Chocolate Cake (no eggs)

Today we made cupcakes and then gave them away (while asking for a donation for the Alabama Tornado Relief effort). It was great fun and we made almost $130 to send to our friends in 'bama.

I did a batch of regular yellow cake from a box and then wanted a chocolate option. Also, one of my neighbor boys is allergic to eggs so I thought this recipe would be a good one so he could enjoy a cupcake too.

So, without further ado, here is the recipe (growing up we called this Mystery Cake - I guess because of the vinegar):

2 1/2 C Flour

1 1/2 C Sugar

4 1/2 T Cocoa

1 1/2 t Baking Soda

3/4 t Salt

1/2 C oil (or margarine)

1 1/2 T Vinegar

1 1/2 t Vanilla

1 1/2 C Cold Water

Mix dry ingredients then add oil, vinegar, vanilla, and water.

Bake at 350 for 18 minutes (cupcakes) or 30-35 minutes (cake rounds)

*****

For the frosting I just threw things together without measuring but my guess would be (and this was for a double batch):

1/2 C butter

1/4 C shortening

1/3-1/2 C cocoa

1 t vanilla

1 T millk

enough powdered sugar to make it the right consistency (maybe 2 C?)

St Patrick's Day Treats

Here is what we (plus other family members) are having for our FHE treat tonight. Eden and I worked on these together and we're pretty happy with how they all turned out.

Shamrock cupcakes, rainbow cake, mini cupcakes as pots of gold

Banana Cake

I'm not a purest. There, I said it. I am probably a lot more like Rachel than I am Martha. I hope this doesn't cost me any friends. Especially those friends who might happen to raise their own chickens and goats and make their own cheese.

Ok, that said (whew), I have to share with you my easy banana cake (I can't call it a recipe).

I had three over-ripe bananas. I didn't feel like really baking. I needed a dessert for FHE. I had a yellow cake mix. Knowing that bananas make things really moist, I decided that I could leave out the oil and reduce the water. I baked it. It turned out great (I know this because I made some mini cupcakes and devoured them already). Now I'm trying to decide whether to frost the cake with chocolate or PB frosting.

1 Yellow Cake Mix
3 Over-ripe Bananas
1 C Water
3 Eggs

Mix and bake according to directions on the box

PBWC

I have discovered the magic that is peanut butter + white chocolate. The funny thing is that I don't really like either on their own, but put them together and it really is magical!

Here are a couple of my PBWC creations:

PB Popcorn

1. Pop (preferably air pop) some corn (enough to fill a large bowl - approx. 1/2 C kernals).
2. Shake some salt on the popcorn.
3. Melt 1/2 bag of white chocolate with 1/4-1/3 C PB (just toss them together in the microwave for 30 second increments, stir, repeat, until fully melted - don't over-cook).
4. Pour PBWC over the popcorn and toss until all the corn is well covered.
5. Dump it onto a sprayed tray/cookie sheet.
6. Put in a cool place (my garage works great).
7. When the PBWC has set, put into bowls or bags or directly into your mouth.

PB Brownies

1. Make your favorite brownies. (Phil's Brownies work great!)
2. Melt 1/2 bag of white chocolate with 1/4-1/3 C PB (just toss them together in the microwave for 30 second increments, stir, repeat, until fully melted - don't over-cook).
3. Pour the PBWC on top of the brownies.
4. Put in a cool place (my garage works great).
5. When everything is cool, cut, serve, eat.

Thanksgiving: Pumpkin Desserts

I realize that I didn't post a recipe for pumpkin pie. See, here's the thing, I'm just not that big a fan. I'm sure you can find all kinds of good pumpkin pie recipes though. If you've got a great one, feel free to post a link or type it into a comment.

Although I don't really like pumpkin pies, I LOVE pumpkin rolls and pumpkin cookies. Here are some great recipes.



Pumpkin Rolls

• 3 eggs
• 1 C sugar
• 2/3 C pumpkin pie filling
• 1 t lemon juice
• 3/4 C flour
• 1 t baking powder
• 1/4 t salt
• 2 t cinnamon
• 1 t ginger
• 1/2 t nutmeg

1. Mix (using a Kitchen Aid or hand mixer): eggs, sugar, pumpkin, and lemon juice.
2. Add: flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg (you can leave out the ginger and nutmeg if you, as Phil, don't like those flavors). Mix well.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (f).
4. Grease a 10x14 inch pan and then line it with waxed paper.
5. Pour batter into pan.
6. Bake for 15 minutes.
7. Immediately turn cake onto a damp cotton towel (not terry cloth).
8. Peel the waxed paper off the cake.
9. Roll the cake (and damp towel) so that you have the length (so your roll will be 14 inches long).
10. Cool in the fridge.
11. When the cake is completely cooled, remove from fridge and unroll (your towel will be yucky but it washes out ok).
12. Spread with filling and roll back up (without the towel).
13. Wrap in waxed paper and then foil.
14. Freeze.
15. Allow to thaw approximately 30 minutes prior to serving.
16. When thawed about 15 minutes, slice and serve (continue to thaw another 15 minutes after slicing).

Filling
Mix all ingredients until creamy:

• 1 (8 oz) pkg of cream cheese - softened
• 1/2 C butter
• 1 C powdered sugar
• 1/2 t vanilla

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies (from cooks.com)

• 1 C Pumpkin pie filling
• 3/4 C sugar
• 1/2 C oil
• 1 egg
• 2 C flour
• 2 t baking powder
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 t baking soda
• 1 t milk
• 1 c chocolate chips
• 1 t vanilla
• nuts (optional)

1. Dissolve baking soda in milk; set aside.
2. In large bowl add pumpkin, sugar, oil, and egg; stir.
3. Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda mixture. Mix well.
4. Stir in chocolate chips and vanilla.
5. Spoon onto cookie sheet.
6. Bake at 375 degrees (f) for 10-12 minutes (or until done).
   

Oh yum ice cream (really yogurt)

For his birthday*, Phil bought be an ice cream maker (the kind that doesn't require ice or salt - LOVE IT!)

I've been having fun creating ice cream and came up with this recipe that is absolutely yummy! I love it, everyone who has tasted it loves it, and it is easy as in E.A.S.Y.!

Ingredients:

• 2 C Blueberry** Yogurt (I use my Winn Dixie brand but Dannon or Yoplait or whatever will be just fine)
• 1 C Heavy Cream (not whipped, just straight from the carton)
• 1/2 C Sugar

Instructions:

1. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl.
2. Mix well.
3. Pour into your ice cream maker.

The flavor is awesome, the texture is so creamy. If you sprinkle it with graham crumbs it totally tastes like blueberry cheesecake.

** You can use any flavor: raspberry is good, strawberry is fine, whatever.


*For our birthdays we buy gifts for each other (we get gifts too). It is kind of a fun tradition.

Chocolate Chip Applesauce Cake

This is a recipe from my mom. It was always a favorite when we were all kids and it remains a favorite when we all get together.

1/2 C Shortening (or oil)
1 1/2 C Sugar
2 Eggs
2 C Flour
1 t Salt
3 T Cocoa
1 t Baking Soda
2 C Applesauce
1/2 T Cinnamon
6 oz Chocolate Chips

Glaze
1 C milk
1 C powdered sugar

• Mix shortening, sugar and eggs.
• Add flour, salt, cocoa, baking soda.
• Add applesauce and cinnamon.
• Pour into a greased/floured 8x10 pan.
• Sprinkle chocolate chips over cake.
  
• Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.
• Pour glaze over cake while still hot.
  

Food Friday - Yummy Apple Cake

This recipe is from Lion House (and yes it is their title ... including the "yummy").

2 C sugar
1/2 C butter
2 eggs
4 C grated apples (or 3 C applesauce)
2 C flour
2 t soda
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1/4 t salt
1/2 C nuts

Butter Sauce
1 C butter
2 C sugar
1 C light cream
2 t vanilla
dash nutmeg

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cream together sugar and butter in a large bowl.
• Add eggs and beat until fluffy.
• Mix in apples, dry ingredients, spices, and nuts and pour into a greased and floured 9x13-inch pan.
• Bake 50 minutes.
• Pour Butter Sauce over cake and top each serving with whipped cream

I halved the recipe and baked it in an 8x8 pan.
I used applesauce.
I used pecans (because my neighbor gave us some fresh, home-grown, already shelled pecans!)
I used whole milk instead of light cream in the butter sauce.
I used ice cream on top instead of whipped cream.

Next time I am going to try using half the butter in the cake because it was plenty moist and I think it would still be great with half as much butter.

Food Friday - Thanksgiving Edition

We had a very nice Thanksgiving. We stayed here in 'bama and enjoyed a nice meal with our good friends.

I took four pans of these rolls
(Phil rolled them for me, aren't they beautiful?)

I also took some cranapple salad

This cranberry cheesecake

Cranberry Cheesecake - In your mixer combine 8 oz of softened cream cheese, 1 can of sweet and condensed milk, 2 T lemon juice, and 1 egg. Pour into a graham cracker crust. In a separate bowl mix 8 oz whole berry cranberry sauce, 1 T brown sugar, and 3 T cornstarch and then drop globs into the cheese mixture. In another bowl mix 1/3 C flour, 3/4 C walnuts (optional), 2 T brown sugar, and 1/2 cube of softened (not melted) butter and crumble on the top. Bake at 375 f for 40-45 minutes (makes two small pies).

This french silk chocolate pie

French Silk Chocolate Pie - In a small saucepan, melt 3 oz of unsweetened chocolate and then cool. Cream 1 C butter and 1 C sugar in your mixer. Add the cooled chocolate and 1 t vanilla. Add 2 eggs and beat (or whip) on high speed for 5 minutes. Add 2 more eggs and beat for 5 more minutes. Pour into a baked pie shell. Refrigerate. Top with whipped cream.

And my first ever cherry pie
(Phil's favorite - I think I passed the make-it-close-to-as-good-as-my-mom's test)

Cherry Pie - I bought two cans of Oregon Tart Cherries and used the recipe on the label (which was the same as the one my MIL sent me)

How was your day? What food did you make and how did it all turn out? Don't you just love the smells of baking? Ummy, ummy!

Don't forget to leave a message and thereby enter yourself in the Christmas Lottery!

Food Friday - Sugar Cookies

I read this post by Michelle and it got me thinking about sugar cookies. Isn't it time to do some cookie decorating?
I think so.

Tonight while our hubbies/daddies are having church meetings, the Thorntons, Eden, and I will be decorating sugar cookies for Halloween. (An added bonus: we will take the extra cookies to the 5-stake youth dance in B'ham tomorrow night!)

So, here is the recipe I used. It is from the Lion House cookbook. I cut the recipe in half because I'm not baking 5 dozen sugar cookies thank you very much! I'll post it as written though (so if you do this recipe you'll get 5 dozen!!!)

2 C butter or margarine softened
1 1/2 C sugar
2 eggs
1 t vanilla
5 C flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt

• Cream the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla.
• In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. (ok, I'll be honest, I never do this, I just add it in my Kitchen Aid - I figure it all gets mixed in just fine)
• Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture.
• Refrigerate dough for 1 hour.
• Roll dough out 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured board or pastry cloth (Martha uses sugar instead of flour when rolling out sugar cookies - it makes them extra 'ummy, 'ummy).
• Preheat oven to 350 f.
• Cut with cookie cutter (if you don't have a cookie cutter, you can use a glass and just make round cookies - why not?).
• Place on greased cookie sheets and bake for 12-15 minutes.
• Cool on wire rack.
• Frost.

Frosting:
1/3 C margarine or butter, softened
2 1/3 C powdered sugar
1 1/2 t vanilla
1-2 T milk

Beat butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla in a medium mixing bowl. Add milk a little at a time until the frosting is smooth and of spreading consistency. Add food coloring as desired.

Food Friday - Caramel Popcorn

This is the yummiest, softest caramel popcorn EVER! I'd been craving it but didn't have the recipe. My SIL who had it was in the middle of moving her family from MI to VA and having a baby! Needless to say, she couldn't find it. Finally the craving sent me to google and I found the very recipe!

• 6 quarts of popped corn (Beardens, this is where you have to stop)

• Combine in a medium saucepan:
• 1 1/4 C brown sugar
• 1/2 C light corn syrup
• 1/2 C margarine or butter
• dash of salt (what does a "dash" really mean anyway?)
• bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium and add:
• 7 oz. sweetened condensed milk (half a can).
• cook, stirring constantly until it reaches a soft ball stage (240 degrees)*.
• Remove from heat and stir in
  
• 1/2 t vanilla.
• Pour slowly over popcorn, stirring until caramel is evenly distributed throughout.
• Store caramel popcorn in a covered container (it last really well).

*if you don't have a candy thermometer, you can take a small bowl, put cold water in it, then drop a small amount (about 1 t) of the mixture into the water. When it forms a soft ball, you are at soft ball stage.

Food Friday - Divinity

By request... (sorry Sugar and Spice girls - this is NOT helpful with our attempts to be more healthy)

This is actually just the recipe that came with my Kitchen Aid - it has very specific instructions about what speed etc. (My K.A. has speeds from 0-10 for reference.)

3 C sugar
3/4 C light corn syrup
1/2 C water
2 egg whites
1 t almond extract
1 C chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
(I've also seen recipes with zest of orange or maraschino cherries)

Place sugar, corn syrup, and water in heavy saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat to hard ball stage (use a candy thermometer or place some cold water in a cup and when a drop of the mixture make a "hard ball" you know you're there). Remove from heat and let stand until temperature drops to 220, without stirring.

Place egg whites in mixer bowl. Attach bowl and wire whip to mixer. Turn to Speed 8 and whip about 1 minute, or until soft peaks form. Gradually add syrup in a fine stream and whip about 2 1/2 minutes longer.

Turn to Speed 4. Add almond extract and whip 20 to 25 minutes, or until mixture starts to become dry. Turn to Stir Speed and add nuts, mixing just until blended.

Drop mixture from measuring tablespoon onto waxed paper or greased baking sheet to form patties.

Let them stand for approximately 1 hour (until they cool and harden). Eat (but not too many).

Kitchen Aid Trick (free of charge, just for having read this far):
If you have a K.A. classic (the kind where the bowl is locked into place and the arm is lowered into the bowl) you may find that the bowl can get pretty wedged into place while doing long-term mixing (especially bread dough kneading). To prevent this from happening, I spray a little bit of cooking oil (like Pam) onto the metal where the bowl is secured. This acts as a lubricant and I don't have to use heavy tools to un-wedge the bowl when the mixing/kneading is done. It only took me about five years to figure out this trick. Five years of muscle work out every time I made bread or divinity (ok, I maybe make divinity once every five years but I make a lot of bread!).

Food Friday - Fudge Sauce

In a small sauce pan combine:
1 can of Sweet and Condensed Milk
1 C of Chocolate Chips (milk or semi-sweet or dark - whatever you like)

Heat over medium until everything is well mixed.

If it is too thick you can add some regular milk or cream.

Serve over Ice Cream

"it is so easy!" - Heidi
"and yet so much better and more rich than the other stuff!" -Phil

Food Friday Phil's Brownies

Phil is famous for his brownies so I've asked him to do a guest post for this week's Food Friday.

Preheat oven to 375.

In one bowl:
1 C melted butter
4 eggs
2 C sugar
add: 2 t vanilla

In another bowl:
1 1/2 C flour
1/3 C cocoa
1 t salt

Add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix until all is moist. Grease/flour 9x13 pan (I use that flour spray). Spoon batter into pan and cook for 20-25 minutes (or until toothpick comes out clean).

Cool, cut, serve (don't eat them all by yourself).