Baseball Opening Day Desserts

Take me out to the ballgame!!

This year Opening Day is on April 1st!!  If you want to throw a little fun into your day, add one of these cute baseball themed treats.

Ice cream tastes better at the ballpark when it’s served in those mini baseball helmets

I found mini baseball helmets at Party City!! 

This is where I found them: Party City: Baseball Helmets

  

Baseball Helmet Sundaes

Scoop ice cream into mini helmets. Place on a rimmed baking sheet.  Place in freezer until ready to serve... Scooping ahead makes life much easier!

Toppings:

Chocolate 

Caramel

Cracker Jack

Peanuts

Whipped Cream

Cherries 

  

Sugar Cookie Baseballs 

12 Store bought sugar cookies or homemade-recipe follows

Vanilla frosting —reserve 1/4 cup and color red. 

Frost Cookies with white icing.

Pipe on baseball stitching.

Recipe for Karri Perry Vintage Sugar Cookies:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon salt

***

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1 cup softened unsalted butter

1 egg + 2 egg yolks (at room temperature is best)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

***

1/2 cup sanding sugar for coating the outside of the cookies

1 small drinking glass for pressing

parchment paper to line cookie sheet

Directions:

Mix dry ingredients together and set aside.  Cream butter and sugar together for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add egg and yolks one at a time, blending well after each.  Mix in extract.  Add dry ingredients to the wet, blending until just combined.

Drop 1 inch dough balls into the sanding sugar.  I use a small ice cream scoop.

Roll dough in sugar.

Place cookie dough about 2 inches apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  

Gently press cookies to about 1/2 inch thickness before baking.

Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes or until cookies are slightly golden on the edges,

Let cookies rest 1 minute on cookie sheet before moving to cool on a cooling rack.

For baseball cookies: frost with white icing, pipe red laces with red colored frosting.

Vanilla Frosting

This is my favorite quick butter cream frosting recipe:

1 Cup softened unsalted butter-

whipped with hand mixer until light and fluffy

3 Cups confectioner's sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-2 TBS heavy cream, use as much or as

little to get the frosting consistency desired.

Twinkie Corn Dogs

1 box Twinkie snack treats

1 tub vanilla frosting

Red and yellow food coloring 

Popsicle sticks or paper straws

White coffee filters

2 Piping bags/or 2 zip top bags

Unwrap Twinkie, place on a coffee filter, insert popsicle stick into one end of the Twinkie-to mimic a corn dog.  Color 1/4 cup of the frosting red (for ketchup) and 1/4 cup yellow (for mustard).  Using a piping bag, drizzle the yellow and red frosting on top of the Twinkie to mimic ketchup and

 

Cheesy Ham-Jam Pinwheels

Karri Perry’s Cheesy Ham-Jam Pinwheels: Smoked Ham and Gruyere inside Puff Pastry with Apricot Jam, Dijon and Thyme. 

Can we talk about these Cheesy Ham-Jam Pinwheels?

How many did I taste-test, you might ask??  

I’ll never tell... but, friends, IF you make these... (and I hope that you do) prepare for them to disappear quickly—even if I’m not invited... ha.

If ever there was a perfect Easter brunch bite... this is it.  Pretty on a plate... served either piping hot or at room temperature... perfect for a buffet or ready in minutes for and easy weeknight dinner...We love them!!

These scrumptious pinwheels would be great for wedding showers, with a glass of wine... honestly, they look fancy, but these cute bites could not be easier to make.

You can use your favorite ham, I recommend having the deli shave or chip the ham, this makes for easy cutting/slicing and taking manageable bites into the pinwheel.  Do you ever skip certain party foods based on the degree of difficulty for devouring?? (Or is it just me??)  These are the things I ponder when menu planning... 

As far as the cheese... anything that melts beautifully will do... we used Swiss and Gruyere.  Gruyere, Monterey Jack, or even cheddar would be great choices.

I really like the flavor the thyme imparts—try not to skip the dried thyme sprinkle... it elevated the flavors.

For the apricot jam, I used Bonne Maman, and I used Gulden’s Spicy Brown Mustard... any Dijon-style  mustard will work wonderfully.

A parchment lined tray is important, because the jam and cheese will want to stick.  If you use foil in place of parchment, be sure to give the foil a light spray of non-stick spray to help the pinwheels slide off the baking sheet after baking.

Puff pastry is available in most frozen food departments of grocery stores, (near the frozen desserts-typically)  The boxes usually contain two sheets, read the package instructions to thaw—and by thaw I mean, let the puff pastry thaw just enough so that it’s pliable but not warm.  (I usually take the puff pastry from the freezer and let mine rest on the countertop, while I’m gathering ingredients... usually 30 minutes is just enough time to make the puff pastry easy to work with—but not warm and floppy.) 

It’s important that the puff pastry doesn’t get too warm... that’s the reason we pop the prepared pinwheels back into the freezer before baking... (it’s the same principle for baking a flaky pie crust)  The key is working with cold dough—chill before baking for maximum puff!! By chilling the dough, we solidify the laminated butter layers... and the magic can happen when they go into a hot oven.  Don’t you just love science!?

Enjoy!!

Crispy Cheese Coins

 Crispy Cheese Coins: Karri Perry

Ingredients:

1 stick softened unsalted butter

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese-grated

1 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 dashes hot sauce

1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1 1/2 cups crispy rice cereal (Rice Krispies)

Directions:

In a stand mixer, (or with a hand mixer)  cream butter until it is light and fluffy.  Add the grated cheese and dash of hot sauce and mix well.  Add the spices to the flour.  Slowly add the flour mixture to the cheese and butter mixture. Mixture will be thick but pliable (like a pie dough) Lastly, fold in the dried rice cereal.  

Pour the mixture onto a piece of waxed paper.  Shape into a log (about 1-2 inches in diameter.)  Roll up the cheese dough and twist both ends of the waxed paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight is better.  

*A prepared cheese coin log can be kept frozen and stored in the freezer for one month-be sure to wrap tightly and store in a zip-top freezer bag.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, using the middle oven rack.  Slice the cheese coins thinly into 1/4 inch rounds and place on a parchment lined baking sheet 1 inch apart.  Bake for 12-14 minutes, or until the cheese coins are crisped and golden on the bottom.  Allow the cheese coins to sit for one minute after baking and then move to a cooling rack.  

Once cooled, store cheese coins in an airtight container or tin.  

Glazed Coconut-Raspberry Bundt Cake

This glazed cake ... a vanilla almond cake dotted with coconut and raspberries... it’s so good.

I used a standard Bundt pan to make this cake.

The “secret” ingredient?? I use freeze-dried raspberries to impart raspberry flavor without adding too much moisture.  I purchased freeze-dried raspberries from Target.  

Raspberry-Coconut Cake, Karri Perry-Blue Ribbon Favorites

Makes one standard Bundt cake serves 10-12

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup buttermilk

3 large eggs-room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

2 cups sweetened shredded coconut

2 cups freeze-dried raspberries (I purchase from Target, available on line or in the granola/nut aisle)

Glaze:

2 cups confectioner's sugar

3 Tablespoons water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Optional- fresh raspberries and extra shredded coconut for garnish

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Set racks to the middle position

Butter and flour the Bundt pan, set aside.

In a medium bowl combines the flour, salt and baking powder, set aside

In a mixing bowl add the sugar and vegetable oil, using a stand or hand mixer, mix well.

Add eggs one at a time, mixing well between each addition.

Add the extracts.

Add in 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/3 of the buttermilk, alternate each until all of the ingredients are incorporated.  Mix gently and just until combined.

Gently fold in the shredded coconut, followed by the freeze-dried raspberries.

Pour batter evenly into the prepared Bundt pan.  Smooth the top and then bake on the middle rack for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly from the center.

Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan before inverting the cake onto a cooling rack.  Cool the cake completely before glazing.

 

(You can glaze the cake on a baking sheet and then transfer your finished cake to a pretty plate or a cake stand once the glaze sets up.  OR you might choose to glaze the cake on a cake stand or pretty plate--be sure your serving piece has a rim to catch any drips-if you go this route.) 

For the glaze: in a bowl add the confectioner's sugar, water and extracts.  Using a pastry brush, coat the cooled cake on all sides.  The glaze will harden as it sets up.  If using coconut for garnish sprinkle onto the wet glaze, before it sets.

Hope you enjoy this cake as much as our family does! 

Xo,

Karri

 

Book Club Menu: "But Where Do I Put the Couch?"

Friends!!

I have a confession of sorts when it comes to books...

My favorite kinds of books are?

 A. Romance Novels

B. True Crime and Mystery Books

C. Movie Star Autobiographies 

D. History

E. None of the Above

It's true... the answer is "E"... 

None of the above... Did I fool you??  

  

I do enjoy those books above (really, I do)    

 but, my true-blue favorites...

Let's just say, I am a practical gal...

If you find me in a bookstore, 

I will be in one of two places...

 Obviously, I can be found in the cookbook section...

but, my other very favorite section is the
Home Décor section!

I love a good home makeover...I am all about before and after photos.

 I love learning new things (from baking to gardening to decorating), especially if the “new things” I’m learning enhance my life or my home.

When it comes to home decor, there is no shortage of  DIY dilemmas, from finding your style to picking the perfect paint color:

Can a room have more than one focal point?? 

(I think that's part of a problem I have in our family room...)

 Is it ok to mix gingham pillows with my plaid pillows?? Is too much pattern-mixing a thing??

How do I display a collection of favorite finds??

I absolutely LOVE books that spark my creativity and make me feel excited to rearrange the furniture...

I love books that give me the courage try something new— to paint something...like a thrift-store hutch, kitchen cabinets (I really did this)...or even to paint a whole room... and add a sassy accent wall!

Here’s where this story gets fascinating...

This is where the universe combined my love of DIY home decor and food...

Not too long ago... 

I was invited to create a menu 

for a virtual book club!!

Not just any book club... 

a "Home Décor" book club.

A book club devoted to my kind of books!!

And here's the best part... You're invited to join the fun!

 If you like home décor, design, fresh ideas, 

and also really good food...

(And really cute menus with clever names)

THIS is the free virtual Book Club for you.

Yes, free... and fun!!

As you might imagine, when this fabulous opportunity to

 create a home décor themed menu arrived,

I jumped at the chance!!

Wait until you read the menu...  "Couch Cake"  "DIY Dip and Paint Chips"

and more... (This menu would be great for ANY party, and I love a creative menu)