EASY STRAWBERRY CUSTARD CAKE
½ cup sugar
¼ cup cornstarch
3 cups skim milk
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 (10 ¾ ounce) reduced-fat frozen pound cake, thawed
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 quart strawberries
3 Tbs. orange juice
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
In a saucepan, mix together sugar, cornstarch, and milk over medium heat, stirring until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. Add ½ cup custard mixture to yolk and return mixture to saucepan, beating well. Add vanilla; set aside to cool. Slice pound cake and place slices along bottom of a 2 quart oblong dish. Spread slices with raspberry jam. Slice strawberries and place over pound cake layer. Drizzle orange juice over berries. Carefully spread custard over strawberries. Sprinkle with toasted almonds.
SLICE AND BAKE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
½ cup margarine or butter
¾ cup dark brown sugar
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup chopped pecans, optional
In a mixing bowl, cream the margarine, brown sugar and confectioners’ sugar. Add egg and vanilla, beating until fluffy. Combine flour and baking soda and add to creamed mixture. Stir in chocolate chips and pecans, if desired. Mold dough into two 12-inch logs and wrap in plastic wrap in refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and cut dough into about ½ inch thick slices. Place on cookie sheet; bake for 8 minutes or until golden brown.
STRAWBERRY FRUIT DIP
1 quart strawberries, stemmed and finely chopped
¼ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup orange juice
1 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
½ tsp. grated orange rind
In a bowl, mix strawberries, brown sugar, orange juice, yogurt, and orange rind. Cover and chill.
WHITE CHOCOLATE BUNDT CAKE WITH RASPBERRY SAUCE
1 (18 ¼ ounce) box reduced-fat yellow cake mix
1 (4-serving) box instant white chocolate pudding and pie filling
1 cup fat-free sour cream
¼ cup canola oil
2/3 cup skim milk
1 large egg
3 large egg whites
½ cup white chocolate chips
½ cup chopped pecans
1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
¼ cup skim milk
1 Tbs. almond extract
Raspberry Sauce (recipe follows)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 10-inch bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a mixing bowl, combine cake mix, pudding, sour cream, oil, milk, egg, and egg whites, blending until well mixed. Stir in white chocolate chips and pecans. Pour into bundt pan and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until wooden pick inserted comes out clean. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix confectioners’ sugar, milk and almond extract; set aside. Cool cake on rack for 10 minutes before inverting on serving plate. Drizzle glaze over warm cake. Serve with Raspberry Sauce below.
RASPBERRY SAUCE
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen raspberries in syrup, thawed, divided
¼ cup sugar
2 - 3 Tbs. orange juice or orange liqueur
Drain 1 package raspberries and discard juice. Save juice from other package. Puree fruit, juice, sugar, and orange juice in a food processor or blender; strain puree to remove seeds,, if desired. Chill until ready to serve.
TROPICAL FRUIT GAZPACHO
1 (11 ½ ounce) can tomato juice
2 cups pineapple juice
½ cup chopped mango
½ cup chopped peaches
1 cup chopped fresh pineapple
½ cup peeled, seeded, and chopped cucumber
½ cup chopped green bell pepper
2 Tbs. minced fresh cilantro, garnish
hot pepper sauce to taste
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and pulse four times or until combined but not smooth. Cover and chill for at least 4 hours, it time permits.
