4th of July Pudding Cups – Easy for Kids to Eat On-the-Go!

We will all be travelling in cars this weekend to various friends and families’ houses to celebrate Uncle Sam’s Birthday a.k.a. Fourth of July! These pudding cups are super easy to make, great to travel with and easy for kid to run and have fun with these in hand with their friends.  They are very patriotic and delicious!

INGREDIENTS:

• 3/4 cup each red, white, and blue melting wafers
• 1 pound cake (12 oz.)
• 1 cup sliced strawberries
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1/2 cup strawberry preserves
• 1 1/2 cups prepared vanilla pudding
• Whipped cream
• Red, white, and blue sprinkles

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place 12 foil cupcake liners on a baking sheet. Microwave red wafers in a bowl for 30-second intervals,
   stirring in between, until melted (about 2 minutes). Repeat with the white and blue wafers.
2. To make a solid-colored cup: Using a 10 pastry brush, spread one color of melted wafers across bottom
   of foil cup, then brush the color up the cup’s sides. For a striped cup: Brush stripes of alternating colors across bottom of cup, continuing up the sides.
3. Return finished cups to baking sheet and refrigerate until just set, about 3 minutes. Apply a second
   coat of melted wafers to each cup, matching its original color pattern, and return to refrigerator to set, 10 minutes.
4. Cut pound cake crosswise into 12 1″-thick slices. With a cookie cutter, cut a 2 1/2″ round from each slice. In medium bowl, combine strawberries, blueberries, and preserves.
5. To assemble, carefully peel foil from chilled cups. Gently place 1 cake circle into bottom of each cup. Top each circle with 2 Tbs. pudding; divide fruit mix among cups. Decorate with dollops of whipped cream, and top with colored sprinkles.

recipe from www.parents.com

Read Full Post »

Holiday Recipe: Mini Peppermint-Meringue Cups with Ganache

It’s the holiday season and whether you are working in an office or going over to a friend’s house – this recipe I read about in Martha Stewart is sure to be a hit!  The recipe is for “mini peppermint-meringue cups with ganache”! It makes plenty and looks pretty darn cute.

MINI PEPPERMINT-MERINGUE CUPS WITH GANACHE

Total time: 2 hours (until ready to eat)
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 32 pieces

Tip: To give these cups their festive design, paint lines of red gel paste food coloring up the inside of an empty pastry bag before adding the meringue.

 

INGREDIENTS FOR MERINGUE CUPS:

 

o        Vegetable oil cooking spray

o        3 large egg whites, room temperature

o        ¾ cup sugar

o        ¼ teaspoon pure peppermint extract

o        red gel-paste food coloring (sugarcraft.com)

 

INGREDIENTS FOR GANACHE:

 

o        6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

o        1 cup heavy cream

  

Note: add a garnish with 1 large candy cane, finely chopped

 

 

DIRECTIONS: 

 

1.    Preheat oven to 175°. Trace 16 circles onto each of 2 pieces of parchment using a 1 ¾-inch round cookie cutter, spacing about 2 inches apart. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray and top each with a sheet of parchment, traced side down.

2.    Make the meringue cups: heat egg whites and sugar in a heat proof bowl of a mixer set over a pan of simmering water, stirring, until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm to the touch, about 3 minutes. Transfer bowl to mixer. Whisk on medium high-speed until stiff peaks form. Beat in peppermint extract.

3.    Using a small food-safe paint brush, paint 3 stripes of red food coloring up the inside of a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch plain round tip. Transfer egg-white mixture to pastry bag (or a large Ziploc baggie with small hole cut at corner); pipe coils to fill each traced circle. Pipe up sides of each to create ¾-inch to 1-inch high cups.

4.    Bake until meringue cups are crisp but not browned and lift off parchment easily, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Transfer meringue cups to a wire rack, and let cool completely.

5.    Meanwhile, make the ganache: Transfer chocolate to a heat-proof bowl. Bring cream to a gentle simmer in a small sauce-pan over medium heat. Pour over chocolate, and let stand for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth. Cover loosely with plastic wrap, and cut a small slit in the top. refrigerate until firm, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes.

6.    Stir ganache, and transfer to a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch open-stir tip. Pipe ganache into the center of each meringue cup. Garnish with candy cane.

Read Full Post »