Recipe: Melted Ice Cream Cake (Funfetti Cake + Birthday Cake Ice Cream)

This whole thing started a few weeks ago the morning after a girls night with my best friend from home. We'd gotten Ben & Jerry's, eaten a few heaping spoonfuls, and the still mostly full pints were languishing in the freezer. I wasn't really too excited about having them stick around, but I certainly wasn't going to toss them, so I started thinking up ways to use them. "There's gotta be a way to use melted ice cream in some sort of baked good"—that was my first thought. And then "cake!" One of the pints was red velvet cake, so I got this grand plan to use red velvet cake mix with the red velvet ice cream and make super red velvety red velvet cake. I found this recipe from the blog Cookies & Cups to work off of (because I wasn't quite sure how to pull this off) and was all set to make it, but I ended up pushing it off while I spent a week in Memphis with my boyfriend. I told him about my plan and he suggested funfetti cake with birthday cake ice cream (because he loves cake-flavored frozen treats), so I promised to make him that instead of my red velvety red velvet and send it to him for Easter. The cake turned out pretty well—fairly moist, tender, and very very cake-flavored. It was actually quite sweet, but definitely tasty. In the future, I would plan to use a more subtle cake base (vanilla or chocolate) and try a fun flavor of ice cream (I'm dreaming of a strawberry-chocolate cake, mint-chocolate cake, or peanut-butter chocolate cake—yum!). This was pretty easy to make and pretty fun too. Since I'm mailing the cake, I decided to top it with a glaze rather than icing, since glazes hold up a little better. A generous spray of sprinkles completed the cake and made it perfectly fun and colorful for Easter.

Yields: 1-2 cakes, depending on what type of pan you use (I used two, 9 in. pans); approx. 12 servings (according to the cake mix package)
Prep. time: 5-10 minutes
Baking time: Varies (depending on the type of pan you use)
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients
For the cake

• 1 box of cake mix (approx. 15-18 oz.)
• 1 pint (approx. 2 cups) of ice cream, melted (use this in place of the water and oil required for the boxed mix)
• 3 eggs
• Cooking spray to grease the pan

For the glaze

• 1/4 cup milk (2%)
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• Sprinkles (if desired)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350*F. Lightly grease the pan(s) you plan to use for the cake. In the bowl of a mixer, add the cake mix, melted ice cream (ice cream should not still be solid and/or frozen...it should be totally or mostly melted), and the eggs and beat on medium speed until well-blended. Do not add the oil or water required for the mix—the melted ice cream acts as a substitute for these. The mixture should look creamy, fairly thick, and smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and bake according to package instructions (different pans take different amounts of time). Be sure to check the cake a few minutes before it's done (my cakes were in 9 in. pans and were supposed to take at least 29 minutes to bake, but they ended up taking almost 7 minutes less than that). Let them cool in the pan for a few minutes, then finish cooling on racks. 

Heat a small pot over low heat. Add the milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar and whisk until well-blended and smooth. Cook until smooth and warm. Remove from heat and pour or drizzle over cake. If you want to add sprinkles, add them while the glaze is still wet. You can also use a prepared icing or make your own and use this in place of a glaze.

My boyfriend and his friends, having seen pictures, are calling this "metacake" and "cake-ception." Love it.

Melted ice cream cake is a fun twist on traditional cake and, because you're just using boxed cake mix, it's super easy to make. You can mix and match endless flavors to create exactly what you're craving. I highly recommend sticking with a basic cake (chocolate, yellow, white, or vanilla) and picking a fun ice cream flavor, thought this birthday cake ice cream-funfetti cake combo was definitely fun. 

Recipe: Mushroom-less Chicken Marsala

I had set out chicken to thaw in the fridge the night before last and had been eyeing the head of broccoli nestled in the veggie drawer—I was going to make something for dinner last night, I just didn't have a plan. Realizing I wouldn't be home from work until 6:00pm, I needed something quick, so it wasn't the best night to be experimenting with a new recipe. I asked my mother about maybe just having her make either her much-loved Chicken Kiev or her Mushroom-less Chicken Marsala, but she's been feeling a bit under the weather, so we picked the latter of the two dishes (because it's easier and faster) and came to a compromise: she would do as much prep. work as she felt she was able to do, and I would swoop in and take over after getting home from work. She managed to trim and flatten the chicken breasts, but the rest was up to me.

Now, this dish is one of my mom's classic dinner dishes—she's been making it for as long as I can remember and I was terrified of messing it up, because her version is just so good. Aside from letting the sauce reduce a bit too much and overloading a bit on the parsley (her recipe had the measurement for fresh parsley, while I was using dry parsley, and you need far less dry than you need fresh), the meal turned out well and I'm happy to share this variation on Chicken Marsala with you.

Serves: 4
Prep. time: 10-15 minutes
Cooking time: 10-15 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

• 2 large chicken breasts (boneless, skinless), flattened to about approx. 1/4-to-1/2 inch thickness (pound them out between two pieces of plastic wrap using a meat mallet)
• 1 large egg, whisked together with 1-2 tbsp. water
• 1/2-to-1 cup panko coating/bread crumbs (use more, as needed)
• 1 head broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets
• Approx. 6-8 oz. egg noodles (we usually use large noodles)
• Salt and pepper
• Butter and olive oil

For the sauce

• 4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) salted butter
• 4 tsp. all-purpose flour
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup Marsala wine (we use cooking wine, but the real stuff has better flavor)
• 4 tsp. dry parsley (or 1/4 cup fresh)
• 1 tsp. chicken granules or bouillon (you just add it directly to the sauce—no water needed)
• (Salt and) pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 225*F. Spread the panko out on a plate or piece of wax paper and season lightly with salt and pepper. Dip each piece of chicken in the egg-and-water mixture (it's best if this is in a shallow bowl), thoroughly coating each piece, then dip each piece into the panko and coat thoroughly. Heat a little butter and olive oil in a medium pan over medium-high heat, then add the chicken. Cook evenly on both sides, letting each side crisp up and turn lightly golden brown. When they've just about cooked through, remove them from the pan, set them in an oven-safe dish and put them in the oven to keep warm. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil, then add your noodles and cook according to package instructions (about 7 minutes). After 4 minutes have passed cooking the noodles, add the broccoli to the pot with the noodles and cook until done (this will cook the broccoli gently, but don't add the broccoli too early, or it will get mushy). While the noodles and broccoli are cooking, add the butter for the sauce to the pan used to cook the chicken and heat over medium heat. Once it's melted, add the flour and whisk it in to blend it into the butter. Add the garlic, cook for about a minute, then add the water, Marsala wine, parsley (if using fresh, add it at the end—fresh herbs lose their flavor quickly when cooked), chicken granules/bouillon, and pepper (and salt, if needed) and stir or whisk to blend. Continue to stir and increase the heat until the sauce starts to boil and thicken (about 1 minute), then reduce the heat to low. When the noodles and broccoli are done, drain them and return them to the pot (add a little butter if desired to prevent the noodles from sticking). Pour the sauce into a gravy boat. Serve the chicken alongside the broccoli and noodle mixture and top with sauce.

This is the Chicken Marsala I grew up with—flavorful, simple, and mushroom-less. My mother has never liked mushrooms and, until recently, I didn't either, so it took me a long time to realize that my mother's recipe was a bit different than the usual. Despite it's differences, it's absolutely delicious. Marsala wine adds sweetness to the sauce, while the butter and chicken granules add saltiness. Garlic and parsley add a little pop of flavor, while the flour helps to thicken the sauce. We used to use regular bread crumbs on the chicken, but the panko just crisps up so much nicer and makes the chicken lighter. Tender egg noodles make a nice change from pasta and broccoli adds freshness to the dish. It's a twist on a classic, and it's absolutely delicious. 

Recipe: Red Velvet Brownies with Cream Cheese Icing Drizzle

I spent last week in Memphis with my boyfriend, making the most of his week-long spring break. We spent a few quiet days in Arkansas, at an old hunting lodge/clubhouse his family is a member of, and spent the rest of the week at his family home. I ate some great food (including a homemade beef and cheddar hot dog in a soft pretzel bun from Hog & Hominy, a burger at Huey's, and of course, cupcakes from Muddy's), met some of his law school friends, had some "arts and crafts" time (we painted pottery and made glass dishes--both were a lot of fun to work on!), and visited a few galleries and museums. As a thank you to him and his family for hosting me, I thought it would be nice to bake brownies and send them down their way. I found this recipe for red velvet brownies and knew I had to try it out—I don't generally play around with baking recipes because they are so precise and I find it hard to change and edit ingredients (it's so much easier to mess up in baking than it is in cooking), so I left it as is, but added a little drizzle of cream cheese icing to give them a little more flavor (makes 'em prettier too). The resulting brownies were perfectly chewy and dense with a light, flaky top, just like a brownies should be, and the drizzle of icing added a little tangy flavor and creaminess to them.

Yields: 1, 9x13 inch pan of brownies (approx. 20 brownie squares)
Prep. time: 10-15 minutes
Baking time: 35-40 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

For the brownies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1&1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1&1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 oz. red food coloring (if you don't have enough food coloring, add water to get the required measurement)
• 4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2&1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 6 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey's, because that's all I could find, but a better quality brand will yield better brownies)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
  

For the cream cheese icing drizzle

• 2 oz. cream cheese
• Approx. 1/2 cup powdered sugar (or more, as needed)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp. milk

Directions

Preheat the over to 350*F. Spray a 9x13 inch clear, glass baking dish with cooking/baking spray. Using the paddle attachment in your mixer, beat together the butter and both sugars on medium speed until creamy, light, and fluffy (approx. 2-3 minutes). Add the eggs slowly, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Slowly add the food coloring and vanilla and blend on medium speed until the color is fully incorporated. In a medium bowl, add the flour, cocoa powder, and salt and whisk to mix. Slowly add this mixture to the mixing bowl on medium speed until it's fully incorporated—be careful not too over mix though.  The batter should be quite thick and all of the flour should be mixed in. Pour the batter into the greased baking dish and spread evenly in the dish. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until done (insert a toothpick in the center—if it comes out wet with batter, the brownies need more baking time, but if it comes out clean or a little crumby, the brownies are done). Brownies should be a little flaky on the outside, but slightly moist on the inside. Set aside to cool.

While the brownies are cooling, add the the ingredients for the cream cheese icing drizzle to a small bowl and whisk to blend (you can use the mixer, once clean, to make this go a little faster and to mix it better, but I was too lazy to clean the mixer and ended up whisking together the icing by hand). The finished icing should be thick, but still be able to be drizzled easily. Cut the brownies into squares and, using a spoon, drizzle the icing as neatly as possible over each square (I actually used a squeeze bottle to get more precise drizzles; you can use an icing/pastry bag with a round tip for neater results). Let the icing set (it will not get hard, but rather, it'll thicken and be a little sticky) for a few minutes.

Serve with a glass of cold milk or a mug of hot coffee, or whatever beverage you prefer. Perfect with a scoop of vanilla (or perhaps red velvet, for added red velvet-ness?) ice cream or with some fresh berries. Store brownies in an airtight container and avoid stacking them, if possible, because the cream cheese drizzle will get smeary and smudged.

These brownies are essentially your basic, everyday brownies, but the pop of red food coloring and the sweet and tangy cream cheese icing drizzle add a little pizzazz to them. Great for dessert, for a party, or an afternoon snack, these brownies are chocolaty, chewy, and absolutely delicious.

Recipe: Hot Sausage and Mushroom Bucatini with a Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

My mother was going to some dinner event with friends tonight and I was instructed to "make something your dad likes...you know, spicy, with mushrooms or peppers or whatever." I took this to heart and made just that: a dish with mushrooms and peppers that was spicy. My dad and I both love heartiness in pasta dishes and red sauces, and this dish offered both. Bucatini, a thick, spaghetti-like pasta noodle with a hole in the center (down its length), is a unique pasta—it's thick, with a bit of a bite or chew to it, and it always make me think that it's more "old school" Italian than some of the other, more common pasta shapes on today's grocery store shelves. My father tells me stories all the time about his Pap making heaping bowls of bucatini for the family and said tonight's dish brought him right back to those dinners. Using roasted red bell peppers as the base of the sauce added a depth of flavor and a little punch that you don't get in a plain tomato sauce and hot Italian sausage paired with meaty baby portobella mushrooms add a both meatiness and earthiness to the dish.

Serves: 4
Prep. time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Special equipment: Food processor or stick blender

Ingredients
For the sauce

• 1, 12 oz. jar roasted red bell peppers, drained
• 1/2 cup diced tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 tbsp. red wine (cooking wine is fine)
• 1/4 cup chicken stock
• Dash of crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• 1 tbsp. dried basil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Garlic powder, to taste
• Cornstarch-and-water mixture, as needed (this can help thicken the sauce just a little bit)

For the rest of the dish

• 3 hot Italian sausage links (about 1/4 lb.), casings removed, pulled into small pieces
• Approx. 1 cup baby portobella mushrooms, cleaned (stems/stalks removed), sliced
• Approx. 10 fresh basil leaves (I ended up using one small packet of fresh basil from the grocery store), chiffonade cut (long, skinny strips)
• 1 tbsp. red wine
• Butter, as needed
• Olive oil, as needed
• 1 lb. (16. oz.) bucatini pasta (any other long noodle, like spaghetti or linguine, would work if you can't find bucatini)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Garlic powder, to taste
• Italian cheese, as desired

Directions

Add the roasted red bell peppers and diced tomatoes to the food processor. Heat a little butter and olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat, then add the onion and cook until tender. Add the garlic and cook for less than a minute, then remove from heat and add the mixture to the food processor. Add the chicken stock, red wine, crushed red pepper flakes, dried basil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to the mixture and blend until fairly smooth and well-blended. Set aside. 

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. 

In the same pan used for the onion and garlic, add a little butter and olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add the sausage and cook until mostly cooked through, then add the mushrooms and a little more butter, reducing the heat to medium. As soon as you add the mushrooms, add the pasta to the pot of boiling water and cook until al dente (10-13 minutes). While the pasta and the mushroom and sausage mixture are each cooking, pour the red pepper sauce into a small saucepan and bring to a gentle boil. Add the cornstarch-and-water mixture if desired, let thicken a bit, and reduce the heat to medium. Let cook for about 5-10 minutes, then pour it into the mushroom and sausage mixture. Add salt, pepper, and garlic powder, as desired. 

When the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot, then stir the fresh basil into the sauce, mushroom, and sausage mixture and add the mixture to the pasta. Toss to coat. Serve topped with more fresh basil and Italian cheese, as desired. 

This dish is hearty, a little spicy, and absolutely delicious. The size and shape of pasta is incredibly important in Italian dishes and this dish screams for bucatini. This noodle's thickness is perfect with this relatively thin sauce, and it pairs well with the chunks of sausage and mushroom slices. Cooking the mushrooms in with the sausage allows them to soak up that oh-so-good sausage grease, giving them exceptional flavor. Using roasted red peppers for the base of the sauce makes for a nice change from a traditional tomato sauce—there is a mild spiciness and smokiness in the sauce that makes it ideal with the heat in the sausage. Overall, very very tasty and definitely fit the bill for a dinner that's "spicy, with peppers and mushrooms and stuff."

Recipe: Home-Style Meatloaf with Roasted Red Potatoes

Meatloaf seems to be one of those love/hate foods for most people: either it's something your mom or grandma made for you when you were a kid and it brings back fond memories of tater tots and macaroni art, or it was a dry, gray, tasteless loaf of awful that the lunch lady slapped onto your plate on "Meatloaf Mondays." It's not a food you'll see on most restaurant menus, likely being deemed too "humble" for out-for-dinner diners, and it's probably not even in your family's regular rotation of meals, but when it's actually prepared and cooked well, it's really quite tasty. The recipe I used for last night's dinner came from my On Cooking textbook from the intro. culinary arts classes I took in the fall of 2011. A bit of tomato juice keeps the meatloaf moist and a few splashes of soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce give it a little kick. Cooked in the oven for an hour, this meatloaf comes out perfectly tender, and the light brushing of ketchup over the top and sides give it great flavor without excess (one of the things I used to think of when I thought about meatloaf was the obs-and-gobs of ketchup that often get mixed in—so gross!). Roasted red potatoes are a little classier than creamy mashed potatoes, and pair perfectly with the flavorful meatloaf.

It's kind of hard to make meatloaf look attractive, but I swear it's delicious

Servings: 2, 9x5 loaves; Approx. 4 servings of potatoes
Prep. time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

• 1 large onion or 2-3 shallots, finely chopped
• 2-3 celery stalks, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 lb. ground beef (I usually go for 93% lean)
• 1 lb. ground meat of your choice (I used ground venison that my dad brought back from a hunting trip—very very tasty. Ground pork or ground veal would work too. Mixing meats means more flavor.)
• 3 oz. bread crumbs, fresh or dry
• 1/2 cup tomato juice (I blended up diced tomatoes because we didn't have juice on hand)
• 1 egg, beaten
• Approx. 2-3 tbsp. dried parsley
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• Approx. 10-12 red potatoes, washed and cut into halves or quarters
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Ketchup, as needed

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350*F. Heat a splash of olive oil and a pat of butter in a medium pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion/shallot, celery, and garlic and cook until tender (approx. 5 minutes). In a large bowl, add the two meats, bread crumbs, tomato juice, egg, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, and soy sauce and mix together until fairly evenly mixed. Add the celery, onion/shallot, and garlic to the meat mixture and mix together. Add salt and pepper, as desired (about 1 tsp. each, or more as needed), and mix. Divide the mixture up into two even batches and either form into loaves and place in ungreased loaf pans, or form into loaves and place in a large shallow pan (there needs to be a bit of an edge to it, because the loaves will release fat as they cook and that'll drip right off a flat cookie sheet). When forming the loaves, be sure not to pack them too tightly or too loosely, and make sure there are no cracks in the loaves (cracks will inevitably cause the loaves to fall apart while baking). Brush the tops (and sides, if you're baking in a large pan) of the loaves with ketchup. Place the potato pieces on a greased sheet of foil, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to evenly coat (I added Penzey's Shallot Pepper to mine because I used shallots in the meatloaf—feel free to add some dried shallots or chives, or even a few slices of fresh onion or shallot to the potatoes to add flavor). Fold the foil over to create a sealed packet for the potatoes to cook in and place the packet in the oven. Place the meatloaf in the oven. Bake for approx. 1 hour, until the meatloaf has reached an internal temperature of 165*F and the potatoes are cooked through and tender. Remove them all from the oven and let everything rest for a few minutes. Slice the meatloaf and serve alongside potatoes and any desired condiments (my dad loves mustard with his meatloaf and I like to dip mine in just a little bit of ketchup).

This dish is an easy-to-make comfort meal that kids and adults alike will enjoy. The veggies and seasoning in the meatloaf give it great flavor, while the tomato juice and ketchup "glaze" help keep it moist (and colorful!—no yucky gray meatloaf here!). Tender red potatoes are the perfect accompaniment to the meatloaf and a big ol' glass of Coca-Cola probably wouldn't hurt the overall meal either. As for getting two loaves with this meal, just serve one for dinner later in the week or freeze it for a month or two and enjoy it later. 

Recipe: Balsamic-Red Wine Sirloin and Vegetables with Halved Fettuccine

Leftover sirloin steak, three bell pepper halves, an aging onion and tomato, and a handful of shiitake mushrooms meant dinner last night was going to be a "throw it in a pan and see what happens" affair. Slicing sirloin into thin pieces and searing it is a great way to cook it, and it's a great way to cook veggies as well. I didn't want stir fry again, so I opted for an Italian-style dish with the flavors of balsamic vinegar, red wine, Italian dressing base, and olive oil. Simple, flavorful, and colorful (and a great way to use up some leftover ingredients!), this dish is easy to make and a great way to get your vegetables and protein for the day.

Serves: 4
Prep. time: 15-20 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

Marinade

• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced 
• Approx. 1-2 tsp. Italian dressing base (I used a loose form from Penzey's, but you can use the prepared packets)
• Approx. 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 2-3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp. red wine (cooking wine is fine)
• 1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. salt 
• 1/2 tsp. pepper

Meat and veggies

• Approx. 1/2-3/4 lb. sirloin steak, thinly sliced into 2-3 inch-long/1-2 inch-wide pieces (to be honest, I used half of a sirloin roast, but any steak appropriate for searing, like a strip steak, could work—I would use at least two steaks for four people, but you may want to do one steak per person if you want a lot of meat) 
• 1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbsp. red wine
• Approx. 1 cup chopped bell peppers (I used 1/2 orange, 1/2 yellow, and 1/2 green, but any combo will work)
• 1 large white or yellow onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup mushrooms, thinly sliced (I had shiitakes left over, but any small mushroom would work)
• 1-2 tomatoes, center removed (unless you like all the seeds and goo), chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3-4 tbsp. fresh basil, chiffonade cut
• 16 oz. (1 box) fettuccini, broken in half (when the noodles are halved, it makes them easier to manage; you could also use penne or a similar shaped pasta in this dish)
• Salt and pepper
• Olive oil
• Butter

Directions

In a medium bowl, mix the ingredients for the marinade, add the slices of meat, and toss to coat. Set aside (if possible, let the meat marinate for an hour). 

Fill a medium to large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add the fettuccini and cook until done (approx. 12-14 minutes). 

While the pasta is cooking, heat a little olive oil and butter in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the onion and bell peppers, as well as the balsamic vinegar and red wine (a sprinkle of the Italian dressing base, along with salt and pepper, will add a little flavor). Cook until slightly tender, then push to the side of the pan and add the meat, laying the pieces out in an even layer. After a minute or two, turn each of the pieces of meat over and continue to cook. Reduce the heat to medium, add the mushrooms and tomato, and toss to mix the ingredients. Add the garlic and basil, toss to combine, and reduce the heat to low. 

When the pasta is done, drain it and return it to the pot. Add a drizzle of olive oil and a little butter, then add the meat and vegetable mixture to the pasta (I used a wok-like pan to cook my veggies and meat and it was easier to toss the pasta in with the veggies and meat rather than vice versa). Serve with Italian cheese, as desired.

This dish is simple, with clean flavors and a good mix of textures. You could sub in different vegetables if desired, but the bell peppers, mushrooms, tomato, and onion blend well in this dish. Adding steak to pasta is a little different and definitely a nice change from the usual chicken, meatballs, or sausage that are often included in pasta dishes. Sweet red wine and tangy balsamic vinegar are great flavors that balance each other out while adding a kick to the vegetables and the meat.