Spiced Eggnog Bundt Cake

Eggnog. It is one of my favorite things about the holidays.  Seriously.

Problem is, I can't drink it too much because I am lactose intolerant. Go figure.  So I had to come up with a way to get my eggnog fix without having to go into the fridge and drink it straight from the carton.  Enter 'Spiced Eggnog Bundt Cake.'  Genius!  I searched through blogland and took a bit from this recipe and that recipe until I had something that sounded like it would address my cravings.  It did. Bigtime!

I went a little overboard with the 'drizzle' but who cares?  It tastes great!

See that swirl of spice goodness in the middle?  That my friends, is heaven on a plate!

For the Cake

1 cup of butter, softened

3 cups of sugar

6 large eggs

3 cups of sifted cake flour

3/4 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup of eggnog

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

2 tablespoon of dark rum or brandy (optional)

1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon 

3/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice 

1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves

Glaze

1 cup of sifted powdered sugar

2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon of heavy cream or whipping cream

(I made a little extra glaze to drizzle on when serving)

Grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan. It is important to use the larger pan or you will have issues with the cake falling (trust me on this one. I speak from experience!)  If you have a large angel food cake pan that would probably work too.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cake

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat butter on medium speed for about 2 minutes or until creamy.

Gradually add sugar, beating 5-7 minutes.

Add eggs, one at a time mixing just until yoke is incorporated.

In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.

Add to butter and sugar mixture alternating with eggnog starting and ending with flour mixture. 

Stir on low speed just until blended after each addition.

Stir in vanilla and if desired, rum.

Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan.

Stir the cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves in the remaining batter.
Spoon spiced batter over plain batter and swirl together using a knife.

Bake for 50-55 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in pan for 15 minutes on a wire rack.
Remove from pan and cool on rack.

Glaze
Combine sifted powdered sugar and heavy cream.

Transfer cooled cake to a plate and pour glaze over it.

If you are like me, you will be too impatient to wait for the cake to cool completely.  If you find yourself in this predicament, you can pour the glaze over the cake while it is still warm and using a spatula, spread it over the entire cake.  After it hardens, you can use any remaining glaze to drizzle over cake when serving.

Mint Chocolate Chip Cake

  A friend from way back, who has been creating some delicious looking baked goods agreed to be my guest blogger this week.  I appreciate Jason for posting on my humble blog!  Enjoy friends. ;-)

Ever since I was a kid, I loved chocolate mint ice cream.  I was lucky enough to find a job as a teenager at a local ice cream parlor by the name of Leatherby's here in Sacramento.  If they would have paid me in ice cream, that would have been fair in my book.  Fast forward a few, (ok, many) years and I'm still a huge fan of their ice cream.  I happened to stumble across a recipe at Raspberri Cupcakes for chocolate mint cake the other day, and my curiosity was at full alert.  Let me just say, this cake is AMAZING, especially if you're as big a fan of chocolate mint ice cream as I am.  One of my kids remarked at how similar the taste of the frosting is to real ice cream--yes, it's that close.  Give this one a try, it will be worth it!

You have two options here, as you can make a homemade cake or one from a box.  I've done the cake both ways, and I will say it's a matter of personal preference.  David Lebovitz's Devil's Food Cake is extremely rich and compliments the robust flavors of the frosting quite well.  If you're short on time, go with a box mix and enjoy the cake that much quicker!

Here's the recipe for David's Devil's Food Cake:

Cake

9 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-raising, I just used plain flour and replaced 3 tbsp with cornflour/cornstarch)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp bicarb soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups caster sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup strong coffee (or water, I used a weak coffee as I didn't want it overpower the mint)
1/2 cup whole or low-fat milk

Butter and line the base of a two 9-inch cake tins (I only had a 22cm springform tin which I used for both cakes) and preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). 

Sift together the cocoa powder, flour, salt, bicarb soda, and baking powder in a bowl. Using an electric mixer with a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar about 5 minutes until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until fully incorporated.

Mix together the coffee and milk. Stir half of the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, the add the coffee and milk. Finally stir in the other half of the dry ingredients until smooth. Split batter mixture between the two prepared tins (or in my case, I used half for the first cake, baked it and then reused the tin for the other half of the batter). Bake for about 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in tin about 5 mins, then place on a wire rack and cool completely before icing.

For the Frosting

2.5 sticks unsalted (or slightly salted) butter

4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
2-3 tsp peppermint essence or use mint extract (add 1/4 tsp at a time until you're happy with flavor)
150g dark chocolate, very finely chopped or pulsed through a food processor
Green food coloring
Optional: waffle ice cream cones to decorate

Remove the butter from fridge about half an hour before starting. Cut up butter into smaller pieces and place in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on high until fluffy and smooth. Add sifted powdered sugar one cup at a time, beating until combined. Add peppermint essence or mint extract to taste and green food coloring. Gradually add chocolate chip pieces until you have a good distribution of chocolate bits.

Use about 1/4 of the icing on top of one of the cakes and smooth over with a spatula. Place second cake top side down on top of the iced cake. Cover entire cake with more icing, smoothing with a spatula. I used an offset spatula, running it under hot water every now and then to help keep the surface smoother. Use the leftover icing to form scoops of icing to place on top of the cake, arranged however you like. Use mini ice cream cones or chop the ends of normal-sized cones and place on top of icing scoops. Alternatively you could cover the top with extra dark chocolate chips or shaved chocolate. Can be served immediately or stored in an airtight container overnight. Serve at room temperature.

Jason

Rainbow Sprinkle Cake

Another month has flown by and here I am just now posting.. Eeekk! I am starting to feel like a procrastinator.  I think my inspiration has returned now that my daughters 6th birthday party is finally over.  It took a month to plan and has consumed all of my time and energy.

It was a rainbow themed party so I had to try the rainbow cake that has been floating around blogland.  I only did a 3 layer cake since we had a sweetshop bar and I knew most everyone would be too full on candy for cake, but it got eaten up and it turned out great. 

Purple, red and green were the colors we chose

Sprinkle rainbow cake

I used my Lemon Layer Cake for the cake, filling and frosting.

I divided the batter into 3 bowls (about 2 cups each) and added GEL food coloring.  Gel works best  as it makes a more vibrant color.  After coloring each of the 3 bowls of cake batter I poured them into the pans as directed in the recipe.  Follow the baking and assembly directions of the Lemon Layer cake.

When the cake is assembled add as much sprinkles as your heart desires,  I loaded mine up for the party!

3 layer German Chocolate Cake w/ Rum sauce

It was my dad's 60th birthday party last weekend and he requested a german chocolate cake.  Once again, I attempted to make something for a special occasion that I had never made before. I know..I'm a sucker for the unexpected..good or bad!  I was pleased with the outcome. yay me!  There is a rum sauce on each cake layer that created a very moist cake, and the ganache frosting mellowed the sweetness of the filing. A great balance all around.  This is one I will definitely be making again. 

I made some chocolate decorations for the top.  Just melt semisweet chocolate and place in a squeeze bottle or ziplock baggie.  Draw your designs, numbers, monograms etc on some wax paper and place in the freezer for 5-10 minutes until hardened.

I made a '60th' to stick on the top but my 5 year old daughter ate it before I could get a picture. ha!

Makes me want another piece.....

For the cake

I used my Chocolate espresso Cupcake mix for the cake

For the filling

2 cups of heavy cream

2 cups of sugar

6 large egg yokes

6oz unsalted butter cut into small pieces

1 teaspoon of salt

2 cups of  pecans toasted and finely chopped

2 2/3 cups of toasted coconut (sweet or unsweetened)

For the syrup

1 cup of water

3/4 cup of sugar

2 tablespoons of dark rum or rum extract

For the chocolate frosting

8oz of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped. (I used both)

2 tablespoons of light corn syrup

1 1/2oz of unsalted butter

1 cup of heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 Butter 3 8-inch pans and line with parchment paper.

CAKE

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, espresso, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  

Stir in boiling water.  Batter will be thin.

Pour into prepared pans.

Bake 22-28 minutes.  (every oven cooks so differently so keep a close eye the first time you make this one) Cake is ready when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes then remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely. 

While the cake is cooling make the filling, syrup and frosting

FILLING                                                                                                             Mix the cream, sugar, and egg yolks in a medium saucepan. Put the 6 ounces of butter, salt, toasted coconut, and pecan pieces in a large bowl.       Heat the cream mixture on medium high and cook, stirring constantly (scraping the bottom as you stir) until the mixture begins to thicken.  Bring the heat down to medium heat halfway through process (about 15 minutes total) Filling will thicken once cooled.                                                                                                Pour the hot custard immediately into the pecan-coconut mixture and stir until the butter is melted. Cool completely to room temperature.                                                                                                                              

SYRUP                                                                                                                   In a small saucepan, heat the sugar and water until the sugar has melted. Remove from heat and stir in the dark rum. This is more syrup than you will need so you can save it or reduce the recipe.

FROSTING                                                                                                            Place the 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a bowl with the corn syrup and 1 ½ ounces of butter.    Heat the cream until it just begins to boil. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Let stand one minute, then stir until smooth.  Cool completely.   To speed up this process you can place in the fridge and stir every 10-15 minutes until desired consistency is reached.  Don't go too long without stirring or it will harden and not be spreadable. 

ASSEMBLE                                                                                                        Remove parchment paper from first layer of cake and place on a cake stand.  Using a pastry brush, spread the rum syrup over the entire cake.  Use 1/3 of the filling on the cake layer and spread to the edges.  Repeat process with the next two layers.  Using an offset spatula, frost the sides of the cake until covered.  Use any remaining frosting to pipe on cake top.    I refrigerated this cake overnight and let it set out appromimently 15 minutes before I served it.  It is good served cooled or at room temperature.  It is easier to slice when it has been chilled.

The filling, syrup and frosting came from David lebovitz

Lemon layer cake with lemon mousse filling & vanilla bean frosting

A lemon cake for my husband's birthday.  Sounded like a great idea, except I had never made a lemon cake before.  See, I am totally one of those people that try new recipes on company, and that even rolls over into never-before-made birthday lemon cake.  Call me crazy or confident, I really don't care at the end of the day....as long as it works!  I went scouring for a recipe that got my juices flowing and finally found it at Annie's Eats  (I tend to go there often for inspiration)  I was pleased with it.  More than I thought I would be.  Another one to file away for future baking.  yay me!

The humidity was kicking my butt...so not the smooth surface I was going for. But hey, you can't win em' all!

Oh, did I mention candied lemon slices for garnish? Just call me fancy pants!..and the little flecks of vanilla bean make me happy!

Calling my name..... I totally gave in. *sigh*

For the cake

3 cups of cake flour

1 tablespoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup of unsalted butter at room temperature

Zest of 1/2 a lemon

2 cups of sugar

5 large eggs at room temperature 

1 1/4 cups of buttermilk at room temperature

1 tablespoon of lemon emulsion or extract

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

For the filling

4oz COLD cream cheese

2 1/2 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temperature 

1 1/4 cups of confectioners sugar. sifted

2 teaspoons of lemon emulsion or extract

Zest of 1/2 a lemon

1 cup of heavy cream. chilled

For the frosting

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temperature

3 cups of confectioners sugar. sifted

pinch of salt

1 vanilla bean split lengthwise 

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 tablespoons of heavy cream

For the candied lemon slices

1 whole lemon

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of water

preheat oven to 350. butter and flour 3-8inch round baking pans.  line the bottoms with parchment paper.

To make the cake.

In a medium bowl, combine the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk together and set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter and lemon zest. Beat until light in color and fluffy. about 3 minutes. scrap down the bowl halfway through.

Add the sugar to the butter mixture a 1/4 of a cup at a time, beating approximately 1 minute after each addition. 

Mix in the eggs one at a time until incorporated. Scrape down the sides after each addition.

Combine the buttermilk, lemon zest and vanilla extract in a liquid measuring cup.

With mixer on low speed, add the dry and wet ingredients alternately, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.  Mix just until incorporated. If needed, scrap down sides of bowl and mix for 15 seconds.

Divide the batter between the 3 prepared pans.

Bake 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  If your oven cooks uneven, rotate pans 3/4 of the way into the baking process.

Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes then remove from pans and allow to cool completely.  

To make the filling

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the cream cheese and butter.  Beat on med/high until smooth.

Mix in the confectioners sugar on low until combined.

Mix in the lemon emulsion and lemon zest. Increase the speed to med/high and beat until light and fluffy. about 2 minutes.

Transfer the mixture to a bowl and set aside.

In the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add the heavy cream and whip on high until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over-beat.  

Mix about a 1/3 of the whipped cream into the cream cheese lemon mixture.

Gently fold in the remaining whipped cream until even color appears and no streaks are visible. 

Cover and keep in fridge until ready to assemble cake. If the mixture is too firm when it is time to spread on cake layers, just let it sit out for a few minutes.

To make the frosting

In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment, whip butter on med/high until smooth. about 1 minute.

Add confectioners sugar and whip on med/low just until incorporated.  

Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the mixer and add the salt.  Beat on med/high until smooth.  1-2 minutes.

Mix in the vanilla extract and heavy cream on low just until incorporated. 

Whip on high until light and fluffy.  about 4 minutes.  scrape down bowl if needed.

To make candied lemon slices

Wash and dry lemons. 

Using a sharp serrated knife, cut very thin slices.  poke out any seeds with a toothpick.

Combine water and sugar in a heavy saucepan over med/high heat.  Heat until sugar dissolves.

Add lemon slices to pan in a single layer. no overlapping.  

Reduce heat to med/low and simmer for 20 minutes. Turn slices at least once to ensure both sides are candied.

Remove from heat and store in a container with syrup until ready to use.

Assemble the cake

Level the cakes if needed.  Place the first layer on a serving platter.  Top with half of the cream cheese lemon filling. Smooth into an even layer.

Place the second cake on top of the first filling and top with the remaining filling.

Place the final layer on top.

Frost the top and side of assembled cake with the vanilla bean frosting.

If desired, use a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip to pipe accents on the cake.

Garnish with the candied lemon slices.

White Texas Sheet Cake

I know the majority of my blog is filled with everything chocolate..and I don't apologize for it!  But I was feeling a little bad for my man who is a lover of white/yellow cake.  I discovered this recipe on Life as a Lofthouse and it has become the white cake base for everything I bake.  I love the almond flavor in this one.  I have to warn you though, the frosting it very sweet!  I will use a cup less of confectioners sugar the next time.  But if you love the sweet then by all means, have at it!

Moist and delicious!

A sheet cake feeds an army!

For the cake

1 cup of butter

1 cup of water

2 cup of flour

2 cups of sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup of sour cream

1 teaspoon of almond extract

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of salt

For the frosting 

1/2 cup of butter

1/4 cup of milk

4 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar, sifted

1/2 teaspoon of almond extract 

Food coloring if desired

Sprinkles 

Preheat oven to 375.  Spray a 15x10x1 baking sheet with nonstick spray.

In a small/medium sauce pan bring butter and water to a boil.

In a large mixing bowl combine flour and sugar. Whisk to combine.

Add eggs, sour cream, almond extract, baking soda and salt.  Stir until combined.  

Slowly pour in the butter/water mixture.  Stir with a  spatula until smooth.

Pour into prepared baking sheet and cook for 20-22 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack for 10-20 minutes before frosting. 

For the frosting

In a large saucepan bring the butter and water to a boil.

Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and extract.  Stir until smooth.

Add food coloring if desired.

Pour over warm cake.  

Decorate with sprinkles for a little sparkle! 

Moist Chocolate Cake with Pumpkin Spice Cream Cheese Frosting

Ok, I am fully aware that it has been over a month since I have posted a darn thing on here...but wait!...I do have a valid excuse!   Our family just got back from DisneyLand in California and have been sick ever since.  A great vacation, but so glad to be back on my island!

I made this cake before we left, but ran out of time to post it

.........so here we go.    

I love chocolate anything, and I have found the chocolate cake base that I use for all the chocolate cakes that I make.  It is the same chocolate cake base as my Ding Dong Cake

 My husband loves pumpkin so I made a cream cheese frosting and added pumpkin spice to kick it up a notch.  You could also add a little pumpkin puree to the frosting if you have that on hand.

For the cake
2 cups of sugar
1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
2 eggs

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract 

1 cup of boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour three 8-inch round cake pans, or grease and cut parchment paper to fit bottom of pans for easy removal.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  

Stir in boiling water.  Batter will be thin.

Pour into prepared pans.

Bake 22-28 minutes.  (every oven cooks so differently so keep a close eye the first time you make this one) Cake is ready when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes then remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely. 

For the frosting

16 oz of cream cheese softened

1/2 cup of butter

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

2 cups of confectioners sugar

1-2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice. Or to taste

In the bowl of a stand mixer beat the ingredients until smooth and fluffy.  Refrigerate until ready to frost cake.

Once the cake has completely cooled, start stacking and frosting until all three layers have been covered.   I topped mine with cookie crumbs.  You could also use chocolate sprinkles or cocoa powder.    Store cake in refrigerator. 

Ding Dong Cake

First of all let me start by saying I am embarrassed about my picture...lol   I had company over for a dinner party and never got a picture of the entire cake... Oh well,  hopefully you can use your imagination.  ;-)  This is one of my favorites to make and eat.  It brings me back to being a kid eating one of my favorite snacks...the Ding Dong!

For the cake
2 cups of sugar
1 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup of cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
2 eggs

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

1 cup of boiling water


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans or one 10-inch round cake pan

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  

Stir in boiling water.  Batter will be thin.

Pour into prepared pans.

Bake 30-35 minutes for the two 9-inch pans or 45-55 minutes for the 10-inch pan.  Cake is ready when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool completely.

Once the cakes have completely cooled, use a spoon to scoop out a thin layer in center of one cake to within 1-inch from the sides.  Discard the removed section or use for another recipe.

For the single 10-inch cake cut a 1-inch layer off the top and follow the above directions to scoop the center out.

Cream Filling

2 teaspoons of very hot water (not boiling)

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1 jar of marshmallow cream

1/2 cup of shortening

1/3 cup of confectioners sugar

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

Dissolve the salt in the hot water.  Set aside until cooled.

With a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the cream, shortening, sugar and vanilla until fluffy.

Add the water/salt mixture when it's cooled and whip well.

Cream taken from Sugar Derby

Using a spatula, scoop the cream into the cake center and spread until evenly distributed.

Replace the removed cake top (or second cake if you made two 9-inch)

Ganache Topping 

1 cup of chocolate chips

1/4 cup of shortening

3 tablespoons of corn syrup 

2 1/4 tablespoons of water

Combine all ingredients in the top of a double broiler and stir until melted and smooth. 

Pour over cake and smooth down the sides.  

Refrigerate until chilled.

Store in the refrigerator.