Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

What You Need:

• 8 prepackaged sponge cake dessert cups
• 1 can of whipped cream
• 1 quart of fresh strawberries/ sliced
• fresh mint leaves (optional)

What You Do:

1. Arrange a dessert cup on each plate.
2. Top with a generous layer of washed, sliced strawberries.
3. Add a layer of whipped cream to each.
4. Add another dessert cup to each.
5. Top with another layer of the strawberries.
6. Spray whipped cream on top of desserts.
7. Garnish each dessert with mint leaves (optional.)

Servings: 10

Prep Time: 15 – 20 minutes

Bake Time: one hour

Cool Time: 1/2 hour

What You Need:

• 4 cups flour
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 1/2 sticks (melted) butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup orange juice
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• grated zest of one orange
• grated zest of one lemon
• slivered almonds (optional)

What You Do:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a 10-inch round cake pan.
2. Beat egg yolks with sugar for about 3 minutes in a large bowl until light yellow. Add the butter and beat for another minute. Beat in the orange juice.
3. Mix dry ingredients (excluding almonds) in another bowl and blend into the yolk mix.
4. Beat egg whites separately until they form soft peaks, then fold them into the batter.
5. Pour batter into cake pan and top with almonds.
6. Bake cake for one hour and let cool before serving.

]]> http://www.seasonalcookbook.com/lucky-new-year-orange-cake/feed/ 0 http://www.seasonalcookbook.com/candy-cane-cookies/ http://www.seasonalcookbook.com/candy-cane-cookies/#comments Tue, 15 Dec 2009 18:18:29 +0000 Jen http://www.seasonalcookbook.com/?p=606

Servings: 4  dozen cookies

Prep Time: about 2 hours (refrigerate dough)

Bake Time: 12 minutes/ dozen

Cool Time: 30 minutes

What You Need:

• 3 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons crushed peppermint candies
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon red food coloring

What You Do:

1. Mix the cup of sugar, milk, butter, vanilla, peppermint extract, flour, baking powder, and egg in a large bowl.
2. Divide the dough in half.
3. Add red food coloring to half the dough and refrigerate both halves for two hours.
4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
5. Mix the crushed peppermint candy and 2 tablespoons of sugar in a small bowl.
6. Shape cookies by forming a teaspoon of each dough into 4-inch ropes (roll dough on floured surface.) Place one red and one white rope side by side and twist together. Bend top of cookie over to form curve of cane.
7. Place cookies several inches apart on cookie sheet and bake for 9-12 minutes. Sprinkle peppermint candy mixture over baked cookies and let cool (30 minutes.)

Servings: about 36 cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

What You Need:

• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup sunflower seeds, shelled
• 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 cup butter (room temperature)

What You Do:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine baking soda and flour in a small bowl.
3. In a large bowl, mix butter, sugar, and bananas on medium speed until thoroughly beaten.
4. Slowly add flour/baking soda mixture into larger bowl.
5. Add sunflower seeds and mix thoroughly.
6. Scoop the dough in teaspoon amounts onto the cooking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie.
7. Bake each sheet for 12-15 minutes.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

What You Need:

• 4 cups of cold milk
• 1 cup of seltzer
• 8 tablespoons of chocolate syrup

What You Do:

1. Set up 4 12-oz. glasses with 1 cup of milk in each.
2. Top them with seltzer until the white foam reaches the rims of the glasses.
3. Pour 2 tablespoons of chocolate syrup into the bottom of each glass.
4. Quickly stir each glass with a long spoon, keeping the white foam at the rims.

Servings: 6 – 12

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Chill Time: 3-4 hours

What You Need:

• plastic freezer pop mold(s) *for 6 – 12 pops
• 1 bottle of fruit juice or instant lemonade
• 1 frozen bag of fruit (optional)

What You Do:

1. Pour fruit juice into mold (s).
2. Place pops in freezer.
3. About 30 – 45 minutes into freezing, add frozen fruit to molds.
4. Add plastic sticks with tops and continue to freeze until thoroughly solid (up to 4 hours.)

Servings: 10-12

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Chill Time: 1 hour

What You Need:

• 1 pint of strawberries
• 1- 14 oz. can of unsweetened pineapple chunks
• 2 large, ripe nectarines
• 2 large, ripe peaches
• 1 pint of blueberries
• 3 ripe kiwi fruit**

What You Do:

1. Cut strawberries in quarters.
2. Drain pineapple chunks.
3. Cut nectarines and peaches into small pieces.
4. Slice kiwi fruit.
5. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl and cover and chill for one hour before serving.

** Fruits may be varied according to personal preferences. Grapes, melon(s), and bananas can easily be substituted.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

What You Need:

• 1/4 cup sweet white wine or orange juice
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3/4 cup water
• 4 medium pears: peeled, cored, and sliced
• 4 scoops vanilla ice cream
• walnuts (optional)

What You Do:

1. Bring wine/juice, sugar, vanilla, and water to a boil in a skillet.
2. Add pear slices.
3. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10-15 minutes.
4. Serve in dessert dishes. Top with vanilla ice cream and walnuts (optional.)
5. Pour juice from skillet over pears.

Servings: 8

Prep Time: 45 minutes

Bake Time: 45 minutes

Cool Time: 2 hours

What You Need:

• Two-crust pie pastry
• 1 Tbsp butter or stick margarine
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 2/3 cup of sugar
• 1/3 cup of flour
• 1/4 tsp of ground cinnamon
• 6 cups of sliced peaches (6 – 8 medium peaches)

What You Do:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Mix together flour, sugar, and cinnamon in a bowl. Add sliced peaches and lemon juice. Blend well.
3. Pour contents into pastry-lined pie plate and add cut-up pieces of margarine to tops of peaches.
4. Cover pie with top pie pastry and vent with slits. Seal and flute edges.
5. Cover pie edges with 2-3 inches of aluminum foil to avoid burning. Bake pie for 45 minutes or until crust is golden brown.
6. Let cool for at least 2 hours.