Lil'PartyCakes

Some very good friends of ours will be getting married in less than a month, really in just a couple weeks! When I got back from my big trade show trip to Tucson, I made it home just in time for Erin's shower. They were having a desert bar of yummy finger food baked goods, and I offered to contribute something to that area of the party!
Because brownie-bites are so freakin easy and always delish, I thought I'd try something new and different for the second item...

A few years ago I went to Louisiana for the first time...first to Lafayette then drove to Shreveport, in BOTH locations I was served petitis fours. That was my first encounter with the lil'cakes, and I have been dying to try and make them ever since!!

I just kind of winged it and made these with out doing any actual petits fours research...and they were yummy, but I didn't really know if they qualify or not...I DID do some googling while typin up this post and found a informative lil bit on ALL RECIPES,HERE.
I guess this DOES qualify...Interesting!

This was a fun first attempt with petits fours, and I am looking forward to making these again!



Lemon Chocolate Petits Fours

Lemon Cake
Strawberries
Fluffy White Frosting
Chocolate Glaze

1 package yellow cake mix
1 package instant lemon pudding mix
1 1/2 cups water
1/4 c lemon juice
3 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350, butter and lightly flour a 15x10 jelly roll pan.
Combine dry cake ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer, mixing on med-low add egg whites one at a time, mixing 30-60 seconds between each, mix in the water & lemon juice. Spread out in pan and bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
While cake cools whip up the frosting~

2 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1/1 cup water
1 Tsp pure vanilla extract

Combine sugar, water & cream of tartar in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, cook/boil covered for about 5 minutes, then uncovered until it reaches SYRUP temp of about 240-245 degrees. When you uncover the lid on the sauce pan, start whipping the egg whites in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. You're aiming to have the egg whites forming peaks as the sugar mixture reaches syrup temp...slow down the mixer to low if need be, don't over beat the egg whites....When the sugar gets to 240-245 it will be thicker and a sugar-syrup. With the mixer on medium speed, and with out burning yourself, carefully pour the syrup into the egg whites & mix for about 2 minutes add the vanilla and continue beating until cooled, about 5 more minutes...

Wash and slice the strawberries into thin vertical slices.
Prepare a cookie sheet by covering it with wax paper...
Slice the cake into rectangles about 1 inch x 2 inches, and cut them in half horozintally , line 'em up on the cookie sheet. Add a dollop of the marshmallowy frosting in between each layer, on each cake rectangle- top the dollop with a strawberry and replace the top cake layer- so you've got a lil'cake samich.
Once your finished adding frosting and a strawberry to the middle of each one, make the chocolate glaze.



Here's a simple old-school glaze recipe, great for donuts, bundt cakes, and coincidentally petits fours!!

1 stick/ 1/2 cup butter, room temperature
10 1oz squares of baking (semi-sweet) chocolate.

In a medium microwave safe bowl melt the chocolate, chop the butter into pieces and mix in, continuing to microwaving in 15 second increments, stirring after each zap, until all is evenly melted and incorporated. Let cool a few minutes.

Using a spoon drizzle chocolate glaze over each cake and let set.