Praise the heavens!  I got a new cookbook!  I think I was in a cookbook rut.  I found myself relying on the same two cookbooks day after day for my baking indulgence.  Granted, they’re great cookbooks- charming, attractive and funny- but I had heard all their stories, seem all of their dress shirts, and laughed at all their jokes.  I needed something new.

Just when I was about to accept my circumstance, a charming new love came into my life. Sweets by Patty Pinner is my new darling.  This book is more than just a collection of recipes.  Sweets is a gathering of family memories.  In my life food is all about family and memories, so this book has quickly become so so dear to my heart.

Sweets is a southern style cookbook.  The recipes are extremely approachable.  Some of the cakes are made with (gasp!) cake mix, and then fancied up with additional ingredients.  The family pictures are utterly charming and the stories that go along with each recipe are really touching.  I read this book, cover to cover on an airplane, like a novel.  I just love it!

Let me tell you about this strawberry cake.  First things first- it’s sweet and moist and covered in cream cheese frosting and pink tinted coconut.  The best part?  It’s pink on the inside.  Pink!  Come on!  Who doesn’t like pink cake?  This is the kind of dessert that needs to be presented on your prettiest cake platter, under the spot light in your china cabinet.  It’s a show cake.  But it’s also really delicious.  And…  with the fabulous presentation of the cake, and the inevitable oooohs and aaaaahs you’ll get from guests, you’ll NEVER have to tell anyone just how easy it was to make.  It’ll be our little secret.

Southern Style Strawberry Cake

from: Sweets

Print this recipe!

1 (18.5 ounce) box white cake mix (without pudding)

1 (3 ounce) package strawberry jello

1 Tablespoon self rising flour

4 teaspoons granulated sugar

3/4 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

1/2 cup water

1/3 cup fresh strawberries, finely diced.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

To make the cake, combine to cake mix, Jello, flour and sugar in a large bowl.  Mix well.  Add the oil.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition  Add the water and strawberries and mix well.  Divide the batter evenly into three 8-inch round baking pans that have been oiled and floured.  Bake for 25-35 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the layers pull away from the sides of the pan.

Transfer the layers from the oven to wire racks.  Let them cool, still in their pans, for 10 minutes.  After 10 minutes, run a knife around the inside edge of each pan, then unmold each layer onto the racks to cool completely.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 (8 ounce) block cream cheese, softened

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened

2 (1 pound) boxes powdered sugar

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

pink food coloring

4 sliced strawberries

To make the frosting, in a bowl combine the cream cheese and butter.  Beat until soft and pliable and no lumps remain.  Add one box of the powdered sugar, salt and vanilla extract.  Beat until incorporated.  Add the second box of sugar and mix until incorporated.  If you would like a smoother consistency, and a slash of milk.  If you would like a thicker consistency, and a bit more powdered sugar until the desired consistency is achieved.

Put the coconut in a small bowl and sprinkle with two or three drops of pink die.  Mix with hands to distribute the color and wash hands immediately.  Once the cake is frosted, decorate the top of the cake with the shredded coconut and sliced strawberries. Enjoy!  Happy Strawberry Summer!

So you’ve found a swell girl, and bought a swell ring.  You want to pop the question?  Why not let a cake do all the heavy lifting in the question department?  Even if a cake asks the question though, bended knee is still essential.   Essential!

Pop the question with this Red Velvet Engagement Cake.  With this two-tiered, cream cheese frosted cake, I’m sure any lady would say yes- even if only to get at the cake faster.  I’m kidding… she loves you too.  

It all started when 4 layers of red velvet cake met loads of cream cheese frosting.  I baked off two 8-inch rounds and two 6-inch rounds, frosted them in cream cheese frosting, and layered the smaller on top of the larger cake with the help of two dowel supports.  

Recipes for the delicious cake and frosting are here on my blog.  And if you have any questions about batter amounts… well, email me!  Don’t be shy, say hi!

The outside of the cake is decorated with a simple pearl boarder, pink dots, fresh pink roses and greet gum paste leaves.  The fresh flowers are secured within the cake by tiny plastic vases that go into the cake with just a bit of water to keep the flowers from wilting.  So clever! 

These are simple Lemon Scented Buttermilk Cupcakes with Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting, decorated with fondant flowers and edible pearls.

Cream cheese frosting is one of my favorite toppings for cakes and cupcakes!  From citrus scented cakes, to rich chocolate cupcakes, cream cheese frosting is a decadent and versatile cake topping.

Cream cheese frosting is also fairly easy to make.  But what happens when cream cheese frosting goes wrong?

Have you ever found yourself with a mixing bowl full of curdled cream cheese frosting?  Ugh! How frustrating!  It’s more than frustrating… it’s an outrage, and I’m here to get to the bottom of it.

I’d experienced my fair share of curdled cream cheese.  While I don’t claim to understand the science behind curdled cream cheese, I do have my theories on its prevention.

Cream cheese frosting is a combination of butter, cream cheese and sugar.  The temperature of the ingredients and the manner of incorporation are important when it comes to the curdling factor.  Cream cheese must be at room temperature.  I make sure my cream cheese is completely soft by letting it sit out overnight.  Butter is a different story.  I leave my butter out for about 2 to 3 hours before making the frosting.  It should be at room temperature, but still a bit cool.  The butter shouldn’t be completely soft and mush in the package.  It should be soft, but still hold its cube shape.  Got it?

In the mixing bowl, start with the cream cheese alone.  Beat it in the mixer on medium speed for about 1 minute minutes.  Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the butter. Beat the butter into the cream cheese for about 1-2 minutes.  At this point, you’re just seeing that the butter and cream cheese are incorporated into one another.

Here’s the kicker- I find that if the butter is overly warm, and I start it off in the mixer with the cream cheese, my end product is  curdled cream cheese.  I think that the water in the butter, separates from the fat and creates a curdled mess.  The trick is to keep a soft but slightly firm butter cube and beat the cream cheese before adding the butter.  I think the incorporation of these two fats is important, so be kind to them, and mind their temperatures.

Once the fats are friends, add the brown sugar, vanilla extract, sifted powdered sugar, and milk for thinning.  You should be clear of curdling from here on out, and have a oh-so-yummy topper for your cupcakes!

Lemon Scented Buttermilk Cupcakes

adapted from Demolition Desserts

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8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temp

1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

1 Tablespoon lemon zest

2 large eggs, at room temp

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat the oen to 325.  Sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda.  Add the kosher salt after sifting and set aside.  Measure out the buttermilk.  Rub the lemon zest into the sugar until fragrant and tinged a slight yellow.

2. Cream the butter and the lemon sugar using an electric mixer, until the mixture is pale and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, letting the eggs beat for 1 mintue in between additions.  Scrape down the bowl in between additions.

3.  Add the dry ingredients alternately with the wet ingredients.  Start by adding one third of the flour mixture.  Mix just to incorporate.  Add half of the buttermilk.  Add another one third of the flour mixture.  Mix to incorporate.  Add the last half of buttermilk, followed by the last third of flour.

4. Spoon into paper lined cupcake pans.  Check the cupcakes after 12 minutes.  Makes 12 cupcakes.

The cupcake recipe should be doubled for the amount of frosting the below recipe produces. The make 24 cupcakes, or a two layer 8-inch or 9-inch round cake, double the cake recipe above, and use the frosting recipe below as is.

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

8oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of salt

4-6 cups powdered sugar

2-4 tablespoons milk

depending on desired consistency

Cream the cream cheese in an electric mixer for 1 minute.  Scrape down the bowl and add the butter, beating for 1-2 minutes, or until incorporated.  (Be sure that the two are at room temperature.  Cold cream cheese or butter can make your frosting lumpy.)  Add the brown sugar, pinch of salt and vanilla extract, and beat until incorporated.  Turn off mixer and add 2 cups of powdered sugar.  Turn the mixer on a low speed so the sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl.  Slowly add more sugar alternately with the milk until you reach your desired consistency.  I like my cupcake frosting to be slightly more thick than cake frosting, so it can hold its shape on the cupcake.

Say you’re a 17 year old girl, and it’s your birthday.  If you can’t have a new car, a cute new boyfriend, or a hassle free day from your parents, what would be next on your list?  Probably, Banana Walnut Chocolate Chunk Cupcakes. No?  You’d want one of those super skinny Macbook Airs?  Well let’s say, for the sake of… me, that you’d want Banana Cupcakes.  Let’s just pretend.  These little gems are far better than anything Steve Jobs could design.  Last time I checked, Steve Jobs didn’t make anything that tasted like both banana and chocolate. So… I rest my case.

Happy Birthday to you Carsen!  Maybe Steve Jobs will make your next birthday cake.  Cross your fingers, or something.

The recipe for this banana cake produces a super moist, but not super dense cake.  It doesn’t have the heaviness of banana bread, but it has all the delicious banana flavor.  The walnuts give the cupcakes lots of flavor and texture variation.  And the chocolate chunks?  I try to sneak chocolate into everything, and these were no exception.

Super Moist Banana Cake

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1 cup butter, softened

2 1/2 cups light brown sugar, packed

4 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup sour cream

2 cups ripe bananas, mashed

(about 4 medium bananas)

3 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup walnuts, chopped

1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chunks

Preheat the oven to 350.  Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda.  Set aside.  Mash the bananas and add the sour cream. Set aside.  Cream the butter in the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 4 minutes.  Beat in the vanilla extract.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating each egg for 1 minute.  Scrape down the bowl after each addition.  Add the flour mixture alternately with the banana mixture, until just combined.  Fold in the nuts and chocolate.  Bake in cupcake papers, or a well greased and floured cupcake pan for 15- 20 minutes.  Check them after 15 minutes.

Brown Sugar Cream Cheese Frosting

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

8oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2-4 tablespoons milk

4-6 cups powdered sugar

depending on desired consistency

Cream the butter and cream cheese together in an electric mixer.  (Be sure that the two are at room temperature.  Cold cream cheese or butter can make your frosting lumpy.)  Add the brown sugar and vanilla extract, and beat for about 2 minutes.  Turn off mixer and add 2 cups of powdered sugar.  Turn the mixer on a low speed so the sugar doesn’t fly out of the bowl.  Slowly add more sugar alternately with the milk until you reach your desired consistency.  I like my cupcake frosting to be slightly more thick than cake frosting, so it can hold its shape on the cupcake.

Because of the moist bananas in these cupcakes, they hold up very well in the freezer.   Bake them off, and tightly wrap unfrosted cupcakes for freezer storage.  Take them out and defrost as needed (you could even sneak them into the microwave for quick consumption) for a breakfast treat or unexpected company.  They’re delicious and flavorful with or without frosting!   Would I lie?  (No.)