25 Vintage Baking Tips

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  • To avoid lumps in batter, add a pinch of salt to the flour before it is wet.
  • How to sugar doughnuts? Shake the sugar and doughnuts together in a paper bag. The same method may be used with flour and chicken, or salt and french fried potatoes.
  • Raisins for cakes and breads will be plump and juicy if soaked in warm water before being added to the batter or dough.
  • Zip up your gingerbread and molasses cookies by adding a bit of grated orange peel to the batter.
  • If chilled ice-box cookie dough shatters when cut with long sharp knife, let stand at room temperature for 1/2 hour to soften very slightly before slicing!
  • Butter and sugar can be creamed easily when butter is hard by warming the sugar slightly.
  • Light-colored molasses can be darkened to make dark gingerbread by adding a teaspoonful of melted chocolate to each cup of molasses.
  • Cream which is hard to whip will whip quickly by adding a few drops of lemon juice.
  • Molasses can be prevented from sticking to the measuring cup if the cup is first greased with butter or lard.
  • Custards will not curdle so readily if a tablespoon of flour mixed with sugar is added.
  • Boiled frosting will not be brittle or break when cut, if a teaspoon of vinegar is beaten into the frosting when the flavoring is added.
  • Add one tablespoonful of jam or jelly to cookie dough. It will add flavor and make the cookies stay moist longer.
  • Doughnuts will not absorb grease if a teaspoonful of vinegar is added to cold fat.
  • Fruit Cake: When baking, place a cup of water in the oven to keep enough moisture in air and prevent cake from drying out while baking. 
  • Muffins: Drop a teaspoonful of peanut butter in each muffin pan, over which pour batter. This gives muffins a delightful nutty flavor. 
  • When a recipe calls for a quantity of melted butter, take care to measure the butter after melting, not before.
  • To soften butter, fill a small china bowl, one just sufficiently large to cover the butter, with boiling water; let stand a minute or two or until thoroughly heated, then empty the water and immediately turn the hot bowl upside down over the butter. In a few minutes, the butter will be softened so it is just right.
  • When separating the yolk from the white of an egg, if you drop a portion of egg yolk into the whites, moisten a cloth with cold water, touch to the yolk and it will adhere to the cloth.
  • Never beat egg-whites in an aluminum pan, as it is sure to darken them.
  • When baking a milk pudding, place the dish in a tin of water in the oven. Then prevents the pudding from burning or boiling over.
  • When cream will not whip, add the white of an egg to your cream–chill it and it will whip.
  • Shortening can be measured exactly. If recipe calls for 1/3 cup, fill measuring cup two-thirds full of water, add enough shortening to bring water to top of cup, pour off water and you have exactly 1/3 cup of shortening.
  • Sour milk can be made by adding two (2) tablespoonfuls of vinegar to one (1) cup of sweet milk and then letting it stand for a few minutes. Your baking will be just as light as if real sour milk were used. Also see Handy Substitute Recipes For Baking.
  • Whipped cream substitute, delicious in flavor, can be made by adding a slice of banana to the white of an egg and beating until stiff. The banana will dissolve completely.
  • Cornstarch is sometimes used in place of eggs when recipe calls for more than you have on hand. A tablespoonful is used for each missing egg. In making custard, omit one or two eggs, and use cornstarch instead (1/2 tablespoon for each egg).

Homemade Sno Balls Recipe

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Homemade Sno Balls recipe

Makes 2 dozen

Ingredients: 

For the cake: 

  • 1 stick butter, unsalted
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1-1/2 cups 1 percent milk

For frosting: 

  • 6 egg whites, warm
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1-1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/3 cup water, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3 cups coconut flakes
  • 2 - 3 drops red food coloring

Directions: 

  1. For the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a muffin pan with cooking spray. Cream the butter and sugar together with a handheld mixer until combined; add eggs, one at a time. Mix in vanilla. In another bowl, mix together dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until there are no streaks of flour. Fill muffin pan cavities 3/4 full and bake for 15 minutes. Cool on a wire cooling rack. Once cakes are cooking, cut out a small cone from the bottom, discarding the triangle portion but keeping the small cake circle. (This is where the filling will be piped.)
  2. To prepare the filling/frosting: Beat egg whites until peaks form, about four minutes. In a saucepan, heat sugar, water and cream of tartar until boiling, and remove from heat and let sit until it reaches 242 degrees F. Slowly pour syrup into the egg whites and stir. Add vanilla. Beat until frosting thickens. In a blender, pulse coconut flakes and red food coloring until crumbly. Place the coconut mixture in a bowl for rolling.
  3. Fill a piping bag with 1/2 frosting. Carefully pipe frosting into the cakes and cover with the cake circle. Frost the rest of the cake with the frosting and then roll in the coconut flakes. Let cool for a few minutes and then enjoy!

Twinkies Copycat Recipe

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Make your own @ home!

 

Homemade Twinkies recipe

Recipe adapted from TLC

Ingredients: 

For the cake: 

  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1/3 cup canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the filling: 

  • 1/3 cup shortening
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup light cream
  • 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions: 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease three mini loaf pans with cooking spray.
  2. Beat the eggs and sugar with a handheld mixer until thick. Slowly add in all other ingredients and beat until fully combined. Divide the batter among the mini loaf pans, filling about 3/4 full. Bake cakes for at least an hour, or until golden brown. Cool in pans and then transfer to a wire cooling rack.
  3. While cakes cook, prepare filling by mixing shortening, sugar, vanilla and light cream with a hand mixer. Once mixed, slowly add in sugar and beat until combined. Fill a pastry bag with frosting and cut a small hole.
  4. Once cakes have cooled, carefully poke three holes in the bottom of the cakes. Pipe frosting into the holes until just filled. Cool for at least 20 minutes and enjoy!

Reese's Chocolate Brownies

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How can you beat the combination of Reese's, chocolate and brownies? I recently worked with Walmart on an amazing brownie recipe, here it is!


Next, the instructions said to mix up the brownie mix first:

After mixing it up, I put half of the batter in the 13x9 baking dish.

I added a layer of Reese's peanut butter chips:

After 30 min. bake time, the brownies are done!! Yum, look at all those peanut butter chips!

 

The next part of the recipe is to prepare the chocolate frosting:

CHOCOLATE FROSTING:

Melt 1/2 cup butter or margarine in saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; add 2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa stirring until smooth. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and dash of salt. Gradually add 3-1/2 cups powdered sugar with 6 tablespoons hot water, stirring until smooth. About 2 cups frosting.

I melted a stick of butter, Hershey's cocoa and vanilla. 

Then I gradually added in the powdered sugar:

After the frosting was throughly mixed, I spread it over the cooled brownies. Nothing is better than homemade frosting!

Add the Reese's Pieces and you are all set! Cut into squares, eat and enjoy!

Watermelon Ice Cream Pops

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All you need:

2 pints strawberry ice cream (or cherry), slightly softened
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips 
1 pint pistachio ice cream (we used mint chocolate chip)
10 popsicle sticks (optional)

Preparation

Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap. 

In a medium bowl, mix strawberry ice cream with mini chocolate chips. Pour ice cream into loaf pan. 

Spread a layer of ice cream over the strawberry layer. Place sticks down the middle of the loaf pan. Place into the freezer for a few hours until firm. 

Once firm, remove from the loaf pan and slice the ice cream in between each stick to make an ice pop! I just cut them into slices, look how cute!

Eat immediately or place them into individual baggies and keep them in the freezer until ready to eat.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

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My mother in law Janet made the most amazing Dole Pineapple and Cream Cheese Upside Down Cake. Here's the recipe!

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) DOLE® Pineapple Slices, drained
7 or 8  maraschino cherries
1 pkg. (9 oz.) yellow cake mix
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (3 oz.) JELL-O® Brand Lemon Flavor Gelatin
2  egg(s)

DIRECTION

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 9-inch cake pan orspring form pan with nonstick cooking spray.  If using a spring form pan, wrap foil around the bottom.


INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 can (20 oz.) DOLE  Pineapple Slices, drained
8 maraschino cherries

DIRECTION

Stir together melted butter and brown sugar in pan.   Place 7 or 8 pineapple slices in sugar mixture.  Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice; cut remaining 2 slices of pineapple in half and place decoratively around slice in center of the pan.


INGREDIENTS

1 pkg. (9 oz.) yellow cake mix
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA® Cream Cheese, softened
1 pkg. (3.0 oz.) JELL-O® Lemon Gelatin
2 eggs

DIRECTION

Prepare cake mix according to the package directions (if using cake mix larger than 9 oz., a 10 or 12-inch pan is recommended).  Pour half cake batter evenly over pineapple.  Beat cream cheese, lemon gelatin and eggs in bowl of an electric mixer until smooth.  Spread cream cheese mixture gently over cake mix.  Pour remaining cake mix over cheese cake in pan.


DIRECTION

Bake 65 to 75 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

DIRECTION

Cool 5 minutes.  Loosen edges and turn out onto serving platter.

Cheesy Taco Casserole

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We were recently given the chance to try out one of McCormick's amazing homemade recipes. We chose Taco Casserole from McCormick.com. My son Cam is sometimes a picky eater, so I was hoping he was going to love this recipe. And he did! Tacos are a family staple in our home, but my son always just wants cheese and meat. Sometimes he'll be ok with lettuce too, but not always. This recipe was perfect for sneaking in some extra healthy ingredients with the beans, which are a great source of protein.

 

1 1/2 lbs. of ground beef

Nutritional information

(amount per servings)

Total Calories: 417

Sodium: 1248mg

Fat: 21g

Carbohydrates: 27g

Cholesterol: 83mg

Protein: 30g

Fiber: 5g

DIRECTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Brown meat in large skillet on medium-high heat. Drain fat.
  2. Stir in Seasoning Mix, beans, tomato sauce and corn. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 5 minutes. Spoon into 2-quart baking dish. Sprinkle with cheese and tortilla chips.
  3. Bake 5 to 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with assorted toppings, if desired.

Starbucks Lemon Loaf

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Here's how to make it!

Ingredients:

  • 1½ cups flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons softened butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon lemon extract
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice
  • ½ cup vegetable oil

Lemon icing:

  • 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • ½ teaspoon lemon extract

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, blend eggs, sugar, butter, vanilla, lemon extract, lemon juice, and oil with an electric mixer.

Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Pour into a well-greased 9-inch-by-5-inch loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes. When loaf is cool, remove from pan and ice with icing. Slice into 1-inch slices. Serves 8.

Nana's Banana Pudding

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Ingredients

  • 1 (12 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream
  • 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
  • 2 cups milk
  • 1 (5 oz) box instant French vanilla pudding mix
  • 6 to 8 bananas, sliced
  • 2 bags chessmen cookies

Preparation

Line the bottom of a 13x9x2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.

 

In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended.

 

Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

 

From Paula Deen's web site

Cheesy Chicken Potato Casserole

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Here is my fave Cheesy Potato Casserole, which has become a family favorite!

1
can  (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of chicken soup
1-1/2
cups  BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream
1
pkg.  (32 oz.) frozen Ore-Ida hash browns, thawed
1
pkg.  (8 oz.) KRAFT Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
 
2 cups of Tyson frozen chicken (thaw out in microwave)
 
 
 
Here's How!
 

HEAT oven to 350°F.

MIX soup and sour cream in large bowl. Add potatoes and cheese; stir until well blended. Add in thawed out chicken.

SPOON mixture into 13x9-inch baking dish. Top with cheddar cheese.

BAKE 50 min. or until heated through.

 

 

Nana's Best Ever Lasagna

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My mother in law Janet makes the best lasagna, cheesy and delicious!

Try it, you will love it! 

1 (8 ounce) package lasagna noodles 

1/2 pound ground beef 

1 clove garlic, minced 

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes 

1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce  

2 jars of Ragu (our favorite, but you can use the sauce you like) 

1 tablespoon dried parsley 

1/2 teaspoon dried basil 

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 

1 (16 ounce) container sour cream 

3 eggs, lightly beaten 

3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

2 teaspoons salt 

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 

2 (12 ounce) packages of shredded mozzarella cheese 

40 mins 

COOK 

1 hr 10 mins 

READY IN 

1 hr 50 mins 

Directions 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). 
Fill a large pot with lightly salted water and bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Stir in the lasagna noodles, and return to a boil. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the pasta has cooked through, but is still firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain. 
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook and stir the ground beef, and garlic until the meat is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain any excess grease. Stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, basil, oregano, and sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thickened, about 30 minutes. 
Stir together the sour cream, eggs, Parmesan cheese, salt, black pepper, and 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese in a bowl. 
To assemble the lasagna, spread a thin layer of the meat sauce evenly over the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover with 1/3 of the lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the remaining meat sauce, 1/3 of the sour cream mixture. Repeat this layering 2 more times. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese evenly over the lasagna. 
Bake in the preheated oven until the sauce is bubbly and the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes. 

I highly recommend the Rachael Ray lasagna pan. I have several of these bakeware sets and they are durable and stylish. Perfect for from the oven to the table. 

You will also want to pick up the Rachael Ray lasagna lugger kit. This is such an easy and fun way to bring your homemade lasagna to a holiday party!

 

Krispy Kreme Copycat Recipe

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Here's how to make your own Krispy Kreme donuts at home!

This yields 10-12 regular-sized doughnuts.

Doughnut Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 2 1/4 cups bread flour, divided
  • 3 egg yolks
  • 2 tablespoons superfine sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • vegetable oil for frying

Glaze Ingredients:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons milk

Doughnut Directions:

  1. Heat the milk to 100 degrees.  You can do this in the microwave or on the stove top.
  2. Stir in the yeast until it is dissolved or close to dissolved.
  3. Transfer to a medium-sized bowl and mix in 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the bread flour. Stir until smooth.
  4. Cover the bowl (I like to use my cloth bowl covers for this) to prevent drying out and place in a warm spot to rise.
  5. When the batter has doubled in size (about an hour, depending on the temperature of your house), add it to a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
  6. Add the egg yolks, superfine sugar, and salt. Mix on low speed until smooth.
  7. Mix in vanilla extract and butter until smooth.  
  8. With the mixer running, slowly add the rest of the flour (1 1/4 cups + 2 tablespoons). Keep mixing until the batter just comes together into a smooth dough. It will be quite wet and sticky, but should be able to hold together as one “lump” of dough. If not, add a bit more flour, one tablespoon at a time.
  9. Lift the ball of dough up and brush the bottom of the bowl lightly with vegetable oil.  
  10. Cover the bowl again and place in a warm spot to rise.
  11. Once the dough has doubled in size (another hour or so), refrigerate it for 15 minutes. This will make it easier to roll out.
  12. On a well-floured surface, gently roll out the dough to about 3/8” to 1/2” thickness.
  13. Use cookie cutters to stamp out whatever shapes you like.  I used a 3 1/2" circle for the large doughnuts with a 1 1/4" hole.  For the minis, I used a 1 1/2" circle with a 15/16" hole (all of these cutters come in the same set).  Save the holes to fry up as well, or roll the batter out again to make more doughnuts.
  14. Place the stamped dough on a parchment- or Silpat-lined cookie sheet, cover with plastic, and allow to rise again in a warm spot.
  15. Once the doughnuts are almost doubled in size (another hour or so), heat oil in a large pot or deep fryer until it reaches 360 F.  I strongly prefer to fry in a deep fryer.  It keeps everything so much cleaner and perfectly regulates the temperature.
  16. Fry the doughnuts in batches until golden brown on each side (you'll need to flip them mid-fry). The total frying time will be under 2 minutes. Use tongs to flip and retrieve them.
  17. Set hot doughnuts on paper towels to absorb extra oil.

Glaze Directions:

  1. Mix all ingredients in a small bowl until smooth. 
  2. Drizzle over piping hot doughnuts.

Cheesecake Factory Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe

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One bite of this cheesecake and you'll swear it's from Cheesecake Factory!

 

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice
whipped cream

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Make the crust by combining the graham cracker crumbs with the melted 
butter and 1 tablespoon sugar in a medium bowl. Stir well enough to 
coat all of the crumbs with the butter, but not so much as to turn the 
mixture into paste. Keep it crumbly.
3. Press the crumbs onto the bottom and about two-thirds of the way up 
the sides of a springform pan. You don't want the crust to form all 
of the way up the back of each slice of cheesecake. Bake the crust 
for 5 minutes, then set it aside until you are ready to fill it.
4. In a large mixing bowl combine the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and 
vanilla. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth.
5. Add the pumpkin, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice and continue 
to beat until smooth and creamy.
6. Pour the filling into the pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes. The top will
turn a bit darker at this point. Remove from the oven and allow the 
cheesecake to cool.
7. When the cheesecake has come to room temperature, put it into the 
refrigerator. When the cheesecake has chilled, remove the pan sides 
and cut the cake into 8 equal pieces. Use dental floss to make a
clean cut. 
Serve with a generous portion of whipped cream on top.
Serves 8.

McDonald's Apple Pie Copycat Recipe

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Here is how to make McDonald's Apple Pies:

INGREDIENTS

For the dough:

  • 1 package pastry dough, preferably Pillsbury
  • 1 egg white
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar

For the filling:

  • 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 tablespoon flour

DIRECTIONS

For the dough:

Divide the pastry dough in 2 pieces. Roll one piece out to ¼ an inch thick and roll the other piece to 1/8 an inch thick. Cut both pieces into two so you have four pieces total.

For the filling:

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat and add the butter, sugar, and cinnamon. Stir well and add the apples. Cook until the apples are just mushy, about 10 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Once the apples have cooled, add the mixture to the 1/4 inch pieces of pie crust. Top each pie with the 1/8 inch pieces and crimp the edges using your fingers, making sure not to use a fork. Make three to four slits across the tops of the pies. Spray (or sprinkle) the pies with water to moisten the dough a little more before they cook.

Place in over for 20-30 minutes until they are golden brown and fragrant.

McDonald's Chicken Nugget Copycat Recipe

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Here is a great copycat McDonald's McNugget recipe!

INGREDIENTS 

4 chicken breasts 
1 egg 
1/2 cup water 
1 cup all-purpose flour 
1 teaspoon onion powder 
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon pepper 
Pinch of sugar 
Vegetable oil, for frying 

DIRECTIONS 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

Using a meat mallet, tenderize the chicken breast and then cut it into 2-inch pieces. 

In a bowl, combine the egg, water, and sugar. Put all of the dry ingredients into a paper bag and set aside. Coat the pieces of chicken generously in the egg mixture and then add them to the bag with flour and shake until well coated. Remove the chicken from the bag and repeat the process once more. 

Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a large skillet to 375 degrees. Fry the nuggets until they're golden brown, about 10 minutes. Remove the nuggets from the pan and set aside on a piece of paper towel to drain. Place the nuggets on a baking sheet and bake in the oven for an additional 7 minutes.

Grandma's Zucchini Bread

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Ingredients
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup water
2 cups grated zucchini
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg, baking soda, cinnamon and sugar. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, water, zucchini and lemon juice. Mix wet ingredients into dry, add nuts and fold in. Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray, for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean. Alternately, bake in 5 mini loaf pans for about 45 minutes.
Recipe inspired by Food Network