Vanilla Honey Cake

 

Vanilla Honey Cake

Made by my eldest and gobbled up by siblings and cousins. 

Directions:

Put a generous amount of honey in the middle of the layers 

Cake:

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/basic-vanilla-cake-recipe-2043654

Frosting:

https://www.twosisterscrafting.com/buttercream-frosting/#mv-creation-497-jtr

Bacon Wrapped Asparagus with Puff Pastry

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

Inspired by https://m.facebook.com/buzzfeedtasty/

Ingredients 

1 sheet of thawed puff pastry 

1 bunch of asparagus (thick)

1 packet of bacon

1 egg

Black pepper 

Directions

1. Wash and count the asparagus. In the bunches I get there are usually 15 to 20 pieces.

2. Heat the oven to 400 degrees and line a pan with parchment paper. Foil will also work but make sure to use non-stick spray.

3. Take the bacon that you need and cut each piece in half so that you have 2 long strips. For example, 20 asparagus means you need to cut 10 pieces of bacon in half. Wrap each piece around a piece of asparagus and set on the parchment paper.

4. Roll the pastry dough so that you will be able to get more pieces out of it. If you only have 10 pieces of asparagus you might not need to roll it out...but if you have more than that you probably need to roll out the dough.  Remember to put flour on your surface so that the dough won't stick. Slice the pastry into strips. Anything from a 1/4" to 1/2" thick is fine.  They don't have to be perfect or uniform, they will all taste good.  Wrap the dough strips around the asparagus.  I try to wrap in the same direction as the bacon but going the opposite way is fine too.

5. Put all the finished pieces on the pan and brush them with an egg wash.  Sprinkle then with a little pepper and put them in the oven. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The dough should be crispy and brown.

Enjoy!

Notes

If your asparagus is thin you can wrap up 2 at a time and they will taste just as good. Sometimes I also double up if I had a hard time cutting enough pastry.

These still taste good after being refrigerated.  Hot or cold, they are so good!

Ladybug Appetizers

Submitted by Marcia Van Camp

I made these for Renée's Peterson's baby blessing.  They were cute and delicious!



                                    

 



Ingredients:

1 small can of chip dip like Utz sour cream and onion, or something similar

36 Ritz crackers or sliced cucumbers

18 cherry tomatoes, cut in half

18 large black olives (pitted)

72 fresh chive pieces (about 1-1/2 inches long)

Directions:
1. Take a cracker and spread it with the chip dip
2. Take a cherry tomato which has already been cut in half and make a small slit in the back (not the stem side) so it looks like parted wings.  The side of the tomato where the stem used to be has a nice indent which is best for the head.  Place the tomato on the cracker
3. Take a black olive and cut it into 4 pieces (1 vertical and 1 horizontal cut).  This will give you about 4 heads depending on the size of the olive.  Use 1 head and place it next to the tomato.
4. Attach small chive pieces between the head and the body for antennae
5. Take a tablespoon of the chip dip and mix it with black dye.  Use a toothpick to make spots on the tomato
6. Use another toothpick to make eyes with the chip dip
7. Repeat steps and make more yummy ladybugs!

Voila! Cute and cute!

Notes:
1. Other receipes online show making a cream cheese mixer and although I did this, I think sour cream would be a lot easier to use and taste just fine.
2. I don't have the chives in the picture because I was travelling with these and thought they wouldn't do well being transported.
3. I used crackers but they were a bit soggy after travel.  I think I will try cucumbers if my prep to serve time is a long again.
4. There are so many ways people make these...beds of lettuce and so on.  I encourage you to look online for inpiration to see how you want to make your own special ladybugs.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Ladybug-Appetizers
http://www.bbbseed.com/FAQRetrieve.aspx?ID=58938&Q