Refreshments for Little Old Ladies - Cappuchino Cake Balls

D

diawhite

Enthusiast Member
I have been reading oldies and must respond to the thread a couple of years ago concerning refreshments or food for older ladies. I frequently attend or host meetings for women. I used to be one of the younger, but fortunately we have a number of new, younger members.

My friends, some of whom are up into their 90s, will eat almost anything. Melissa Dallas, my daughter, once related that I make Paula Deen's Bacon Crisp recipe. They loved them! Only one member has said she could not eat something because of diabetes.

Well, Saturday is my day; one thing I am serving are little cappuchino cake balls. I used a yellow butter cake mix and added 3 T. of espresso powder to the dry ingredients and followed the recipe on the box other than that, including baking time. When warm, not hot, I crumbled it and added an icing made of:

1 ( 3oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup ( 1 stick) butter or margarine,

softened

1 Tbsp. espresso powder

1/4 cup milk

1 lb. package confectioners sugar

In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Dissolve the instant espresso in milk. Add confectioner's sugar to cream cheese mixture alternately with milk mixture, beating 1-2 minutes or until blended. If you feel the icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar, or more milk if too stiff. Chill dough and then make into balls. I used a small cookie scoop to make them uniform size. At this point I froze the dough. Later this week, I will melt a package of the Guittard Cappuchino Chips in top of double boiler and add 2 t. butter to make it a little smoother. In my trial run I did not use the butter and the cakes "grabbed" too much coating.

Now, I need to decide what next.

 
WELCOME!! that is so funny that you made these -- see my previous post >>>

The original recipe is done with red velvet cake, but I couldn't find it at the time so chocolate it was... this is my hubby's VERY favorite thing to eat - sans coating. He was eating the little balls almost as fast as I could form them.

You must be in my "little old ladies" group smileys/smile.gif I'm doing the tea for my group this Tuesday (yes, some in their 90's), and I swear those women - even for all their ills and complaints - will practically pick up the plates and lick them clean.

http://eat.at/swap/forum/index.php?action=display&forumid=1&msgid=77234

 
A big hit at one tea I did for them, was fruit on skewers. Something about the size and portability

This time I'm doing the caprese skewers posted here. SO easy and will be pretty. Besides that, I'm doing tea sandwiches with white bread and the filling is a brick of cream cheese mixed with finely shredded pickled beet. Makes a nice pink color (it's a Valentine's Day theme). Also making Cranberry Bliss Bars (posted here) and Cherry Tassies... recipe below, and pic attached.

Cherry Tassies
Dec. 2008 BH&G, pg 160

Ingredients

* 1-1/4 cups butter, softened
* 2-1/4 cups powdered sugar
* 1 tsp. baking powder
* 1/2 tsp. salt
* 1 tsp. peppermint extract
* 1 tsp. vanilla extract
* 1 egg
* 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 cup finely crushed striped round peppermint candies (about 18)
* 48 red maraschino cherries or liquor-flavored maraschino cherries with stems, drained
* Coarse sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high for 30 seconds. Gradually beat in 1-1/2 cups of the powdered sugar, the baking powder and salt. Beat in peppermint extract, vanilla, and egg. Beat in as much of the flour as you can; stir in remaining flour and candies.

2. Place remaining 3/4 cup powdered sugar in a shallow dish. Shape dough in 1-inch balls; roll in powdered sugar. Press each ball into the bottom and sides of a 1-3/4-inch muffin cup.

3. Place cherry, stem side up, in each cup (don't press it in - the dough bakes up around it). Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until pastry is browned. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. Cool 5 minutes in pan. Carefully transfer to rack to cool completely.

4. To store: Place tassies in a single layer in a covered airtight container. Store at room temperature up to 24 hours or refrigerate up to 3 days. Return to room temperature before serving. Makes 48 tassies.

5. Kitchen tip: Find whiskey-flavored cherries, labeled Tipsy Cherries, in gourmet sections of food stores or online.

http://www.finerkitchens.com/swap/forum/index.php?action=display&forumid=1&msgid=104706

 
Welcome diawhite...

when your daughter speaks Tex-Mex...I listen! Glad to see you here, and welcome.

 
Yes, welcome - do you still need more ideas for another dessert?

I love the sound of your cappa balls, by the way! Thanks for posting that recipe.

 
Cappuchino Cake Balls

Thanks for the welcome. I have posted a couple of times and read it regularly. You are a nice group of people with great ideas.

 
Bemused by all the concern re: 80+ ladies. I'm 82 and I eat practically everything

except cilantro (like to let that dig in every chance I get). In fact I eat many things my much younger relatives and friends don't. I reached the limit this summer when I volunteered to make a red sauce for pasta for a whole group. Of course a couple of them were "allergic" to garlic (which I don't believe because they eat chinese and italian food in restaurants), However,to give the sauce some taste, as most meats were verboten for one or another of the group, I decided to use onion, at which point the garlic-allergic one decided onion upset her stomach too! I guess she didn't quite dare to be allergic to it. So, please, age has nothing to do with it!!

 
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