Updated Cakeball Instructions

Below are the instructions that I typed out for friends in an email with my own little tips thrown in :-)

Bake a cake according to instructions (I just buy the boxed variety).  After baking the cake, put on a cooling rack.  I usually cut the cake into four to help it cool down a little faster.  Let cool for 10 minutes or so.

Place a can of frosting in a stand mixer along with the cake and mix until the frosting is evenly distributed.

Spoon out the mixture and roll into balls (I use a small cookie scoop to keep them even... this also allows me to make about 50 cakeballs per cake). 

Freeze the balls for at least 12 hours.  Anything less and they'll come apart when you dip them.


To coat the cake balls...
Melt chocolate (I use a Wilton Chocolate Pro... keeps the chocolate melted so I don't have to keep remelting).  If the chocolate seems thick, use vegetable oil to thin (try a teaspoon at a time until you get the right consistency).  Here is the tricky part... some people use sticks to dip the balls into the chocolate.  I use a cheap plastic dipping fork and spoon to coat the balls.  Lay the balls on wax paper or foil to harden. 

When finished, I like to put them in small baking cups to serve.  Refrigerate until ready to serve. 



Variations....
When I make them I coat them in either white chocolate or semisweet chocolate.  I use the Ghiradelli chocolate chips.  Some people use the baking chips that you can get places but I think it has a richer flavor if it is actual chocolate or white chocolate.

Flavors I've tried that are a hit... red velvet, strawberry, and orange cake (white cake with orange food flavoring)

Velvety Mocha Tart... Mmmmm

So a little while back, my husband and I were shopping at our local Borders (which is no longer open) and we found this cookbook in the bargain area.  The cookbook is called 1001 Recipes by Martha Day.  We've made a few things out of the book and have definitely gotten our money's worth so far.  This last week though I was inspired by something I saw on either Martha Stewart or Paula Dean... I know so hard to keep those two apart.  Anyhow, I decided I wanted to make a tart.  Of course, I didn't know what kind of tart I wanted to make but I know that my husband likes any dessert with chocolate in it.  The recipe I chose is called Velvety Mocha Tart and it was insanely easy to make.

Here is the recipe with the measurements that I understood :-

For the filling:
2 tsp instant espresso coffee
2 tbsp hot water
6 oz semisweet chocolate
1 oz bitter chocolate
1 1/2 cups whipping cream, slightly warmed
1/2 cup whipped cream, to decorate
chocolate-coated coffee beans, to decorate

For the base:
2 1/2 cups crushed chocolate wafers
2 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
5 tbsp butter, melted


1.  To make the base, combine the crushed chocolate wafers with the sugar and butter in a bowl.

2.  Press the mixture over the base and sides of a 9in pie dish.  Chill.

3.  Dissolve the coffee in the water.  Set aside to cool.

4.  Melt the plain and bitter chocolates in the top of a double boiler and set the base of the pan in cold water to cool.

5.  Once the chocolate has melted, remove from the double boiler and set the base of the pan in cold water to cool.

6.  Whip the cream until light and fluflly.  Add the coffee and whip until the cream just holds its shape.

7.  When the chocolate is at room temperature, fold it gently into the cream.

8.  Pour into the cookie base and chill until firm.  Decorate with piped whipped cream and chocolate-coated coffee beans just before serving.

I can bake with yeast!!!

So I heard about this website from my sister in law and I absolutely love it!  It is called Our Best Bites and it is a pretty good little website.  While perusing the different stuff on their website I found a recipe for  World's Best Dinner Rolls.  I'm not gonna lie.  This is a great recipe!  The only problem that I had with the recipe was that I ended up needing more flour than the recipe called for.  Otherwise, it was perfect.  My only other suggestion would be to make sure that you have guests coming over for dinner before you make these otherwise you'll end up eating them all!  Below is the picture of the ones that I made.