Cooking for the Holidays

Celebrate the 4th of July Each year we have a party on the 4th of July and my mom brings her fabulous 4th of July cake.  There are always a few invited guests to our home, but the group seems to grow once the fireworks begin. Our city hosts an annual community fireworks display which […]

My Homemade Lemonade Recipe is a fabulous summertime drink recipe and it is extremely easy to make. I have shared this recipe with friends more times than I can remember.  Since I grew up making lemonade, it always surprises me when someone asks for my recipe. It previously never occurred to me that anyone would […]

Decorating a Fondant Snake Cake In honor of Year of the Snake 2013, Sylvestermouse and Son joined together once again to create a unique and original cake. Our Snake Cake is easy and fun to decorate. As always, I share step by step instructions for decorating the snake cake, as well as tons of photos […]

The Easiest Recipe for a Great Blackberry Cobbler My Blackberry Cobbler Recipe is really an easy cobbler recipe, but please don’t tell my husband and daughter.  It is their favorite dessert and they have no idea just how easy this blackberry cobbler recipe is to make.  For them, food just doesn’t get better than hot […]

Strawberry Trifles are Delicious and Beautiful For over 20 years, I have been making this Strawberry Trifle recipe for my family. Because it is red and white, I especially enjoy making a Strawberry Trifle for Christmas, Valentine’s Day or the 4th of July.  It is beautiful on any dessert table, buffet, banquet table, or on […]

My Roast Recipe In my opinion, there is nothing better than a great roast for dinner.  Especially a roast cooked with potatoes and carrots. When you come from a family as large as mine, you better know how to cook a roast and you better know how to cook for crowds.  An all time family […]

Our Halloween Ghost Castle Cake Our Chocolate Halloween Ghost Castle Cake is truly a very easy Halloween cake design and a great Halloween table decoration or centerpiece.  Since it is edible, this Halloween Ghost castle is perfect for any Halloween party.  Because it is a no-bake design, anyone can make it! We wanted to design […]

Beware! Spider Pizza Instructions Shown Halloween is always very busy.  Between decorating the front porch, dressing in costumes, taking our children trick or treating, and handing out candy to our own guests, we can get a bit overwhelmed.  Dinner tends to be completely forgotten.  Everyone is just too busy to worry about cooking or eating.  […]

When it comes to big holiday meals, vegans often get stuck with side dishes. But Gluten-Free and Vegan Holidays: Celebrating the Year with Simple Satisfying Recipes and Menus by Jennifer Katzinger is a great solution. Holiday cookbooks for vegans have been slow in coming, but with this cookbook, we vegans can rejoice. Holidays and More […]

Our Halloween Ghost Train Cake Our Chocolate Halloween Ghost Train Cake is truly one of the easiest Halloween cake designs I have ever created.  I wanted a cake design that children could make with a little help.  I believe this no-bake Halloween Train Cake is perfect for big and little hands. By simply layering store-bought […]

Chocolate Covered Strawberries are Delicious to Eat and Are Great Gifts Chocolate Covered Strawberries are a delicacy and are often very expensive if purchased from a candy store.  They are one of my favorite treats.  Over the years, my husband has purchased several boxes of Chocolate Covered Strawberries for me on our anniversary, for Valentine’s […]

Have you ever wanted to learn how to make and decorate Panda Cupcakes?  Decorating these Panda Cupcakes is certainly easy and they are really adorably cute. Making, decorating and and serving these Panda Cupcakes, which would be perfect for any occasion! During the years that my children were in elementary school, I became quite a […]

Fast & Easy Recipe for Pasta Shells This is likely to be the easiest pasta recipe ever! My grandmother originally introduced all of us to this fast and easy recipe decades ago.  We prepare these pasta shells for every holiday meal and often throughout the year. We have a very large family celebration for Thanksgiving.  […]

A Delicious Recipe for Chicken Enchiladas My family loves my Chicken Enchiladas recipe! My enchiladas are fairly easy to make and they really are quite delicious, even if I do say so myself. This recipe makes more than enough enchiladas for our family of four. Normally, I freeze half of the enchiladas for another dinner. […]

Chocolate Covered Pineapple is Fun to Make and Delicious to Eat Pineapple is one of those fruits that is delicious in anything, with anything or just by itself.  My entire family loves pineapple so, of course, I could not resist dipping it in melted chocolate and serving it as a snack. Chocolate Covered or Dipped […]

Really Easy Tiered Cake Decorated with Flowers Decorating a tiered cake with flowers is really very easy! By having the right tools and following the simple directions below, you can make a tier cake decorated with flowers that will rival any professionally made cake, but cost a lot less. I have been baking and decorating […]

Chocolate Covered Oranges are Fun to Make and Delicious to Eat Oranges are a tasty, juicy fruit packed with Vitamin C and I love chocolate dipped oranges or chocolate covered oranges.  The combination of citrus and chocolate makes a sweet and tangy treat which culminates in an awesome explosion of flavor! It is very easy […]

Tasty Strawberry Cheesecake Recipe Enjoy a tasty strawberry cheesecake recipe for dessert tonight. This strawberry cheesecake recipe is pretty easy to make. While box mixes are convenient, they are often not quite as good as a cake made the old fashioned way by mixing individual ingredients. It takes a little more time and work, but […]

Pumpkin pie happens to be a family favorite.  Both my mother and my grandmother made pumpkin pies when I was growing up, but I have been the Pumpkin Pie chef in our family for many years now. You love simple recipes that have easy to follow recipe directions right?  Making a delicious pumpkin pie recipe […]

This is a Quick and Easy Pumpkin Bread Recipe.  This recipe can also be adapted to make pumpkin bread muffins in stead of a single pumpkin bread loaf if you prefer the individual serving style that muffins offer.  I have included those instructions at the bottom of the recipe. We really do love pumpkin dessert […]