Strawberry FUN da-middles "Shortcake"

A while back, the Pint-Sized Baker shared at Scrumptious Sunday her Raspberry Lemon Fun-da-Middles.  I tought to myself, FUN-DA-WHAT?!?  I read her blog post (like I do all my Scrumptious Sunday submissions...there are so many great recipes there!)  and she had a picture of a box for Fun-da-Middles.  Clearly something we don't have here in Canada (or I have never seen them at the grocery store).  Fortunately for me, my parents happened to be in the States when I read the post, so I emailed my Mom a picture and asked, "Can you please bring a box home for me?" And she did, not one, not two, but THREE boxes.  She didn't know what flavour I wanted, so she bought one of each that the store had.  Awesome! Thanks Mom!
Fast forward a few weeks and it was time to try making some.  I didn't feel like making icing, and since I didn't know what to expect inside the box (or cupcakes) in terms of flavour (I didn't want the icing to distract), and I had strawberries and whipping cream on hand, I decided to make some Strawberry FUN da-middles Shortcake for us for dessert!  Here is what I did:

Cupcakes:
1 box FUN da-middles, yellow cupcake mix
2 eggs
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup oil

Bake cupcakes according to the directions on the box. Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with 12 paper baking cups. Mix cupcake mix, water, oil and eggs. Beat at low speed for 30 seconds then at medium for 2 minutes. Fill each cupcake cup 1/3 full with batter (approx 1/8 cup). Make sure the batter completely covers the bottom of the cup. "Warm" the filling pouch by squeezing/massaging it for about 2 minutes. Cut open the pouch at the cut line, and squeeze the filling amongst the 12 cupcakes. Do not let the filling touch the sides of the cups. Spoon the remaining batter over the top of the 12 cupcakes, ensuring the filling is completely covered. Bake for 24-29 minutes or until tops are light golden brown.

Toppings:
4 cups fresh strawberries, washed and cut

Whipping Cream:
I don't use any measurements when I make whipping cream, just a little of this, a lot of that.
Whipping cream
Vanilla (to taste)
Sugar (to taste)

After my cupcakes were baked and cooled, and it was time for dessert, I removed the paper liner and served the cupcake with the fresh whipping cream and strawberries. 

VERDICT:
It was a nice light strawberry shortcake-like treat.  Our son, who doesn't usually eat cake did eat about half of the cupcake.  He wasn't so sure about the filling. And actually he also kept saying he wanted me to make the chocolate ones (next time, kid!).  My husband and I thought they were fun, the little marshmallowy surprise in the middle and topped with the whip and strawberries.

Banana Caramel Cream Pie

I thought it was about time I posted a dessert recipe!  This afternoon I thought I would whip up a little pie for tonight's dessert.  I had bananas on hand, and my husband loves banana anything.  He also loves caramel, so I decided to throw together a little pie that had both banana and caramel.  Really easy, really light and of course, tasty.  There are a few parts to the recipe, and it might seem like a lot when you read it, but there is nothing too hard and the pie really took very little time at all to whip together.  Here is the recipe:

Graham Cracker Crust

1 1/4 cup  graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 cup melted butter

Combine crumbs, brown sugar and butter in a pie plate. Press firmly into plate.  Bake in 350F oven for 8 minutes.  Cool before adding fillings.

Caramel Sauce
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup whipping cream

In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.  Reduce to low and add brown sugar.  Simmer on low for 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until sugar and butter are completely incorporated.

Add the whipping cream and let cook (on low), for another 5 minutes. Stirring constantly.  Once done, turn off heat and allow the caramel sauce to start to thicken.

Vanilla Pudding
Feel free to use whatever version of vanilla pudding that you prefer.  Because I was doing this on the fly, I only had Jello Instant Vanilla Pudding in the cupboard, so that's what I used!

Whipping Cream
I don't use any measurements when I make whipping cream, just a little of this, a lot of that.
Whipping cream
Vanilla (to taste)
Sugar (to taste)

Pour whipping cream into deep metal bowl.  Whip with electric mixer on high until the cream starts to thicken.  Add a little vanilla and sugar.  Continue whipping until you attain your desired consistency. 

Note: Be sure to put your deep metal bowl and beaters into the fridge or freezer for at least 15 minutes prior to whipping the cream.  Just makes the job that much easier! 

And finally, put it all together!!

Banana Caramel Cream Pie

2 bananas

Line cooled pie crust with cut bananas (you'll probably use 1.5-2 bananas, depending on the size of your pie plate).  Drizzle the cooling caramel sauce over the bananas.  Pour/spoon the vanilla pudding on top of the bananas and caramel sauce.  Top with whipped cream.  Store in fridge.  Enjoy!

VERDICT:
Hubby had two pieces for dessert, that's always a good sign! It was a nice, light dessert and easy to make!

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