Baking Junkie

Tag: Fall recipes

Sunday, October 9th, 2011

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Recipe from Veronica’s Cornucopia, originally from Paula Deen

It’s a little hard to believe that it’s fall since it is almost 80 degrees outside right now, but eating pumpkin flavored treats definitely reminds me!

I made my first gooey butter cake earlier this summer and I thought it was fantastic, so when I saw the recipe for a pumpkin version I had to make it. Immediately. First of all, the recipe is from Paula Deen so you know it’s good (and not so good for you). The base of the cake is made from a yellow cake mix, butter and egg. To me it has a similar flavor to a sugar cookie. The filling for the cake is mainly driven by pumpkin, cream cheese, and butter, with some typical fall flavored spices as well. Remember when baking this cake that it should look a little under-baked. You want it to be a little “gooey”! I am slowly but sure converting Derek to pumpkin flavored desserts, and he honestly loved this one. He brought it to his office and his co-workers were raving about it as well. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake
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Cake:
1 box yellow cake mix
8 Tbsp butter, melted
1 egg

Filling:
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
8 Tbsp butter, melted
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. With an electric mixer combine the cake mix, 8 Tbsp of melted butter and egg. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a greased 9×13 inch pan. Set aside.

To make the filling beat together the cream cheese and pumpkin. Add eggs and vanilla, then butter. Beat in powdered sugar, then finally add the cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour filling over cake and place in oven. Bake for approximately 45 minutes. Cool completely before serving.

Tags: Cake, Cinnamon, Fall recipes, Pumpkin

Posted in Cake | 3 Comments »

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

In case you need some last minute Thanksgiving desserts…

Here is a recap of my pumpkin recipes from this season. I have never baked with pumpkin so much in my life, but I still have a stack of recipes that will have to wait until next year. If you are a last minute person and still need some dessert ideas I highly recommend the pumpkin cheesecake (my dessert last year), pumpkin cookies (my dessert this year) and the pumpkin blondies.

The pumpkin dip makes a perfect appetizer, while the pumpkin bread and pumpkin apple streusel muffins would be great for breakfast on Friday (you’ll need to grab something quick on the way out shopping, right?)!

I truly wish you all safe travels and a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with great company and great FOOD!

Tags: Fall recipes, Pumpkin

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

Monday, November 22nd, 2010

Caramel Apple Trifle

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home

Trifles just may be my new favorite dessert. There’s always some form of cake which is a plus in my book. There’s also always some sort of pudding or cool whip mixture, which also ranks really high with me. Throw in some other related ingredients and you’ve got one heck of a dessert. I have been dying to make this recipe since last Fall but just never got around to it. We all know how much I love any kind of caramel and apple combination so needless to say I loved this! The original recipe called for a pound cake, and if you really like it or are pressed for time it would work well, but I made my own yellow cake. I think a spice cake would also be delicious. The apples have an amazing aroma, and the cream cheese caramel layer is surprisingly very tasty. I am posting the recipe as I made it, but next time I might make more of that layer. Or maybe I just need to get a smaller trifle bowl! This was one of those desserts where I really had a hard time stopping myself once I started eating. Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Trifle
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1 box yellow cake mix
Ingredients on box + 1 additional egg
3 Tbsp butter
4 cups peeled, chopped apples (3-4 large apples)
½ cup brown sugar
1 tsp apple pie spice, divided
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 jar (12 ¼ oz) caramel ice cream topping, divided
12 oz cool whip, room temperature, divided
Cinnamon

Make cake according to directions on box. Set aside and let cool, then cut into cubes. In a large skillet melt butter over medium heat. Stir in apples, brown sugar, and ½ tsp of apple pie spice. Cook 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until apples are tender. In a medium sized bowl beat the cream cheese until smooth. Mix in ½ cup of the caramel topping and remaining ½ tsp of apple pie spice. Fold in 2 cups of the cool whip.

In a trifle bowl or glass serving dish layer half of the cake cubes. Spread cream cheese mixture over the cake, then top that with the apples. Repeat once more with layers of cake, cream cheese, and apples. Top with remaining cool whip. Sprinkle with cinnamon and drizzle with caramel if desired.

Here’s a recap of my other caramel apple recipes, in case you love them as much as I do!

Dutch Apple Cheesecake

Graham Cracker Caramel Apple Cookies

Caramel Apple Bars

Tags: Apple, Cake, Caramel, Cinnamon, Fall recipes

Posted in Trifles | 4 Comments »

Sunday, November 21st, 2010

Pumpkin Cheesecake

With Thanksgiving just a few days a way I thought I would give you a few last minute dessert ideas this week. This was actually my dessert contribution last year. I first made this for an annual get together that we have with friends just before Thanksgiving every year and it was a huge hit! I was combing the internet and my cookbooks for the perfect pumpkin cheesecake recipe last year, and I ended up just combing a few into this one. It uses my basic cheesecake recipe, plus just a few extra ingredients. This is easily one of the best cheesecakes I make! I usually use about 3/4 of a can of pumpkin because I don’t want it to be too overpowering, and personally I think it is just right. If you want a really strong pumpkin flavor go ahead and use the entire can. I hope this makes it to a few dinner tables on Thursday. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Cheesecake
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Crust:
1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 stick butter (melted)
1/2 cup sugar

Filling:
3 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sugar
¼ cup brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 large eggs
¾ of a 15 oz can of pumpkin (more or less to taste)
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine graham cracker crumbs and sugar, then add melted butter, mixing with a fork. Press into bottom and slightly up sides of a 9 inch springform pan and place in oven for 5 minutes. In a medium sized bowl beat together cream cheese and sugars. Add vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each egg. Add pumpkin, then cinnamon, ground nutmeg and cloves. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally to make sure all of the ingredients get fully incorporated. Pour mixture into graham cracker crust. Place springform pan on rimmed baking sheet and place in the middle rack of the oven. Bake for approximately 60 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes at room temperature, then place in refrigerator for several hours to cool fully before serving.

Tags: Cheesecake, Cinnamon, Fall recipes

Posted in Cheesecake | 4 Comments »

Tuesday, November 16th, 2010

Beer Bread

Recipe adapted from My Baking Addiction

I don’t know about the rest of the country, but here in Minnesota it’s cold! We have been having unusually warm weather lately, but this past weekend we were hit with our first snow storm. That’s right…SNOW!

Snow means cold weather, which means soup and stews, and Derek hates to eat soup without bread! I have only ever had beer bread made from a mix and never even imagined making my own until I saw this recipe. We are hosting an annual get together with friends this weekend and beer bread always goes over well, so I decided to make two loaves: one original and one Italian herb and cheese (can you say yum)! This is by far the easiest (and shortest) bread recipe I have ever made, but it certainly isn’t lacking in taste! It’s perfect for serving with soup, dips, or just plain. There are endless possibilities for add ins which I love as well. Enjoy!

Beer Bread
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3 cups self-rising flour*
⅓ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
12 ounces beer (any kind you’d like)
2 Tbsp melted butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with cooking spray. In a medium sized bowl combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the beer and mix well (it will get thick and sticky). Pour into loaf pan and bake for 52 minutes. Remove from oven and brush with melted butter. Return to the oven and bake another 3 minutes.

Italian Herb & Cheese Beer bread: Add 1 tsp Italian seasoning plus ¼ cup shredded cheddar cheese to mix. Sprinkle garlic salt on top after brushing with butter.

*To substitute, one cup self-rising flour equals:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoons salt

Tags: Alcohol, Bread, Fall recipes

Posted in Appetizers, Bread | 2 Comments »