German Chocolate Cake

german chocolate cake

My Dad’s favorite cake and my second favorite cake of all time.  Rich and chocolaty, moist and delicious, this cake will please even those who don’t love chocolate cake.  The chocolate isn’t overwhelming, it’s just perfect.  Last week, I gave y’all the coconut-pecan frosting recipe and this week, I’m sharing the cake.

This is not the easiest cake to make.  It’s not terribly difficult but, you must have all the ingredients prepared and it is a cake that requires your effort and concentration.  It’s definitely not just dump, mix and bake.

Trust me though, the results are worth the time.

Sift together: cake flour, baking soda and salt

sifting flour

Melt chocolate shavings in boiling water

chocolate shavings

Mix Sour Cream and Vanilla

sour cream, vanilla for GC Blend in butter, sugar, egg yolks and melted chocolate

batter

Next, you’ll whip together egg whites and cream of tartar and then add it into the batter.

* I have no pics of this step.. I am only one woman with two hands.

Pour into 3 well greased round cake pans

Bake and once completely cooled; top layer by layer with Coconut-Pecan Frosting

frosting the cake

German Chocolate Cake

coconut pecan frosting

Recipe: German Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

  • 2 1/4 C sifted Cake Flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 4 oz Sweet (German) Baking Chocolate
  • 1/2 C boiling water
  • 1 C Sour Cream
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 C sugar, divided 1 3/4 C and 1/4 C
  • 4 large eggs, yolks and whites separated
  • 1/4 tsp cream of tartar

Instructions

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 F
  2. Butter 3 round cake pans and dust with cocoa powder to keep the cakes from sticking
  3. Sift your cake flour, measure out 2 1/4 C and then sift together the cake flour, baking soda and salt (set aside)
  4. Finely chop your chocolate and separate your eggs, while your water is heating up to boiling.
  5. Combine the chocolate shavings and water until it’s melted and smooth (set aside)
  6. In a small bowl mix together sour cream and vanilla
  7. In a large bowl beat 2 sticks butter until creamy
  8. Slowly add in 1 3/4 C sugar
  9. Beat in 4 egg yolks, 1 at a time
  10. Add the melted chocolate and beat just until blended
  11. Add the flour mixture and Sour Cream mixture in alternating batches. 3 parts flour to 1 part Sour Cream. Beating each addition until fully incorporated. Use a spatula to scoop the sides and bottom, if needed.
  12. In another large bowl beat 4 egg whites with 1/4 tsp cream of tartar, beat until soft peaks form.
  13. Beat on high speed and add in 1/4 C sugar. Beat until stiff.
  14. Gently fold into the batter and then pour into the 3 buttered and dusted pans. Let the pans settle before baking them.
  15. Bake for 25 minutes or until the cake bounces back when lightly pressed in the center with your finger.
  16. Let cool for 10 minutes in pans, remove to wire racks to finish cooling. Fill and top with Coconut Pecan Frosting

Honest to goodness y’all.. it seems like a lot of work but I swear that it is divine and totally worth it, if you’re up to it ;)

If you’re linking up, Thank you!  One of the great joys of Monday nights and Tuesdays is going through y’all’s links and seeing what y’all have been making.  I love food and the sharing of recipes, it’s a bit like sharing our homes and our families with each other.

Print

Rainbow Cupcakes

also known as Disco Groovy Tie Dye Cupcakes

rainbow cupcakes

These are the rainbow, colorful, tie dye cupcakes that I made for Princess’ 6th birthday and took up to her school and to her Daisy Scout Meeting.  These rainbow colorful cupcakes are quite simple to make.  They take a bit more time than regular cupcakes but trust me, as you can see from the picture… they are more than worth it.

These are deceptively simple and insanely delicious and rich and tonguegasmically flavorful.

  • 1 box Betty Crocker Butter Yellow Recipe Cake Mix (this is the richest, most flavorful and moist cake mix.. in my experience)

Follow the instructions on the box for making the cake batter (eggs, butter.. please use real butter, it makes a difference)

Divide the batter into 4 or 5 clear glass or white bowls ( I got mine at the Dollar Tree and love them) use food coloring to dye each bowl of batter to your desired shade

bowls of colored batter

Using table spoons place the batter in whichever pattern you prefer.  I placed one color in the base of the cupcake liner and then dropped a spoon-full of batter in the cupcake liner in a clockwise pattern until each cup was 3/4 full.

cupcake batter ready to bake

Bake and cool according to the instructions on the box.

Be careful these cupcakes smell delicious enough to tempt even the strongest will and the bursts of color are enough to bring even the most stoic abstainer to their knees

rainbow cupcake insides

For the icing.. yet another cheat.  I’ve made many a buttercream and many a cream cheese but, when I’m in a hurry and I want absolute tonguegasmic frosting without a worry…  this is where I turn.

1 buttercream icing

1 cream cheese icing

1/2 stick room temp butter

1 (8 oz) block cream cheese, room temp

1/2 to 1 C powdered sugar

1 to 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Empty both frosting containers into a mixer, add in butter, cream cheese and 1 tsp vanilla… add powdered sugar both to taste and to stiffness.

Once you’ve achieved your desired texture and taste (plenty of tastings are required to achieve the perfect balance… trust me *wink wink*)  DO NOT put this into a baggie and snip off the end to “pipe” onto the cupcakes.. this just looks like a mass of poo.

Spend the $6 at the grocery store/Hobby Lobby/whatever and buy the bag/tip combo.  Use the medium tip and pipe a swirl just in the center of the cupcake.. this allows the artistry of your beautiful tie dyed rainbow cupcake to show through and your cupcakes aren’t overwhelmed by frosting

cupcakes

Print

Cupcakes Baked in Ice Cream Cones

cupcake-collage

When I posted the picture of these cupcakes on Twitter last night the response was overwhelming and several people requested the recipe so here y’all are!

Cupcakes Baked in Ice Cream Cones

We found these adorable multi-colored cones at our local HEB so that’s what we used, they’re just so fun and colorful!!

Put your cones in 2 – 9X13 baking dishes ( I had 36 cones and used about 24)

Make cake according to directions

Fill the cones about 3/4 of the way up with batter

cupcake-batter

Bake one pan at a time at 350 for about 25 minutes or until the top of the cupcake springs back when touched

baked-cupcakes

Decorate them with any color, flavor or type of frosting and sprinkles that you prefer!

finished-cupcake-cones

Enjoy!!!!

Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

  • 1 box cake mix (or homemade, whatever) I used Golden Butter
  • 2 (16 oz cans) frosting (or homemade)  I bought buttercream and whipped in 4 oz cream cheese to cut the sweetness. It makes an amazingly yummy frosting that’s not too sweet for the big people and the little ones still love
  • 24 flat bottom ice cream cones
  • non-pareils and other decorative things
  • pastry bag with appropriate tips (please don’t do the snipped baggie thing, it looks like piles of poo) or batter knife for spreading
  • 2 -  9X13 dishes
  1. Prepare cake mix as directed.
  2. Place cupcakes in 9X13 dishes and fill about 3/4 with batter
  3. Bake one dish at a time for 25 minutes or until the cupcakes spring back when pressed
  4. Let cool, decorate and devour!!!

inspired by the post I did about this on Blissfully Delish

psssttt:  down here ;-)   You’re totally voting for me right?  RIGHT? Please!!!



2009 BlogLuxe Awards

Print

Italian Cream Cake

This week’s tonguegasmic recipe is brought to you because of the crazy response to the picture of the cake in last week’s Wordless Wednesday post.
This cake was 2 of the 5 ‘layers’ of our wedding cake. It is my favorite cake in the world. I could, shouldn’t, but could eat this whole thing by myself. Just reading the recipe and looking at pictures makes my tastebuds quiver and do little happy tingly things inside my mouth.

Italian Cream Cake

You’ll need:

* 1 3.5 oz package vanilla pudding mix
* 1 package yellow cake mix
* 1/4 C water
* 4 eggs
* 1/4 C + 1 Tbsp applesauce
* 1 C flaked coconut
* 1 C chopped walnuts
* 1/4 C flour

* Blend the cake mix, flour, pudding, water, eggs and applesauce together. Beat for 4 minutes; stir in coconut and walnuts.
* 3 greased and floured 8 inch round pans or two 10 inch pans. pictured made with two 10 inch pans
* Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until the cake springs back lightly when touched or a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool in pans for 15 minutes and then remove to wire racks to complete the cooling process.

The Frosting
My favorite part

* 6 Tbsp softened margarine
* 2 1/4 C coconut
* 2 packages softened cream cheese
* 2 tsp milk
* 24 oz powdered sugar
* 3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Start with 5 Tbsp butter and 1 1/2 packages cream cheese and milk. Beat well, add in 1/2 the powdered sugar, the vanilla extract and coconut. Taste and consistency are up to you.
Slowly add in more cream cheese and powdered sugar until it’s where you like it.
I have been known to use almost 3 bars of cream cheese to get it where I like it.

Frost each layer and stack them together. If you place triangles of parchment paper under the bottom layer of cake while you frost you can pull them out and your serving tray will be clean. I like to use chopped walnuts to decorate the sides and top of my cake, but that’s my preference.

Tonguegasmic doesn’t even being to describe this y’all.

I have been supremely honored by the fabulousness that is The Bloggess. My ‘vagina post’ was featured in her Good Mom/Bad Mom internet column that she co-writes for the Houston Chronicle.

I am truly not ignoring y’all. Want to experience what my computer is doing to me? Hold your Fn key down with your pinky and type. You cannot let your pinky up or your keys won’t work properly. My Fn key (function) is wonky. I have to use my left pinky to hold the Fn key down in order to type and have the keys work properly. It is an exercise in frustration and insanity. Hopefully tomorrow I’ll have some sort of solution. HP, you’re killing me. I miss y’all. Really. I have been reading, just not commenting. Please don’t abandon me!!!

Photobucket
Photobucket

Print
Blog Widget by LinkWithin