Chocolate Mousse Parfaits

This was inspired by leftover chocolate mousse I had in the freezer. It was quite simple, and make a very decadent dessert for our guests. In fact, too rich. I could hardly eat half of mine. Next time I'll make them in smaller glasses.

You'll need:
Chocolate mousse (you can use a mix, or your favorite recipe)
freshly whipped cream (heavy cream beawt to medium stiff peaks with a little powdered sugar and vanilla.)
frozen berries
sugar
cinnamon
vanilla
nuts, toasted (You can toast your own by placing them on a baking sheet and baking at 350 degree for 10 minutes or so.)

Make a berry compote by placing frozen berries, and a sprinkling of sugar and cinnamon (to taste) in a sauce pan. Bring to simmer and let cook until slightly thickened and sugar is dissolved maybe about 10 minutes. Add vanilla and let cool completely. Let chill in the fridge. You can use this compote for so many things-pancakes, toast, scones, with cheesecake, etc. Layer fresh whipped cream, toasted nuts, chocolate mousse, and berries. It you want to make it pretty and clean, use a pastry bag filled with each component to layer them. Then they go right where you want them to, instead of getting all over the sides of the glasses. I also have these yummy caramel sprinkles from Pampered Chef that I added at the end. They added a nice touch.

Banana Split Cake

I made this for my brother-in-law, Jake's birthday and it really hit the spot. I was acutally pleasantly surprised. I mean, I thought it would taste pretty good, but I acutally like it better than I thought. Here's how to do it.First you have to bake one of my favorite chocolate cake recipes in an oven safe bowl. It's the recipe on the back of the Hershey's Cocoa. I first saw it made on Martha Stewart many years ago, and it's been a family favorite ever since. (Straight from the website.)

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" chocolate cake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water
• "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING(recipe follows)

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed of mixer 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with "PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING. 10 to 12 servings.

VARIATIONS:
ONE-PAN CAKE: Grease and flour 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Heat oven to 350° F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely. Frost.

THREE LAYER CAKE: Grease and flour three 8-inch round baking pans. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost.

BUNDT CAKE: Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350°F. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 50 to 55 minutes. Cool 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack. Cool completely. Frost.

CUPCAKES: Line muffin cups (2-1/2 inches in diameter) with paper bake cups. Heat oven to 350°F. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter. Bake 22 to 25 minutes. Cool completely. Frost. About 30 cupcakes.


"PERFECTLY CHOCOLATE" CHOCOLATE FROSTING

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter. Stir in cocoa. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. About 2 cups frosting.

I just added the frosting for your future benefit, because it's awesome. But I didn't use it in the cake.

So, like I said, I baked it in an oven-safe Pyrex mixing bowl that was greased and floured for about and hour. As soon as it cooled, invert it and let it fall out of the bowl. Slice it horizontally into 4 layers. Use the same bowl it was baked in, washed and lined with plastic wrap letting the excess plastic hang over the sides, and place the top layer of the cake back in the bowl, just like it fits. Then you will need some Neapolitan ice cream. Open the box completely and carefully cut the layers apart. (I could've just bought entire boxes of each of the flavors, but we would've have tons left over we were forced to eat. Not good. And this was easy enough.) Take one of the flavors and spread it on top of the layer of the cake you place in the bowl. Place another cake layer and press it on the ice cream. Add another flavor of ice cream and repeat with another layer of cake, and another ice cream flavor, finishing with the final layer of cake. Fold the excess plastic wraps over the top of the cake, and wrap again. Place in the freezer for at least 3 hours before eating. I like to make it the night before. When it's time to eat it, get together all the toppings for banana splits that you like. Unwrap the cake and invert it onto a serving plate. You have to warm the sides of the bowl to help it fall out. I used a blow dryer for a few seconds (because I didn't have my blow torch handy), and pulled a little on the excess plastic wrap, and it popped right out. Cover the entire dome with whipped cream, and just have fun putting on the toppings however you want. The cake will be so moist and the flavor will have developed really well. I hope you enjoy this as much as we did.

Warm White Chocolate Ganache with Frozen Berries

So simple, yet so divine. This was the desert course of Father's Day. I saw Ina Garten make this on Barefoot Contessa a long time ago and it just popped into my head. I wanted something summery and easy for me to prepare. I made a simple white chocolate ganache using 1 c half and half (cream will also do, this is just what I had) and a 12 oz. bag of white chocolate chips. Next time I'll probably only use 1/2 c of liquid making it thicker, but it worked fine. Place both ingredients over a double boiler whisking until it becomes smooth. Make sure the water is only at a simmer, not a rolling boil. White Chocolate is very sensitive. Once all the chocolate is melted, take off the heat and add a little vanilla if you'd like, though it doesn't need it. (This is also a good time to add a little of any good good liqueurs you have on hand- Grand Marnier, Rum, Triple Sec... sounds good to me.) Place frozen berries of your choice in your serving bowls. We used raspberries and blueberries. Drizzle the warm ganache over the berries and serve immediately. I wanted a little crunch so I sprinkled a little granola on top.

Orange Rolls

I was looking through the recipes that I was given by people at one of my wedding showers. I totally forgot that people had given them to me. This one sounded great, and It was sitting on my counter staring at me for a week before I tried it. I'm telling you, they are delicious.

Orange Rolls
(From Aunt Ruth Earnest)

Dough:
3 pk. yeast dissolved in 1/2 c warm water
1 can evaporated milk plus enough water to make 2 cups
1/2 c sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 eggs
1 tsp
salt
6 cups flour

Filling:
1/2 c softened butter or margarine
1/2 c sugar
grated orange zest
1 t OJ concentrate

Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
about 2 T OJ concentrate (enough to make it pourable)

Mix in order-cover, let rise about 2 hours. Dough should be sticky. Roll 1/2 of the dough in a WELL floured surface into a rectangle. Spread half the filling on the dough. Fold into thirds, like a letter, cut into strips with a pizza cutter, and twist each strip a couple times. Place on a foil lined, greased baking sheet a couple inches apart. Let rise about 20 minutes (or overnight in the fridge. I did that with the other half since I didn't need them that night), and bake for about 20-25 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Glaze immediately.
Not all of this is exactly what the recipe said, but I gave the directions how I made them. With the other half of the dough, I just did them cinnamon roll style, rolling the dough/filling up, and slicing it. You will love the results. You can also, of course make these into cinnamon rolls too.

Mint Oreo Tart

I know, I know. I've been a slacker. The busy summer has begun, so I hope that excuses my short absence. But I am back and hoping the summer brings some new dishes to my brain. I always love a new season to make things fresh again. I've been pretty busy and it's extremely hot so we've been having a lot of sandwich/salad types of meals. Sometimes I even talk myself out of baking knowing that the oven will make the house slightly warmer. But I'll still be here, just probably not as often. Hopefully I'll pick back up soon and things will move along like they did before.

Anyway...

I made this awhile ago and thought it was a good time to finally post it. It is basically a giant mint Oreo. There is a homemade Oreo recipe I love from one of my favorite cookbooks, Retro Desserts. My dad gave it to me years ago, and I've actually seen the chef as a guest on some Food Network shows making recipes from this book. The Chocolate Sandwich Cookies with Vanilla-Cream Filling, as he calls them are a favorite of mine and usually others when they partake. Here's the recipe from the Food Networks Website. I just made a few changes by pressing the cookie dough into a tart shell, and then baking it. (Careful, it puffs up a lot. Try freezing it before you bake it and then put in on a baking sheet so it drips onto that if it overflows. It actually wasn't a very good idea since this dough isn't like tart dough, but it turned our in the end okay. I have a lot more trials to do it in this form before it's perfect and I don't see myself doing that soon, so this is what you get. This website is all about experimenting isn't it?) And then I added a little mint extract and a little green food coloring to the filling. When the shell is cool, spread the filling in it, and drizzle a little chocolate sauce, or ganache on top. I had Andes baking chips so I went ahead and put those around the edge for fun. I think we also ate it with mint chocolate chip ice cream. It was refreshing in a rich sort of way.

Berry Cheesecake Ice Cream Pie

I was at the store wondering what to make for Mother's Day and all the components of this seemed to fit together so nicely. And I'm so glad it's the summer so I can make desserts like this. I love a new season so I can enjoy the familiar flavors and textures it brings with it.

a package crunchy oatmeal cookies
3 T butter, melted
2 qts vanilla ice cream
2-1 lb. bags frozen mixed berries
1/2 c cream cheese, softened
1/2 sour cream
1T vanilla
whipped cream

Take out the ice cream and one of the bags of berries from the freezer. While they are softening:

In a food processor, mix the cookies until very fine. Add the butter and pulse a few times to combine. Press into the bottom and up the sides of a 9" springform pan, and bake in a 375 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, and vanilla together thoroughly. Add the berries and mix together. Carefully fold the soft ice cream into everything until it is distributed evenly. Spread into a cooled crust and freeze until ready to eat.

For the fruit sauce, take the other bag or frozen berries and place it in a sauce pan with sugar to taste. Cook until it is boiling, the sugar is dissolved, and it becomes slightly thicker. It will also thicken as it cools.

Garnish the pie with the fruit sauce-warm or cold-and whipped cream.

Mulitgrain Bread Pudding

This is another odds and ends type recipe since it was purely to use some things taking up space in my fridge. I had milk that was toward the end of it's drinkable life, and yolks left over from my meringue adventures, so this seemed like the thing to make. I also had a loaf of multi-grain French bread that always seems a little dry if it's not eaten a few days after purchasing. So here's the procedure:

Cut one loaf of bread into cubes and place into an greased 9x9 baking dish. Whisk together about 10 yolks, or 4-5 eggs (I just happened to have a container full of yolks, but whole eggs will work fine. The yolks will just make it especially rich.) in a bowl. Whisk in about 3 1/2 cups of milk (about 1/2 cup of this was evaporated milk that I also was sick of looking at in the fridge, but again, regular milk is fine.) Add about 1 1/4 c of brown sugar, about 1/2 t of cinnamon, 1/4 t nutmeg, and any dried fruit or nuts you want to add. This one had walnuts and dates. Pour over the bread and then preheat the oven to 350. While the over in heating let the milk soak into the bread, pressing down to make sure all is soaked. Bake for about on hour. Check after 45 minutes and if the top is getting too dark, but the custard is not cooked, cover with foil and continue cooking until it is completely cooked through. You can tell by inserting a knife and prying the bread apart checking to see if there is any liquid. If there is, it is not done. It must be completely solid throughout. It will be puffed up and golden. Serve with ice cream, whipped cream, or a nice vanilla sauce. It's good at any temperature, but I like it right out of the oven. I served ours with a maple glaze.

Sweet Potato Pound Cake

I made this on a whim to use up some sweet potatoes I had been looking at for weeks. I found this recipe and it turned out pretty well. Expect I omitted the pecans and added dried cranberries and chopped dates. And I made it in two loaf pans instead of a bundt, for no particular reason.

A tip: instead of peeling, boiling, then mashing the potatoes, just prick them and put them in the microwave. Cook until very soft, cut in half and scoop out perfect mashed sweet potatoes.

Chocolate Banana Bread

I doubled this recipe and made it into a pound cake. It weighted a TON, and was so moist, dense, and delicious. If I was feeling extravagant that night, I'd have put a white chocolate ganache glaze, and served it with ice cream and fresh whipped cream, but for a stake function, they just got a powdered sugar dusting.

Orange Cranberry Scones

This scone recipe has become a favorite of mine. I have tried many and this seems to be what I always go back to. I made these for a play group/any girls that are home during the day. A great brunch item. I've also made them with raisins and pistachios. There are many varieties you could make. Here is the recipe straight from Allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen
• 1/2 cup raisins (or dried currants)
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 large egg

DIRECTIONS

1. Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, mix flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Grate butter into flour mixture on the large holes of a box grater; use your fingers to work in butter (mixture should resemble coarse meal), then stir in raisins.
3. In a small bowl, whisk sour cream and egg until smooth.
4. Using a fork, stir sour cream mixture into flour mixture until large dough clumps form. Use your hands to press the dough against the bowl into a ball. (The dough will be sticky in places, and there may not seem to be enough liquid at first, but as you press, the dough will come together.)
5. Place on a lightly floured surface and pat into a 7- to 8-inch circle about 3/4-inch thick. Sprinkle with remaining 1 tsp. of sugar. Use a sharp knife to cut into 8 triangles; place on a cookie sheet (preferably lined with parchment paper), about 1 inch apart. Bake until golden, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm or at room temperature.

Cranberry-Orange Scones

Follow the recipe for Simple Scones, adding a generous teaspoon of finely grated orange rind (zest) to the dry ingredients and substituting dried cranberries for the raisins.

Lemon-Blueberry Scones

Follow the recipe for Simple Scones, adding a generous teaspoon of finely grated lemon rind (zest) to the dry ingredients and substituting dried blueberries for the raisins.

Cherry-Almond Scones

Follow the recipe for Simple Scones, adding 1/2 tsp. almond extract to the sour cream mixture and substituting dried cherries for the raisins.

Chocolate, Berry and Spinach smoothie

This is kind of a joke but I thought I'd share anyway. I've heard of a few people adding spinach to their smoothies, so one Saturday Morning, I thought I'd give it a try. This smoothie consisted of:

a mix of frozen berries
vanilla frozen yogurt
chocolate soymilk
a couple good hands full of spinach

Blend until smooth and drink up.

Chocolate cereal cups

These were another babysitting project. We are all familiar with peanut butter cereal treats, but instead of spreading them into a pan and cutting them into bars, we pressed them into buttered muffins tins, and filled them with ganache. They are very rich, but very good. The youngster I was babysitting said "They make my teeth surprised". Ha ha!

Cereal part: (in case you haven't made them before)
3 c corn flakes
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c corn syrup
1/2 c peanut butter (I like crunchy, and we also used half almond butter and it was great.)
a little cinnamon and vanilla

In the microwave or over the stove, heat the sugar and corn syrup to boiling and boil about 10 seconds. Stir in the peanut butter, and then stir in to the cereal. Divide mixture between 12 muffins tin sections and press up the sides a little with your fingers, putting butter, oil , or water on your fingers periodically to keep them from sticking. Let them set up while you make ganache.

Ganache:
1/2 c heavy cream
3/4 c dark chocolate chips
pinch of salt
vanilla

Heat cream to simmering. Remove from heat and stir in chocolate, salt, and vanilla. Whisk until smooth and shiny. Pour into cereal cup and let them set up in the fridge.

You'll probably have to pry the cups out with a knife or fork.

German Chocolate Trifle

KC requested German Chocolate Cake for his birthday and I hadn't used my new trifle bowl yet, so I came up with this. The construction:

Chocolate covered cookies crumbled
fresh whipped cream
German chocolate coconut filling
German chocolate cake cubes
chocolate covered cookies
whipped cream
German chocolate coconut filling
German chocolate cake cubes
chocolate covered cookies
whipped cream
German chocolate coconut filling
German chocolate cake cubes
chocolate covered cookies
whipped cream

Everything is just repeated like 4 times. It turned out pretty well. I think it gets even better the next day. We decided now we will just put one candle for every decade.

Date Raisin Walnut Rice Pudding

Melody were on the phone one morning as usual and somehow we got on the topic of rice pudding. It sounded like a good snack so I made some. My mom makes with with leftover rice, which I LOVE, but since my rice wasn't pre-cooked, I tried another way.

Place 1 1/2 c of rice in a large pot, along with 1 can of evaporated milk and about 3-4 c water. (I'm not completely sure on the water because I was adding it as I went along. I think the milk doesn't really absorb into the rice so you still need the full amount of water to cook the rice. You can add more water as you go if you find the rice is still a little crunchy.) I also whisked in about 1/2 t cinnamon, a pinch of salt, 2 eggs, and about 1 c sugar (or to your taste). Cook over medium-low heat stirring occasionally. The bottom will burn if you are not careful. Cook until thick, bubbly, and the rice if fully cooked and soft. It will take about 30 minutes or more. I wasn't timing, sorry. Add a little more cinnamon if desired and stir about 1 t vanilla and any dried fruits or nuts. I like to top mine with whipped cream if I have some on hand.

Strawberry Lime crepes

So I was cleaing out my fridge and found many limes needing to be used right away. So I made lime curd which freezes very well if needed. But I decided to use it right away on these crepes we had for breakfast on New Years Day. I spread a thin about of lime curd over the whole crepe, put a little fresh whipped cream, and strawberries and folded them in fourths. A little lime zest always adds a nice elegance as well. Lime Curd is very easy to make and is one of the most decedent things. You should try it some time. Here's the goods:

La'Cademie de Cuisine's Lime Curd (this in only one rendition)
Zest and juice of 6-8 limes (about 1/2 cup juice)
8 oz. butter
4 eggs
12 oz. sugar
1. In a medium saucepan heat the butter and lime juice to a boil.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together.
3. When the lime juice come up to temperature, add a little to the eggs to temper them. Add a little at a time until all is mixed in.
4. Return to saucepan. Add zest and put over medium heat Whisking constantly.
5. When the mixture comes to a boil and becomes thick, strain, cover with plastic and chill until ready to use.

I like this as a fruit dip, with shortbread cookies, or as a tart filling. Soon there will be a picture, but it's in the freezer now and wouldn't look so appetizing.

I made a crepe cake by layering the same ingredients that I made the crepes out of and letting it chill before cutting to let it set up a little. It was delicious.

Wassail Cake

I LOVED this. Read all about it here.

These are the gingersnaps I made for the crust of this pumpkin tart. I know I could've bought them very easily, and cheaply, but it sounded Christmasy and fun. And I don't think I have made them for years. If I have, I don't remember. I also don't remember and can't find the recipe I used. It was from some website. It might've been this. Sorry to be so vague. These are the types of cookies that can be made such a variety of ways anyway. There are probably millions of great recipes. They made a great crust though.

Pumpkin cake

It's so appropriate that a pumpkin cake is made in a bundt pan. It has the pumpkin shape. Here is the recipe I used, and them I smothered it with cream cheese icing. I think everyone likes pumpkin cake. I haven't met someone than doesn't. We took this to our friend's Halloween party.

Pear Crostata

This is a pear crostata, or free form tart. I needed a quick dessert, so I pulled some shortbread dough from the freezer and rolled it out into a rectangle. I mixed some cream cheese with maple syrup and spread it everywhere except 1-2 inches from the edges. I spread a little cherry preserves on that and them layered on the pears. I think I drizzled a little maple syrup on the pears too. Then I folded the sides over the pears. I sprinkled a little granola on top and rock sugar on the edges and baked at 375 or so until it was golden brown. I'm loving the fall foods. This has been the picture for this month on my calendar so mine was patterned after it.

Past desserts/sweets of any kind.

These are not in any particular order. I was just getting everything on.


Strawberry moussed filled coconut bundt cake: This was Jefferson and Jackson's combined birthday cake. I still get requests.

Stuffed french toast and smoothies: I made this for Melody for breakfast when I surprise her in Utah.

Chocolate Lava cake: Don't be confused by what the dish says. It was a gooey on the inside type of cake.

Mixed fruit biscotti: I was trying to use up a bag of dried fruit from Costco so I wouldn't keep eating it. This was a great use for it.
Cinnamon rolls: We had these on conference weekend. I think it is a tradition now.

Scone assortment: I had some friends come over for a scone night and I made a plate with all the toppings we had.
The next seven things were made for a party I catered. You can read about it here.
Lemon curd and fruit platter.
Caramel cheese cake with an almond crust: I deleted my only good picture of this so here you go.
Raspberry almond shortbread bars
Chocolate dipped coconut macaroons
Fresh mango frangipane tart


Chocolate raspberry truffle cake
Coconut bundt with roasted pineapple


Heart attack Cake: Another one of Jake's birthday Cakes. You can read more about it here.

Fruit Cheesecake with almond crust: I made this for a friend picnic when I was still single. A boy, not KC, proposed when he saw it. Sorry Joe.


Chocolate mint Cheesecake: Very rich. This was Cortnie's birthday cake. I should make it again sometime.
Pina coladas: We made these many times in the course of a week. After this batch we make them with strawberry sherbet. Much better.
Pineapple Cheesecake: This was for Ethan's birthday and he didn't really eat it. I remember it not turning out as well as I had hoped. There's always next time.
Lime pound cake: I made this on Memorial Day. We had friends over and I made it to go with pina colada strawberry ice cream that KC made.
Orange bundt with vanilla bean peaches: This was Cami's birthday/Easter cake. It could've used more orange flavor, but it was cake right.
Creamy banana cake: This was a hit at a ward function. Can you tell I'm a fan of using the bundt pan.
Mini strawberry mandarin cheesecakes: I made these from the left over batter of the one below. They were too easy to pull out of the freezer and pop in my mouth.
Berry shortcake: I made this for Mother's day. It's the kind that tastes even better the next day.
Homemade oreos: These are one of my faves.
Strawberry pie cookies: I had extra pie dough left so I made these for fun. They turned out pretty good.
Fruit platter: I do enjoy the healthy natural sweets as well. A friend invited us for dinner and we brought this.

Chocolate mouse and peanut butter cup filled chocolate bundt cake: What a mouth full. Jake was a happy 29 year old.
Key lime pie: I have made this many times this summer. Always seems to be a crowd pleaser.
Strawberry mandarin cheesecake tart: Given as a gift to some friends who were moving.
Strawberries and cream: The whipped cream is also sugar free. Just happened to have it on hand. The go lean crunch was great on top and it was paired perfectly with chocolate soy milk.

Caramel popcorn: This was an adventure. I didn't have the ingredients for the caramel corn I wanted to make so I made it up. And I jazzed it up with quite a few things-honey bunches of oats, pistachios, raisins, and toasted coconut, and chocolate chips. The caramel sauce have coconut milk in it so it was pretty rich.
Cinnamon spice cheesecakes bites: We dipped these in chocolate fondue for a baby shower.
Coconut truffles: I saw them on a Brazilian recipe website and made them for a friend going on a mission to Brazil.

Sugar free flourless chocolate cake: I made this for a friend who couldn't eat a lot of sugar at the time. I made it later so I could try it and I have to say it turned out pretty well for a sugarless dessert.
Tea Party: This was a spread a friend and I put together to pracitce for a business we were going to start. That is kind of put on hold. But we had fun making bluberry scones with lime curd, cucumber and salmon tea sandwiches, shortbread cookies, and peanut butter and lime meringue tartlets.

Avocado Shake: This rasied many questions. It wwas pretty good and isn't as unusual as you think. It's the kind of thing people will feel cool telling you about because you've never heard of such a thing.