Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Today was our "cooking day" at home. It was fun to spend time together creating something delicious! Big "C" has been begging to make this recipe for a couple of weeks now and finally we made the time. Who knew summer could be so busy? This recipe is so simple and so fun. It is pretty much like a big lava cake where the bottom of it turns into chocolate pudding. YUM! This recipe was in my grandmother's collections and is definitely an oldy but goodie! Add some whipped cream or cream to this chocolately surprise and give it a whirl!

Mmmmm. See the pudding on the bottom?

Warm cake and pudding with cold whipped cream. Delicious!

Wha La!

(I know I SERIOUSLY need some new hot pads!)

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Stir together in a bowl:

1 c. flour, 3/4 c. sugar, 2 tsp. baking powder, 2 Tbsp. cocoa, 1/4 tsp. salt

Stir in:

1/2 c. milk, 2 Tbsp. melted shortening, 1 c. chopped nuts (optional)

Topping:

1 c. brown sugar, 4 Tbsp. cocoa, 1 3/4 c HOT water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread batter in 9 inch square pan; sprinkle with mixture of brown sugar and cocoa. Pour hot water over entire batter. Bake for 45 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Enjoy!

Chocolate Cake Balls

Chocolate Cake Balls

I have been wanting to make these delicious little morsels since the first moment that I saw them on Bakerella. I just didn't have the time UNTIL .... I recently drove down to Texas with my mom and children to visit my sister and her family. My cute niece, "S" loves to cook and she whipped out the ingredients to make these Cake Balls. I was so excited. They do take a little bit of time, but they are simple and worth the wait. These little bite size pieces of heaven will cheer anybody up.. and a little goes a long way. One cake mix makes about 70 cake balls, so package some up and give to a neighbor or throw them in the freezer ... OR you will eat them ALL!

Bake a cake (any flavor)

After it has cooked and cooled some, smash it with a fork into cake crumbs.

1 bowl of cooked cake crumbs :)

Add one container of frosting (again, any flavor.... You can get really creative with combinations)

Mix the cake crumbs and frosting together

With your hand, roll crumbs and frosting into 1" balls and chill for a couple of hours

In a double broiler, melt some chocolate and dunk chilled cake balls in and coat.

After you cover the with the chocolate, place on a parchment lined pan and top with your favorite toppings. We used sprinkles, toffee, and white chocolate

Wha La! Enjoy!

My neice takes all of the ingredients babysitting and does this as an activity with the kids. They love it and everyone can participate.

Chocolate Banana Cake

Today was a great day. My mom, sister and I had a day of being pampered. Pedicures, hair cuts, girl time. It was so much fun. Later on while we were thinking about what to make for dinner, I noticed a large pile of very ripe bananas. Hmmmm. So, first I thought I would make my sister-in-laws Banana Cake, but there was no yellow cake mix to be found. HOWEVER, there was chocolate! I started thinking.... I love chocolate covered bananas and I love Chocolate Chip Banana Bread, so I was pretty sure chocolate would fit nicely into the equation. I mean, really, what does chocolate not go with? I was right! This cake is moist, flavorful and delicious - especially with the vanilla glaze. It really adds a nice sweetness to the cake! It was a perfect way to end our day of pampering. After all, any day that invovles being pampered wouldn't be complete without a little chocolate ... right?

Next time you have a pile of ripe bananas and don't want to make MORE Banana Bread.... Give this recipe a whirl. You'll love it!

Chocolate Banana Cake

4-5 ripe bananas
1 box chocolate cake
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup water

Vanilla Glaze

1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar
2 Tbsp. melted butter
about 1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Mash the bananas in a medium size bowl. Add the baking soda. Add the cake mix, eggs, oil and water. Mix together with an electric mixer until well blended. Pour into a greased 9 X 13 pan. Cook in the oven on 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until baked through.

Mix glaze ingredients together and pour over a cooled cake.

** I put my glaze on while the cake was hot because I was ready to taste it, but it will look prettier if you wait until it is cooled... IF you can wait!

Chinese Steamed Sponge Cake with Coconut Icing and A Really Great Book

The whole inspiration behind trying this cake was a book. This is not just any book. This is a book that touches all emotions, that makes you look inward, that makes you want to fight with every fiber of your being for that which is right and good. This is a book about an inspiring lady who had the faith, perseverance and tenacity to do just that. The title... "Life and Death in Shanghai" A personal account from the author, Nien Cheng ,of her survival during the Cultural Revolution. My mom chose this book for her book-club. Thanks, Mom, for sharing this wonderful book. It has inspired me. I give it 5 STARS!
Well, since this book is about the Chinese culture, my mom carried the theme into the rest of her bookclub. It was delightful. She even had the ladies, upon arrival, take off their shoes and put little booties on. The conversations were wonderful, the food was fabulous and the memories are cherished! Here is a snippet of our afternoon.

This was the Steamed Sponge Cake I made. Look below for the recipe.

Cake being steamed in my dutch oven.

This is how it looked when it was done steaming.

My beautiful Mom. The author of a wonderful afternoon.

These are homemade Pot Stickers that my Sister-In-Law made. I just had to take a picture. Aren't they beautiful? They were SO GOOD! I think I could have eaten a dozen by myself. Something I will be making very soon....


Here's the spread... Chinese Chicken Salad, Pot Stickers, Spring Rolls, Rice, Sesame Seed Rolls, Fortune Cookies, Chinese Sponge Cake, Herbal Tea, and lots of little Chinese goodies from the Chinese market. Oh and don't forget your chop stix! What fun.

This was a really easy recipe to make. I know there are more elaborate versions of this cake, but this worked out really well and was really good.

Chinese Steamed Sponge Cake with Coconut Icing

Sponge Cake

1 cup cake or pastry flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

4 eggs

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp almond extract

1/4 cup coconut milk

Coconut Icing:

2 TB plus 1 tsp pineapple juice

1 TB plus 2 tsp cornstarch

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup sugar

To Make the Cake: Line the bottom of a cake pan with parchment paper. Prepare a wok for steaming.Place the flour in a medium bowl. Sift in the baking powder and salt and set aside.In a separate bowl, add the sugar to the eggs and beat until they are frothy (about 3 minutes). Stir in the almond extract.Gradually add the flour mix to the egg mixture, stirring. Add the coconut milk. Stir until you have a smooth batter that is thoroughly mixed, but do not beat.Pour the batter into the pan (ideally it should only come 2/3 to 3/4 up the side of the pan). Steam for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool and remove from the pan, turning the cake over. Cut the cake into squares or diamond shapes.

To Make the Coconut Icing: In a small bowl, mix the pineapple juice and cornstarch and set aside.In a medium saucepan, bring the coconut milk and sugar to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add the pineapple juice/cornstarch mixture, stirring. Cook for a few minutes on medium-low heat to thicken. Cook for another minute, then remove and use to ice the cake. Chill the cake until the icing stiffens. Refrigerated in a sealed container, the icing will keep for a few days. It can be used again to ice another sponge cake, or as a simple (but sweet!) dessert for one to two people.

*** A few notes. I did not have a wok and so I used my dutch oven. It worked great. I also toasted some coconut to put on top of the icing. I think it was a delicious addition!