Plum Spice Cake

This is also another recipe that only comes out at Christmas time ... there is something about plums and spices that just "smells" like the season when it is baking in the oven.

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

5 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg

2 small jars of plum baby food

1 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs, beaten

2 cups chopped pecans

Topping:

1/2 stick butter (4 Tbsp.)

1 cup powdered sugar

1 lemon (juice and rind)

1. Mix flour, sugar and spices together in a bowl.

2. Add the plums, oil and eggs to the flour mixture and mix well. Do not use a mixer for this, just a wooden spoon.

3. Fold in the pecans.

4. Pour into a well greased Bundt pan and bake at 350 degrees for an hour or until done when tested with a toothpick.

5. Prepare the topping mixture once you take the cake out of the oven. Melt the butter in a small pan, add sugar, lemon juice and rind and mix well.

6. Poke holes in the cake with a toothpick when it is still in the pan and pour half of the topping mixture while the cake is still warm.

7. When cake has cooled, remove from pan and place on a plate. Poke holes with a toothpick on top of the cake and spoon the rest of the topping on it.

Note: This is one of those cakes that tastes better as it rests for a day or two. If you do not like cinnamon, leave out the cinnamon and nutmeg, and instead use 2 tsp. Allspice.

Shortbread Buttons

My Aunty Win in Canada gave me this recipe 23 years ago when I visited her for Christmas. I make this for Sarah every Christmas ... this is her own special cookie.

3/4 cup corn flour/starch

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup butter, softened

1. Mix corn flour, sugar and flour together.

2. Blend softened butter into the flour mixture until a soft smooth dough forms.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 1 1/2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten with a fork.

4. Bake at 300 degrees for 20 - 25 minutes or until edges are very lightly browned.

5. This recipe makes 3 dozen.

Note: If dough is too soft to handle, cover and chill in fridge for about an hour.

Sugar Cookies

Sarah and I have been making sugar cookies since she was old enough to push a cookie cutter into dough. We make and decorate these cookies together every Christmas. And when I am not looking she still pinches the dough and eats it raw.

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 cup butter, softened

1 egg, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla

2 3/4 cups plain flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. cream of tartar

1. Mix together flour, baking powder and cream of tartar and set aside.

2. Blend together butter and powdered sugar. Add beaten egg and vanilla and mix well.

3. Gradually add flour and mix together. Flatten dough into a disc, place in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for two hours or overnight.

4. Roll dough out on floured board and cut into shapes. If dough gets too soft, put back in fridge to harden. I usually cut the disc into half and work with only one part while the other stays in the fridge.

5. Place on lightly greased cookie sheets and bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 -15 minutes.

6. Allow to cool in pan for 5 - 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

7. Decorate cooled cookies.

Note: I use a baking stone for all my cookies so I never have to grease.

We use a simple powdered sugar and water glaze that we color with food coloring.

Maui Banana Bread

Since we are on the topic of bananas, here is a banana bread recipe that I have been making for years. I found this recipe in a cookbook called The Compleat I Hate to Cook Book when I was first learning to cook and I certainly did not hate to cook! Sarah will eat slices of this bread plain or spread with cream cheese (added by Sarah: also with honey butter). When it is a couple of days old I love to toast it and then butter it ... yummy!

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup shortening

6 ripe bananas, mashed

4 eggs, well beaten

1 tsp. salt

3 tsp. baking powder

1. Cream the sugar and shortening, until light and fluffy.

2. Add the mashed bananas and eggs to the creamed mixture, and mix well.

3. Then add the dry ingredients and fold in until just moistened. Don't overmix.

4. Bake in a greased loaf pan at 350 degrees for 45 - 60 minutes. Toward the end of the cooking time, check often to make sure that bread does not brown too much. Use a toothpick to to make sure that it is done.

5. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool more.

Note: This is a very forgiving recipe ... I've made it with four bananas before and it was still excellent. The bananas have to be really ripe for this recipe to be at its best.

Chunky Monkey Banana Muffins

I made up this recipe for Sarah one Sunday morning when she had some girlfriends over for a sleepover and they wanted something with banana and chocolate. These warm muffins disappeared very quickly!

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3 medium ripe bananas

1 egg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. In a large bowl combine dry ingredients.

2. In another bowl mash bananas well. Add egg, oil and vanilla and mix well.

3. To the banana mixture, add the dry ingredients until just moistened. Fold in the chocolate chips.

4. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin pans, half full.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 18 - 22 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to wire rack to cool completely or to serve.

6. Makes 12 medium sized muffins.

I have also used a topping from the Cappuccino Muffin recipe and added 1/4 cup toasted chopped walnuts to the topping, and it has been scrumptious.

Cappuccino Muffins

Sarah and I do not drink coffee but we love these muffins which are wonderful with tea or a glass of cold milk. The coffee and chocolate melding together in the muffins actually improves the flavor the next day. This recipe makes 18 medium sized muffins. I do not like giant muffins but if you do, you can increase the amount of batter in the pans and bake them a little longer.

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. instant coffee granules

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg

1 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Topping:

6 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup cold butter

1. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, sugars, baking powder, coffee granules, cinnamon and salt.

2. Whisk the egg, milk, melted butter and vanilla. Stir into the dry ingredients until just moistened.

3. Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Fill greased muffin pans three-quarters full.

5. For topping: combine the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Sprinkle topping over muffin mixture in pan until all is used up.

6. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 - 22 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of muffin comes out clean.

7. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan. Serve warm or store in airtight container when muffins are completely cold.

Halloween Treats

The American Heart Association will be having a Halloween bake sale at work and I decided to bake some treats. This easy never-fail fudge recipe is a staple at our house during the holidays. Sarah's friends will come over and sit with the tin of fudge on their laps.

Easy Fudge

3/4 cup margarine or butter

3 cups sugar

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 pkg (12 oz) semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 jar ( 7 oz) jet puffed marshmallow creme

1 tsp. vanilla essence

1. Butter a 13 x 9 inch glass pan.

2. Put sugar, milk and butter into a heavy saucepan and cook over a medium heat; stirring constantly.

3. When mixture comes to a gentle rolling boil; cook for an additional 5 minutes.

4. Remove saucepan from heat. Stir in chocolate chips until completely dissolved.

5. Add marshmallow creme and mix thoroughly.

6. Pour into prepared pan and set aside to cool. I usually will let the fudge set overnight before cutting into squares.

This bundt cake is a new recipe I tried out. It is a very moist cake that is wonderful with tea or coffee.

Milk Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 milk chocolate candy bar (7 oz.) broken into pieces

1/2 cup chocolate syrup

1 cup butter, softened

4 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup buttermilk

1. In a heavy saucepan melt the candy bar pieces with the chocolate syrup; stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

3. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.

4. Stir in chocolate mixture and vanilla.

5. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, starting and ending with the flour.

6. Pour into a greased and floured 10-inch fluted tube or bundt pan. Bake at 350 deg. for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes in pan before removing and cooling on a wire rack.

7. When cake is completely cool decorate with powdered sugar or a chocolate glaze. I did a Sandra Lee and used two tablespoons of canned fudge frosting that I melted over low heat and then drizzled over the cake. When the drizzle was almost set I mixed about two heaping tablespoons of powdered sugar with enough milk to make a glaze. I colored this with orange coloring, put it into a sandwich bag, cut a tiny piece of the tip and drizzled the orange glaze over the chocolate one.

Note: I used Hershey's milk chocolate bar for this recipe. And when you eat this cake you can actually get a subtle underlying flavor of the chocolate bar! (Since this is a new recipe I put a little batter in a ramekin and baked that for a taste ... yummy).