Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet ~ Recipe Needed!!

I just made one for Pinewood Derby.

I used a cake mix, and made two 8" round cakes.
I cut the middle out of both with a glass
Out of one of the o's I cut a small wedge
I put the two Os' together so that it looked like an 8 then decorated it to look like a racetrack. I used black and yellow icing
I used matchbox cars on top and a small black and white flag we made out of graph paper and a toothpick.

This isn't a recipe per se, but one year for our bake sale auction I made cakes in the shape of big Legos and added a Lego key chain. I used cake mixes and made two rectangular cakes. Then I made some cupcakes (might have been mini size; don't recall). The rectangular cakes I turned upside down, the cupcakes went on top (as many as needed for whatever Lego piece look you want) and were attached with toothpicks. Then I frosted the whole thing so it looked like a big Lego. I made two, but put them both on the same tray. You could use food coloring to make a blue one and a yellow one for the Blue and Gold theme. I don't remember what it sold for, but it was definitely popular.

We did this last yr and made pretty good money. I can't think of anything truly special but last yr our banquet was right before Valentines (it isn't this year :( ) and heart shaped cakes and cupcakes decorated for valentines went really well..also cookies with perhaps valentine colored M and Ms are Valetine colored icing and sprinkles. It is good to bring 2 or 3 items. Make batches of cookies/cupcakes in I/2 and whole dozens because some people don't want as much...I found a coffee stredal cake mix @ Aldi's that I made..I think it only cost about $2...and the cake sold for $25! Presentation ..like colored saran wrap if Valentined themed or not helps something inexpensive and not as "special" like a batch of oatmeal raison cookies look more special and worth more. The more items u have the more you will probably make. I hate that our banquet this yr is on Friday evening instead of Saturday...because I baked all Saturday morning..this time I am gonna try to figure out when to fit it in :) Our scouts are required to help...there is a badge or something for that too ;)

Here's a recipe that I've used for dessert auctions. It is very tasty, easy and brings in some big $ because it looks so fancy. I used mini peanut butter cups (about 1/2" in diameter) that I purchased at Sprouts. To make it even easier and more economical, you could purchase a Jello peanutbutter cheesecake mix and add 8 oz. of cream cheese to the filling mix. I would probably use 2 mixes just to make it bigger. The mixes are around $4 each at Walmart. Good Luck and have fun. Be sure to take your checkbook to the auction...J.

Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake

CRUST:
1 ¼ c. graham cracker crumbs
¼ c. crushed oreo’s
¼ c. sugar
6 T. butter melted
¾ c. peanut butter

FILLING:
3-8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1 c. sugar
1 c. sour cream
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 ½ tsp. vanilla
1 c. hot fudge ice cream topping, divided
6 Reece’s cut into small wedges

In a bowl, combine cracker crumbs, cookie crumbs, sugar and butter. Press onto bottom and 1” up the sides of a greased 9” spring form pan. Place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 7-9 minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack. In a microwave safe bowl, heat peanut butter on high for 30 seconds or until softened. Spread over crust to within 1” of edges.

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar and sour cream until smooth. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Stir in vanilla. Pour 1 cup into a bowl; set aside. Pour remaining filling over peanut butter layer.

In a microwave safe bowl, heat ¼ cup fudge topping on high for 30 seconds or until thin; fold into reserved cream cheese mixture. Carefully spoon over filling; cut through with a knife to swirl.

Place pan on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until center is almost set. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.

Microwave remaining fudge topping for 30 seconds or until warmed; spread over cheesecake. Garnish with peanut butter cups. Refrigerate overnight. Remove sides of pan. Yield: 12-14 servings. (Do not use reduced fat or generic brands of peanut butter)

frosted brownies (without the nuts). Buy one of the 'Perfect Brownie' pans. Mix up a mix. Pour. Bake. The frost/ decorate each brownie.

You can also use cookie mix too. My favorites are sugar cookie and chocolate chip.

We have been going to the B&G Banquet for five years now and find that the biggest money making desserts are those with a Cub Scout theme. In the past we have made a Pinewood Derby cake-frosted numbered lanes, found mini flags and put cars on it. One year we borrowed a car cake pan and pretended it was a pinewood derby car and wrote our pack number on it. Anythin decorated blue and yellow is a huge hit. Also, you can buy cake decorating kits for around $5 at the grocery store. We bought a fishing set and frosted the cake with blue "water" then set the stage. We might do camping this year. And of course, let the boys help-it doesn't have to be perfect-mine are never even close! Good luck!

I know this isn't a cake, but I make decadent truffles every year for Christmas gifts. They are easy to make, but look so special (and are SO yummy!) I make them with various liqueors, but you can substitute extracts or even jam, but I've found the ganache a lot harder to scoop out into balls w/o liquor, maybe don't let it set up as long? My tips are in italics...I've perfected this process over the years. Despite what it sounds like, they are really easy to do, and they are done in separate steps, which is great when you have kids, lol. I make the ganache in the morning, scoop it out in the afternoon @ nap time, and coat them after the kids go to bed and hide them from my hubby (this is the most important step!!).

Chocolate Truffles

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2004

Cook Time: 5 min
Level: Intermediate
Yield: 30 to 35 truffles
Times:
Prep: 50 min
Inactive Prep: 2 hr 30 min
Cook: 5 min
Total: 3 hr 25 min


Ingredients
10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine, I use Ghiradelli 60% Cocoa chips
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1/4 cup brandy or other liquer, I use Cointreau (orange), Amaretto (almonds), Chambord (raspberry), Godiva (chocolate), Peach schnapps, Coconut rum, Starbucks Espresso, Cherry Brandy, Strawberry liqueor
1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa powder, finely chopped nuts, and/or toasted coconut, for coating truffles. To differentiate flavors, I use a different topping for each flavor, powdered sugar, chocolate jimmies, nonpariels, piped chocolate "R" for Rasp, etc.
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine, I use Nestle's semi-sweet
Directions
Ganache: Place the 10 ounces of chocolate and butter in a medium size glass mixing bowl. Microwave for 30 seconds. Remove and stir, and repeat this process 1 more time. Set aside.
Heat the heavy cream and corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat until simmering. Remove from the heat and pour the mixture over the melted chocolate mixture; let stand for 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, stir gently, starting in the middle of bowl and working in concentric circles until all chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth and creamy. Gently stir in the brandy. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour until firm.
Using a melon baller or cookie scoop, scoop chocolate onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and return to the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Make them a little bit smaller than bite-sized as they are super-rich and you still have to coat them with chocolate.
Place the cocoa powder, nuts, and/or toasted coconut each in its own dish and set aside.
In the meantime, place the 8 ounces of chocolate into a medium mixing bowl which is sitting on top of a heating pad lined bowl, with the heating pad set to medium. Depending on the heating pad, you may need to adjust the heat up or down. Stirring the chocolate occasionally, test the temperature of the chocolate and continue heating until it reaches 90 to 92 degrees F; do not allow the chocolate to go above 94 degrees F. If you do, the coating will not have a nice snap to it when you bite into the chocolate. Once you have reached the optimal temperature, adjust the heat to maintain it. I use a double boiler, I place about 1/2 the nestle's chips in the bowl, turn the heat on low and melt the chips. I turn off the heat and slowly add the other 1/2 of the chips....this skips the 'tempering' step which is too much work for me to do.
Remove the truffles from the refrigerator and shape into balls by rolling between the palms of your hands. Use powder-free vinyl or latex gloves, if desired.
Dip an ice cream scoop into the chocolate and turn upside down to remove excess chocolate. Place truffles 1 at time into the scoop and roll around until coated. Then place the truffle into the dish with either the cocoa powder, nuts or coconut. Move the truffle around to coat; leave truffle in the coating for 10 to 15 seconds before removing. In the meantime, continue placing the chocolate-coated truffles in the cocoa or other secondary coating. After 10 to 15 seconds, remove the truffle to a parchment lined sheet pan. Repeat until all truffles are coated. Allow to set in a cool dry place for at least 1 hour; or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Truffles are best when served at room temperature. Instead of the above, I use a take-out chopstick to spear the ganache ball and dip it into the melted chocolate. I wear gloves and with one finger, I spread the melted chocolate over the ganache ball while holding it with the chopstick (since it's still chilled, it should stay on the stick) and twirling the stick. When covered, I place it on a parchment lined cookie sheet, pull out the stick and using my gloved finger cover the hole with chocolate and sprinkle with the desired topping using a spoon.
Enjoy!!

I make a lot of cakes. The easiest, best cake is a triple chocolate indulgance. It's so easy and so good. I get the most requests for it.

1box devils food or any chocolate cake mix -mix batter according to package directions
Add 1 large envelope instant chocolate pudding
fold in half to 3/4 bag MINI chocolate chips. Be sure to get the minis.

Bake in a bundt pan preferably. Once cool you can ice with choclate icing or dust with powdered sugar and serve with strawberries. It's so sweet and fudgey it tastes like a giant brownie. You really dont need the icing, but if it's going to sit out a while, icing it will keep it moist. The bundt makes a beautiful presentation and it's great for buffet, because you can slice it and lay the slices over in a circle, domino style, for easy service. Fill the middle with fresh strawberries.