Lemon Poppyseed Bundt Cake

Ok this is GOOD.  Kalissa just requested it for her birthday this year.  If it passed the 5-year old taste test, it is good!  Our birthday cakes has had to jump up several notches since being here in Colorado.  Carnan has made this for her kids birthdays in the past when we were invited over...so Kalissa wanted this cake for hers!  Can you say YUMMY!

1pkg yellow or white cake mix
1 pkg instant lemon pudding (small)
1 1/2 cups water
4 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 TBS poppy seeds

Mix everything together except eggs.  Add eggs 1 at a time.  Beat well after each addition.  Pour into a well greased & floured bundt cake pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Cool in pan for 15 minutes.  Remove.

BUTTER SAUCE FOR ON TOP: (this is very fattening but oh my, SO GOOD!)
3/4 cup butter
3 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cup half and half
3 tsp vanilla
3 tsp white karo syrup

Mix together and bring just to a boil.  May be made ahead and reheated.  Spoon mixture over cut cake slices at serving time.

or you could make a glaze to go on top:
2-4 cups powdered sugar
Butter
1-2 TBS lemon juice
water

Drizzle over cake while just warm

Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake

Need a shot of chocolate?  This is for YOU!!

See that cake on the recipe book?  That is the recipe.  Here is another picture with frosting all over it..

This recipe is from the Six Sisters' Stuff recipe book and their blog.  It can be found HERE.  It is super moist and yummy!  And that is a lot coming from our family....we aren't very fond of cakes.  It has been tried and tested by all my family members.  It was eaten in a jiffy.

Triple Chocolate Bundt Cake 
Ingredients:
1 (18.25 oz) package Devil’s Food chocolate cake mix
1 (3.9 oz) box instant chocolate pudding mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1/2 cup warm water
1 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a bundt pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.  

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan for about 90 minutes before inverting onto a plate. If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar or top with my favorite chocolate frosting.

Our Favorite Chocolate Frosting

1/2 cup butter OR margarine, softened
1/4 cup milk
1-2 teaspoons vanilla (depending on your taste)
3 Tablespoons cocoa
2-3 cups of powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients together and either spread or pipe on top of cooled cake.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread/Cake

½ cup butter/margarine, melted

¼ cup oil

1 ¾ cup sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla

2 eggs

½ cup sour cream

2 cups shredded zucchini

2 ½ cups flour

2 – 4 TBSP cocoa (I usually sneak in more)

½ tsp. Cinnamon

½ tsp. Cloves or allspice

1 tsp. Baking soda

½ tsp. Salt

½ cup chocolate chips

Frosting

Mix all wet ingredients together in a large bowl. Combine all dry ingredients except chocolate chips. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour into a well greased bundt cake pan or 2 loaf pans. Bake at 350 degrees for:

Bundt pan: 50 minutes

2 loaf pans: 30-40 minutes.

Remove from oven. For the bundt pan place a serving platter over the pan, turn upside down and gently tap to remove the cake. Let cool 10 minutes. While still warm frost with  frosting. It will melt and drizzle down the sides. For the bread pans, remove from pan and drizzle frosting over the top when slightly cool.

Strawberry Lime Shortcake with Coconut Cream

Recipe by Our Best Bites

Angel food or Pound Cake

4 C sliced fresh strawberries
½ C white sugar
4 T fresh-squeezed lime juice (about 2 limes)

For the Coconut Whipped Cream:
1 C whipping cream
½ C powdered sugar
2 t coconut extract
1 t vanilla extract

¾ C toasted coconut

Mix sliced strawberries, sugar, and lime juice. Stir well and set aside. Stir occasionally over about 15 minutes. You want the sugar to dissolve and form a light syrup.

For the cream, place whipping cream in a bowl and beat with an electric mixer for about one minute. Slowly add in powdered sugar, and both extracts. Continue beating until soft peaks form.

Slice cake and spoon a layer of strawberries on top. Include the lime-syrup! Top with a generous dollop of whipped cream and sprinkle with coconut.

Tiff's Tips: This is a great recipe - easy to make and a hit. I used True Lime instead of lime juice because I always have it on hand. Look for it the spice section of your grocery store. Here is a post I wrote highlighting this product.

Make Your Own Cake Mix

I found this online here at Gift's from Your Kitchen. I used the plain cake mix in the place of a white cake mix when I made key lime cupcakes - they turned out great!

6 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 1/2 cups Crisco
4 cups granulated sugar
2 teaspoons salt

In large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. With pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture resembles cornmeal. Store in airtight container in cool, dry place. Use within a month if possible. It does keep well if stored for a longer period of time. This is a great alternative to packaged mixes which often contain preservatives.


Plain Cake

2 cups Make Your Own Cake Mix
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup milk

Stir ingredients for plain cake until well blended. Pour into 8-inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. For a 9 x 13-inch pan or layer cakes, double ingredients.

Pecan-Glazed Cake

2 cups Make Your Own Cake Mix
2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Stir together cake mix, egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 cup milk. Bake in an 8-inch square pan at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile in small bowl, mix well butter, sugar, flour, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 tablespoon milk. Fold in pecans. Remove cake from oven and spread butter mixture over cake. Return to oven and bake until bubbly.

Chocolate Cake

2 cups Make Your Own Cake Mix
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 cup ice water
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
confectioners' sugar (optional)

Stir cake mix and cocoa together. Add egg, water and vanilla extract. Pour into an 8-inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. Dust top with confectioners' sugar, if desired.

Chocolate Chip and Nut Cake

2 cups Make Your Own Cake Mix
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup chocolate chips
1/3 cup chopped nuts
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir together all ingredients, except chips and nuts. Spread in an 8-inch square pan. Sprinkle with chips and nuts. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes.

Chocolate Frosting

This recipe was found on allrecipes.com and then I tweaked it slightly.

4 1/8 cup powdered sugar
9 T. cocoa powder
9 T. butter, room temperature
7 1/2 T. milk (or use a flavored creamer, like me!)
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the confectioners' sugar and cocoa, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter until smooth, then gradually beat in sugar mixture alternately with the milk. Blend in vanilla. Beat until light and fluffy. If necessary, adjust consistency with more milk or sugar.

Tiff's Tips: Use a flavored creamer as a substitute for the milk. I used a hazelnut creamer and the frosting was so delicious! Be creative. This makes enough frosting to frost a two-layer round cake with a little bit left over.

Banana Sour Cream Cake

1 pkg. (2-layer size) yellow cake mix

3 eggs

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3)

1 cup sour cream

1/4 cup oil

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 pkg. (16 oz.) powdered sugar

1 cup finely chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 350°F. Beat first 5 ingredients with mixer on low speed just until moistened, stopping frequently to scrape bottom and side of bowl. Beat on medium speed 2 min. Pour into greased and floured 13x9-inch pan.
Bake 35 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan .Beat cream cheese and butter with mixer until well blended. Gradually add sugar, beating well after each addition.
Remove cake from pan. Carefully cut cake crosswise in half using serrated knife. Place 1 cake half, top-side down, on plate; spread with some of the cream cheese frosting. Top with remaining cake half, top-side up. Spread top and sides with remaining frosting. Press nuts into sides. Keep refrigerated.

NOTE: I made this for Olivia's baptism dinner today. The cake was one of the moistest cakes I have had. It was delicious, and everyone raved! Not to mention it looks fabulous. :) I also sprinkled a light amount of walnut crumbs on the top to make it look pretty. This is a great recipe for a crowd or dinner party. You can't go wrong here!

Triple Chocolate Cake

1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food cake mix
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix- I used sugar free
1 cup sour cream - I used fat free
1 cup applesauce
4 eggs
1/2 cup warm water
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, applesauce, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.
Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar.

My cake was done in 45 minutes - boy this is a GOOD cake!
taken from "Too Much Chocolate Cake" from allrecipes.com

Chocolate Texas Ranch Cake (super moist)

This is THE BEST Texas sheet cake you will EVER have. This is a 'famous' recipe from my sis-in-law. It was her Grandma Haws's recipe, and well-known over in eastern Idaho. Seriously...this is the best recipe! Every time I make it for potlucks or funerals it is always the first to go, and everyone wants the recipe. I made it over the weekend for a ward funeral and it was talked about quite a bit at church today. YUM!

1 c. water
4 Tbl. cocoa
2 cubes butter
2 c. sugar
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. soda
2 eggs
1 c. sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

Boil water, butter, and cocoa. Add to sugar, flour, salt, and soda. Beat well. Add eggs, sour cream, and vanilla. Beat well. Pour into a greased sheet cake pan. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Frosting for Texas Ranch Cake:
1 cube butter
4 tsp. cocoa
6 tsp milk
2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Boil butter, cocoa, and milk together. Add powdered sugar. Beat well. Add vanilla. Spread over warm cake.