Happy birthday, Mom {The Perfect Yellow Cake}

Baking on the fritz has been off the fritz for some time now. My baking has diminished in frequency and my posting has become almost nonexistent. Just because I haven't written doesn't mean I haven't been baking. In fact, I baked up the perfect yellow cake just a few days ago. I know, I know....the perfect cake and I didn't even share the recipe? Don't fear, the world's best from scratch yellow birthday cake is about to follow. I can't take one ounce of credit for the creation of this cake recipe (I didn't even tweak a thing, not even the amount of vanilla extract). And I can't take an ounce of credit for the birthday in which was celebrated. That blessed day is all thanks to God who smiled down on the earth sixty six years ago when He gave life to my Mom.
October 16 is my Mom's birthday. I forget most everyone's birthdays now a days. I have a lot of them to remember - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. But I never forget my Mom's birthday. It is a day I am immensely thankful for because my Mom is my absolute best friend in the entire world. If I were into "BFF" bracelets then my Mom and I would each be sporting them. You know the kind I'm talking about. Each necklace or bracelet has half of a heart and when you put the two halves together you get a whole. The two friends together are "besties". This is the jewelry of elementary school but a principle that lasts a whole lot longer. Try forever.
For as long as I can remember my Mom has been my most faithful companion. Her steadfast love and endless care for me dates back to before I was born. She started pouring out her love for me while I was in the womb and she's never quit. She is the greatest blessing in my life.
It may seem a bit biased to call my Mom the best in the world but I have my reasons for such claims. She is level headed, wise, funny, giving, generous and selfless. It doesn't matter how much time we spend together she never runs out of things to say. She is always up for an outing and loves to wander and explore. Yet she also loves a relaxing game of Scrabble where no one keeps score. She laughs at Everybody Loves Raymond even if she's seen the episode ten times already. And she cries nearly every time she gives a prayer request or praise report in church.
Quite simply my Mom brings with her an ease and comfort everywhere she goes. If Mom is there then love is there, too. She is the glue that holds our family together. She has created a home that is sweet and inviting and always welcomes you with open arms.
On my Mom's birthday I wanted to make her the perfect cake because she is the perfect Mom for me. I read lots of cake reviews. I didn't want to bake a bomb. Finally I settled on a cake that required eight egg yokes - eight! I figured with that many egg yokes it had to be good. And I was right.
My Mom devoured more pieces of cake then she would like me to share so I will keep that number top secret (a little post-birthday present for her). Let's just say the cake was a home run, slam dunk, hit of a birthday cake. I give all my thanks to David who (according to AllRecipes) claims the fame this cake deserves.
If you want to celebrate your Mom with a yellow cake that will knock her socks off and show her how much you love her (because we all know that's exactly what a good cake says to a dessert loving Mom) then I suggest David's Yellow Cake. Save the egg whites and make an omelet. Or feed them to your dog. Either way the cake will be a hit and the egg whites will go to good use.
To top off your cake I suggest a chocolate cream cheese frosting. The measurements for my go-to frosting aren't exact. It starts with about a 1/4 cup melted butter, 2 cups confectioners sugar, 3 tablespoons half and half and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese. Have a cup of water handy to smooth out the frosting as you beat it with an electric mixer. When your taste tester deems it perfect you can then frost your cooled cake. Then stick sixty six candles in it and sing a happy birthday to your amazing Mother.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

The name of this post is "Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes" but really it should be called "An Unexpectedly Good Treat."
If you are like me then this combination of fruit, flour and chips all molded into one miniature cake sounds off-putting. Cupcakes should not contain bananas. Or chips for that matter. At least that's what I had always believed until I stumbled upon this recipe. In it I found an odd assortment of ingredients that I didn't believe could work well together in one paper lined muffin tin. But there it was, in black and white, topped with a chocolate cream cheese frosting. I found this recipe in my favorite cookbook, The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook that I keep referring to on this blog. I highly recommend it. Trust me, it's worth the splurge. Each recipe I've tried has been a success and these strange little cupcakes are no exception.
This unexpected recipe with unexpected ingredients actually produced an unexpectadly tasty result. The crumb of the cupcakes was just right thanks to the nontraditional method of preparing the batter with oil and whipped egg whites as opposed to good ol' butter. And the frosting made almost entirely of cream cheese was the perfect balance to the sweet banana of the light and airy cupcake below.
For reasons I can't explain, when baked at 350 degrees for twenty-two minutes, these strange bedfellows of ingredients came together to make perfectly round, perfectly moist cupcakes. I didn't see the success of these cupcakes coming but I am pleased to report that they were not at all an utter disaster - as I had expected.

While delivering these unique cupcakes to my dessert loving loved ones the lesson of the unexpected cupcake dawned on me...
There are sets of life circumstances that I often assume will be bad. I expect sickness, heartache, loneliness and trials to produce negativity in my life. I look at my life's road blocks and detours as things to just get through and survive.
But sometimes all of those circumstances can produce something unexpectedly good.
Joseph is a prime example of horrid circumstances working together for his ultimate good. He was sold into slavery and thrown in prison even though he had done nothing wrong. Most would say that his situation was rotten and unjust. Yet, God has something glorious in mind for Joseph. He took those undesirable circumstances and did something unexpectedly amazing with them and with Joseph.
God used Joseph to prepare Egypt for a coming famine. Through Joseph's interpretation of dreams, God was able to sustain the people of Egypt through years without a harvest. Even Joseph's brothers were spared thanks to the storehouse of food Joseph had set aside.
When Joseph's brothers came to Egypt in search of food they must have been shocked to find their brother, who they sold into slavery years ago, second in command and overseer of the lands of Egypt. Unexpected? You bet!
But Joseph said to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20).
God took a life that looked as good as dead and did something totally unexpected with it, He used it to save an entire nation. Joseph had been a slave and an inmate, not exactly the pedigree for second in command over a country. But that's how God works, He takes the unexpected and uses it to glorify His name and further His Kingdom.
That's exactly what He did with Joseph and that's exactly what He can still do today in the unexpected circumstances of my life and yours.
Multiple Sclerosis has thrown me a curve ball with the word, "unexpected" written all over it. But I believe in the ability and will of God to do extraordinary things with the unexpected. He can use my MS to bring praise to His name and further His Gospel. I don't know precisely how He plans to do that with my unexpected life just yet but I trust that the plan He has for me is being worked out even now, in the trials and difficulties of my illness.
Unexpected, yes. But good? Most certainly, yes. Even the most unlikely of life's ingredients can come together to make something beautiful. Just like Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes.

Happy Monday: Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake

Have you ever woken up to a day that feels, how shall I put it, blah? The weather is overcast. The days agenda for what lies ahead is the same old, same old. Your hair is flat and make up just isn't doing the trick to perk up your looks or your mood.
This isn't necessary a case of depression or even a day in the dumps. What you might be experiencing is what we Americans like to call "Monday."
You might think that the case of the Mondays only happens to those who wake up to the sound of an alarm and must trudge off to work after a blissful weekend away from the desk. But let me tell you, the Mondays happen to workers and non-workers alike. There is something inherent in the day itself that seems to foist a stale, lackluster mood onto us all.
Maybe it goes back to the childhood, grade school years - at least that's where I place my blame for lack of Monday enthusiasm. I never liked Mondays growing up. I loved Saturday and Sunday best of all. Let's just say I wasn't school's number one fan. I was, and still am, a home body. I left my house each morning and immediately started the hourly countdown till the final bell rang that would release me from the confines of the prison, I mean, school I attended. Needless to say graduation was one of the greatest days of my twenty four years thus far.
So you see this is why I blame my dislike for school on my dislike for Mondays. Somewhere out there on Monday there is a kid just like me wishing it were still the weekend, wishing they could just stay home and not go to the institutional setting of a classroom with a blackboard, stern teacher and cruel students. Somewhere there is a kid who just wants to stay home with Mom, eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch instead of standing in a cafeteria line picking through a blob of mystery meat. Somewhere there is a child who is sitting in class, embarrassed to raise their hand and ask a question for fear of mockery and snickers from fellow classmates. I get that kid. And I get why they don't ever want Monday to come.
Today I'm baking for that kid. I'm baking them a cake because on Monday, after a day spent back at an uncomfortable desk in a room flooded with harsh fluorescent lights and the stinging smell of disinfectant, there is nothing better than a cake sitting on the kitchen counter, freshly frosted and waiting to be enjoyed.
I can't bake a cake for every child who suffers from the case of the Mondays but I can bake a cake for the kids in my life who got up this morning and were met with the sight of school uniforms and lunch boxes. I pray that their day wasn't one of endless torture as they watched the clock, but I couldn't blame them if it felt tedious and never ending as they sat in the confines of a school that feels like a world away from home.
This cake is a cake to celebrate that even Mondays spent in school give way to Tuesdays. The dismissal bell always rings. The bus always takes you back home. And a pair of play clothes is always waiting in the drawer.
And, as hard as it is to believe in elementary school, Mondays are a day made by the Lord. They are beautiful in His sight no matter how dreaded they may feel to you and I. Monday can be just as blessed and beautiful as Saturday and Sunday if we choose to look at the glory of God in our mopey Monday. 
So here's a cake to kick off the week! May yours be one of immeasurable goodness and bountiful blessings! Happy Monday.

For your own Happy Monday cookie cake creation visit Sally's Baking Addiction for this chocolate chip cookie cake. (Hand written message was my own personal touch.)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies {flour-less}

A flour-less cookie? It sounds like an oxymoron. How could a cookie possibly be flour-less? Gluten-less I get. Even those with a severe allergy or intolerance to gluten can have a cookie made with almond flour, coconut flour or even oat flour (as long as its gluten free). But no flour whatsoever? The whole concept baffles my baking mind.
And so I had to give it a try. Five simple ingredients were all the recipe called for to create a Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie….without flour.

Here's the recipe (from memory, that's how simple it is!):
1 cup peanut butter (creamy)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips.

And then, equally as simply, the instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350. Mix the first four ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Form dough into tablespoon balls and place them on parchment lined baking sheet. Put in the oven for about 8 to 10 minutes. Take out of oven and let cool on sheet for about a minute. Remove from sheet onto wire rack to cool. Eat.

I will be honest, I was extremely skeptical of how this recipe could possibly turn out with any level of success. But I was curious, too, so I decided to test out the theory of flour-less cookies and see if this phenomenon could actually produce a delicious cookie.
Amazingly enough, the cookies didn't just "turn out" they were stand-outs! Unlike a normal peanut butter cookie with a faint peanut flavor, the flour-less cookie had an intense peanut flavor that said, "I'm a nut and I'm here! Eat up and enjoy!" There was no flour to dilute the goodness of a a rich peanut butter flavor. And the chocolate chips weren't overpowered by thick dough. The pleasure of the flour-less cookie is that it highlights all the goodness of a peanut butter chocolate chip cookie without being diluted by the addition of a flavorless gluten invader! Without flour every bite concentrates on peanut butter, sugar and chocolate. Flour-less cookies don't just taste delicious, they make logical sense, too!

Once again there is a lesson to be found in this simple cookie. Sometimes I think I know what I need. To bake I thought I needed flour. In life I often fall into the temptation of believing that I need to be healed from MS or I fall into the trap of believing that I need to put on weight to be happy, find friendship to be fulfilled and have a significant other to be validated. But the truth is that none of those things are necessary.
All that I will ever need I have today, right now in this moment because I have Christ. He is all I need. He is my all in all. He is the peanut butter and the chocolate chips. The rest is just flour. It can make my life denser but none of those extras will add to the true goodness of what I already have as a child of God. The truly divine richness and joy of life is found in Jesus. And I am already His and He is already mine.
If someday I am healed of this MS or I find a Godly man to share life with then that will be a wonderful blessing. But the bottom line is I don't need those blessings to be blessed, full and content. True contentment and true joy are found in being full of Jesus Christ, overflowing with His love.
And there's no flour required.

Yellow cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting {Welcome Home Cake}

Have you noticed that I sort of just disappeared? I have a good excuse, I promise. 

Today brings to an end a sixteen day journey up and down the eastern side of the United States. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? The excursion began by heading down through the hills of West Virginia, the southern megapolis of Charlotte, North Carolina and into the hot and humid South Carolina. For one week my parents and I spent our yearly week vacation in Hilton Head Island. I'll spare you the details but the week didn't go quite as planned. The heat was brutal and took a toll on my muscles, sending me into a state of fritz. 

As the hottest week of the year in Hilton Head drew to a close so did our beach vacation. Next stop: Annapolis, Maryland. Mom and I spent three days wandering the harbor and taking in the historic charm Annapolis has to offer. Then it was on to our next and final stop, Brewster, New York. 

This last stop was for a surprise seventy fifth birthday party for my Aunt Joyce. The party went off without a hitch and the surprise was a success! 

After spending an extra day in New York visiting with family, Mom and I packed our bags and pointed our car in the direction of home. We both eagerly stuffed the car to the brim and pushed the gas pedal with a bit more force. More than anything we both just wanted to get home. 

So you see this is why my baking adventures have come to a screeching halt. Besides a large pan of apple crisp my baking has been nonexistent, something I write with sadness, not relief. I've missed the habit of baking and being in the kitchen. I've missed getting my hands dirty and smelling the sweet scent of accomplishment rising in the oven. I'm beyond relieved to be home not just for the comfort of my own bed but the familiarity and convenience of my own oven and cupboards stocked full of baking necessities. 

Being away for over two weeks reminded me that there truly is no place like home. It is so easy to look at dots on the map and pictures of beautiful places and think, "Oh, if only I were there! Life would be so much better, easier and happier if only I were there!" (wherever there might be.) But then you get there and realize that "there" wasn't all it was cracked up to be. The traffic is chaotic. The kitchen is lacking the most basic of cutting utensils. The humidity is unbearable. The store aisles are confusing. The bed pillows are awkward, with lumps in all the wrong places. 

Before too long I'm longing for home.

Now don't get me wrong, my home and the town I live in is far from perfect. But it's home. Even with all of its flaws, drawbacks and imperfections I would choose it over any other place in the world. I would pick my house even though the dishwasher doesn't work, the doors never shut properly, the shopping centers have seen better days and the neighbors' yards are far from pristinely manicured. I love my hometown despite the fact that it is deemed "the mistake on the lake" and desperately lacking in the area of nightlife and "excitement".

What I learned in these past two weeks is that what I have right at home, my little simple life, is just right. Sometimes I lament the status of my life and wish it would change. I want different health, a group of friends, a purposeful job and a social life. Instead of soaking in the goodness of my life just the way it is I start looking around at what other people have and I immediately start to covet, lust and desire a life different then my own. 

But the truth is that desiring someone else's life is a lot like desiring another town or an exotic location. It may sound appealing but the reality is that there is no place like home. No matter how great someone else's life may look from afar it has its flaws. It may look perfect on the surface but live in it for a while and the allure will likely wear off. Before you know it you'll be longing for your life back.

My life isn't perfect. My health isn't perfect. I don't have friends or any social circle to call my own. I don't have a date on Friday night or a Bible study group on Thursday morning. 

But I love my life and I wouldn't trade it for any other. I wouldn't wish away my illness or trade my solitary life for all the popularity in the world. If God sees it fit to heal me then hallelujah! And if He gives me friends then thank you God! But I'm not wishing away the time I have now and the life I have now. I am going to embrace it, love it and soak in all its goodness because that's what it is, good. Life is good. My life, the way it is right now in this moment, in this town, is good and I don't want to miss a minute of it by wishing it were different.

Today I am celebrating just that, the good life I have, by baking a cake that to me says, "welcome home." A yellow sheet cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting. When I was away at college before I would come home for the weekend I was known to call my Mom and request a yellow cake with chocolate frosting to be warm and ready upon my arrival. Mom never disappointed. She would have that cake timed perfectly so that the inviting, comforting scent of cake baking in the oven would fill the house as I pulled in the driveway. That cake was my welcome home banner, the perfect way to say hello, a warm embrace with every bite. 

So in honor of coming home to the place where I belong, to the place where I have been planted and where I have been given a good, full and beautiful life I am baking my welcome home cake. I'm back and I couldn't be happier. 

The recipe for the yellow sheet cake can be found at Baking Bites (http://bakingbites.com/2005/10/happy-birthday-to-me/). 

This is a must repeat recipe! At first I was skeptical that the cake had turned out. It looked dense - not what I expected. But my taste testers assured me the cake had a delicious flavor and wasn't dense at all. I topped the cake with a chocolate frost. I didn't use a recipe, just the directive of my Mom as she guided me in the art of eyeballing chocolate frosting with a touch of cream cheese. My measurements were something along the lines of half a stick of butter, half a cup semi-sweet chips, a couple of squares of dark baking chocolate, a few tablespoons of hot water, about 2-3 cups of confectioners sugar and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese. I melted the butter and chocolate first then beat in the sugar, adding water as needed. Finally I added the cream cheese and beat on high for a few seconds to make sure everything was fully combined. The result was perfect! The consistency was thick yet spread well and most importantly was a delight for the taste buds!

If you have something coming home or you just want to celebrate the blessing of being in your own home sweet home I suggest baking this cake. Home is always a place worth celebrating, so go ahead and bake a cake. 

Vanilla Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Certain foods and the scents they produce can be real life time machines. Take, for example, white cake with chocolate frosting. When I smell a simple white cake baking in the oven coupled with the sweet aroma of whipped butter, cream cheese and chocolate I am taken back to my childhood grade school days.
Some days I would come home from school and, for no particular reason, my Mom would have a yellow cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting warm out of the oven (she never could wait for the cake to cool entirely before frosting). Mom didn't need a birthday or a big celebration to bake a cake.
Today in Northern Pennsylvania the air had a crisp chill and a breeze that seemed to whisper, "fall is coming." I could practically smell freshly sharpened pencils and hear school buses picking up loads of children weighed down with ridiculously heavy backpacks. The school year is about to come and the weather is preparing children and parents for the coming change in daily routine.
It only seemed fitting that I follow the lead of God's changing seasons and bake the treat that takes me back to my own school experience. I tweaked the memory just slightly. Instead of a two layer cake I baked cupcakes. Still the scent was just the same as I remember. When I opened the oven I was transported back to elementary school. I remembered how the best part of my days as a school girl was always walking back through my front door into the safety, security and comfort of home. Home truly has always been sweet. Sometimes it was extra sweet because of the cake in the oven but it didn't need dessert to be the place that warmed my heart. Home has always sweet because of the love shared within its walls.
So here's to home, freshly baked cake and sweet memories.
Childhood passes but the memories don't need to fade. All you have to do is bake up a cake or a cookie or whatever treat takes you back to days gone by. By simply stepping back into the kitchen, putting on an apron and baking up something sweet you, too, can go on a journey in your own personal time machine. Who knew so much could be experienced while simply baking a batch of basic vanilla cupcakes?

To try out a vanilla cupcake recipe with chocolate cream cheese frosting visit Glorious Treats at http://www.glorioustreats.com/2011/07/perfect-vanilla-cupcakes-recipe.html.

Crisps and Cookies

With each new day and each new recipe I'm all the more convinced that baking is the perfect way to bless other people. Baking is a way to serve. Baking is a way to show love, care and compassion.
For the past four years I've been asking God to use me. I've felt so useless just stuck at home, trapped in an unpredictable body with unpredictable nerves. I've wanted to be a giver, doing for others and serving people in a way that would show the love of Christ. I've cried out to God and begged Him to make me useful for Him.
At first I thought He wasn't listening or didn't hear me because my health just worsened and my life became more limited. The ways I used to serve and give can't be part of my life in my physical state. As I've watched my life become reduced in so many ways I've faced moments and seasons of frustration, feeling that God was leaving me out to dry.
But then something happened. I found that God could use me right here at home, in my own kitchen. All I had to do was bake and I could start sharing blessings.
Isn't it amazing how God is working even when we feel like He's gone silent? For years I wondered what God was doing with my life and how He would ever make anything out of it given my physical condition. But He doesn't need me to be in perfect health to be busy in the kitchen. He just needs me to have a willing spirit.

Today my spirit has been very willing. So willing in fact that I baked up two different desserts for two different crowds.
First off was a Blueberry Peach Crumble (or Crisp). These seasonal treats were for some of my favorite church ladies who came over for a luncheon. I baked up my crumbles/crisps in individual ramekins and topped them with vanilla ice cream. I love individual sized desserts, they are special and, of course, cute! The golden brown, bubbling crumbles topped with a heaping scoop of refreshing ice cream were truly the perfect dessert for an August afternoon.
The days second adventure in the kitchen was for my all my nieces and nephews. Those kiddos are growing quite accustomed to my daily dessert delivery. But seriously, what kid wouldn't like a new dessert delivered every afternoon to their doorstep? Especially when it comes hot out of the oven and contains chocolate chips.
The recipe I used for my cookies is the infamous Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie. To be honest I'm not sure if the recipe I used is the legitimate "top secret original recipe." I saw some conflicting opinions on what goes into the famed cookie but, either way, these cookies were a big hit. I choose a recipe that didn't use oatmeal (a controversy in the blogging world) and went for a recipe that used instant coffee powder. I baked them at 300 degrees for about fifteen minutes. At first I was reluctant to bake them at such a low temperature for so long but reviewers all over the internet swear by this method so I gave it a go. I'm so glad I did! The cookies were moist, a little puffy and slightly crispy. They turned golden but not burnt. The cookies looked like little balls of baked doughy perfection and everyone who tasted them agreed.
Let's just say that the Neiman Marcus cookie is famous for a reason. I think they just became by go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. Way to go Neiman….or Marcus. You came up with one seriously scrumptious cookie.

For today's recipes check out these sites...
For the crumble/ crisp: http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/blueberry-peach-crumble/
I followed this recipe almost precisely except that I added a teaspoon of cinnamon to the fruit base. I'm a cinnamon lover. The scent… the taste… I just can't get enough cinnamon in my life.
For the cookies: http://neimanmarcuscareers.com/story/recipe.shtml
Didn't change a thing! Absolute perfection.

Mini Brownie Ice Cream Cupcakes!

Girls just wanna have fun. Cyndi Lauper had it right back in the 1980's. Well, she had some things right. Not her hair style but that's a whole other story.
But back to the fun.
In that fun-filled spirit today I baked up little mini brownie crusts for little mini ice cream cakes. This dessert is seriously fun! Exactly what I want. I would like to tell you that I played Cyndi Lauper's #1 billboard hit while I baked these little mini brownies but I would be fibbing and I'm not into that. I believe honesty is the best policy. But I can honestly say that these little treats are enjoyable to create even without a soundtrack of feminism in the background. Feminism is another thing I'm not into. But again, that's another story.
So, the mini ice cream cakes. You might be wondering what recipe I used, where I came up with the genius idea and how they turned out. First of all, I did not dream up this tantalizing treat without the assistance of Pinterest, my favorite place to scour for clever ideas. Joy the Baker provided inspiration for my little cupcake, brownie, ice cream cake delicacies. You can find her blog and this particular recipe at  http://joythebaker.com/2009/04/brownie-bottom-ice-cream-cupcakes/.
For my own personal miniature cupcake, brownie, ice cream cakes I used a different brownie recipe. That can be found here: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/best-brownies/. These brownies are highly recommended with over five thousand reviewers putting in a good word for the little cocoa bars. I felt quite safe using the recipe and was not disappointed. They turned out perfectly. I baked them in my lined muffin tin at 350 for about eight minutes. They were perfectly cooked through without being too dry or too moist. The perfect base for the rest of my cake treat!
After allowing the brownies to cool I scooped out ice cream onto the tops of my partially filled cups. I chose mint chocolate chip, peanut butter cup and chocolate chip cookie dough as my ice creams. I filled six different cups with each ice cream making a grand total of eighteen cakes. I refroze the cakes while I made the chocolate topping Joy recommended. After putting on my chocolate top (working quickly so the ice cream didn't melt, just as Joy advised) I put the treats back in the freezer until serving time. Then, last but not least, I cheated and used a prepared whipped topping. No whip cream from scratch tonight. I guess you could say that purchasing the whip topping was more fun!

Today my tasters were a house full of kids and adults with seriously intense sweet teeth! The personal sized ice cream cakes were a hit with young and old.
Here's a heads up to any parent who might feed this treat to their child, have them eat it outside! These decedent desserts are seriously messy. I recommend a plate underneath and a handful of napkins (or Viva paper towels) at the ready.

Today I learned that sometimes it's just fun to prepare a cute, miniature, special treat for sugar loving loved ones. And girls just want to have fun. So my advice for the day is, ladies, scoot on into the kitchen and bake up something adorable and definitely something fun! Oh, and turn on some Cyndi Lauper while you're at it!

Peanut Butter Pie

Today I fell into a trap I like to call self-pity.
I can't speak for every chronic illness sufferer, but I know that for me the trap of becoming overly self-involved is as dangerous as quicksand. When my body is suffering all of my thoughts and attention focuses in on me, what I'm feeling and how utterly miserable I am.
I sound like a joy, don't I?
MS has set this trap for me and I've walked right into it, as if unaware. I use the excuse of my pain as justification. I rationalize being consumed with myself because I've been dealt a difficult hand.The truth is, no matter how severely my nerves may be on the fritz or how lousy I may be feeling I never have a  "Be Self-involved For Free" card.
Thankfully, baking provides the perfect outlet to get outside of myself and start thinking about someone else - their needs, wants and desires. Baking takes my eyes off me and puts them on the people around me. How can I bless them? What is their favorite treat? Can I perk up someone's day with a sweet goodie baked up especially for them?

Today that is my mission: bake up a blessing.
My baking experiment today is an ode to my sister-in-law, Kim. She is the full time mother of eight. That fact alone makes her deserving of a bakery full of all things chocolate. But Kim isn't just a mother, she's a great mother and a great friend and a great sister.
When I was considering what to bake today I didn't even know where to begin. Cookies were definitely out (just read yesterday's post). There were no peaches calling my name from the kitchen counter and cake just didn't sound quite right. It wasn't until I heard about Kim's stressful day ahead that the perfect baked good dawned on me. Peanut Butter Pie, Kim's favorite.
Today I was tempted to think of only myself and the physical suffering MS has been throwing my way. The trap of self-involvement was large and I was well on my way to being locked in its grasp…until I got back to baking.
When my hands are in a bowl of heavy cream, peanut butter and sugar I'm not thinking about me. I'm thinking about the goodness of a dessert delight that can brighten the life of someone I love. Baking is the perfect way to banish self-involvement and get back to blessing others.

Today's recipe comes from AllRecipes. I tweaked it just slightly. I upped the amount of Oreo cookies in the crust by about a 1/3 cup. I also decreased the amount of sugar in the filling by about a 1/4 cup. For garnish I used whipped cream along the edges with sprinkled chopped Reese's cups on top. Finally, a drizzle of chocolate syrup was the finishing touch!
All in all I would call this pie a success - and not just because of the taste or texture. It was a success because it was about more than ingredients or a perfect indulgence after dinner. This pie was about showing love and baking a blessing.

If you'd like the recipe so you, too, can bake up a Peanut Butter Pie blessing you can find the recipe I used at http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Peanut-Butter-Pie-I/Detail.aspx.

Failed: White Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies

Today's recipe comes to you with lackluster enthusiasm. I hit the ground this morning low on spunk and pep. I attribute my low energy to the LDN - low dose naltrexone. Last night was my first night taking medication for MS. There are few side effects with this particular medication. Unfortunately there is one sacrifice that must be made during the first week on the meds: vivid, frequent, crazy dreams. I can attest to the severity of this side effect. It feels like I was running in circles all last night, not getting my beauty sleep.
It is only to be expected that my sleeplessness took its toll on my baking adventure of the day. It was a half-hearted effort that resulted in a decent, edible but far from exciting cookie.
The recipe, "White Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies" sounded divine. Cheesecake itself sounds luscious and the simplicity of a cookie can't be beat - especially when baking on empty. The pictures showed a soft, pillowy cookie with a light crumb and golden hue. With high hopes, I set out my butter and cream cheese to get them softened and ready for baking.
After mixing all of my ingredients and refrigerating my dough for the recommended two hours, I popped my little balls of dough in the oven on a parchment lined baking sheet. Convect 350 instead of bake at 375. Ten minutes later and my cookies were looking good. A golden brown crisp was forming on the edges and the tops were almost precisely like the picture. I pulled them out of the oven, let them cool for a few minutes and then transferred them to a sheet of foil.
From my vantage point the cookies looked perfect but from the mouth of my official taste tester came a different story. Her face said it all: these cookies were not a home-run, smash-hit goodie.
I left the next few batches in the oven for a few minutes longer at the directive of my taste tester but still the cookies never met the high expectations I had set for them. With every bite the cookies just simply fell flat….

As you know I usually post a photo and link to a particular recipe at the end of each baking experiment recap. Not so today. The recipe was a failure. The pictures were just so-so. My recommendation for today is this, don't get discouraged when your cookies fail and your tasters give your creation two thumbs down. Just bake again tomorrow. Which is precisely what I'm going to do.
Every day won't be the greatest day of your life and every cookie won't be "the best ever." Simply get up and give it another go. Learn from the failure and use a different recipe the next time around.
As for me, I won't be baking up another batch of White Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Cookies again any time soon. I'm moving on to another recipe, another dessert type and another day of baking.
But first, some much needed sleep.

Chocolate Layer Cake

The Lord said, "Let them eat cake."
Okay, so maybe that was Queen Marie Antoinette. The Lord didn't use that precise confectionary terminology but it isn't too far fetched, is it? The Lord tells us to rejoice, praise and worship! In America most celebratory activities are usually accompanied by balloons, streamers, and most importantly, cake. So it would follow that God is practically commanding His children to eat cake. Or at least bake it!
Today, in this celebratory spirit of rejoicing in the goodness of day given by God, I am baking a classic chocolate cake with two layers and chocolate buttercream frosting.

While researching chocolate cake recipes I vacillated between all-purpose flour and cake flour. My gut instinct was to go for the cake flour, after all it has cake in the very name. But I couldn't find a recipe with good reviews that used cake flour. Every "best-ever" recipe used all-purpose flour and expresso powder. I must admit, this confuses me. I thought cake flour would be a given in cake?
Part of me wanted to scrap the reviewers advice and swap out the all-purpose flour for the cake flour but the more I read the more unsure of myself I became. Recipe developers and baking bloggers swear by recipes that use all-purpose flour. I am far from either of the above so who am I to question their tried and tested instructions?
So all-purpose flour it is.
The recipe I used has been deemed "the best chocolate cake recipe ever." Sounds like a sure thing, doesn't it?
Dear chocolate cake lover, I am pleased to tell you that this cake turned out! I don't know if I should deem it a "sure thing" or just beginners luck but my cake didn't split or crumble. It rose just the way the pictures and reviewers said it would. The texture was moist and the scent undeniably chocolatey!
The icing I am not so pleased to say was not such a resounding success. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't terrible and it was certainly edible but my tasters (my Mom along with a house full of kids and chocolate-loving sister-in-law) weren't loving it as much as they were loving the cake itself.

Both cake and icing come from yet another baking blogger. You can find the recipe here, http://addapinch.com/cooking/the-best-chocolate-cake-recipe-ever/. I would highly recommend using the cake recipe but finding a different buttercream frosting recipe. Maybe your grandmother's secret recipe instead? I don't have a grandmother with a secret recipe so I will use that as an excuse for less-than perfect cake frosting.
No matter whose recipe you use for frosting, enjoy your cake and, if you like sugar, eat it too because today is a day worth celebrating with a big fat piece of chocolate cake. It is worthy of a party simply because God created it and blessed you and I with it. So dig in to today and to your cake, too!