Salisbury Steak

I always see Salisbury Steak on the menu at the Cheesecake Factory under the "Specials" list, but I never really knew what it was.  Sooo......the other day, after going to the Cheesecake Factory and getting their incredible White Chocolate Caramel Macadamia Nut Cheesecake (so sinful), I decided to look up a Salisbury Steak recipe.  I learned it was basically a very beefy/steaky-flavored hamburger patty with gravy.  Sounds pretty darn good to me!  So I decided to create my own recipe.  The result was filled with delicious mushroom, onion, beefy, yummyness! The hamburger patty itself is super flavorful, and using some of the gravy ingredients - like the soup mixes - in the actual patty ingredients make the patty incredibly tender as well.  This was the  first time I had ever tasted Salisbury Steak, and it's the only recipe I will use because it was so tasty.  I highly recommend serving this over creamy, garlic mashed potatoes, and with a side of peas, and/or corn.  The next time I make it, I'm going to attempt making it into a Shepherd's Pie!  My dad came up with that [surprisingly] great idea.  I also want to make the patties into meatballs and try having it as a pasta, with the gravy as the pasta sauce.  Yum yum yum!  Whatever variations you want to make out of this recipe, I promise it will taste fantabulous.  Don't even bother ordering the Cheesecake Factory one...this one is definitely better. :)

Ingredients:
1 10-oz can French Onion Soup
1 10-oz can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 packet Dry Onion Soup
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 large white onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
2 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix together 1/3 cup French onion soup, 1/4 cup Cream of Mushroom soup, and a dash of the dry onion soup with ground beef, bread crumbs, egg, and black pepper. Shape into 6 patties.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown both sides of patties (do not cook them completely through in the center.  The insides should not be cooked completely, only the outside). Pour off excess fat.  Gently spread the onions and mushrooms on top of the patties and throughout the skillet.
3. In a small bowl, blend flour and both remaining soups until smooth. Mix in remaining dry onion soup, ketchup, water, Worcestershire sauce and mustard powder. Pour over meat, onions, and mushrooms in the skillet. Cover, and cook for 20 minutes, gently stirring occasionally.  Serve hot.

Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting

Oh my word, these were so scrumptious.  I brought these yummies to a cook out - attended by a bunch of hungry runners - and they disappeared before I had a chance to blink.  One runner said (and I quote!) "that may have been the best cupcake I've ever had."  The chocolate cupcakes themselves have the perfect amount of cocoa, are moist, fluffy, and aren't too sweet...allowing you to taste the chocolate more.  The frosting is definitely the BEST buttercream frosting I've ever had.  I have never used heavy cream in frosting before, and now I'll never stop!  Heavy cream makes the frosting so incredibly fluffy and melts in your mouth.  Using shortening in the frosting also gives it an amazing consistency; Not too runny, not too dense.  I don't think there's anything that compliments buttercream frosing better than rich, chocolate cupcakes. This recipe is truly perfection.

Yield: about 12 cupcakes

For the Chocolate Cupcakes:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease one medium cupcake pan or line with paper liners.
2. Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Add the oil, vanilla, vinegar and water. Mix together until smooth.
3. Pour into prepared muffin pan (batter should be just below the rim, for large cupcakes. For medium cupcakes, pour batter 2/3 to 3/4 full) and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 18-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 15 minutes.
4. After 15 minutes, carefully remove cupcakes from pan, place on wire rack, and allow to cool completely.  Frost generously with Buttercream Frosting (recipe below).

For the Buttercream Frosting:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. In a mixing bowl, cream shortening and butter until fluffy. Add sugar, and continue creaming until well blended.
2. Add salt, vanilla, and 6 ounces whipping cream. Blend on low speed until moistened. Add additional 2 ounces whipping cream if necessary. Beat at high speed until frosting is fluffy, at least 5 minutes.  Frost cooled cupcakes.  

You will have some frosting left over (I had about a cup)...so you can either use it for another recipe or eat it by the spoonful...your choice(;

Best Scrambled Eggs EVER!

These truly are the BEST scrambled eggs in the entire world.  They are so incredibly fluffy and creamy and just perfect in every way possible.  The secret?  Heavy cream.  Oh yesss...heavy cream makes everything better.  These may not be the healthiest eggs in the world, but they sure are the tastiest.  Cooking them in the microwave assures that they don't cook to fast and brown on the outside, like they do in a skillet.  I will never make eggs another way again - these are just too good.


Yield: one large serving, or 2 small servings

2 large eggs
3.5 tablespoons heavy cream 
2 tablespoons water
a pinch of salt
a dash of pepper 
additional salt and pepper for serving

Break eggs into a microwaveable plastic measuring container. Add the heavy cream, water, salt and pepper. Whisk vigorously until well combined and fluffy, about 1 minute. Place the container in the microwave and set on high. Check every 20-30 seconds, gently swirling the container to shift the cooked egg and coat with it with uncooked egg. Repeat until  the liquid egg is significantly reduced. Fold the cooked egg in with the raw gently using a spatula (do not break it up too much!) Microwave again until you get moist, creamy, folded eggs. The success is in the folding, and not letting any part of the egg become dry and over cooked. Sounds too easy? It is. Best eggs ever.

Want to watch me do it? I'll go through the folding with you. And give you a running commentary.

Your egg mixture should look a bit like this after the first 30 seconds or so of cooking. Of course, this depends upon the power of your microwave. See how the edges are starting to cook yet the centre is still very liquid? Just give it a swirl in the bowl. No spoons yet! Pop it back in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Remove from the microwave and swirl again. Try to get the liquid egg mixture on top of the cooked edges. We don't want that egg to dry out! Pop it back in for another 30.

Repeat the above process, covering the cooked edges with the egg liquid every time, with a simple swirl of the bowl. It's a very gentle process, as we don't want to break up the egg too much, we just want the cooked egg to shift so it doesn't dry out.

There will come a stage where the cooked egg on the edges is quite thick and the uncooked centre reduces in size. If the cooked egg no longer moves when you swirl the bowl, gently ease it off the side with a spatula.

I'm just going to take a moment here to say YUM! I simply LOVE these scrambled eggs we're making. They're...well, you'll find out. Okay. Stick it back in the microwave, we're almost there!

Be careful at this stage where there isnt much liquid egg left, because the cooked egg can dry out if not watched well. Get your spatula and gently fold the cooked egg into the uncooked to moisten it. You can now set it aside! The heat in the cooked egg will cook the rest on its own.
If the scrambled egg looks dry, you can try and save it by adding a dob of butter to the top and letting it melt in. It should moisten the egg sufficiently. Serve immediately.  Add more salt and pepper to taste.

If your using one egg instead of two, I recommend cooking the egg at 15 second increments.


***Adapted from Lick The Spoon

Glazed Spice-Cake Donut Muffins

I love spice cake.  I love donuts.  I love muffins.  Why not combine them all?  This recipe does not result in your typical Krispy Kreme, fried donut...although the glaze is quite similar.  The texture is more of a cake donut consistency, with a wonderful, spiced flavor.  They are the perfect thing to have in the morning with a warm, cup of coffee...so comforting, and very suitable for dunking.  They also keep well for a couple days (for best taste, no more than three), and who doesn't love leftovers? Another thing I love about this recipe is that there are so many options on how to prepare the batter.  You can bake them: into mini muffins (just reduce baking time), on parchment paper or greased baking sheet to create muffin top cookies, into one, large pan to create a snack cake/quick bread, in a donut pan, and/or you can frost them with cream cheese icing.  However, I absolutely adore this recipe the way it is - no alterations necessary.  

Yield: 12 muffins

Ingredients:

For the muffins:

• 1 cup white sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 3 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled slightly

For the Glaze:

3 tablespoons butter, melted

1 cup confectioners' sugar; sifted

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease a medium muffin pan with cooking spray, or line with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, mix sugar, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and flour. Whisk buttermilk, eggs, maple syrup, and butter in a separate medium bowl until just combined, and stir into the dry ingredients. Do NOT over mix. Spoon the mixture into the prepared pan, about 3/4 of the way full.
3. Bake 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown.  Let rest for at least 5 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack.
4. For glaze, combine melted butter, confectioners' sugar, vanilla, and hot water in a medium bowl.  Whisk until smooth.  When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crown into the glaze.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cucumber Tomato Salad

This salad was so refreshing!  Usually I'm not a very big fan of simple salads like this...they're usually boring and tasteless...but this was awesome!  Letting the vegetables soak in the dressing overnight makes them incredibly flavorful and juicy.  My family ate this with grilled chicken and twice baked potatoes.  Mmmm..such an amazing, healthy meal.  Oh yeah...did I mention this recipe is insanely healthy?  Believe it...it's fat free!  How could something so healthy taste so delicious??

Yield: about 6-8 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 large cucumber, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup white onion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar
• 3/4 cup water

Directions:

1. In a bowl, combine the tomatoes, cucumber and onion. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, salt and pepper. Whisk in the vinegar and water. Pour over vegetables and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight before serving.  Serve with a slotted spoon.

Cinnamon Raisin Glazed Biscuits

With the glaze....

My stomach is growling just thinking about these wonderful biscuits.  I made these a few days ago - without the cinnamon and glaze - and I was going to post them but I wanted to take them to the next level.  Both versions of these biscuits are absolutely perfect.  They're buttery, sweet, soft, fluffy, moist, full of juicy raisins and laced with a delicious cinnamon swirl.  The icing just takes them >above and beyond<.  If you prefer a less sweet biscuit, then you can omit the glaze...but if you're like me and have a major sweet tooth, then I definitely recommend it.  Also, if you're not a fan of cinnamon (I've never met anyone who isn't a fan of cinnamon, but who knows...), then feel free to omit that as well.  These biscuits without the glaze and cinnamon are more of a buttery, lightly sweet, tea biscuit, but are still incredible.  They taste best warm from the oven, but are still awesome at room temperature the next day.  Both versions are great for breakfast, dessert, or a snack.

Yield: 8 large biscuits

Ingredients:

• 1 cup raisins

• 1 cup hot water

• 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 6 tablespoons white sugar (1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons)

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

• 1 cup milk
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon milk, or as needed

1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract

desired amount of cinnamon (I used about 1/4 teaspoon)

Directions:

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Soak raisins in water for 10 minutes; drain, pat dry, and set aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter with a knife or pastry cutter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir milk into the flour mixture until just moistened. Add the drained raisins. Sprinkle the cinnamon over the dough, and fold in or swirl through with a knife until just blended (this does not need to be evenly distributed; since it can be a cinnamon swirl).  Shape biscuits with lightly floured hands or turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat or roll the dough out into a 3/4 to 1-inch thick round. Cut dough with a biscuit cutter and place onto the prepared baking sheet.  Let rest at least 10 minutes.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
4. For glaze, combine all the glaze ingredients until desired consistency is reached and drizzle over hot biscuits.

Mimi Cafe's Crepes

       Have you ever been to Mimi's Cafe?  If not, then man are you missing out.  It's a breakfast place (but they do have lunch and dinner options), and everything there is so delicious.  Omelets, pancakes, french toast, crepes, you name it.  They usually give you a huge muffin on the side of your meal, and they have this amazing, sweet, cake-like bread that is served on the table before you order. You can definitely say the amount of food is worth the price.  I've gotten the  Cinnamon Brioche French Toast (A cinnamon brioche roll sliced and dipped in Mimi's French toast batter and griddled to perfection.), stuffed French Toast (stuffed with sweet cream cheese and topped with berries), chocolate chip pancakes (usually I wouldn't order something as simple as this at a restaurant, but they really are incredible), and a crab-avocado omelet.  All to die for.  I did successfully remake the Cinnamon Brioche French Toast here on my blog.  

        So the other day I got an email from Mimi's, since I'm on their mailing list, and it contained the recipe for the crepes they use!  Crepes are one of their specialties, so I was really surprised that they were willing to reveal it, but I'm so happy they did because they totally rock!  It is the perfect, standard crepe recipe, and you can make it sweet or savory.  I had one with Nutella, and two with blueberries and home made caramel sauce, all filled with whipped cream.  There are a couple recipes listed underneath the crepe recipe on the site below, and I can't wait to try them.  I really loved my blueberry/caramel crepes the best, so I definitely encourage you to try it!  The caramel sauce was left over from my oh-so-delicious Chocolate Waffles I made a few weeks ago, and you can find the recipe for that here.

And you can find Mimi's awesome Crepes here.

Churros

I will never forget the first time I had a churro.  I was at a local mall, walking by the Great American Cookie store (best place ever!), and I begged my mom if I could get something due to my caving in toward the mouth-watering smells of baked goods.  She said yes, of course, and I was about to order a couple cookies when I spotted a long, sugar coated, stick-like thing - a churro.  Since I was in Spanish at the time, I had heard of them and seen them in my textbooks.  I knew they were a popular breakfast/snack item in Mexico and Spain, and people often ate them with coffee or chocolate.  So I decided to try one...and I loved it sooo much.  It was crunchy on the outside, with a sweet, cinnamon sugar coating, and super moist, cakey, and soft on the inside.  It was like a cinnamon sugar donut, but ten times better.  This morning, I decided to try making it myself.  I was surprised at how easy the recipe I had saved was; there were no eggs, and the dough itself only had three main ingredients (vegetable oil, sugar and flour).  The result was even better than the churro I had at the cookie store! Mine literally -->melted in your mouth<--, and were incredibly addicting.  I think mine tasted so much better because they were fresher and very warm, whereas the one I had at the mall was room temperature and had probably been made a few hours earlier.  I was planning on saving one of my churros to see how it tasted at room temperature, but they didn't last that long - now that I think about it... the lasted maybe five minutes. These are very tasty with coffee, chocolate, or dipped in caramel sauce, but I love them the most hot from the frying pan - coated in lots of cinnamon sugar - with a refreshing, cold glass of milk on the side.  Yum.

Yield: about 2 to 3 servings (about 8 donut-hole sized churros, and 3 larger, long ones)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water

• 2 1/2 tablespoons white sugar

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 2 quarts oil for frying (I used vegetable oil)

• 1/2 cup white sugar, or to taste

• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine water, 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar, salt and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Stir in flour until mixture forms a ball.
2. Heat oil for frying in deep-fryer or deep skillet to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Pipe strips of dough into hot oil using a pastry bag, or make round, bite sized balls with your hands.  Fry until golden; drain on paper towels.
3. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon. Roll hot, drained churros in cinnamon and sugar mixture.

Rich and Sticky Mexican Rice

My search for the perfect Mexican rice is finally over.  I've tried many times to make Mexican rice, but it always turns out too dry, lacks flavor, or ends up too salty.  But this recipe is absolutely amazing.  It doesn't have the ordinary texture of Mexican rice that you get at most Mexican restaurants; usually that rice is kind of dry and falls off the fork easily, but this recipe is sticky and rich and holds together well.  As much as I love the rice you get in Mexican restaurants (especially when you mix it up with the cheesy refried beans!!), I have to say...this recipe is much better.  The seasoning I used is from Allrecipes.com, but combining it with the rice, onions, salsa, and chicken stock was all my own little creation.  I served this recipe with chicken breasts and a side salad, and I ended up mixing the chicken and rice together and putting it on the salad.  It was the best Mexican Chicken Salad ever!!  I also made the rice into a dip by adding cheddar cheese and eating it with chips.  My mom - who doesn't even like rice unless it's Rice-A-Roni - ate it up!  And my dad and I - who love rice - gladly gobbled it up as well.  This is so perfect for any Mexican meal, and I would especially love it in a big burrito.  Just thinking about it makes me want to eat it right now!  I also want to make this into a great dip by adding shredded chicken, tomatoes, avocado, and cheese, and serving it with chips and cornbread.  Es muy delicioso! 


Yield: about 3 servings


 Ingredients: 
For the taco seasoning:
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper


For the rice:
2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 cup instant white rice
1/4 cup chopped white onion
1/4 cup salsa (I used a generic chunky tomato)
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup chicken stock




Directions:

For the Taco Seasoning:

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

For the rice:

2 tablespoons olive oil 

3/4 cup instant white rice

1/4 cup chopped white onion

1/4 cup salsa (I used spicy chunky tomato)

1/2 cup water

3/4 cup chicken stock\

Directions:

1.  In a small bowl, mix together seasoning ingredients.  Set aside.

2.  Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add rice.  Cook, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden (about 3 minutes).  While rice is cooking, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon seasoning.

3.  Stir in onions and cook until tender (about 2 minutes).  Stir in salsa, water, and chicken stock; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 to 25 minutes, or until the rice absorbs all the liquid and is a sticky consistency, stirring every couple minutes.  Add more seasoning to taste and serve. 

Tres Leches Cake

If you've never had Tres Leches Cake before, you HAVE to try it!  And if you've never even heard of it before, it's a common Mexican dessert and it's literally made with what the title is: three types of milk.  And of course, the three types of milk it uses are the sweet, fatty types.  The cake is chilled and soaks up all those delicious milks and creates a sweet, melt-in-your-mouth, refreshing dessert like no other. I had it for the first time at a Cuban restaurant and I fell in love with it.   I made it for a Spanish presentation a few days ago and everyone wanted the recipe.  I definitely want to make this for a party/celebration/holiday sometime soon because it's my new favorite cake.  I did use a box..which I usually never do because I'm a "scratch is best" girl, but since I had to make it for school and I had never made it before, I really didn't want to mess up.  It is semi-home made because of all the things you add to it, though(:

Ingredients:

1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® yellow cake mix

1 1/4 cups water

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 eggs

1 can (15 oz)sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated)

1 cup evaporated milk or whole milk

1 cup whipping cream

1 tub of Cool Whip

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Grease and flour or spray bottom and sides of 13x9-inch pan.

2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil, vanilla and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.

3. Bake as directed on box for 13x9-inch pan. Let stand 5 minutes. Poke top of hot cake every 1/2 inch with long-tined fork, wiping fork occasionally to reduce sticking.

4. In large bowl, stir together sweetened condensed milk, whole milk and whipping cream. Carefully pour evenly over top of cake. Cover; refrigerate about 1 hour or until mixture is absorbed into cake. Top with desired amount of Cool Whip. Store covered in refrigerator.

 

White Almond Sheet Cake

This is my new favorite cake ever.  It was the first sheet cake I've ever made as well. It tastes very similar to my Almond Butter Cake (found here) except this one is more moist and has more of a buttery-almond flavor as opposed to the lighter flavor with a touch of apricot.  I baked this sheet cake last night to take to school today for a party in civics, and I honestly had to force my parents to not eat any more pieces after I gave them some.  My mom says - hands down - that it's the best thing I've ever made.  I swear, they would have eaten the whole cake.  I don't blame them though...I had to force myself to only a couple slices because I wanted to have enough to take to school.  And it was totally worth the wait because they were soooo delicious today as well!  I can't decide if I like this cake better warm or cold; it's phenomenal either way.  What makes this cake so good is the flavor of almond extract.  I absolutely love almond extract, and I know it has a tendency to be overpowering in desserts, but it was the perfect amount for this recipe.  The sour cream also makes this cake super duper moist.  One thing I love about this cake is that it bakes up so quickly! And putting the frosting on it when it's warm makes the frosting seep into the cake and soak up all that yummy, sweet flavor. Do NOT skip the frosting!  It truly makes the cake.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 
  
• Frosting:
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 
  
• 3/4 cup sliced almonds (optional) 

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, bring butter and water to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in the flour, sugar, eggs, sour cream, almond extract, vanilla extract, baking soda and salt until smooth.
2. Pour into a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean and cake is golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes.
3. For frosting, in a large saucepan, combine butter and milk. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in sugar, almond extract, and vanilla extract. Spread over warm cake.  Sprinkle with sliced almonds if desired.