Yummm! Cake!

Posted on August 31, 2018 by Stella

A couple of weeks ago, Menagerie suggested that we should have a cake post, and now seems like a good time. If you are having a celebration at your house, or attending one and want to take a dish to contribute to the buffet, a cake is always a welcome addition!

Remember this pic (thank you, nyet!)?

This is Apple Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping and Brown Sugar Glaze, and it is absolutely delicious. Your friends/neighbors/relatives will love it, and it is easy to make.

I have made it several times, at the recommendation of rheavolans. Follow the link to the Food Network post (it’s an Emeril recipe) for the ingredients list and directions. Personally, I think it is so delicious because it uses brown sugar in all of its elements; cake, crumble, and glaze. I wouldn’t call it a coffee cake, either. It’s a cake for any time or occasion.

Another cake that is perfect for potluck (and easy) is the Pig Cake. I first saw it at the Pioneer Woman blog.

This recipe relies on prepackaged items like cake mix, canned fruit, and Cool Whip which, of course, makes it faster to prepare. By the way, the first time I made it I used 8 oz. of Cool Whip instead of the 4 oz. called for in the recipe. I loved it that way, and have made it that way since. I took this cake to work for a birthday party, and it disappeared quickly!

Upside-down cakes are favorites of just about everybody, especially men, I have noticed. I was watching reruns of the latest season of The Great British Baking Show, and one of their challenges was upside down cakes. They made all kinds (one contained parsnips!), but this one caught my eye, Apple, Hazelnut and Calvados upside-down cake:

I haven’t made this one, but here’s the recipe, if you would like to try it – Apple, hazelnut and Calvados upside-down cake.

I don’t keep Calvados (apple brandy) in the house, and if you don’t want to be bothered with it either, you could use apple cider, or a mix of cider and some kind of brandy or cognac.

By the way, the Brits seem to use self-rising/raising flour a lot. I never have it in the house and, if you are like me, here is the substitute:

1 cup of all-purpose flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt = 1 cup of self-rising flour.

If you aren’t familiar with the term, caster sugar is just superfine granulated sugar, which is available in some markets; I have heard that you can whizz regular sugar in a blender to make it finer. Actually, regular granulated sugar will work in most applications.

Speaking of British baking one more time, something they make and we in the U.S. usually don’t are steamed puddings (really a cake, or quick bread, like Boston brown bread). My adopted Canadian grandma made a really yummy steamed carrot pudding for holidays that she served with a warm custard sauce. I make a steamed pumpkin and walnut pudding that I sometimes serve with a maple custard sauce. I even have a covered steamed pudding mold!

I would really be interested in hearing your favorite cake recipes, particularly chocolate cake, or sticky toffee pudding (which I have never made).

Thanks in advance for your contributions!

This entry was posted in baking, cooking, Holidays, Recipes, Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

37 Responses to Yummm! Cake!

  1. MIKE says:
    August 31, 2018 at 3:58 pm

    Oh, man, blood sugar count spiked just looking at this stuff! Good thing I just had my yearly labwork done yesterday! Ha!
    I will be back to check on some recipes. I’m not a good baker, but my daughter is. and she makes a great baclava (?) too.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply
  2. Jacqueline Taylor Robson says:
    August 31, 2018 at 4:01 pm

    My favorite British dessert is “Sticky Toffee Pudding” It is a steamed pudding with a toffee glaze, and it’s fabulous! The thing about British cookbooks, their measurements can be confusing. They weigh a lot of ingredients on a scale. And they don’t use cups. And most recipes are in metric.
    It took a while to figure it all out, but in the end it made me a better cook.
    I don’t have a favorite cake, I’ll eat anything sweet!

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  4. Jacqueline Taylor Robson says:
    August 31, 2018 at 7:58 pm

    I don’t really like treacle tart, but golden syrup tastes like corn syrup to me. Not a fan.
    I worked part-time for a while at a Yorkshire bakery (Coopland’s) and was intrigued by the strange pastries. Curd tart, Bakewell tart, Banoffee pie, Chelsea buns, Battenburg cakes and all sorts of scones. But my favorite thing I miss isn’t even sweet. Sausage Rolls!

    Liked by 2 people

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  5. Menagerie says:
    August 31, 2018 at 10:04 pm

    I HAVe a sierras recipe for this that I will try to share tomorrow, but this one looks like it would be delicious. I love chocolate cake that makes its own hot fudge sauce.

    https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/hot-chocolate-fudge-cakes

    For pot lucks we love dump cakes. My husband’s favorite cake is cherry dump cake. In a rectangular pan add one can of cherry pie filling (I sometimes use two if I want more fruit), one half cup chopped nuts, one can crushed pineapple with juice and stir well. Top with a box of yellow cake mix, dry out of the box. Add one stick of chopped butter on top. Bake at 375 until cake is lightly browned.

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  6. Menagerie says:
    August 31, 2018 at 10:08 pm

    Above is supposed to read an EASIER recipe.

    I myself have never gotten to the baking stage with these, having a strong tendency to consume the liquid ingredients prior to baking, but I’ll make them one day!

    https://hugsandcookiesxoxo.com/2012/09/jack-daniels-cupcakes.html

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  7. Menagerie says:
    August 31, 2018 at 10:18 pm

    This time of year I get into pumpkin and cranberry recipes. This is a good pumpkin cake.

    http://www.kraftrecipes.com/recipes/luscious-four-layer-pumpkin-cake-65930.aspx

    Liked by 1 person

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  8. Menagerie says:
    August 31, 2018 at 10:25 pm

    Apologies. I know I have posted this recipe on every dessert thread ever, but it is my favorite cake times a thousand. It is just that good. I cannot make it as beautiful as the picture, soas birthday treat one year I got a local baker to do it for me, and it was so worth it.

    If I had to eat only one dessert the rest of my life, this is one of the two that would leave me in a dead tie.

    http://sweetapolita.com/2011/02/triple-lemon-blueberry-layer-cake/

    Liked by 2 people

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  9. czarina33 says:
    September 1, 2018 at 9:57 am

    When I was growing up, we always had a cake for Sunday dinner. Mostly chocolate cake from a Duncan Hinds mix, with homemade chocolate icing (melt a stick of butter or margarine, melt a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips in it, add a box of confectioners sugar & some milk, & some vanilla). My mother loved chocolate cake with chocolate icing! Sometimes we put pecans or walnuts in the icing. Occasionally my mother let us make spice cske. Then, somebody made a mix called pink lemonade cake & it was all we made for a few years, then the company stopped making it!

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