Butternut Squash Soup

I just bought a new cookbook and was excited to see a recipe for butternut squash apple soup.  I really love butternut squash soup so I decided to change the recipe a bit to create a plain butternut squash soup.

Butternut Squash Soup

1/4 cup canola oil

2 yellow onions, chopped
3 tablespoon cinnamon, divided
4 cups of vegetable broth, divided
3 containers frozen butternut squash (36 oz)
3 teaspoons salt, plus more for taste
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper, plus more for taste

1.  Heat the oil in a large pot.  Add the onions and 1 tablespoon cinnamon.  Cook covered over low heat until onions are softened, after 20 minutes.  Stir every few minutes to ensure all the onions get cooked evenly.
2.  Add 3 cups of vegetable broth and the squash.  Increase heat to medium-high or high.  Stir until the squash is defrosted.
3.  Using an immersion blender, puree the soup so that the soup is smooth.
4.  Add more vegetable broth if the soup is too thick.
5.  Add salt, pepper and cinnamon according to taste.
6.  Sprinkle each serving with cinnamon to garnish.

Enjoy!

Additional Pictures of Creations for L'Chaims

For directions on how to make any of these, please comment below and I will be more than happy to explain.

Bride & Groom Cupcakes

My sister recently got engaged and for her l'chaim I made bride and groom cupcakes along with other decorated cupcakes and cake pops.  These were such a hit and they were so easy to make!

Bride and Groom Cupcakes

1 recipe of cupcakes (I used a Duncan Hines mix) - flavor of choice

1 container vanilla frosting

1 container chocolate frosting

food coloring (a four pack should have red, yellow, green and blue)

edible pearls

1. Make cupcakes according to direction
2. Let cupcakes cool
3. Spoon about 1/4 of the container of vanilla frosting into a bowl and add 1 drop red food coloring and 2 drops yellow food coloring in order to get a skin color (some playing around with the amounts may be necessary depending on how much frosting you spooned out and what color you are looking for)
4. Spoon about 1/3 of the container of chocolate frosting into a bowl and add about 3 drops of blue food  coloring and 3 drops green food coloring (you are looking for a charcoal gray or black color)
5. Spread the skin color vanilla frosting on half the cupcakes and the charcoal gray/black chocolate frosting on the other half of the cupcakes
6. Allow the frosting to harden a bit - this can be hastened by placing the cupcakes into the refrigerator for about 20-30 minutes
7. Using a piping bag or a ziploc bag with a small hole at one corner filled with vanilla frosting draw a heart shaped neckline on the bride cupcakes.  Then fill the "dress" with vanilla frosting.  I used a piping bag with a bigger hole and then using a knife I spread the frosting to be even.
8. Using the same piping bag as used when making the outline of the dress, make a triangle on the groom cupcakes.  Then fill in the triangle using the same method as filling in the bride's dress
9. Using a piping bag or ziploc bag with a small hole at one corner filled with the charcoal gray/black chocolate frosting draw 2 small triangles with a dot between the too by the top of the vanilla triangle creating a bow tie.  Then draw three "buttons" down the vanilla triangle or the "shirt"
10. Add a necklace to the bride cupcakes by placing edible pearls in a "necklace" arrangement on the top of the cupcake
11. Place the cupcakes in the refrigerator or leave them open overnight in order to harden the frosting and reduce the chance for them to be smudged in transition.

ENJOY!

Cake Pops

I have been wanting to try to make cake pops for quite some time now and was in a real baking mood last week so I decided to go for it.  I made half a pan of cake and it made about 15 cake pops, so I brought some into work and gave some to my friends.  Everyone loved them!!!!  They're easy and really fun to make - great treat to make with kids!

Cake Pops
(makes a lot of pops)

1 Box of Duncan Hines Cake Mix (any flavor)

Eggs, Oil and Water (each cake needs different amounts, so check the cake box)

1 container of cake frosting

Parchment Paper

Paper/Chocolate Lollypop sticks (available at any craft store)

2 bags of Chocolate Chips or baking chocolate (amount will differ, depending on how many cake pops you choose to make)

About 4 Tbsp Oil

1.  Bake a cake according to directions in a 9x13 pan.

2.  Once the cake has cooled, cut it into 6 pieces.

3.  Take each piece of cake and crumble it up into a bowl.

4.  Add about 1/2 a container of frosting into the cake (you may need to microwave the frosting for about     5-10 seconds to soften it) and mix it together.

5.  You may need to add more frosting if when you take some mixture into your hands and it doesn't form together.

6.  Form the mixture into balls and place them onto a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

7.  Freeze the balls for about an hour.

8.  Place chocolate chips into a tall glass and melt chocolate chips in the microwave in 10 second intervals until it is fully melted.  Stir after each interval.  **Be careful not to burn the chocolate**

9.  Add about a teaspoon of oil into the melted chocolate, this will cause the chocolate to become thinner so it can coat the balls better.

10.  Dip the tip of a paper stick into the melted chocolate and stick it about half-way into a cake ball.  Place back on parchment paper with the sticks up in the air.  Repeat with remaining cake balls.

11.  Place back into freezer for about 20 minutes.

12.  You may need to reheat the melted chocolate, but microwave it in 5-seconds intervals so that the chocolate does not burn.

13.   Dip the cake balls into the chocolate fully coating the cake.

14.  Tap off the excess chocolate off the balls and place them carefully back onto the parchment paper.  If you don't want the chocolate to pool a little at the bottom of the cake pop then stick the cake pops, ball up into a styrofoam block, available at any craft store.

15.  Repeat with remaining cake pops.

16.  If you want to decorate your cake pops with sprinkles or nuts, you must do while the chocolate is still wet.  I recommend dipping the cake pops into chocolate and then directly into the decorations.

17.  Freeze for about 10-20 minutes.

ENJOY!