Marilyn's Birthday Cake

I posted last year about reconnecting with a dear friend from long ago. I went to visit her in Oregon in September last year and just recently she came to visit me here in Texas. We had so much fun reminiscing and talking about all kinds of things and catching up. Her Mama and Daddy live in San Antonio so we went there and I got to do the tourist thing with a trip to the River Walk (along with the entire state of Texas who were visiting there for Spring Break I do believe!) This is the cake that Marilyn says is what she has for her birthday. I have to say I think this is one of the best cakes I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. The picture was taken with one of her Mama's orchids. I don't know which is more beautiful! I don't know how we ever lost touch with each other, but I hope to spend the next 30 years making up for that!

COCONUT CREAM CAKE

CAKE
1 cup (8 oz.) cold butter, diced
2 cups (14 oz.) sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspons vanilla
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 cups sifted cake flour (10.5 oz)

1 1/4 cups (10.75 oz) coconut milk

COCONUT PASTRY CREAM
1 cup (8.5 oz.) coconut milk
1 cup (8.5 oz.) half-and-half
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup (3.5 oz.) sugar
1/4 cup (1 oz.) cornstarch
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups coconut
1 cup (8 oz.) whipping cream

CAKE
Set oven at 350 degrees. Grease 2 9-inch round cake pans, line bottoms with parchment paper, grease again. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy - about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping down after each addition. Add vanilla. Add half of dry ingredients (which have been combined), add half of the coconut milk, then other half of dry ingredients, then remainder of coconut milk. Be sure to scrape bowl down after each addition. Pour batter into cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until layers test done. Cool.

PASTRY CREAM
Whisk sugar and cornstarch together in a medium-size bowl. Add eggs and whisk until smooth.
Place coconut milk and half-and-half in a saucepan and heat to simmer. Ladle out about 1/3 of the liquid and stir into the egg mixture. Pour egg mixture back into saucepan and heat, stirring constantly until it boils. Let boil for 1 minute, stirring all of the time. Add vanilla and coconut and stir until combined. Place plastic wrap over custard so that it is touching the surface. Refrigerate until cool. Whip cream and fold into the cold pastry cream.

NEVER FAIL BOILED ICING
1 cup (7 oz.) sugar

2 egg whites
3 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

In double boiler, combine ingredients except vanilla, and beat over boiling water until stiff peaks form. Add vanilla last - takes about 5-7 minutes using electric mixer.

TOASTING COCONUT
3 cups coconut, toasted in oven - at 300 - watch closely and stir a couple times (10 minutes.

ASSEMBLY
Split cake layers in half. Fill with coconut pastry cream. You will have four layers. Frost with Boiled Icing, then cover in toasted coconut.

Valentine's Bake Sale

My little community has a bake sale the weekend before Valentine's Day to earn money for the Heritage Society. Here are my contributions for the sale.

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE CAKE

2 cups flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 squares unsweetened chocolate squares
1/2 cup cocoa powder
2 sticks butter
1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips
8 oz. sour cream
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 large eggs

In a saucepan, melt 2 squares chocolate, butter, and cocoa powder until melted. Set aside. In a bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Add chocolate mixture, sour cream, water and eggs. Add vanilla. Mix until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour batter into a bundt pan that has been well greased. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes. Remove from pan. I melted some chocolate chips and drizzled over or you can dust with powdered sugar.

STRAWBERRY HUMMINGBIRD CAKE

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 24 oz. carton frozen strawberries, thawed and drained
1 cup oil
4 eggs

Mix flour, sugar, baking soda, salt. Add oil and eggs and blend well. Add vanilla. Mash the strained strawberries and add. Pour into a greased bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes. Can make a glaze with the strawberry juice and powdered sugar and pour over.

CINNAMON ROLL CAKE

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups milk
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter, softened
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt. Mix together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs. Add dry ingredient. Beat until well combined. Pour into greased bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes. Glaze with cinnamon sugar glaze.

Glaze:
6 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup water
2 teaspoons cinnamon

In a saucepan melt ingredients together. Poke holes in cake with a fork and add glaze over cake.

Hot Fudge Sundae Sauce

I love to bake and I asked my 5-year-old grandson what he wanted for dessert when coming for dinner. Thinking I could do anything he requested he said........ice cream........vanilla. So much for having to come up with a stellar dessert. Anyway, not to be deterred I pulled out a recipe I've had in my files forever for this hot fudge sauce. I did go 'all out' for my grandson in buying Gold Rim Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream (a Texas tradition). Still, no sauce for him. A real purist it would seem. I think the others enjoyed the sauce.

HOT FUDGE SAUCE

2 cups powdered sugar
1 stick butter
1-1/2 cups evaporated milk (I used half and half)
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine ingredients in a sauce pan. Bring to a slow boil and cook for 8 minutes. This stays well in a mini-crockpot for warming.

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Happy New Year. Hope everyone had a great holiday and looking forward to the new year and new beginnings. I recently made this for a coworker's birthday. It was a request from the birthday girl, and I this fulfilled the wish pretty well.

PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN CAKE

Cake:
2 1/4 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 eggs
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping:
1 stick butter
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
Small can crushed pineapple, drained
Large can pineapple rings, drained
Maraschino Cherries
Pecans (Optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put 1 stick of butter in a 9 x 13 pan and melt in oven. Add brown sugar, crushed pineapple and pineapple rings, placing maraschino cherries inside rings. Set aside.

To make cake, in mixing bowl cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla. Stir dry ingredients together and add, alternating with buttermilk, ending with flour. Pour batter over topping and bake for 35 minutes until golden brown. Turn cake upside down on platter.

Pecan Sandies

These little cookies go by all sorts of names, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Sand Tarts, Snowballs, but we have always called them Sandies in our house. Another traditional cookie on the Christmas plates each year.

PECAN SANDIES

1 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup pecans, chopped fine

Mix all ingredients. Chill dough for 3-4 hours. Roll into 1 inch balls. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes until lightly browned. While still warm roll in powdered sugar and let cool. I always roll them a second time before storing.

Almond Joy Cookies

I helped my son make some cookies to take to his coworkers last weekend. This is a cookie he has made for a couple years now and is a staple on his Christmas cookie list.

ALMOND JOY COOKIES

1 cup butter, softened
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
4 eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla
4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 packages semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
2 cups chopped almonds

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray cookie sheets or use parchment paper. Combine dry ingredients, set aside. In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars together. Beat in the eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla. Stir in the dry ingredients until mixed well then stir in chocolate chips, coconut, and almonds. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake 10 minutes or until light brown. Cool on a rack.

Hidden Valley Oyster Crackers

I went to a boat parade last evening. The boats were so pretty all decorated with lights and Christmas carols playing. My friends who hosted the party have a beautiful home and had a wonderful spread of food but I couldn't go empty-handed so I took these little crackers along. Easy little something to take along.

HIDDEN VALLEY OYSTER CRACKERS

16 ounces plain oyster crackers
1 package Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup vegetable oil

You can add any kind of seasonings you like. Dill and lemon pepper are often used. Or you could add anything you like.

Mix all ingredients in a roasting pan and place in a 250 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove and stir and put in for an additional 10 minutes.

German Chocolate Cake

I was asked by a coworker to bake a German Chocolate Cake for her husband's birthday. The edges of my layers were not pretty, so instead of doing the traditional layering of the icing I just covered the whole thing.

GERMAN CHOCOLATE CAKE

4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot coffee or boiling water
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, softened
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare three 8 inch cake pans with Pam or butter and line with parchment paper. Melt chocolate and cool to room temperature. In a separate bowl mix the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a small bowl combine the coffee and buttermilk. In another bowl beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add the sugar and continue beating until fluffy (about 3 to 5 minutes). Add the eggs one at a time mixing well after each. Add the vanilla extract and beat to combine. Add the coffee/buttermilk mixture with the flour in 3 additions beginning and ending with flour. Mix only until ingredients are well combined. Fold in the melted chocolate.

Divide the batter evenly among the three prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake for about 30 - 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when lightly pressed. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes. Cool the cakes completely before frosting.

COCONUT PECAN FROSTING:

1 cup chopped toasted pecans
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup evaporated milk
3 large eggs slightly beaten
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 teaspoon vanilla

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, milk, egg yolks, and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture comes to a boil and thicken. Remove from heat. Add pecans and coconut. Mixture will thicken more as it cools. Spread on cake.

Snickerdoodle Blondies

Time to start making goodies for the office. I have been looking for things to make this year and haven't been really inspired yet. Making snickerdoodles into bars has been an idea floating around for a while so I thought I'd give it a try. These are not too bad, but I think the real deal snickerdoodle cookie is much better.

SNICKERDOODLE BLONDIES

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups packed light brown sugar
1 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray and/or line a 9×13 inch pan. Combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt and set aside. In another bowl beat together the butter, brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time. Add vanilla. Mix until smooth batter. Stir in the flour mixture until well blended. Spread evening in prepared pan. Combine the granulated sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle on top. Press into the batter a little bit. Bake 25 to 30 minutes at 350 until light brown. Cool and cut into squares.

Coconut Cream Pie

Just getting around to posting this pie I made for Thanksgiving. I also made one for work yesterday for a birthday. When I got ready to make the pie for work I realized my pie plate was still at my son's house. So I made 1-1/2 recipes of this and put the crust in a 9 x 13 pan. Looked different, but tasted the same. I had no complaints. This pie cuts beautifully and goes together in a flash truly. Tastes like something you would get at a restaurant with little or no fuss.

OLD FASHIONED COCONUT CREAM PIE

3 cups half and half or milk
2 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour or cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup coconut for pie
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 Tablespoons butter
1 (9 inch) pastry, baked
1 16 oz. Cool Whip, thawed.
1/4 cup toasted coconut for topping


Prepare your favorite scratch pastry and pre-bake. I use Pillsbury Deep Dish frozen pastry.  Bake crust per usual and set aside. Combine half-and-half, eggs, sugar, flour and salt altogether in a heavy sauce pan. Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly. Stir for about 3-4 minutes after boil until thick.  Remove from heat, and stir in 2 tablespoons butter, 1 cup of the coconut and the vanilla extract. Pour into pie shell and chill 2 to 4 hours, or until firm. Toast 1/4 cup coconut in a pan or microwave until lightly browned.  Save for topping.

Top with Cool Whip and 1/4 cup toasted coconut.

Pumpkin Muffins

Another treat for work and pumpkin was the main character. I took some liberty with these muffins and put a dollop of cream cheese in the middle of them. My dedicated taste testers gave their stamp of approval. I only made 12 muffins and time ran out so I poured the remainder of the batter into a loaf pan and called it pumpkin bread.

PUMPKIN MUFFINS

3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/4 cups oil
4 eggs
1 can Libby's pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped toasted pecans
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 cup chopped nuts to sprinkle on top.

Mix all ingredients together until smooth. Put a big spoon of batter in each muffin cup. Dollop about a teaspoon of cream cheese. Put another big spoon of batter on top, filling each muffin cup about 2/3 full. Sprinkle cinnamon/sugar/pecan mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

Pumpkin Pound Cake

Happy Halloween! Hope you have good weather for Trick or Treating and stay safe. We had a Halloween lunch yesterday at work. Homemade chili and all the fixins' -- cornbread, Fritos, pasta, rice, crackers. Something for anyone who likes their chili done up a different way. I looked at several recipes (there are many) and this is my version. It was a good way to start some fall baking. All my taste testers said it was a very moist cake.

PUMPKIN POUND CAKE

1 cup butter, softened
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
2-1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin (Libby's) -- not filling
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 eggs
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

For glaze:
1 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bundt or tube pan with Pam. Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl and set aside. In mixing bowl beat butter and sugar until fluffy -- about 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time and beat for 1 minute longer. Add pumpkin, buttermilk, and vanilla, add dry ingredients. Beat until smooth. Stir in pecans.

Pour into greased bundt pan and bake for 45-55 minutes until done. Remove from pan and cool on rack.

Stir glaze ingredients together and pour over cake.

Chocolate Chunk Coconut Cookies

My youngest grandson turned 2 this week. We had a party on Saturday. Here is a cookie I've had in my files for a long time to try. I know there are 100's of chocolate chip cookie recipes out there. I have my usual standard one I use, but the addition of the coconut in these really made these stand out.

CHOCOLATE CHUNK COCONUT COOKIES

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup sour cream

1 cup chopped pecans

1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chunks

1 cup shredded coconut

Mix flour, baking soda and salt together and set aside. Cream together the butter, sugars and vanilla. Blend in egg and sour cream. Add dry ingredients to creamed mixture and fold in nuts, chocolate and coconut. Drop by heaping tablespoon on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 375° for 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Makes about 3 dozen.

Coconut Pecan Bars

We had a small retirement party brunch at work yesterday. I made my Snickerdoodles and these pecan bars to take. It's almost pecan time here in Texas -- I can't wait!

COCONUT/PECAN BARS

Crust:
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Filling:
2 eggs
1-1/2 cups flaked coconut
1 cup chopped pecans
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 350. In a mixing bowl combine flour, butter, and 1/3 cup brown sugar. Beat at low speed for 2 minutes until crumbly. Pat into a 9 x 13 pan lined with parchment. Bake for 12-17 minutes until lightly browned. In another bowl combine all filling ingredients and mix well for 1-2 minutes. Pour over hot crust. Bake for an additional 17-22 minutes until golden brown and filling is set. Cool completely and cut into bars.

Oregon Trip

I recently connected with a long ago girlfriend who now lives in the Portland, Oregon area. I've been to Oregon before but not to this area. I think Oregon is one of the most beautiful states we have. I was treated to some sightseeing that was just stunning. Lots of shopping in consignment shops and antique shops looking for treasures. So much fun. Except for one rainy day (but I love rain) the weather was so wonderful. After months of hot and humid Texas weather this was a welcome treat. Here are some pictures from my trip.

SWAN ISLAND DAHLIA FARM





MULTNOMAH FALLS




COLUMBIA GORGE