Easy Chocolate Sheet Cake and Frosting

Easy Chocolate  Sheet Cake and Frosting

cake:
1 box Devil’s food cake mix (I use Pillsbury)

1 large pkg instant sugar free chocolate fudge pudding

1-3/4 cup water

3 egg whites

frosting:

1-1/4 cup milk

1 small pkg instant sugar free chocolate fudge pudding

8 ounces whipped topping, thawed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dump cake mix, pudding, water, and egg whites in large bowl.  Beat on low until incorporated, then on medium for 2 minutes.   Pour into a greased jelly roll pan. Bake for 13-18 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool.

When cake is cool and you are ready to frost place milk and pudding in medium bowl and whisk for 2 minutes. Let set for at least 15 minutes.  Fold in whipped topping.  Slice cake and then frost cake. I used a frosting top to make designs on each slice of cake.  Keep in fridge until ready to serve.

Homemade Croutons

 Homemade Croutons

4 cups cubed bread, preferably starting to stale (I use my honey wheat bread)
2 Tablespoons (approximate) olive oil
salt or other seasoning of choice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put cubed bread in medium bowl, drizzle some of the olive oil, toss, drizzle rest on. If it is not coated as you like you can put a little more oil on but don't drench it.  If you want a little salt or other seasoning such as garlic or ranch then put it on here while the bread is wet.  Be sure to add a little, toss, then add more so your top pieces aren't what gets all the seasoning.

Dump onto cookie sheet and make sure they are in a single layer. Bake for 10 minutes, toss/turn.  Go an additional 5, toss/turn.  Taste one of the croutons if they are not nearly crunchy and aren't too brown you can throw them in for another 5 minutes.  You don't want burns croutons but you do want the moisture out so they last. They will completely firm up when they cool.

 Put into a plastic container with an airtight lid or a zip shut bag.

 You can us them on salads or soups. 

Bierrocks

There are two options for dough here.  You can use my recipe or you can buy frozen dough rolls at the store and thaw them.  My mom uses this method quite successfully.  If you use those you will get less meat in them that I put it or you could combine two of the balls to make a larger dough circle.

Bierrocks

1 cup warm water (120*)

2 teaspoons active dry yeast

2 Tablespoons sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 egg (beaten and use just 1/2)

2 Tablespoons butter, softened

3 to 3-1/2 cups flour

2 lbs ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

3 cups finely chopped cabbage

1-1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

6 slices American cheese

To make your own dough:  Mix together yeast, water, sugar, salt, egg, and butter. Add in most of the flour and mix. If you use your dough hook on your mixer you will add more flour in as it kneads and it will take 3-5 minutes. By hand you will knead 8-10 minutes. The dough starts out sticky but after kneading and incorporating the  flour it should be shiny and smooth. It shouldn't stick to your hands but shouldn't be dry and cracked either.  Place in large greased bowl turned dough over to coat. Cover and let rise 1 hour.

Meanwhile brown meat and onion.  I had some extra carrots so I threw them in too.  Drain as needed if it is very fatty.

Add cabbage, salt and pepper.  Cover and cook until cabbage is tender.  You may need to add a little water to keep mixture moist as you go.

Break your cheese slices into halves or quarters. You will use half a slice for each if you are making larger bierrocks as I do. Quarters if you are doing the frozen roll version.

Divide homemade dough into 12 pieces. Roll out fairly thin but not too thin that your hamburger mixture will poke through. Size is approximately 4-1/2 to 5". 

Using large cookie scoop (approx 1/4-1/3c) place hamburger mixture on the dough.

Top with cheese. (I learned that if you put the cheese first then meat it doesn't leak out! So flip flop your cheese and meat from these pictures.)

Pull up edges and pinch together.

Place pinched side down on greased cookie shieet.  Let rise for 15 minutes.

Bake at 350* for 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.  Any flour left on the dough can be brushed off with a pastry dough or... 

you can brush on a little butter. Look how they shine!

These are FREEZABLE!!  Freeze on a cooling rack and then put in a freezer gallon bag or vacuum seal bags.  To reheat place in a paper towel and microwave for 1 minute on 50% power, then flip and do the same.  I have not tried baking them to reheat.  I would be afraid the outside would get to crispy before the middle was hot.