Tag Archives: powdered sugar

Crêpes Caroline

1 Mar
Crêpes Caroline

Crêpes Caroline

Last weekend I asked our foreign exchange student if she had a French recipe she would like to cook for the family, and if so, what would she like to make? Luckily the French word for crepes is the same as the English word, so I understood immediately what she was planning to make. I told her she could make them for us for breakfast the next morning. Around 9:30 am the next day, I asked her if she was ready to make the crepes for breakfast. She shook her head yes, then brought up the recipe on her cell phone — in French and metric! Thank goodness for Google  Translator and my handy dandy weight scale that converts to metric! (I discovered that 250 grams is 2 cups!)

Weighing the Flour

Weighing the Flour

When I finally got the gist of the recipe translated, I found out we had to let the batter sit for two hours. Looking at the time, I said, “I guess we are having crepes for lunch instead!” So we ate small bowls of cereal to tide us over.

Caroline told me the French eat their crepes filled with jam. I said we like to put fresh fruit in ours. I let her assemble the first one, and she filled hers with jam and folded it over like a washcloth. I then made mine (using both jam and fruit) and showed her how to roll one up enchilada style. We sprinkled them with powdered sugar. A wonderful, light lunch!

Crêpes Caroline

2 cups flour (250 g farine)
3 eggs (3 oeufs)
2 cups milk (1/2 litre de lait)
1 tablespoon sugar (1 cuillère a soupe de sucre)
1 pinch salt (1 pincée de sel)
A little oil (Un peu d’ huile)
Let stand for 2 hours (Laisser reposer pendant 2 heures) 

Cracking in the Eggs

Cracking in the Eggs

Add the flour to a bowl, then crack in the three eggs. Mix the eggs into the flour with a whisk until well combined. Slowly add the milk, whisking to combine. After watching her struggle with some lumps, I decided to pull out the electric mixer for her, as she was having trouble getting it to combine well. Mix in the rest of the ingredients, mixing on high until well combined. Let stand, uncovered, for two hours.

Whisking the Batter

Whisking the Batter

When ready to make, heat up a medium-sized skillet to medium-high and spray with olive or vegetable oil. Pour in about 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup of batter, tilting the pan around so a thin layer coats the bottom. Cook each crepe for several minutes until the bottom stars to brown and the crepe is cooked through to the top. Using a spatula, flip the crepe over and heat about 30 seconds more.

Beautiful Crepe

Beautiful Crepe

Slide out of skillet and keep warm on a plate under a kitchen towel. Repeat until batter is gone. This makes about 10 crepes. Serve with jam, fresh fruit, and powdered sugar, folded or rolled any way you want!

Strawberries and Jams

Strawberries and Jams

Caroline is leaving back to France tomorrow, and we are all sad to see her go. She has been a wonderful addition to the family this past three weeks, and our entire family has really enjoyed the experience of hosting a foreign exchange student. If you are interested in hosting a student, please check out the Andeo organization. They are very well organized and I can’t be happier with the student we were paired with! Bon Voyage Caroline!

Crêpes Caroline

Crêpes Caroline

Download and Print this Recipe

Download and Print this Yummy Recipe!

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Chocolate-Gingerbread-Toffee Cake

25 Dec
Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

TA-DAH! Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

Merry Christmas to all my family and friends! Today I bring you a photo compilation of this delicious cake made by my daughter. These recipes come from last year’s December Southern Living magazine. My daughter cooked just the cake portion of this last year in a bundt pan and we used store-bought icing, but this year she went all out and made the entire thing from scratch, including the filling and frosting. (Except the cookie garnish, we did buy those and she decorated them.) We brought this to a friend’s house for her family’s annual Christmas Eve Dinner Party, and it was a hit!

Here are the links to the recipes:

Chocolate-Gingerbread-Toffee Cake

Ginger Whipped Cream

Silky Ganache

Mixing the Brown Sugar, Molasses and Eggs

Mixing the Brown Sugar, Molasses and Eggs

Adding the Melted Chocolate

Adding the Melted Chocolate – You’d think I was advertising for Arm and Hammer, lol!

Mixing the Flour and Spices

Mixing the Flour and Spices

Making the Batter

Making the Batter

Filling the Cake Pans

Filling the Cake Pans

Cooling the Cake Layers

Cooling the Cake Layers

More Melted Chocolate for Filling

More Melted Chocolate for Filling

Whipping Up Some Chocolatey Goodness

Whipping Up Some Chocolatey Goodness

Topping the First Layer

Topping the First Layer

First Layer Toffee Bits

First Layer Toffee Bits

Second Layer Complete

Second Layer Complete!

Three Layers Ready to Chill

Three Layers Ready to Chill

Whipping the Ginger-Infused Cream

Whipping the Ginger-Infused Cream

Frosting the Cake

Frosting the Cake

Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

TA-DAH! Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

Cutting the First Slice

Cutting the First Slice

First Slice of Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

First Slice of Chocolate Gingerbread Toffee Cake

I hope you enjoyed this journey of baking!

Lemon Poppy Seed Angel Food Cake with Strawberries

9 May
Lemon Poppy Seed Angel Food Cake with Strawberries

Lemon Poppy Seed Angel Food Cake with Strawberries

I have mentioned many times now that I am not the baker in the house. That title belongs to my daughter, who revels in the messy process of sifting, mixing, rolling, baking, and decorating. We had some 3-2-1 cake mix in left in our house which is made much more to my speed of cooking. Mix a box of angel food cake dry mix along with the dry mix from any other flavor cake or muffin. You put 3 tablespoons of the cake mix in a mug or bowl, add 2 tablespoons of water, and microwave for 1 minute. Hence, the 3-2-1! You can put a surprise chocolate or something in the middle before microwaving, and top with whipped cream or anything else after it has cooled enough to eat.

Mini-cakes Cooling

Mini-cakes Cooling

This 3-2-1 cake mix makes enough for an army, and my daughter really wanted to make some angel food cake to go with some fresh strawberries we had just bought. I told her the only angel food cake we had was mixed with lemon poppy seed. So then she wanted to make angel food cake from scratch. Well we only had six eggs in the house, and it would have used them all up and I needed an egg for dinner or something and nixed that idea. So we found a solution. We took the rest of the 3-2-1 cake mix and decided to bake it in the oven. I completely guessed on the ingredients and amounts, but the result came out fabulous! I also think my daughter did a great job of decorating the little cake for my presentation picture. Great Job!

Lemon Poppy Seed Angel Food Cake with Strawberries

1/2 box dry angel food cake mix
1/2 box dry lemon poppy seed muffin mix
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
Powdered sugar
Fresh strawberries

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, mix 1/2 box angel food cake mix and 1/2 box of lemon poppy seed muffin mix. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well with an electric beater.  Pour even amounts into four ramekins and bake for 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool. Top with powdered sugar and fresh strawberries, and whipped cream if you have some.

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