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

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

Lemon Buttermilk Sheet Cake

With my in-laws as well as brother and sisters in laws close by, we frequently have get-to-gethers for birthdays, Mother's Day, etc. Of course I always volunteer to bring the dessert whenever possible (for selfish reasons.) Nine times out of ten it involves chocolate, but with the summer heat, lemon has been my go-to alternative. I love it's fresh, light, and tart taste.

I love cakes for feeding a crowd and not only was this lemon cake delicious, it was something a little different than your standard chocolate/vanilla frosted cake. I loved the look and taste of the glaze and lemon sugar topping. It was a major crowd pleaser and will be making frequent appearances from now on. 

Lemon Buttermilk Sheet CakeRecipe from America’s Test Kitchen Best Summer Desserts found via Our Best Bites

Ingredients:

Cake:

2 1/2 cups (10 ounces) cake flour (no substitutions)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup white sugar
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk

Glaze:

3 cups (12 ounces) powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons buttermilk

Instructions:

Make sure the oven rack is in the middle position (unless you’ve found that another position works better in your oven for baking) and heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 9×13″ baking dish and set aside.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a measuring cup, combine buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla. Set aside.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the white sugar and lemon zest on medium speed until moist and fragrant (about 1 minute). Remove 1/4 cup of the sugar mixture and place it in a small bowl. Cover and set aside.

Add the softened butter to the remaining sugar mixture and beat until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the eggs and yolk, one at a time, until incorporated. Reduce speed to low. Add the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk mixture in 2 additions. Mix until smooth (about 30 seconds)

Scrape the batter into the reserved baking pan and smooth out the top. Bake until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean (about 25-35 minutes). Be careful not to over bake. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and allow to cool for 10 minutes.

While the cake is cooling, whisk the glaze ingredients together until smooth. Gently spread the glaze over the cake and sprinkle evenly with the reserved sugar mixture. Allow to cool completely, at least 2 hours.

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.

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

Lemon Berry Trifle

Before.........

After.......

If you're looking for a beyond delicious, crowd pleasing, show stopping, perfect summer dessert, this is it! Layers of  tender, moist lemon pound cake are accentuated by the most delicious lemon infused whipped cream and topped off with a classic berry syrup.

This is another great recipe for feeding a crowd (although if it would have stayed in my fridge a few more days, I'm pretty sure it would have mysteriously disappeared.)

Although it can be a bit labor intensive, most everything can be made 2-3 days ahead.  You could also simplify things quite a bit by purchasing the pound cake and lemon curd.

Lemon Berry Trifle
Mel's Kitchen Cafe

*Note: the trifle should be assembled about 5-8 hours before serving so all the flavors can blend together. All of the components can be made from 1-3 days ahead. Look through the recipe for more specific details.

*Serves 8-10

Berries (can be cooked up to a day in advance and refrigerated):
4 cups berries (a combination of blueberries, strawberries and raspberries), you can use fresh or frozen – if using frozen, they need to be thawed and drained
1 lemon, juiced
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch

Lemon Cream (the lemon curd can be made up to 3 days in advance):
3 cups whipping cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 recipe lemon curd (see below) or an 11-ounce jar lemon curd

Pound Cake (can be made a day in advance or longer, if it is frozen):
1 9-inch round or loaf lemon (or plain) pound cake, homemade (Danielle used this recipe, I wanted to try a new version and typed it up below – both are fantastic) or store-bought, cut into 1/2-inch thick slices
Combine the berries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook just until the berries begin to break down, about 3-4 minutes. Take the berries off the heat and let the mixture cool. This can be done a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate the berry syrup until ready to use.
In a clean bowl, whip the cream with the powdered sugar and the vanilla until soft peaks form. Put the lemon curd into a second bowl and whisk in about 1/4 cup of the whipped cream to loosen it up a bit. Then gently fold in the rest of the cream. Cover and refrigerate if not using immediately.
To assemble the trifle, spoon a layer of the cream into a large glass or trifle bowl. Add a layer of pound cake. You may need to break the pound cake slices into smaller pieces and jigsaw them together to fit. Then drizzle on about 1/3 of the berry syrup. Don’t worry if it doesn’t completely coat the pound cake – just drizzle it across and let the berries fall where they may. Spoon a layer of lemon cream over the top, smoothing to the sides. Repeat all the layers, 2 or 3 more times, depending on the size of the bowl, finishing with a layer of lemon cream. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. It is best to make this several hours before serving and refrigerate it.


Lemon Pound Cake:
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2002 Annual Recipes
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
5 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1-2 lemons)
Preheat the oven to 324 degrees. Butter and dust with flour a 9-inch round cake pan (or I suppose a loaf pan would work, also). Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
Place the butter in a large bowl and using an handheld or stand mixer, beat until soft. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Reduce the speed to low. Add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until incorporated after each addition. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan; bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes (perhaps longer for a deep loaf pan). Invert onto a wire rack and let cool completely.

Lemon Curd:
adapted from Martha Stewart Living 2002 Annual Recipes
4 large egg yolks
1 large whole egg
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons), strained
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
Strain the yolks and whole egg through a fine mesh strainer into a heavy medium saucepan (this took a bit of work – I pressed on the egg mixture with the back of a spoon, moving it around, until they moved through the strainer). Add the sugar and juice; whisk to combine.
Cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, 12-14 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the butter, one piece at a time, until fully incorporated. Stir in the lemon zest. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin forming and chill in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Posted by: Sallie

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.

Divine Chocolate Cake With Magical Frosting

After seeing this recipe in Cook's Country Magazine and on Melanie's blog I decided I just had to try it. First the frosting. Let me tell you, it's a keeper. Although it does take a little extra time the effort is well worth it. Creamy, buttery and unbelievably delicious.Please ignore the fact that there are 3, yes 3 sticks of butter. I know this frosting is going to be making a lot more appearances around these parts. As if that isn't enough, there is also a chocolate version which I suspect will be just as delicious.

The cake, don't even get me started. Rich, dark and bursting with tons of chocolate flavor. This cake was so moist and when combined with the amazing frosting, let's just say I ate more than my fair share and then shuttled the rest off to neighbors before I devoured all the leftovers.

**Note: this frosting takes a bit of advance planning since the frosting needs time to cool so plan ahead! Also, the frosting can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to one week. When ready to use, let the frosting stand at room temperature until softened, about 2 hours. Beat with stand mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about one minute. **

Magical Frosting
My Kitchen Cafe and Cook's Country Magazine

*Makes about 4 cups frosting (plenty for two 9-inch cake layers)

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk (I used 1 % and it was delish)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
24 tablespoons (3 sticks) butter, cut into 24 pieces and softened at room temperature

In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cornstarch and salt. Slowly whisk in the milk until the mixture is smooth. Place a fine-mesh strainer over a medium saucepan and pour the milk mixture through the strainer into the saucepan. Cook the mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture boils and is thick enough that it starts to become difficult to easily whisk. This could take anywhere between 5-10 minutes, depending on your stove, heat, etc. It should bubble quite a bit at the end (be careful of the splatters) and thicken considerably.

Transfer the mixture to a clean bowl and cool to room temperature – this is extremely important! If it is even slightly warm, the frosting won’t beat up properly. I refrigerated my initial mixture overnight. If you do this, make sure to pull it out in time to let it warm back up to room temperature. If you try to proceed with the rest of the recipe and the mixture is too cold, the butter won’t absorb into the frosting like it should.

Once the frosting is completely cooled to room temperature (it should have no hint of warmth at all!), beat the mixture with the vanilla on low speed until it is well combined, about 30 seconds (a stand mixer will work best for this). Add the butter, one piece at a time, and beat the frosting until all the butter has been incorporated fully, about 2 minutes. Increase the speed to medium-high and let the mixer work it’s magic. Beat the frosting for five minutes, until it is light and fluffy. Let the frosting sit at room temperature until it is a bit more stiff, about 1 hour. I suspect if you chill it for an hour or so, it would be stiff enough to actually pipe with instead of frosting with a rubber spatula.

Chocolate Version: Add 1/4 cup cocoa powder to the sugar, flour, cornstarch, salt mixture in the first step. Once the frosting has been mixed for five minutes and is light and fluffy, mix in 3-4 ounces of semisweet chocolate that has been melted and completely cooled to room temperature.

*Makes two 8-inch or 9-inch cake layers or a 9X13-inch pan*

Divine Chocolate Cake
My Kitchen Cafe and Martha Stewart

1 ¼ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
2 ½ cups all purpose flour
2 ½ cups sugar
2 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
1 ¼ teaspoons salt
2 large eggs plus 1 large egg yolk
1 ¼ cups warm water
1 ¼ cups buttermilk
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, making sure the baking rack is in the middle of the oven. Prepare your cake pans by cutting out a piece of parchment or wax paper to line the bottom of the pan. Grease the pans, place the parchment or wax paper in the bottom of the pan and lightly grease again. Dust the pans with flour (or cocoa powder if you don’t want the white dusting on the finished cakes). Set the pans aside.

Using a fine mesh strainer, sift together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add the eggs, yolk, warm water, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. Mix on low speed (with a handheld mixer or in the bowl of an electric stand mixer) until smooth, about 3 minutes.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake the cakes for about 32-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean or with moist crumbs. Do not overbake! Remove the pans from the oven and set the pans on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Gently run a thin knife around the edges of the pans and unmold the cakes, removing the parchment paper liners from the bottom of the cakes. Let them cool completely, top sides ups, on a wire rack.

Trim the tops of the cake layers with a long serrated knife to make them level. Frost as desired.

Posted by: Sallie

Father's Day Menu

We'll be heading off later this week for a well anticipated summer vacation so I won't be posting for quite awhile, but I wanted to leave you with a menu idea for Father's Day. These ribs are one of my Mom's most requested recipes. They are my absolute, all time favorite and quickly became a favorite of my husbands too. I have to admit, I've never even tried another recipe. The sweet of the chili sauce, with the tart from the lemon is a winning combination. I like to use the boneless, country style ribs. They cook up so tender with no annoying bones to worry about. Plus, I think they taste just as delicious baked as they do on the grill so you if you're like me and are clueless when it comes to the BBQ, no worries. Most of this meal can be made the day before so you can both relax!

The Menu:

BBQ Ribs

Potato Salad or Funeral Potatoes

Corn on the Cob

Rolls

Lemon Cake or Texas Sheet Cake

Mom's BBQ'd (or baked) Ribs

from Better Homes and Gardens

2 lbs. boneless, country style pork ribs

For the Sauce:

1/2 c. chili sauce

2 1/2 tsp. prepared mustard

1/4 c. butter1/4 c. finely minced onion (I like to do mine in a mini food processor and get them nice and small)

1 c. Ketchup

1/4 c. brown sugar

1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. Worcestershire

1/4 tsp. garlic salt

1 lemon sliced

Either- Simmer ribs covered in salt water in saucepan until tender about 45-60 minutes or (my preferred method )-- put ribs in crock pot until just barely covered with salted water. Cook on low for 7 hours. Drain and refrigerate until baking or grilling. (I do this the night before). Meanwhile, prepare sauce. In a saucepan, combine ketchup, chili sauce, brown sugar, butter and onion. Add mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic salt and lemon slices. Bring mixture to a boil. Remove from heat.

If Baking in oven: Place hot ribs in shallow roasting pan; pour generous amount of sauce over ribs. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, basting with sauce every 10 minutes.

If grilling: Grill ribs over medium to low coals about 10-15 minutes each side, brushing often with sauce.

Perfect Potato Salad

My Kitchen Cafe

This potato salad was great. I've never had a potato salad recipe I've liked well enough to stick with. I really liked the "dressing" on this one. This recipe also gives you the option of serving it warm or cold. I will definitely be making this again. I think next time I will add pickles too.

Dressing:
2 cups mayonnaise

2/3 cups buttermilk

1 1/2 tsp. dried parsley

1 tsp. salt

1 1/2 tsp. minced dried onions

1 1/2 tsp. garlic salt

1 tsp. seasoned salt

1 tsp. ground black pepper

2 tbsp. mustard

Shake vigorously in jar or blend in blender until well combined.

Salad:

5 lbs. potatoes (red is what I used)

1 cup sliced olives

10 hard boiled eggs, diced

Peel, dice and boil potatoes until tender but not mushy. Drain potatoes well and pour into large bowl. Add sliced olives and hard boiled eggs. If you want to serve it warm--- Pour dressing over warm potatoes until desired "dressing-level" is reached. If you would like it cold pour a thin coating over the potatoes and refrigerate until cold (or overnight). Right before serving add remaining dressing to your liking. The recipe says it serves 6-8 but I would say 10-15.

Lemon Cake w/ Lemon Glaze

This recipe was given to me by my Mother in Law and has been a favorite of both my husband and I for years. The cake is moist and full of lemon flavor and it starts with a cake mix so it's really easy. It's got a nice, simple glaze of powdered sugar and lemon juice which keeps it nice and light, perfect for spring and summer.

Cake

1 box yellow cake mix

1 3 oz. pkg. Lemon Jello

3/4 c. oil

3/4 c. water

4 eggs

1 tsp. lemon extract

Glaze

1 1/2-2 cups powdered sugar

3/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat all ingredients together for 4 minutes. Bake in greased 9 x 13 pan for 30-40 minutes. When cake is done poke holes with fork all over the top of the cake. Pour glaze evenly over cake and put back in a 200 degree oven for 2-5 minutes just to "bake-in" the glaze.

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

Cupcakes, Cupcakes, Everywhere

I love cupcakes. Here are a few I've tried recently and loved.

Thin Mint Cupcakes

From Real Mom Kitchen & Food Librarian

I saw these cute cupcakes on Real Mom kitchen and made them for St. Patrick's Day. They were so moist and had the perfect amount of mint in my opinion. They are made from scratch but it can all be made in one bowl and were pretty simple.

Ingredients
Makes 18 to 24
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup warm water
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons safflower oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 pkg. keebler grasshopper cookies or 1 sleeve girl scout thin mint cookies, crushed

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners; set aside. Sift together cocoa powder, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Add eggs, warm water, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla, and mix until smooth, about 3 minutes. Add crushed cookies. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl to assure batter is well mixed.
Divide batter evenly among muffin cups, filling each 2/3 full. Bake until tops spring back when touched, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (3-oz.) package cream cheese
1 (16-oz.) package powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation
1. Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended. Increase speed to medium, and slowly add milk and vanilla, beating until smooth. Add food coloring if desired and top with 1/4 cookie.

If you want over the top chocolate try this instead.

Chocolate Buttercream

Prepare Vanilla Buttercream as directed. Microwave 1 cup (6 oz.) dark chocolate morsels in a microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring at 30-second intervals. Gradually add melted chocolate to Vanilla Buttercream; beat until blended and smooth. Note: For testing purposes only, we used Nestlé Chocolatier Dark Chocolate Morsels.

Cookies and Cream Cupcakes with Chunky Oreo Frosting

recipe and picture from Picky Palate

I made these cupcakes a couple of months ago and they were great. A big hit with the kids. I used the white cake mix but they would be great with the yellow also.

Cupcake batter

1 Butter or yellow cake mix
4 eggs
1 small package vanilla pudding mix
½ Cup sour cream
½ Cup water
½ Cup vegetable oil
16 oreos, crumbled up
1 Cup chocolate chips

Chunky Oreo Frosting
8 oz softened cream cheese
1 stick softened butter
3 Cups powdered sugar
6 oreo cookies, crumbled

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer, beat until all ingredients are well combined, close to 2 minutes. Pour batter into paper lined cupcake cups, about ¾ way full. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean from center. Let cool.
2. Place cream cheese and butter into mixer and beat until smooth and fluffy. Slowly add in powdered sugar until desired consistency. Stir in oreo cookie crumbles and spread over cupcakes.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

From good eats.com and Paula Deen

Anne made these for book club on Thursday and I demanded the recipe immeadiately. They are so yummy. The frosting is the best! I am drooling and wishing I had the ingredients right now. You need to make these.

red velvet cupcakes:

makes approx 2 1/2 dozen

3/4 cup butter, softened2 cups sugar, divided3 large eggs, separated3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour1/2 cup dutch processed cocoa2 tsp salt1 2/3 cup whole buttermilk3 tbsp red food coloring1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract-preheat oven to 350. line 30 cups of 3 (12 cup) muffin tins with paper liners-in a large bowl, beat butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. beat in egg yolks until combined-in a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa and salt-in a small bowl, combine buttermilk, food coloring and vanilla-gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk mixture. beginning and ending with flour mixture, beating well after each addition.-in a medium bowl, beat egg whites at medium high speed with an electric mixer until foamy. gradually add 1/2 cup sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. gently fold beaten egg whites into butter mixture. spoon batter evenly into prepared pans. bake at 18 to 20 minutes, or until wooden toothpick comes out clean. remove from pans, and cool completely on wire racks. spread or pipe evenly with desired frosting.

white chocolate cream cheese frosting (the yummiest frosting EVER!)

makes approx 4 1/2 cups frosting

1 1/2 cups butter, softened (that's paula for ya, 3 sticks of butter!)

1 8oz cream cheese, softened

2 1oz squares white chocolate, melted and cooled

1 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice

4 1/2-5 cups powdered sugar in a large bowl,

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Beat in white chocolate and lemon juice until combined. gradually beat in confectioner's sugar until smooth.

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.

Coconut Bread

This is one of my all time favorite breads. I got the recipe on my friends Anne and Staci's blog (Good eats with anne and staci) but my friend Andrea gave me the glaze recipe that puts it over the top. It is pure coconut heaven. A sweet, dense bread with coconut throughout and then a yummy coconut glaze on top. I am also super excited because in my Lion House Cookook (where i'm assuming this originated) they have a recipe for Coconut Brunch Cake which is basically this bread with nuts in a bundt pan. (I'm sure if you don't like nuts you could just leave them out.)You can bet it will be showing up on my breakfast table very soon. I will include both recipes.



Coconut Bread



4 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

2t. coconut flavoring

3 cups flour

1/2t. soda, powder, salt

1 c. buttermilk

1 cup coconut



Mix all together. Bake in two large, greased bread pans. Bake at 325* for 1 hour. Top with glaze.



Glaze



1 cup sugar

1/2 c. water

1 tbsp. butter

1 tsp. coconut extract



Bring to a boil. Add coconut extract. Pour over bread in pans. Let sit 4 hours.



Coconut Brunch Cake



Same ingredients as above except add:



1 cup chopped walnuts (I think pecans would be delicious also)



Add the nuts after the coconut.



Generously grease and flour a 10 in. bundt pan. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour.



Glaze



1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

3 tbsp. butter or margarine

*see note at bottom*



In the meantime, in saucepan mix sugar, water and butter. Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. When cake is done, pour hot syrup over top of cake. Allow to stand for 4 hours, then remove from pan.



*The Lion House glaze does not include the coconut extract but I think it would be delicious to add 1 tsp. coconut extract*

Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding Pie

After tasting this pie for the first time, it ranked among my most favorite of all time desserts! The deep,
dark, rich, chocolate filling and creamy, slightly tangy creme freiche whipped topping complement each other so well. Just looking at the picture  has me drooling and wishing I had this in my fridge right now!

While I'll admit this is a special occasion dessert that requires a little extra time and effort, the results are well worth it. I do like dark chocolate but I also need my sugar so I always opt for the semisweet chocolate. I have made this several times and it never disappoints!


P.S. We are trying to update our blog and make it easier to find recipes. Please be patient with us!!

Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding Pie
Mel's Kitchen Cafe

*Read through the recipe to see the notes about what parts of the pie can be made ahead of time.The pudding portion needs to be made at least one day ahead of time to chill overnight in the refrigerator. If  you want to skip the crème fraîche part , you can sub the same amount of heavy whipping cream (making it 1 1/2 cups total) for the topping – but you will be missing out!!!

Crust:
1 1/2 cups chocolate wafer cookie crumbs (I use about 3/4 package of chocolate Teddy Grahams (a 9 oz. box)
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons butter, melted
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
Filling:
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups whole milk, divided
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping:
3/4 cup chilled crème fraîche**
3/4 cup chilled heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Bittersweet chocolate shavings or curls (optional – I used Pioneer Woman’s chocolate curl instructions found here)

Crust: (can be made one day ahead of time, lightly covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated)
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. In a food processor (or by hand in a ziploc bag with a rolling pin), blend cookie crumbs and sugar. If using a food processor, add melted butter (if using a bag, pour the crumbs into a bowl and mix in the butter); process until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumb mixture onto bottom and up sides (not rim) of 9-inch glass pie dish. Bake until crust begins to set and no longer looks moist, pressing gently with back of fork if crust puffs, about 10 minutes. Remove crust from oven, then sprinkle chopped chocolate over bottom of crust. Let stand until chocolate softens, 1 to 2 minutes. Using offset spatula or small rubber spatula, spread chocolate over bottom and up sides of crust to cover. Chill crust until chocolate sets, about 30 minutes.
Filling: (can be made 2 days ahead of time – keep covered in the refrigerator until ready to use)
Whisk sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt to blend in heavy medium saucepan. Gradually add 1/3 cup milk, whisking until smooth paste forms. Whisk in remaining milk, then 1/4 cup cream. Using flat-bottom wooden spoon or heatproof spatula, stir mixture constantly over medium heat, scraping bottom and sides of pan until pudding thickens and begins to bubble at edges, about 5 minutes. Add chocolate; stir until mixture is smooth. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Pour hot pudding into crust and spread evenly. Cool 1 hour at room temperature. Cover with a cake dome or other covering that doesn’t lay directly on the pudding; chill overnight.

Topping: (Assembled pie can be made 6-8 hours ahead of time – cover with a cake dome or tall pot and refrigerate)
Using electric mixer, beat crème fraîche, whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla in medium bowl just until stiff peaks form and mixture is thick enough to spread (do not overbeat or mixture may curdle). Spread topping decoratively over top of pie, swirling to create peaks, if desired. Sprinkle chocolate shavings decoratively on the top of the pie, if desired. Cut pie into wedges and serve.


**Crème fraîche is a tangy, thinner form of sour cream and is used a lot in French cooking/baking. The unique property of crème fraîche compared to sour cream is that it can be whipped to soft or stiff peaks, just like whipping cream. Crème fraîche is quite expensive to buy but the good news is you can easily make it yourself at home (which is what I did for this recipe). Here is the method I used:
In a small saucepan, pour in 1 cup of heavy cream and over low heat, heat the cream until it is tepid and slightly warm to the touch (no need to overheat it – you just want to take the chill off). Stir in 1 1/2 tablespoons buttermilk. The cultures in the buttermilk are going to turn the cream into crème fraîche. Pour the mixture into a glass jar, cover it loosely and leave it at room temperature for 24 hours, stirring every 6-8 hours (don’t worry about it – the cultures in the buttermilk will protect it from going bad). You’ll notice it will start to thicken a bit. After 24-36 hours, put it in the fridge where it can be kept for 7-10 days. Once completely chilled, it can be used accordingly.

Posted by: Sallie

Streusel Topped Banana Bread

Pictures from dlynz.com

Bananas are one of my favorite fruits and I usually eat one everyday. That being said I am very picky about my bananas.I don't like to eat bananas that are more than two or 3 days old. They must be firm, unbruised and basically perfect. This makes for a lot of leftover bananas if the rest of the family doesn't eat them quick enough. I know you can relate.

This leave me with a 2 options
1- cut them into chunks and freeze them for smoothies

or

2-make banana bread/muffins/cake.

Being the great wife/mother/friend that I am, I decided to go with option #2.

Really I'll be honest. This is coffee cake in banana bread form and it is heavenly! Moist and dense without being too heavy, and just the right amount of banana flavor. I loved the delicious crumbs of stresusel topping ribboned throught the bread and on top. Not only is the bread amazingly delicious it's also beautiful. This would be a great neighbor, teacher, just because I like you gift. It would also be a great addition to any brunch.

Streusel Topped Banana Bread

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
3 or 4 very ripe bananas
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup buttermilk

Stresuel Topping

1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease four mini loaf pans.

Either in a stand mixer (or bowl with hand mixer) cream the butter and sugar. Breat in eggs, bananas, and vanilla.

Combine the dry ingredients in separate bowl and add to the butter mixture. With the mixer running, add the buttermilk and mix until completely combined and smooth (about 1 minute on medium speed.)

Prepare the streusel topping. Combine all ingredients in medium bowl and work into coarse crumbs. (I used a hand pastry blender I have but two forks or your hands will work nicely.)

Fill each prepared pan about 1/3 full and divide half of the topping among the 4 pans. Fill with remaining batter and top with remaining struesel. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack about 10 minutes. With a thin knife loosen edges and carefully remove from pans. Cool a bit more and then slice to serve. Makes 4 mini loaves.


Posted by: Sallie

Coconut Buttercream Cupcakes

I found this recipe on Real Mom Kitchen. She looks like she has some really good stuff that I can't wait to try. I made these tonight for my daughter's birthday. They were so moist and a little dense and the toasted coconut was delicious . Really perfect. The coconut frosting wasn't too overpowering. I think I might try it with some other flavors like regular yellow cake or chocolate. It's originally a Southern Living recipe.

Note: If you don't like coconut you could easily just make the cupcake recipe and then frost it with another type of frosting.

Basic White Cupcakes

1 18.25 oz package white cake mix with pudding in the mix. (I couldn't find any pudding in the mix ones so I just used a supermoist and it was good)

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

1/4 cup butter, melted

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

Vegetable cooking spray

Beat first 6 ingredients at low speed with an electric mixer just until dry ingredients are moistened. Increase speed to medium, and beat 2 minutes or until batter is smooth, stopping to scrape bowl as needed.

Place paper baking cups in muffin pan, and coat with cooking spray; spoon batter evenly into baking cups, filling each two-thirds full.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove cupcakes from pans to wire racks, and cool 1 hour or until completely cool.

Makes 24 cupcakes

Coconut Butter Cream Frosting

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 3 oz. package cream cheese

1 16 oz. package powdered sugar

1/4 cup cream of coconut ( FYI this is found in the beverage isle by the drink mixers)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating at low speed until blended. Increase speed to medium, and slowly add coconut milk adn vanilla, beating until smooth.

Makes 3 cups

No Tricks, Just Treats

I have to resign myself to the fact that from now until Jan. 1st there will be way more treats than necessary around here. I gave up long ago trying to be the candy police and do what a good Mom should and dole out a few pieces a day. Instead I just smile when I see their bright orange pumpkins, overflowing with the evening's treasure and beautifully, sticky, Halloween faces. And then I let them eat it. Until it's gone. Is that a crime? I figure they're going to eat it anyway so why not just go for it? Just in case the kids eat all their candy before you can steal some of the good stuff ( a.k.a. chocolate) here are some of my favorites for this year. Am I the only crazy Mom who lets her kids do this ? Tell me I'm not alone in this!

Candy Corn Rice Krispie Treats

Candy Corn Cookie Bark

No Bake Spider Web Cheesecake

Buttermilk Donuts with Maple Glaze

Caramel Apple Cider

Monster Munch

Pumpkin Cookies With Brown Butter Frosting

Witch Finger Cookies

Pumpkin Cake Pops

Apple Cider Spice Donuts

Halloween Petit Fours

Bread stick Mummy Dogs

Pumpkin Spice Magic Bar Minis

I'll be back tomorrow with some great main dishes for Halloween Dinner!

Posted by: Sallie