Baking Like Sandra Lee

I absolutely love watching the Food Network!  I spend most of my free time reading cookbooks, food blogs while watching FN...okay maybe I'm just a little obsessive.  But for some reason...

drives me crazy.  Now I'm blonde and peppy but even I have my perky limits and somehow in less than thirty minutes Ms. Sandra Lee can push me to the edge.  Maybe it's the crazy tablescapes????

BUT I will admit that she has some good ideas and excellent tips/tricks for the busy family.  Her 70/30 rule is not for your snobbish foodie yet ideal for the busy mother trying to make a good meal for her family.  Today in the spirit of Sandra Lee I created a "semi homemade" Easter cake for my family dinner tomorrow evening.

Basically I took these: 

and made this:

It's my "semi homemade" Easter cake :) Now it looks pretty (not quite Ace of Cakes but pretty close) though I haven't tasted it yet.  But personally aesthetic appeal is much more important to taste.  It took me less than an hour to bake and decorate my cake thanks to the wise inspiration of Sandra Lee.

Spring (Easter) Cake

Cake Ingredients

• One cake mix box (I used Pillsbury Classic White)
• 4 egg whites
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1.25 cups water

Frosting Ingredients

• 8oz tub of Sugar Free Cool Whip
• 1 oz package of Fat Free Cream Cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar (I used Splenda...don't judge)
• 1 tsp sugar

Cake Decor:

• Food coloring
• Jellybeans
• Sprinkles

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F
2. Combine all cake ingredients in electric mixer and mix until smooth
3. Distribute batter evenly into 2 9 inch greased cake pans (I used cooking spray)
4. Use food color to dye cake batter (I did blue and yellow)
5. Cook for 30 minutes then use a toothpick to check if cakes are done baking
6. When done, remove from oven and let cool for ten minutes.  Then use dinner knife to loosen cake from pan and place cake on cooling rack.  Allow cake to cool to room temperature before frosting.
7. Combine all ingredients for frosting in electric mixer while cake is cooking and mix until smooth.  Add food coloring (I used red and blue to make pink).
8. When cakes are room temperature, frost cake.
9. Decorate cake with frosting, sprinkles, and jelly beans (or whatever you feel like)

Voila!  You've made a fabulous spring (easter) cake in less than thirty minutes.  And if you're feeling all fancy you can make more layers or even cupcakes.  I'd like to thank Sandra Lee again for making me feel okay for using pre-made almost everything (except those egg whites which are a pain...any tips???).  

I also took inspiration from this outfit to do my kitchen work 

Or not...I wore my ratty old PJs.  Why risk ruining such a wonderful outfit??