My New Favorite Cake!!

So, it was potluck time again at work.  And that means one things... IT'S TIME TO BAKE!! The guest of honor was a good friend of mine so I asked her what kind of cake was her favorite.  When she said lemon, I sprung into action and went right to my new cookbook, Martha Stewart Cakes.  

I looked in the cookbook and found the 1-2-3-4 Lemon Cake.  How can you not want to make this?  It looks amazing.

After drooling over the picture, I took a look at the recipe.  It looked complicated but it really was not!  I ended up making it over the course of two different days due to my schedule.  I made the lemon curd on Wednesday night and then the cakes on Thursday night. I put those layers together on Thursday night and had it sit in the fridge until serving time.  Then right before, I added the whipped cream and the berries.  I''m not one that usually eats what I bake (weird I know) but after many people told me how yummy it was, I just had to try it!  Well, they were all correct.  It was AMAZING.  

Ps.  This is what mine ended up looking like.  As you can see, I only did two layers... 

I will be making this cake again next weekend for Easter but will be making one major change... MORE LEMON CURD because it needs almost double what I made. 

For the recipes, just click on the links below:

The cake:

1-2-3-4 Lemon Cake

The lemon curd ( I will be tripling this next time)

http://www.marthastewart.com/348239/lemon-curd

Enjoy friends!!

Christmas Morning Monkey Bread

So, 2014 just started.  That means most people have New Year's Resolutions to eat better, workout more, drink less, etc.  But how about we take a look back at the AMAZING Monkey Bread that my family ate on Christmas morning.  

The recipe came out of People Magazine and it happens to be Hillary Scott's (from Lady Antebellum) favorite treat.  She was right.  This was delicious to say the least.

 

Ingredients: 

4 (7.5 oz) cans of refrigerated biscuits

2 cups of sugar, divided

3 tbsp of cinnamon, divided

1/5 sticks of butter

Directions:

1.  Preheat your oven to 350.

2. Combine 1 cup of sugar and 2 tbsp of cinnamon in a Ziploc bag.

3. Cut biscuits into quarters.  Add to the bag. Shake until covered.

4.  Transfer biscuits to a greased 12-in tube pan (I used a bundt pan…)

5.  Melt remaining butter.  Add remaining sugar and cinnamon and bring it to a boil.  Pour over biscuits and bake until biscuits are puffed and caramelized.  (around 35-40 minutes)

6.  Remove from over and cool completely!

7.  Invert onto a plate and serve whole, allowing people to pull it apart.

             

*** Mine fell apart while trying to get it out of the pan.  But who cares, it was still so good.

Happy Baking!!

Hillary Scott's Monkey Bread

Salted Caramel Pecan Pie

Happy Saturday everyone!  I cannot believe there are only 5 days left until Thanksgiving.  What's even better is that I will be flying to CA on Tuesday for the holiday weekend with my family.  I cannot wait to see everyone and hear the waves crashing against the rocks at our beach house.  

But, before Thanksgiving with my family, I went to a Friendsgiving Dinner with some sweet friends here in Austin.  When trying to figure out what to make, I immediately looked in my new cookbook, Jamie Deen's Good Food.  I absolutely love Jamie.  I have seen every single episode of his show Home For Dinner on the Food Network.  He is just so adorable.  But thats besides the point...  When flipping through his cookbook, I landed on this Salted Caramel Pecan Pie with a Pretzel Crust and just knew thats what I needed to make!  

The Ingredients!

My very first pie right before it goes in the oven.  When it says place the pie plate on a cookie sheet while it cooks to catch the drips, DO IT.  I just checked on mine and it has already dripped a ton!

Oh man, I actually tried this pie and it was so darn yummy!!

Ingredients
 1 1/4 cups salted pretzel crumbs (from 5 ounces pretzels)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus 6 tablespoons, cut into pieces
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon flaky sea salt (preferably Maldon)
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups chopped pecans 

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Add the pretzel crumbs, flour, sugar, and melted butter to a medium bowl and stir until combined. Dump the crumb mixture into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate and press it evenly around the bottom and sides of the pan. Place the pie plate on a sheet tray to catch drips and bake for 10 minutes, until the crust is firm.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, butter pieces, and sea salt and bring it up to a boil, while stirring. Remove from the heat and cool. Whisk in the eggs, then switch to a wooden spoon to stir in your pecans. Pour the mixture into the pretzel crust and bake for 50 minutes. Cool the pie completely before serving.

Makes 8 servings.

Notes:

This pie can be made a day ahead.  If not, make sure the pie has enough time to cool.   If the pie isn't completely cool before serving, it could be runny.

Salted Caramel Pie with Pretzel Crust

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

I love brightening peoples day with little gifts or, in this case, some pumpkin coffee cake.  Who doesn't love pumpkin during fall?  Thankfully, I remembered that I had pinned this cake last fall and decided to make it last week for my awesome coworkers.  It's super easy and incredibly yummy.  

The recipe says it serves 18 but I am pretty sure I had 30+ people eating it on Thursday.  

Ingredients

⅓ cups Water
1 can Pureed Pumpkin (15 Oz)
2 whole Eggs
1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 box Yellow Cake Mix (18 Ounce Box)
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 cup Brown Sugar, Divided
½ cups Flour
4 Tablespoons Butter, Melted
¼ cups Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
¼ cups Heavy Whipping Cream

Preparation Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F.

In a large bowl mix together the water, pumpkin, eggs, 1 Tablespoon of vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice until well combined. Add the cake mix and baking soda and mix until just combined.

Grease a 9×13 pan with butter and pour batter into pan.

In a small bowl mix together 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/2 cup flour and melted butter. Use your fingers to sprinkle over the top of the cake. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

For the glaze, combine the other 1/2 cup brown sugar, granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and heavy cream in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir until all sugar is dissolved.

When cake is finished baking, poke holes in the top with a toothpick. Pour glaze over the cake, making sure to cover all surfaces. Serve cake warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy this wonderful recipe and let me know how you like it!

Original source of recipe: Pretty.Good.Food.

What Are You Thankful For?

Everyday there is something to be thankful for.  Whether it be the cup of coffee that helped start your morning or the constant love of your family/friends, each and every single one of us has so many things to be thankful for.

So let's think.  What am I thankful for today?

1.  I am thankful for my family.  They have been around through every happy/sad/scary/exciting time in my life.  I would not be where I am today without their love and support.

2.  I am thankful for my friends.  The Lord has blessed me with so many friends who have become my family.  I am so blessed to be able to laugh with them, have a shoulder to cry on, and to bounce my crazy ideas off on them. 

3.  I am thankful for my job.  Each day, I get to enrich the lives of 14 beautiful children.  The smiles on their faces and their sweet words make all the craziness worth it.

4.  I am thankful for caffeine.  Whether diet coke or coffee, it is needed to make it through my day. 

5.  I am thankful for Baylor.  Let't be honest, I bleed green and gold.  Sic 'Em Bears.  Beat Oklahoma State! 

What are you thankful for?

Why Start Now?

Welcome to this new adventure I am starting! For a while now, I have wanted to start a blog to share all of the recipes I cook, art projects I do with my kiddos at school, and other random projects that I attempt.  Almost all of these ideas come from Pinterest.  This blog may just turn into me just sharing all of my fails with you.  Feel free to steal any of this and use it for yourself. Enjoy!