An Old Favorite

Chocolate sheet cake.....I remember getting so excited whenever my mother made that dessert. I'd come home from school to find a large pan all set up, chocolate glistening and sprinkled with pecans, mmmmm! As I sat at our breakfast room table finishing up my homework, I would glaze longingly for a small slice. Sometimes I'd even walk over the try and find the pecan bit that looked like it might fall off. Surely no one would miss a small piece of pecan and a little scoop of icing? Fortunately for the dessert, my mom was always present to shoo me away before I did too much damage, and she always saved me a slice or two for later.

Below is the recipe with the original chocolate icing, however, if you'd like an alternate ending, I've also made the cake with a browned butter frosting. The browned butter requires chilling so be sure to add that to your time schedule. Enjoy!

Chocolate Sheet Cake:

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

1/2 cup margarine

1/2 cup shortening

5 Tbsp cocoa powder

1 cup leftover coffee (or water)

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

-Sift together flour and sugar. In a large saucepan, combine margarine, shortening, cocoa, and coffee. Bring to a boil then remove from heat.

-Sift together flour and sugar into a mixing bowl. Beat in hot mixture and add remaining ingredients. Stir until just incorporated.

-Pour batter into a greased 15x10 baking pan and bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.

While cake is baking prepare chocolate frosting...

Chocolate Icing:

1/2 cup margarine

5 Tbsp cocoa powder

6 Tbsp milk

1 12 oz box of powdered sugar

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups chopped pecans

-Bring margarine, cocoa powder, and milk to a boil. Add to a mixing bowl with remaining ingredients and beat until fluffy.

-Pour frosting over hot cake and sprinkle with pecans.

Browned Butter Frosting:

1 cup butter

2/3 cup brown sugar

3 cups powdered sugar

1 cup heavy whipping cream

3 tsp vanilla

-Heat butter in a small saucepan for approx 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly. Butter will turn golden brown then remove from heat. Cover and chill butter for an hour.

-Whip butter, brown sugar and cream in a mixer until fluffy. Add vanilla and beat in powdered sugar cup by cup until you reach desired taste and consistency. (I've added less than 3 cups before, and sometimes more)

Christmas Truffles

Things are busy busy busy here with all my Christmas baking. Here is a sneak peak:

Listing Clockwise:

-White chocolate ginger spice truffles rolled in pecans

-Dark chocolate coated Fleur de sel caramels (with a little gold dust)

-Peanut butter and apricot jam chocolate cups

-Cocoa dusted Earl Grey milk chocolates with craisins

Man Food

Its well into the Christmas season and we've definitely broken in our kitchen! A couple of weeks ago, Seth prepared me that we would be hosting a Monday Night Football party for the guys in our new church. He was VERY excited and sent out a powerpoint email with google picture directions as well as the detailed menu for the night. Seth requested "man food" that should not include a fruit or vegetable of any sort, although the guys didn't seem to mind the mexi-corn cheese dip at all! But the favored of all foods that evening was the dish that combined sweet, smokey, and salty.... bacon caramel popcorn. Here is the recipe:

Bacon Caramel Popcorn

1/2 cup popcorn kernels

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

5 slices of cooked bacon, chopped (approx 6oz)

3/4 cup whole cashews

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup water

2 Tbsp light corn syrup

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp chipotle powder

1.) Heat popcorn and oil in a large covered pot until kernels start to pop. Hold lid and pot handle (with oven mits) and shake the pot until the kernels stop popping. Pour popcorn into a very large bowl and add bacon and cashews.

2.) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3.) Combine sugar, water, and corn syrup in a bowl and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat, without stirring, until the caramel turns deep amber. Remove from heat and immediately add the cream, salt, and chipotle (the mixture will bubble up). Quickly pour over popcorn mixture, and stir.

4.) Pour caramel popcorn into the baking sheet and spread out. Bake until the caramel is shiny (approx 10-20 minutes). Let cool completely then break up popcorn into handful sized chunks.