Baby J's Cake

One of my book club friends had a baby this past May. Unfortunately the majority of us were not able to make it to her baby shower and with everyone's busy schedules we finally were able to get together this month. We threw her a small surprise shower during our gathering. Everyone brought something and my contribution was dessert.  I kept it simple by making a Yellow Butter Cake with Swiss Meringue Buttercream. To jazz it up, I melted chocolate chips over a bain-marie and drizzled them randomly over the cake. To personalize it, I used chocolate chips to monogram his name. The best thing about this book club meeting was that baby Julien was actually there. Although he couldn't have a piece, we were all too happy to eat it in his honor lol!

Another Dulce de Leche Cake

So, it looks like this is one of favorite cakes. I LOVE caramel and combined with the smooth, buttery taste of Swiss Meringue, what's not to love?!?! I made this for my friend's coworker's birthday. The caramel was so easy to make. I used 1 cup of sugar, 6 tablespoons butter and about 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream. But, I had a nasty reminder of how hot and dangerous caramel can be. I stupidly swiped my finger across the back of the wooden spoon I used! It was so HOT, the burn actually turned into a blister within a few minutes. Guess I got a little too eager trying to taste it.  Other than that, making this cake was such a pleasure and I look forward to making it again soon:)

Rosie Pound Cake

I always make this cake for my favorite aunt, Rosie. She likes simple desserts without too much fluff and fuss.  This is a recipe I clipped from a can of Carnation milk over 15 years ago and saved in a journal. I found it last year and remembered how much I had liked the cake and decided to make it my staple pound cake recipe. It's a simple pound cake recipe using a small amount of evaporated milk in place of regular milk. The batter comes out thicker than a regular yellow cake but once baked it has a rich but not heavy taste. I like to bake it in a tube pan and just top it with confectioner's sugar. It's a great after dinner treat or even a breakfast companion to a great cup of coffee.