Silver Moon Caramel Cake

Recently, my dad and his girlfriend went to Charleston. It is such a quaint, cozy town with a rich southern cuisine. They sent me a dessert cookbook: Charleston Classic Desserts (Classic Recipes Series) It features recipes from some of the best restaurants in Charleston. I am determined to become a better baker. Therefore I decided to try the following recipe: Silver Moon Caramel Cake from the Square Onion Cafe.  This recipe is from the owner Mary Zapatka's great grandmother's recipe and Mary's dad named it when he was a little boy.

Photo of what the cake should look like, mine is not quite there yet :)

Ingredients:
CAKE
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, separated
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup milk
SILVER MOON FROSTING
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter
4 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour three 10-inch cake pans
To make the cake:
1. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together 3 times. Set aside.
2. Beat the egg whites in a clean bowl until stiff by not dry peaks form.
3. Cream the butter in an electric mixer with a paddle attachment (or with a hand held mixer..that's what I used) until light. Gradually add the sugar, beating until light and fluffy (after some research this usually takes 3-5 minutes). Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addtiona and scraping down the bowl.
4. Alternately add the dry ingredients and milk, one third at a time. Beat until smoother after each addition. Add the vanilla. Fold in the egg whites. Divide the batter amount the prepared pans.
5. Bake for 25 minutes, or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean. (A trick so that the cake does not over bake, set the time for a few minutes less so that you can gauge the perfect time to take out the cake. This will help keep the cake moist)

TO MAKE THE FROSTING:
1. Combine the butter, sugar and milk in a 4-quart or larger saucepan.
2. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring constantly, to the softball stage (220F on a candy thermometer). If you do not own a thermometer, this is when the mixture just begins to bowl and it will turn a light beige color.
3. Remove from heat and beat at a medium-high speed until the sheen dulls and the frosting is of spreading consistency. Add the vanilla after a couple of minutes. Care should be taken while beating because the frosting is very hot. Do not beat too long or the frosting will harden. If the frosting becomes too stiff, beat in a little milk. 1 tablespoon at a time, to bring it back to spreading consistency. Work quickly when spreading on the cake or the frosting will set before the cake is covered.

I must say, that I did not have this problem. If anything the frosting was a bit runny. I let it cool for a bit and then spread it on the cake. The icing did harden one I placed it on the cake. I am going to experiment with other icings and will update the recipe if I find out that I like better.

Momma Callie's Banana Nut Bread from The Neely's

My office decided to kick-off the holiday weekend with a pot-luck breakfast on Friday. Of course, I offered to bring in a baked good. Who doesn't love a good piece of banana bread? Although I do have a recipe I love using, I wanted to stick to a more traditional version. I knew I could count on The Neely's for a good ol' fashioned banana bread. Sure enough I found this recipe: Momma Callie's Banana Nut Bread. I knew I couldn't go wrong with that. Sure enough the banana bread turned out great! Golden brown top, super Moist, and a great banana flavor. Definitely give this recipe a try!

Ingredients:

• 1 Stick butter, at room temperature


• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour


• 1 teaspoon baking soda


• 1 teaspoon baking powder


• 1 teaspoon salt


• 3 large VERY ripe bananas


• 1 cup granulated sugar


• 2 large eggs


• 1/2 cup sour cream


• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract


• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans


• Powdered Sugar to coat the loaf pan (a trick I learned from my friend Callie's momma)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and put a rack on the middle shelf.

Sprinkle powdered sugar into the bottom of a 9 by 5 by 3-inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

In another large bowl, use a hand electric mixer or a stand mixer to cream the 1 stick of butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add the eggs, 1 at a time and mix until the egg is incorporated. Break the bananas into pieces and put into the bowl along with the sour cream and vanilla. Beat until just combined (it is ok to leave banana pieces). Add the dry ingredietns and nuts and stir until combined. Pour the batter in the pan. Sprink more powdered sugar on the top.

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes, unti la knife can be inserted and come out clean. Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling. (i actually used a disposable loaf pan and left the banana bread in this pan and it turned out great).

Enjoy!

Spicy Beef and Chorizo Chili

This is super spicy! If you can't take the heat, back off on the chipotle chili powder and paprika.

6 links Chorizo Sausage
2 lbs ground beef
3 tablespoons Chipotle Chili Powder
1/2 tablespoon paprika
28 ounce can of Fire Roasted Tomatoes
6 cups beef broth
For garnish: chedder cheese and sour cream

1. Spray a pan with non-stick spray and heat over medium high heat.
2. Cut the chorizo links into small pieces. Brown the chorizo slices on each side (2-3 minutes each side). Remove the chorizo from the pan and place in a bowl. Discard the excess grease; leave enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
3. Brown the ground beef in the greased pan (3-5 minutes each side). Using a spoon, crumble the beef into tiny chunks.
4. Return the chorizo back into the pan and add the chili powder and paprika. Stir until all ingredients are well combined. Allow to cook for 3-4 minutes.
5. Add the tomatoes and beef broth to chili. Allow to cook over medium heat for 20-30 minutes.
6. Turn the heat to low and cook for another 30 minutes.
7. Serve in a bowl topped with chedder cheese and a scoop of sour cream.

Cajun Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients:
1 package ground turkey
1 egg
1 tablespoon Cajun Seasoning
Salt
Pepper
1 can San Marzano tomatoes
1/2 cup beef or chicken broth
2 teaspoons Cajun Seasoning

Preparation:
1. In a pot, heat the san marzano tomatoes over medium heat. Add the beef or chicken broth, cajun seasoning and a dash of salt and pepper. While the tomato sauce heats up prepare the meat balls.

2. In a large bowl, combine the turkey, egg and seasonings until it is well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Roll into little balls.

3. Spray a skillet and heat over medium-high temperature. Drop 10-12 meat balls into the pan and allow them to brown on each side (2-3 minutes). Even though they may not look completely cooked, transfer into the tomato sauce and allow them to finish cooking (20-30 minutes).

Penne with Pumpkin Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

1 pound Whole Wheat penne pasta 1 cup 2% milk
1 Tablespoon whole wheat flour
1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons butter (or Earth Butter)
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for topping

Optional: 1/4 cup chopped sage

Directions:

1. In a large pot of boiling with salted water, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain.
2. In the same pot, add the milk and whole wheat flour. Whisk until sauce thickens 5-6 minutes. Stir in the pumpkin and butter and bring to a boil for a couple minutes. Return the pasta to the pot and top with Parmesan and sage.

Pumpkin Pancakes

Jimmy was all pumpkin-ed - out by the end of the day. Our November 1st started with these fluffy pumpkin pancakes and a cup of pumpkin spiced coffee (I also like making hot chocolate and putting a bit of pumpkin creamer in it. I know it sounds weird, but trust me, its yummy). Although the weather didn't feel like fall, our breakfast sure did.

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup sugar (Splenda)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup milk (or almond milk, or buttermilk)
4 egg whites, whipped to soft peak
non stick spray
Optional: Chocolate chips

Preparation:
1. Sift or mix together all of the dry ingredients.
2. In a bowl, combine the puree, whole eggs, vanilla and the milk.
3. Add the flour mixture and stir, being careful not to over mix the batter.
4. Gently fold in 1/2 the egg whites to loosen the batter and when the whites are nearly incorporated, fold in the remaining egg whites.
5. Heat a griddle or large frying pan to medium-high heat. Spray with non-stick spray to prevent sticking and spoon batter onto griddle, spreading them with the back of the spoon. When you begin noticing bubbles form on the top of the pancake, flip it to the other side. Cook until pancakes are golden brown.
6. If you would like to make chocolate chip pumpkin pancakes do the following: Once you have spooned batter onto the griddle, sprinkle with chocolate chips. Wait for the batter to bubble, then flip to the other side.

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes

This recipe is from my favorite Southern Belle, Paula Deen.

Ingredients
Cake:
1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix (you can also find reduced sugar cake mix)
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted (for those who are lactose intolerant use earth butter)

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened (substitute nonfat or tofutti cream cheese if you prefer)
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted (or earth butter)
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.
3. To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh whipped cream.

Variations: For a Pineapple Gooey Cake: Instead of the pumpkin, add a drained 20-ounce can of crushed pineapple to the cream cheese filling. Proceed as directed above.
For a Banana Gooey Cake: Prepare cream cheese filling as directed, beating in 2 ripe bananas instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.
For a Peanut Butter Gooey Cake: Use a chocolate cake mix. Add 1 cup creamy peanut butter to the cream cheese filling instead of the pumpkin. Proceed as directed above.