CARTOON CRAVINGS

Mickey’s Birthday Party

Posted on September 3, 2015 by cartooncravings

Birthday Cake

I have no idea how I did it, but when I was a kid, I hardly ever slept. I couldn’t afford to. There was too much TV to watch. As time slowly crept to the wee hours of each morning and everyone else was asleep, I could be found in my living room huddled next to my television set. Some of my favorite things to watch on late-night TV were classic cartoon shorts. It didn’t matter who made them, how old they were, or if they were black and white or colored. I was captivated by them. That hasn’t changed. Yeah, I could’ve just waited a few hours and watched cartoons at a more “reasonable” time, but that’s not me. Watching cartoons alone in the dark really gave me a sense of companionship with the characters on my screen. I really felt like I was best friends with Mickey Mouse and the gang. We would go to the beach or try to catch ghosts. I was even invited to Mickey’s birthday party.

This is one of my absolute favorite Mickey Mouse cartoons, but not because of the birthday boy. Goofy and his cake escapades completely stole the show. That poor guy! I’ve had days just like his. You bake and bake, but nothing ever comes out right. When you’re finally happy with it or you just break down and buy a cake, you happen to trip and it collides with your friend. Thankfully, that didn’t happen with my cake. I’m not too great at decorating cakes, so it’s not the prettiest, but I felt like being a little ambitious in honor of my very own birthday.

Ingredients

Cake:

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

2 cups sugar

4 large eggs, room temperature

2 ¾ cups cake flour, sifted

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup milk, room temperature

Marshmallow Fondant

8 ounces of marshmallows

2 tablespoons water

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups (1 pound) powdered sugar, sifted

Pink food coloring

Buttercream Icing

½ cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature

½ cup shortening

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 tablespoons milk

4 cups (1 pound) powdered sugar, sifted

Red food coloring

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease and flour a 6-inch, an 8-inch, and a 10-inch cake pan.

Cake:

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl, combine milk and vanilla. In a standing mixer, cream butter and sugar until fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and milk alternatingly, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Stir until just combined. Divide batter amongst pans. Gently tap or drop pans on the counter to remove air pockets. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean when the cake is tested. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and wrap completely in plastic wrap. This will help keep your cakes moist. Cool completely on baking racks.

Marshmallow Fondant:

Melt marshmallows in a large bowl in a microwave for 1 minute, stirring at the 30 second mark. Stir water and vanilla extract into marshmallows. Stir in powdered sugar a cup at a time until sticky dough is formed. Dust counter with remaining powdered sugar and turn out dough. You may want to rub your hands with shortening or butter to keep them from sticking to the dough. Knead dough until smooth, workable, and no longer sticky. This can take up to 10 minutes. Then it’s ready to use. You can also make this the night before. Just wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill. Allow it to warm up to room temperature before trying to work the dough.

Buttercream Icing:

In a stand mixer, beat butter and shortening until fluffy. Add vanilla extract. Beat powdered sugar in, a little at a time. Scrape down sides of the bowl and add milk. If the icing is too thick, add more milk, ½ teaspoon at a time.

Putting It All Together:

Unwrap cooled cakes. Cut cakes to size and even out, if needed. Cover the cakes with enough icing to hold in the crumbs and allow the fondant to stick. Roll fondant out as thin as you can without tearing it. Cover bottom cake tier with fondant and smooth out sides so there are no creases. Remove excess fondant. Smooth out edges with hands or tools. Repeat with the other cakes and stack.

Knead a small amount of pink food coloring into some remaining fondant. Shape small pieces of pink fondant into flowers or roll and cut out with a small flower cookie cutter. Scoop some icing into a piping bag with a large tip and pipe icing onto the sides of each tier and the top of the cake. Place fondant flowers on the cake. Add some red food coloring to a small bit of remaining icing and scoop red icing into piping bag with a thin tip. Pipe out “Happy Birthday” onto the side of the cake. Light some candles and get ready to sing!

Variations: You can always use different sized cake pans if you want larger edges or a larger cake in general. The cake I made is very light in color, so if you want a more brown cake, add a little brown food coloring to the batter when you’re alternating the wet and dry ingredients. If you want to completely change it up, make whatever kind of cake you like best. You can also use pre-made fondant or icing if you’re pressed for time or just don’t feel like making any. Icing can also be made without the butter. Just double the shortening for even whiter icing. That’s the way my mom does it.

You can just use buttercream if you don’t care for fondant. After you initially ice the cakes, chill for at least 10 minutes. Dollop more icing on and spread until even and smooth. Chill the cakes again before you stack them and add the details.

Since I was making this cake for just myself, I did single layer tiers, but typical tiered cakes have multiple layers. (And are much bigger and more work.) Just double everything, spread icing between cake layers, stack, cover the tier with icing, and move on to the next one.

The cake’s not as big as Mickey’s, but it suits this birthday girl just fine. At least I’m not covered in it. Although I wouldn’t be too terribly upset. It’s still cake and it’s delicious even if it’s ugly or smashed. Hey, Mickey didn’t seem that heartbroken when he accidentally got his cake all to himself, now did he?

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

The Angry Beavers

Posted on August 27, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: Deranged Ranger

Jalapeño Bundt Cake

I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that angry beavers are probably my spirit animals. (Get it? Limb. You know, trees?) Sorry about that. Anyhoo, those pointy weasel things do indeed lead a life not too different from mine. Norbert and Daggett are supposed to be responsible and basically adult-like, but they spend most of their time playing with toys, eating junk food, and staying up all night watching TV. Yep, same here. We can’t help it. We’re all just big kids. Oh, and in case you’re curious, I’m the Daggett Doofus Beaver of my house. I’m a big, klutzy, daddy longlegs hating baby who breaks things. My Norby Worby just so happens to be my little sister. She acts much older than I do and she’s crazy about hair and music. Also, she may have on occasion tricked me into doing things for her. All we need is a bunk bed and some Lickety-Splits and we’re the beaver dream team.

There’s just one thing we’re missing: jalapeños. The beavers’ food of choice. And what is the best way to wolf down those little peppers? By baking a jalapeño Bundt cake! With all the junk those boys scarf down, this cake has got to be the granddaddy of it all if Dag says it’s his favorite.

Ingredients

Cake:

1 cup (4 large) jalapeños, plus any extras for garnishing

1 tablespoon butter

1 ½ cups (3 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 cups sifted cake flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

Glaze

3 tablespoons butter

2 cups sifted powdered sugar

2 tablespoons milk

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Green food coloring

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a Bundt cake pan

Cake:

Cut jalapeños, clean out seeds and ribs, and finely chop. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a medium saucepan on medium heat. Cook down jalapenos until soft, about 10 minutes. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine cake flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.

In a stand mixer, beat butter and cream cheese together. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Add vanilla. Add dry ingredients in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each. Mix until just combined. Pour batter into greased Bundt cake pan. Smooth out and gently tap pan on counter to remove any air pockets. Bake for 60-75 minutes or until golden and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove cake and let cool completely.

Glaze:

Melt butter in a saucepan or microwave. Add powdered sugar a little at a time. Mix in milk and vanilla. Add a little green food coloring. Adjust thickness to your liking. If it’s too thick, add more milk. If it turns out too thin, add more powdered sugar.

Putting It All Together:

Pour glaze over cooled cake. Place jalapeños on top to make it look pretty. Cut, serve, and enjoy!

I guess there’s another thing I have in common with Dag. I love this cake! It would completely break my heart (and my teeth) if I tried to eat a giant jalapeño Bundt cake only to find out it’s made of cement. Well, I can’t say the same for my beaver brethren (Norb splattered batter on Dag’s booty in Mistaken Identity), but this cake will at least keep the two of us out of trouble. For now.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

Courage the Cowardly Dog

Posted on August 21, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: King of Flan

Flantasy Flan

Whenever my parents would ask us kids where we’d like to go on vacation, we would always say Nowhere. And by that, we always meant Kansas. We didn’t actually want to vacation in Kansas, but creepy stuff supposedly happens there and we wanted to see it for ourselves. Our request was always shot down, but at least we could watch Courage and see the place through his eyes. Honestly, I’m a huge chicken and probably would’ve cried if I ever came face-to-face with King Ramses or Benton Tarantella. So thank you, Mom and Dad!

While I was safe on my couch, poor, little Courage had to deal with all kinds of horrors on his own. Be it a weremole or an abominable snowman or chickens from outer space. All for Muriel’s sake, but sometimes the scariest thing on the farm is Muriel herself. Like when she and Eustace become violent, thieving flan maniacs after being brainwashed by a Flantasy Flan commercial. The whole brainwashing bit doesn’t sound too bad for a marketing strategy, minus the whole violent, thieving part. “Buy Flantasy Flan.” Catchy. But the self-proclaimed King of Flan didn’t have to hypnotize anyone. Flan is delicious.

Recipe makes 5 flan.

Ingredients

Caramel

½ cup sugar

Custard

¾ cup sugar

3 cups milk

4 large eggs

¼ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

Yellow Food Coloring

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and place 5 six-ounce ramekins in a deep baking dish or roasting pan.

Caramel

Add ½ cup of sugar to a saucepan on low heat. Without stirring the sugar, let it melt until it turns amber. Remove from heat and quickly pour caramel into each ramekin. Swirl each around to coat bottoms evenly.

Custard

Heat milk and ¼ cup of sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until mixture begins to bubble and steam, about 5 minutes. Do not let the mixture boil.

Whisk together eggs, salt, and remaining ½ cup of sugar in a large mixing bowl. Whisk a small amount (about a ladle) of milk mixture into eggs to temper them. Whisk in 2 to 3 more ladles, one at a time. Now add egg mixture back to the saucepan with the remaining milk mixture and whisk to combine. Strain custard through a sieve into a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Add vanilla and a small amount of yellow food coloring.

Divide custard among the ramekins and add boiling water to the dish/pan until it reaches halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until custard is set.

Remove the dish/pan from the oven and take ramekins out of the water bath. Let cool until room temperature. Chill for 4 hours. If you’re impatient, at least let them chill for 1 hour. When ready to eat, run a knife around the edge of the ramekin. Place a small plate over the ramekin and invert them. When you lift up the ramekin, the flan should be jiggly and covered in caramelly goodness. Grab a spoon and dig in!

Oops! I’d much rather make my own flan than buy the pre-made stuff. Sorry, King of Flan. You lost one customer, along with all of Nowhere. Oh, well. That’s one less problem for Courage to deal with. That is, until someone or something comes lurking around that farmhouse.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

Animaniacs

Posted on August 13, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: Meatballs or Consequences

Swedish Meatballs

My parents were blessed (Or should I say cursed?) with three children, so they’re old pros when it comes to handling the “monkey stuff.” We never terrorized them to the extent that the Warners could’ve, but those kids were definitely our idols. I even told people that the Warners would stay in our town’s “Tin Man” style water tower when they wanted to check up on us. I actually believed it too and would wave to the tower every morning and afternoon.

With my intense love of the Warners, it’s only natural I’d want to eat like them. And what could be better than stuffing yourself with 501 meatballs? Especially in Sweden, the actual home of meatballs and Volvos! Although, Wakko didn’t look like he was having too much fun. Becoming living-impaired does kind of put a damper on things. That and being pushed and insulted by your brother and sister. (“Slopface?”) I totally get it. I’m the middle child too. Still, gorging on meatballs had to be fun until at least meatball number 450. And if the Grim Reaper’s going to get you anyway, I can’t think of a better visual than him rising out of a tub of meatballs.

Recipe makes 34 meatballs. Over 500 is a bit excessive.

Ingredients

Meatballs

1 ½ cups panko

¾ cup milk

3 tablespoons butter

½ an onion, minced or grated

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 pound ground beef

1 pound ground pork

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

¼ teaspoon ground allspice

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Gravy

¼ cup all-purpose flour

3 cups beef broth

¼ cup heavy cream

Directions

In a small bowl, combine panko and milk and set aside.

Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a large pan. Add onions and garlic and sauté until onions are soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine panko-milk mixture, beef, pork, eggs, onion and garlic, salt, black pepper, allspice, and nutmeg. Mix until just combined. Scoop out meat mixture the size of two tablespoons and place on a baking sheet. If using a scale, each meatball should be about 1.4 ounces. Form meatballs into rounds and chill for an hour to help the balls maintain their shapes while cooking.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Melt the remaining two tablespoons of butter in a large pan over medium-low heat. Add the meatballs and cook until brown on all sides, about 10-15 minutes. Move the meatballs to an ovenproof dish and place in oven to keep warm.

When all the meatballs are in the oven, reduce the pan’s heat to low. Add the flour and whisk for about a minute or until lightly browned. Gradually whisk in the beef stock and heavy cream until the gravy begins to thicken. Remove the meatballs from the oven and smother with gravy, the dressed up version of meatball grease. Then see how many you can eat without dying! (Please don’t. Let’s just stick with serve and enjoy!)

If I didn’t know better, I would challenge someone to a meatball eating contest. Oh, who am I trying to kid? My sibs and I have been challenging each other to all sorts of contests for years. Just like the Warners, we do consider ourselves like a set of chess pieces from The Franklin Mint. No matter what stupid things we say and do, we’re still family and would do anything for one another. Even face Death himself.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

The Fairly OddParents

Posted on August 5, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: Snack Attack

Spark Tarts

Fairy Godparents who grant just about any wish I ask for? Sign me up! Alas, I couldn’t get my own fairies because I had quite the happy childhood. (Stinks, right?) So I’ll just sit here and seethe with jealousy as I watch Timmy Turner adventure with the magical beings I so rightly deserve. Ew, I’m starting to remind myself of Mr. Crocker. Well, at least I’m not as bad asFAIRYGODPARENTSFAIRYGODPARENTSFAIRYGODPARENTS!!!!! Ouch. Maybe I spoke too soon.

Come on. Timmy even has a fairy dog who bakes! I love my dog and wouldn’t trade her for all the magic in Fairy World, but she’d rather steal my food than make some herself. Sparky, on the other hand, makes “magically delicious” dog treats that are so addictive that Timmy’s Dad ate a million of them. I don’t know about dog treats, but I do have something that might do the trick.

Recipe makes roughly 15 spark tarts. It can vary by the size of cookie cutter used. Mine were stubby!

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter flavored shortening

¾ cup sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 tablespoons milk

1 egg, plus 1 tablespoon of milk for egg wash

turbinado/raw sugar or additional white granulated sugar – Optional, but it makes it sparkly!

Directions

Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. In a stand mixer, cream together shortening and sugar on medium speed. Reduce the speed to low and add the egg and vanilla. Add the flour mixture a little at a time, alternating with the milk. Remove dough from stand mixer and flatten into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 1 hour or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Roll the dough out to a thickness of 1/4 an inch. Have some flour on hand because the dough will start to get sticky as it warms up. Cut out shapes with a doggy bone cookie cutter and place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Roll out scraps and cut out shapes until you run out of dough. Chill Spark Tarts for 15 minutes to help them retain their shapes while baking.

Make an egg wash by whisking together one egg and a tablespoon of milk. Brush the Spark Tarts with the egg wash and dust with sugar. Bake for 25 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Remove and transfer to a cooling rack. Then stuff your face!

These Spark Tarts are pretty yummy with a nice, big glass of milk, even without the secret ingredient. I didn’t have any fairy dust on hand, but if you have some lying around, feel free to add it. I probably could eat a million Spark Tarts, but the only thing I’d wish for afterwards would be to have my stomach pumped.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

Ed, Edd n Eddy

Posted on July 29, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: Nagged to Ed

Kanker Burger

I never met another person with my name until I was in my teens, so I think sharing my name/nickname with my best friends would be pretty exciting. Especially, if you’re a group of friends who hatch crazy schemes and go on silly adventures in a cul-de-sac where an eclectic group of kids reside. And all life as you know it revolves around jawbreakers!! Yeah, that’s the life. My neighborhood didn’t have many kids and it was close to impossible to get to anyone’s house on my own, so I’m a little jealous of the Eds. Well, maybe a lot of jealous.

At least there’s one thing I don’t envy about them. They have a Kanker problem. A big one. No place is safe for the Eds. Whether it’s Club Ed, the creek, or an abandoned house, those girls are there. Even in Jonny’s walls! Now don’t get me wrong, I love the Kanker Sisters and they do have a lot of redeeming qualities. They’re tough, funny, and can cook. Kind of. Cheesy, lardy, fish burgers drenched in ketchup don’t sound all too appealing to most people, but I couldn’t pass it up. And you know what? I like them.

Recipe makes 6 burgers

Ingredients

14 ounces of fish sticks – A little more than half a 22oz box.

½ cup of processed cheese – Cheese chub, spread, or Velveeta all work fine.

½ cup pickles with juice

Salt and pepper to taste

Food coloring – Green and a little brown if you want it darker.

Lard – Optional-You can put any amount you want in to the burger or just use some to cook the burgers in.

Ketchup

Hamburger buns

Directions

In a food processor, combine fish sticks, cheese, pickles, lard, salt, and pepper. Add enough food coloring to get the shade of green you want. Be careful not to add too much or you’ll change the consistency of the fish mixture. I like using the gels, so I used just a small blob. Portion out mixture into patties with an ice cream scoop and slightly flatten. Cook in a skillet on medium/medium high heat 2-3 minutes per side or just enough to warm them up and build a crust on each side. Place patties on bottom buns and smother with as much ketchup as you want. Cover with top bun and eat!

Variations: Scoop out more mixture for Kanker-sized burgers. Toast hamburger buns for a little added crunch.

That wasn’t enough to scare you off? Good. I’m glad I left out the gears and stretchy meat stuff. (Not like I knew what that was anyway.) Only the best in processed foods here. Now all that’s left to do is mix yourself a tall glass of powdered milk, pop in Fish Bowl 2 (A classic!), and grab a comfy spot on the couch.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!

Codename: Kid’s Next Door

Posted on July 24, 2015 by cartooncravings

Episode: Operation: P.I.N.K.E.Y.E

Nurse Claiborne’s Apple Crumble

We all knew that adults were conspiring against us kids, but we had no concrete evidence. That’s where Codename: Kids Next Door came in. This show exposed all of the adults’ secrets, so we could plan our counterattack. But we weren’t prepared to discover just how far their lies went and saw things that can never be unseen. Things that were so jarring, that they’ll haunt me for the rest of my life. I was a witness to Operation: P.I.N.K.E.Y.E.

Seriously, watching Nurse Claiborne harvest eye crust for her apple crumble was super gross. Numbah 2 took it a lot better than I did, especially when he’d been munching on crumbles all day. Oh yeah, and did I mention they’re probably filled with boogers!? Despite how icky that episode is, it’s actually one of my favorites. Regardless, now my poor, messed up inner child can have her revenge on adults in the form of tasty, non-eye crusty nor boogery apple crumble!

Recipe makes 16 crumble slices.

Ingredients

Cake:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter

1 ¼ cups light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup sour cream

Filling

1 ½ tablespoons butter

2 cups apples, peeled and chopped

¼ cup brown sugar

½ tablespoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon cornstarch

Crumble

¾ cup flour

½ cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons turbinado/raw sugar – Optional, but it gives it a nice crunch.

6 tablespoons butter, cold – cut into small chunks

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9 X 9 baking dish

Filling:

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the apples, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Cook the apples for 10 minutes or until soft. (Some varieties take much longer to soften.) Add the lemon juice and cornstarch and cook until the mixture bubbles. Reduce the heat to low and cook an additional minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and set aside.

Cake:

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl. In a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar on medium speed until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat after each addition. Add the vanilla. Reduce the speed to low and add the dry ingredients and sour cream, alternatingly.

Crumble:

Combine flour, brown sugar, and turbinado sugar in a small bowl. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Putting It All Together:

We’re making layers! Pour enough batter into the baking dish to cover the bottom. Spread half the filling over the batter. Add more batter to cover the filling. Spread the rest of the filling over that batter layer. Pour and spread the remainder of the batter on top. Run a skewer through the cake, just enough to swirl the layers together a little. Smooth out and completely cover with crumble topping. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until golden and set. Remove and cool completely on a wire rack. Cut, serve, and enjoy!

Variations: You can use a 9 X 13 pan for thinner crumbles and you can certainly add more topping.

Take that adult tyranny! We’ve taken back our baked goods. Next we’ll take back the ice cream, and the school lunches, and then the whole world! OK, I know that I’ve technically outgrown the KND, but age is just a number. I’ll keep doing my grownup stuff because I have to, but I’ll always be an honorary member of the Kids Next Door.

Tune in next week for more Cartoon Cravings!