This weekend I had the pleasure of cooking for and hosting my sister – in – law to be’s wedding shower.
(Pictured is my sister in law to be and my daughters her flower girls)
On the menu with the desserts were Chicken Salad on Croissants, Mixed Greens Salad & Homemade Red Wine Balsamic Dressing, Marinated Watermelon Berry Basil Fruit Salad.
The desserts can be made 24 hours ahead of time.
Very Berry Fruit Tart
27 sheets graham crackers (2-3 cups crumbs)
6 tablespoons soft unsalted butter
2 (8-ounce) bars cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup lemon curd, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
4 ounces blueberries (1 cup)
4 ounces blackberries (1 cup)
4 ounces raspberries (1 cup)
4 ounces small strawberries (1 to 1 1/2 cups), sliced
1 loose-bottomed 10-inch fluted tart pan, 2 inches deep
Prep Ahead – Process the biscuits and the butter to a sandy rubble and press into the sides and bottom of a deep-sided fluted tart tin approx. 25cm diameter x 4–5cm deep / 10inch diameter x 2 inches deep with a loose base. Place in the freezer (or fridge if that is not possible) for about 10–15 minutes.
In a clean processor bowl, process the cream cheese, sugar, and lemon curd (or just mix by hand) and spread into the bottom of the chilled tart tin, covering the base evenly.
Arrange the fruit gently (so it doesn’t sink in too much) on top of the lemony cream cheese in a decorative manner. Place the tart in the fridge, preferably overnight, though for at least 4 hours. It does need to get properly cold in order to set enough for the tart to be unsprung and sliced easily.
To Serve – Pop out of pan, cut and serve!
Chocolate Explosion Bundt Cake
18-½ ounces, Triple Chocolate Cake Mix
3-½ ounces, Package Instant Chocolate Pudding Mix
2 cups Sour Cream
3 whole Eggs
⅓ cups Vegetable Oil
½ cups Water
2 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
Hot Fudge, Drizzle
Magic Shell, drizzle
Strawberries, decoration on tray
Prep Ahead – Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch bunt pan. Beat all ingredients (except chocolate chips) until well blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon batter (it will be thick) into prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. Cool for 15 minutes in the pan before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Drizzle with hot fudge and magic shell.
NOTE: On serving day…Put strawberries around the cake and drizzle with magic shell.
Lemon Lime Bundt Cake with Raspberry Cream
Lemon cake mix
Lemon pudding mix, 3 oz box
1 stick butter, melted
3 eggs
1 1/3 cups milk
3 to 4 oz frozen limeade, thawed
1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
Prep Ahead – In a mixer bowl, blend cake mix, pudding mix, butter, eggs and milk till well blended. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Stir thawed lemonade and powdered sugar together until smooth. Pour over the baked cake, before removing the cake from the pan and while the cake is still hot. Gently pull cake from edges of the pan so that the lemonade can run down between the cake and pan. Allow cake to cool in the pan for an hour before turning out onto a plate. Cool completely before serving.
Raspberry Whipped Cream
1/4 cup sugar
6 oz (about 1 cup) fresh whole raspberries
1 1/2 cups cold heavy cream
Prep Ahead – Puree the raspberries in a blender. Transfer the puree to a metal sieve perched over a small bowl and press berry pulp through with the back of a spoon or small rubber spatula. When finished, the seeds will remain in the sieve and should be discarded. Add the 1/4 cup sugar to the seedless raspberry puree, stir well, cover, and refrigerate.
On Serve Day – In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Fold in sweetened raspberry puree with a rubber spatula. Continue to fold until evenly mixed and color is consistent throughout. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
NOTE: On the day of serving…Put cream in the middle. Also decorate lemon and limes around the cake.
We are so happy Nicole is joining our family!!!!
Northerly Nosh 