It’s been awhile since I’ve posted our Bake Group deliciousness…if you’re new to what Bake Group is:  It’s like book club – only we use recipe books.  Instead of talking about what we liked about the book – we taste it.  Yum.  {And we talk about it…}

This month’s Bake Group Assignment was to choose any recipe from any cookbook that you haven’t tried before.  Everything was amazing!!  However, the pictures are NOT!  I’m so sad that they didn’t turn out well…my apologies in advance.  Just trust me when I say that they were DELICIOUS and you should try them ALL!!  I’ll start with what I made:

Strawberry Layer Cake

 {This photo was taken from the recipe book…}

I got the recipe from Entenmann’s Big Book of Baking. My friend gave me this cookbook for my birthday – and everything looks AMAZING!!  So, naturally, I tried something from there.  Since it’s getting to be summer, strawberries are DELICIOUS right now.  So – it just seemed right…I’m sorry – the recipe is copyrighted so I can’t share.

But – it’s basically:

For the cake: a yellow sheet cake cut in thirds – their recipe was delicious – but you can probably substitute with one since I can’t give you theirs…

For the Filling: is just mashed up strawberries mixed with mascarpone cheese.  So easy.

Then just slice some strawberries on the top and dust with powdered sugar.

***BIG TIP***I made it just before the party and was disappointed in how dry the cake was…but when I got home and my husband had some – he was talking about how yummy and moist it was.  Strange…so I tried it again and it WAS!!  Apparently – letting the cake sit for awhile to let all of the moisture from the cheese soak into the cake is a good thing ;0)

Next up on the Menu:

Lemonade Cupcakes

Let me just say that – apart from being the dang cutest cupcake I’ve ever seen {how clever is that straw?}  These were the most amazingly yummy cupcakes!

Let me break it down for you:

Lemon Cake  {that she soaked in a lemon simple syrup}

Lemon Curd Filling {that she folded some whipped cream into}

Lemon Buttercream Frosting

Are you drooling yet??  I love lemon anything…so she had me at hello.  She got the recipes for the Lemon Cake, The Lemon Simple Syrup and the Lemon Curd filling from one of my favorite recipe books: Miette (we did a bake group on that recipe book – I really need to post it!!)

She apologized that she didn’t let the curd set – so it was runny.  So she tried to fold in some whipped cream to thicken it – but it just ran right out of the piping bag.  What I think: HAPPY ACCIDENT!!  It seeped into the cake making it OH SO MOIST!!

But then she was STILL worried – so she made the lemon simple syrup and just held the cupcake upside down in it for a few minutes to let it soak in.  YUM!

So – I suggest recreating exactly what she did…I’m just sayin’.

The lemon buttercream frosting is her own recipe and it’s delicious and super secret.  Sorry.  I’ve found one that might work for you.

She sprinkled on some sanding sugar and topped it with super cute yellow paper straws and cute candy lemon wedges.  LOVED THESE CUPCAKES!!

Moving down the menu:

Baklava

I’m sorry about the terrible picture – don’t let it reflect on wether you’ll try it or not.  YOU NEED TO TRY IT!!  Absolutely delicious!!  She got the recipe from Pioneer Woman.  Sticky, crispy phyllo dough mixed up with nuts and other deliciousness.  Yeah – you’ve GOT to try it!!

**Bakers Notes*** You can use any nuts you choose.  She used almonds, but thinks that pistachio’s would be delicious.  She also recommends using only half the recommended honey in the syrup.

Also from the Pioneer Woman there was

Italian Cream Cake

This cake was SO moist.  And at first I was a little worried about having walnuts in the frosting – but OH MY!!  Delicious.  This cake looks delicious – but has and entirely different taste from what you’d expect.  A nutty flavor that I absolutely LOVED!  You can get the recipe HERE .  Try it.  You’ll see.

And of course – she gave it a sprinkling of Edible Gold Glitter and topped it with some blackberries.

   ****************************************************************

Not Yo Mama’s Banana Pudding

I’ve been a longstanding fan of Magnolia Bakery’s Banana Pudding.  Made with Nilla wafers and sweetened condensed milk.  SOOOOO GOOD.

This one’s better.  The Pepperidge Farm Chessmen Cookies are FAR superior to the Nilla Wafers of old.  Unlike the Nilla wafers that go soggy after a stint in the fridge – they were still crispy when I ate my leftovers later that night.  {Yea – it happened!  Don’t judge me!! }  She says it was a simple recipe…but she’s magical – so who knows…try it and see.  You can get the recipe HERE.

And last – was definitely the most ambitious

Cannoli’s

These took some time and patience – but I’m so glad she had both – because they were AMAZING!!  Not too sweet – so it made it hard to just eat one!  Her recipe didn’t call for them to be dipped in chocolate – but she didn’t feel like they had enough sweetness – so she did that and I think it MADE them!!

She really did her research and decided on making the Shells from THIS RECIPE {she added a bit of cinnamon to the dough} and the Filling from THIS RECIPE.  {as a side note – she LOVES Joe Pastry’s blog.  To quote her: “Everything I’ve made from there is delicious!!”  Might be worth a peek ;0)

That was it for all of the deliciousness!!  If you try something – let us know how you liked it!!

**Erin

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