Decadent Chocolate Cake

This is the cake I made for my and my mother-in-law's birthdays for the big BBQ we had this weekend. It was so good I just have to share where I got the recipe and what I did to make it so yummy! It was received well by everyone.

Also, this is my last day of NaBloPoMo and I did it!! I did 31 blog posts in 31 days for the whole month of May, I did it!! I will do it again, just not the rest of the summer because we have many many plans this summer for fun things outside. But I can say that I did it! Ok, back to the cake.

The cake recipe I used was one I found from a fellow food blogger at Food and Passion and it was wonderful! So moist and chocolaty, it was just what the doctor ordered for a great chocolate fix. I made it even more decadent because I put in Philly Cheesecake filling in between the layers. The cheesecake just gave it that something that put it over the edge of rich and yummy! Other than that I followed her directions to the letter to make this cake and the chocolate ganache that frosted the outside of this cake.

Check it out! It was fantastic! Try it yourself, very easy recipe. Here is the link to that recipe one more time: Food and Passion Dark and Moist One Bowl Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Ganache and now here are some more pictures to convince you to go visit Food and Passion and make this cake!

Here is the cake before frosting with the chocolate ganache. I took the 2 thick layers the recipe made and cut them in half to make a 4 layer cake to have more cheesecake filling. It was so good!

This is the cake after frosting with the chocolate ganache.

And here is the slice, before I gobbled it up! It was so yummy and rich, one slice was enough... for now! Having some more later!


Now, if that isn't enough to convince you to go make this cake... I don't know what else to do. It is that good, and so easy to make. The instructions for this cake were so simple, that makes it even better! Go make some! You will be glad you did!

Banana Cake with Banana Cream Cheese Frosting

Can we say yummy? This cake was a surprise to me yesterday since I was craving dessert and I didn't have much in the house for anything really spectacular. Well, the way this Banana Cake turned out, it was nothing short of spectacular! You would never know this was NOT a scratch cake. This cake was ooozing of goodness with the bananas, butter, eggs, and it was so moist. Pair that up with a homemade banana cream cheese frosting and this is definitely a winner. I had to raid The Cooking Dad's stash of cake mixes to make this because there was nothing really in the house since I am low on staples (thank god it is almost payday and I can go shopping) so I decided what the heck, we will see how it turns out. We always have cake mixes in the house so that when The Cooking Dad wants some dessert, it is fast and easy for him to make. He likes to feel accomplished in the kitchen too and I like him in the kitchen cooking and baking because that way I do not have to feel like it is always my job because he can do pretty well too and he does quite often.

Anyway, on to the recipe! Just a note: I forgot to put in the baking soda as I was going and the layers were kind of flat but that did not compromise on the flavor and the cake was still moist and wonderful, just not as high as it could have been and since I came out with 3 layers, I am glad that I forgot or else we would have had a mile high cake that probably would have been difficult to frost. But it would have probably been better on the eyes if it was higher. This cake is not the most beautiful cake, but it sure tasted good! Just what the doctor ordered for my dessert craving yesterday!

Banana Cake with Banana Cream Cheese Frosting

Cake:
1 box Pillsbury Yellow Butter cake mix
3 ripe bananas, smashed
1 tsp baking soda

Mix cake to box directions. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Smash the bananas. I actually had my 4 yr old helper smash my bananas for me as she likes to help and this is right up her alley.

Add the bananas and baking soda to the cake mix. Mix well. (just remember if you want high layers, do not forget like I did)

Put pans in the oven for 30 minutes, check doneness by inserting a toothpick into center of layers; if it comes out clean, it is done. Let cool on racks for 10 minutes. Invert onto racks and let cool completely before frosting. (note what layers will look like when you forget the baking soda, just also note that it still tastes good though, even though they are a tad flat)


Banana Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8oz package cream cheese
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 Tbsp banana flavoring (I used an espresso syrup for the banana flavoring since I used to drink tons of espresso and now I just use it when I need great flavor for something)
4 1/2 cups powdered sugar

(here is the banana syrup I used, you can get it at any cash and carry or where espresso supplies are sold, I get my bottles at Cash and Carry in Olympia because they are just a couple dollars a bottle, lots cheaper than the grocery stores)

Cream together the cream cheese and butter. Add the banana syrup and mix well until creamy. Add 2 cups powdered sugar and mix well. Gradually add remaining powdered sugar mixing until desired spreading consistency. Will frost this banana cake with leftover frosting. Refrigerate leftover frosting for use with cookies or cupcakes, or something else.

If you wanted to you could add a couple drops of yellow food coloring to tint the frosting yellow, for a more spring like cake. But I chose not to do that at this time.
Here are a couple of yummy looking pictures of the finished product! Enjoy! Do try this cake at home, it is so yummy and simple!

Here is the finished cake, before digging in...

mmmmmmmm look at that frosting...

Wanna bite?? Go make your own! This one is mine! Have a great day!

Cupcakes and Jell-o

When it comes to desserts, my kids think cupcakes are their favorites. This cupcake I make for them when it gets close to summer are just awesome and so easy to do! Little more time consuming than most out of mix cupcakes, they hit the spot when it is warm outside.

What do you get when you mix cupcakes and Jell-o? You get an easy and yummy summertime cupcake. When I make white cupcakes, I also add any flavor of jell-o gelatin on top to make them swirling with flavor. This last time I made these, I made white cupcakes with strawberry jell-o. It was their dessert of choice for Cinco de Mayo. Not your normal Cinco de Mayo dessert, but, for the kids; it was their choice. They wolf them down quickly! This time I decided to make them a little more festive with some sprinkles on top, they loved it!

You start with a normal white cake mix and make it to package directions. Or, you can use your favorite cake recipe from scratch. With these you have to make white cupcakes so that the colors really come out of the jell-o gelatin. This time I used a cake mix because I bought a bunch since at my grocery store they were buy 2 and get 3 free, I cannot pass up a deal on that for quick easy desserts for my kids. Bake the cupcakes according to package directions, this time they took 18 minutes in the oven.

Then, you let them cool in the pan. Well, since I have only one muffin pan, I had to make them and take them out before adding the gelatin so it was a little trickier to get the gelatin on top since usually you put the gelatin on top while they are still in the pan. I had to come up with an inventive way to do this. After I poked the holes in the cupcakes, I figured out that with a bowl and a strainer, I could add the gelatin on top of the cupcakes by spooning it on like in the next pictures.
Not the most graceful way of doing it but it still got the job done.


Then they should look like this:

After the gelatin is on top of all the cupcakes, you put them in the fridge for 2 hours so the gelatin can set. Then frost it with whipped topping. But, since I did not have whipped topping, I made a buttercream frosting and frosted with that instead.

My buttercream frosting recipe:
1/2 cup butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
(if you want the frosting colored, use a couple drops of food coloring; if you want the frosting flavored add what flavor extract you want instead of the vanilla, in this case strawberry extract or flavoring would be very tasty with these)
Whip up the butter until fluffy, add half of the powdered sugar. Then slowly add the milk and vanilla and beat until all mixed. Add remaining powdered sugar and whip until light and fluffy. Frost cupcakes.

When you cut into the cupcakes, they should look like this:


And, that, my friends, is how to make a simple tasty dessert out of one cake mix and one gelatin package for a whole bunch of fun! Next time I think I will use the purple Berry Fusion jello I have in the cupboard. YUMMY!

Classic Chocolate Cake

There are times when cake makes the world go round. This was one of those times when I had to have something chocolate; so, I made a homemade classic chocolate cake with homemade frosting for me and my daughters. My husband was out of town working (he is the one who doesn't like lots of chocolate so I made this when he was gone) but it is so easy to make a scratch cake (despite what some people may think). It does take an extra few minutes of prep time and bake time, but it yields a much yummier cake than a cake mix. It is a little more dense than cake mix, but pair it with a really good frosting, and there is nothing like homemade cake. So grab a glass of milk to wash it down and get ready to make some Classic Chocolate Cake!

Classic Chocolate Cake

2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 cup shortening
1 tsp vanilla
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, combine the dry ingredients along with 1 tsp of salt. Add milk, vanilla, shortening and beat with electric mixer on low speed until combined. Add egg and beat for 2 minutes on medium speed. Grease and flour 2 cake pans. Add cake batter to pans. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes in pans. Invert pans and let cake completely cool on wire racks. Frost with your favorite frosting.

Oops, forgot to photograph cake before cutting a piece out, oh well.

Decadent Chocolate Fudge Frosting

4 3/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup boiling water
1 tsp vanilla

Mix dry ingredients. Add butter, boiling water, and vanilla. Beat on low speed until combined. Beat for 1 minute more on medium speed. Cool 20-30 minutes or till of spreading consistency. Frosts tops and sides of two 8 or 9 inch cake layers.

Tips:
- You can add chocolate chips, or other mix ins to the cake batter to make a little more decadent cake. Mix in ideas could be dried cranberries, coconut, dried cherries, chocolate chips or chunks, peanut butter chips.

Fast Peanut Butter Cup Cake

I know all about the peanut butter scare but I did my homework with my peanut butter when I made this cake for work in January. Happy to say that no one that ate this cake got sick and it had quite a bit of peanut butter products in it (a silent YAY me going on here for no one getting sick). Anyway, this is such a decadent looking and tasting cake that no one would ever know that it came from a cake mix rather than homemade. I know it is almost like blasphemy to not make my cakes all homemade but when making for alot of people with not much time, this would be the second way to go. I did make the peanut butter frosting homemade, no store bought frosting here.

Fast Peanut Butter Cup Cake

2 boxes of chocolate cake mix (I used dark chocolate cake mixes for a double layer sheet cake)
1 batch of peanut butter frosting (recipe follows)
1 10 oz bag of peanut butter cups (chopped)

Prepare cakes according to box directions. Let cool, frost bottom layer with peanut butter frosting, then a layer of chopped up peanut butter cups. Place top layer onto bottom layer and frost tops and sides of cake. Put the rest of the chopped peanut butter cups around the sides of cake to give a more decadent look. Refrigerate cake.

(Disregard the uncreative decorating, it was a cake for work for January birthdays; this is how the sides should look after placing peanut butter cups onto cake, I probably could have used more peanut butter cups though.. oh well I will remember that for next time)

Suggestions:
- To make a round layer cake for less people, use one box of cake mix prepared for a double layer cake, cut the frosting recipe in half.

Peanut Butter Frosting

1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
5-7 Tbsp milk (use enough until desired consistency is reached)

Beat the peanut butter until very smooth, gradually beat in powdered sugar, add vanilla. Then add milk 1 Tbsp at a time until desired consistency is reached. Frost cake.

Chocolate Molten Cakes with Raspberry Sauce

This by far was the best dessert (besides cheesecake of course) that has been invented. If you are a serious chocolate person, than this dessert is for you. It is eaten warm so that the chocolate center oozes out and pair that up with my Raspberry Sauce or some vanilla ice cream and this is a dessert sure to please any sweet tooth.



Chocolate Molten Cakes with Raspberry Sauce

6 oz chocolate chips (about 2/3 cup)
3/4 stick of butter (6 Tbsp)
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
4 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tarter
2 Tbsp sugar
Raspberry Sauce (recipe follows cake directions)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Melt the chocolate and butter together and stir frequently on the stove. Or microwave in 30 second intervals until all melted and then stir together until smooth. Once chocolate and butter are smooth, sift in the cocoa until smooth.

In a different bowl, mix together the egg whites and cream of tarter on medium speed for about 3 minutes; this should make small peaks. Then add sugar and beat on high until the peaks are stiff. Fold 1/4 of the egg whites into chocolate at a time until all has been added. Be careful not to over stir the mixture.

Butter and sugar the baking dishes (ramekins work best for me). Bake for 7-10 minutes. It will be slightly soft in the middle and the cake will have risen however, once you take it out it will fall a little. When the cake has come away from the edges, flip over onto small serving plate. The cake should be done on the outside, yet still gooey in the middle. Serve hot with a dollop of whipped cream and raspberry sauce.

Raspberry Sauce:
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tsp orange juice

Puree in a blender until all are combined. Spoon over favorite desserts. Store in the refrigerator.

Other Serving Suggestions:
- Serve warm with vanilla ice cream
- Serve warm drizzled with caramel sauce and whipped cream or ice cream
- Dust with powdered sugar and serve hot

Lightning Fast Black Forest Cake

Well, here it is... the 100th post!! YAY!! Thanks to everyone who reads my blog for making it a success.

So here is a dessert that is very decadent but can be made lightning fast and no one has to know that it is a cake mix cake rather than from scratch. It is that good! If you do not have time to make a great dessert, consider this one. Here it is:



Lightning Fast Black Forest Cake

1 devils food cake mix
1 can cherry pie filling
1 8 oz tub of whipped topping
chocolate curls for garnish if desired

Make cake by box directions. Let cool. On the top layer, frost with whipped topping lightly (just enough to put half the cherries on that bottom layer so they stick there). Put second layer on top. Frost all the way around with whipped topping and then put the other half of cherries on that top layer. Garnish with chocolate curls (directions for chocolate curls to follow). Store in refrigerator. Add a dollop of whip cream if desired when serving (can use regular or chocolate flavor whip for garnish).

Notes:
- To make a richer cake, you can add a box of chocolate pudding mix to the cake mix and follow directions on the box.
- For richer topping, use heavy whipping cream and add 3 Tbsp sugar and 1 tsp vanilla to the cream and whip until heavy peaks form. With this you cannot finish the cake until right before serving. That is so the heavy whip cream does not turn to liquid from sitting. This makes a more decadent cake, but if you do not have the time to spend decorating your cake right before serving, this may not be an option for you.
- For chocolate curls, I just get a Hershey chocolate bar and grate it with a grater for fine curls; or using a vegetable peeler, I slowly peel the chocolate into thin long strips that will curl while peeling and then garnish my cake.

Answering a Question About Pumpkin Cake

Here is a question that I recently received about the Pumpkin Raisin Cake.

"Do you think reducing the amount of oil, would make it drier?"

You know, I really do not know. I have never reduced the amount because I like a really moist cake. If I was going to reduce the amount of oil, I would maybe try 1/2 cup and see how that went. It is possible it would be drier but I really do not know as I have never tried it. I am sorry I cannot answer this question fully, but I would just say try it and let me know how it goes.

Another suggestion that I just got from a friend who knows about my pumpkin cake is that she would reduce the oil to 1/2 cup and the eggs from 4 to 2 eggs and maybe that would make it more like a regular cake rather than so moist like this cake. Worth a try. Let me know how it goes if you decide to try it.

Pumpkin Raisin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Here is a great dessert for fall when pumpkin recipes are getting into full swing. I love this cake since it is so moist and yummy! You will notice in the picture that it is falling apart when I cut it; that is because it is so moist and a good part of that is because of the vegetable oil and the fact that you will not forget to sift the dry ingredients as that makes your cake lighter, fluffier, and more moist.



Pumpkin Raisin Cake

4 eggs
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 can (16 oz) pumpkin
2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup raisins
nutmeg sprinkle for the top if desired
(cream cheese frosting recipe follows after cake directions)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 13x8 long baking dish. Beat eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin in a large bowl. Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, ginger, and cloves into pumpkin mixture. Mix well; stir in raisins.

Pour batter into the baking dish. Bake 40-45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely. Frost with cream cheese frosting, recipe follows. After frosting, lightly sprinkle nutmeg on top if desired.

Cream Cheese Frosting

3 oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup margarine or butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese, margarine, and vanilla in medium bowl on low speed until smooth. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until smooth and good spreading consistency. Frost pumpkin cake when cake is cooled completely.

Notes:
Make sure you sift the dry ingredients with either a dry ingredient sifter or you can use a fine mesh strainer. As you can see by the blue product links, I recommend the Oxo brand for kitchen gadgets because they are one of the best quality products I own, my store has many other brands but I recommend what I use myself at home.