Caramel Carrot Cake White Chocolate Cheesecake Trifle (a mouthful to say, but oh-so totally worth it!)

Happy Easter, everyone!!!  I hope you all had a wonderfully blessed and happy one!

Last weekend, after a fun day in the Valley including lunch at Dave's Taverna, winetasting and a winery tour at CrossKeys Vineyard, and the Green Valley Book Fair with the b/f and our (newly engaged!) friends Patrick and Lila, I enjoyed a nice dinner with Mom and Jon at L'Italia.  It was an awesome, fun-filled Saturday, and at some point during conversation that night, I asked Mom what she wanted me to make for Easter dinner the next Sunday.  She thought about it and suggested that I could make a dessert, like carrot cake.  Now, I've made a couple of pretty awesome carrot cakes from scratch for various occasions in recent years, but this time I just felt like changing it up a bit.  So, I started searching for something carrot cake-ish, but a bit different from the norm.  Then, I happily stumbled upon this recipe for Caramel Carrot Cake White Chocolate Cheesecake Trifle from Something Swanky, and I knew I absolutely had to make this delectable dessert!  Game over!!!

I also volunteered to bring a dessert for a Young Professionals Ministry party last Tuesday night, so I figured I might as well go ahead and test out the new recipe!  It turned out to be a huge hit, with only about 1.5 servings left in the bottom of the bowl! :)  I took this as a good sign that the trifle was indeed worthy of being served at Easter dinner.  So alas, I whipped it up again yesterday afternoon and received rave reviews from my fam. :)

Caramel Carrot Cake White Chocolate Cheesecake Trifle

Ingredients:

• 1 - 9x13 carrot cake (baked & cooled), from scratch or from a mix...(if you go the mix route, I highly recommend Duncan Hines Decadent Classic Carrot Cake mix)
• Caramel Sundae Sauce
• 2 cups pecan pieces, chopped (optional...I left these out)
• 1 - 8 oz. tub Fat-Free Cool Whip, thawed
• 1 - 8 oz. container Philadelphia White Chocolate Indulgences cream cheese, softened*
• 1 - 8 oz. container Neufchatel cream cheese, softened*
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tbsp. lemon juice
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

*The original recipe called for 2 containers of the white chocolate cream cheese, but I thought that would be a bit too rich, so I decided to go with 1 white chocolate and 1 neufchatel, which I think worked out well.

Instructions:

1. Using a hand mixer, blend the cream cheese and sugar together until smooth and creamy.
2. Blend in the cool whip, salt, lemon juice, and vanilla. Set mixture aside.
3. Once the carrot cake is completely cooled, cut the cake into 1″ squares. Place 1/3 of the squares in the bottom of a trifle dish. 

4. Drizzle caramel over the cake (feel free to adjust the amount based on your own personal preference).

5. Spread 1/3 of the cheesecake mixture over the cake and sprinkle with 1/3 of the pecans (if using).

6. Repeat layering, ending with the cheesecake and pecans (if desired) on top. 

Drizzle with some more caramel! Chill for at least an hour or overnight, serve, and be prepared to scrape the bowl clean! :)

Shrimp & Veggie Curry Fried Rice

It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of ethnic food, especially Indian and Thai....oh, and Ethiopian!  However, I tend to shy away from cooking many of these dishes at home, as it usually seems that my attempts to recreate some of my favorite Indian and Thai dishes turn out just mediocre instead of mouthwatering.  For some reason though, recently I was in the mood to give it another shot.  Thus, I bring you...

Shrimp & Veggie Curry Fried Rice

The first rule of making fried rice: Be sure to use leftover, day-old rice that has been stored in the refrigerator.  Freshly cooked rice will turn out mushy, and nobody wants mushy fried rice, right? :P

Ingredients:

• 5 cups cooked, day-old jasmine rice
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 green chile, chopped & seeds removed
• 3/4 cup frozen green peas, thawed
• 1/3 cup carrots, diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper
• 3/4 cup mushrooms, chopped
• 2 tbsp. Thai Red Curry Paste
• 1 tbsp. Spicy Thai Chili Sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp. curry powder
• 1/8 tsp. ginger
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 lb. raw shrimp, shelled & de-veined
• 1/2 cup egg substitute, black pepper added
• 2 tsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp. cilantro
• Vegetable oil

Heat wok over medium heat. Once the wok is hot, add oil and heat for several seconds.  Add onions and chilies and stir-fry until soft.

Once the onions and chilies are tender, add all of the other vegetables that you're using.  Cook until veggies are almost tender, then remove veggie mixture from wok into a bowl and set aside.

Add red curry paste, spicy thai chili sauce, curry powder, ginger and garlic to the wok.  Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink.

Add rice and toss thoroughly until coated with curry mixture.  Spread the rice all over the surface area of the wok and let it heat up.  Don't stir until you hear the rice grains sizzle.  Toss rice, moving it around the wok and again spreading it out.  Drizzle soy sauce over rice and toss again.  Return veggies to wok and mix in with rice and shrimp.

Meanwhile, cook eggs in small frying pan, stirring as if you are making scrambled eggs, until they just start to set.  Add to rice mixture and continue cooking until everything is heated through.  Remove wok from heat, stir in cilantro, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!