More on Liz's Birthday-Devil's Food Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Birthday Cake!

This is the second dessert I made for Liz's birthday.

A birthday requires cake.

As Julia Child once said,

(photo taken from Pinterest)

So, cake it is.

Not just any cake.

Devil's Food Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Birthday Cake!

This looks great!

I had previously mixed up a devil's food chocolate cake from a box mix.

I dusted the cake pans with cocoa powder instead of flour,
since I was not frosting the sides of the cake.

Bake according to package directions.

After the cake had cooled, I placed a layer on a plate.
I had some raspberry preserves,
so I spread that over the top to keep the cake moist.

We combined fresh raspberries and frozen whipped topping.

Aiden was my sous chef to help make his mom's special cake.

Aiden spread half of the whipped topping mixture over the first cake layer.

Then we added the second layer and spread the raspberry preserves.

More whipped topping mixture.

Time for a sample.

I had some chocolate ganache in my freezer.
I microwaved it until we could drizzle it over the cake.
What is ganache?

Ganache - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ganache (/ ɡ ə ˈ n ɑː ʃ /; from the French word for "jowl") is a glaze, icing, sauce, or filling for pastries made from chocolate and cream.

You can click on this link from my blog on Gail & Yatzi's Wedding Cake
for the steps in making ganache.
It is harder to figure out how to say ganache than it is to make it.

Method for making ganache

Then, add a few more fresh raspberries over the top.

Oh, yes... one more layer of chocolate ganache.

Family Fun on the patio...

A few rain sprinkles, but we weathered them.

Happy Birthday to Liz!

A great kick off to the summer!

Celebrating Liz's Birthday- Pink Lemonade Icebox Pie

You will detect a definite lemonade flavor in this refreshing pie.

Another birthday and another celebration.

Our family is growing so much that I basically have a reason to bake a cake at least 

two times a month.

I love to bake cakes and desserts.

So, I made two desserts.

This is the first one...

Pink Lemonade Icebox Pie

Since the weather has been getting hot, I wanted to make a cool,

refreshing dessert

with frozen lemonade in pie form.

It is an easy 5 ingredient fix, and tastes as good as it looks.

This is a 5 star recipe from Taste of Home magazine

submitted by Cheryl Wilt.

I made a modification, but it is the same basic recipe.

I used pink lemonade for my recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup thawed lemonade concentrate
• 1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
• Red food coloring, optional
• 1 graham cracker crust (9 inches)
  

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and milk until smooth. Beat in lemonade concentrate. Fold in whipped topping and, if desired, food coloring. Pour into crust. Cover and refrigerate until set.

This couldn't be easier or more refreshing on a warm, almost summer day.

 5 ingredients:

Cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, lemonade concentrate,

frozen whipped topping, &  graham cracker pie crust.

 In a large bowl beat cream cheese and milk until smooth.

 Beat in the lemonade concentrate.

 Add a couple of drops of food coloring, if desired.

 Fold in the whipped topping.

 Pour into graham cracker crust.

 Refrigerate or freeze until ready to serve.

High and fluffy, 

this dessert has a creamy smooth consistency.

Family Photo Gallery...

Moon Flower

Liz's birthday is on the 27th.
We are celebrating a day after her birthday.
There were a few sprinkles, but we kept the party on the patio.

Happy birthday, Liz!

Next recipe is for Liz's birthday cake.

Devil's Food Raspberry Chocolate Ganache Birthday Cake!

Paul Simon- Old Friends

Sheila and I went to see

Paul Simon!

I think this tour across North America is a result of his release on June 3rd.

Stranger to Stranger

Paul Simon’s artful and vital new album of 11 songs.

He has been one of my favorite artists since my college days.
I remember listening to his hit song,
"Bridge Over Troubled Waters" in 1970 when I was at Tarkio College in Missouri.
At that time, he was part of the duo, Simon & Garfunkel.
That is how I remember him from the music that shaped my generation.

And we all remember the hit movie, The Graduate, with Dustin Hoffman.
Who can forget Mrs. Robinson?
 In 1967 their music was a key ingredient in the success of that hit film.

Waiting...

I was trying to think how old Paul Simon was.

He is 10 years older than I am.

Paul Simon was born October 13, 1941 in Newark, New Jersey.

Now you know.

As a teenager Simon teamed up with his classmate from Queens,

 New York, Art Garfunkel, to form Simon and Garfunkel (first known as Tom and Jerry). 

Beginning with “The Sounds of Silence,”

 they were the most popular folk-pop duo of the 1960s 

and the musical darlings of literary-minded college-age baby boomers. 

One of Simon’s best narrative songs, “The Boxer” (1969),

 is the streamlined dramatic monologue of a down-and-out prizefighter.

The concert was a mix of old and new.

Simon closed his concert with "Old Friends."

What a fitting end to a stroll back in time, at least for me, to the '60's.

Lyrics from Old Friends:

Can you imagine us years from today

Sharing a park bench quietly?

How terribly strange to be seventy

Old friends, memory brushes the same years

Silently sharing the same fears

Read more: Simon And Garfunkel - Old Friends Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

Among songwriters of his generation,
 Simon enjoyed one of the longest-lasting careers as a pop innovator.
Simon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.

I remember when Simon & Garfunkel broke up and went their separate ways.
I just couldn't remember why.
And I really didn't remember that they broke up in 1970.
That was basically when I first started really listening to their music and lyrics.
I like the stories they tell.

When the 1970's Bridge Over Troubled Water was a massive commercial and critical success,
 long-simmering creative differences between Simon and Garfunkel came to a head while making the album, and there was a proper breakup when Simon released his self-titled solo album in 1972.
 Paul Simon featured two hit singles, "Mother and Child Reunion"
 and "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard,"
http://www.allmusic.com/artist/paul-simon-mn0000031685/biography

So, now I am looking for a concert with Art Garfunkel.
And, Doug and I did find one not too far away, next year.
So, even though I won't see them performing together,

I can still see them.

Blog facts from above web sight and the following:
More on Paul Simon