Cooking with Beautifully Complex : Strawberry Dream Cake

If you like Strawberries and are looking for a nice cool Spring or Summer dessert this is quick and easy to make. I am pretty sure it's not low calorie though, LOL.  It is very moist and has a lot of flavor.  I recently made this for Easter Dinner. I got the recipe from my mother several years ago and thought I would share it on the blog.

Cake mix & jello powder

Beat eggs & add to mixture

Split mashed strawberries in half

Add 1/2 berries, oil & water, mix for 5 minutes

Pour into pan & bake for 30-35 minutes

Poke holes using a straw while cake is warm

Poke holes all over the cake

Add sugar to berries, stir and spread over cake

Let cool completely & add whipped topping

COMPLETE RECIPE

1  box Yellow or White Cake Mix ( I prefer Duncan Hines Butter Golden)
1   3 ounce package Strawberry Jello
4   eggs
1   cup vegetable oil 
1/4  cup water
1   16 ounce package of frozen strawberries (completely thawed, smashed & halved)
1/2  cup powdered sugar
1  medium container of Cool Whip

Combine cake mix, jello powder and eggs. Mix well.

Add oil, water and 1/2 of the smashed strawberries. Beat with mixer on medium for 5 minutes.

Spray a 9 X 13 pan or glass dish with non-stick spray.  Pour batter into pan & bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

While cake is warm use a straw to poke holes all over the cake. Mix the other 1/2 of the mashed strawberries with the powdered sugar. Spread over the top of the cake, allowing the mix to fill in the holes in the cake. Let cake cool completely.

Once cooled. Spread cool whip over the top and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving.
You can place a few fresh strawberries on top in the center for a nice presentation. 


Slice & Enjoy !


Have you tried any new recipes lately ?

What is your favorite cool dessert ?

Thoughts ? Comments ? Questions ?


Beautifully Complex

Just Me...........Randomly

Wow can you believe it is March already ? It feels like we never really had a winter. I remember last February I had a frozen water pipe burst, problems with my heat and all kinds of homeowner blues. This year seems like we are running right into Spring. I need to get ready.



Me and my Fiancée took a long weekend last weekend and drove back up to see my mom & check on her. She is progressing well and I am no longer as stressed but it is still hard to see your parents deal with health issues and aging. It is the cycle of life, nothing new to many, but challenging still. It is a blessing to see how concerned he and his family have been about her care and condition. I am gaining so much with him in my life. Thank you blog family for your continued prayers and concern as well. They are working for sure.



I am getting prepared for my nieces and nephews to come for their annual Spring Break Retreat in a couple of weeks.  I have been trying to get their itinerary set and get my mind right too. LOL Just kidding,  I am really  looking forward to it & they are hyped as usual. Mr. Mixologist already booked the van for the week with no push-back from me. Remember when I thought I was too fly to drive a van ? I just HAD to have an SUV. Well last year those kids loved the van & we were able to store so much of their luggage and gear that there was not even a discussion this year. LOL



My mom being hospitalized and all the traveling has had me preoccupied with my main priority (my mom) but me and my love are still actively wedding planning. We have not picked a date yet,  but have definitely decided that it will be in........... New Orleans ! One of our favorite cities. I distinctly remember being together in NOLA last July and he said to me, "This would be a great place to get married". Little did I know......:) Neither of us have family in Texas and no matter where we have it ALL of our family members have to travel, so we decided to pick a city that we both enjoy that would be a fun destination for those who will be present. 



One of my friends is hosting an Engagement Party for us next weekend and I need something new to wear. I have spent the last 3 weekends traveling so this will be my only weekend to go shopping to find something I like. I am a little "fluffier" than I would like to be, but even still I am happy and excited about the occasion.  Me and Mr. Mixologist have agreed that we are not taking any formal  Engagement photos until we BOTH drop some lbs!  LOL



After the kids go back home from Spring Break,  we are planning a weekend jaunt in late March or early April to NOLA to see  some wedding venues. We have found several that we really like by looking online so we need to see them in person, decide which one we like,  find out about availability so we can then set a date.  There are so many festivals & events that take place in New Orleans all the time plus Hurricane season, so it's a tricky dance to pick the right time. Either way it is still a pretty popular spot for brides.


What's going on random with you ?

Thoughts ? Comments ? Questions ?

Beautifully Complex 

Just Me..........Randomly

I cannot believe it is almost mid-March. I am really worn out from the weekend ! I have been trying to gear up for Spring Break. My nieces and nephew will be here next week & I have to get ready & get this house ready. In between trying to make sure everything at work is in order, for me to vacation in peace and the cleaning & shopping, etc. around here, I am already worn out & those kids aren't even here yet ! LOL I can forget about getting any rest next week.

I have been using my treadmill a lot more lately, and have been feeling much better and more energized because of it. My lower back is feeling better, as well as my knee that was bothering me so I don't have any more excuses. All of the weight loss going on in Blogland is a good thing, it has been very motivating. With Springtime approaching, I don't want to regret not doing anything about these love handles from lazying around all winter with my beau. LOL.

My Aunt is having some serious health challenges and it makes me hurt. It is hard to see how it affects her, my cousins and especially my Mom and my other Aunt. It is also a reminder of how much we can't control in our lives but at the same time it makes me reflect on how much power we DO have in certain areas and that I should always continue to try to work to improve the areas that I can change.

I have a close friend, whose ex-husband probably has an undiagnosed mental problem. That along with him being a substance abuser (cocaine & alcohol) makes dealing with the situation (they have 2 young children) very challenging. He sends her some very scary & cryptic text messages. It really makes me uneasy. I pray for their protection constantly.

I always take the little ones to this place to paint ceramics they can take home to commemorate their trip. I try to mix it up and keep their trip's fresh & exciting with new activites. This year I wanted to take them to a pottery place, so they could make their own, but you have to be at least 8 yrs old, so that means some of the little ones won't be able to participate so I am looking for something else crafty/creative for them all to do. If you know of anything in Houston, please send any ideas my way. I may just go to Hobby Lobby and Michael's to see if I can be inspired.

Me and Mr. Mixologist went to see The Adjustment Bureau this past weekend. I really enjoyed it. It was more love story, morality play, than espionage and thriller. I must say, Matt Damon is still such a hottie. I thought there was a lot of chemistry between him and the female lead. It really did make me think about fate and free will. For example, you get held up at a drive through, frustrated by a delay only to drive up on a serious accident minutes later in which you very well could have been involved in, if you had not been delayed. As I have gotten older, I have learned to just take unexpected delays as a blessing that I can't see.

I did not have one. drop. of. alcohol this past weekend. I know that sounds bad, as in, am I an alcoholic or something ? LOL But honestly, I can't think of the last weekend when I did not have some wine at a minimum. I have a serious desire to drink in social situations and at home, especially on weekends. I decided to try to cut back because of the calories. They really add up. This coming weekend, we will be road tripping to pick up the little ones and the following weekend  after a very sober Spring Break, I will be doing the same thing, taking them back, so I think I will probably shoot for 30 days with no alcohol to see if that helps me drop some pounds.


Today, what is randomly you ?

Thoughts ? Comments ? Questions ?

Beautifully Complex 

M. I. A.

It has been more than a minute since I posted on my poor little blog here. I have been reading my favorites and commenting where I can, but just have not found the time. Admittedly, I am caught up in this new relationship and enjoying it tremendously and that has been a huge factor and major distraction. I am on Twitter too, even though I can't always comment a lot because I spend the majority of time behind the wheel of a car while working and can't always tweet, that has kept me from blogging too. But even beyond the blog, I have been MIA in many areas of my life, so caught up in the "new new" (TIH 2009) with this man known here as Eastcoast :) Things are going so well, I think I want to give him a different, more appropriate blog name at some point, but I need to think on it. Any ideas or suggestions ?

Spring Break with my nieces and nephew was wonderful. We crammed so many activities into that week, that I had to call my boss late that week to ask for Monday off just to recover ! We took the kids horseback riding, painted ceramics, did some baking and cooking,  went to Galveston Beach, swimming at a waterpark & hosted a back to school cookout at the house for them and some of my friends kids that live here. Eastcoast was a huge help to me that week, even taking vacation for 3 days to help out. Though he has no children of his own, he is wonderful with kids, extremely patient and very attentive. My nieces ate him up ! LOL.  He helped me with lifeguard duty, help me break up squabbles, he barbecued, and even drove the whole way back to meet their parents for the drop off Sunday.  One of my friends jokingly said, he needs to stop "showing off" LOL ! He also got a chance to meet my sister and BIL, who in turn gave a good report to my parents and some other family members who have been super curious about him, because things are going well for us so far. Neither of us have family in Houston, so it has just been the two of us getting to know one another, so far it has been wonderful. 

We celebrated his birthday a couple of weeks ago along with some of my close friends.  We surprised the Birthday boy and went to Monnalisa a lounge at Hotel Sorella and had a wonderful time. We all started off drinking Martini's but later in the evening the female bartender sold me on their signature drink she had created called the Monnalisa that had some rasberry infused Vodka with some fresh rasberries too, and it was soooo awesome ! I partied like it was my birthday ! We later moved  outside onto the patio where they have some beautiful gazebo's on the edge of the pool and they have LED lights in the pool that change colors. I love hanging out in City Centre and great time was had by all. 

The next day we celebrated solo. I surprised him with a trip to the Day Spa for a couples massage, which he had never experienced before. It was hilarious to see him out of his "comfort zone". He had no idea what we were going to do that day, but he rolled with it and was a good sport about it. He thoroughly enjoyed himself  & actually snored a time or two on the table. Me and both of the masseuses were laughing at that ! Later, we went to see Tyler's new movie and that night for dinner I chose his favorite, Japanese. We went to a new place that has great Sushi and ended up with this hilarious black Hibachi chef who should quit his day job and become a comedian for real. He was so funny ! He really took a liking to Eastcoast & by the end of the night, the chef who had a couple of his friends at the restaurant, bought us all some Sake shots to celebrate. He loved the birthday gifts I selected and was very appreciative of everything. He is not big on birthday's and I really am, so I just had to try to indoctrinate him ! LOL He shared with me the next day that it was the best birthday he's had in a very long time. I really enjoyed making him feel special, because he makes me feel special every day. 

That's enough gushing for the day, I am sure, but happiness is hard to contain sometimes :)

I am gonna do my best to post at least weekly, starting today.

Beautifully Complex