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Pink Lemonade – A Refreshing Summertime Drink

Pink Lemonade…  So refreshing and perfect for summertime.  This month, my focus was on all of the wonderful things we can do with lemons – and we’re starting off with this delicious recipe for pink lemonade.  First, because it’s awesome – I love to mix up a pitcher, add just a touch of vodka, and have a “grown-up” afternoon by the pool.  Second, I use the ingredients from this pink lemonade recipe to create a pink lemonade cake next week!

I’ve made a pink lemonade cake in the past, and I wasn’t in love with it – first of all, one of the ingredients was frozen pink lemonade concentrate – Now, I just don’t understand the point of a scratch cake when you’re adding something like frozen concentrate or (and I know it makes me a baking snob) Jello.  This sent me on a quest to find out exactly what makes pink lemonade pink, anyway?

There are two schools of thought here – either strawberries or raspberries.  After doing a little research, the addition of raspberries seemed like the most authentic, and I knew they’d pair wonderfully with the lemon juice to make a pitcher full of pink lemony goodness!

This recipe makes a ton of raspberry simple syrup, which keeps quite nicely in an air tight container in the fridge.  This is a good thing, since we’ll need about 1/2 cup next week!

As a bonus this week, we’re also making candied lemon peels – you can make candied peels of nearly any citrus fruit and they’re great for garnishes and also for eating by themselves – I’ve made them for the Christmas holidays in the past, and they were a big hit!

This video contains the tutorial for the Raspberry Simple Syrup and also the Candied Lemon Peels – They were easy to make in the same tutorial so the same video will be posted on both recipes!


Print Recipe
Pink Lemonade
Pink Lemonade Recipe and Tutorial - Bake with Rho
Servings
Ingredients
Raspberry Simple Syrup
  • 6 oz Raspberries One little container
  • 2 cup Granulated Sugar
  • 2/3 cup Water
Lemonade
  • 6 cups Cold Water
  • 1 cup Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice About 7 medium lemons
  • 1 cup Raspberry Simple Syrup
  • Ice
Servings
Ingredients
Raspberry Simple Syrup
  • 6 oz Raspberries One little container
  • 2 cup Granulated Sugar
  • 2/3 cup Water
Lemonade
  • 6 cups Cold Water
  • 1 cup Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice About 7 medium lemons
  • 1 cup Raspberry Simple Syrup
  • Ice
Pink Lemonade Recipe and Tutorial - Bake with Rho
Instructions
Raspberry Simple Syrup
  1. Put the Raspberries, Sugar and Water in a saucepan and heat on medium-high.
  2. Heat to a boil, stirring occasionally.
  3. Simmer 10-12 minutes - the raspberries should just be falling apart.
  4. Pour the raspberry mixture through a fine strainer into a heat-proof bowl. Set aside to cool a bit.
  5. Once cool, place in an air tight container in the fridge to cool completely before making Lemonade (about 30 minutes to an hour)
Pink Lemonade
  1. Put one cup of raspberry simple syrup in a pitcher.
  2. Add the lemon juice.
  3. Add the water and fill with ice.
  4. Stir gently and serve.
Recipe Notes

I usually add about 3 jiggers of vodka to this recipe to make the adult version - Also, you can garnish with fresh raspberries or the candied lemon peels mentioned earlier!

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Simple, Delicious Modified Box Cake

In the first video, I demonstrate how to create a simple and delicious modified box cake.  This cake is moist and flavorful and has a great texture.  For those bakers who want a made from scratch taste this is a convenient way to go.  It’s also stackable, so if you’re planning a cake with more than one tier, this cake can withstand doweling and stacking with no problems!

This first video is definitely an example of how much Ana and I don’t know about production!  I was incredibly nervous, of course, but as the day went on we both got much more comfortable.  You’ll definitely see that in the other 4 videos posted in April.  I’m sure we’ve made some mistakes, but we’re in my kitchen, having some fun and hopefully getting you involved along the way!

In this, and in many recipes, I use Neilsen Massey Vanilla Bean Paste.  I’ve found the best place to get it is on Amazon.com and I’ve provided a handy link.  There’s nothing quite like seeing all of those lovely vanilla beans in cakes and frostings!

The recipe is posted directly below the video!  Please get involved by posting your comments, questions and requests for future demos either on this page or on Facebook.  We love to hear from you!

 


Print Recipe
Modified Box Cake
This cake is moist and flavorful and has a great texture. For those bakers who want a made from scratch taste this is a convenient way to go. It's simple and a great jumping off point for new bakers and those who are just starting decorating.
Bake with Rho - Simple, Delicious Modified Box Cake Demo
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Servings
party servings
Ingredients
  • 1 ea. Boxed Cake Mix I use Duncan Hines
  • 1 cup Flour
  • 1 cup Sugar
  • 1 dash Salt
  • 3 ea. Eggs Use large eggs at room temperature
  • 1 cup Water
  • 1 cup Sour Cream At room temperature
  • 2 tbsp Flavoring I used vanilla bean paste, but you can pair the flavoring to that of the cake mix.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Servings
party servings
Ingredients
  • 1 ea. Boxed Cake Mix I use Duncan Hines
  • 1 cup Flour
  • 1 cup Sugar
  • 1 dash Salt
  • 3 ea. Eggs Use large eggs at room temperature
  • 1 cup Water
  • 1 cup Sour Cream At room temperature
  • 2 tbsp Flavoring I used vanilla bean paste, but you can pair the flavoring to that of the cake mix.
Bake with Rho - Simple, Delicious Modified Box Cake Demo
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat Oven to 300 Degrees
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer on the stir setting, combine the eggs, water, sour cream and flavoring.
  3. While the liquid ingredients are incorporating, whisk together the cake mix, flour, sugar and salt. (I use a medium sized pyrex bowl.
  4. Turn off the mixer and add the dry ingredients all at once.
  5. Turn the mixer on, using the stir setting until the ingredients are just wet. Scrape the bowl.
  6. Turn the mixer to medium speed (4 on my KitchenAid) for two minutes.
  7. While the batter is mixing, prepare two 8" cake pans, using pan grease or the grease/flour method.
  8. Turn off the mixer and distribute the batter evenly between the two pans.
  9. Place in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 30 minutes.
  10. After 30 minutes, turn the oven up to 325 degrees (do NOT open the door) and bake for an additional 25 - 30 minutes.
  11. Make sure to test for doneness - does the top of the cake spring back? Does a toothpick inserted in the center come out clean? If so, remove the cakes from the oven and set them on a cooling rack for 5 minutes.
  12. After 5 minutes, remove the cakes from the pans and cool.