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Salted Caramel Covered Strawberries Recipe

Recipe from Southern Living Farmers Market

10 large fresh strawberries
20 caramels
1 1/2 tablespoons whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup coarsely chopped mixed nuts (peanuts and almond slivers)
Wax paper

1. Soak strawberries in a ice bath for 5 minutes to restore their perky leaves
2. Pat strawberries completely dry with paper towels
3. Microwave caramels, whipping cream, and salt in a microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM(50% power) 2 minutes or until smooth, stirring at 1-minute intervals.
4. Dip each strawberry halfway into caramel mixture. Roll in nuts, and place on lightly greased wax paper. Let stand 15 minutes. Serve immediately, or cover and chill up to 8 hours.

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Chocolate Wontons Recipe

from The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook

1 egg
1 tablespoon water
12 wonton wrappers, defrosted (keep wrappers covered with damp towel)
12 pieces or nuggets of chocolate
Vegetable oil
Confectioners’ sugar, for sprinkling

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water to make an egg wash. On a clean, dry surface, lay one wrapper down with a point toward you, like a diamond. Place one piece of chocolate near the top end of the wrapper. Brush a very thin layer of the egg wash on the edges of the wrapper. Fold the bottom corner of the wrapper up to create a triangle and gently press to remove all air from the middle. Press the edges to adhere the sides. Make sure the wrapper is sealed completely. Repeat with the remaining wrappers and chocolate pieces. Keep the folded chocolate wontons covered under plastic wrap or a damp paper towel to prevent them from drying.

In a wok or medium pot, pour in two inches of oil. Heat the oil to 350°F (180°C) and gently slide a few of the chocolate wontons into the hot oil. Make sure you don’t crowd the chocolate wontons too much. Fry 1 1/2 minutes, then flip and fry another minute until both sides are golden brown and crisp.

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BLT Salad with Buttermilk Dressing Recipe

from Fresh Flavors Fast Cookbook from Martha Stewart Everyday Food

8 slices bacon
half baguette (8 ounces), sliced into 3/4 inch cubes about 4 cups
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 green onion, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 pound romaine hearts, coarsely chopped (or other salad greens)
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

1. Preheat oven to 375°. Arrange bacon in a single layer on 1/2 of a rimmed baking sheet. On the other side of the baking sheet, add the bread cubes and toss with the olive oil. Bake for 15 minutes, tossing the bread cubes halfway through. The bacon should be crisp and the bread cubes are toasted. Crumble the bacon into large pieces.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together buttermilk, mayonnaise, vinegar, and green onions. Season with salt and pepper. Add in lettuce, tomatoes bacon and croutons; toss to coat with dressing. Serve immediately.

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Cupcake Pops Recipe

recipe adapted from Bakerella

It seems like there are a lot of steps, but I’ve taken care to give you detailed instructions so that your cupcake pops come out beautiful! I purchased all my ingredients (except for the cake mix and frosting) at Michael Arts & Craft Store. Use a cookie cutter no larger than 1.25”.

You don’t have to bake the cake in the microwave (though technically it’s no longer “baking” right!?) and instead you can bake the cake in the oven according to package instructions.

1 box red velvet cake mix + ingredients needed to make the cake according to package instructions
1 can cream cheese frosting
1.25” round or flower shaped cookie cutter
1 bag chocolate candy melts (or chocolate bark)
2 bag each pink and hot pink candy melts (or colors of your choice)
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
parchment or wax paper
sprinkles
20 popsicle sticks
large styrofoam block
20 clear candy bags
ribbon

1. Mix the cake batter according to package instructions. Pour batter in an 13″ x 9″ microwave safe pan. If you are using a smaller pan, use less batter or divide into two (though your cooking time will decrease and you’ll have to adjust on your own.)

2. Set your microwave on medium-high (level 7) and cook time for 9 minutes. Take a peek, and if there is a large area of “wet” batter, add another 1 minute – 3 minutes, until there is barely any wet batter on surface. It’s okay if the center is still just slightly wet – it will finish cooking as it cools. Let cake cool 10 minutes. Use a large spoon or fork to break up the chunks so that the steam can escape and cool faster. Now let cake cool the rest of the way.

3. Place the cake chunks into a food processor and pulse until cake is crumbly, about 8 times. You may want to do this in 2 batches. Dump the cake crumbles into a large bowl.

2. Add about 3/4 of the can of cream cheese frosting and use a large spoon mix well until you can’t see any of the frosting. The cake should be a bit wet and sticky. Take a little scoop in your hands and roll into a ball. If the ball falls apart, mix in another big spoonful of frosting. The ball you form should stick together nicely, not crumble apart.

3. Using your hands, roll the cake into 1.5” compact balls and place on baking sheet. If the balls don’t quite stick well, mix in more frosting. Refrigerate the balls for 40 minutes (or freeze for 15 minutes)

4. In separate bowls, melt the candy melts in the microwave at 30 second intervals, stirring each time until smooth. This should take about 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in 1 tablespoon of the cooking oil in each bowl to thin out the frosting a bit.

5. Let’s form the cupcakes. Roll a cake ball into an slight oval. Stick one end into the cookie cutter and use your hands to press and form so that it has a flat bottom and a round muffin top. Pop it out of the cutter and place back on the plate. Repeat with all balls and then return to refrigerator to chill.

6. Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. If your candy melts have stiffened a bit, return to microwave for 30 seconds.

7. Take one cupcake and dip the base into the chocolate melt to completely cover the bottom. If the chocolate is too thick, stir in a teaspoon of cooking oil. Place the dipped cupcake upside down onto the baking sheet. Insert a popsicle stick in the middle of the base. Repeat with the remaining.

8. Now let’s dip the top! Start with the first batch again. If needed, you can warm the pink candy melts in the microwave for 30 seconds. Holding the cupcake by the popsicle stick, dip and swirl the top of the cupcake into the pink. Sprinkle the top with a bit of fun sprinkles and then poke the stick into the styrofoam block to let the cupcake pop dry. Repeat with remaining.

9. When the cupcake pops are dry, package them with the clear bags and a pretty ribbon.