I promised you yesterday in the Salted Caramel Cake post that I’d be sharing plenty of delicious cake ideas that only take a few steps to throw together. Nothing is worse than having to work extra hard during the holiday season, so quick and easy Christmas cakes are a must… your guests will LOVE this Candy Cane Crunch Cake that, with the help of a cake mix and some pre-crushed candy cane pieces, will only take you a few minutes of hands-on time to create!
Raise your hand if you’re already feeling stressed this holiday season. Now that all of our hands are up, let’s put them down and make this no-stress cake instead. Seriously– this salted caramel cake has all of the delicious salted caramel flavor you love, but it takes no effort. The holidays are busy, and holiday desserts shouldn’t add to that stress. This one is a show-stopper, and if you can make a cake mix, you can make this dessert.
Mother’s Day is Sunday. Here’s a tip: don’t forget that Mother’s Day is Sunday! If you need a last-minute recipe idea, here’s one that will work really well for you– it’s coffee cake. But without any prep work. It literally takes minutes to prepare, and you bake it in the microwave! Because it’s quick and easy, you’ll be able to make this not just for mother’s day, but any time!
You know what I love? That perfect, light, airy sponge that you can get from so many bakeries. You know what I hate? Trying to duplicate that at home– it never seems light enough, airy enough, sponge-y enough. But those times are behind us, my friend… because you can take your standard boxed cake mix and create a delicious, moist, light, sponge cake at home. That’s right, I’m going to show you how to make sponge cake from cake mix, and it doesn’t really take any longer than just baking it by package directions. I’m serious.
This butter-style chocolate pound cake recipe may contain affiliate links.
I love chocolate. Like, it goes way beyond a casual “I’ll eat chocolate if it’s there” kind of thing. No, it’s a full-fledged love affair. I’m not above hiding a little chocolate in the jewelry box in my closet for emergencies. Just kidding, that’s not where I hid it. I just don’t want any of you breaking into my chocolate stash. Ha! The thing is, sometimes I like chocolate more than I like people. Chocolate doesn’t say mean things, and it doesn’t over-share on Facebook. Chocolate is just delicious. That’s why, when I needed to bake a cake this week, I knew it had to be chocolate. I also knew I wanted something a little bit different. That’s where this delicious chocolate pound cake recipe comes in.
Did you quit your New Years’ Resolution diet yet? Promise you didn’t give up chocolate for Lent? Good, then you can have this cake… it’s ooey, it’s gooey, it’s chocolate and marshmallow goodness, and it’s perfect for those intense chocolate cravings. And even better, it’s made in the crock pot, so you can set it, forget it, and come back for that delicious s’mores goodness. If you’re looking for the perfect crock pot cake, this is your best bet!
Yesterday, for many, marked the official end of summer. That must make today the official start of fall, then, right? The day when it’s acceptable to start posting all things pumpkin spice lattes and apple cider and all things autumn? I certainly hope so, because I have the perfect cake to get your autumn kicked off the right way!
I’m a huge fan of cherries. And also nuts and coconut. That’s why, when I found this recipe lurking in my box of inherited recipes, I knew I’d have to try it. I mean, I haven’t tried an inherited recipe I didn’t love, so this one was very likely to be great. My family had great taste when they were compiling that recipe box (I mean, I’m sure they still do, but that box is a goldmine of awesome flavor combinations!)
You’ll want to start with everything pictured: a box of Betty Crocker Cherry Chip cake mix, a box of Jello Vanilla Instant Pudding, 4 eggs, 1/2 cup oil, 1 1/4 cup buttermilk, and a cup each of pecans and coconut. I really like the Fisher nuts Cookie Pieces because they’re chopped so finely that you get a little taste of pecan in every bite, but normally chopped nuts will work. Don’t have buttermilk on hand? It’s okay. Put 1 tablespoon and 1 teaspoon of white vinegar in your measuring cup, then pour milk in to make 1 1/4 cups total. Let that sit for about 5 minutes, and you’ll have a very similar flavor.
Start by putting everything except the pecans and the coconut into a bowl, then mixing. You’ll want a fairly large bowl for this, because there is a good amount of volume here. Once mixed, you can leave it as-is, or do what I did and add a few drops of red food coloring for a lovely pink color. I added 5 drops of Americolor Red into my cake batter.
Fold in your nuts and coconut. As you’ll see, there are literally bits of nuts and coconut in every bite of this cake. It’s also an incredibly moist cake!
Pour your batter into a well-greased bundt pan, and put it in the oven. This will bake at 350 degrees for approximately 50 minutes.
The best way to cool this cake is to put it on a wire rack and leave it in the pan for a full hour. It’ll allow the underside of the pan to get air circulation, as well, for a quicker cooling than just setting it on your countertop. You don’t want to turn it out onto a plate yet, because this additional in-pan time helps the cake finish baking and getting perfectly set.
Once the cake has cooled for an hour in the pan, you can flip it carefully onto a plate. Then, take a bit of powdered sugar and sift it over your cake for a light dusted topping. You might want to let the cake wait a bit longer before cutting into it.
Then, you can slice it and serve. I drizzled this plate with a little bit of chocolate syrup and grenadine. Yummy!
This is the perfect cake to take to a pot luck dinner, or serve to your beloved on V-Day. It’s effortless and tastes so good, like you made it from scratch.
Because this cake isn’t covered in frosting, but instead lightly dusted, it’s a huge calorie saver, clocking in at only 211 calories per half-inch slice, according to MyFitnessPal. Changing ingredients could change the amount of calories, so always be sure to double-check.
Do you have a special cake that is a pot luck staple? Tell me about it in the comments below!
Every year at Thanksgiving, I try really hard to top the dessert I brought in last year. So many readers, and so many family members, raved about the Better Than Pumpkin Pie dessert that I knew it would be hard to beat.
However, I thought about what constitutes the perfect Thanksgiving dessert. Everyone loves a good pumpkin pie. Everyone else loves a good pecan pie. So how do you combine those flavors in a new way? Well, for one, you can’t top those pies with another pie…
So it’s time to go to a CAKE.
Not just any cake. An Ultimate Showstopper of a cake. A cake that is so moist, so decadent, and yet so light and airy, that you could easily eat the whole thing yourself. Easily.
And the best part? This is not hard to make.
Start with Cool Whip, Jello Pumpkin Spice Pudding, and Betty Crocker Butter Pecan Cake Mix, plus the ingredients to make the cake and pudding as listed on the back of the box. You can also add in pecans or cinnamon (or both) as a garnish at the end.
Bake the cake as listed on the back of the box. You’ll want to do the directions for a 9×13 pan. (Of course, this recipe works for round cakes or other things, but I’ve found the 9×13 is easiest to cut and serve at a large family event).
As you allow the cake to cool for about 10 minutes, you can begin making your pudding, again, according to package directions.
Using a wooden spoon handle (or any similarly sized object), poke holes in the cake just about every inch. Make sure you poke the holes as deeply as you can– you’ll want to feel as though you’re hitting the bottom of the pan.
While the pudding is still soft-set, you’ll want to pour the pudding over the warm cake.
Spread it evenly over the entire cake. The pudding will start seeping into the holes of the cake and adding a moist, flavorful infusion.
Finish the cake with a container of Cool Whip, and then sprinkle cinnamon or chopped pecans over the top. Or both. You choose.
I knew this cake was probably the right kind of cake for Thanksgiving when my brother, who doesn’t often indulge in the food I make, ate 3 pieces in one sitting. It’s THAT good.
If you’re planning your Thanksgiving desserts, I’m telling you, don’t leave this one off the list. It’s so easy that you could almost make it blindfolded while cooking your turkey, but it won’t fail to impress your guests. I’m telling you, this is THE dessert to serve at this Thanksgiving if you’re a fan of pumpkins and pecans.
What are your plans for Thanksgiving dinner? Let me know in the comments below!
Apples. Caramel. Nuts. Streusel Topping. You literally cannot get more “fall” than this cake unless you served it inside of a pumpkin. Which I don’t recommend, because that’d be kind of weird. Anyway, this cake is like fall in… well, cake form. And it’s so good.
Start with some ingredients. Except not those tricky caramel bits. I bought them for another recipe and they somehow snuck into the picture! Sneaky, tricky caramel bits. Everything else in the photo, though, you need.
Grab your Pillsbury Caramel Apple Cake Mix and prepare it according to package directions, baking it in 2 greased 6-inch pans. Once it’s baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool before de-panning.
As you wait for it to cool, it’s time to prepare fillings.
The streusel topping starts with 1 cup of quick oats, 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon.
Add in 2 cups of diced apples, and then 2 Tablespoons of melted butter. Microwave the mixture for two minutes, stirring after each minute. Stir in 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, then set it aside.
In a separate bowl, empty one can of your favorite apple pie filling, then run a knife through it to cut the apples all into small chunks. Stir in 1 cup of chopped walnuts.
Once your cake is cooled, de-pan it, then use your favorite cake leveling method to first trim off the top dome, and then cut each cake into 3 layers (so you’ll have 6 layers total). Try to keep the layers as even as possible. I prefer to use the Wilton Cake Leveler to get even, easy slices, but you can also use a serrated knife and turntable.
Place your first layer on your cake board on your cake plate or turntable.
Using any tip or a Ziploc with a cut corner, pipe Pillsbury Creamy Supreme Caramel Apple Frosting around the edge of the cake. I used this tip because I planned to use it for decorating later, but any will work. You’re just creating a barrier to keep the fillings from running amok.
On top of the first layer, spoon your pie filling and walnut mixture. Top with a second layer of cake.
On the second layer of cake, repeat the frosting swirl around the edge, but instead of the apple pie filling mixture, spoon on the streusel mixture. Top with the third layer of cake, repeating cake-pie filling-cake-streusel until all 6 layers have been placed.
The top layer of your cake should be the bottom of one of the cakes. This will create a very flat top for the cake decorating.
Before I decorate, I like to use the new Wilton Spray-N-Seal. It’s odorless, flavorless, and doesn’t change the texture of the cake. You spray it on the exterior of the cake, refrigerate the cake for 3 minutes, and then decorate as normal. It prevents crumbs from getting mixed into your frosting and creating a sloppy surface.
Apply a layer of the Caramel Apple Frosting, then decorate as you’d like. I decided to do some quick rosettes on the side for a cute, rustic, almost tree-trunk inspired appearance.
Pipe one layer of frosting around the top edge (or do beadwork or your preferred technique for finishing an edge), then top with a mound of leftover pie filling mixture. Finish with a generous sprinkle of streusel topping.
Mmm, check out that delicious close-up!
If you don’t want to do a layered cake, there are two other ways you can serve this cake recipe.
Trifle Method
Bake cake mix in a sheet or 8×10 pan, whichever you prefer. Dice cooled cake. Layer cake, pie filling, cake, streusel, cake, and frosting, until you’ve filled the trifle pan with all of your toppings. Serve by the spoonful, making sure each serving contains a bit of every layer.
Cupcake Method
Bake cupcakes using the Caramel Apple cake mix. When baked, hollow out the cupcake slightly using a knife, fill it with the pie filling mixture, then replace a flat piece of cake cut from the removed portion of cake. Then, frost with the Caramel Apple frosting and top with a generous sprinkling of the streusel mixture.
Whether you serve it as a mile-high 6 layer cake, a trifle, or a cupcake, your friends and family are sure to be delighted by this incredible fall treat!