Chocolate Chip Cupcakes and another Birthday

As I was sitting in church yesterday it suddenly hit me that I only have 7 years left before my son will be 18 and off on his own. Seven years may seem like a long time to some-- 7 years of no chocolate, 7 years without books or diet coke --could seem like eternity but when I think of how fast these past 11 years have flown by it made me realize how much I have to cherish this time with not only my son but all of my children.

While I love all of my kids equally and beyond words Christian is my firstborn and will always hold that special place in my heart. He is an amazing big brother to his three little sisters and still sweet as can be.

He loves all sports and but has decided basketball is his favorite. Despite his height (what can I say, when you have a 5 foot 1"mother you're probably not going to be Michael Jordan) he is amazing on the court and I love to watch him play. He's been watching ESPN since he was nine and I am constantly deleting the millions of sports games he has dvr'd so he can study the plays. Because he's the only boy in our family he and his Dad are best pals and can be found playing or watching some type of sport almost daily.

He just received his arrow of light award in scouting and was the only student in his class to complete the "Give me Liberty" program at school. I'm so proud of the little man he is becoming and even though it's hard to let go, it's so rewarding to see all the great things he is able to do on his own now. (Okay, the brag session is over. I'm sorry but I am seriously the worlds worst scrapbooker so I figure I need to make up for it somehow.)

Christian loves cookie dough in any form be it in ice cream, cookies or the spoonfuls he manages to sneak from the bowl, so I thought these would be perfect for his class treat. Whipping the egg whites produces a beautifully light and airy crumb and the chocolate chips studded throughout are divine! They were a huge hit and I had a classroom full of fifth graders mobbing me for seconds. These would also be delicious with any type of chocolate frosting or ganache.

Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Chocolate Chip Frosting

Martha Stewart

Makes 30

3 1/4 cups plus 1 tbsp. sifted cake flour (not self-rising)
4 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 ounces (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
5 large egg whites, room temperature
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
Chocolate Chip Frosting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together 3 1/4 cups cake flour, the baking powder and salt. In a separate container (I used the measuring cup) mix milk and vanilla.

With an electric mixer on medium high speed, cream butter until smooth. Adding the sugar in a steady stream, bet until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches alternating with two additions of milk mixture, and beating until just combined after each.

In another bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form (do not over mix). Fold one third of the egg whites into the batter to lighten. Gently fold in the remaining whites just until combined. (Don't be alarmed. The mixture will look really weird and you will think you've done something wrong. Be patient and keep gently folding until your arm is about to fall off and then it will come together!)

Toss chocolate chips with 1 tbsp. flour and gently fold into batter.

Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each one three quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean and the tops are springy to the touch, about 22 minutes. transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature or frozen up to 2 months in air tight containers.

Frost with desired frosting. Can be refrigerated up to 3 days in airtight containers. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Chocolate Chip Frosting

Makes about 4-5 cups

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Basic Butter cream Frosting (see below recipe)

12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
Beat butter with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes.
Reduce speed to medium. Add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, beating after each addition, about 5 minutes. (After every 2 additions, increase speed to high, and beat for 10 seconds then reduce speed to medium-high). Add vanilla, and beat until buttercream is smooth.

Fold chocolate chips into buttercream. Use immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed before using.

Posted by: Sallie

Another Delicious Cake from Sky High

Being that my daughter Brinley and I have birthdays that are only two days apart, I was a little bit on chocolate overload (I know, shocking) with brownie sundaes and the devils food cupcakes. I wanted something light but delicious. I love my Sky High Triple Layer Cake book and want to eventually make every recipe in it. Every single recipe has turned out amazingly delicious, so of course I started scanning recipes. There were so many delicious sounding cakes but the Lemon Poppy seed Cake with Almond Cream Cheese Frosting caught my eye. It was everything I had hoped. The cake was light, yet moist with a hint of lemon flavor (not overpowering at all!). The frosting, oh my, I am a HUGE fan of pretty much anything with almond extract and paired with cream cheese, sugar and butter, how could it be anything but heavenly? It made me one happy birthday girl! This cake is best enjoyed freshly baked.

Lemon-Poppy Seed Cake with Almond-Cream Cheese Frosting

Sky High Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes

Makes an 8 in. triple layer cake; serves 12-16

3 cups cake flour

2 cups sugar

4 1/1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3 tbsp. poppy seeds

2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature

grated zest and juice of 1 large lemon

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

5 egg whites

1/3 cup water

Almond Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below)

Optional Garnishes:sliced almonds, or poppy seeds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. butter the bottoms of three 8 inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper; butter the paper.

Combine the flour, 1 3/4 cups of the sugar, the baking powder, salt, and poppy seeds in a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer on low speed, blend to combine and break up any lumps, about 30 seconds.

Add the butter, lemon zest, and 1 cup of the buttermilk to the flour. Beat on low until completely mixed. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 1-2 minutes to lighten and aerate the batter.

In a medium bowl, combine the egg whites with the remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk; whisk to blend thoroughly. Add the egg white mixture to the batter in 2 or 3 additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beating only enough to incorporate. Divide the batter among the 3 prepared pans.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes.

While the cake layers are cooling, make a lemon syrup. In a small nonreactive saucepan, combine the remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the lemon juice with the water. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.

Turn out the cake onto wire racks (use wax paper underneath to avoid messes) and generously brush the hot lemon syrup over the warm cake layers to moisten evenly. Allow the layers to cool completely.

To frost the cake,place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup of the Almond-Cream Cheese Frosting over the cake to cover evenly. Repeat with the next layer. Set the third layer in place. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Garnish with poppy seeds or sliced almonds.

Almond-Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature

2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature

5 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1 tablespoon almond extract

In a large mixer bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl. Continue to beat until very fluffy, 3-4 minutes. Add the almond extract and mix well.

Posted by: Sallie

Glazed Poppyseed Bundt Cake

Picture from My Kitchen Cafe

You all know I have a serious obsession with chocolate but some people prefer non-chocolate desserts and I like to have a variety of options. I needed something fast and light to balance the decadent Paula Deen brownies I was serving alongside them for my book club . This cake was exactly what I was looking for. The cake was moist and light and the buttery glaze was delicious without being too heavy. Again, I had several requests for the recipe and this is now going to be a go to recipe when I need a quick, delicious dessert! Don't tell anyone but I actually liked it better than the brownies!

p.s. for anyone who wants the other recipes I served the links are below.

Spinach & Chicken Pasta Salad with Teriyaki Vinaigrette

Paula Deen's Southern Pecan Brownies

Valentine's Day Punch

Glazed Poppyseed Bundt Cake

from The Sister's Cafe

1 yellow cake mix

1 (3.5 oz) box of instant vanilla pudding

1 tablespoon poppyseeds

1/2 cup pinapple or orange juice (I used pineapple)

1/2 cup oil

1 cup sour cream (can use reduced fat)

4 eggs

Mix yellow cake mix, vanilla pudding and poppy seeds. Add juice, oil, and sour cream and mix. Add 4 eggs one at a time, mix well. Grease and flour a bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes (don't over bake).When the cake is about 10 minutes from being done start the glaze.Glaze:1 cup sugar1/4 cup water1/2 cup butter (1 cube)Bring ingredients to a boil and keep bubbling until ready to pour over cake. You can either pour the glaze over the cake while it is in the pan or turn the cake out onto a cooling rack and pour the glaze over the cake that way. It is really like syrup that soaks in. (Some commenters have said that glazing the cake in the pan makes it hard to remove because the glaze gets sticky. I glazed it out of the pan and it worked great.) Give it a few minutes to soak in and then turn it out onto a cake plate. Optional: dust top of cake with powdered sugar.

Posted by: Sallie

Devil's Food Cupcakes

I love birthdays! If only we could leave out the getting older part! The fun of shopping, making special food and celebrating everything you love about that person. My beautiful daughter Brinley just turned eight and it just amazes me to think that when we moved into our house she was only six weeks old. Time does fly.

We both love to read, shop and of course ---eat chocolate and as much as I would like to claim that she's just like me, she really takes after her dad. She has his looks, can sleep in like no body's business and second to chocolate, loves all forms of meat!

This girl made me laugh hysterically when I overheard her playing "house" and telling her sisters that she's Bill Gates wife. Seriously? And every Christmas at the top of her list is Rubies and Diamonds! I promise, I have nothing to do with this. Her birthday breakfast request was waffles with strawberries and whipped cream, BACON AND SAUSAGE (I told you the girl loves meat) and at the last minutes, eggs. I told her next year take it easy on the old Mom!

She is a budding Mozart (okay, maybe a slight exaggeration),loves to cook with me, and is going to take on the family tradition of being a great swimmer. I am so thankful everyday for this beautiful girl that brightens my days and look forward to all the memories we'll share as she gets older. I love you Brinley!

Now down to the real recipe! When the birthday girl said she wanted chocolate cake with chocolate frosting I immediately remembered the gorgeous cupcakes I'd seen in Martha Stewart's Cupcake book. There are seriously like a million recipes I want to try. These beauties didn't disappoint and were as yummy as they looked. (I wish I could take credit for the beautiful picture, but they are from Martha's Website).The sour cream made them super moist and the ganache frosting was creamy and delicious. I will be honest and warn you in advance, be prepared to do a pile of dishes afterwards ! Better yet, after a few of these cupcakes , maybe you can talk someone into doing the dishes for you!

Devil's Food Cupcakes

Martha Stewart

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 cup hot water
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream, room temperature

Chocolate Ganache Frosting (recipe below)

Chocolate Curls (optional , instructions below)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together cocoa and hot water until smooth. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
Melt butter with sugar in a saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring to combine. Remove from heat, and pour into a mixing bowl. With an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat until mixture is cooled, 4 to 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add vanilla, then cocoa mixture, and beat until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, and beating until just combined after each.
Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three- quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 15 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely. Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.
To finish, use a small offset spatula to spread cupcakes with frosting. Refrigerate up to 3 days in airtight containers; bring to room temperature and garnish with chocolate curls just before serving.

Chocolate Ganache Frosting

Makes 4 cups

1 pound good-quality bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 1/3 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup corn syrup
Directions
Place chocolate in a large heatproof bowl. Bring cream and corn syrup just to a simmer over medium-high heat; pour mixture over chocolate. Let stand, without stirring, until chocolate begins to melt.
Beginning near the center and working outward, stir melted chocolate into cream until mixture is combined and smooth (do not over stir).
Refrigerate, stirring every 5 minutes, until frosting just barely begins to hold its shape and is slightly lighter in color. Use immediately (ganache will continue to thicken after you stop stirring).

Chocolate Curls
1 block of good-quality chocolate (large blocks make curls easier than a thin bar)
Directions
Use a vegetable peeler to slice strips

Posted by: Sallie

Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

I knew as soon as I saw this recipe in my Cook's Illustrated Magazine that I would be making it. Me and Cream Cheese Coffee Cake go way back. It has been one of my favorites for as long as I can remember. Growing up we frequently had the Entemann's Cream Cheese Crumb Coffee Cake for a special Sunday breakfast. Yum! This was slightly different in that it was coffee cake, not danish but I loved the beautiful lemon sugar almond topping. It looks beautiful, tastes delicious and would make a gorgeous Christmas Breakfast. Like most Cook's Illustrated recipes, the directions are pretty particular and usually require a little more time but I feel the outstanding results are always well worth the effort. This would need to be made a day ahead. Just refrigerate and bring to room temperature before serving.

Makes one 10-inch cake, serving 12 to 16.

*Leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator, covered tightly with plastic wrap. For optimal texture, allow the cake to return to room temperature before serving.*

Ingredients
Lemon Sugar-Almond Topping
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated zest from 1 lemon
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Cake
2 1/4
cups (11 1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/8 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/8 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon table salt
10 tablespoons (1 stick plus 2 tablespoons) unsalted butter , softened but still cool
1 cup plus 7 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated zest plus 4 teaspoons juice from 1 to 2 lemons
4 large eggs
5 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups sour cream
8 ounces cream cheese , softened

Instructions
1. FOR THE TOPPING: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together sugar and lemon zest in small bowl until combined and sugar is moistened. Stir in almonds; set aside.
2. FOR THE CAKE: Spray 10-inch tube pan with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside. In stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter, 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, and lemon zest at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, about 20 seconds, and scraping down beater and sides of bowl as necessary. Add 4 teaspoons vanilla and mix to combine. Reduce speed to low and add one-third flour mixture, followed by half of sour cream, mixing until incorporated after each addition, 5 to 10 seconds. Repeat, using half of remaining flour mixture and all of remaining sour cream. Scrape bowl and add remaining flour mixture; mix at low speed until batter is thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds. Remove bowl from mixer and fold batter once or twice with rubber spatula to incorporate any remaining flour.
3. Reserve 1¼ cups batter and set aside. Spoon remaining batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Return now-empty bowl to mixer and beat cream cheese, remaining 5 tablespoons sugar, lemon juice, and remaining teaspoon vanilla on medium speed until smooth and slightly lightened, about 1 minute. Add ¼ cup reserved batter and mix until incorporated. Spoon cheese filling mixture evenly over batter, keeping filling about 1 inch from edges of pan; smooth top. Spread remaining cup reserved batter over filling and smooth top. With butter knife or offset spatula, gently swirl filling into batter using figure-8 motion, being careful to not drag filling to bottom or edges of pan. Firmly tap pan on counter 2 or 3 times to dislodge any bubbles. Sprinkle lemon sugar-almond topping evenly over batter and gently press into batter to adhere.
4. Bake until top is golden and just firm, and long skewer inserted into cake comes out clean (skewer will be wet if inserted into cheese filling), 45 to 50 minutes. Remove pan from oven and firmly tap on counter 2 or 3 times (top of cake may sink slightly). Cool cake in pan on wire rack 1 hour. Gently invert cake onto rimmed baking sheet (cake will be topping-side down); remove tube pan, place wire rack on top of cake, and invert cake sugar-side up. Cool to room temperature, about 1½ hours. Cut into slices and serve.

Posted by: Sallie

Spiced Fig Cake

This would make a beautiful finish to any holiday celebration. Julia made it last year and took it to her husband's office. Everyone there loved it!







Spiced Fig Cake
From Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup cooking oil
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk, or sour milk
1 10 oz. jar fig preserves, large pieces cut up
Cream Cheese Frosting
Chopped dried figs

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms and sides of two 9x1 1/2-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms of pans with parchment paper; grease the paper. Lightly flour pans. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice, baking soda, salt and ginger; set aside. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Beat in cooking oil. Add sugar; beat until combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition until combined. Stir in fix preserves. Spread into prepared pans.
3. Bake for 40 to 35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans; remove parchment paper. Cool completely on wire racks.
4. To assemble, place one of the cake layers on a platter. Spread top with some of the Cream Cheese Frosting. Top with second cake layer and spread top with remaining frosting. Garnish with chopped figs.

Cream Cheese Frosting: In a large mixing bowl, beat one 3 oz. package cream cheese, softened; 1/4 cup butter; and 1 tsp. vanilla with an electric mixer on medium to high speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add 2 cups powdered sugar, beating until smooth.

Posted by: Sallie & Julia

New York Style Crumb Cake

I'm such a sucker for sweet breakfasts and this one was no exception. Although I've never tasted an authentic New York Crumb cake if it's anything like this, count me in. A delicious , buttery, yellow cake topped with a yummy, struesel-like brown sugar cinnamon crumb topping. This would be delicious addition to any brunch or holiday breakfast.

New York Style Crumb Cake

Cooks Illustrated

Crumb Topping
1/3 cup granulated sugar (2 2/3 ounces)
1/3 cup dark brown sugar (2 2/3 ounces)
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and still warm
1 3/4 cups cake flour (7 ounces)

Cake
1 1/4 cups cake flour (5 ounces)
1/2 cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon table salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick), cut into 6 pieces, softened but still cool
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup buttermilk

Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Instructions
1. FOR THE TOPPING: Whisk sugars, cinnamon, salt, and butter in medium bowl to combine. Add flour and stir with rubber spatula or wooden spoon until mixture resembles thick, cohesive dough; set aside to cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
2. FOR THE CAKE: Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Cut 16-inch length parchment paper or aluminum foil and fold lengthwise to 7-inch width. Spray 8-inch square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and fit parchment into dish, pushing it into corners and up sides; allow excess to overhang edges of dish.
3. In bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt on low speed to combine. With mixer running at low speed, add butter one piece at a time; continue beating until mixture resembles moist crumbs, with no visible butter chunks remaining, 1 to 2 minutes. Add egg, yolk, vanilla, and buttermilk; beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute, scraping once if necessary.
4. Transfer batter to baking pan; using rubber spatula, spread batter into even layer. Break apart crumb topping into large pea-sized pieces and spread in even layer over batter, beginning with edges and then working toward center. Bake until crumbs are golden and wooden skewer inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool on wire rack at least 30 minutes. Remove cake from pan by lifting parchment overhang. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Hints - Don't use all-purpose flour in this recipe as it will result in a tough cake.

When topping the cake be careful not to push the crumbs into the cake.

This recipe can easily be doubled and baked in a 9 x 13 pan. Increase the baking time to about 45 minutes. Cooled leftovers can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature up to two days.

Posted by: Sallie

Classic Chocolate Layer Cake

My husband just had a birthday and I had visions of a delicious, fancy cake but as I've told you before my husband likes things simple and requested "a plain chocolate cake." Looking through my cookbooks I came across this cake and then dismissed it because it was named Classic Dark Chocolate Layer Cake. Eventually I ended up coming back to it because it just looked so good. Unlike the name, this cake has no dark chocolate in it (which I love but my husband doesn't.)just a hefty 3/4 cup of baking cocoa! It's your basic, good old fashioned chocolate layer cake. The buttermilk and sour cream gave it a nice moist texture and the layers baked up nice and tall. In my opinion the icing was the best part.

Classic Chocolate Layer Cake

A Passion for Baking

Cake:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened (I used salted and it was fine)

2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

2 1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup buttermilk

3/4 cup sour cream

Icing:

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted and cooled

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

3/4 cup cocoa powder, measured then sifted

3 to 4 cups confectioners sugar, measured then sifted

1/2 cup half and half or water (I used half and half)

optional: chocolate curls for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously spray two 9 in. round cake pans with nonstick cooking spray and line with parchment paper circles. Place pans on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

In a mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and blend well. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Fold dry ingredients into wet and mix, adding buttermilk and sour cream as mixture blends. Blend on low speed about 3 minutes scraping sides and bottom once to incorporate all ingredients. Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake on middle oven rack, 35 to 40 minutes, until cakes barely spring back when gently pressed with fingertips. Let cool in pan.

For icing, in a mixer bowl, on low speed, blend melted chocolate with butter. Add vanilla, cocoa, and half of confectioners sugar. Add remaining confectioners' sugar and mix slowly. Once sugar is more or less blended in, whip on high speed, using whisk attachment, adding a bit of half and half or water to get a light, fluffy consistency.

*If not using icing right away, rewhip before using. Add additional warm water (1 tbsp. at a time) to get correct consistency.*

To frost cake, semi-freeze layers first, 20-45 minutes, for easier handling. Turn flatter side (the bottom) of 1 layer down. Ice that layer. Top it with other layer, with bottom of cake facing up. Press down lightly and finish icing sides and top of cake Add chocolate shavings or curls, if desired. Makes 12-14 servings.

Posted by: Sallie

Perfect Party Cake

Please excuse the paper plate.Between a birthday, Back to School Night, the First day of School and 2 house showings today, fancy dishes were just not on the agenda.

I can't believe my cute little baby just turned four today. I know it sounds so cliche but it really does seem like just yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital. Plus, today was the first day of school and here I was sending another little one off to Kindergarten. Where does time go?

Of course I had to make a cake to celebrate. I am usually such a fan of chocolate but when it comes to birthday cakes and kids let's face it---vanilla is much easier to clean up and I really like the flavor of vanilla cake with cream cheese frosting. This recipe comes from Dorie Greenspan's Baking from My Home to Yours. Scanning the ingredients I noticed buttermilk and lemon zest and that was all it took to convince me this was going to be a great cake. I opted to make the cake simple and skip the coconut and jam (at the request of the birthday girl.) I'm not a fan of meringue type frosting so I used my own but have included the original recipe in case you'd like to try it. (I think the coconut and strawberry jam would taste heavenly!)The cake turned out moist and flavorful and the hint of lemon was delicious. The birthday girl was happy and so was everyone else. Make sure and add this  TO DIE FOR frosting (you'll have to scroll down to the bottom of the recipe) and you'll have a one happy birthday boy or girl! (We love it after the cake has been refrigerated for a couple of hours. )

Perfect Party Cake

Baking from My Home to Yours

*Makes 12 to 14 servings*

For the Cake:
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk
4 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure lemon extract

For the Butter cream:
1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 large lemons)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

This is what I used.

For Finishing:

2/3 cup seedless raspberry preserves, stirred vigorously or warmed gently until spreadable

Getting Ready:

Center a rack in the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9-x-2-inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

To Make The Cake:

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl.
Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Add the butter and, working with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light. Beat in the extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed. Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated. Add the rest of the milk and eggs, beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients. Finally, give the batter a good 2-minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the tough – a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up. (The cooled cake layers can be wrapped airtight and stored at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to 2 months.)

To Make the Butter cream:

Put the sugar and egg whites in a mixer bowl or other large heatproof bowl, fit the bowl over a pan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, about 3 minutes. The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like shiny marshmallow cream. Remove the bowl from the heat.
Working with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the meringue on medium speed until it is cool, about 5 minutes. Switch to the paddle attachment if you have one, and add the butter a stick at a time, beating until smooth. Once all the butter is in, beat the butter cream on medium-high speed until it is thick and very smooth, 6 to 10 minutes. During this time, the butter cream may curdle or separate – just keep beating and it will come together again. On medium speed, gradually beat in the lemon juice, waiting until each addition is absorbed before adding more, and then the vanilla. You should have a shiny, smooth, velvety, pristine white butter cream. Press a piece of plastic against the surface of the butter cream and set aside briefly.

To Assemble the Cake:

Using a sharp, serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, slice each layer horizontally in half. Put one layer cut side up on a cardboard cake round or a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper. Spread it with one third of the preserves. Cover the jam evenly with about one quarter of the butter cream. Top with another layer, spread with preserves and butter cream and then do the same with the third layer (you’ll have used all the jam and have butter cream left over). Place the last layer cut side down on top of the cake and use the remaining butter cream to frost the sides and top. Press the coconut into the frosting, patting it gently all over the sides and top.

Serving: The cake is ready to serve as soon as it is assembled, but it’s best to let it set for a couple of hours in a cool room.

Storing: The cake is best the day it is made, but you can refrigerate it, well covered, for up to 2 days.

Cappuccino Chiffon Cake

Last weekend was our friend Rosy's birthday party, so I offered to make her a cake out of my new cake recipe book that my sister inspired me to buy. She picked this one because she really loved Tiramisu. This cake definitely resembled Tiramisu very closely! Because you soak each layer in espresso and rum, it turns out very moist and the whipped cream frosting keeps it light. It was definitely a hit at the party!

Cappuccino Chiffon Cake
from Sky High: Irristable Triple-Layer Cakes

Ingredients
1/4 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as soybean, canola, or vegetable blend
6 eggs, separated
6 tbsp. freshly brewed espresso, cooled to room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1-1/3 cups cake flour
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cream of tarter
Espresso Syrup (see recipe below)
Vanilla Whipped Cream (see recipe below)
Cocoa powder or ground cinnamon, for dusting

Directions:
Prehead the oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottoms of three 8-inch round cake pans with rounds of parchment or waxed paper but do not grease.

In a medium bowl, combine the oil, egg yolks, espresso and vanilla; whisk lightly to blend. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, 1 cup of the sugar, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt; set the dry ingredients aside.

In a large mixer bowl with an electric mixer, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium-low speed until frothy. Raise the mixer speed to medium-high and gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Continue to beat until soft peaks form; do not whip until stiff or the cake will shrink excessively upon cooking.

Add the espresso-egg yolk mixture to the dry ingredients and fold together just enough to combine. Add one-fourth of the beaten egg whites and fold them in to lighten the batter. Fold in the remainder of the whites just until no streaks remain. Divide the batter among the 3 prepared pans.

Bake the cakes for about 18 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool completely in the pans. When cooled, run a blunt knife around the edge of the pans to release the cakes. Invert onto wire racks and remove the paper liners.

To assemble the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Soak the cake with 1/3 cup of the Espresso Syrup. Spread about 1-1/3 cups of the whipped cream evenly over the top of the layer. Repeat with the next layer and more syrup and whipped cream. Finally, top with the third layer. Soak it with the remaining syrup and frost the top and sides with the remaining whipped cream.

To decorate the cake, smooth out the cream as much as possible on thop with an offset spatula. Lay a paper lace doily over the top of the cake and sift cocoa or cinnamon over the doily. Carefully lift off the doily to reveal the lacy stencil on top of the cake.

Espresso Syrup (makes about 1 cup)
Ingredients:
1/3 cup hot, freshly brewed espresso
1/3 cup dark rum, such as Myers's
1/3 cup sugar

Directions:
In a bowl, stir together the espresso and sugar until the sugar dissolves. Add the rum and let cool to room temperature.

Vanilla Whipped Cream (makes about 6 cups)
Ingredients:
3 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:
Put the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a large chilled mixing bowl with chilled beaters. With the whip attachment, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.

Posted By: Julia

Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake With Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate Peanut Butter Glaze

It feels so good to be back. I love vacation, but I'm a big homebody and always love coming home. My sister and her husband invited us for the 4th of July and boy was it a feast. Her husband broke out the famous smoker and made salmon, chicken and pulled pork. We had some great classic side dishes and because the 4th of July also happens to be my sister's birthday I had to make her a cake. I was so excited to break out my Sky High Irresistible Triple Layer Cake book. Every recipe in here looks so delicious I am just waiting for more opportunities to make them. She chose a delicious chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting.

Anyone that knows me also knows when I get too tired you might as well forget about it. Well, who knows what I was thinking but I decided to make this cake at night and lets just say I forgot 2 crucial ingredients. Totally embarrassing, but the cake luckily was still okay and the frosting more than made up for it. It had the perfect amount of peanut butter so it wasn't overwhelming at all and just so creamy and delicious. The cake was moist and dense like a devil's food cake and I will for sure be making this again just to redeem myself. I know it will be even that much better made the right way. We didn't have 3 pans so we just used 2 9" pans and it worked great. If you have a peanut butter/chocolate lover in your family you've got to try this one. Just make sure you're wide awake!

Sour Cream-Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting and Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

Sky High Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes

2 cups all purpose flour

2 1/2 sugar

3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Dutch Process (I used Hershey's Special Dark)

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 cup neutral vegetable oil, such as canola, soy bean, or vegetable blend

1 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups water

2 tbsp distilled white vinegar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

Peanut Butter Frosting

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze

1/2 c. chopped peanut brittle (couldn't find this so left it out)

For the Cake:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8 in. round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and butter the paper.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk to combine them well. Add the oil and sour cream and whisk to blend. Gradually beat in the water. Blend in the vinegar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs and beat until well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and be sure the batter is well mixed. Divide among the 3 prepared cake pans.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let cool in the pans for about 20 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, carefully peel off the paper liners, and let cool completely.

For the Peanut Butter Frosting:

10 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature

1 stick, 4 oz. unsalted butter, at room temperature

5 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

2/3 cup smooth peanut butter

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the peanut butter and beat until thoroughly blended. Makes about 5 cups

For the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze:

8 oz. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

3 tablespoons smooth peanut butter

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1/2 c. half and half (next time I might add a tad more as it was a little thick)

In the top of a double boiler or in a bowl set over simmering water, combine the chocolate, peanut butter, and corn syrup. Cook, whisking often, until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth.

Remove from heat and whisk in the half and half beating until smooth. Use while still warm. Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

To frost the cake:

To frost the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or large serving plate. Spread 2/3 cup of the Peanut Butter Frosting evenly over the top. Repeat with the next layer. Place the last layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.

To decorate with the Chocolate-Peanut Butter Glaze, put the cake on a large baking sheet to catch any drips. Simply pour the glaze over the top of the cake, and using an offset spatula, spread it evenly over the top just to the edges so that it runs down the sides of the cake in long drips. Refrigerate, uncovered, for at least 30 minutes to allow the glaze and frosting to set completely. Remove about 1 hour before serving. Decorate the top with chopped peanut brittle. Makes 3 8 inch layer cakes. Serves 12-16.

Cinnamon Cake with Browned Butter Glaze

This is another recipe I snagged from Prudence Pennywise. She belongs to a group called TWD (Tuesday's with Dorie. Dorie Greenspan is a famous author/baker). Every Tuesday they make a different Dorie recipe. I have this cookbook and have been eyeing this recipe because originally it was a cinnamon cake with chocolate frosting. I love the chocolate/cinnamon combination but it had espresso in it and I wasn't sure how it would taste if I left it out. This girl is creative and tweaked it into a cinnamon cake with browned butter frosting. It was perfect. If you're not a big dessert fan, you'd probably like this as the cake is not overly sweet but the frosting is delicious and super easy and quick. Buttery, caramely and the perfect compliment to the moist cinnamon cake, this is a must try.

Cinnamon Cake with Browned Butter Glaze
Prudence Pennywise

1 and 1/4 cup sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 and 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspooon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

For the glaze:
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 or 1/3 cup milk or cream
1 cup powdered sugar, if desired (I left this out)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with about 16 liners, or grease an 8 inch square baking dish. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients: sugar, cinnamon, flour, powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla and butter . Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry ingredients and lightly blend. Spread batter into prepared pan. Bake for about 35 minutes for square pan, and about 20 minutes for cupcakes. To make glaze, melt butter in small saucepan. Watching closely, cook butter without stirring until browned. Stir in brown sugar to form thick mixture. For a glaze add the lesser amount of milk, for frosting add the greater. Add milk and stir until lump free. It's ready as a glaze. If you want it to be like frosting, add powdered sugar and beat until lumps are gone. Spoon over warm cake. This makes a 8x8 pan so if you want it in a 9x13 double the recipe.

Rainbow Cupcakes

This is a fun little cupcake I made to take into my son's class at school. They do take a little extra time compared to a regular cupcake but the kids loved them. I already picked up some red, white and blue sprinkles and am planning on doing some red/white/blue patriotic ones for Fourth of July. I confess to using a boxed cake mix, because I knew the rest of the process would take awhile & I was in a hurry because I totally forgot until the night before, but I have included a recipe for basic white cupcakes if you'd rather do homemade. A few things I learned :

1. I would use powder or higher quality food coloring (like Wilton) because it will create brighter colors. I just had to go with what I had because I forgot until Sunday night and was stuck with what I had at home.

2. I tried coloring decorating them with colored frosting and felt like it overwhelmed the cupcakes so I liked the white better.

3. It will look like you are putting a really small amount of each color in but once you get in all they layers it fills them up and you don't want them to overflow.

Rainbow Cupcakes

from Baking Bites

For the Cake:

1 yellow or white cake mix

or

Basic White Cupcakes

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 tsp vanilla extract

red, yellow, green and blue food colorings (or whatever colors you want to use.

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease 10 cups from a 12 cup muffin tin (or line with paper cups).In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, vegetable oil, buttermilk and vanilla extract. Pour in dry ingredients and stir until just combined.Divide batter evenly into 5 small bowls; each should have a little more than 1/3 cup batter (approx 6 tbsp or so for each).Add about 1/2 tsp food coloring to each bowl to make red, orange, yellow, green and blue batters. Stir well, so no streaks of plain batter remain. Add additional food coloring if necessary.Starting with the blue batter, add a small spoonful to each of the 10 grease muffin cups (just over 1/2 tbsp in each). Repeat with all remaining colors, working from green to yellow to orange to red, adding each subsequent spoonful on top of the previous color. Do not attempt to spread the layers of color out (as it can cause layers to combined), but allow them to spread on their own.Bake for about 15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.Cool cupcakes on a wire rack before frosting. Makes 10 cupcakes.

For the Frosting

1 can purchased frosting

or

Quick Buttercream Frosting

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

3 tbsp milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

approx 3 cups confectioners’ sugar

In a large bowl, beat together butter, milk and vanilla. Gradually add in the confectioners sugar until frosting reaches a thick, spreadable consistency. You will probably use 2 1/2-3 cups.Pipe or spread frosting onto cooled cupcakes.

Amazing Vanilla Buttermilk White Cake

I have to admit, when it comes to birthday cakes, lots of times I'll just doctor up a cake mix and call it good. Never again. After having this cake I am forever spoiled. I wanted a tall cake that would bake up thick and stand up to being moved and decorated. This cake was not only easy to decorate but was seriously one of the best, if not the best vanilla cake i've EVER had. It was so moist and the vanilla flavor was out of this world. In fact, I am already plotting ways to make it again. I just can't say enough good things about this cake. I can't wait to give Holly's other cakes a try.

Vanilla Buttermilk Cake

from Sky High Triple Layer Cakes

For the cake:

4 whole large eggs

2 egg yolks

2 tsp of vanilla extract

1 1/4 cup of buttermilk

3 cups of cake flour

2 cups of sugar

4 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

8 ounces of butter at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Butter the bottom and sides of three 8-inch cake pans. Line with parchment paper and grease the paper.Place the eggs and the yolks in a medium bowl. Add the vanilla and 1/4 cup of buttermilk and whisk all the ingredients well. Set Aside.Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in the bowl of a mixer; whisk to blend. Add the remaining buttermilk and butter to the dry ingredients and with the mixer on low speed, blend together. Raise the mixer to medium speed and beat until light fluffy; 2minutes.Add the egg mixture in three additions, scrapping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Divide the batter among all the pans.Bake the cake layers for 28-32 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn out the cakes onto a wire rack and remove the paper from the bottoms. Cool completely.

*I made mine in a 9 x 13 pan. If you do this just allow extra baking time.*

Below is the frosting I used. I think it highly contributed to the reason this is now one of my new all time favorite cakes.

Frosting:

from My Kitchen Cafe

1 pound cream cheese at room temperature

3 sticks butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth. This frosted a 9 x 13, a 9 in. round and 24 cupcakes. It makes A LOT!

I'm not by any means a great decorator but one tip I found that really helps is to freeze the cake (to get it really cold) before you decorate it. This was the first time I've tried it and it worked really well. It was also much easier to cut and there were a lot less crumbs.

Posted by: Sallie

A "Home Made" Wedding Cake

Last Saturday, May 9th, my dear friends Crystal and Rob got married. Crystal, knowing that I love to bake, had asked me about 8 months ago if I would make her wedding cake and of course I agreed! She told me that I could make a small "display" cake and just have a sheet cake in the back to serve. However, I told her that if I was doing this, I was doing it ALL THE WAY!

So, after doing a little research, I puchased the book Wedding Cakes You Can Make: Designing, Baking, and Decorating the Perfect Wedding Cake by Dede Wilson. The book is amazing. Dede has a very realistic approach to do-it-yourself wedding cakes. Her two main focuses of making a wedding cake are asthetics and taste, which I found very important because more often than not, the wedding cake looks fabulous but doesn't taste very good. She has very detailed instructions from where to get your cake supplies, how to separate eggs, all the way down to transporting your cake from one location to another. She also throws in some personal stories that she has from making wedding cakes, which make the book warm hearted and entertaining.

For the past 8 months, I have been baking "practice" cakes and making tubs and tubs of "practice" buttercream. Fortunately, I have been able to use a lot of my practice cakes for birthday cakes and parties!

The biggest challenge I had to overcome to make this cake was that I live in Las Vegas, and the wedding was held in Jamestown, New York. In the end, I decided to bake all the cake layers in Las Vegas, the day we flew out. I also had make the buttercream frosting and filling over the previous month and had stored it in my freezer. My husband and I packed up a large plastic tub with all the cake layers (left in the pans for protection), the frosting, and all the cake supplies. We then checked the tub on the plane. Let's just say when we went to get our baggage and the tub came out all in one piece, we were so relieved!!

The day of the wedding, we went to the reception hall and I assembled and frosted the cake, and added the final flower decorations. The entire thing went off with out a hitch, amazingly! The bride and groom loved the cake and I was so happy to be able to contribute something to their special day.

This is what the cake was composed of:

Bottom Tier:

Cake: White cake with bittersweet chocolate shavings and kirsch soaked dried cherries

Filling: Vanilla Buttercream with chocolate covered cherries

Frosting: Vanilla Buttercream

Middle Tier:

Cake: White chocolate cake

Filling: Raspberry Buttercream

Frosting: Vanilla Buttercream

Top Tier:

Cake: Vanilla cake

Filling: Vanilla Buttercream

Frosting: Vanilla Buttercream

Because the recipes and instructions are so detailed, I'm not going to post them (I would have to post almost the whole book!). However, if you are interested in making your own wedding cake, or one for a friend, I would highly suggest picking up a copy of the book I mentioned and practice, practice, practice!

Posted By: Julia

Irresistible Lemon Cake

I have a cake recipe very similar to this one that my husband and I love, instead of frosting it has a glaze, so I wanted to see how this one compared. The cake was very similar , really moist and of course lemony, but the frosting, yummy! It was so light and lemony. And the whole thing was so easy to make. In fact, truth be told, this was supposed to be my Mother's Day Cake but I made it the day before and couldn't help but have a slice and it was all downhill from there. Once I had a slice how could I refuse any one else? Needless to say I will have to find something else for Mother's Day.

Irresistible Lemon Cake

Originally from You Got Served, found on My Kitchen Cafe

Cake Ingredients

1 package lemon cake mix
1 c sour cream (8 oz)
3/4 c water
3/4 c oil
4 eggs
1 small package lemon instant pudding

Cake Instructions

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients. Mix with electric mixer on medium/high for about two minutes. Pour into a greased 9x11 pan or two round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

You can also make cupcakes and bake them at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. The cupcakes will fall after they come out of the oven, but this is normal. Just fill up the indentation with more frosting.

Frosting Ingredients

1 c (2 sticks) butter, very soft
8 c powdered sugar
1/2 c fresh lemon juice
1 t grated lemon zest

Frosting Instructions

Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Add 4 cups of sugar, then the juice and the zest. Beat until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the remaining sugar, 1 cup at a time, until icing is thick enough to be of good spreading consistency (I add about 6 cups total). If desired, add a few drops of yellow food coloring and mix thoroughly. Use and store at room temperature. (Don't refrigerate and it will last in a Tupperware for about three days.)

*I greased the bottom of my pans and lined with parchment paper. This helps them come out of the pan super easy.*

Apple Spice Cake

I know this is more of a fall recipe but it is one of my favorites. It is from the Martha Stewart website. Besides looking delicious, I wanted to try it because it is one of the most popular recipes on their website. It lived up to its reputation. It is like apple pie flavor in a cake. I love the cinnamon flavor and caramel sauce and don't forget to serve it with ice cream.

1 1/3 cups vegetable oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 to 4 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (3 cups)
1 cup chopped assorted nuts, such as pecans and walnuts (optional)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Non stick cooking spray with flour (or grease and flour pan)

Caramel Sauce
Makes enough for 1 cake

1 cup light-brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/4 cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Directions
Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until thickened to desired consistency


Directions for Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray; set aside.
Working over a large sheet of parchment paper, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt; gather sifted ingredients into center of sheet; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine vegetable oil, sugar, and eggs; mix on high speed until lemon yellow.
Fold reserved parchment in half lengthwise; with mixer on medium speed, gradually shake in dry ingredients until just incorporated.
Add apples and, if desired, nuts, to batter; mix to combine. Add vanilla, mixing until incorporated.
Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 75 to 90 minutes.
Remove from oven, and cool slightly on a wire rack.
Invert cake onto rack; turn cake right-side up to cool completely on rack, and serve drizzled with caramel sauce

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I hope everyone had a great Easter. Ours was really fun. I have a few recipes that turned out great that I want to share. This is one of them.

I was looking through my recipes for Easter and was disappointed when I saw that the Hummingbird Cake didn't have any carrots in it. I had been craving carrot cake and ended up making this recipe instead. It is from the new Worldwide Ward Cookbook. I was a little hesitant because it had whole wheat flour in it and I wasn't sure how it would taste in a cake. I thought it turned out really good. It was nice and moist and I loved the addition of coconut. I made mine the night before and kept it in the fridge. I served it cold right out of the fridge and thought it was delicious. I also liked the three layers because I thought it looked really nice. I will for sure make this cake again.

Carrot Cake

2 cups sugar

1 1/2 c. oil (I used vegetable)

4 eggs

1 c. flour

1 c. whole wheat flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. cinnamon

2 tsp. vanilla

3 carrots, grated ( I used a food processor and they were perfect size)

3/4 c. pecans, chopped

1 c. raisins

1/2 cup crushed pineapple or applesauce (I used pineapple and drained it)

3/4 c. coconut

In a mixing bowl, combine sugar and oil. Add eggs and mix well. Sift flours, soda salt and cinnamon together. Add to sugar mixture and beat well. Add vanilla and grated carrots. Fold in nuts, raisins, pineapple, and coconut. Grease and flour three 8 inch layer cake pans. Pour batter evenly into pans and bake at 325 for 45 minutes. Cool on racks for 10 minutes and remove from pans to continue cooling. Frost with cream cheese frosting. Makes 16 servings.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, room temperature

1 lb. powdered sugar

1-2 tsp. vanilla

In a mixing bowl, beat butter and cream cheese together. Add sugar and vanilla extract until frosting is of spreading consistency.

*If you don't have 3 cake pans you could probably use 2 larger cake pans and bake for longer. *

Friendly Flyers & Cupcakes for Spring

Here's a fun idea if you are planning on making cupcakes. They are from a website called Bright Ideas.com. I posted the original picture from the website because it is so cute and it was a little hard to see from the picture I took. (Unfortunately black string licorice is nowhere to be found so my little flyers have red antennaes). I also did a simple little flower with regular m and m's and some others just for fun.

Friendly Flyers

2 bags M&M’S® Peanut Chocolate Candies (May substitute with 2 bags M&M’S® Brand Dark Peanut Chocolate Candies or 2 bags M&M’S® Brand Almond Chocolate Candies)
1 18.25-oz. box yellow cake mix
1 16-oz. can vanilla frosting
Green and yellow food coloring
Black licorice laces
3 12-cup mini cupcake pans
36 mini paper cupcake liners
Resealable plastic bag
Spatula

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 3 (12 cup) mini cupcake pans with paper liners.
2. Prepare cake mix according to package directions.
3. Divide batter evenly between prepared cupcake pans. Bake approximately 15 to 18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven, transfer to wire rack and let cool completely.
4. Meanwhile, spoon 1/4 cup white frosting into resealable bag. Tint remaining frosting green and use to cover cupcakes.
5. Use photograph as decorating guide for cupcakes. Arrange four M&M’S® Peanut Chocolate Candies for Easter, as photo shows. Pipe white frosting body in center and use licorice for antennae.

*The recipe said it made 36 but I got 48 minis and 10 regular sized.*