Milan Cookies/ Lengua de Gato

Milan Cookies

I finally found a great recipe for Lengua de Gato, or 'Cat's Tongues' over at Panlasang Pinoy's site.
They worked perfectly, for Milan cookies. They were not as much of a pain, as I thought they would be, and they turned out even better than, Pepperidge Farms.
It's really important, for the ingredients to be well incorporated, after each addition. This requires the dough to be beaten, for longer periods.

1/2cup softened butter
1/2cup sugar
2egg whites
1/2tsp. vanilla
1/4tsp. salt
1cup flour

Filling:
1/4cup milk chocolate chips
1/2tsp. shortening
1/4cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 375*F.
Beat the butter, until fluffy.
Gradually add the sugar, and beat 2-minutes.
Add the egg whites and beat 3-minutes.
Beat in the salt and vanilla.
Gradually add the flour, and beat 3-minutes more.
Line baking sheets with parchment.
Using a decorating bag, fitted with a large round tip, pipe 2-1/2 to 3-inch lengths of the dough, for each cookie.
Bake 8 to10-minutes, or until they are set, and just beginning to brown.
Slide the parchment onto a surface, to cool completely.

Pulse the walnuts, in a spice grinder, or food processor, until they are finely chopped. Set aside.
Heat the chocolate and shortening, in a small bowl, in a microwave, until melted, and smooth.
Using the back of a teaspoon, spread a layer of chocolate on the bottom  of one cookie. Dip the chocolate side, into the chopped nuts, set aside.
Spread a layer of chocolate, onto another cookie, and top the first one with it. Press gently.
Repeat for the rest of the cookies. This made 2-1/2 dozen sandwiches. But that will vary, depending on the size you make them.

Process the walnuts, until they are very fine.

You need a large decorating tip, The largest I had, was a Wilton # 199 open star tip. They still came out smooth.

Bake until the edges, are just beginning to color. Immediately slide the parchment, onto a surface to cool.

Coat with chocolate and walnuts.

Samoa Kiss Candy

Samoa Kiss Candy

I found a great recipe for Girl Scout Samoas,(Grouprecipes samoa cookies)doubled the caramel, to make it more like a candy. Then topped them with baking drops.

Ingredients:
3/4cup real butter
1cup sugar
1cup corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1tsp. vanilla
a bag of coconut-toasted
Baking drops- they're about the size of a Hersey's kiss, but you don't have to remove any foil.

Preparation:
Spread the coconut on two cookie sheets, bake at 350*F. until golden, stirring often. Cool.
In a heavy bottomed pot, melt the butter over a medium/low heat.
Add the sugar and corn syrup, stirring often, bring to a boil, and cook a full 3 minutes.
Add the condensed milk, stirring constantly. Clip a candy thermometer to the pan.
Cook until it reaches about 230*F, stirring often. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the vanilla and coconut.
Let it cool about 5-minutes, then drop 1Tbl. of the candy onto waxed paper and press a baking drop into the center. Continue the same way, for the rest of the candy.
Let them cool 20-minutes, and reshape by pressing in, on the edges, that have spread when it was hot.

Lemon Chicken Scaloppine

                                       Lemon Chicken Scaloppine


I used to cook Lemon chicken piccata, once in a while, until a few years ago I discovered this recipe, it is a much better version of that dish, but very easy to make.This recipe calls for pancetta but, I just sprinkle bacon, with  a tiny amount of fennel, nutmeg, black pepper and garlic powder, voila! "ghetto" pancetta. I picked up the ghetto phrase, from my sons, when they were teenagers, they would whip up something in the kitchen, and every dish they created, had ghetto for a prefix : "Ghetto peanut butter fudge" The funny thing is, we live in the country, out on the prairie, I guess, prairie pancetta would be more fitting. This recipe is supposed to be a copycat of TGI Friday's dish, but I've never had it, so I can't comment on that. I cook the pasta last, so it doesn't become overcooked or cold. Angel hair pasta cooks really fast. It also gets cold and sticky, really fast. I add a little water, when reheating leftovers, do re-hydrate it.

Ingredients:

For the scaloppine 
4 boneless chicken breasts- sliced into 2 thinner pieces and pounded flat.
1cup flour
1tsp. salt
1/4tsp. pepper
2 slices of bacon
oil for frying

For the sauce:
2 slices of bacon- diced
1Tbl. butter
2Tbl. capers
8oz. sliced fresh mushrooms
1small onion-minced
1tsp. minced garlic
juice of two lemons
1cups-dry white wine (I use pinot grigio)
3cups heavy cream with 1tsp. cornstarch dissolved in it
1can of artichoke hearts-chopped
1 lemon-sliced into wedges
1tsp.salt-actually I think I use more
1/4tsp. pepper

You'll also need:
12oz. angel hair pasta

Preparation:
For the scaloppine, Whisk together the flour, salt and pepper in a bowl.
Fry the bacon until crisp. Remove the bacon, leaving the drippings in the pan. add about 1/2inch of oil to the drippings. Heat on medium.
Dredge the chicken through the flour, shaking off any excess, and fry until golden brown, on both sides. (Cover and keep warm) Make the sauce.

In a large saucepan, fry the diced bacon, on medium, until crisp. Add the butter and capers and fry 1 minute.
Add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic. Fry until the bottom of the pan, begins to brown, quickly add the wine and lemon juice, to de-glaze the pan.
Cook until the wine has nearly evaporated, about 5 minutes.
Add the cream, lemon wedges and artichokes. Salt and pepper to taste, You'll need quite a bit to offset the lemon. Cook until the sauce thickens a bit, about 5 minutes.
Cook the pasta according to package directions.
I prefer to dip the chicken in the sauce, and set aside, then add the remainder of the sauce to the pasta.
Or you could Serve the pasta, topped with the sauce  place the chicken on top adding a bit more sauce if you like. I've also cut up the chicken, then added it to the sauce.

        I slice the partially frozen chicken in half, to make two thinner slices.

Once it's thawed, pound it flat between two pieces of plastic. I've found, a gallon storage bag works best, less messy too.

                           Fry until golden brown. Cover and keep warm.

Fry the bacon, butter and capers. Add the mushrooms, onion and garlic. Fry until the liquid has evaporated, and the bottom of the pan begins to form a brown glaze. Quickly add the wine and lemon juice. Cook until the wine has nearly evaporated. Add the cream, lemon wedges and artichokes.

Cook until the sauce thickens a bit. About 5 minutes. Cook the pasta. I dip the chicken in the sauce, then add the remainder of the sauce to the pasta, and serve the chicken on top. But You could serve it any way you prefer.

I chased my 1year old grandson Shaun, out of the kitchen, several times. I was making the sauce, and turned around, to find him sleeping on the floor behind me. Poor little guy, I guess I was taking too long. He's sleeping on an inflated plastic toy, it must have been comfy.









 

I'm attempting to imitate Arby's Roast Beef

The flavor is really close to roast beef,  I was really happy with the results. I even got a "OMG" out of Aaron.
 

Every now and then, I get a craving, for Arby's roast beef. I love it plain, with no sauce. Once the craving starts, it doesn't go away, until I have one.

I've had this idea, for quite some time now, but I've not had the courage to attempt it. So, here we go, into uncharted territory (again). The only thing I have to go on is, Arby's uses a pressed loaf, made of beef and ground beef, that is baked for three hours, I taste a hint of, celery, garlic and onion in their loaf, and I can imitate their horsey sauce, pretty well. That's about it.

I learned a little, about making a pressed meat, style loaf, when I was playing around with Gyros , but this will have to be more moist, than that recipe. I'm not expecting to get this anywhere near their texture, or color. I don't have a meat slicer anymore, but, I can live with thicker slices, so long as I can get close to the flavor. Maybe, I could grate the finished loaf.

Ingredients:

For the beef:
2lbs. round steak-cut into small cubes
2 staks of celery
1 onion-whole, peeled
8cups water
2lbs. ground chuck
1tsp.salt
1tsp.celery salt
1/2tsp. garlic powder
1tsp. onion powder
2tsp. brown sugar
1/4-cup reserved broth-plus another cup to marinate the loaf.

You'll also need:
Kaiser Rolls-toasted
Horsey sauce and/or BBQ sauce

Horsey sauce:
1/4cup real Mayonnaise
4tsp. prepared horseradish
1tsp sugar
Combine and chill.

Sweet Mild BBQ sauce:
1/4cup ketchup
2Tbl. corn syrup
1/4tsp. garlic powder
1/4tsp. onion powder
1/4tsp. Worcestershire sauce
Combine and chill.

Preparation:
Boil the steak, celery, and onion, in the water, until it becomes very tender, about 1-1/2 hrs. Cool. Reserve the broth.(I ended up with 2-1/2 cups) Discard the celery and onion. Shred the steak.(I just rubbed it between my fingers)
In a large bowl, combine, the shredded beef, 1/4cup of the reserved broth, and all other beef ingredients.
Knead the loaf for several minutes, until it has a smooth texture.
Shape it into two loaves, put them back in the bowl, pour another cup of the reserved broth, over the top.
Cover and refrigerate overnight. I covered and refrigerated the leftover broth, to keep any leftover roast beef moist.
Make the sauces, and refrigerate.
Preheat the oven to 350*
Put the loaves into 2 loaf pans.
Put the loaf pans into a large roasting pan. (like a turkey roaster) Fill the roaster 1/2 full of water.
Bake for 2hours, or until the juices run clear.
Remove the loaf pans from the water bath. Cool completely.
Slice the Beef, and pour the remaining broth over the slices.
Toast the buns. We added the beef, to the toasted bun, then microwaved 30 second, before adding the sauce.

Boil the steak, celery, and onion, in 8 cups of water for 1-1/2 hrs or until tender. I cubed the steak to cut down on cooking time, and hopefully it will shred finer, this way.

Shred the cooled beef, as fine as possible. Add 1/4cup of reserved broth, and all other beef ingredients. Knead, until the loaf has a smooth texture.

I shaped it into 2 loaves, ( I'll be cooking this in two loaf pans-in a water bath.) and poured 1 cup of the reserved broth over them. Cover and refrigerate. I'm hoping the broth will be absorbed, creating a moist loaf. But, I might have a mushy mess. We'll see tomorrow. I think I'm on the right track, as far as the spices are concerned, this actually smells like Arby's.

Next day, something unexpected happened: About 1/2 the liquid was absorbed. I removed one of the loaves, and it was more solid, than when I put it in the bowl. Hmm.. can't wrap my mind around that one. If anyone knows the answer, I'd be grateful to hear it.

I had planned to press them into the pans, to make them smooth and dense. But, since they kind of solidified, that was out. I put them in a roasting pan, and filled the roaster 1/2 full of water. I learned from making gyros, the water bath makes the loaves moist, and inhibits browning.

It was grainier that what I had hoped for, a lot of crumbling. But I preferred the texture of the crumbled pieces, on my sanwich. I think I'll grate it next time. I poured the remaining 1-1/4 cups of reserved broth over the sliced beef. That really improved the texture! Kind of like a Poor Boy. (My next project.)

Toast the Buns. We put the beef on the toasted buns, popped them into the microwave, for 30 seconds, then added the sauce.

They weren't spot on, of course, but really tasted great, I don't plan to alter the recipe. Although I'm going to try this spice combination on shredded roast, 50% round and 50% chuck.

10 minute Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

                                 10 minute Chocolate-Peanut Butter Bars

The secret to making these (or any similar recipe) taste like Reese's is... Salt. Reese's peanut butter cups are loaded with it. You could add even more than what I use, in this recipe.

Ingredients:

Peanut butter layer:
1cup peanut butter
1tsp. salt
1/2tsp. vanilla
2cups confectioners sugar
water-(up to 1Tbl.)

Chocolate layer:
12oz. milk chocolate chips
1Tbl. peanut butter ( it gives the chocolate a fudge-like texture)

Preparation:
Stir together, the peanut butter, salt, and vanilla, in a bowl.
Add all the sugar, stirring in as much as possible, then knead in the rest.
At this point no two batches, I make, are the same. They are usually, a bit dry, so I add 1tsp.of water at a time, until it is about the texture of play-doh.(neither crumbly or sticky)
Press the mixture, evenly, into a small baking, or casserole dish, about 9x7 or 9x9. Set aside.
Add the ingredients for the chocolate layer, to a microwave safe bowl.
Heat 30-60 seconds, to melt the chocolate. Stir to combine.
Using a rubber spatula, spread the chocolate, evenly, over the  peanut butter layer.
Refrigerate 30 minutes. Cut into fudge sized pieces, when the chocolate is firm.

Soft Oatmeal Spice Cream Pies- using Raisin Puree

                    Oatmeal Cream Pies- Help! I can't stop eating them.

I have noticed, over the years, that my two favorite oatmeal cookie packages have an ingredient called raisin paste, I've tried to find it at the grocer and on the internet, no luck. So I decided to add a little boiling water to raisins and puree them in the blender, then altered my oatmeal cookie recipe, so I wouldn't wind up with a flat, oatmeal, disk thingee.
Then I noticed on the snack cake package that there was molasses and cocoa. (OK, I had a couple of those too... it was for the sake of science!)
The cream filling I used was fluffier than the packaged ones. I added more confectioners sugar. (I think they use a butter-cream without butter, only shortening, just a guess, I'll try it next time.) But these were so good, I don't think the texture of the filling mattered in the least.
They came out a bit spicier than I had intended, but my family told me not to change a thing. (while they were devouring the last of my precious-es)
They were snatching these up as fast as I could fill them, so I'm not sure how many this recipe makes, but apparently... not enough.  At least a dozen filled pies.

Ingredients;

Raisin puree:
1cup raisins
1/2cup boiling water
1Tbl. molasses
1Tbl. light corn syrup

You'll also need:
1/2 cup butter-softened
1 cup brown sugar
1tsp vanilla
1 egg
1-1/2 cups flour
1tsp. baking soda
1/4tsp salt
1/4tsp. cloves
1/2tsp. cocoa
1/2tsp. cinnamon
1tsp. allspice
2cups oats- I used old fashioned

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350*
Add the raisins to a small bowl and pour the boiling water over it. Set aside to cool.
In another bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Set aside.
Put the raisin mixture in the blender and add the molasses and corn syrup. Puree.
In another bowl, beat the butter and sugar, until fluffy.
Add the egg and vanilla, beat about 1 minute.
Add the raisin puree and beat to combine.
Add the flour mixture a little at a time, beating until well combined.
Stir in the oats.
Drop 1tbl. at a time onto a greased cookie sheet.
Bake until the edges are just beginning to brown, cool a few minutes, remove from the cookie sheet.
Cool completely before filling.

               Raisins pureed with boiling water, molasses and corn syrup.

Cream filling:

2cups marshmallow creme
1/2-cup shortening
1cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Instructions
Add the salt to the hot water, and mix to dissolve.
Beat all other ingredients on high, until fluffy.
Add the cooled salt solution and mix.
Spread between cooled cookies.

Alice Springs Chicken

                    Alice Springs Chicken-like The Outback Steakhouse

With the temperatures soaring into the upper 90's and low 100's all this week, It's going be a week of outdoor grilling and quick meals. Although, I don't need that excuse to make this favorite.
In the winter I pan grill the chicken, then melt the cheese in the oven.

Ingredients:
For the honey-mustard marinade:
1/2 cup real mayonnaise
1/4cup honey
2tbl. dijon mustard

You will also need:
a storage bag
4 boneless chicken breasts-thawed
6 slices bacon- chopped
2Tbl.butter
1-8oz. package fresh mushrooms sliced
8oz. shredded Monterey jack or Colby-jack cheese

Preparation:
Whisk together, the marinade ingredients 
Place the chicken between 2 pieces of plastic, and pound to flatten a bit.
Pour half of the Honey mustard marinade in the storage bag along with the chicken.
Remove the air from the bag and refrigerate overnight.
Cover and refrigerate the remaining marinade to use for a serving sauce.

While the grill is warming, fry the bacon in a skillet until crisp.
Drain the bacon on a paper towel.
Fry the mushrooms in the butter, until the juices have evaporated. Set aside.

Grill the chicken until cooked through.
Place the chicken in a metal baking pan, top with mushrooms, bacon and smother each piece with the cheese. I reserve a little bacon to sprinkle over the cheese.
Put the baking pan on the grill, close the lid and cook, until the cheese melts and becomes gooey.
Drizzle with the remaining honey mustard sauce. Serve.

Firecracker sesame chicken and pasta

         Firecracker sesame chicken and pasta-Very close to T.G.I. Friday's.

I usually leave out the chicken and serve this as a super-fast side dish.
I love this Szechuan sauce. I even use it as a dipping sauce for naan bread, shrimp, steak... Sweet and Spicy.
Once I used 2 packages of Ramen noodles (minus the spice packet) in a pinch. Worked great! This is a bit on the hot side, but not ridiculously so.
You could also use a batter for your chicken and fry it first.
(I use the marinade/batter for General Tso's favorite chicken )

Ingredients:
12oz. pasta - such as fettuccine, linguini, udon, lo mein - cooked
1Tbl.oil
5 dried bird clilies
1Tbl. minced garlic
1tsp. pureed ginger
2 boneless chicken breast - cut into bite sized pieces

For the sauce:
1/4cup rice wine
3/4cup sweet chilli sauce-or- Homeade sweet chili sauce
1Tbl.chili garlic sauce -or- Homemade chili garlic sauce
1tsp. Kikkoman soy sauce
1tsp.sesame oil
2Tbl.  sesame seeds

Preparation:
Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a bowl.
Heat the oil in a skillet (very hot) and add the chilies, garlic and ginger.
Stir-fry 10 seconds then add the chicken. Stir-fry until chicken is cooked through.
Add the sauce to the pan and cook,stirring until the sauce thickens.
Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. Toss to coat and serve

                         Mix the sauce ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.

Stir-fry the garlic, chilies and ginger for 10 seconds, then add the chicken.

Once the chicken has cooked through, add the sauce. Cook a few minutes more until thickened, then add drained pasta. Toss to coat.

Sweet Onion Salad Dressing

Sweet Onion Salad Dressing - Really close to Ken's Steakhouse Sweet Vidalia dressing

I have been working on this for 2 years, finally got it. Not only is it a great salad dressing, but also good in recipes. Sweet onion teriyaki wraps

Ingredients:

For the caramelized onion 
1 small yellow onion- diced
1Tbl. butter

You will also need
6Tbl. salad oil
5Tbl. cider vinegar
4Tbl sugar
2Tbl honey
2Tbl. water
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. poppy seeds
1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
1 tsp. celery seed

Preparation:

Melt the butter in a sauce pan on a very low flame.
Add the onion and cook, stirring, until caramelized. Cool.
Add the onions and all other ingredients to a blender.
Pulse a few times, then blend about 5 minutes.
Chill before serving.

                              Caramelized onion- It takes about 15 minutes.

Montreal Seasoning

                                                       Montreal Seasoning
You must try this imitation of 'Grill Mates' Montreal seasoning. It's not spot on, but really good.

Ingredients:
4tsp. salt
1tsp black pepper
1tsp. grated orange peel
1tsp. grated lemon peel
1tsp. paprika
1tsp. thyme
1tsp. rosemary
2tsp garlic powder
1tsp onion powder

In a spice grinder ( or use a mortar and pestle)
Add 
1 tsp. coriander
1/2tsp fennel seeds
1tsp bell pepper flakes- or red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp caraway seeds
Grind just long enough to crush.

Add all ingredients to a resealable bag. shake to mix well.
This can be used on any grilled or baked meats.

Raspberry Liqueur/Brandy

Raspberry Liqueur/Brandy

Ingredients:
2 sterile 1quart mason jars
2cups fresh raspberries- preferably 1/2-red and 1/2-black
1cup brandy
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
Two-1/2inch pieces of vanilla bean

vodka

Preparation:
In a sauce pan. Add sugar,honey, crushed berries and vanilla bean.
Simmer for 5 min. Cool. Stir in the brandy.
Divide between the jars and fill with vodka. Seal with caps and lids.
Age for at least 1 month, 3 months is better. Strain. Pour into a bottle.
I leave the vanilla in the bottle, it seems to deepen the flavor.

Cream De Menthe Liqueur

Cream De Menthe Liqueur

Ingredients:
2 sterile 1quart mason jars
1/2 cup water
2tbl. imitation spearmint or peppermint extract
Two-1/2inch pieces of vanilla bean
2cups sugar
vodka
1tbl. green food coloring (optional)

Preparation:
In a sauce pan. Add sugar, water and vanilla bean.
Simmer for 5 min. Cool. Add the mint extract and stir well.
Divide between the jars and fill with vodka. Seal with caps and lids.
Age for at least 2 weeks, 2 months is better. Pour into a bottle.
I leave the vanilla in the bottle, it seems to deepen the flavor.

Orange Sec Liqueur

Orange Sec Liqueur

Ingredients:

2 sterile 1quart mason jars
1/2 cup water
1/2 bottle imitation orange extract
Two-1/2inch pieces of vanilla bean
2cups sugar
vodka

Preparation:
In a sauce pan. Add sugar, water and vanilla bean.
Simmer for 5 min. Cool. Add the orange extract and stir well.
Divide between the jars and fill with vodka. Seal with caps and lids.
Age for at least 2 weeks, 2 months is better. Pour into a bottle.
I leave the vanilla in the bottle, it seems to deepen the flavor.

80 Bananas Liqueur

80 Bananas Liqueur
No one will leave this alone long enough to age.
You might have to hide it. This tastes better than the name brand.

Ingredients:
2 sterile 1quart mason jars
1/2 cup water
1/2 bottle imitation banana extract
Two-1/2inch pieces of vanilla bean
2cups sugar
vodka

Preparation:
In a sauce pan. Add sugar, water and vanilla bean.
Simmer for 5 min. Cool. Add the banana extract and stir well.
Divide between the jars and fill with vodka. Seal with caps and lids.
Age for at least 2 weeks, 2 months is better. Pour into a bottle.
I leave the vanilla in the bottle, it seems to deepen the flavor.

Peach Liqueur/ Schnapps

Peach Liqueur/ Schnapps
It is traditional to include the stone, when making peach schnapps

Ingredients:
2-Sterile 1quart mason jars
2 large or 4 small very ripe fresh peaches-peeled( homegrown is best)
1cup sugar
Two-1/2inch pieces of vanilla bean
Vodka

Preparation:
In a sauce pan.
Add the peaches cut up, include the stone, vanilla bean and sugar.
Simmer for 5 minutes. Cool. Divide all between the jars and fill with vodka.
Seal with caps and lids.This must be aged for at least 1 month, preferably 3 months.
Strain, and bottle.

Coffee Liqueur

Coffee Liqueur
This is better than the name brands.

Ingredients:
2 sterile 1quart mason jars
2 cups strong brewed coffee
Two-1/2inch pieces vanilla bean
2 cups sugar
Vodka or Rum

Preparation:
In a saucepan, add coffee, sugar and vanilla beans.
Simmer for 5 minutes. Cool.
Dived vanilla beans and syrup between the mason jars and fill with vodka.
Add lids and caps. Seal. Allow to age for at least 2 weeks. 2 months is better.
Shake occasionally while aging. Pour into the bottle you've chosen to serve it in.
I leave the vanilla bean in the bottle, your choice.

Maracshino Cherry Liqueur

Maraschino Cherry Liqueur
I used to make liqueurs. Most were better than the name brands.
This was a particular favorite.
I double this recipe and use a 1 gallon pickle jar ( no pun intended )

Ingredients:
2-1quart  sterile canning jars
1 jar maraschino cherries and their liquid
Two-1/2 inch pieces of a vanilla bean (don't omit this)
1cup sugar
Fifth of vodka
1cup brandy

Preparation:

In a large saucepan.
Add cherries, vanilla bean and sugar. Simmer for 5 minutes. Cool.
Add the brandy to the cooled cherries. Stir.
Divide the cherries, syrup and vanilla bean between the mason jars and fill with vodka.
Add the caps and lids. Seal. Allow it to age at least 2 weeks.
2 months is better. shake occasionally, while aging.
Strain, and add the the bottle of your choice.

Snowball Cake

Snowball Cake
So very close to that famous snack cake.

Ingredients:
1 devils food cake mix- or any type chocolate cake
1 recipe creme filling  Creme Filling
1/2 bag flaked coconut
3/4 bag miniature marshmallows
a few drops red food coloring

Preparation:
Add the coconut to a small bowl. Drop in a little red food coloring.
Mix well. Set aside. Bake a two layer cake according to box directions.Cool
Make the creme filling. Spread the filling over the bottom layer. Top with second layer.
In a bowl, add the marshmallows.
Heat for 30-60 second in the microwave, or until you can mix them with a spoon to form a creme.
Spread over entire cake. Top with the coconut. Press the coconut into the sides of the cake.
It's funny how many people say they don't like coconut, but love this cake.

Moist Chocolate Coconut Almond Cookie

Moist Chocolate Coconut Almond Cookie
Very similar to that famous candy. Wink
If you don't feel like a nut, omit the almond and use dark chocolate instead.

Ingredients:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
3 cups flaked coconut
1tsp. vanilla
a dash of salt
whole almonds- how much, is your preference
4 chocolate bars or an equal amount of milk chocolate chips

Preparation:
Heat oven to 350*
In a double boiler, heat the milk. This will thin it a bit, so it's easier to add the coconut.
Add the coconut, vanilla and salt. Mix well.
Spread the mix onto a cookie sheet and top with almonds.
Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until firm. Remove from oven.
While still warm top with chocolate.
Wait a few minutes then spread the chocolate evenly over cookie.
Cool. Cut into bars.