Upside Down German Chocolate Cake

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By: Christy

This week is bake with coconut week. I didn't have to think twice about what I was going to make because I already had an outstanding recipe that involved coconut. My dad's favorite dessert is German chocolate cake and I have been on the search to find the best and easiest recipe for as long as I can remember. I first attempted this recipe on his last birthday and according to the whole family this dessert hit it out of the park! I think this recipe is not only better than typical German chocolate cake but it's middle name is practically easy.

Ingredients:

1 box of German chocolate cake mix

(included in the box mix is 3 eggs, 1 1/4 cups water, and 1/2 cup of vegetable oil)

1 -eight ounce of block of cream cheese, softened

1 stick of unsalted butter, melted

1 pound powdered sugar

1 1/2 cups coconut

1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 with non stick baking spray. (I actually used two small dishes). Line the bottom of the dish with coconut and the pecans.

Make the cake mix according to the box instructions. Pour the mix over the coconuts and pecans. In a mixer, mix together the softened cream cheese and melted butter. Once well blended add the powdered sugar slowly (or else it will look like Christmas in your kitchen). Once this mixture is well blended and creamy, spoon the icing randomly over the cake batter. Once all the icing has been put into the cake mixture take your spoon and swirl the icing into the cake (try not to drag the bottom, you want to keep the nuts and coconut where you put them). The more you swirl the more moist and gooey it will be. If you leave the icing in clumps it will form as clumps inside the cake (see my picture above). Either method is absolutely and utterly delish!

Recipe from Duncan Hines

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Crescent Roll King Cake

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By: Christy



Happy Mardi Gra week! Even though my office always gets tons of delicious kings cakes all throughout January and February, I still wanted to give you all a good and easy recipe to enjoy a king cake yourself this season.

For those of you are aren't to mardi gra savvy and have no idea what a king cake is, here is a little history. Mardi Gra is actually a religious based event and fat Tuesday is the day people indulge before lent begins. (I'm giving up potatoes this year for lent. Wish me luck!) The king cake is traced back to France as part of a celebration for the 3 wise men that visited baby Jesus during the Christmas season. The reason the cake is in the shape of a circle is because the shape represents the circular route the 3 wise men took to get to Jesus in an effort to confuse King Herod.

King cakes are pretty simple pastries with some sort of cinnamon filling and is then topped with glaze and gold, green, and purple sugar on top. These colors represent justice, faith and power and are the customary Mardi Gra colors. One of the most fun parts of the king cake is the hidden treasure inside. In today's time, plastic baby Jesus' are put inside the cake and whomever finds the baby will supposedly have good luck the rest of the year (and some also make the rule that means you have to buy the next king cake LOL)

Filling:

4 ounces cream cheese (1/2 block)

1/2 cup brown sugar packed

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 cup raisins, soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, drain, and patted dry on paper towels

1/2 cup pecans

Cake:

2 cans crescent rolls

Icing:

1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

food coloring

In a food processor, process cream cheese, brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. Add pecan halves and pulse until pecans are slightly chopped. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray baking sheet with non stick spray. Unroll crescent rolls and separate into trianglesl . Position triangles next to each other with the points towards the center, overlapping the edges. This will form a circle. Press the seams together ONLY in the center of the triangles. (leaves ends unsealed so you can fold over filling).

Spread the filling around in a circle in the center of the sealed seam of each triangle. Place a small plastic baby or a dried bean in the filling.

Fold the outside of the triangles over the filling then do the same with the points in the center ensuring the filling is fully enclosed. Lightly press the seams. Bake for 20 minutes (or until golden brown) and let cool to room temperature before icing.

Whisk together the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. You want the icing to be thick (if not it will just run off the cake). Add powdered sugar until it is as thick as you want it. Since I didn't have sugar crystals. I just dyed the icing green, purple and gold. Then spoon the icing over the cake in alternating colors. If you are using sugar crystals, put the white icing on the cake then sprinkle the top of cake with sugar crystals dyed purple, green and gold.

Information for this recipe came from the following websites:
http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2012/02/21/of-mardi-gras-krewes-and-king-cakes/?hpt=hp_bn8
http://homecooking.about.com/od/cakerecipes/r/blc148.htm

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Pecan Pie Muffins

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by

Cindy

Pecans are a staple in the south so I thought this recipe was perfect for Mardi Gras week.  My cousin and his wife, Tom and Reta, live in the heart of the south.  They have experience Mardi Gras for many many years the Louisiana way.  They have visited us many times and always bring gifts of pecans, Zaps Potato Chips, and jambalaya and dirty rice mixes.  It brings a little of the south to us in the Midwest and then we can enjoy some of those southern foods too. 

  I have had this recipe in my "to make someday" pile for years, so I thought I would give it a try. These Pecan Pie Muffins are sooo good.I had all the ingredients in my kitchen and didn't have to go out and buy anything.  They are super easy to make and truly taste like pecan pie.I love pecans so I tend to add them to everything. lol.  This is one staple I have to watch so my supply doesn't dwindle. 

Thanks Tom and Reta for all the goodies you have brought us over the years.  Have a great day and enjoy Mardi Gras!

    

Pecan Pie Muffins

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 cup chopped pecans

2/3 cup butter, melted

2 eggs, beaten

In a medium mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, and pecans leaving a hole or well in the mixture.  Beat eggs until frothy and add butter.  Add egg mixture to dry mixture and combine until just moistened. 

 Spoon batter into baking cups or a mini muffin pan sprayed with Bakers Secret.These are very gooey and sticky, just like pecan pie and you want to get every bite out of these. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until done. 

 recipe source - unknown

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Pineapple Dessert Cake

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by

Cindy

I want to share great recipes with you, and this is one of those family recipes that has been passed along to me.  I have to be honest with you. This recipe is not one of my favorites (it's not chocolate lol), but there are a lot of family members who loved and still love this dessert.  This recipe came from my dad's mother, Ruby, and I know he loved it.  Ruby was a fantastic cook and Dad always said that I reminded him of her.  It made me feel loved knowing that I reminded him of his mom. When I told Christy what I was making last week, I know that her mouth was watering because she is a big fan of this recipe too. My nephew, Chuck, said that he really liked it, so I sent home the leftovers from the office with him. 

You probably have most the ingredients in your cupboard, so all you have to do is go out and buy some vanilla wafers.  Another ingredient you may want to use is pasteurized eggs or egg beaters, because it  calls for 2 raw eggs.  I have looked this up and found it written that since it is mixed with pineapple, it is OK to eat this mixture.  I, however, don't like to serve others something that might make them sick, so I use pasteurized eggs or egg beaters.  I have always licked the spatulas of every thing I make not worrying about raw eggs, but I have heard of people who have gotten sick from this.  I'll just have to take my chances with that, but I can't serve food with raw eggs to others.  Anyway, it's a quick and easy make ahead dessert and you can't go wrong with it. 

                                                          Ruby's Pineapple Dessert

1 box of vanilla wafers

2 eggs (I use egg beaters)

1 cup butter (2 sticks) softened

2 cups sugar

1 - 20 oz. can of crushed pineapple

1/2 - 1 cup chopped pecans

Mix butter with sugar and whip a few minutes.  Add egg substitute, then crushed pineapple and pecans.  Line a 13 x 7.5 inch pan with vanilla wafers.  Spread this on top of the vanilla wafers.  (Put dollops of mixture all over the top of the wafers and carefully spread them over the wafers).  Add another layer of vanilla wafers and then spread the rest of the mixture on top of this.  Add one more layer of vanilla wafers.  When serving, top with cool  whip. 

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Banana Split Cake

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By: Christy

First and foremost, DON'T judge this book by its cover. This dessert may look like a sloppy mess, but it is SOO delicious. This week was baking with canned fruits and I felt like it was the perfect opportunity to give you one of my favorite recipes one of my grandmother's gave me.... Banana Split Cake.

Don't let the word cake fool you, there isn't actually any "cake" in this recipe. It is a no bake recipe that is super easy and all it really requires is some quality time in the mixer and in the refrigerator to turn out just right. I did happen to google this recipe to see what would come up and I was quite shocked to find quite a few similar recipes. Obviously my grandmother must have started a delicious trend ;-)  

I actually decided to put a couple variations on my grandmother's recipe as well. As most of you know, right now is GIRL SCOUT COOKIE season. I was a beloved girl scout all the way through the end of my high school days and I always try to support the association if a youngster propositions me (the fact they make super delicious cookies is just a plus! haha). So with an abundance of cookies in my pantry, I figured this recipe would be a great excuse to use one of my purchases because Trefoils make the BEST cookie crusts!

Ingredients:

1 box trefoils (or 2 cups graham crackers)

1/2 cup melted butter

2 eggs

2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup butter (2 sticks) at room temp

5 to 6 bananas

20 ounce can crushed pineapple drained

Whipped Topping/Cool Whip

Optional:

Frozen or sliced strawberries

Walnuts of Pecans

Maraschino Cherries

Chocolate Sauce

Crust: For the crust you will need between 2-3 cups of crumbs. You can buy prebought graham cracker crumbs or if you want to use cookies or whole graham crackers, put them in a large zip lock and I used a rolling pin to make crumbs. Mix the crumbs with the melted butter. Compact the mixture in the bottom of a pan (9x13) or something similar. (I actually used a square dish). Then put the dish in the freezer while you complete the filling. (this will make the crust get hard, so it doesn't get all in the filling when you pour it in)

Filling: This is the most important step for the whole dessert. This recipe will require a mixer. Add the powdered sugar, softened butter, and eggs. Mix this for 20 minutes. It will go from a runny mixture to a nice creamy, smooth whipped mixture by the the end of the 20 minutes.

Assembly: Remove the crust from the refrigerator and top the crumbs with the filling. Place sliced bananas over the filling. It's easiest to cut bananas in half long ways, and place cut edge down on the filling. Over the bananas, spread the crushed pineapple as evenly as possible on top. Here is where I added a variation to my grandmother's recipe. I added sliced strawberries (thawed frozen strawberries would have worked well too). I just thought it would add not only a tasty element but also make it looks prettier. Then top the fruit layers with whipped topping or cool whip. Leave the dessert in the fridge for at least 2 hours to set before serving but is best if it sits over night.

The dessert can be plated with a few other additions as well. Add pecans or walnuts, chocolate sauce, maraschino cherries.... However you prefer your banana splits. Enjoy!

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Cheesecake with Blueberry Sauce

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by
Cindy

This year my Valentine is the cutest, sweetest, most wonderful little boy, my grandson Carter.  He is absolutely adorable and I wish that I could see him more often.  I celebrated Valentine's Day early with Carter and his parents this weekend.  Nick and Sarah worked around the house trying to get organized and Carter and I just hung out together.  He wasn't feeling very well so I'm hoping he's better very soon.  Thanks Sarah, Nick and Carter for a great weekend. I love visiting you guys!!

I decided to make cheesecake for my Valentine's post.  It was a toss up between this or something chocolate but cheesecake won out.  My friend, Karen, has made this cheesecake for years and I love it.  She has made so many and taken them to so many gatherings, that I bet several of you may have had a piece.  She gave me the recipe and I've been making it ever since.  It is the perfect cheesecake and not hard to make.  I didn't have any graham crackers so I decided to make a cookie crust.  Another friend of mine, JoNell B. makes the best specialty cheesecakes I've ever eaten (like you would buy at a very fancy bakery) and she uses a cookie crust.  She made cheesecakes with fruit decorating the tops, white chocolate drizzled on the tops, and just very special and beautiful cheesecakes.  She doesn't make them like she used to, which is a shame!!  A while back she gave me her recipe for the crust, so I gave it a try.  Thanks Karen and Jo Nell for sharing your recipes.I also decided to make four little cheesecakes instead of one large one.  I had 4 small spring form pans and they worked out very nicely.  I try to take my goodies to work or give them to family members so making smaller ones just made more sense for me. 

I hope you make or do something special for your sweetie and wrap your arms around them like I did to my little Valentine. Happy Valentine's Day!!

Karen's Cheesecake

Crust

1 pkg graham crackers, crushed

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup melted butter

Mix together and press into a spring form pan

 Filling

1/2 cup sugar

1 t vanilla

4 eggs

24 oz cream cheese (3 pkg) not fat free

1 pint sour cream

3/4 cup sugar

Beat cream cheese and then add 1/2 cup sugar and mix until smooth.  Add vanilla and eggs.  Mix well then pour into crust and bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes or until firm.  Cool 35 minutes at room temperature.  While cooling, mix together sour cream and 3/4 cup sugar.  Pour on cake and return to oven for 10 minutes at 400 degrees.  Refrigerate.

 JoNell's Crust

1 stick butter

1/4 cup sugar

1 cup flour

Mix together and press into spring form pan.  Bake at 350 degrees about 10 minutes or set.  Add cheesecake mixture to this after it has cooled a little while.

Blueberry Topping

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

1/4 cup water

1 cup orange juice

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cold water

3 T cornstarch

1/4 t almond extract

1/8 t cinnamon

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the blueberries, 1/4 cup water, orange juice, and sugar.  Stir gently, and bring to a boil. 

In a cup or small bowl, mix together the cornstarch and 1/4 cup cold water.  Gently stir the cornstarch mixture into the blueberries so as not to mash the berries.  Simmer gently until thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon, 3 to 4 minutes.  Remove from heat and stir in the almond extract and cinnamon.  Thin sauce with water if it is too thick for your liking.

sauce recipe by ISYBEL from

 http://www.allrecipes.com/

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Chocolate and Maraschino Cherry Valentine's Day Cupcakes

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By Christy

When you think of Valentine's Day you probably see visions of hot pink greeting cards, bouquets of flowers, colorful conversation heart candies, cupids, heart balloons,and lots of other things that show off Valentine's Day,  Some of these are a bit above and beyond in their mushiness. Not saying I'm complaining.... Women (such as myself) eat this stuff up! It's kind of fun to have a day when it's okay for people (cough cough- men) to be sentimental, romantic, and be a little cheesy.

So when I thought about what sweets I wanted to make my for my sweet, I wanted to make sure to put the same twist on it. I didn't want to make plain ole cookies, or a typical dessert..... I wanted to make something that said HAPPY VALENTINES DAY without actually having to write it out. haha

Knowing that my Valentine LOVES maraschino cherries and with the sweet set of V-day cookie cutters I scored on the dollar isle at Target, I decided to create these not only super cute but delicious VALENTINE'S Day cupcakes.

Ingredients:

1 prepared chocolate cake mix, made into cupcakes

Icing:

2 sticks butter (room temp)

4 cups of powdered sugar

4 tbsp maraschino cherry juice

1/2 cup finely chopped maraschino cherries

Prepare your cake mix according to the box. When putting the mix into your cupcake liners make sure to fill the liners up almost to the top (you want their to be a substantial muffin top because that is where you will want to cut the heart out from). Bake at 350 for directed time for cupcakes.

While the cupcakes are cooling, make the icing. Mix the butter sugar and juice until well blended. Then add the chopped cherries. If the icing is too runny, add more powdered sugar until it is the consistency you desire.

Now for the fun part, the assembly. Cut the muffin tops off of each cupcake. Ice each cupcake bottom with a healthy portion of icing. Next, using a SMALL heart shaped cookie cutter, center it on the muffin top, push down and gently remove the center heart from the top. (Use a little TLC in this portion). They will most likely break on the edge's, depending on how big your cutter is, but you wont be able to tell once you put it on the cupcake (as long as you didn't butcher the job too bad). I then sprinkled a little amount of powdered sugar on the tops, before adding them to the bottoms. Then place the muffin top back on the iced cupcake and gently push down to ensure they are attached.

This will leave you  a bunch of really cute little heart shaped cake cut outs. I simply just piped some icing on one and made a little heart sandwich out of the extras. No need to waste such deliciousness, right?!

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The Best Oatmeal Cookies

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by

Cindy

Oatmeal cookies were one of my dad's favorite things to eat, and my brothers ex-wife made these cookies for my mom and dad.  I tried a lot of oatmeal cookie recipes hoping to replicate them, but he loved these cookies the best.  For Christmas one year I gave my recipe book to my nephew, Chuck, but I told him I wanted this recipe from him as a swap.  He gave me the recipe and I don't know if he ate any cookies yesterday, but I hope he's enjoying the goodies that I bring into the office.  I've been wanting to make these for a long time, but it's kind of bittersweet to make them since my dad isn't here to enjoy them.  It does bring me happy feelings too though, because I remember how much he enjoyed eating and especially these cookies. You can make them small or large but either way they are addictive.  I, of course, doubled the recipe and used a mixer instead of mixing by hand.  I took a tin to the office yesterday and they are almost gone this morning.   I've brought most of my finished products to the office and these cookies disappeared by far the quickest of all my desserts.  Thanks Patti for this great recipe!

C. A.'s Dropped Oatmeal Pecan Chippies

1 cup sifted flour

2 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1 1/2 cup uncooked quick-cooking oatmeal

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 t vanilla

1 cup seedless raisins

1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Sift flour with baking powder and salt. Stir butter and sugar together until just mixed; blend in flour, oatmeal, eggs and vanilla.  Stir in raisins and pecans.  Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2" apart on greased baking sheets and bake 15 - 18 minutes until lightly browned and tops spring back when touched.  Transfer at once to wire racks to cool.  About 75 calories a cookie.

recipe by Patti Robinson Provost

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Large Soft Pretzels

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By Christy

Happy Superbowl Sunday! If you are a good ole' procrastinator like me, most likely you have waited until day of to start all your recipe digging, grocery shopping and cooking for right about now! Luckily for me, I decided earlier in the week what I wanted to make..... Large soft pretzels. 

When I first moved to Nashville, one of my favorite hot spots for my friends and I was the Flying Saucer down by the Gulch/Downtown. Now, if you have ever been there you will know that the humongous beer selection isn't the only thing great about this bar because they also have great bar food....specifically, their giant soft pretzels. (man, my mouth is watering just thinking about them!). They have hands down one of the best soft pretzels I have ever had and they serve them with a variety of dipping sauces: Warm cream cheese, nacho cheese, honey mustard, mustard, and I am sure there are more, but those are my go to's.

Finally, about 4 years ago, I decided it was my goal to recreate the same Flying Saucer deliciousness at home and that is how this recipe came about. It's one of my proudest additions to my recipe collection and since then I have made it for book clubs, family gatherings, and SPORTING EVENTS with always hands down success!

Best part is they are really easy to make, and you can make so many variations! My favorite is just salted but I have also made them with cinnamon and sugar. One variation I have on my list to try is putting jalapenos and cheddar cheese on top (Melted cheese and the jalapeno juices infuse into the pretzel. YUM) and maybe use salsa mixed with cream cheese as the sauce?! In my mind it sounds amazing.... If someone tries that variation, let me know the results! :)

Happy baking and may the best team win today!

For Salted Pretzels

4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 teaspoon white sugar

1 1/4 cups warm water

5 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup White sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Topping

1/2 cup baking soda

4 cups hot water

Kosher salt for topping

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast with the 1 tsp of sugar in warm water. Let this stand about ten minutes (it will look like a kinda creamy, bubbly, fluffy mixture).

In a large bowl mix the flour, 1/2 sugar and salt. Once combined add the oil and yeast mixture, mixing until it forms into a dough. (You can add more water if you feel the mixture is too dry. Add 1 tablespoon at a time. A little goes a long way in this instance). Kneed the dough for 8 minutes or until the dough is smooth. Lightly oil a large boil. Add the ball of dough to the bowl, coating the dough with a coat of oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for an hour (it can grow almost double in size sometimes).

Preheat the oven to 450. In a large bowl, dissolve the baking soda in hot water. On a floured surface, take the dough and cut into 12 pieces (or less or more depending on how many or how large you want your pretzels to be). Roll each piece into a rope and twist into a pretzel shape. Once you have all your pretzels shaped, dip each one in the baking soda solution and placed on a greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with kosher salt (or whatever topping you choose). Bake for about 8 minutes or until they are golden brown.

My Fave Dipping Sauce

1 Package Cream Cheese

1/2-1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

In a medium sized bowl (or a micorwave safe decorative bowl you want to serve the sauce in) microwave the creamcheese for 30 seconds, then stir. Then micorwave for another 15-30 seconds. Continue this process until the creamcheese is creamy and warm. Stir in the shredded cheese and serve. A-mazing!

ENJOY!

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