Buttery Yellow Butter Cake

Yeah, it's been a while since I've posted over here.  

Bummer.

But I am resolved to do better and what better way to get back into the swing of things than with a butter cake?  It's going to be getting too warm here very soon to do much oven-baking, so I have to get as much baking out of my system as possible.

I found this recipe yesterday and vowed right then and there to try it out on our company that was headed over for dinner.

This recipe is absolutely fantastic.  Period.

It's Paula Deen worthy, both in taste and butter content.  

{source}

Buttery Yellow Butter Cake

{from Midwest Living}

ingredients

• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/3 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups butter
• 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• Semisweet chocolate pieces (optional)

directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 cup of the crumb mixture.
2. To remaining mixture, stir in baking powder. Add eggs, milk, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Beat on medium speed for 5 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
3. Spread the batter in a greased 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Sprinkle with reserved crumb mixture.
4. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Serve warm or cool. Makes 15 servings.
5. Drizzle with melted semisweet chocolate pieces, if desired.

**This recipe is so easy and the results are incredible!  I didn't add the chocolate drizzle because I had some non-chocolate eaters coming {crazy, huh?} but it actually didn't need it.  This is simple comfort food at it's best!

Until next time (which is hopefully very, very soon),  here's to many smooches in the kitchen!

Grilled Peaches and Berries

With summer time still going strong here in Arizona, it's still much too hot to be heating up the oven for much. Of course, I will always heat it up for my baked goods, but I digress.

One of my favorite grill sides is Grilled Peaches and Berries that I discovered a couple of years ago.  It's easier, tidy and lest I forget, to die for in the flavor department.

(source)

This would be a great side or dessert - thinking a la mode, yeah?  It's perfect for a get together or just a family dinner.

Are you ready?

Grilled Peaches and Berries

Ingredients:

3 medium ripe peaches, halved and pitted

1 cup fresh blueberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:

Place two peach halves, cut side up, on each of three double thicknesses of heavy-duty foil (12 in. square). Sprinkle with blueberries, brown sugar, butter and lemon juice. Fold foil around mixture and seal tightly.

Grill, covered, over medium-low heat for 18-20 minutes or until tender. Open foil carefully to allow steam to escape. Yield: 3 servings.

Homemade Blackberry Cobbler

Oh, dear. We've done it again, haven't we?   With all the cookin' and bakin' I've been up to, it seems tricky to stay on top of sharing the recipes we try with you.  But I promise I'll try to do better.  Keep your fingers crossed everyone!

On Easter Sunday, Paco requested a cobbler for one of the desserts.  It took me like a nano-second to jump on board with that!  I. {HEART}. Cobbler. Of. Any. Kind.  Well, it so happened that blackberries were not only luscious and beautiful at the grocery store, but they were also on sale (score!).  I looked through so many recipes trying to find just the right one because a) it was for Easter Sunday, therefore, it must be special; b) I'm terribly picky.  Really, I am.  But I was so excited when I found this recipe through Taste of Home, my go-to new recipe site.  Do you have one of those?  Let me know!  Here's what it looks like. 

(photo courtesy Taste of Home)

Raise your hand if you're drooling.  Yes, yes.  I see you way back there.  You think no one notices, but I do.  Know why?  It's because I'm right along there with ya.

Ingredients:

•6 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
•1/2 cup sugar
•3 tablespoons cornstarch
•1 teaspoon grated lime peel

SOUR CREAM PASTRY:
•1-1/3 cups all-purpose flour
•3 tablespoons sugar, divided
•3/4 teaspoon baking powder
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1/4 teaspoon baking soda
•7 tablespoons cold butter, divided
•1/2 cup sour cream
•1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Directions:

•Place the blackberries in a large bowl. Combine the sugar, cornstarch and lime peel; sprinkle over berries and gently toss to coat. Pour into a greased 9-in. square baking dish.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, 2 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda; cut in 5 tablespoons butter until crumbly. Combine sour cream and heavy cream; gradually add to crumb mixture, tossing with a fork until mixture forms a ball.
• Roll out to fit top of baking dish; place pastry over filling. Trim and seal edges; cut slits in top. Melt remaining butter; brush over pastry. Sprinkle with remaining sugar. Eat the scraps.  No, seriously.  Do.
• Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 30 minutes. Cover and bake 15-20 minutes longer or until filling is bubbly and crust is golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes before serving. Yield: 6-8 servings.

*So here's the scoop on this recipe.  I loved it.  Seriously.  However, the lime peel could be a little much for some and it's definitely not a traditional cobbler ingredient and I'm a traditionalist, for sure.  Next time (and there will be a next time, I tell ya.), though, I will try it with cinnamon rather than the lime.  But that sour cream pastry!  SHUT UP!  It was flippin' ah-mazin'!

So, until next time, here's to more smooches in the kitchen!

Minty Irish Chocolate Cream Pie

Top o' the evenin' to you!

Yes, it's still St. Patrick's Day for a few more hours (so technically it's St. Patrick's Night) so I thought I'd hop over here and share what we feasted on for dessert tonight.

May I present Minty Irish Chocolate Cream Pie?!

Oh my delicious goodness gracious.  This is chocolately, it's minty, it's so decadent!  In other words, it's scrumdidlyumptious.

 

(Ok, I really need a light box, right?  Honey...)

Ready to give 'er a whirl?

Ingredients:

• 1 graham cracker crust
• 1 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1/3 cup cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 3/4 cup milk
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup Cool Whip
• 18 peppermint patties
• green food coloring 

Directions:

•  Combine sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt in a medium sauce pan; gradually stir in milk.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until at a full rolling boil.  (This took a while on my stove.) Boil and stir 1 minute.  Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla.
• Pour into crust; carefully press plastic wrap directly onto pie filling.  Cool; refrigerate 6 hours.  (Oh, yeah.  Six hours, baby.)
• Shortly before serving, remove wrappers from patties (duh, right?).  Remove plastic wrap from pie (yup, duh again.).
• Cut 9 patties in half; place cut side down at outer edge of pie filling forming a scalloped edge.
• Finely chop remaining patties, fold into Cool Whip with green fool coloring. 
• Spread on top of pie and serve immediately.
• Refrigerate leftovers.
 

This is so good, but so rich, so be careful!  I am a pie lover and I can handle onle the smallest sliver of this one.  But oh, good golly is it ever worth it!

Fresh Peach Crisp

I know that it's not summer yet, but who cares?  This past summer, when the peaches were ripe and luscious and oh, so peachy, I froze some knowing that come February I would be so in love with myself if I did, just for this this recipe.

It's warm, it's cinnamon-y, it's awesome in it's own peachy awesomeness.  It's peach crisp.

I totally know you're drooling.

Ready?

Ingredients:

1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2-1 cup packed brown sugar (I always do 1 full cup)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, chilled and cubed
2 1/2 pounds fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
1/2-1 cup white sugar
1 T. cinnamon



Directions:

Combine oats, sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt.  Add butter and mix with a fork, blending the butter in until small clumps are formed.

Arrange peaches in a 9x9 baking dish.

Top with 1/2-1 cup white sugar.

Sprinkle crumb mixture over sugared peaches.

Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for forty minutes.

(sorry, bad lighting.  my kitchen is awful for lighting.)

Then you get to dig in!

*** Because my peaches were frozen, they held a ton of moisture.  Next time, I'll pat them with a paper towel first.  Also, make sure your butter is chilled.  It will hold the crumb mixture together better.  If it isn't mixing well with a fork or pastry blender, you can use my personal favorite utensil... your hands.

PS  This will smell so yummy as it's baking that you're sure to have some company in the kitchen, sniffing away, asking when it will be done.  Make sure you smile that nice smile of yours and say, "It will be done when it's done.  Now SCAT!"  Husbands and children are especially bad about this.

Cranberry Streusel Pie

Pie, oh pie.  How do I love thee, let me count the ways.  One, two, three... infinity.

Pie is my all-time favorite dessert.  Always has been, always will be.  So when I heard that yesterday was National Pie Day, I was all over it.  Who declared it to be so?  Well, I don't know.  Does it matter?  I think not.  I would be thrilled if every day was National Pie Day.  I'd also be about the size of a barn, but that's not what's important here.

After I realized that it was NPD, I remembered a recipe that I had found around November of last year and had been wanting to try.  Added bonus is that I had everything I needed in the pantry and fridge so you had to know I was going to be putting thing together to enjoy.  Because of the cranberries, I guess most would consider it a Thanksgiving or Christmas recipe, but with all the red from the berries and the streusel topping, I contend that it's a fantastic winter recipe!

Cranberry Streusel Pie

(sorry, not a good quality pic)

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh cranberries
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon shortening
• 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch single crust pie

Directions

1. Smash berries. Stir in sugar and 1/4 cup flour. Pour filling into pie crust.
2. Smash walnuts into small pieces. Stir in brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, and shortening with a pastry blender. The mixture should be crumbly. Sprinkle over pie.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes, or until done.

Even though I made this yesterday, we weren't able to feast on it last night, so we're saving it tonight.  I did, however, sample it, just for you, dear reader, to make sure it's yummy and worthy of "Smoochin' in the Kitchen".  Because it's cranberry, it's a little more tart than I usually like, but I know there's a certain hubby here who loves that kind of taste, so he'll be happy.  Next time, I'd probably add more white sugar, maybe do a full cup and then top it with ice cream.  I also don't know what kind of terrific glaze they have on there, (there's no directions for that), but I'm thinking milk and powdered sugar mixed.  Might have to try that next time.

Until next time, my dears, here's to more smooches in the kitchen!

Linking up to Permanent Posies Tasty Tidbit Tuesday!

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake...Drool, Drool

My (Jamie) dad, Tony, does not have a sweet tooth.  In fact, he loves to brag about how he detests chocolate and peanut butter just to see people's jaws drop whenever it's brought up.  How in the world could I come from such a man?

I don't know.  I just shake my head and mutter to myself. 

He does like, however, fruit-y kinds of desserts.  Sometimes.  Kinda.

But Superman's daughter has found his Kryptonite.  Oh yeah, baby!  His birthday was last weekend (happy birthday, daddy!) and I wanted to find something that would make him forget all about his previous prejudices against dessert.  And this is what did it:

(photo courtesy of Taste of Home recipes)

Spiced Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

Ingredients:

• 1-1/3 cups butter, softened, divided
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 can (20 ounces) pineapple slices, drained
• 10 to 12 maraschino cherries
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon Spice Islands® pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup buttermilk

 Directions

• In a saucepan, melt 2/3 cup of butter; stir in brown sugar. Spread in the bottom of an ungreased heavy 12-in skillet or a 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Arrange pineapple in a single layer over sugar mixture; place a cherry in the center of each slice. Sprinkle with pecans and set aside. Sneak a smooch in there.
• In a large bowl, cream sugar and remaining butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg; add alternately to batter with buttermilk, beating well after each addition.
• Carefully pour over the pineapple. Bake at 350° for 40 minutes for skillet (50-60 minutes for baking pan) or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Immediately invert onto a serving platter. Serve warm. Yield: 12 servings.

Notes*** I didn't use the nutmeg or pecans.  Again, Dad isn't a fan (silly dad).  I greased the sides of the pan so that the cake would come out easily and it was fine.  Also, when I added the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately, I started and finished with the dry ingredients.  It mixes better that way.

Everyone loved this cake!  Both Tony and Paco (not a huge fan of pineapple upside-down cake) ate it until they felt like they were about to pop.

Now, THAT's the mark of a successful dessert.

(recipe courtesy of Taste of Home)