You're my angel

I can't deny that I have a sweet tooth. I love dessert. However, it isn't always the healthiest choice I can make. 

That means it's been reduced to an occasional treat versus a regular thing.

I can justify it with this, however.

Angel food cake.

Fresh blueberries.

Cashew cream.

Easy, elegant, less bad for you.

Down in the Mine

Like many 11 year olds, my son is obsessed with the game Minecraft. I will admit that I don’t quite get it. I first thought it was about mining, then building, then farming and now I am not quite sure what…but he and his friends all love to play it. They watch you tube videos on how to play it. They read articles and download apps to create new things in the game. It’s a huge part of his life.

Since Little Man was little, we have had a cake for his friend’s party that reflected what he was into at that juncture. Over the years we have had Spiderman, Toy Story, Hot Wheels, and more. This year, we needed a Minecraft cake. I decided since this was the last of the elementary school birthday party, we are going all out. I had heard about Sugar’s Baked Goods (http://www.sugarsbakedgoods.com) from a friend and I emailed to see if this was possible.

The stars were aligned because the owner’s husband played the game and she was completely familiar.

I can only describe my son’s cake as a work of art. Kari, the owner, created fondant characters so we had a creeper, Steve and a cow. The look on the Little Man’s face when he first saw the cake was absolute wonder.

 The rest of the kiddos were also in awe. Even better than the presentation was the fact that the cake was really, really good.

It had just the right balance of sweetness. Even the frosting rocked my socks. Both my husband and I agree that it was one of the best cakes we've ever had. 

You Say it's Your Birthday

My birthday was earlier this week, so it's a lot to celebrate. Tomorrow my family and friends are going to serve lunch at the Banquet, the local soup kitchen, to celebrate all of our blessings. That doesn't mean we didn't celebrate earlier too! I decided to make a special cake and cupcakes to share with my coworkers and friends. I decided to make cherry poke cake.

I found this great recipe at Baking Bites (http://bakingbites.com/2005/10/happy-birthday-to-me/)which was the base.

Yellow Sheet Cake

2 ½ cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 ½ cups sugar
½ cup butter, softened
3 eggs
1 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9×13 inch sheet pan with parchment paper, or lightly grease it with shortening or oil (butter will produce a harder “crust”).
Sift cake flour, baking powder and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer. Add sugar and, using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed to blend. Cut butter into 4 or 5 chunks and drop into the bowl with the flour. Blend on low speed until mixture looks sandy and no large chunks of butter remain, 1-2 minutes.
In a large measuring cup, combine eggs, milk and vanilla. Beat lightly with a fork until combined. With the mixer on low, pour 1 cup of the egg mixture into the bowl. Turn speed up to medium and beat for 1 ½ minutes. Reduce speed back to low and pour in the rest of the egg mixture. Continue to beat at low speed for an additional 30 seconds, until liquid is fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat for a few more seconds, if necessary.
Pour into prepared 9×13 pan and spread batter evenly with a spatula. Tap gently a few times to eliminate any bubbles.
Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes, until a tooth pick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Let cool for 30 minutes in the pan before turning out onto a rack to cool completely. You can leave it in the pan if you’re serving it casually.
Serves 16 (or 12 birthday-sized pieces)

After the cake has cooled, poke holes into it. Mix 1 cup boiling water with 1 pkg jello and pour over cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Top with vanilla pudding frosting

1 pkg vanilla pudding
1 tub cool whip
1 c milk

Mix the pudding with milk, fold in cool whip. Frost the cake and top with sprinkle

Apple Upside Down Cake

1 box cake mix + supplies to make cake
½ c brown sugar
1 c melted butter
Variety of apples, sliced


Spray a small oblong pan with PAM. Lay apples in, top with brown sugar and melted butter. Pour cake batter over and bake according to cake mix directions. Serve warm with ice cream