Better Than Anything Cake – Also known as Better than Sex cake is a combination of rich ingredients produces a decadent, caramel-soaked cake that’s sure to be a hit!
Origin
Who knows the origin of this cake, better yet who cares. It’s great!!!
Heat oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pan). Make and bake cake as directed on box for 13×9-inch pan. Cool 15 minutes.
Poke top of warm cake every 1/2 inch with handle end of wooden spoon. Drizzle condensed milk evenly over top of cake; let stand until milk has been absorbed into cake. Drizzle with caramel topping. Run knife around sides of pan to loosen cake. Cover and refrigerate about 2 hours or until chilled.
Spread whipped topping over top of cake. Sprinkle with toffee bits. Store covered in refrigerator.
Notes
The cake may stick to the wooden spoon handle while you’re using it to make the holes, so occasionally wipe off the handle.
The caramel topping will be easier to drizzle if it has been kept at room temperature. If refrigerated, spoon caramel into microwavable bowl; microwave uncovered on High about 15 seconds.
Instead of the toffee bits or chips, coarsely chop 5 bars (1.4 oz each) chocolate-covered English toffee candy, and sprinkle on top of the cake.
Samoa Bundt Cake – The Girl Scouts have nothing on us. Try this giant Samoa treat!
Origin
A Bundt cake is a cake that is baked in a Bundt pan, shaping it into a distinctive donut shape. The shape is inspired by a traditional European cake known as Gugelhupf, but these cakes are not generally associated with any single recipe. The style of mold in North America was popularized in the 1950s and 1960s, after cookware manufacturer Nordic Ware trademarked the name “Bundt” and began producing Bundt pans from cast aluminum. Publicity from Pillsbury saw the cakes gain widespread popularity.
Preheat oven to 350°. Generously grease a Bundt pan with butter, then sprinkle with flour.
Prepare cake mix according to package instructions. When the batter is ready, fold in 1/4 cup caramel and pour batter into prepared Bundt pan.
Bake until cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes in the pan, then run a butter knife around the edges of the pan and invert cake onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile, make ganache: Place chocolate chips in a large bowl. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat heavy cream. When the cream begins to simmer, remove from heat and pour over chocolate chips. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Pour most of the chocolate ganache over cooled Bundt cake, reserving about 1/3 cup ganache.
Sprinkle toasted coconut on top then press remaining toasted coconut around the sides of the cake. Drizzle remaining caramel over the cake then drizzle remaining ganache on top. Serve immediately.
Crumb cake was brought to New York City by German immigrants, and quickly became an iconic breakfast treat across the city, though it’s not often served outside the East Coast. It’s known for its contrast in texture: a base of moist yellow cake with a dense, dry cinnamon-crumb topping.
grease a 9×13 inch baking pan or line with parchment paper. Set pan aside.
Crumb Topping
Mix the brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in a medium bowl. Stir in the melted butter, then gently mix the flour using a fork. Keep the mixture as large crumbles, do not over-mix. If over-mixed, this will turn into a thick paste. Set aside.
Making the Cake
Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together. Set aside.
Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and granulated sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the eggs, sour cream, and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until combined. The mixture may look curdled; that’s ok. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, mix in the dry ingredients until smooth. Do not over-mix. The batter will be thick, creamy, and sticky.
Spread the batter evenly into prepared baking pan. Top with crumb topping. Using a rubber spatula or the back of a large spoon, press the crumb topping tightly down into the cake so it sticks.
Bake for 45-55 minutes. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours and begin checking at 45 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you find the top or edges of the cake is/are browning too quickly in the oven, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to slightly cool for at least 30-45 minutes before cutting.
Notes
You can optionally dust the top of the cake with powdered sugar before serving.
Georgia Pecan Upside Down Cake – There’s a type of cake that comes out of Georgia that’s chock full of pecans and coconuts and oh my… is it delightful.
Origin of the Georgia Pecan
Pecan nuts are the fruit of pecan trees (Carya illinoensis), a species of hickory in the walnut family. First grown commercially in Georgia during the late 1880s, pecans became one of the state’s most important commodities by the early 1900s.
Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 9×13-inch pan with aluminum foil, making sure it hangs over the sides a bit, then grease with non-stick spray.
Spread pecans, brown sugar and 1 cup of the coconut in the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and salt, and drizzle with vanilla extract and melted butter.
In a medium bowl, beat together the 2/3 cup butter and 1 cup brown sugar on medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Continue mixing on low, and add eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla, mixing until thoroughly combined.
Add baking powder and salt, mixing on low until incorporated. Add 1/2 of the flour, followed by milk, and then remaining flour, mixing well after each addition.
Pour batter over pecan mixture in prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35-40 minutes.
Run a knife around the sides of the pan to loosen and let cake cool in pan for 5 minutes. Invert cake onto a platter, using foil overhang as needed. Let cool 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
The wife of the owner of the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago asked that they be created so she could put them in the lunch boxes of her women’s board for the World Columbian Exposition in 1893.
1boxbrownie mixBetty Crocker Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix
3tbspwaterfor mix
1/2cupvegetable oilfor mix
2eggsfor mix
4ozcream cheese
2tbspsemi-sweet chocolate chipsmelted (more for garish)
2tbspBaileys Irish Cream
4ozcool whip
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350° and grease a 12-cup muffin tin. In a large mixing bowl, prepare brownie batter according to package directions.
Add batter to muffin tin and bake 25 to 27 minutes.
Once brownies are out of the oven, press a shot glass into the middle of each, making a shallow cup. Let cool completely.
Make Baileys filling: In a medium bowl using a hand mixer, beat together cream cheese, melted chocolate, and Baileys until smooth. Gently fold in Cool Whip.
Scoop filling into cooled brownie cups and top with more mini chocolate chips.
Cream Cheese Pound Cake – Butter and cream cheese provide the rich taste in this deliciously dense pound cake. I always top mine with a fresh lemon glaze made of fresh lemon juice and confectioner’s sugar
Origin. The pound cake was named after its recipe. Created in England during the 1700s, original recipes called for one pound each of flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. The large quantities and no leveling made it a large, heavy cake that could easily feed big groups of people. Proportions were altered over time to make a smaller, lighter cake, but the name stuck. In the mid 1800s liquids were added and later baking powder in the 1900s.
Butter and cream cheese provide the rich taste in this deliciously dense pound cake. I always top mine with a fresh lemon glaze made of fresh lemon juice and confectioner’s sugar
Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy (do not over beat)
Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until combined. Crack eggs into a bowl first before adding to the mixture to make sure you avoid shells in the cake mix.
Sift 3 cups of flour. Combine flour and salt; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla.
Pour batter into a greased and floured 10-inch Bundt pan.
Smooth the top of the cake or bottom of the cake (depending how you look at it) with a spatula to even it out.
Bake at 300° for 1 hour and 40 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan, and let cool completely on wire rack.
Notes
My pound cake had a crazy crusty layer on the bottom that I just peeled off. It was like candy, it was so sweet and crunchy but it wasn’t pretty so I just threw it away
