quick

Cinnamon Sugar Peach Cake

When I came across this recipe I practically ran to the kitchen to begin making it.  I took out a stick of butter, 2 eggs and buttermilk to bring them to room temperature.  Since my little guy was asleep, I couldn’t make it to the store to get the one ingredient I lacked…fresh peaches.  So I used…canned peaches.  Did you just cringe?  I’m embarrassed, especially when there are fresh, juicy peaches available about a mile from my house.  While I am sure fresh peaches would have been better, the cake still turned out wonderfully.  That means you can make this in the dead of winter, when peaches aren’t so abundant.

Thanks to Ina Garten, one of my favorite Food Network people, for this recipe.  Her recipe calls for sour cream, which I did not have.  I substituted 3/4 cup of buttermilk and 1/3 cup softened butter.  I think it would have been fine to use 1 cup of buttermilk without the additional butter.

This cake can be eaten for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or for breakfast.  Enjoy!

Cinnamon Sugar Peach Cake

Courtesy of Ina Garten, foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup + 1/3 cup of softened butter
  • 1 cup + 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 large can of peaches, drained and rinsed
  • 1/2 cup pecans
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease a 9-inch-square baking pan.
  2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the all the butter and 1 cup of the sugar for 3 to 5 minutes on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the eggs, one at a time, then the buttermilk and vanilla, and mix until the batter is smooth.
  3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until combined.
  4. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/2 cup sugar and the cinnamon.
  5. Spread half of the batter evenly in the pan. Top with half of the peaches, then sprinkle with two-thirds of the sugar mixture.
  6. Spread the remaining batter on top, arrange the remaining peaches on top and sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture and the pecans.
  7. Bake the cake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Gooey Toffee Butter Cake

Paula Deen.  What a woman.  I actually do kind of like her!  Yes, she can overdo it a bit when it comes to butter, bacon and cream, but I find her endearing.  I’d like her to be in my family so that I could see her a few times a year at family functions.  She’d be my Great Aunt Paula who always gives me super tight, full-frontal hugs.  She seems like she makes everyone around her happy…or at least full of incredibly rich comfort food, which pretty much equates to happiness, right?  Maybe you think I’m wrong, and that’s OK.  Regardless of what you think about Paula Deen though, I think we can all agree that this sounds delicious.  How can something sweet and gooey, with ingredients like toffee pieces, butter and cream cheese be bad?

This cake is by no means a classy or visually impressive dessert.  It’s not something that you would serve at a fancy dinner party, but it would be a crowd pleaser at a pot-luck or at a small, casual family dinner.

When you search “gooey butter cake” on Google, your first results will most likely be Paula Deen recipes.  However, she is not the inventor of the cake.  It originated in St. Louis in the 1940s and is typically not a dessert cake, but a coffee cake.  This Paula Deen version is too rich and sweet to be served as a coffee cake, in my opinion.  I found a recipe today for one made from scratch that I plan to try soon.  The base is made with a yeast dough that rises around the edges of the butter, cream cheese and sugar filling.

The cake mix makes this recipe very quick.  However, the cake mix with the combination of butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar and toffee make this cake very rich and incredibly sweet.  Some people may not like it (like Ben) for this very reason.  I am OK with crazy sweet desserts, so I liked this cake.  It should however be served in small pieces so that no one goes into a sugar coma.  Here is a link to the recipe.

Gooey Toffee Butter Cake

(Courtesy of Paula Deen, Foodtv.com)

Ingredients

Cake:

  • 1 (18.25-ounce) box yellow cake mix
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

  • 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 (16-ounce) box confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 cup almond toffee bits or chocolate toffee bits
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 13 by 9 by-2-inch baking pan.
  2. For the cake: In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well. Pat into the bottom of prepared pan and set aside.
  3. For the filling: Still using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Beat in the eggs and vanilla. Dump in confectioners’ sugar and beat well. Reduce the speed and slowly pour in butter. Mix well. Fold in toffee bits.
  4. Pour filling onto cake mixture and spread evenly. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Don’t be afraid to make a judgment call on the cooking time, because oven temperatures can vary. You want the center to be a little gooey, so don’t bake it past that point!
  5. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares. Just remember that these wonderful cakes are very, very rich, and a little will go a long way.

Sweet Saturday: White and Dark Chocolate Coffee Brownies

It was 70° two days ago.  Right now it is 39°, cloudy and misty.  I’m wearing long pants, a sweatshirt and my fake fur lined boots…and I like it.

I am starting to truly like cool weather and I’ve always loved the things associated with this time of year.  Changing leaves, pumpkins, sweaters, warm socks, soup, and before you know it, it’s Christmas!  Anyway…

The cooler weather inspired me to bake something warm, rich and chocolate-y yesterday, so I found a basic and easy brownie recipe, halved it to better serve 2 people, and made use of what I had in my pantry.

coffeebrownie7

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