurt. Try both versions and decide which one you prefer. 

Traditional Version:

Ingredients

  • 2 cans of pineapple tidbits
  • 2 cans of mandarin oranges
  • 1 8–12-ounce container of Cool Whip (or fresh whipped cream)
  • 1 8-ounce container of sour cream
  • 1 bag of mini marshmallows
  • ½ bag of coconut

Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients together and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to blend flavors.

New Version:

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of fresh pineapple cut into small pieces
  • 2 mandarin oranges or cuties (tiny oranges) sectioned, cut the sections in half
  • ¼ cup slivered almonds
  • Optional add in fruit:
    • Strawberries (sliced)
    • Kiwi (sliced)
    • Blueberries
  • ½ bag coconut
  • 1 bag of mini marshmallows
  • 1 large container of Plain or Vanilla Greek Yogurt
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients together and serve immediately

Salted Caramel Cinnamon Cookie

Dessert December 1, 2025 Leave a comment

An amazing cookie with a salted caramel finish. Add to your cookie menu for the holidays or just enjoy throughout the year for a special treat.

Ingredients

  • ½ cup butter
  • 3/4 cup of brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon cream of tarter
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1-1/2 cup of flour
  • ¼ teaspoon of sea salt
  • 1/2 cup caramel squares, cut into quarters.

Cookie Finish

  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
  • Coarse Sea salt for sprinkling

Directions

  1. In a medium sized bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and set aside.
  2. To brown the butter, heat a medium saucepan to medium high heat. Add the sliced butter. It does not take long for the butter to begin browning on the bottom. When the butter begins to froth, watch carefully and stir. Once the butter turns light brown, remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. The butter will burn fast, so don’t walk away.
  3. While the butter is cooling, cut the caramel squares into quarters and set aside
  4. In a stand mixer, combine the brown butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Mix until blended and smooth.
  5. Beat in egg and vanilla and mix until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients until combined.
  6. Form the dough into a ball and cover with plastic. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
  7. Once you are ready to bake preheat the oven to 350°F.
  8. Measure about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball, or use a cookie scoop.
  9. Flatten and place a quartered caramel square on top, wrap the cookie dough over the caramel and roll back into a ball.
  10. Mix ¼ cup sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and roll each cookie in the mixture. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
  11. Flatten slightly with a fork, and sprinkle lightly with coarse sea salt
  12. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges turn light brown. The centers will be soft. Allow it to cool for 2-3 minutes and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Cinnamon Bread Pudding with Vanilla Bourbon Sauce

Bread, Breakfast, Dessert, Dinner Ideas November 27, 2025 Leave a comment

This is the absolute best recipe for bread pudding. it will fill your home with warm, welcoming aromas of brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. It also makes a wonderful addition to your holiday brunch. With the holidays around the corner, I feel the need to share some of my favorite recipes for you and your family. This rich, comfort food and so addicting.

Ingredients for Pudding

  • 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 10 cups chopped day old bread or pastry
  • 3 cups Half-and-Half
  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 5 eggs
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon

Directions Bread Pudding

  1. Mx bread, brown sugar, Half & Half, whipping cream, sugar, eggs and cinnamon ingredients in a large bowl and let sit for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
  2. Preheat oven to 350F. degrees.
  3. Spray a 9 x 13″ baking dish with cooking spray. Spray a piece of aluminum foil with cooking spray to cover the bread pudding while it is baking.
  4. Pour bread pudding batter into pan. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour or until center of pudding is firm.
    1. NOTE: This can be made about 1 or 2 days in advance, reheat at 250F. degrees for 30 minutes before serving

Ingredients for Vanilla Bourbon Sauce

  • 4 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ to ½ cup bourbon
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch (optional)

Directions Vanilla Bourbon Sauce

  1. Pour heavy cream into a heavy saucepan and bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Stirring constantly to keep from scalding, continue to boil until cream is reduced by almost half, about 30 minutes.
  2. Add brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and bourbon and allow to boil until sauce thickens slightly (another 15 minutes). For extra thick sauce, add a tablespoon of cornstarch to the boiling liquid, stirring constantly.

Serve warm, drizzling sauce over the top of each pudding square after placing on a plate.

Filled Angel Food Cake

Dessert November 26, 2025 Leave a comment
Filled Angel Food Cake

Are you scrambling for a dessert that is different, light and refreshing for the holidays? Here is a 1970’s throwback, I don’t care how old the recipe is, it still gets rave reviews and has a beautiful presentation.  It is simply delicious! 

Ingredients

  • 1 Angel Food Cake (boxed cake mix is fine)
  • 2 pints of fresh 2 pints of fresh strawberries or 2 cans of Mandarin oranges sliced lengthwise, mix it up with blackberries or raspberries
  • 1 Large container of Cool Whip
  • 1 regular size box of instant vanilla pudding
  • 1 stick of butter (soft)
  • 1 pound of Confectioners’ sugar

Cake
Prepare cake according to box directions, cool completely
Slice into 2 layers

Filling

  1. Add 1 cup of milk to 1 regular size box of instant vanilla pudding – beat 2 minutes
  2. Add ½ size Cool Whip container, fold cool whip into pudding mix with a spoon until completely blended.
  3. Spread ½ of the pudding mix on the first layer
  4. Spread sliced fruit on top of the filling.
  5. Cover with first layer of cake, repeat steps above and put top of cake on second layer

Frosting

  1. Beat the butter until smooth and creamy
  2. Add confectioners’ sugar, beating until incorporated and creamy. 
  3. Fold in the other half of the container of cool whip, if frosting is too stiff, add milk a tablespoon at a time. 
  4. Frost sides of cake and then the top. Decorate with sliced fruit. 

Fruit Pizza Dessert

Dessert November 9, 2025 Leave a comment

Fruit Pizza

Fruit Pizza Dessert

I’ve seen many recipes for this fruity dessert. I think this one is tastiest. It uses refrigerated sugar cookie dough for the base.  Just roll the cookie dough out, bake and add the rest of the ingredients. You can also make individual, miniature fruit pizzas using shortbread cookies.  Make them the day before, cover with plastic wrap, place in the refrigerator. The next day, the cookies will become soft from the filling and fruit, serve as is, delicious. Consider using all kinds of berries, sliced peaches (fresh or canned), bananas, canned mandarin oranges, strawberries, kiwi, passion fruit. A light ending to your meal.

Crust
1 package (18oz) refrigerated sugar cookie dough

Preheat oven to 350°F.

  1. Unroll the refrigerated sugar cookie dough.
  2. Begin flattening out the dough onto a 12” pizza pan, or 9″ x 13″ baking pan with raised edges.
  3. Work the dough until it is spread out to the outer edges of the pan.
  4. Bake until lightly brown, about 10 – 12 minutes. Remove from oven, allow to cool completely.

Filling

  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 8oz cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  1. With an electric mixer, in a medium bowl combine sugar and egg, beat until sugar is dissolved.
  2. Add cream cheese, sour cream and vanilla, beat until creamy. Add more sour cream if filling is too stiff to spread.
  3. Spread filling on cookie crust.
  4. Beginning in the center of the pizza begin adding fruit in a circular fashion, or make your own design.
  5. Refrigerate until you are ready to eat.

Chewy Salted Caramel Cookie

Dessert December 28, 2014 Leave a comment

An amazing cookie with a salted caramel finish. Add to your cookie menu for the holidays or just enjoy throughout the year for a special treat.

Ingredients

  • ½ cup butter
  • 3/4 cup of brown sugar
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon cream of tarter
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 1 egg
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1-1/2 cup of flour
  • ¼ teaspoon of sea salt
  • 1/2 cup caramel squares, cut into quarters.

Cookie Finish

  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
  • Coarse Sea salt for sprinkling

Directions

  1. In a medium sized bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, cinnamon, and set aside.
  2. To brown the butter, heat a medium saucepan to medium high heat. Add the sliced butter. It does not take long for the butter to begin browning on the bottom. When the butter begins to froth, watch carefully and stir. Once the butter turns light brown, remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. The butter will burn fast, so don’t walk away.
  3. While the butter is cooling, cut the caramel squares into quarters and set aside
  4. In a stand mixer, combine the brown butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Mix until blended and smooth.
  5. Beat in egg and vanilla and mix until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients until combined.
  6. Form the dough into a ball and cover with plastic. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
  7. Once you are ready to bake preheat the oven to 350°F.
  8. Measure about 2 tablespoons of dough and roll into a ball, or use a cookie scoop.
  9. Flatten and place a quartered caramel square on top, wrap the cookie dough over the caramel and roll back into a ball.
  10. Mix ¼ cup sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and roll each cookie in the mixture. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
  11. Flatten slightly with a fork, and sprinkle lightly with coarse sea salt
  12. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges turn light brown. The centers will be soft. Allow it to cool for 2-3 minutes and transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits

Bread, Breakfast January 8, 2013 Leave a comment

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits – (Medium ease)

Nothing like the taste and smell of homemade biscuits.  Here are a few tips & hints to help you biscuitsalong;

  • Do not over-bake.
  • The key to real biscuits is not in the ingredients, but in the handling of the dough.
  • The dough must be handled as little as possible or you will have tough biscuits.
  • I have been told that a food processor produces superior biscuits, because the ingredients stay colder and there’s less chance of over mixing.
  • If not using a food processor – Use a fork to mix the wet ingredients into the dry – do not stir to mix – just “fluff” together
  • Rolling with a rolling pin is a guaranteed way to overstimulate the gluten, resulting in a tougher biscuit, use your hands to pat the dough out
  • You can make these biscuits, cut them, put them on cookie sheets and freeze freeze them, place in plastic bags when frozen for up to a month.
  • When you want fresh biscuits, simply place them frozen on the cookie sheet and bake at 450°F for about 20 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the board
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder ( use one without aluminum)
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt or 1 teaspoon salt
  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold
  • 1 cup buttermilk ( approx) * You can make your own buttermilk: Place a Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line. (if possible use whole milk or heavy cream). Let stand for five minutes. Then, use as much as your recipe calls for.

Directions

  1. Preheat your oven to 450°F.
  2. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, or in the bowl of a food processor.
  3. Cut the butter into chunks and cut into the flour until it resembles course meal, using a pastry dough cutter or two knives.
  4. Add the buttermilk and using a fork mix JUST until combined, do not beat.
  5. If it appears on the dry side, add a bit more buttermilk. It should be wet.
  6. Turn the dough out onto a floured board.
  7. Gently, gently PAT (do NOT roll with a rolling pin) the dough out until it’s about 1/2″ thick. Fold the dough about 5 times, gently press the dough down to a 1 inch thick. Use flour to dust the board or counter if dough is sticking.
  8. Use a round cutter to cut into rounds.
  9. You can gently knead the scraps together and make a few more, but they will not be anywhere near as good as the first ones.
  10. Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet- if you like soft sides, put them touching each other.
  11. If you like”crusty” sides, put them about 1 inch apart- these will not rise as high as the biscuits put close together.
  12. Bake for about 10-12 minutes- the biscuits will be a beautiful light golden brown on top and bottom.

What do do with the biscuits when they come out of the oven; drizzle with honey, biscuithoneyspread butter, or jam on your biscuit, eat naked, or squirt some whipped cream on each half and add fresh fruit on top.  Or my fav, Biscuits and Gravy – post to come.

Hint; Never cut a biscuit with a knife, always break in half.