Sunday, October 24, 2010

Pancake mix Cake



I first had this cake about 15 years ago. My good friends mom owned a catering wagon and had this cake on her menu. Years later, my aunt passed on her version of the recipe, basically all the ingredients are the same except hers increases the pancake mix and an extra egg.  I found her recipe to be a little lighter/fluffier than my old recipe. I'm not sure were this recipe originated from, it was also passed on along to her.
I've heard of people adding orange zest and substituting orange juice for the milk. I haven't tried it myself, but heard it works well. I normally bake this cake in a bundt mold, and drizzle my cake while its still warm with condensed milk. My family loves this cake warm with a big glass of milk, let me tell you this hits the spot every time!

Pancake Mix Cake

2 1/2 c. complete pancake mix ( I use Krusteaz complete buttermilk pancake mix, I have used generic brands before and worked well)
1 c. sugar
5 whole eggs
1 c. oil
1 c. milk

Mix all ingredients with a mixer about 2 to 3 minutes.  Pour into a greased and floured bundt cake mold and bake at 350 degrees for 35 to 45 minutes. 
Test with wooden skewer for doneness.

Drizzle with condensed milk while still warm, slice and serve.

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Pound Cake

This month we are baking from a new book called "cake keeper Cakes" by Lauren Chattman. Our first cake from this book is "Pumpkin-Chocolate Chip Pound Cake"! How perfect can that be for the month of October! This was my first time making a pound cake, and I think it turned out well. I decided make this cake as soon as it was announced. I heard their was a pumpkin shortage, and I didn't want to have to hunt or over pay for canned pumpkin, plus I wanted to be on the safe side since this was the same rumor going around last year. I left for the grocery store feeling confident I would find the canned pumpkin, and to my surprise I find their is a shortage! I was only able to purchase the small 15 oz. cans for $1.78, the larger cans are on backorder and are expected to be in by Thanksgiving. I will go back next week and purchase a few more cans just to be on the safe side.
The cake turned out good, I omitted the nuts (wasn't really in the mood for them) and didn't feel like the cake needed them. I enjoyed the combination of the spices with the chocolate! I had a slice of the cake and water as my lunch, and really wished I would have had coffee instead! Well, thats what happens when your counting calories! Hopefully next month I can see the sacrifice!
Click here for a copy of the recipe!


Saturday, October 9, 2010

Mexican Conchas!


 So happy to finally share this recipe with all of you! This was my 4th attempt making these babies! The first time I made them I killed the yeast by overheating the water. Second time around they turned out pretty good, but the topping spread out way too much or ended falling off. Third time around I thing I made the dough way too stiff by over adding flour, they didn't rise properly. Fourth time around, I think I nailed it! I was a little worried this morning after rolling out my portions and adding the topping, they weren't rising fast enough. It was a little chilly this morning so I figured it was the room temperature. After heating my oven to warm, I placed them inside to rise. I had to be carefull not to over heat the oven since I didn't want the topping to melt off. An hour later that seemed to do the trick.
I have too be honest with you I'm not a huge fan of conchas, they seem too be too dry for me. But after making them at home its a whole differerent level of flavor and texture. My family seems to enjoy them paired up with mexican hot chocolate!

Conchas after rising, aren't they pretty? I found this recipe on allrecipes.com. The only slight change I made was decreasing the baking time between 12 to 15 minutes. Ovens do vary so you might want to monitor while they are baking. I also yielded about 16 conchas versus 12.