Tres Cocos Cake

Today I bring to you the delicious cake I made for Lovebug's birthday!


He declared it his favorite birthday cake so far! I was quite excited with that review. Now me, I am neither a fan of coconut or pineapple. This cake contains both so I was a bit afraid I would not enjoy partaking, but I was pleasantly surprised. I truly enjoyed it! I am the type of person always willing to try at least a little of something, even when I have not liked it in the past. So when I try something new and enjoy it, it encourages me to keep doing it because many times (like this) I find that I enjoy something I didn't think I would!

I found the recipe for this cake on Tasty Kitchen. Tres Cocos, according to the recipe creator, means three coconuts. Lovebug has been drinking coconut milk instead of regular milk to help his stomach, so I figured finding a recipe that includes coconut milk in the ingredients would be a great start. Let's check out the process.

Up first, you simply bake a white or yellow cake -- I used a cake mix as the recipe suggested. I mixed up a white cake mix and baked it in a 9x13 pan.

Here are some of the special ingredients I added to the cake


You can see coconut milk, shredded coconut, coconut cream pudding mix (I was super excited when I found it in the store!), crushed pineapple, and cream of coconut.

After the cake has been removed from the oven, you let it sit for about 45 min. Then you poke holes in it. I think I got a little carried away...


Then you mix together coconut milk and cream of coconut. Reserve a half cup of the mixture for the topping and pour the rest over the cake.


Then you cover the cake and put it in the fridge for several hours or overnight as I did.


The next day, it's time to make the topping.

Crushed pineapple, cool whip, lemon juice, coconut cream pudding mix, and the reserved mixture of coconut milk and cream of coconut are folded together in a bowl.


At this same time, you can be toasting some shredded coconut in the oven. I was surprised with how easy this was and how "authentic" it made it look. Once you have mixed the topping together completely, you spread it over the cake and then sprinkle the toasted coconut over the top.


And as I have been learning, natural light really does make the pictures turn out better! It's just so hard for me to accomplish because most of my baking either starts or doesn't finish until after dark, so my opportunities are limited. But this time I took advantage and I think it makes the cake look even awesome-er!


I think this would be an excellent choice for a cake to make during the summer (or anytime really:o))! Ask me for the recipe if you're interested.

Also, can you believe this is my 100th post? I was kind of waiting to put up a pretty good post to celebrate my 100th -- and I think this cake fit the bill!

To life... full of yummy coconut birthday cake!

March Mmmmmint Wrap-Up

Hey Friends! I have five mint recipes to share with you for March! Here we go:

First up, I chose to make a Grasshopper Pie. Due to my ignorance, I did not understand all my ingredients and ended up making a modified version. I ended up making 1/3 of the recipe and putting it into 2 ramekins for Lovebug and I to have. I found the recipe at Tasty Kitchen and there are several versions, so feel free to look around and find one that suits your tastes.

I began by crushing up some mint oreos. Then I mixed the crumbs with melted butter and pressed them into the ramekins. The crust was baked for about 5 min. in the oven.

Then I took a break... can't wait for the summer time QT drink rates!


Next up, I melted marshmallows with some milk over low heat.


Then I left the mixture to come to room temperature while the crusts were cooling as well. Then I had some fun, I added peppermint extract and some yellow and blue food coloring to make this pretty green color!




Then I split this mixture between the two ramekins and put them in the freezer for an hour. Once I took them out I warmed up some hot fudge sauce and swirled it on top.



Tasty!


Next up, if you want to check out what my sis made for this month, run on over to her blog. It sounds like her family really enjoyed these Chocolate Mint Brownies.

My mom intends to make an asparagus mint dish, but I have not received her feedback yet as to how that went. But it should be interesting!

Tara came in this month with Andes Brownies! She and Stephanie came over to bake with me for our mint recipes because 1)she's not a big fan of the chocolate/mint combo and 2) it's always more fun to bake with friends!

A warm, buttery-sugary start!



Mix up the brownie batter and dump in the chopped up Andes mints



Then we baked and enjoyed!


I thought these brownies were good. But after putting them in the fridge and letting them get cold, I thought they were great! Typically I love gooey, warm brownies from the oven, but if you're willing to wait- these do get better from being chilled!

Stephanie picked out a cookie recipe for us. It called for mint M&Ms which I had never heard of before and she was unable to find. So we went with York Peppermint Patty pieces-- pretty cool right? The cookies had a chocolate base and then you mixed in white chocolate chips and the YPP pieces.


I think we were all in agreeance that the cookies were ok. The chocolate cookie part was pretty bland, but the chips and pieces helped it out. We had lots so we shared and I put some of mine in the freezer. People seemed to enjoy them which was good, they just weren't our favorite cookies.

Well, there you have it. Another month's wrap-up. Thanks again ladies for participating. I am having fun hearing about and trying all these new recipes! As for April? I hadn't had much time to come up with something, but Tara mentioned a couple ideas and I liked them. April's theme is: STRAWBERRIES! Have fun!

**Updated: I want to add Mom's review of her Asparagus Mint Recipe. I just got to the recipe for supper. It was tangy good. I like all the flavors--asparagus, lime and mint; so i enjoyed the combination and would cook it again. But would have to say it may not make an American statement. Thanks for joining in Mom!

To life... full of spring produce!

107 -- Miles I've Run in 2011

I ran 3 miles before work this morning bringing my monthly total to 41.1 miles! I'm finally making some significant headway toward my 575 mile goal for the year. I was afraid I was falling behind because of the snow days we had in February, I had less opportunities for running, so I'm trying to compensate now that it's nice again. And the Zoo Run is coming up three weeks from this Saturday. So I'm getting in some good mileage as I'm training to run the 10K. My goal is to complete it in 58 min. which will be 5 min. faster than my time last year. I really think I can do it!

I'm also getting closer to my goal weight- 8 pounds to go, to be exact. I am hoping I can get rid of those by the zoo race to help with my time! I'm finding out that once I choose to make good decisions when I eat, when I choose to practice self-control, and when I have a goal date in mind, my motivation increases and I see results! I am glad to be learning this because the first 6 weeks of the year were very frustrating and it was because I wasn't focused. Once I hit this goal, I will finally get to begin the road of maintaining it. I've always come close to my goal in the past and never actually made it. It's been so defeating, but I am determined because I want to be healthy and I want to be an inspiration and encouragement to others who feel like they get "close", but never quite reach their goals. I know for a fact that I feel so much better when I eat well, so choosing to make those decisions each day is important. I am also quite aware (as was the case yesterday) that there will still be days when I want brownies and cookies and cake -- yes *blush* all of those were consumed -- but those days are ok too, as long as they don't turn into every days. I am becoming more confident in myself and feel like I've learned a lot through my weight loss journey. I will let you know when I've reached my goal!

To life... full of healthy choices.

Random Thoughts #138.75

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Are you wearing green? If not, here is your virtual *pinch* :o) I don't own a lot of green, but I found 4 bracelets, a ring, and an awesome pin with a turtle to wear today with my white, green, and black dress.

Recently this song has been playing in my mind. I really like it, so thought I'd share:




Let it play in the background while you are reading!

We are reading through the entire Bible as a church right now. It is a really awesome concept and I love feeling connected and linked in to what everyone is studying at the same time. I have never read the Bible straight through, I would always get bogged down by Leviticus or Numbers. But it's a "challenge" for me, so I like to keep up and it has been a huge blessing! I feel like I have been learning so much and have been excited to read it straight through and see the "Big Picture" as they are calling it a church. We are in Isaiah right now and it makes more sense now that I have read all the books preceding it. If you're interested in our reading plan, let me know. I'd be happy to share!

My word of the day: RESPLENDENT. I really like to say it! I am going to try to use it at least once in conversation today, try to sneak it in and see if anyone notices. Definition? Shining brilliantly; characterized by a glowing splendor. You should try to fit it in too!

It's supposed to be in the 80s here the next couple of days... I'm so ready! I have been trying to get outside as much as possible. I get to have Chick-Fil-A for lunch today which also points to this being a great day!

To life... full of resplendence!

Muffins!

Over the weekend I made these...


And they were wonderful! What are they, you ask? Banana Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins. I was looking (again) through my 'Baked' cookbook and, as before, they jumped out at me, so I decided to make them. Recently I have decided that I love having muffins on hand for breakfast. I guess I am tired of my usual cereal. The past few weeks I've been making blueberry muffins with some regularity. So I moved on and embraced these. You should too! Let me know if you'd like the recipe.

Next muffin recipe? Pioneer Woman's Marmalade Muffins!!

Yesterday I also made a cake to bring to work in celebration of Spring Break. I was excited to finally use my giant cupcake pan! It was pretty simple to use, but I did learn that I need to bake it at a slightly lower temperature to prevent the tops from getting too brown. Also, lowering the oven rack is a good idea...


Also, next time, I believe I will either cover it with ganache or powdered sugar. The cake on its own has a pretty swirl pattern to make it look like frosting and it's very hard to see/re-create the same pattern with the frosting I used. But I think it still turned out pretty cute. I added some fun flowery sprinkles to the top to bring about the idea of spring as well as a pop of color! It's a yellow cake with chocolate frosting - my favorite combo for cake!

To life... full of many more spring break cakes and muffins!

Zumba

It has begun! Last night I taught my first Zumba class. It was exciting, nerve-wracking, fun, embarrasing, difficult, challenging, and wonderful! This is the first time I've ever taught a class and I was a little nervous because I'm typically terrified to stand up in front of people and speak, ie: class presentations. But I got up there and it really wasn't as bad as I expected. It definitely helped for me to know so many of the girls participating, but there were some I had never met before. I think there were 12 girls last night which was great for night #1. I hope word spreads and they continue to come and maybe numbers will even go up! My plan is to try to learn one or two new songs each week so I can keep things fresh. But I also know that having some of the same songs brings familiarity and helps the students feel confident about what they're doing. I'm excited to get started teaching and even after the first night, I think it's something I will enjoy doing for a long time.

To life... full of Zumba!

Red Velvet Wrap-Up

February was a good month. We had some snow days, I baked some new recipes, made some new friends, and found out I'll be teaching Zumba in March.

Mom got us started off this month with Red Velvet Whoopie Pies! They sound so delicious! Here's what she had to say about them,"If you are a cookie lover, these are a must try. Would be a wonderful Valentine cookie, but good at anytime. They are easy to make, but take a few steps to complete. But, OH, YEAH! they are delicious!" I believe she got the recipe HERE. It makes me want to try them right away!

Next up, my sister remembered "RED" but not velvet, so she embarked on a strawberry cake for Valentine's Day. I did not hear the results, so maybe she'll comment on here and I can add it in :o)

For Valentine's Day, I made Red Velvet Cheesecake Cake, as mentioned (in detail) in the previous post. It was great and I recommend it to anyone!

I had a little left over cake from leveling the tops, so I mixed it up with some of the extra cream cheese frosting. I rolled them into balls and they are now waiting in my freezer for me to dip into almond bark. I hope to get to that soon! But it's nice to know they are waiting for me in my freezer.

My next contributor is one of my friends from work. She made the classic red velvet cake - from scratch! She got her recipe from Bakerella. She shared a piece with me and lovebug and it was VERY good! I would also recommend this recipe to others. Here's a picture of her cake (I'm sorry, I can't figure out how to make it turn around. But you should get the general idea):

Great Job Stephanie! I'm glad you joined in this month!!

And finally, a recipe I didn't even know existed. Another of my friends at work made Red Velvet Cookies. When I first heard her describing the recipe, I wasn't sure how it would all work together. Chocolate chips in red velvet? I thought it sounded strange even though I know there is cocoa in the cake. But she brought them to work and let us put on our own cream cheese frosting. Wow! I loved them. If I wasn't trying to lose weight, I would have definitely eaten more. But I did take the biggest one I could find!! Wouldn't you?


They were good even on their own, and that's saying a lot for a frosting lover like me. You can try them too from the Duncan Hines Website. Way to go Tara!

Next up, the theme for March is.... MINT! I was trying to think of something that would go with St. Patrick's Day. I considered trying to make something that's an authentic Irish recipe, then I thought about green. Then I realized with mint, some of it is green and you could do both if you really want. But start searching and be creative. I know some people don't like the chocolate/mint combo, but I think you can find something out there that might not even combine those two. I have a few ideas already and I'm excited!!

To life... full of great new recipes!