Funfetti Cake Dip

 a.k.a. Homemade Dunkaroos. Uh, YEAH.

This stuff is like crack. I served it with pretty much any snack-like thing I had in the house, but I think it would be ideal with some animal crackers. Or Teddy Grahams. Mmmm. I used Greek yogurt because I have an abundance of it, but if you don't enjoy that slight tang then I would suggest using plain or even vanilla yogurt.

Funfetti Cake Dip Recipe:

• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 3-4 tbsp funfetti cake mix
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp milk (Greek yogurt is super thick so I added to make it more akin to frosting; regular yogurt might not need)
• Extra sugar (again for the Greek yogurt because it's so tangy)

Mix it all up and consume with anything edible. Hey I bet cardboard would even taste good with it.

Unbelievably Easy Black Forest Cake

Alright, alright; so I cheated on this recipe. I really didn't do anything but mix pre-made things together and throw in the oven. Well, the dark chocolate shavings were my own personal touch. Regardless, it tastes absolutely wonderful. Seriously, my fiance almost had a heart attack.

Unbelievably Easy Black Forest Cake Recipe:

• 1 box Devil's Food Cake
• 1 can cherry pie filling (with whole cherries)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 egg
• 1 tub Cool Whip (thawed)
• 1 package white chocolate pudding mix (or vanilla or cheesecake)
• 1 square dark chocolate (for garnish)

Depending on the pan you're using and what the boxed cake mix says, preheat oven to desired temperature. In a large bowl, mix together the cake mix, pie filling, water and egg. Pour into pan and bake. Remove and let cool.

Meanwhile, once the Cool Whip is completely thawed, add the dry pudding mix and combine. When the cake is cool, frost and garnish with dark chocolate.

So easy, so good.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Save yourself a second trip to the kitchen and cut a big ol' slice of this cake.

Moist and fluffy swirled with brown sugar, cinnamon and chopped toasty almonds. Mmm mmm. Perfect with a cup of coffee in the morning or for a delicious dessert. 

This really is one of the best cakes I've made. The use of cake flour and addition of sour cream does wonders for the texture, and in my opinion, there's not a more comforting scent than warm cinnamon sugar. 

Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe:

• 1/2 cup butter/margarine (or fruit butter substitute)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup light sour cream
• 2 cups cake flour
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup chopped almonds
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Cream together butter, white sugar, 2/3 cup brown sugar, eggs, vanilla and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift cake flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda together. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet until well-incorporated and smooth. 

In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, cinnamon and chopped almonds. Pour half of the batter in a greased 9-inch cake pan (or Bundt pan), sprinkle 2/3 of the cinnamon sugar nut mixture over the top. Then add the remaining batter and top with the rest of the nut mixture. Bake for about 40 minutes or until the cake is set and knife comes out clean.

Voila! Beautiful, golden brown and the best smell (and taste) in the world!

Cookies & Cream Cake

Do you like cake? Do you like Oreo cookies?

Of course you do. And even if you don't, you will love them combined in this easy cake. Especially if you bake it in a cute giant cupcake pan like I did. 

I made this cake for a friend's birthday and will definitely keep the recipe in the back of my mind (or on my blog!) I was originally going to try and make an "Oreo" cake and use Devil's food cake + cream cheese frosting and Oreo bits. I then realized that I, like many others, don't reeeeally love chocolate cake that much. I don't know why; I LOVE chocolate, but sometimes I think it is better accentuated when paired with a different flavor. So anyway, I decided to go with a "Cookies & Cream" cake and use white cake + cream cheese frosting and Oreo bits. I definitely think it highlights the cookie flavor and makes it more creamy. 

I will probably still try the other version some day, when I'm really craving chocolate cake. 

Cookies & Cream Cake Recipe:

• 1 pkg white cake mix (or your own recipe)
• 3 large egg whites (this gives the cake a fluffier texture)
• 2 tbsp oil
• 1 1/3 cup water
• 1 1/2 cup crushed Oreo cookies

• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tub whipped dessert topping
• 1 cup crushed Oreo cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degree. Grease a giant cupcake pan (or whatever baking apparatus). Combine the first set of ingredients minus the cookies in a large bowl. Blend until smooth. Then carefully fold in the cookies. Pour evenly into the pan and bake for 30 minutes (adjust baking time depending on pan). When finished, let cake cool for about 10 minutes in pan, then carefully run a knife around the edges and remove. Let cool completely on a clean, dry surface.

To create the frosting, first bring the cream cheese and whipped topping to room temp. When ready, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until light and smooth. Gently fold in the whipped topping.

I won't go into frosting detail for the giant cupcake cake, but it required some intense trimming and assembling. Basically, once your cake is cool, frost and add the crushed cookies on top. 

Congratulations, you've just made the best.cake.ever.

I love the cat present in the background :)

Two Minute Carrot Cake

First of all, I must admit that I jacked this recipe from here and edited it a little bit.

Second of all, you should also jack this recipe because it's very handy when you want some tasty carrot cake in two minutes.

Third of all, remember that this is a cake...in a mug...microwaved for two minutes. You're not getting Betty Crocker's five-star layered carrot cake. You ARE getting a nice little treat that's sort of like a muffin and perfect for breakfast, snack or dessert.

Two Minute Microwave Carrot Cake Recipe:

• 3 tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp Vietnamese High Oil Cinnamon (What, you don't have that? Weirdo. No seriously, use regular cinnamon)
• 2 tsp allspice
• 1 tbsp applesauce
• 3 tbsp milk
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup shredded carrot

The website has various steps, but all I did was put the dry ingredients in a mug followed by the wet ingredients. Stir it all up. Microwave for 2 minutes. Eat. It would be even better with a dollop of cream cheese or whipped cream. Nom-a-lom-a-ding-dong.

Happy Birthday Coconut Cake

Happy Birthday, Dad!

My dad's birthday was this weekend and to celebrate, the whole family met at a cabin in Burnet, TX. I eagerly volunteered to make the birthday cake and decided on a layered coconut cake with cream cheese frosting. It ended up a bit more dense than I had expected (more like a shortcake) and not too sweet, which was nice. You could definitely tell it didn't come from a box. Colorful sprinkles were a must to make it birthday special-y.


Coconut Cake Recipe:

• 2 1/4 cups cake flour
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 (14oz) can coconut milk (remember to shake well before using)
  
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract

• 8oz cream cheese
• 1 tub whipped topping
• 1 cup powdered sugar

• 2 cups sweetened coconut flakes, divided
• sprinkles!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees . Grease and lightly flour two round 9-inch cake pans. In a large bowl, sift the cake flour, baking powder and salt together. Lightly stir with a whisk. In a separate large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar on medium until well incorporated. Add in the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Then alternate adding the flour and coconut milk. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Divide the batter between the two pans and place in middle rack. Bake for about 35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely (ideally on a wire rack for faster timing, but I don't have one of those fancy things so I just do it on the stove top...works!)

While the cake's baking (or cooling) bring the cream cheese to room temp and put the whipped topping in the fridge (it's normally in the freezer, but you want it to be very soft). Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar in a bowl on medium speed until smooth. Gently fold in the whipped topping until all incorporated. You can add more or less sugar depending on how cream cheese-y you like it. Cover and place back in fridge until ready to frost.

Once the cake is COMPLETELY cooled (very important), you can begin frosting. Place one cake layer on a dish, glob on a decent amount of frosting and smooth out. Sprinkle a nice layer of coconut flakes on top.

Then, add the second layer on top, glob on more frosting and smooth out the top and sides. How many coconut flakes you use is pretty much dependent on how good you are at sticking it to the sides. I went with the subtractive process and put a lot of handfuls on the cake and scraped away as needed. Finally, top with sprinkles. You can either eat right away or place in the fridge overnight to allow the frosting to solidify more.

Cake+Sandwich=Smiles

I received a Cake-wich pan for Christmas (among other wonderful cooking gadgets) and could not wait to use it. I love sandwiches. They're probably like my fifth most favorite thing in life. I also REALLY love cake. So this was the absolute perfect gift for me. And no one can resistant smiling at a giant sandwich-shaped cake.

Since it was right after the holidays and my pants were feeling a bit tighter than usual, I decided to bake a (relatively) healthy cake. Angel food cake+pistachio cool whip creme was the result. Even though it kind of looks like moldy white bread, I highly recommend it!

Recipe:

• 1 pkg. Angel food cake mix. (Or from scratch, of course)
  
• 1 pkg pistachio pudding
  
• 1 tub whipped topping

Follow Angel food cake package instructions. Lightly grease your totally ingenious Cake-wich pan (or a regular one) and then pour batter evenly in pan. If you happen to be one of the other 10 people out there who own a Cake-wich pan, realize that you will have leftover batter. Do not attempt to pour it all on the very tip top of the pan. I did and well, there was about 2 feet of collapsing cake batter when I checked the oven after 15 minutes. Big mess.

While the cake is baking, mix the pistachio pudding with whipped topping VERY well. You want an even, smooth mixture with no grainy lumps. Set in fridge until cake is finished and cooled.

When cake is cooled, remove from pan and cut horizontally with a large serrated knife. Spread pistachio creme on the bottom layer and place the other "bread slice" on top. Marvel at the awesome-ness and then dig in!