The Cookbook Experiment: Hawaiian Surprise Cake

Tonight's dessert cookbook experiment is a cake from Mr. Dick John. He has a lot of recipes in this book and so far I have liked them all.This was no exception.

Hawaiian Surprise Cake by Dick John

(1) package yellow cake mix with pudding
(1/2) cup oil
(4) eggs
(1) small can mandarin oranges, undrained

Beat cake mix, oil, eggs and oranges for 2 minutes.  Bake in a 9" x 13" pan in a 350 degree oven for 30 to 40 minutes. Let cool

Frosting:

(1) 8 ounce container of Cool Whip
(2 1/2) cups well drained, crushed pineapple
(1) small box instant vanilla pudding mix

Mix all together with a spoon.  Spread over cooled cake.  Decorate with flaked coconut and orange slices.  Refrigerate.  Serves 12.

My (and Paulina's) take-a-way for this recipe:

• I made the cake portion. I did not have a cake that had pudding in the mix so I just used a standard yellow cake mix.
• I did not have a small can of mandarin oranges. I did have the large can and went ahead and used it all without any noticeable difference. 
• Paulina made the frosting. She states and I agree that a homemade whipped topping using heavy whipping cream. 
• Paulina added some strawberries to the top of hers.  

The Cookbook Experiment: Linda's Push Down Cake

I am very tired tonight but I still feel too stressed out to go to bed yet. Tomorrow I have an MRI and I am not a big fan of the machine. I get a little claustrophobic. I decided it was time to hit the cookbook a second time tonight. I searched through until I found a recipe that has all the ingredients that I already have. Linda Davenport's Push Down Cake to the rescue!

Linda Davenport is one of the sweetest, most amazing women that I know. She is fiercely loyal to her family, she has a smile that lights up a room and most importantly, I think, she has a quiet steady faith that I have been very grateful to come to know. She is one of my great women of faith that I look up to. Plus, her mom is as cute as a button, her daughters are amazing and you can see just how much she loves her grand-babies.

Linda's Push Down Cake by Linda Davenport

(1) box of Duncan Hines Cake Mix (any flavor)
(1) stick of butter (melted)
(3) eggs
(1) 8 ounce package cream cheese (softened)
(1) 1-pound box 10X sugar

Mix dry cake mix, butter and (1) egg.  Press down in a 9" x 13" pan.  Mix softened cream cheese, (2) eggs and sugar together and pour over cake mix.  Bake 35-40 minutes at 350 degrees.

My take-a-ways from this recipe:

• I have to say I did not think (1) egg and (1) stick of melted butter was going to be enough to mix with an entire box of cake mix, but I was wrong. You just have to have faith and mix it very well. After it is mixed well, I feel like it is best if you use the two tools that God gave you to press it down in the pan...your two hands of course! I worked it to the edges and around the pan and tried to make sure that no part was thicker than the other.
• I mixed the cream cheese, eggs and sugar mixture until it was really, really smooth. No lumps from the cream cheese OR the powdered sugar.
• Always break your eggs one at a time in a separate bowl. The first egg I cracked had blood in it.  Yuck. That could have ruined EVERYTHING if I had not broken it in a separate bowl first. It is just a good rule to follow even though you NEVER see a chef on TV do it.  Of course, they have assistants and loads of ingredients to re-do and re-take the scene if something like that happened. I do not and I am pretty sure you don't either.
• Linda is one smart lady! This cake is delicious!! Thank you!!

Helen's Fruitcake

It's Christmas time and the stores were all out of those little bricks of fruitcake that my husband loves. It made me sad because he really wanted some. I decided that after searching several stores that the best alternative was to make him one myself.

A while ago I purchased a large lot of recipes from an estate sale of a woman named Helen from Burns, Oregon. She had faithfully collected recipes for years. How the family let them slip out of their hands I have know idea but I am glad they slid into mine.  One of the recipes was her version of a fruitcake. It was contained in a sweet letter she wrote to a friend named Gail and her husband (?) Chuck. Truthfully, I made my adaptations on the recipe, but I followed the bones of it.

Here is what I did:

(1) 8 oz. container of green cherries
(1) 8 oz. container of pineapple wedges (candied)
(1) 4 oz. container of diced candied orange peel
(1) 4 oz. container of diced candied lemon peel
(1) 4 oz. container of diced candied citron
(1) 8 oz. package of dried mango
(1) package of Craisins (dried cranberries)
(12) ounces of seedless raisins
(1) 4 oz. of dried cherries
(1) 8 oz. maraschino cherries
Mix all the above in a large bowl with 1/2 cup of flour.

In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients together as follows:
(3 1/2) cups of flour
(1) teaspoon of salt
(3/4) teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg
(3/4) teaspoon of ginger
(3/4) teaspoon of cinnamon

In separate bowl cream one pound of butter (Helen says use shortening but I used butter, because, well...BUTTER) with (2) cups of sugar.

Separate (6) eggs from their yolks and whites. Beat the egg yolks and add them to the creamed butter and sugar.

In separate bowl (I know, this recipe gets a lot of dishes dirty!) combine the following:
(3/4) cup of honey
(1/4) cup of unsulfured molasses
(1/3) cup of juice (Helen says you can use wine, brandy or grape juice. I used pear juice because it was all that I had)

Alternate adding honey/molasses/juice mixture to the creamed butter/sugar/egg yolks with the sifted dry ingredients until combined. (I did this in my Kitchen-Aid but it was a struggle because it is a large amount of batter)

Once the above is combined, take the leftover egg whites and beat to stiff peaks. Fold in the fruit and the egg whites into the batter. Okay....let's get real right here. It was HARD at this point. I had to go get my 19 year old son to do the stirring. Combining that much fruit (and yes, it looks like TOO much fruit but it's not) is very difficult into that much batter. It takes a very strong arm. I was worried when I started to fold in the egg whites but discovered it was essential as well.

Place into a greased tube pan and bake in a 250 degree oven for a minimum of 2 1/2 hours.

Underneath the fruitcake, keep a pan of hot water for the first 1 1/2 hours of baking time. Be careful taking the hot water out of the oven.

Check the fruitcake with toothpicks to see if it comes out clean. Be patient. It takes time. Depending on your oven it may take longer to bake than mine did (or shorter, start checking for doneness at 2 hours).

Take out of the oven when done, loosen the sides with a butter knife and flip out on to a plate after about 10 minutes.

The verdict? My husband likes it. Even my son, who does not like fruitcake likes it. It's too much candied fruit sweetness for me BUT my men are happy so I am happy!! Thanks Helen!

Cherry Vanilla Cake

I needed something low maintenance for youth group. I rummaged around in the kitchen and came up with a box of yellow cake mix.  I was not in the mood for ordinary yellow so I kept looking and came up with the large size box of regular Jello in cherry flavor.  I decided why not?

I dumped the cherry jello (dry) into the cake mix and proceeded to add all the normal amount of ingredients per the cake mix's box instructions. It mixed up into a glorious red.  I taste-tested the batter and it seemed okay. Into the oven it went!

Here it is fresh out of the oven....and YES there is a piece missing already as I simply had to taste it first to make sure it was not gross! I love my youth group and did not want to send something bad.  It was  pretty good and not overtly cherry!

I topped the cherry cake with a homemade vanilla buttercream.  It must have been okay because it got eaten up at church!

Chicken and brown rice

Day two of healthier dinners for me and my family.  I am feeling pretty good today. I have not ingested a single "food-like" substance, white sugar or white flour thing so far.  It has taken some serious will power the later in the day it gets because I find myself craving the empty calories of soda and candy.

On a serious note, it has been discovered my husband has diverticulosis.  I am going to have to watch this man's diet a little closer and one of the first things we are going to eliminate is corn. That is kind of sad but kind of not. I reckon I will have it on special occasions but it is empty calories anyway so it is the first item to go!

Tonight is baked chicken.  I have skinless, boneless chicken breast with some Mrs. Dash table blend sprinkled on it in the oven baking.  As I am staying away from white stuff, brown rice is cooking on the stove.  This is a little bit of a problem for me as I have never really liked brown rice.  I am hoping that I will like it better now. It has been about 10 years since I tried it last.  I never realized how much of my eating involved chemicals and process.  Now don't go thinking I have jumped on the band wagon. I highly doubt I will ever give it all up for good. But for right now, it is time to get a lot healthier. I am a 47 year old, overweight woman who has a family history of diabetes and heart disease.  It's time to get real.

Tonight I actually made dinner without any butter.  Yes. I did.  NO BUTTER.  I have discovered something important.  First, I like my green beans just as they are.  I did not miss the butter I usually put on them.  Second, olive oil is a good substitute for butter.  I used olive oil to saute my veggies in and I also added a little bit of oil to the brown rice in lieu of butter.  It was pretty successful overall.

All things being equal, I would really love a nice fat piece of cake or a big bowl of ice cream right now.  I know it is going to take time to get things the healthy way.  I won't always deprive myself of these things, but for now, I will be okay.

Now it is time to go take a walk as I only have 6085 steps on my pedometer and I would really like to hit 10,000 before bedtime.

Scratch cake and allergies....

It is Wednesday! Youth group meeting night at church.  I made it home from work with about 2 1/2 hours to spare before leaving for prayer service.  I figured that would give me just enough time to get a dessert going and to make dinner!

I don't buy pre-mix cake mixes very often.  It seems like a waste of money when making a cake from scratch is just as easy.  I dove into my trusty "The Good Housekeeping Cookbook" copyright 2001 by Hearst Communications Inc.  It is one that I like to use a lot. Page 652 is a recipe simply titled "Yellow Cake"  It only has 8 ingredients (not including the frosting).  I mixed this up and decided to add some green food coloring since it is March!

While I am whipping this together I am talking on the phone to a sweet friend whose kids also go to youth group with mine.  She asks me what kind of frosting.  Obviously, my immediate answer is "chocolate".  HMM...she says.  He can't have chocolate.  So I switch it up to straight vanilla buttercream.  And I am happy to do it.  I am already aware we have a peanut allergy in our youth group so I make sure I never send anything with peanut butter.  I was very happy to be able to accommodate this allergy as well.

I didn't really think about it too hard until I actually started making the frosting.  I have never made buttercream without a splash of milk in it.  I confess, I like to use milk when I make my buttercream.  Tonight was a first.  My buttercream was strictly butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and green food coloring.  I used extra butter and extra vanilla.  I think it turned out pretty good.  It must have, as the pan came home completely empty!  And of course, there was that text message from my daughter.  The young man told her to tell me "I was the best".  That made my whole evening!  I am glad I could do that because I don't ever want anyone to be left out on goodies!

Something has just occurred to me.  Typically I cannot bake when I am sad.  It always flops.  I am sad but the cake and frosting did not flop.  And I know why.  I was talking to my sweet friend.  She and I are both going through a deep valley and we are both learning to "be still".  Her love and concern carried me while I was trying to show care and concern for her and for my kids at youth group.  Is it any wonder the Bible tells us:

" not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another,and so much the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:25 NKJV


Makes sense to me! Thanks for your love sister! You know who you are!!  I really don't know how people make it without a church family? I know that I cannot.

Yellow Cake with Chocolate Buttercream and Sprinkles!

Yep....I discovered tonight that it takes roughly the same amount of time to make a yellow cake from scratch that it does to make one from a box.  It tastes better too.  I don't think I will ever be buying box cake mix again.

I used a recipe from the traditional Good Housekeeping cookbook.  It was simple and fast.  I did add the remaining leftover Christmas sprinkles on top! I was trying to empty the bottle so I could throw it away and not feel guilty!

On top is some homemade buttercream!  I NEVER buy store bought frosting as this recipe is super easy! No measuring just lots of tasting until it is just right.  All that is in it is melted butter (REAL butter), vanilla, milk, powdered sugar and cocoa.  Easy and delicious.

Okay, I know this entry will sound weird.  I am tired but I am very, very happy I got to go to Wednesday night service tonight.  Our pastor is pretty amazing.  His lesson tonight was great and I will post about it tomorrow when my eyes are not trying to force themselves closed on me!

GOODNIGHT!!

PS....lots of prayers to my sister in law Susan as she recovers from an illness! I love you Curly Sue!

Daughters are wonderful!

I was very, very tired when I came home from work today.  I laid down on the bed to catch a short nap before I made dinner.  I flipped it to the "Maury" show (my secret vice...I know it is trash TV but I love it) but I was so tired I fell asleep. 

My sweet daughter, Paulina, came in and told me to stay in bed, that she was going to make dinner.  And boy did she ever!  She made meatballs and garlic & butter pasta.  I hate to say it, but her meatballs were better than mine! She had them seasoned just so perfectly! Her garlic and butter pasta was the perfect blend of garliky buttery goodness.

After dinner, I did the dishes.  I don't mind doing the dishes when someone else cooked!  I also dove into my new favorite cookbook for a recipe to make a treat for my friend.  The cookbook is the Betty Crocker Picture Cook Book from 1956.  It is quite worn out but it still has a lot of old traditional recipes.  I enjoy using it.  I frequently use the pancake, crepe and yellow butter cake recipes from it.

I decided to make a Blueberry Buckle cake.  I had some frozen blueberries in the freezer left over from the smoothie craze the oldest kid went on for a while.  I rinsed and thawed them out and made that.  It is in the oven right now, smelling so good!  I hope it turns out okay.  I am going to take it over to Monique Negron's house as a thank you.  She made dinner for my family last week when my sweet husband was in the hospital. 

I am certainly one very blessed lady.  I have awesome children, an awesome husband and wonderful friends.  Thank you God for blessing me so much.

Bizarre mood leads to bizarre cake....

So.....I made a yellow cake from scratch, divided it up into six bowls and mixed various colors into them, threw them in the cake pan and swirled.....it may end up looking like disgusting gray but who knows? We shall see! I will post an update when it comes out of the oven in about 20 minutes......I am in a weird, bizarre, kind of sad mood again so I was just being weird with the cake batter.  I guess it will all taste like cake in the end once I put chocolate frosting on it.

DEEP DARK CHOCOLATE SIN!!!!

I was feeling the urge to bake tonight but did not seem to be in the mood for the "normal" cookies or bread.  I pulled out a different cookbook and began to peruse it.

I came across a recipe titled "Brownie Pudding Cake".  I read it and it sounded like the old pudding and cake mix combos they made in the 1970's.  I loved those things, all gooey pudding and cake all in one pan.  I just had to try it.

I was a little disconcerted by the first step of mixing.  It seemed thick and strange.  But by the time I added the remaining ingredients, it was looking good.   Below is the progression of ingredients:

The recipe stated that as it baked it would separate into cake and pudding layers.  And it sure did.  When I took it out of the oven it was a deep, rich, dark cake on top with amazing deep chocolate pudding underneath.

Let me tell you....it is pure sin.  It actually needs some ice cream or real whipped cream to go on top.  I mean, if your significant other is not available....this stuff would definately fill the bill in the short term....

Lunch?

I have not been grocery shopping this week.  Things are a tiny bit tight while I wait for that first paycheck that arrives on this Friday.  However this does provide an opportunity for making more things from scratch instead of running to the store for the convenient version!

The first thing that I am making today is some honey wheat bread.  I am not sure what recipe I will use yet.  I may just modify my white bread recipe and cross my fingers! Although I do have a bread machine cookbook with lots of different recipes in it.  I wonder if the recipes have to be modified for use WITHOUT a bread machine?

I also just made some pasta salad to take to work with me this week.  It is basically a tuna macaroni salad.  It has just two cans of tuna, six hard boiled eggs, chopped yellow onion, chopped, sweet pickle relish, Duke's mayo, some mustard and some salt and pepper. This is a recipe my family has made for a long time.  My mom also used to put in cubed sharp cheddar cheese but I don't really like the cheese with the tuna.  I am not a real big fan of any cheese with any seafood! 

I am craving sweets too.  Maybe some snickerdoodles today? Or a chocolate chip? Or all the sweet stuff in the house!! My daughter's PMS must be rubbing off on me so I am craving tacos and chocolate cake! :)

Unexpected cake baking!!

My sissy had to make two cakes for her husband's work tomorrow.  We made a chocolate sheet cake, Texas style with a creamy, candy like chocolate frosting made with sweetened condensed milk....total YUM (okay, yeah, I admit it....I liked the pan CLEAN!!).

The second cake was a peanut butter cake with my very own homemade peanut butter buttercream! Oh how I love buttercream!  I had the TOTAL fat factor going on tonight!

My sissy made both cakes from scratch, she doesn't use box mixes.  They are quite yummy.  She is an EXCELLENT baker! I wish I had pictures but my phone is dead and charging!!