Easy chocolate mousse cake

My birthday was last week and this was the cake I made.




Grease and flour a tiara cake pan, this pan has an indentation on top to hold a filling.


Mix up your favorite chocolate cake recipe, enough for a single layer. Or you can use half a box of devil's food cake mix, that is what I did.
I mixed a little Kahlua into the cake .
Bake as directed, cool, and then turn out onto a plate.

Then mix up a box of chocolate instant pudding, following the directions on the box.
Let it start to thicken, and then fold in a cup of kool whip.
Use that to fill the indentation in the top of the cake. If you have extra filling, put it in a cup or glass to eat as pudding.
Chill the cake until filling is set.
Serve with more kool whip and SPRINKLES!
It's also good with cut-up strawberries on top.

If you don't have a Tiara cake pan you may also use a Mary Ann Cake Pan or an obsttortenform pan. (see photos)
Tiara pans were made some years ago by Duncan Hines to go with their special line of Tiara Desserts mixes. They no longer make the mixes but you can often find the pans in thrift stores.
I use this pan a lot, it's great for filled cakes, strawberry shortcake, ice cream cakes, etc.

Easy homemade beer bread

Beer bread
(photo coming soon)

1 cup sifted white whole wheat flour
2 cups sifted all purpose flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
1 12 ounce bottle of beer, at room temperature
(dark or malty beers work best, like porter or amber ale. It's delicious made with Guinness! The stronger of flavor the beer has, the more flavor the bread will have. A pale mild beer like Bud will not make a very flavorful bread.)

preheat oven to 350
spray a loaf pan with Pam cooking spray
mix all the dry ingredients first
stir in the beer just until everything is moist, do not overmix.
Spread the dough in the pan and bake at 350 for about 50 minutes, until bread pulls away from edge of pan.
Turn the bread out of the pan and eat! (I like to have a piece when it's still hot from the oven, but you can let it cool first if you have patience)


notes:
optional: pour 1/4 cup melted butter over the dough in the pan, just before baking
you can use a standard 5" x 9" loaf pan, I use a 4 1/2" x 12" pan
you can also use all white flour instead of the whole wheat. Just use 3 cups of all purpose flour.
you can add other extras like grated cheese, garlic powder, caraway seeds, etc.

2008 Holiday Baking Journal

Welp, this isn't much of a "journal" really, because the holidays are all past now. And people probably don't need recipes anymore since everyone is on their New Years Diet! But I did bake this year, not as much as last year though. And I thought I'd document the goodies, better late than never! You can always use the recipes next year.

THANKSGIVING
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Spoonbread



preheat oven to 350 (F) and grease a 4-5 cup glass or pyrex baking dish/casserole . I use a nonstick spray like Pam.

Put 2 cups milk and 1 Tbsp butter and 1/2 cup yellow polenta in a saucepan, bring to a boil, stirring constantly. turn heat to low and cook , stirring constantly til it thickens..should be about the consistency of oatmeal. Remove pot from heat. Stir in 1 cup corn kernels .

In a small bowl, beat 1/2 cup egg substitute (I use safeway 'best of the egg') with 3/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp baking powder (not soda) with a whisk until somewhat frothy. Gradually fold the egg mixture into the polenta mixture, try not to stir all the air out of the eggs.

Pour the mixture into the baking pan, and bake at 350 (F) for about 30-40 minutes. It's done when it starts smelling really good, the top is light golden brown, and you can stick a knife in the center and it comes out clean.

The baking time depends on the pan used, a high pan with small diameter needs more time than a wide shallow pan. The best size is about 7-8 inches diamter, that allows it to have some depth and rise nice and high.

options and substitutions

I have made it with whole milk, but usually now I use nonfat. I have even made it with half water and half milk if I was low on milk, you can also use some chicken broth for part of the liquid.

I have made this with normal cornmeal, the stove cooking part takes less time that way but the result is not as yummy, to me. Polenta is a very coarse grind of cornmeal, it's also sold as 'corn grits' in packages. Don't get the white corn kind, get the yellow. Don't use instant polenta or the precooked logs of polenta, just plain old normal dry polenta is what you want.

The original recipe called for 2 whole eggs. I use the egg substitute because it's basically egg whites with a little yellow color , it whips up higher without the yolks, but you can use 2 whole eggs if you like.

The corn kernels are optional, you can use fresh or frozen or canned, I just use frozen because it's easier. I mix them in still frozen, you don't have to thaw them, they'll thaw out when they hit that hot polenta.

Another nice addition is some grated cheese, I like to use romano or parmesan, but any kind is good. I usually layer in half the polenta, then the cheese, then the rest of the polenta with a little bit of the grated cheese on top.

You can make it southwestern by adding some chopped chile peppers to it.
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Chocolate Pecan Pie
Recipe borrowed from Passementerie



9 inch pie plate, buttered

Crust...
7-8oz shortbread (this is usually 1 package of shortbread cookies)
2-3 tablespoons melted butter

Pulse shortbread in food processor until finely crumbled. Use your hands to mix in melted butter until small clumps form, then press butter & shortbread mixture into buttered pie plate to create crust. If the crust seems a little too soft put it in the fridge or freezer for 10-15 minutes before adding the filling.


Pie Filling...
1.5 cups pecan halves or pieces, toasted
3 oz. coarsely chopped baking chocolate
3 large eggs
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 tablespoon brandy
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dark corn syrup

Mix all ingredients until combined. Pour pecan mixture into crust. Bake for 50-55 minutes at 350 degrees.
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Apple Tart




Banana Pecan Bread



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CHRISTMAS


Orange-cranberry-pecan scones

preheat oven to 375 F
grease & flour a pizza pan (round cookie pan)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
mix dry ingredients in a bowl.

cut in: 1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, until mixture is crumbly and no big chunks of butter remain
(I cut in with a pastry blender)

In a small bowl beat 2 eggs and 1/3 cup whipping cream to blend.
reserve 1 tablespoon of this mixture, then stir the rest into the flour mixture and mix well with a fork until all dough is moistened.

Stir in 1/3 cup of orange-flavored craisins (dried cranberries)
and 1/4 cup of chopped pecans

Knead gently on floured board, just 3-4 turns, until dough forms neat ball.
(don't over-knead, it makes a tough gluten-y dough and you want tender scones)
Put the dough ball in the pizza pan and pat into a 1-inch thick round.
Cut into 6 wedges, and leave in place.
Brush the top with the reserved egg-cream mixture, then sprinkle with sugar.

Bake 25 minutes at 375 F

The wedges should separate pretty easily- enjoy with butter, jam, clotted cream, or my favorite: lemon curd!

You can substitute raisins, currants, blueberries, etc for the cranberries.
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sliced bosc pears with dulce de leche pudding, whipped cream and candied pecans.
I suppose you could broil or roast the pear but this one was so perfectly ripe I just used it raw, and it was delicious! The recipe for the candied pecans is in last year's baking journal.
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Apple-pecan-cinnamon bread
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homemade candy
L-R: cinnamon glazed almonds (recipe in 2007 baking journal)
dark chocolate-cherry-pecan clusters
orange toffee glazed almonds (recipe in 2007 baking journal)

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dark chocolate-cherry-pecan clusters
melt organic dark chocolate in a double boiler
stir in chopped raw pecans and dried tart cherries
spread on a buttered plate
put in fridge to harden
break into small clusters
OM NOM NOM

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Left: white chocolate, pecans, and dried cherries
Right: Crunchy turtles: Pecans, caramel, marshmallow, chocolate, mini-rice crispies
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Spice cookies (recipe in 2007 baking journal)
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Cocoa crispy-marshmallow treats, Bright-eyed susans, jam thumbprints

Bright-eyed susans recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

* 3/4 cup butter, softened
* 1/2 cup sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1 3/4 cups flour
* about 24 chocolate non-pareils

Cream together butter and sugar until well mixed.
Add egg, vanilla and salt until blended.
Sift in the flour and mix until blended.
Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour in refrigerator. (not freezer)
Shape cookie dough into 1-inch balls; place about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased baking sheet.*
Place a chocolate non-pareil on each cookie, flattening the cookie.
Bake at 400°(F) for 8 to 10 minutes. Bake until set but not brown.
Makes about 2 dozen cookies

option: you can use Chocolate Stars or even Hershey Kisses if you can't find non pareils

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Chocolate-mint rice crispy treats
3 tablespoons butter
4 cups mini-marshmallows
6 cups cocoa crispies cereal
1/2 cup Andes peppermint crunch baking chips

1. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat.

2. Add cocoa crispies cereal. Stir until well coated.

3. stir in peppermint crunch baking chips

4. Spread in a 9x13 inch cake pan which has been sprayed with a nonstick spray. (like Pam)

5. Let cool and then cut into squares

6. Om Nom Nom!
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NEW YEARS DAY

Rocky road brownies
1 cup Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
3 large eggs
1 stick butter , melted
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Put all of the ingredients into a large bowl in the order in which they're written. Stir, then beat the mixture till smooth.

Stir in 1 cup chopped pecans

Spoon the batter into a lightly greased 9 x 13-inch pan. Bake the brownies in a preheated 375°F oven for 25 minutes, or until they're just barely beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan.

Take them out of the oven and sprinkle some mini-marshmallows on top.
Return to oven for 5 minutes until marshmallows soften and puff up.
Remove from oven.

Let them cool completely .
Melt 1 cup chocolate chips in a double boiler
spread melted chocolate over marshmallows

put in fridge to harden chocolate
remove from fridge when chocolate is firm, and serve at room temperature

Makes about 2 dozen brownies.

The New California Academy of Sciences

Yesterday I visited the newly re-opened California Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. It had been closed for several years while they completely rebuilt it from the ground up. They just had the grand opening in September but this is the first time I have visited since it reopened. I had been to the old Academy of Sciences many times, from childhood school field trips into teenage visits to "Laserium" for the Dark Side of the Moon show, and as an adult many times. I loved the old Academy and the old Steinhart Aquarium, which were built in the 1920's and 30's.

The architecture was cool, the reptile and amphibian room for example had beautiful mosaic floors with snakes and lizards. The collections were somewhat old fashioned- lots of taxidermied animal specimens. But I liked that sort of musty turn of the century naturalist vibe of the old place.
But it was damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake, so the city decided to replace it with a more modern building. (which did not start construction until 2005)

The new building is bigger, or seems so from the front.


It's very modern and reminds me of my old high school. Exposed concrete, I-beams, lots of glass, it looks like a prison or a factory. It's also supposedly the greenest museum in the country. It uses recycled building materials, it's insulated with recycled bluejeans (how quintessentially San Franciscan, since Levi Strauss headquarters are here), and it has a much-discussed "living roof" planted with all native California species and wildflowers.


This dome is the roof over the rainforest exhibit, with lots of skylights.
All this construction isn't cheap. The price of admission is much higher than I remember from the old Academy. It was $25 for one adult, but you can get a $3 discount if you took public transportation and show your bus transfer.

When I got inside I got the little map guide and right off I noticed how many things were missing. Many of my favorite exhibits from the old Academy are completely gone.

What's missing:
1. The hall of gems and minerals- this was small, nowhere near as good as the one in the Los Angeles natural history museum which I visited this past April. But it was still interesting and beautiful and it didn't take up much space so I don't know why they got rid of it. Many of the rock specimens were also native to California and there was a nice display about the gold rush. Another important piece of local history which is missing from the new museum.

2. California coastal life exhibit, which had dioramas of animals like elephant seals and tule elk, as well as greatly magnified models of krill and other microscopic critters. There was also a living display of tidal life and that is still there.

3. The entire geology section is gone! I was shocked. The old academy had a great exhibit about the "Ring of Fire", of which California is part. Lots of great displays about volcanoes and earthquakes, including a big display about the 1906 Earthquake and an "earthquake simulation" room where the floor shook at the same intensity and duration as the 1906 earthquake. Now considering this is San Francisco where earthquakes are a reality not just something you read in books, and considering the new museum was built because of earthquake safety, it makes no sense to not have any exhibits about geology. It's a subject of great local importance!

4. The Wattis Hall of Anthropology is gone. Now admittedly this was not one of my favorite rooms, I usually skipped it because I am more interested in animals than humans. But it did have some nice examples of arts and crafts from native California tribes, etc.

5. The North American Hall of Birds and Mammals is gone. All the dioramas with taxidermied birds, bears, coyote, moose, cougar, buffalo, etc. All gone. They DID keep a similar hall full of taxidermied African mammals and birds. But they lost the animals that actually live in our own state and country. This is another weird decision to me. It seems like the old museum was more relevant to our local sciences here in California. The new museum focuses on Africa, Madagascar, Costa Rica, all these distant places.

6. The fish roundabout is gone. This was a huge donut-shaped tank that you could stand in the middle of and fish species who swim constantly and never rest would swim all around you. There were some really large specimens here including sharks. I don't know where they went.

7. The marine mammal exhibit is gone. The old aquarium had a few dolphins and harbor seals, which are now gone. I know there was always a lot of protest about keeping whales or dolphins in captivity so there used to be signs saying that they would only keep their current dolphins until they died (because they were born in captivity and could not be released to the wild) but they would not be replacing them with new wild-caught dolphins. So maybe those old dolphins died?

Ok so that's what is missing, now I wanted to know, what new things do they have and are they as good as what we lost?
The first thing I saw when I entered was the Philippine tidal lagoon and reef exhibit.
The lagoon has rays and sharks, and rays are one of my favorite fish to watch.


There was a cool leopard-spotted ray


Then I went through the African hall of mammals, which is pretty much the same as it was in the old Academy. The one difference is they have moved the African penguins (live ones) to this room, when they used to be in the aquarium. These guys are so fun to watch, all the little kids were especially entertained.


Then I went to the far left hall of the museum, which is shared by a Galapagos exhibit and a Madagascar exhibit. These take up a lot of floor space but it's all basically videos, still photos, and text to read. It is informative and educational but you could just read a book if you want text and photos. I have to say it's a bit boring, I want something a little more 3-D when I pay $25 to get into a museum. There are a few life sized models of Galapagos tortoises but otherwise it's just lots of photos and text. At this point I was rather disappointed with all the cool stuff that was missing and this is what they replace it with!

Then I saw the Foucault Pendulum which is something they saved from the old academy. I was glad to see it! I even got to see it knock over a peg.


Then I went to see the Planetarium show which was about looking for life in space and exo-planets. It was good but the recliner chairs are so comfortable I almost fell asleep in the dark. LOL

Then I went to see the alligator pit, now dubbed "The Swamp".
One nice touch is they saved the old railing from the old alligator pit, which features beautiful bronze seahorses.


The famous albino alligator doesn't look very happy. He is blond, so he sits on his rock all day and he doesn't go in the water because the female alligator and the turtles bite him!


Next I went over to the far right side of the museum, where there is a big hall devoted to climate change and ecology. More photos and text and videos. Yes I know it's important but honestly it was presented in a pretty boring way. I guess I am shallow, I want to see cool animals, not read a preachy textbook.

Next I went up to the second floor to watch a 3-D movie about bugs. They have a large screen, not Imax size but still pretty good for seeing a 3-D movie. That was fun and it's another opportunity to sit and rest for a little while, if you have been walking around all day.

Next I went into the much publicized Rainforest dome exhibit. Now this is what I'm talkin about! Two big thumbs up for the rainforest. Definitely save at least an hour just for this alone.


The dome has a spiral ramp around the edge which goes up to 3 levels. There are birds and butterflies flying loose and lots of cool animals in glass tanks. The second level is the best- that is Madagascar animals. Take some time to really watch the amazing reptiles and amphibians here. I saw a lot of people just rush by, they'd say "I can't find it" and they'd move on. Many of these animals are really well camouflaged in their exhibits but if you are patient you will find them. And oh my gosh they are so fascinating and entertaining! The Panther Chameleon for example was so cool. He was beautiful bright colors, he has creepy eyes that move in different directions, his feet are really neat, he walks super slow like a robot.


There was a big fat green caterpillar in the tank with him, which crawled right up the bottom of the branch the Chameleon was sitting on. Caterpillar crawled right over Chameleon's toes! I thought for sure he was going to be dinner. Then caterpillar crawled to the end of the branch, reared up and swayed back and forth right in front of Chameleon's face! By now a small crowd had gathered and we were all waiting to see that worm get et! He was practically begging to get et. We wanted to see Chameleon unfurl his long tongue and grab that cocky worm. But apparently Chameleon was not hungry that day. He just slooooowwwly reached out for another nearby branch and walked away from the worm.
The top level of the dome is Costa Rica, which is also very cool but I recommend the Madagascar level.

The exit from the dome is to take the elevator down the center to the basement, which houses the new Aquarium. I spent a LONG time at the Aquarium. There is a huge tank for the Philippine coral reef, and I got to see a feeding in that tank which means the fish are very lively. There are benches in front of this tank so you can really relax and be hypnotized by the gorgeous swirling colors and movement of all the tropical fish. I could also watch the Moon Jellies for hours. Jellyfish are natures Lava Lamp! They are so beautiful and graceful and just relaxing to watch, I'd love to have a tank of these at home. Then I saw something so bizarre and beautiful, a leafy seadragon. Actually they have a whole bunch of them. I had seen these on television but never in person. I love these guys! So that would have been an awesome day if it ended there but the best thing was still yet to come.

If you go to the Academy, make SURE you find the Burmese Vine Snakes in the aquarium. And make sure you spend some time watching them. Don't just spot one in a tree, say "ok I have seen that" and move along. Look towards the back of the tank near the floor, and you will see at least a dozen of these slender green snakes hanging upside down over a small pool of water. Their bodies are all curled into S-shaped curves, they hang by their tails from a branch and their heads are about 3-4 inches over the water. They stare at that water VERY intently. I watched them fascinated. "What are they all looking at?" I wondered. Well, there are teensy little fish in that pool. And these snakes eat the fish. They are the only arboreal snake in the world which eats fish! Thy do not swim, they aren't water snakes. They just hang there and wait for a little fishy to come close to the surface, and then STRIKE! I watched 6 or 7 of them catch little fish and eat them. The fish are still wiggling and flipping their tails as they are swallowed, and even afterwards the lump in the snakes throat is kind of squirming. I got disappointed by the Chameleon but the snakes delivered!

Any person who came by and couldn't find the snakes or only noticed the ones draped over the upper branches, I told them where to look to see the fishing snakes. They were all so fascinated once they slowed down and really looked. These little snakes are utterly fascinating to watch, they are rare and were only discovered in 2002. Before that no one believed any arboreal snakes ate a diet of fish. The exhibit at the Steinhart is the only place in the world they live in captivity.
More info about Burmese Vine Snakes

More info and a photo

video of one catching a fish

Burmese Vine Snakes WIN!
They were the stars of my visit.
The new cafe is very nice too, I had a snack of apple caramel bread pudding while watching a bigass fishtank they have facing the cafe.

I had originally planned to spend the day visiting both the Academy of Sciences and the De Young museum across the street, because the De Young has a luscious retrospective exhibit of Yves Saint Laurent fashions, 130 garments! But I spent so much time at the academy that I would have only had an hour or two left for the De Young, which is a waste. So I skipped it and I will go back another time when I can spend a full day at the De Young. I went to the Vivienne Westwood exhibit at the De Young last year and I arrived late in the day and really didn't have time to do it justice.

So my overall review is positive, there are a lot of old favorites missing but there is still plenty of neat stuff to look at. I'd recommend focusing your visit on the Aquarium and the Rainforest, especially if you have limited time. Those two areas have the most entertainment value and "oooh" and "eeew!" value.

Getting custom-printed shirts on Etsy

I have always coveted so many of the cool screen-printed T-shirts I see on Etsy, but I was always sad and frustrated that most of them were not available in my size. I'm not even that unusual of a size, I wear an XL in most bricks&mortar stores. But the blank shirts used by most Etsy screen-printers are either American Apparel, or Alternative Apparel, and unfortunately both of these companies have strange sizing and their largest sizes (in women's shirts) are still too small. American Apparel, for example, goes up to XXL but it's equivalent to a L in normal sizes. I could always buy the men's shirts, but they aren't really a flattering cut on me. So I have gazed longingly at the cute T-shirts, like a little hungry orphan with her nosed pressed against the candy store window. (only, not that little. hence my problem!)

So recently I decided to contact some Etsy sellers and ask if they would print their awesomely cool designs on blank shirts I supplied. It's not difficult to find shirts that fit me in stores like Target or Old Navy. I know these are probably sweatshop made, but what can you do when all the "socially conscious" brands don't even acknowledge that women exist over a size 12?
Anyway, the sellers all said yes! And I had lots of blank shirts already in my wardrobe, so then I had to decide which designs to get printed on which color of shirt. I was now like the little kid inside the candy store, overwhelmed with all the appealing choices. In the end I ordered eight shirts from four different sellers. They all came out fabulous and it makes me wish I'd done this a year ago!

Behold my new summer wardrobe of cool shirts!:
These two are from SalmonStreetStudio


These three are from Ahpeele. Several of them have a design that wraps around to the back, which is very cool.


These two are from CircularAccessories


I also got this design on a black V-neck, from Satisfactory. This photo isn't my shirt, I just didn't get around to photographing that one.



So I am super happy with all the shirts and I can't recommend these shops highly enough. They were all very friendly to work with. If you also wear a larger size and feel frustrated or left out because you can't buy the cute shirts on Etsy, just try asking them about this option to supply your own shirt. It does take a bit more effort and you have to think about colors and style, so it's not as spontaneous as just buying "off the virtual rack". But it's totally worth it when you see the results.

I'm featured on The Budget Casa

The Budget Casa featured my plastic bag fusing tutorial!
If you don't want to try fusing yourself, check out my Etsy shop for finished items made of recycled plastic.

Can you eat silver balls?

Some amusing things people search for and end up at my blog

So I was checking out my blog tracker, and mostly I get visitors searching for info about fusing plastic bags, and this past month a lot of people looking for cookie recipes. Every now and then I see a funny search query that led people here:

can you eat silver balls?
Mystery goo recipe
"you crossed the wrong fish"
great fury vengeance keeper

ROFL!
Sorry, I can't tell you the recipe for mystery goo, if I told you then it wouldn't be a mystery anymore!
But I can tell you that soylent green is people!!!!