Carrot Cake

In honor of two special ladies, my mom and sister Diane, may I introduce you to my favorite carrot cake recipe. About three years ago, I was searching for a carrot cake recipe that would suit my taste. The requirements were no raisins and no pineapple. I do enjoy an occasional raisin, and quite frankly, I can't get enough pineapple. Just don't care for fruit in carrot cake.

A woman by the name of Marilyn on the Garden Web shared this recipe, and it is my go to recipe for carrot cake. I prefer layer cakes, but you could also use this recipe to make a sheet cake. The creme cheese frosting is perfection. I think the little pumpkin would be a nice touch on a pumpkin cake, but I couldn't resist using it on the carrot cake. I guess I should put some carrot decor on my next shopping list :-)

Classic Carrot Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup orange juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups shredded or grated carrots

1 cup chopped pecans


Cream Cheese Frosting

1 pound powdered sugar (4 cups)

8 oz. Cream cheese; softened

1 stick butter or margarine; softened

2 teaspoons vanilla

Combine all ingredients and mix well with electric mixer


Pre-heat oven to 350°. Grease and flour two 9-inch cake pans. Sift
flour, baking powder, soda, salt and spices together. Beat oil, eggs,
sugar and brown sugar at medium speed for 2 minutes or until well
blended. Stir in orange juice and vanilla. Beat in flour mixture on
lowest speed, just until blended. Stir in carrots and nuts until
combined. Bake 35 to 40 minutes or until wooden pick comes out clean.

Cool completely before filling and frosting with 1 recipe Cream Cheese Frosting.

Happy Birthday Mom and Diane! Hope your entire year is a "Piece of Cake"!

Sisters

She is your mirror, shining back at you with a world of possibilities. She is your witness, who sees you at your worst and best, and loves you anyway. She is your partner in crime, your midnight companion, someone who knows when you are smiling, even in the dark. She is your teacher, your defense attorney, your personal press agent, even your shrink. Some days, she's the reason you wish you were an only child.                                                                ~Barbara Alpert

(my sister Diane)

To my two sisters, Diane and Cheryl. Thanks for a fun shopping trip last evening at the Christmas Tree Shops!!

We used a Family and Friends coupon and received 20% off our entire purchase, so we "stocked up" for the holidays. What you see in that basket is a very small fraction of what we actually bought :-)

Here are some of the items I bought, and my two sisters bought equally as much. I wish I took more pictures of us in the store, we had a blast. Two of the sales clerks were on the hunt to find us the little dip bowl and spreader that you will see below. We bought the last two, and wanted just one more. No luck, but my sister Cheryl just called me to say she found one at Ollie's today. They are from Hallmark, and soooooo cute.

Isn't this topiary rug adorable?

I lit these red hurricanes, and they are wonderful. The snowman plate was just too cute to pass up, and the red tie up shade will be hung for the holiday season.

What a sweet little bowl and spreader.

The pine cone garland will decorate the front door of the house.

Timer window lights...no cords to worry about. My sister bought these a few years ago and loves them.

Handblown watering tubes. The blue is perfect for my garden.

Thanks for stopping by!

Grilled Tuscan Game Hens

I found a wonderful recipe for Tuscan Cornish Hens at this beautiful blog Susan at Savoring Time In The Kitchen and knew I had to try them for a birthday dinner for our good friends. We served with this with a side of  rice with garlic, peppers, onions and pinenuts. And since it is fall, the Mikasa leaf plates were used for a salad. My sister thinks I have too many dishes, so I had to show her that I do use them. And just for the record, she has too many necklaces.

Once our dinner guests arrived, I was useless with the camera. I get immersed in conversation and forget to take pictures of the food. Trust me, those hens were wonderful and you can see what they look like on this blog Susan at Savoring Time In The Kitchen.

So, here is our tablesetting before we sat down to dinner. That's our dog Kiki in the picture, and you will notice she is on her best behavior sitting in the kitchen.

Birthday dessert was apple pie. I could have eaten the whole pie so I gave it to the birthday guy to take home. I only make apple pie once a year, and now I know why. It's just too good!

Thank you for stopping by!

Debbie

Starbucks-style Pumpkin Bread

Do you see the letter "P" on the loaf of pumpkin bread on the table? Well that "P" isn't just for pumpkin bread, it's also for my good friend Paula that introduced me to Starbucks-style pumpkin bread. This recipe fills a medium size loaf pan, and when the bread is done, you'll slice the loaf into eight thick square hunks of goodness that perfectly mimic the weight, color and flavor of the real thing.


Pumpkin Bread - Starbucks Style

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

1 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

3/4 cup vegetable oil



1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

2. Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl

3. Beat eggs, sugars and vanilla together in a large bowl with an electric mixer on high speed for about 30 seconds. Add pumpkin and oil and mix well.

4. Pour dry ingredients into the wet stuff and mix well with your electric mixer. Pour the batter into a well-greased 8 1/2 X 4 1/2 loaf pan. Bake for 60 minutes or until the top is dark brown and a toothpick stuck into the center of the bread comes out clean.

5. When the bread is cool, remove it from the loaf pan and use a bread knife to slice it into 1-inch thick slices. Makes 8 slices

TIDBITS: This bread freezes perfectly. Simply seal any leftover slices in a zip top bag or wrap them in plastic and pop them into the chiller. To serve, microwave one frozen slice on high for about 45 seconds and it'll taste like it just came out of the oven.

Thanks for stopping by!

Debbie

Roasted Eggplant Soup

I fell in love with Roasted Eggplant soup at a Wine Dinner we recently attended at a winery in the Finger Lakes region. A delicate creamy soup served in a bread bowl, paired with a 2008 Semi-Dry Riesling. I also loved the top of the bread bowl that they served like garlic bread.

We tried recreating the soup at home, and I am pleased with the results. I will definitely make this for our upcoming dinner party.

Ingredients

3 medium vine-ripened tomatoes, halved
1 large or 2 medium eggplants (about 1 1/2 pounds), halved lengthwise, stem end trimmed
1 small onion, halved
2 leeks, cleaned and split lengthwise, tougher outer leaves removed
2 whole shallots, peeled, ends trimmed
6 large cloves garlic, peeled
About 1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth, plus more as needed
1 cup heavy cream
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup (about 3 ½ oz) crumbled goat cheese, for garnish
Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with non-stick or line with aluminum foil or a silicone sheet.

Spread the tomatoes and eggplant (flesh side up), onion halves, leeks, shallots and garlic in a single layer on the lined baking sheet. Coat them lightly with the oil. Roast for 45 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and browned in spots. (Some smaller pieces might be done sooner; remove from the oven earlier as necessary.)

When all the vegetables are done, scoop out the flesh of the eggplant and transfer to a large, heavy saucepan. Add the remaining roasted vegetables and the thyme. Add the wine and 3 cups of chicken stock and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and cook until the onion is tender, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly.

Working in batches, puree the soup in a blender until smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the cream, stirring to combine. Use more stock or broth to thin the soup, if necessary. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide among individual bowls. Serve warm.

Thank you for stopping by!

Debbie