Chocolate Nest Cake

For Easter I made a chocolate nest cake. My mom’s family are huge chocolate lovers, so what better dessert to bring than a chocolate cake? It definitely took some time to complete, but it was worth it. The nest is made out of cut up chocolate bars. The robins’ eggs, in the middle, are truffles with a white chocolate shell. Surprisingly, they were super easy to make, but patience is key. The cake was very moist and chocolaty, but not over baring. I wrote this post in groups, starting with truffles, than cake, than the ganache (icing which is made out of chocolate and cream) and lastly assembly. For the recipe in one piece go to the bottom of the post and click read more.

EGG TRUFFLES

Note: You will want to make the eggs a day in advance because it involves a lot of refrigeration time in between steps (you can make them up to two weeks in advance).

Ingredients

• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate 
• 3 to 4 tbsp heavy whipping cream
• ¼  cup butter, room temperature
• 1 bag white chocolate chips
• Sky-blue gel-paste food coloring 
• Make sure gel-past. If you use liquid food coloring it will not allow the chocolate to stay at a melted consistency.

Simmer water in a pan. Place a heatproof bowl over the water.

Put bittersweet chocolate and cream into. Stir until smooth; remove from heat.

Stir in butter

      Pour into a loaf pan. Cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until very cold and set but still pliable, about 2 hours.

Using a tablespoon, scoop balls of ganache.

Transferring them to baking sheets lined with parchment paper as you work. Refrigerate 10 minutes.

      Using your hands, roll each ball into an egg shape. Place in freezer until very firm, about 1 hour.

Place white chocolate into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.

Stir until smooth; remove from heat.

       Divide between 2 medium bowls. Add food coloring to 1 bowl until desired blue shade. Add a few drops of food coloring to other bowl, and swirl lightly with a toothpick.

 Working with one at a time, dip half of the eggs in blue chocolate, then dip remaining eggs in swirled chocolate, letting excess chocolate drip back into bowl. As you work, transfer eggs to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper; refrigerate until set, about 1 hour.

Truffles can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 2 weeks.

CHOCOLATE CAKE

Ingredients

• 2 cups sugar

• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl.

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes.

Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

       Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

GANACHE

• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Directions

          Put chocolate and cream into a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir until smooth. Refrigerate, stirring occasionally, until the consistency of stiff cream cheese, 10 to 15 minutes. Whisk until fluffy and smooth

I used a 1 container of vanilla frosting from the store, for in between the two cakes. By using store bought frosting it helped hold the cake together and vanilla cut down on the chocolate taste just a bit. Also there was not enough Ganache for the center.

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Take the bottom cake and ice the top with store bought frosting. Place the other cake on top

Frost the whole cake in the chocolate ganache.

A tip for frosting: before you set your cake down one the serving plate, take pieces of wax paper or parchment paper and set around the outside of the cake. This way you can frost the cake without getting your frosting on the plate. Once you are done frosting pull the pieces out from under the cake

To make the nest take 2 chocolate bars and cut thin strips the long way.

    Place chocolate in a nest formation on the top of your cake.

    Add three of the egg truffles in to the nest.

   Enjoy, refrigerate leftovers.

êêCritics Reviews êê

Meêêêê Paul êêêê momêêêêê dad êêêêê the rest of the fam’ êêêê1/2

Would I make it again…

          Yes, but the real question is; am I going to make it again, probably not. At least not looking like this. This was the best chocolate frosting I have ever had, so that is a for sure keeper. The truffles were really good and so was the cake. I am just not sure if I would ever make it all and put it all together again like this. There is only one Easter a year and I like to try new things, so maybe in a couple years. However I HIGHLY recommend this recipe for anyone who wants an amazing cake the looks just as good as it tastes!

Green Dessert

Green Dessert is a staple on my dad’s side of the family. No one in our family knows what the original name for it is. All that my grandma remembers is that when my dad and his sister were young, they couldn’t remember the name, so they called it Green Dessert. It’s kind of like a lemon lime, mousse/jell-o with an Oreo cookie base.  I have been eating it since I was a baby, but surprisingly this is the first time I have ever made it. You have to be very precise with the directions, if not it won’t set up and then the ingredients will separate. I made it for Palm Sunday and brought it to my uncle’s house last weekend to serve as our Easter dessert (we celebrated Easter a week early with them). Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Lets Get Cookin'Ingredients

1 large can Instant evaporated milk (NOT sweetened Condensed)

1 package Lime Jell-o

1 ¾ cups hot water

¼ cup Lemon juice

¾ cup sugar

2-3 rows of crushed Oreos

¼ cup melted butter

First crush Oreos into fine pieces in a bag and rolling pin. I reused an empty bread bag instead of a new gallon sized bag. Also it is easier to do ½ of the Oreos at a time. In a bowl, combine with the melted butter. Press into a 9 by 13 pan. Save some crumbs for the top. Chill.

Combine 1 package of lime Jell-o with water, in the chilled large bowl. Add lemon juice and sugar. Chill until syrupy, and then beat until foamy (do right before next step).

In a smaller bowl chilled, whip evaporated milk at a medium speed until it is almost at a cool whip consistency/ or seems stiff and forms loose peaks. Then add green food coloring and whip in.  Fold into above mixture.

Pour mixture on top of the Oreo base. Refrigerate for 1-3 hours until it sets up and is firm. Then add the leftover crumbs to the top. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

4 HOURS BEFORE COOKING

Put evaporated milk, the beaters and 2 bowls in the refrigerator until ready to use.

First crush Oreos into fine pieces in a bag and rolling pin. I reused an empty bread bag instead of a new gallon sized bag. Also it is easier to do ½ of the Oreos at a time.

In a bowl, combine with the melted butter.

Press into a 9 by 13 pan. Save some crumbs for the top. Chill.

Combine 1 package of lime Jell-o with water. Add lemon juice and sugar. Chill until syrupy.

and then beat until foamy (do right before next step).

In a separate bowl, whip evaporated milk at a medium speed until it is almost at a cool whip consistency/ or seems stiff and forms loose peaks. Then add green food coloring and whip in.

Fold into above mixture.

Pour mixture on top of the Oreo base. Refrigerate for 1-3 hours until it sets up and is firm.

Then add the leftover crumbs to the top.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

I still have no idea where my camera went, but I got a new one YAY! The next pictures were taken with it. I took a lot of pictures of the finished, so I could test out different settings. I just decided to upload all of them, because I couldn’t chose a favorite:-)

 ê  ê Critics reviews  ê  ê

Every in my family (on dads side) ê ê ê ê ê ê ê ê ê ê

Would I make it again…

It has made it for the past 40 years, so I am pretty sure it is not going anywhere.

What would I change...

I wouldn’t change anything to it exactly. However, I have been think of using different flavored jell-o and different colors.