February: The Month of Black History and Love

Throughout the month of February (until February 15th), I will be posting at least two Valentine's Day recipe.  Not everyone likes to go out to eat on Valentine's Day.  Some people actually like to prepare a nice cooked meal for their significant other.  I will also be posting a little fact about an African American who has influenced our country in some way or another.  So, lets get things started with our first Valentine's Day recipe (I am going to attempt this with my honey).  Happy cooking and eating everyone!

Recipe: Heavenly Lemon Angel Cake (Courtesy of Pampered Chef)

Ingredients:

5 drops of red food coloring

1 package of angel food cake mix (16oz)

3 Lemons

2 cups of powdered sugar

2 cups of thawed frozen fat-free whipped topping

1 package of frozen raspberries in syrup, thawed

**Items in BOLD are Pampered Chef tools that are used for this recipe (please contact me if you are interested in purchasing any Pampered Chef)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). For cake, add food coloring to amount of water specified on package. Prepare cake according to package directions. Pour batter into Rectangular Baker. Bake on center rack 35-40 minutes or until top is golden brown, cracked and center is slightly sunken. (Do not under bake.) Remove baker from oven; invert ontoStackable Cooling Rack. Without removing baker, let stand until completely cool (about 1 1/2 hours).
2. Poke holes in cake about 1 1/2 in. (4 cm) deep and 1/2 in. (1 cm) apart with large fork. Zest lemons using Zester/Scorer to measure 1 tbsp (15 mL) zest. Juice lemons usingJuicer to measure 1/3 cup (75 mL) juice. In Small Batter Bowl, combine sugar, juice and zest; whisk until smooth. Pour glaze over cake, spreading evenly. Let stand 30 minutes or until glaze is set.
3. Attach open star tip to Easy Accent® Decorator; fill with whipped topping. Garnish each serving with whipped topping; top with raspberries.

Black History Month: Sojourner Truth

When I was in middle school, I had to do a project on an African American who made a difference in our country.  Almost all of the girls were doing their project on Harriet Tubman or Maya Angelou (who are all very important), but I wanted to research someone we didn't commonly hear about.  I found a book about Sojourner Truth and knew she was the person I wanted to learn more about.  I even dressed like her for my presentation.  Here is a little information about her:

"Sojourner Truth was a prominent abolitionist and women's rights activist. Born a slave in New York State, she had at least three of her children sold away from her. After escaping slavery, Truth embraced evangelical religion and became involved in moral reform and abolitionist work. She collected supplies for black regiments during the Civil War and immersed herself in advocating for freed people during the Reconstruction period. Truth was a powerful and impassioned speaker whose legacy of feminism and racial equality still resonates today. She is perhaps best known for her stirring "Ain't I a Woman?" speech, delivered at a women's convention in Ohio in 1851."