Celebrating July Birthdays

A "shout out" to some July birthdays (there are many more) that may have been overlooked on Ever Ready the past month.

• July 4, 1804 Nathaniel Hawthorn was an American novelist and short story writer. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts,
• July 18, 1918 Nelson Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, politician and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999.
• July 19, 1834 Edgar Degas was a French artist famous for his paintings, sculptures, prints, and drawings. He is especially identified with the subject of dance as more than half of his works depict dancers.
• July 21,1899 Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economical and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations.
• July 28, 1866 Helen Beatrix Potter was an English author, illustrator, natural scientist, and conservationist best known for her imaginative children's books featuring animals such as those in The Tale of Peter Rabbit.
• July 29 Ever Ready, blogger and writer
• July 30, 1834 Emily Jane Brontë was an English novelist and poet who is best known for her only novel, Wuthering Heights, now considered a classic of English literature.
• July 31, 1965 J.K. Rowling Joanne "Jo" Rowling, OBE FRSL, pen names J. K. Rowling and Robert Galbraith, is a British novelist best known as the author of the Harry Potter fantasy series.

so in honor of this esteemed list I want to share a photo of my birthday cake and a recipe for another one. Some friends from the city came up north to help me celebrate. This key lime cake was one of the most creative decorated cakes I have ever had. Mini limes and pieces of white chocolate garnished the cake plus crushed graham crackers along the bottom. 

Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake is the perfect celebratory cake to mark any occasion. I've had the recipe from Food Network since September 2016 waiting for the chance to make it. It's a no bake cake and considered one of Ina Garten's most popular recipes labeled Overnight Sensation. Well it did not disappoint. Every mouthful was decadent and sinfully delicious. It does require a special type of cookie ingredient which I had no trouble finding in larger grocery stores, Tate's Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Mocha Chocolate Icebox Cake
Ingredients:

• 2-1/2 cups cold heavy cream
• 12 oz. Italian mascarpone cheese. room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup Kahlua liqueur
• 2 TB. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. espresso powder
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 3 (8 oz.) packages of Tate's Bake Shop Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Shaved semisweet chocolate or chocolate covered coffee beans for garnish 

Directions:

• Ahead of assembly place bowl and beater in freezer to chill about 20 minutes.
• Grease the bottom of a 8-inch springform pan.
• In a chilled bowl combine heavy cream, mascarpone, sugar, Kahlua, cocoa powder, espresso powder and vanilla. Mix on low speed to combine and then raise speed until mixture forms firm peaks.
• To assemble cake note there will be three layers each of cookies and mocha whipped cream filling ending with filling on top. 
• Arrange a single layer of whole chocolate chip cookies on the bottom and break a cookie or two to fill in spaces along the sides for each layer. Divide filling into thirds and spread 1/3 of the filling over cookies. Repeat this layering two more times. Smooth top layer of filling and cover pan with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.
• To serve run a small sharp knife around the outside of the cake inner rim. Remove the sides of the pan. Use a metal spatula to loosen cake from the bottom and slide into a cake stand. or just cut cake while bottom is still attached. Serve cold with a garnish.