A Christ-Centered Valentine's Day

I know many Chistians say most holidays   are paganism and should not be linked to us as people of God. I believe that it's not about the thing, but more about what you make of the thing. There are many ungodly things that are broadcast through the television but you can also use it for God's glory. Should we toss televisions? I think we can just as easily insert God into these holidays just like we insert him in to everyday. With that said, I love this Valentine project with scriptures. Get the templates here   http://www.simplyhomeblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/scripture-heart-valentines.pdf

from www.simplyhomeblog.com

Homemade Valentine's Day Candy

Combine all ingredients below, bring to a boil and pour into molds. Silicone molds are best. Add sticks and let rest for 8 hours. 

1 cup Sugar

1/2 cup Water

1/3 cup Corn Syrup

1/8 of Unsweetened Kool Aid drink mix (cherry, Black Cherry, Pink Lemonade, etc.)

5 Lollipop Sticks

Banana Pudding Poke Cake

From www.thecountrycook.net

This is made without slices of bananas, however, you could certainly add those on there if you like. My husband and I decided we would just add some freshly sliced bananas right on top of our individual pieces of cake which turned out to be a delicious idea.   If I had put them on the cake while I was making it, they would have turned brown within a day. It also makes the cake really pretty if you serve the individual slices with a bit of sliced banana and a Nilla Wafer on the side. 

Ingredients:

1  box yellow cake mix

ingredients needed to make cake (eggs, oil & water)

2 (3.4 oz.) packages instant banana pudding

4 cups milk

1 (8 oz.) tub frozen whipped topping, thawed

20 vanilla wafers, crushed

 Directions:

Prepare cake mix according to package directions for a 9x13 cake.

Once cake comes out of the oven, allow it to cool for just a couple of minutes.

Then, with a wooden spoon handle or some other similarly-sized object, begin poking 

holes in the cake.

 You want the holes to be fairly big so that the pudding has plenty of room to get down  in there. Be sure to poke right down to the bottom of the cake.

 In a bowl,whisk together instant pudding with 4 cups milk. Stir until all the lumps are gone. Let pudding sit for just about 2 minutes so it has just slightly begun to thicken but not fully set, it should still be easily pourable. 

 Pour pudding over cake. Taking care to get it into the holes as much as possible.

 Spread it all out and using the back of the spoon gently push pudding down into the holes.

 Put the pudding into the fridge to set and cool.

Once your cake has completely cooled, spread on whipped topping.

 If you haven't done so already, crush your vanilla wafers.

I just place mine in a ziploc bag and crush them with a rolling pin.

Leave some of the pieces big. It's nice to have a bit of a crunch when you eat the cake.

 Spread crushed wafers onto the top of the cake. 

You can do this part immediately before serving the cake if you like. 

This will ensure the wafers are crunchy when you serve it. 

I think this cake gets more delicious over time.

To me, it's even better the next day so it's a great dessert to make ahead of time.

Serve with freshly sliced bananas. Keep refrigerated.

Read more at http://www.thecountrycook.net/2012/06/banana-pudding-poke-cake.html#0TwwU6kPbRK4ERfo.99

Elephant Ears

Grandmas all over the country have long used scraps of unused pie crust dough to make larger versions of these sweet treats. This miniature version is just the right size--and much easier to assemble!

Easy Elephant Ears

• 1 tube Pillsbury Grands Flaky Layer Original Biscuits
• Cinnamon Sugar Mixture - I always keep a container in the cupboard so I don’t have an exact recipe – this really depends on you so mix a little sugar and cinnamon together until you like it) – you will need about a cup
• Oil for frying

In a frying pan, pour oil about 1 ½ inch high and turn burner on medium.

Using the layers, split the biscuits in half so you have 16 thinner biscuits 

Stretch each biscuit as thin as it will go without tearing and carefully place it into the hot oil.

Depending on how big your frying pan is you can put more than one biscuit in at a time but just avoid over crowding the pan.

When the biscuits are golden brown on the bottom, flip over and fry the other side (I used two forks to help flip the biscuit without splashing).

When the biscuits are done on each side, carefully place them on to a paper towel and blot the excess oil.

Cover both sides with cinnamon sugar and serve warm

Spinach Muffins- for the veggie hating kids!

Betty Crocker Watermelon Cupcakes

These turned out so YUMMY! Instead of oil, I used 1/2 cup of real butter. It really does make a difference and as always, use a timer for mixing any box cake mix and follow the directions exactly. They spent countless hours trying to figure our what works and trust me, when you mix it exactly 2 minutes, it makes a difference!

Sweet Potato Cake!

3 C Grated raw sweet potatoes (about 2 medium sized)

4 Eggs

2 C Sugar

1 C Vegetable oil

1 tbsp Bourbon

2 1/4 C Flour

2 tsp Cinnamon

2 tsp Baking soda

1 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

1 C Chopped walnuts (optional)

For the frosting

1 C (2 sticks) Unsalted butter at room temperature

2 (8 oz) Packages cream cheese at room temperature

1 lb (approximately 4-4.5 cups) Confectionary sugar

1-2 tbsp Bourbon

1 tbsp Heavy whipping cream

1 tsp Vanilla extract

1/2 C Caramel sauce

1 C Walnuts, chopped

Instructions

1. Peel sweet potatoes. Use a grater to shred the sweet potatoes into a bowl. When finished, use your hands to squeeze out excess juice from sweet potatoes. Pour out excess juice. Re-fluff sweet potatoes with your hands.
2. Preheat oven to 350° and grease and flour two 8” pans. If you choose to use a different size pan, you will need to adjust the baking time accordingly. This can easily be made in a 9” pan as well as a Bundt pan.
3. Lightly beat eggs with a fork. Add sugar and beat on low speed until smooth. Add oil and bourbon. Continue to beat on low speed until well mixed.
4. In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and nutmeg; mix together. Slowly add flour mixture to wet ingredients and beat until incorporated.
5. Fold in walnuts.
6. Pour batter in greased baking pans. Bake for 40-45 minutes. Use a toothpick or knife to check the center of the cake. If your toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done. Allow cake to cool completely.
7. Prepare the frosting by allowing the butter and cream cheese to come to room temperature for about 30 minutes. Combine butter and cream cheese in a mixer. Beat on a medium high speed until its light and fluffy.
8. Slowly add powdered sugar one cup at a time, until each cup is incorporated. As the frosting thickens, add bourbon, one tablespoon at a time. Reserve the second table spoon if you prefer a stronger taste.
9. Add heavy whipping cream and vanilla last. Incorporate into frosting and then increase speed to medium high and beat for additional 2-3minutes to whip air into the frosting.
10. Refrigerate the frosting for at least 30-60 minutes while cake cools.
11. To prepare the cake, use a cake leveler or knife to cut the dome off the cake, leaving a flat top on both cakes.
12. Apply a crumb coat the cake (a thin layer of frosting) and put in the freezer for 20-30 minutes. Remove from freezer and add remaining frosting. Keep refrigerated.
13. Before serving, use your hands to apply walnuts to the sides of the cake. Drizzle the caramel over the top of the cake and gently spread to the edges with an offset spatula.