Category: Cooking

Coffee Cake with Pecan Cinnamon Streusel

Coffee Cake with Pecan Cinnamon Streusel

What a wonderfully delicious “made from scratch”  coffee cake, moist with sour cream. The ribbon of nutty cinnamon streusel in the center makes it a delightful treat.  Enjoy this delicious coffee cake while sipping on a cup of coffee, a mug of tea or a glass of milk. Coffee Cake makes a nice finish to breakfast, a refreshing afternoon snack or even a light dessert in the evening. Can you tell I like glaze? Yes, I do!

Coffee Cake with Pecan Cinnamon Streusel

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 sticks butter at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups sour cream
  • 2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the streusel:

  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
  • 3/4 cup pecans, chopped

For the glaze:

  • 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
  • 1 teaspoon milk (stir- add more drops for right consistency)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl with electric mixer for 4 minutes, until light. Add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Finish stirring with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.

For the streusel, place the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt, and butter in a bowl and use fingers to pinch together until it forms a crumble. Mix in the pecans.

Spoon half the batter into the pan and spread it out. Sprinkle with 3/4 cup streusel. Spoon the rest of the batter in the pan, spread it out, and scatter the remaining streusel on top. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Let cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Carefully transfer the cake, streusel side up, onto a serving plate. Whisk the confectioners sugar and milk together, adding a few drops more if necessary to drizzle the glaze over cake with a spoon …mmm good!

Potato Soup

Beat the winter chill with Virginia Bryan’s Potato Soup. It is always a winner. One of my favorite things about winter is making and eating different scrumptious soups.

Potato Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 cups diced, peeled potatoes, uncooked (I chopped mine very small)
1 can chicken broth
1 pinch marjoram ( I used oregano)
3 cups of milk
2 tablespoons of flour
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 cup shredded Colby Cheese
Cooked bacon and crumbled
Salt and Pepper

Directions:

Melt the butter, Saute onion until tender. Add potatoes, chicken broth and marjoram. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes).

In a bowl, gradually stir milk into flour until smooth. Add to saucepan. Cook and stir over medium heat until it boils and thickens. Stir in parsley. Season with Salt and Pepper. Add cheese and bacon to each bowl of soup. Enjoy!

Jodi’s Taco Soup Recipe

Jodi, our daughter-in-law writes:  “One of my family’s favorite recipes, once the weather gets a little chilly is Taco Soup. I had never had soup like this until a random man at a grocery store in Franklinton, LA handed me a recipe for it. Turns out it was some good stuff! I’ve spent the last few years adapting it to my family’s taste buds. Hopefully you all will enjoy it as much as we do at my house!”

Taco Soup Recipe
1 lb. Lean Ground Beef (browned)
1 large Diced Onion (cooked with the beef)
6-8 cups Water
1 packet Taco Seasoning Mix
1 packet Ranch Dressing Mix (not buttermilk)
1 T. Onion Powder
1 T. Garlic Powder
1 T. Cumin
1 T. Chili Powder
1 cup Medium Salsa
1 can Kidney Beans
1 can Black Beans
1 can Pinto Beans
1 can Diced Tomatoes
1 bag Frozen Corn
Toppings:
Sour Cream
Shredded Cheese
Crushed Tortilla Chips
Diced Avocado
Brown beef with the onion until beef is thoroughly cooked.  Add water and seasonings, mixing until all the powders have completely dissolved. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Choose your toppings and enjoy! AND it’s even better the next day. 🙂

Cocoa German Chocolate Cake Frosting

Cocoa German Chocolate Cake Frosting

My husband has a request every time his birthday rolls around: Cocoa German Chocolate Frosting for his birthday cake.  He also requests this cake frosting for Father’s Day and any other occasion that comes to his mind. I am not a fan of plain German Chocolate Cake Frosting, but adding 1 1/2 Tablespoons of cocoa to the recipe makes it super scrumptious to me! I am not a betting person, but if I were, I bet you will add Cocoa German Chocolate Cake Frosting to your favorite recipe file after you try it.

Cocoa German Chocolate Cake Icing

1  Cup Pet Milk (as Evaporated Milk is fondly referred to by my Mom)

1  Cup Sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp. Cocoa

3  Egg Yolks

1/2 Cup Butter

1 tsp Vanilla

1 Cup Chopped Pecans

1 1/2 Cups Coconut

Directions

  1. In a saucepan, combine evaporated milk, sugar, cocoa, egg yolks, butter and vanilla.
  2. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it bubbles and thickens (about 12-15 minutes).
  3. Remove from heat and stir in pecans and coconut.
  4. Let cool to room temperature before spreading on cake.

Best Creamy Mashed Potatoes

Best Creamy Mashed Potatoes

We had a Progressive Dinner at our church and Creamy Mashed Potatoes was one of the side dishes. This recipe is still  super delicious cooked the day before and reheated. I just whipped up this creamy mashed potatoes recipe again for our family Christmas Eve Dinner.  Yes!

Best Creamy Mashed Potatoes Recipe

Ingredients

  • 5 pounds Russet Potatoes
  • 3/4 cups Butter (1 1/2 sticks) softened
  • 1 package (8 Oz.) Cream Cheese, softened
  • 3/4 Cup Half-and-Half
  • 1 teaspoon Lawry’s Seasoned Salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon Black Pepper
  • Tony Chachere’s Seasoning sprinkled sparingly on top (optional)

Instructions

Peel and cut the potatoes into bite size pieces. In a large pot, bring potatoes to a boil and cook for around 25- 30 minutes until tender with fork.

In colander, drain the potatoes. When drained, place the potatoes back into the dry pot and put the pot on the stove. Mash the potatoes over low heat.

Turn off the stove and add 1 1/2 sticks of butter, an 8-ounce package of cream cheese and about 3/4 cup of half-and-half. Mash!

Taste test the following to make sure you do not add too much or too little: Add about 1 teaspoon of Lawry’s Seasoning Salt and about 3/4 teaspoon of black pepper.

Stir well and place in a medium-sized baking dish or casserole dish. Add a few pats of butter over the top of the potatoes. Sparingly sprinkle Tony Chachere’s on top (optional) and place the creamy mashed potatoes in a 350-degree oven. Heat until butter is melted and potatoes are warmed through.

If you make this dish a day before , wait until that day to bake in a 350-degree oven for about 20 minutes or until warmed through.