Pecan Praline Cake

Those of us who live here -

in the south, that is -

take our Pralines very serious!

Every candy store from

Virginia down to Georgia

have their version of this treat...

some are good ...

some are just okay ...

and some are ahhhmazing!

The rich, butter candy

{with sweet hints of vanilla and salt}

are paired beautifully with toasted pecans.

YUM!

So, naturally, I twisted this

regional delicacy

into a fabulous cake!

{ There's an extra "i" in there to stress the true pronunciation!! Tee hee! :) }

Ingredients
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
3/4 cup Butter, unsalted
1 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1 box Butter Cake Mix
1 cup Flour, all purpose
1 small box Vanilla Pudding Mix
4 Eggs, divided
1 cup Sour Cream
1 cup Pecans, chopped

1 stick Butter
1/2 cup Powder Sugar
2-4 tbsp. Milk {as needed}
Pinch of Salt
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/4 cup Toasted Pecans {optional topping}

Method
In a small saucepan, combine first 4 ingredients. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture gets bubbly. Reduce heat to low and stir until it thickens and turns a shade or two darker. Set aside.
Preheat over to 325 degrees.
Whip egg whites until they are stiff. Place in fridge until needed.
In a kitchen mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, stir cake mix {I like to use Duncan Hines, but your favorite will work just as well}, flour and pudding mix until incorporated. Add in egg yoke, sour cream, pecans and condensed milk mixture. Spoon out half of the egg whites and add to cake batter. With a rubber spatula, slowly fold in until incorporated. Add in the rest of the egg whites and fold in. {Your arm will be aching at the point, but it's SO worth it!}
Pour into a greased bundt or 9x13 rectangle cake pan and bake until a tooth pick comes out clean when inserted into the center of the cake, about 40 minutes. {May be a little longer for bundt pan or a little less for the rectangle pan - all depending on how your oven bakes.}
Invert cake onto plate and let cool completely before icing.

To make sauce, place butter into a small sauce pan and cook on medium heat for several minutes. You will notice the butter starting to brown - once you have reached a golden color with brown bits on the bottom of the pan, the butter is ready to remove from the heat. Add in salt and powder sugar and whisk until all lumps are gone. You will need to add in some milk to loosen the icing a bit - start with 2 tbsp. and add more {one tbsp. at the time} until you've reached a thick, but runny consistency. Add in your vanilla and pour over cooled cake.

This cake hits on

every flavor found in

Southern Pecan Pralines!

If you're in a hurry,

the cake can absolutely be served

as is with no sauce...

but, I am telling you

this sauce tops each slice off right

with it's awesome praline flavor!

Bake an extra one

and walk it over to the neighbor's -

what a thoughtful holiday gift!!

It will be their

{and YOUR}

best.day.ever!!

Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Oh yeah!! I partied this week ->

Check out my sidebar to find out where!

Cinna-Bun Cookies

What are your

family's favorite recipe

for Santa Cookies?

There's Chocolate Chip...

Frosted Sugar...

maybe Gingerbread?

I've been trying 

a few NEW recipes

to really stop Santa in his tracks!!

I may have stumbled across a keeper:

Ingredients
{Recipe compiled from several recipes including Baker's Royale and Official Cinnabon Recipe}
Cookie:
2 cups Flour, all purpose
2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp. Salt
1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 stick Butter, softened
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 Egg, yoke only
1/4 cup Apple Butter
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Cinna-bon Smear:
{for inside of cookies}
3 tbsp. Butter, softened
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/4 tsp. Cinnamon
1/8 tsp. Salt

Cinna-bon Cream Cheese Frosting:
{to drizzle over cookies}
3 oz. Cream Cheese, cold
2 tbsp. Butter, softened
1/2 cup Powder Sugar
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1/8 tsp. Salt

Method
In a medium size bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
Cream butter and brown sugar together in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment - add in egg yoke, apple butter and vanilla. Slowly mix in flour mixture until batter is completely combined. Divide batter in two balls and wrap each in plastic wrap or wax paper, rolling up to be as air tight as possible. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

While the batter is chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees and make cinnamon smear by combining all ingredients in a small bowl.

When batter has chilled, remove from plastic wrap and place on a floured cutting board. Roll out dough to 1/4 inch thickness and evenly spread smear from edge to edge of dough. Starting with one end, roll dough onto itself until a log is formed. {Repeat with second ball of dough.} Cut the very end of each log off, so that you will have an even starting point. Cut the logs in 1 inch pieces and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 8-12 minutes. Cool completely before frosting cookies.

While the cookies are cooling, prepare frosting by creaming the cheese and butter together in a kitchen mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Slowly add in powder sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat until frosting is fluffy and all powder sugar lumps are gone. Spread or pipe frosting onto cooled cookies and serve with ice cold milk!

These cookies are

soft, chewy and loaded 

with cinnamon bun flavor!

And, the creamy frosting

tops them off

perfectly ...

just as the greatest cinnamon bun should be!

Santa will be  pleasently surprised

with a plate of these

come Christmas Eve!

Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Oh, yeah! I partied this week! ->

Check out my sidebar to find out where! 

Cookies and Cream Popcorn

How are your 

Christmas 

plans coming along?

This will be another year of

DIY Christmas Gifts

for my friends and family!

I like to do something

edible for all the

men in my life...

because,  to be completely honest,

that's about all I can come

up with for dude gifts! LOL!

Ingredients
{Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy}
2 bags Microwave Popcorn, salted only
26 Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, crushed
1 package White Chocolate Bark, melted
6 oz. Dark Chocolate, melted

Method
In a double broiler, melt the dark chocolate.
Melt bark in the microwave according to package directions. White chocolate can be very temperamental, so I would melt it in 20 second intervals and stir between each.
Place cookies in a food processor and pulse until they have become crushed. If you prefer a chunkier cookie in your mix, simply crush them with your fingers.
Place popcorn, one bag at the time, in microwave and cook according to package directions. I used a natural popping corn that had only been lightly salted. Once both bags have been popped, pour popcorn into a large bowl {making sure to remove all unpopped kernels} and stir in crushed cookies. Drizzle popcorn mixture with the melted white chocolate bark and stir to coat the entire batch.
Dump coated popcorn onto some wax paper and decorate with melted dark chocolate. Let all chocolate completely harden before placing in bowl, bag or jar. Makes approximately 16 cups and will keep for up to a week.

Helpful Hints:

• You may want to consider using a store-bought popcorn - it seems to stay fresher and crisper longer. I would stick with a salted only flavor, though - Kettle Corn might be too sweet for some palates. I think this will be my best bet when giving it as a gift since I'm not really sure how quickly my recipient will eat their yummy treat!
• I also think the best way to store/give this treat as a gift is in a glass jar. The popcorn didn't get soft as fast in the jar as opposed to being stored in a bag.
• When making a second homemade batch, I poured the crushed cookies over the popcorn while it was still hot. That seemed to somewhat melt the vanilla filling, which I think only helps the white chocolate out in coating the popcorn! :) I will do it this way from now on when making a batch to be eaten the same day.

Oh, Smack-a-doodles!

This concotion is

dee-licious!

That salty crunch from the popcorn,

the sweet touch from bark and cookie

and an awesome bitter bite from the chocolate...

Your palate will 

tingle with excitement

from this combination - no doubt!

Everyone on your list

will L.O.V.E. finding gourmet

popcorn in their stocking!

Bag it up with a bow or

jar some up with a cutsie tag!

You can not go wrong!!

Better yet,

turn on "Elf" and eat

handfuls straight from the bowl!

Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Yeah, I partied this week ->
Check out where on my sidebar!

Knock Off {Cranberry Bliss Bars}

Cranberry Bliss Bars...

you know, the ones from Starbucks?

Totally awesome, right!?

Well, the other night

I was wasting time on Pintrest {again}

and came across a copy cat recipe for them!

I know what you're thinking -

"WHAAAAT!"

Yeah, that's what I said, too! ;)

Ingredients

{Recipe adapted from Averie Cooks}

1 stick Butter, melted

1 cup Brown Sugar 

1 Egg

Vanilla Beans, scraped from 1 pod

1 cup Flour, all purpose

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/2 cup Dried Cranberries, lightly chopped

1/2 cup White Chocolate Chunks {or chips}

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Chop dried cranberries and set aside. If using a white chocolate bar rather than chips, chop into small chunks and set aside.

Grease a baking pan {I used a 9 inch round, but if you want smaller slices, an 8x8 inch square will be your best bet. If you want to double the recipe for a large batch, use a 9x13 inch rectangle pan.} and set aside.

In a medium size bowl, mix butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla beans {1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract can also be used} with a wooden spoon. Add in flour and salt and stir just until the thick batter comes together. Next, stir in white chocolate and cranberries making sure not to over mix. Pour batter into your pan and bake for 18-20 minutes. Invert onto a pretty little plate and let cool completely before frosting the top. While the bars are cooling, prepare the 

White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

4 oz. Cream Cheese

1 cup White Chocolate, melted in a double broiler

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

1/2 cup Powder Sugar

1/4 cup Dried Cranberries, lightly chopped 

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix cream cheese, 2/3 cup of the melted white chocolate and vanilla extract until combined. Slowly add powder sugar {note: you may need a little more or a little less sugar, depending on your frosting consistency preference}and beat on med-high for several minutes. 

When the bars have cooled, smooth the frosting on top with a spatula or knife. Sprinkle chopped cranberries on top and drizzle with remaining melted chocolate. Cut into slices or squares and serve! YUM! If you wish to slice in triangles like Starbucks, simply first cut into squares and then make a second cut across {from corner to corner} each square.

Whoa, momma!
These things are magical morsels
of pure happiness!

The bar is moist and chewy
with just the right amount of
sweet texture from the white chocolate.

But, you know what really put these over the edge?
The tart bite from those
dried cranberries!

Starbucks ain't got nothin'

on this recipe, baby dolls!

Not only would they look amazing

on a Christmas dessert table,

but your guests will also go ga-ga over the taste!

You could always bake up

a huge batch

for gift giving, too!

Or, keep the whole pan for yourself!

I think I'm indulging in another

blissful moment after dinner!

Enjoy and Happy Baking!

Yeah, I partied this week ->
Check out where on my sidebar!

Spiced Pumpkin Bread

Well, hello there!

It's been a while...

I have A LOT of news!

Including a new addition

to our little, sweet family!

Meet my Alice:

We have had several months

to get adjusted to our new life...

and I am now ready to start baking again!

My amazing mother-in-law

gave me a huge jar of

fresh pumpkin over the weekend.

Hmm...what to do, what to do!?

{wink, wink}

I decided on perfecting the art of:

Recipe adapted from Cannella-Vita

Makes 2 loafs

Ingredients
2 sticks Butter, room temp.
3 cups Sugar
4 Eggs
15 oz. Pumpkin Puree {canned works perfect}
2/3 cup Buttermilk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
3 1/2 cups Flour, all purpose
2 tsp. Baking Soda
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1 tsp. Ground Nutmeg
1/2 tsp. Ground Allspice
1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger {I adore ginger! If you don't, reduce to 1/4 tsp.}

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Set aside.
Coat two loaf pans with a non-stick spray. Set aside.
In a stand mixer, with paddle attachment, mix butter and sugar together on medium speed. Once the mixture turns a light yellow in color, add in eggs - one at the time. Mix in pumpkin and vanilla extract. Alternating wet and dry, add in buttermilk and flour mixture {I do half the buttermilk, half flour mixture and repeat.} Scrap down sides of bowl and beat again on low for another few seconds, making sure all ingredients are nicely incorporated. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans and bake for 50-60 minutes. Be sure to test center of loafs with a tooth pick before removing from oven...tooth pick should come out clean after being inserted intoeach  loaf.

Now, cut you a thick slice

{while it's still warm, of course!}

and ENJOY!

This is my favorite 

pumpkin loaf recipe - by far!

The outside has a nice crunch

{similar to the top of a pound cake}

and the inside is uber moist and spicy!

This is the ultimate holiday bread!

Sprinkle with a little powder sugar

to add elegance for gift giving ...

Slather on a lil' {or a lot}

of vanilla cream cheese frosting

for a decadent twist ...

Use in other recipes like

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

or Pumpkin French Toast!

Whatever your use for it,

it will absolutely not disappoint!

Happy Baking, my friends!