Cake Balls

These are a fun dessert to take to a party or make and have at home for school lunch desserts, after dinner desserts or small treat!

While these are all over Pinterest now, years ago my aunt made these after she baked a cake to long.  She actually made them with the frosting mixed into the cake mix and then warmed the rest of the frosting in a pot and rolled them in it.   Needless to say, they didn’t hold up well so she tried some with making her own melting chocolate.  Boy I wish she had patented the idea 🙂

You can see how we make them on my Facebook page here:  Cake Balls

 

 

Snow Ice Cream

A big thank you to Jill at The Prairie Homestead for sharing this wonderful recipe (Snow Ice Cream).  We finally had a chance to make it tonight and it was a huge hit.

The kids happily collected fresh snow that was coming down

We used the 8 cups the recipe called for.  You can cut this in half as it was more than enough for a family of 4

Next we measured and mixed the remaining ingredients (1 cup of cream, 1 tsp. vanilla and 1/2 cup maple syrup).  We added an extra 1/4 cup of syrup and it was just perfect for a nice after dinner dessert.(we used store bought as we are out of our homemade syrup)

We whisked it into the snow mixing a bit longer to make it creamy and smooth.  YUM

Now we have 2 awesome recipes (Molasses on Snow Candy) that we can make on those snowy nights!

Molasses on Snow Candy

This recipe is from the Little House on the Prairie Cookbook.  This is one of my favorite Little House books and we try all different recipes from it.

One of the favorites of the kids is the Molasses candy you make using snow.  Every year they are excited to make their first batch and will make a few throughout the winter.  It’s a simple recipe and fun for the kids.

Here is the batch the tween made.  She likes to make swirly designs where I like to make small round circles perfect for popping in your mouth.

Once you are done you store outside covered so the snow stays frozen and keeps the syrup hard like candy.

I actually really enjoy the flavor of this candy as well.  It’s nice to break off a little piece whenever that sweet tooth hits!!

Molasses on Snow Candy (as taken from the Little House on the Prairie Cookbook)

1 cup of dark molasses

½ cup brown sugar

Snow

Fill 2 cookie sheets or cake pans with snow and leave outside to stay cold

In a large sauce pan combine molasses and brown sugar and bring to a boil stirring frequently

Boil on medium heat approximately 5 minutes (it will boil up which is why you need a large pot)

After 5 minutes drop a tiny drop into a clean glass of cold water

If the drop dissolves boil another 2 minutes (or if you are candy thermometer person heat to 245F)

If the drop stays in a soft ball remove from heat

Bring one pan of snow in and slowly pour syrup onto snow making designs or in circles

Continue until the syrup is gone.

Store in the freezer in the snow or outside covered (we store it in the closed grill with waxed paper on top).

When ready for a piece of candy, peel up only the amount you are going to eat keeping the rest on the snow until ready to eat!!

Honey Candy

Whenever we go to a farmers market or a craft show there is always a “honey” stand where they sell fresh honey, honey sticks, and honey candy.  The candy is very expensive.  A piece like the above picture is usually around $3.00 USD.  My daughter loves it and always buys some.  So this afternoon she decided to google how to make her own and she made it with a friend.

This is such a simple procedure and it made quite a few pieces.  The flavor is awesome!!  I am sure you could cut back on the sugar if you wanted but the amount of pieces this made, I don’t feel too bad letting the kids eat it.

Honey Candy:

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup water

1 cup sugar

Put all in a pan and bring to a rolling boil.  Continue to boil for 5 minutes and 30 seconds.  Carefully ladle into molds.

You can add cinnamon also for a twist on the flavor.  We are going to try it with lemon also so the next time anyone gets a sore throat we will try our own lozenges.