Strawberry and White Chocolate Buttercream Cake

Heres a Betty Crocker recipe...looks pretty tasty!...

Put a spectacular spin on strawberry shortcake with a buttercream frosting featuring rich white chocolate.

Prep Time: 25 min
Total Time: 2 hours 5 min
Makes: 8 serving

Cake
1 3/4	cups Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® butter recipe yellow cake mix (from 18.25-oz box)
1/2	cup water
1/4	cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2	teaspoon almond extract
1	egg
Filling and Topping
4	oz white chocolate baking bars or squares, chopped
2	tablespoons butter or margarine, cut into pieces, softened
1	cup whipping cream
1	tablespoon berry-flavored liqueur, if desired
2	cups fresh whole strawberries, thinly sliced

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1.	Heat oven to 350°F (or 325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Generously spray bottom and side of 8- or 9-inch round cake pan with baking spray with flour.
2.	In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, 1/4 cup butter, the almond extract and egg with electric mixer on low speed until moistened. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.
3.	Bake as directed on box for 8- or 9-inch rounds. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
4.	Meanwhile, place white chocolate and 2 tablespoons butter in small metal bowl. In 2-quart saucepan, heat 1/2 cup of the whipping cream just to boiling. Pour hot cream over white chocolate and butter; let stand until mixture is melted and smooth when stirred. Refrigerate chocolate mixture 1 hour, stirring occasionally, until cold.
5.	In large bowl, beat remaining 1/2 cup whipping cream, the cold chocolate mixture and liqueur on high speed until stiff peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to use.
6.	Cut cake horizontally in half, using long, sharp knife. On serving plate, place 1 layer, cut side up. Spread with 1/2 of the filling; top with 1/2 of the strawberries. Add remaining cake layer, cut side down. Spread remaining filling over top of cake; top with remaining strawberries. Store covered in refrigerator.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.

This recipe is extremely time-consuming. Begin preparation two days before you plan to serve it.

Crust
1 pound phyllo pastry sheets 
1/2 cup melted butter

Filling
32 ounces cream cheese 
1 cup honey 
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice 
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 eggs

Topping
1/2 cup walnuts 
1/2 cup blanched almonds 
1 tablespoon granulated sugar 
1 teaspoon cinnamon 
1/2 cup butter, melted 
1/2 cup granulated sugar 
1/4 cup water 
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 
1 (1 1/2-inch) cinnamon stick 
1 tablespoon cognac

Filling: Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.

Beat cream cheese in large bowl of mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually mix in honey, lemon juice and vanilla extract. Beat in eggs one at a time until just incorporated. Set aside.

Crust: Brush 10-inch springform with butter. Arrange 1 phyllo pastry sheet with long edge partially to edge of surface (cover remaining sheets with damp towel.) Brush left half of sheet with butter and fold right half over. Brush top with butter. Place in prepared pan, buttered side up, leaving 5 inches over-hanging at one end. Cover with another dampened towel. Butter and fold second phyllo sheet and arrange in pan, overlapping first sheet by 3 inches. Repeat with 4 more sheets, covering entire pan. Wrap remaining pastry airtight and refrigerate. Stir through filling and pour into crust. Cover filling with overhanging phyllo, squaring at edge of pan. Bake until pastry is light brown and cake is firm to touch, about 50 minutes.

Remove pan sides. Using a wooden pick, poke 12 holes in top of cake to allow steam to escape. Cool completely on rack. Refrigerate 2 days to mellow flavors, covering after first day.

Topping: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cover baking sheet with 2 pieces of parchment. Coarse grind all nuts with 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon in processor. Stack 10 reserved pastry sheets on work surface. Set rim of springform atop pastry. Cut around inside of rim through entire stack using a sharp knife, making 10 rounds. Cover rounds with damp cloth. Set pan rim on prepared baking sheet. Brush parchment and inside of pan rim, with butter. Place 1 pastry round in pan rim brush with butter. Repeat with 4 more rounds. Spread nut mixture evenly over pastry. Top with remaining 5 pastry rounds, brushing each with butter. Using ruler as guide, cut pastry into 16 wedges with sharp knife. Sprinkle lightly with water. Bake until crisp and golden, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile heat 1/2 cup sugar, water and lemon juice in heavy small sauce pan over low heat, swirling pan occasionally until sugar dissolves. Add cinnamon stick, increase heat to medium and boil until syrupy, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. When bubbles subside stir in Cognac. Flatten pastry atop cake. Remove pan rim from topping. Set topping on cake, using a large spatula. Re-cut wedges. Replace pan rim on assembled cake. Immediately pour on hot syrup. Cool 1 hour. Refrigerate for 1 to 6 hours. Let cakes stand for 20 minutes before serving.

Makes 16 servings.

This recipe comes by way of http://thevillagecook.com/ 

Fried green tomatoes are exactly that- thick sliced green tomates dredged in flour and cornmeal and fried until golden brown. They taste NOTHING like tomatoes, trust me- I really am not sure how to describe them- maybe a cross between okra and eggplant? That would be my description.

To make them, all you do is slice a nice green tomato into thick slices, about 1/4″ and season with salt and pepper. Allow to drain on a paper towel for about 5 minutes and then dip each piece in flour, then in a mixture of 1 egg and 5 tbs milk, finally dip in cornmeal.

Fry in a small amount of oil for 4-5 minutes per side over med/high heat. Drain on a paper towel and  allow them to cool slightly so you don’t burn your tongue. 

Ham Salad

I like "meat salad" sandwiches, even corn-beef is good this way!
When you grow up in a big family on a limited budget, more likely than not one of those big picnic salads like potato salad or macaroni salad, is on the menu that week. Heck, we practically live on dad's potato salad and mom's tuna macaroni salad during the summer, even now, when the kids are all grown and at most there are only half as many of us at the dinner table. Here's one of those feed-a-lot-of-people comfort food salads that you can easily make with leftover ham. Ham salad. Put it in a sandwich, eat it plain, add it to macaroni; it's all good. The basic components are finely diced ham (I could have done a better job dicing the ham for the sandwich pictured), sweet pickle relish (must be sweet, not dill), and hard boiled eggs. Then something for crunch (celery and/or bell peppers) and mayo to bind it.

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups finely diced ham
• 3 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
• 1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tbsp minced onion
• 2 Tbsp minced celery
• 2 Tbsp minced red bell pepper
• 1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
• 2 Tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• A large pinch of cayenne (optional)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

METHOD

Mix everything but the salt, pepper and cayenne in a large bowl. Taste and add cayenne, salt and black pepper to taste. Serve chilled.

Serve straight, or mixed in with macaroni, or in a sandwich in a hamburger bun, a Kaiser roll, regular bread, in a pita or as a wrap. Good with lemonade on a hot day.

Makes enough for 3 to 4 sandwiches.