Butterscotch Chip Cookie Cake

Happy Friday! :)

Do you have someone who loves cookies? Then you NEED to make them this Butterscotch Chip Cookie Cake from Bake Your Day.

Kenn likes butterscotch, and I enjoy spoiling him every now and then. :) I had been meaning to make this for him, but just got around to doing so about a week or so ago. He liked it so much that he bragged about it on Facebook. :D

It's SO easy, people! AND I love the fact that you can do just about anything with it - I suspect it will be getting chocolate chips and pecans at a future date. :) It IS very rich, so cut the pieces small. You could throw this together tonight, so the family ( :D ) has something to snack on all weekend!

OK, friend I am outta here! Have a wonderful weekend! Be BLESSED!

New York-Style Crumb Cake

Happy Friday! Are you looking for something yummy and relatively easy to put together for your weekend breakfast? Try this crumb cake!

It's New York-Style Crumb Cake from Smells Like Home.

The cake was a LITTLE dry for my taste, but I can fix that - I think I need to weigh the flour next time, not just measure it. (I know that's the most accurate way to bake, but it was the day before Christmas Eve, and I had soooo much to do...) This was a really mild crumb, too - I probably tripled the cinnamon, and it was still very light in taste. I might have to do more next time... :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a WONDERFUL weekend! Be blessed, dear friend!!!

Strawberries and Cream Angel Food Cake Roll

Phew! Happy Monday! Have you had a good six weeks?!? I don't know about you, but I've had soooo much to do, time has FLOWN.

Today's recipe review is what I made for our Christmas Day dessert, Strawberries and Cream Angel Food Cake Roll from Brown-Eyed Baker.

I had an admission to make: I've never done a cake roll before. My baby sister is fantastic at doing them - she does a pumpkin roll every fall that's beautiful and sooo good! - but I've seen too many of them crack and fall apart. I was REALLY nervous about doing this, but my sister gave me a pep talk and encouraged me to just go for it. So, I did. :D

I followed this pretty much to the letter, except for skimping a little on the strawberries inside the cake roll - it's the middle of winter, and they were a bit crunchy. :D

My verdict: YES, PLEASE! - especially when strawberries are in season, and would color and flavor the whipped cream more. My husband liked the fact that there was a variation of texture in the angel food cake, that it wasn't all just soft. :D It really was pretty easy; when I started to unroll the cake, it did start to crack - but I propped it up on rolled kitchen towels like my sister suggested, and didn't try to force it to unroll any further. I took my offset spatula and "stuffed" the center with the cream, instead of spreading it.

OK, I'm outta here! It's COLD here today! Brrrrr... :D Have a wonderful day, my friends. Be BLESSED!

Ooey Gooey Chocolate Insanity Cake - and our winner announced! :D

Happy Monday! Did you have a good weekend? Did you get what you wanted to accomplished? Did you try anything or anyplace new???

I'll announce our winner for Jen Hatmaker's INTERRUPTED in just a moment; let's do the review of this Ooey Gooey Chocolate Insanity Cake from The Slow Roasted Italian first. :D

I followed this recipe to the letter except for one thing: I did half milk chocolate chips, half semisweet. I didn't even half the recipe; I'd already started measuring and combining ingredients before I even thought of it!

Kenn LOVED this cake. It was too sweet for me, and when I make it for him next time, I will NOT put the chips in. It was chocolately enough without them, and they made a hard layer on the bottom of the cake that I thought spoiled the texture of the whole thing. Also, the timing is incorrect for the baking time; it says 20 minutes, but I think I was closer to 45 minutes.

It's an easy recipe, and like I said, Kenn loved it - that makes it a winner in my book. :D

Speaking of winners...

Congratulations, Katherine! You won!!!!

Will you message me your address again? I'll get this ordered for you as soon as I can. :)

OK, y'all, I'm outta here! Have a WONDERFUL day! Be blessed - and leave me a message. I'm feeling all alone out here. :D

Strawberry Coffee Cake

Welcome back to another Monday. :) How are you? Did you have a good weekend? Oh, and welcome to JUNE! One of my favorite months... ;)

Here in the south, the strawberry season is about past; in Indiana, it's about to begin. YUM, I love strawberries. And this is a YES, PLEASE! way to use some! :)

This recipe is for Strawberry Coffee Cake from Musings from a Stay-at-Home Mom.

Now, then, I WOULD change a bit with this. Do you see how dark this got on the bottom? Well, the recipe directions say to spread 1-1/2 cups of batter on the bottom of the pan. I did about two cups, and still had way more batter on the top than the bottom. And the bottom got way darker than I like. I think the next time, I'll use a 13x9 pan, double the strawberry filling, and keep the cake part the same. It was VERY thick, and took longer to bake the center than the recipe said.

I also sprinkled some sugar on the top of the cake. My mom's comment was that the cake wasn't very SWEET - which is part of what I really enjoyed about it. It allowed the strawberries to shine, IMO,  but I am glad I'd sprinkled it before putting in the oven.

I think that's all. :) I hope you'll try it!

Have a wonderful day! Be BLESSED, friend!

Snicker Cake

Happy Wednesday! Did you enjoy your long weekend? Does it feel like this week's already dragging, even though it's a short week? :D

Then make this cake! :) (Please note: it uses a boxed cake mix, but I used this cake mix recipe, and made it the way the recipe said. I'm trying to take all the extra chemicals our when I can! :) ) It's a Snicker Cake from O Taste and See!

This is a great cake! Everyone loved it - I did it so long ago, I don't remember what the occasion was. LOL! But OH, was it yummy!

It's also very rich. :) Cut small pieces! Using a homemade cake mix may have added another step, but it's the only thing I did differently.

OK, I'm outta here! :D Have a WONDERFUL day! Be BLESSED, friend!

Brownie Bundt with Coconut Cream Cheese Filling

HAPPY FRIDAY! I hope you've had a good week - but I'm betting you're ready for the weekend. :D

Today's review is this recipe for brownie bundt cake with coconut cream cheese filling from Vanilla Sugar Blog.

I won't make you wait on this. This recipe would need to much tweaking for me to give it anything but a NO, THANK YOU. :( I was SO disappointed! I mean, it's three of my favorite things: brownies, coconut, AND cream cheese! I sprayed and sprayed the bundt pan, but the brownie STILL stuck horribly. The coconut and cream cheese mixture had very little taste, and added nothing but contrast and texture. I hate throwing food out, but I did toss most of this cake - after taking it to a pitch-in (or pot luck, depending on where you're from! :) )

SO. If you tweak it enough and really love it, let me know! Or if you decide to try it and love it, tell me - maybe I just did something wrong. :D

Have a WONDERFUL weekend! BE BLESSED!!!

Samoa Bundt Cake

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!

2014. Goodness, this year - I know when I was little, Y2K seemed SO far into the future... :D Here's hoping and praying that 2014 finds us more at peace with each other, with our lives, and with our paths.

ANYWAY. :D

This CAKE. When I saw this cake, I knew I had to try it - it's Samoa Bundt Cake from *betsylife.

Now, then. You'll notice there are three min bundts on this plate. Let me explain something: as a family, we've cut SO far down on our intake of food, we have leftovers from a regular meal. I didn't want my sister and brother-in-law and niece to leave, and us have almost a whole bundt cake left!

So I make the whole cake recipe, but only did six mini bundts - since that's how many mini cakes were in my pan. And I threw away the rest of the batter. Yes, it was a little wasteful, but better than eating all that cake I certainly could kill myself with, and I only threw away the batters.

This is a YES, PLEASE! dessert. The cake batters were easy to put together; the cake, as a whole, is just lots of steps. This isn't a cake you can just throw together, unless you purchase premade dulce-de-leche. And I don't think I've seen it around here! I popped my milk into the crock pot and let it simmer away all day the day before I wanted to make the cake. I also toasted the coconut when I had some other baking to do, so the day I made the mini cakes I just baked them off and let them cool. Christmas Day, my baby sister made the frosting and assembled the cakes for me - I really felt awful, and was trying to ration my energy. :)

The other three cakes are in the freezer, waiting to be needed. A half cake is PLENTY for me for a serving! They're fun, incredibly rich, and do taste just like the Girl Scout cookie - although I'd like a little more caramel consistency in there. :D But I'm not willing to put more sugar into it, so it's great the way it is. :D

OK, I'm outta here. HAPPY NEW YEAR! Have a great week! Be BLESSED, dear friend!

Apple Pudding Cake with Cinnamon Caramel Sauce

It's FRIDAY!!! :D Are you thrilled? Or are you BUSY? (Both works... :) )

Today's recipe is for Apple Pudding Cake with Cinnamon Caramel Sauce from Betty Crocker's website.

I made this dessert for my 2013 Hostess Appreciation Luncheon for my Stampin' Up! hostesses; it's a perk for ONLY my hostesses from the past year. We all get together, I make a homemade-everything lunch, and we do projects that I won't ever teach anywhere else. There are door prizes, and lots of fun, but it's USUALLY the food that wins the day. :D

This year wasn't any exception. This cake. OH, THIS CAKE. It's DEFINITELY a YES, PLEASE! It's easy, SUPER moist, decadent, and did I mention how GOOD it is? :D

Honestly, the cake was good on its own. The caramel sauce put it completely over the top; I felt guilty for even LOOKING at it. :D I did double the recipe and put it into a 13x9 pan. That's the only thing I did differently.

OK, I'm outta here, friends. Have a WONDERFUL weekend! Be BLESSED!

Moist Chocolate Cake

Happy Friday! :D I decided we'd celebrate me doing a whole week again with CHOCOLATE CAKE! :D

Yes, this is Moist Chocolate Cake from Foodess.com.

And yes, it IS moist. It's also super easy, easy to divide in half so you don't have a bunch of this cake hanging around (your HIPS, cuz you'll want to eat it all by yourself!!!!!).

I guess I gave it away that this is a YES, PLEASE! recipe. :D I LOVE easy AND yummy, and this fits the bill. I'm also going to give you an extra review on what the recipe calls "Easy Chocolate Buttercream", but I'm not sure calling it that is correct. I mean, it's JUST chocolate chips and butter. Period. no confectioner's sugar! But again, SUPER easy, and RICH and YUMMY. :D

Have I convinced you to make this yet?!?! It's worth turning on your oven for! Seriously! :D Let me know if you try either of these. Oh, the sprinkles are some Valentine's ones that I have hanging around that I thought complimented the chocolate color. :D

Have a wonderful day! BE BLESSED!

Gluten Free Blueberry Breakfast Cake

Good Wednesday Morning!

Are you having a good week? Have you tried anything new lately? I'm going to be making several new recipes in the next few days,so I'll have fun things to show you next week! :D

Today's recipe is for GF Blueberry Breakfast Cake from A Lazy Girl's Guide To Living Gluten Free.

Now, I'm not going GF; my parents are. It seems to be helping with my dad's asthma, which is a good thing! So I've been saving some GF recipes to pass on or try for them.

Mom made this one Friday, and made two cakes - one for right away, and one to take to a church group dinner Saturday night.  My mom follows recipes TO THE LETTER - unless she asks me how I'd modify it. :D So she didn't change a thing.

The first bite was kind of bland - but it was right out of the oven. :D The longer it cooled, the better the texture AND taste became. It was actually pretty good! I'm sure she'll make it for him again.

OK, I'm outta here! Have a wonderful day! BE BLESSED!!!!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Mug Cake

Happy FRIDAY!!! Did you have a good week? Do you have big plans for this weekend? I'm going to spend some time with some of my favorite ladies this weekend; I wish each and every one of them could be here! :)

Anyway. Sorry for the really blurry picture - not of Pooh, but the real subject of the picture. :D He's watercolored, so he's supposed to look like that. :) No, this is a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Mug Cake, posted on Babble.

So. This was easy; I had all the ingredients on-hand. I even used Splenda's brown sugar blend! :) I didn't have mini chips, so I used regular.

It was another mixed thing. :) It was SO sweet, and SO rich, that I couldn't eat it all. Which is a good thing. :D But I would definitely use less brown sugar. And the texture's a lot different - coarser - than I thought it should be. However, it definitely filled the "sweet tooth" craving. And it was quick, not a lot of it sitting around to tempt me later, and easy.

So. I'm not sure if it's a YES, PLEASE! or not, but I'll probably keep the link around for emergencies. :D I can't imagine how sweet and too much this would have been if there's been ice cream on top! :)

OK, I'm outta here. Have a WONDERFUL day! Be BLESSED!

Boston Cream Poke Cake

Here we are again! :)It's another FRIDAY, the last in March. Wow, is this year FLYING by?!?!

Today's share is another recipe, this one for Boston Cream Poke Cake from Lil' Luna.

I think I liked the IDEA of this more than I like the final thing. It was good, don't get me wrong - I love pudding poke cakes! - but the chocolate pudding wasn't as chocolatey or gooey as the real thing. I'm thinking that, perhaps, only using half the milk in that top layer, or making a thin layer of ganache for it. :D I'm going to keep it in the "good recipes to have", just in case I need it. :D And just in case I get around to playing with it, too. But there are so many other things out there to try!!!

OK, I'm outta here. Have a WONDERFUL weekend! Try something new! :)

Lemon Icebox Cake

It's FRIDAY! Have you had a great week? I sure hope so! Congratulations to everyone who has a jar of Biscoff Spread coming your way! :)

I promised today would be a share and review of the cake I made for our Valentine's Day celebration; here it is! It's a Lemon Icebox Cake from Cookie Baker Lynn.

It was tasty. It was NOT worth the trouble it took to make!!!!! How do I score this? I'm giving it a personal NO, THANK YOU - but that's because it is a FUSSY frosting/lemon mousse. SERIOUSLY.

I made the angel food cake in two 8" square pans; I had a tube pan, but didn't use it once in the three years I had it, so I got rid of it. The cake was very good; angel food cakes are a bit fussy, but one usually goes into scratch-baking it knowing that fact.

The lemon mousse/frosting? THAT was kind of crazy. First, you make very sour lemon curd. Then you whip cream, add gelatin, and add it to the curd to make lemon cream. And FINALLY you add meringue to the whole thing, split the cake into 4 layers, and stack.

If you decide to make this, it's GOOD. It's a big cake, light and fluffy and lemony and a treat. But go into the process knowing it will take you a good two days to make sure everything is ready to go. And it's NOT cheap; between the cake and the mousse, it took about 16 eggs. For ONE ingredient in ONE recipe.

I'm glad I tried it. I'm glad I made it for my dad - he despises chocolate, so we can't serve any when we do a special event together. But I'm not saving the recipe.

OK, I'm outta here!! :) Let me know what you think of this one. I'd love to hear if you're planning on making it! Take pictures, and tell me your story! :)

Have a WONDERFUL weekend! It's another busy one for us - we're out of here SOON! BE BLESSED!

Blueberry Breakfast Cake

Happy Wednesday! I hope you're having a wonderful week!

This recipe is one of the three dishes I served Saturday for my Stampin' Up! party Saturday; it's Blueberry Breakfast Cake from Alexandra's Kitchen.

This is a recipe I pinned because my parents are from Maine, and blueberries are superfruits there AND in the health world. :D So it's got to be good for you, right?!??! :D

I did this one exactly like it's written, except I doubled it. :D I wanted to make sure I had enough of it; the original recipe's for a 9" square.

This was simple but good. (So it receives a YES, PLEASE!)  My mom said she liked that it wasn't totally blueberry taste, that the cake stood up for itself. :) Which says a lot, because there were 4 cups of blueberries in that 13x9. :D I highly recommend always using fresh lemon zest in anything that calls for it. Just so you know. :D

People went back for seconds. It was moist, and I'm glad I got up that morning to make it - it was best fresh and warm from the oven. but it's still good later, too. :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a WONDERFUL day! Be BLESSED!

Christmas Cake

Good Friday Morning!
Whew, what a week! Starting today, I'm going to start showing you recipes I make for our open house, and tell you why I like them. Just a bit, because my days are SO FULL RIGHT NOW! Augh! :D

Anyway. I can't find WHERE I got this recipe from; I printed it off YEARS ago, and just tried it this week. So I'll put the recipe here, along with as much info as I can on where it came from. :D

25 Days of Desserts - Day 19

O merry thoughts
Christmas Cake

1 small package red Jello (cherry, strawberry, etc.)
1 small package green Jello (lime)
1 white cake mix and ingredients to make cake
1 container Cool Whip

maake white cake mix per box instructions, using two 9-inch round cake pans. After baking, let cakes cool for 10 minutes. Pop cakes out of pans; clean out cake pans and return cakes back to pans. Using a fork, poke holes into cakes at various points to receive jello. Make up the red jello with hot water only and pour evenly as possible over one of the cakes. Then make up the green jello with just hot water and pour over the other round cake. Put both cakes into the fridge for several hours. Place the bottom of the cake pans into hot water to help in removing the cakes from their pans. Spread the top of one cake with Cool Whip. place the other cake on top of the first cake and spread the remaining Cool Whip on top and sides. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Now, then. I used sugar-free Jello. And I hate wasting egg yolks, so I made my white cake with two whole eggs instead of three whites. :D

I really wouldn't recommend assembling this cake until just before serving; it slides around on that Cool Whip. Seriously; it will look like a cake wreck if you're not careful! :D

It's tasty, and fun, and refreshing! :D

OK, I'm outta here! Have a wonderful weekend! Be BLESSED!!!!

Pumpkin Bars

Good Monday Morning!
Did you have a good weekend? It was absolutely STUNNING here - probably the last fall hurrah of the year. :D Low 70s, sunny - and I know some of my friends were dealing with snow. (I say "dealing"; I'd love to have snow!!!!!!)

ANYWAY. This recipe is a Taste of Home recipe; my mom actually brought home a Holiday Recipe cookbook she found at a garage sale. She's been craving something with pumpkin, and when I looked through the book I found this recipe. It's simple; I found it on their website, too, and here is the link!

As I said, it's a simple recipe. And it makes a big pan. We're going to give this a YES, PLEASE! What I did was mix up the whole batch, then cut the pan of bars in half and cooled and wrapped one half. They're in our freezer, waiting for someone to come visit. :D They were good; the frosting was good, and I *think* I cut the frosting recipe in half - and still didn't use it all. :)

OK, I'm off! Have a WONDERFUL day! Be BLESSED!!!!

Lemon Pudding Cake

Happy Wednesday!

How are you today? Is it beautiful where you are? It is here; almost 80 degrees, the sun is shining, there's a light breeze, and the colors are still beautiful - but on their way out, which seems early. Oh, well. :D

Today's recipe is brought to you from Food and Wine, for this lemon pudding cake.

There's not a lot to say about this pretty little cake. I didn't have the correct size of ramekin, but it worked just fine in bigger ones. I'm going to give these a YES, PLEASE! - if for no other reason than they're easy and have usually-on-hand ingredients. :)

The cakes were good cold, too. Very lemony and bright! As you can see, I sprinkled powdered sugar on them - I mean, they ARE dessert, right? :D There's not a whole lot more to say about these. They're a basic little cake, and make a nice end to a meal!

OK, I'm outta here. :D As I said, it's a beautiful day, and I'm distracted by the beautiful trees in the back yard. :D Be BLESSED! Try something new, too. :D

Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake

Happy Monday Morning! How are you doing today? Did you have a good weekend? Did you try anything new?

Here's a recipe from SimplyDelicious for Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake. And I will tell you right now: this is a YES, PLEASE - so much so that I've made it several times since I tried it on the beach in February. So much so that I had to double-check to be sure I hadn't told you to make this already. :D It's WONDERFUL cake!

What I really love is that it's not too sweet. It looks like it might taste that way, but it doesn't. It's yummy, and addictive - my sister-in-law ate about half a sheet cake by herself. :D

I haven't made it into a layer cake; I have no reason for a layer cake, and more for sheet or 13x9 cakes. I made this cake for a pitch-in, and it was a huge hit. :) It even freezes FROSTED, if you have to do that - the photo above is a piece that's not only been frozen, but thawed and squished a little. :D It's a must-have recipe!

OK, I'm out of here. I'm in Missouri right now, so there's lots to do. :) Have a wonderful day, my friend. Be BLESSED!

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Good Friday morning. Have you had a good week? Can you believe there's only one week left of August?!??! Wow, this year is FLYING.

Today's recipe is brought to you by Go Bold With Butter. :D And it's pretty apropos! :D

This is a YES, PLEASE. The batter for the cake is THICK; it reminded Mom of something, and I guessed it as "muffin". It would make a FANTASTIC muffin base; it's sturdy, and moist and would stand up to fruit if you chose to add it.

I tweaked the batter by using half Greek yogurt and half sour cream. It ups the protein and cuts the fat just a bit. And it was GOOD. :D

I tweaked the cream cheese by not adding the pecans. The directions for swirling the layer weren't done well; I'd rather do it my way than the way that's written. If you know how to do a good swirl, pay no attention to that part of the directions. :D

I did the crumb topping exactly as written. Well, if you include adding more cinnamon. :D

I cut this recipe into two, and did two 8" square cakes instead of a 9x13. One is in the freezer; with the pumpkin bundt cake in the house, we didn't need a full cake around! :D This way, when we want something special to serve, it's there. I love the freezer! LOL!

OK, I'm outta here. :) Have a wonderful weekend. Try something new! :) BE BLESSED!!!