Baked Brie

I had never tasted this delicious, creamy, combination in my 20+ years before I met a great French Canadian friend of mine.  Baked Brie was never served at my family functions back then.  It is now though!  It seemed so uppity when I first heard of it, but really it's easy and delicious.   I just had never been exposed to such rich gorgeous cheese that goes so well with the sweet butter and brown sugar combination and fruit that was served with a satisfying crunch on a cracker.

There are so many other ways to make this.  I've heard of it being served in puff pastry with more savory flavours, but I like this recipe because it is so easy and I usually have everything on hand except the cheese.  Also, I've never worked with puff pastry, so it sounds a bit intimidating.

It takes only 10 minutes of prep before you stick it into the oven.  And you look so fancy and worked so hard on it when you impress those lucky taste buds of your guests.

Ingredients:

1 wheel of Brie or Camembert cheese
butter
brown sugar
chopped dried fruit (i.e. cranberries, apricots)
crackers

Steps:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread a thin layer of butter on top of Brie.

Spread a thin layer of brown sugar on top of buttered Brie.

Spread a thin layer of chopped fruit on top of brown sugared Brie.

Place cheese on a rimmed baking sheet; bake until softened, 15 to 20 minutes.

Transfer to a serving plate; cool about 15 minutes.

Serve with crackers.

NOTE:  If I'm going to bring it to a friend/family function, I place it in my circular cake pan and open the Brie, but not take it out of the package, just exposing the top.  Prepare a Brie with the butter, brown sugar, and half a wheel with cranberries and the other half with apricots.  The wrap it back up.   Now you can easily bring it with you and bake on location.

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Pineapple Upside Down Cake

We have tons of fruit in the house.  Grapes, cherries, mango, blackberries, strawberries, apples, banana, and a pineapple.  If you keep it cut up and available it will be easier to choose a healthy snack rather than cookies, chips, and candy.  For me and The Boy!

This is my first attempt at Pineapple Upside Down (PUD) Cake .  If you have an amazing  PUD cake recipe that you are famous for, please share!  I am willing to do a recipe exchange.  Inbox me on FB, share it here in the comments section or email me (either you have the email address or you don't.  sorry, not going to share it on this public forum.  I know, paranoid right??)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted


• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar


• 3 cups fresh pineapple - peeled, cored and cut into 1 inch chunks


• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose whole wheat flour


• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder


• 1/2 teaspoon salt


• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon


• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened


• 2/3 cup white sugar


• 2 eggs


• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


• 3/4 cup milk

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).


2. Put 1/4 cup butter into 9-inch circle pan and place into oven until butter is melted. Then stir in brown sugar.


3. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.


4. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter with the sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture in three parts alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat well after each addition. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.


5. Place the cake in the middle of the oven. Bake for 40 to 55 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edge, and invert the cake onto a plate. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature.

NOTE:  I gave away half and have eaten 1/2 of my remaining 1/2. So, not good for my diet.  I should have given the whole thing minus a slice for me.

It was not too sweet which I like.  While it was cooling and before inverting it on a plate, I poked holes into the cake with a skewer and poured some of the remaining pineapple juice.   I think I could have put it on a cookie tray and put it under the broiler to caramelize the top a bit.

Rainbow Cupcakes

I couldn't be bothered with icing, but white piped would look really cute as clouds :D

recipe is the BEST ever cupcake recipe, from nigella's domestic goddess :>

1. 
   
   
   
   Preheat oven to 200 degrees C
   
   Round up your ingredients
   
   Beat the sugar and butter together, until fluffy and light coloured
   
   


2. 
   
   
   
   Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a little flour each time, until you've added it all.
   
   


3. 
   
   
   
   Ad the vanilla essence, mix
   
   one tbsp milk, mix
   
   one tbsp milk, mix
   
   one tbsp milk, mix
   
   


4. 
   
   
   
   Divide between 6 bowls
   
   Bowl 1- Add half a cap full of red colouring
   
   Bowl 2- Add half a cap full of red and half a cap full of yellow
   
   Bowl 3- Half a cap of yellow
   
   Bowl 4- Half a cap full of green
   
   Bowl 5- Half a cap full of Blue
   
   Bowl 6- Half a cap full of Blue, half a cap full of Red.
   
   Obviously, mix after you've added the colourings
   
   


5. 
   
   
   
   Divide the purple bowl between the 12 cases. smooth to form bottom layer.
   
   Repeat with the other bowls in this order:
   Blue
   Green
   Yellow
   Orange
   Red
   
   Put in the oven for 15-20 mins
   
   skewer to find out if it's ready, if it come out gunky, put it back in the oven! if clean, then pop on a cooling rack
   
   


6. 
   
   
   
   Decorate!!!
   
   go crazy!
   
   

NOTE:  Use a box of White cake mix instead of making the cake from scratch.  Then start from step 4.  Homemade is always tastier, but the reality is, not everyone is a baker, has all the ingredients, or prefers the convenience of just having to add oil and egg to a prepackaged mix.

I didn't follow the colour order as per the recipe.  I just put whatever colour The Boy wanted to put next.  Although, when I do it again, I won't finish with green on top.  Got feedback that it looked like my cupcakes had moldy fungus!  LOL