Southern Caramel Cake!

Here is what you will need for the butter cake and the caramel icing:

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)
1 cup milk
3 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3 large eggs

Caramel Icing

1/2 cup butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/3 cup cream ( I used half and half and it worked fine)

1/4/ tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

1 lb. of powdered sugar

 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Prepare 2 round 9" cake pans by spraying them with nonstick spray that has flour in it or greasing and flouring the pans.  I like to cut a piece of parchment or wax paper to fit in the bottom of each pan and also spray it as well and the inside of the pans.  This really insures the cakes not sticking. 

Beat all of the ingredients, adding in the order listed for about 30 seconds scraping down the sides of your bowl.  Do not over mix as it tends to make your cake dry.  After it is all well incorporated beat at high speed for about 2 minutes.   Pour evenly in the prepared pans. 

Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a pick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Do not over bake or the cake will be dry.  Check them at 30 minutes.   Let them cool for about 5 minutes before turning them out, then allow to cool completely before icing.  

Once the cakes have cooled, prepare the caramel icing.  

Melt butter in a heavy saucepan on the stove and dissolve brown sugar in it.  Add the cream and salt.  Bring up to a boil and cook for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and beat in the confectioner's sugar and the vanilla. You need to use an electric mixer for this.  If it seems too thick add 1 Tbs. cream at a time until it's where you want it.

Immediately stack and frost cake.  You have to move fast, because this icing will start to thicken.  It's best if you keep it on some low heat or over a pan of hot water as you work with it.  If it starts to get too thick to work with heat it,  add a dash of cream, just not too much.

 

 

You can sprinkle the top with chopped pecans or walnuts if you wish. We usually don't, but the nuts do make it pretty and can cover a multitude of  sins if you have trouble with getting the caramel icing smooth.

Southern Caramel Cake!

Monkey Bread

Making monkey bread lets kids do what they do best. Play with their food while they create something yummy.

Ingredients:

• • For The Bread
  • 2 tablespoons solid vegetable shortening, plus more for pan and bowl
  • 1/4 cup warm (110 degrees to 115 degrees) water
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus a pinch for yeast
  • 1 envelope dry active yeast (scant tablespoon)
  • 3/4 cup warm (110 degrees to 115 degrees) milk
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• For The Coating:

  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
  • 3/4 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

• For The Icing:

  • 1/4 cup milk
  • 2 cups confectioners' sugar

Directions:

1. Lightly coat a 10-inch Bundt pan and a medium bowl with shortening; set aside. Put the warm water and a pinch of sugar in a small bowl; sprinkle yeast over top. 

2. Stir; let the yeast soften and dissolve, about 5 minutes.

3. Place shortening, milk, sugar, salt, and egg in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook.

4. Add yeast mixture to shortening mixture, and beat to combine. Slowly add flour. 

5. Knead on medium-low, 1 minute. Transfer dough to the prepared bowl. 

6. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place, 20 minutes.

7. Make coating: Place melted butter in a bowl. 

8. In a second bowl, combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and nuts; sprinkle 2 tablespoons nut mixture into prepared Bundt pan.

9. Cut dough into 1/2-inch pieces. Roll into balls. Coat in butter, then roll in nut mixture, and place in prepared pan. 

10. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

11. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake, 30 to 35 minutes.

 12. Let cool in pan for 15 minutes. Invert onto a serving plate, and let cool 20 minutes more.

13. Make icing: In a small bowl, combine milk and confectioners' sugar. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over bread.

Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)

1/2 cup shortening

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

2  1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 Tbs. powdered cocoa

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp. white vinegar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 oz. bottle of red food coloring

For a good frosting click here.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream butter, shortening and sugar together until fluffy with electric mixer. 

3. Add eggs one at a time.

4. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa.  

5. Add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk alternating a little of each at a time and mixing after each addition. 6. When it's mixed well (don't over mix), add the vinegar, vanilla and red food color.  

7. Mix just until the food coloring is evenly distributed. 

-You don't need to beat this on high, but mix as much as needed to get it all red.  If you over mix it, the cake will be dry. See how it looks here.  It gets darker when it is baked.-

8. Prepare (3)  9 inch cake pans by cutting a circle of wax paper or parchment paper to fit in the bottom of each one and then spraying it liberally with nonstick baking spray.  This cake has a tendency to stick, but if you use the paper it will come out fine.

9. Place in the oven for 30-35 minutes. A pick inserted in the center should come out clean.  Remove from oven and cool for about 30 minutes.  Run a knife around the edge of the cakes to loosen and then they will turn out. 

-I doubled the usually amount of frosting (recipe here) called for in most of the recipes for red velvet cake, because this is a 3 layer cake and the lesser amount is really skimpy to cover it all.  You might not need all of the frosting, but half of it is not enough.  Save the leftover for up to 10 days and use it cupcakes or cookies.-

10. Lay the first layer down, with the flat side up on your cake plate.  You can keep your cake plate cleaner if you place a little wax paper just barely under the edges of the cake.  

11. When you have finished frosting, gently pull the paper out and voila...clean all the way around.  I am not a neat when it comes to frosting a cake so this really helps me.                          

12. Proceed with the other two layers and then finish your sides.

Slice and Serve!!



Hazelnut-Apricot Chocolate Bark

-Chocolate bark is a good way to try your hand at tempering, the technique of heating and cooling chocolate so that it solidifies quickly and remains firm and shiny. A simplified version of tempering involves melting two-thirds of the chocolate, then cooling it by adding the remaining one-third and stirring until smooth. For best results, use a candy or instant-read thermometer to check chocolate temperature.-

• Ingredients:
• 1 cup chopped dried apricots
• 1 lb. dark or bittersweet chocolate, chopped, divided
• 1 ½ cups toasted skinned whole hazelnuts

Directions:
1. Place apricots on double layer of paper towels. 

2. Top with double layer of paper towels, and press to remove moisture.

3. Set aside. Line rimmed baking sheet with silicone baking mat or wax paper, and have large spatula ready.

4. Heat 2/3 lb. chocolate in double boiler or heat-proof bowl set over saucepan of barely simmering water until chocolate has melted and is no warmer than 105°–110°F (41°–43°C). (Check with candy thermometer.) 

5. Remove top of double boiler from heat.

6. Stir remaining 1/3 lb. chocolate into melted chocolate, and continue stirring until chocolate cools to 88°–90°F (31°–32°C).

7. Spread melted chocolate in 1/4-inch layer on prepared baking sheet. 

8. Sprinkle with hazelnuts and apricots. 

9.Cool until firm and shiny. Break into pieces.

Eggnog Layered Pie

Ingredients:
1 premade pie crust, baked according to package directions and cooled
 (Alternatively you can use a premade graham cracker crumb crust)
2 packages vanilla instant pudding (3.4 oz. size)
1/2 cup cold milk
1 1/2 cups cold eggnog
1 tub of whipped topping (8 oz.)
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Directions:
1. Prepare the pie crust in a 9" pie dish and set aside.

2. Whisk together pudding mixed with milk and eggnog, about 2 minutes. Spoon 1-1/2 cups of this into pie crust.

3. Stir in half of the whipped topping to the remaining pudding mixture; mix well. Spread over the top of the pudding layer.

4. Spread a third layer of the remaining whipped topping over the other two layers. Top with sliced almonds. Chill for 3 hours.

Recipe from On Cupcake Moon

Peppermint Bark Cookies

Ingredients: 
1 pkg Nabisco Chocolate Wafers
1 pkg White Chocolate or White Candy Melts, melted
1 pkg Hard Peppermint Candies, crushed
1 pkg Peppermint Kisses chocolates

Directions:
1. Place the chocolate wafers, face side up on a sheet of parchment paper. 

2, Place a mound of melted white chocolate on the cookies. 

3. Using the back of a spoon or your finger, smooth out the chocolate. 

4. While chocolate is still wet, add one Peppermint kiss to each cookie, then sprinkle with crushed peppermints.

5. Allow to dry completely and store in an airtight container if not serving right away.
Recipe from Lick the Bowl Good