TWD: Rum-Drenched Vanilla Cake

June 29, 2010 by Monica in Baking, Baking Club, Cake, Cookbooks, Desserts, TWD

This week’s Tuesday with Dorie baking choice was picked by Wendy of Pink Stripes. Or maybe the recipe picked her, since she simply flipped through Dorie Greenspan’s Baking…From My Home to Yours book and page 226 fell open to reveal this beauty.

And oh what a pick it has been! There is no words in how good this cake is. Well, maybe there is because I'm going to tell you about it.

This cake is just the kind of cake I like - Simple, modest, quick and easy. But the best part? No waiting around for butter to soften!

Oh, wait; I have not mentioned how much I hate waiting for the butter to soften before?

Well I do.

Because I been spoiled. See, my previous rental house had a microwave with a setting called “soften”. This, Internet, is THE BEST setting in any kitchen appliance – TRUST ME. Press the button and voila – butter – soften! Cream cheese – soften! Ice Cream – Soften!

TWD: Dressy Chocolate Loaf Cake

June 22, 2010 by Monica in Baking, Baking Club, Cake, Desserts, TWD

I have not been baking as much from Dorie’s Baking from My Home to Yours book as I want. I guess I been put out with the choices this past month. Or maybe I’m just being totally lazy about it.

But I see the ties turning, because for the next 3 weeks the choices are all so good (wait until you hear what is coming up for next week – yummy!) and this weeks choice was something that I been waiting to try out.

And we can thank Amy from Amy Ruth Bakes for picking this one.

HCB: Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake

June 15, 2010 by Monica in Baking, Baking Club, Cake, Desserts, Entertaining, Fruit, HCB

Friday was Tom's birthday. The original plan was to take the whole weekend off, pack up the car and drive down the Florida coast, looking for one of those adorable places that have a beach cottage right on the beach and stay there soaking up the rays, enjoying the water (before the oil gets here), eating lots of seafood and basically be lazy - The birthday boy told me he rather plan a simple BBQ at the house with friends and family.

So much for my power of persuasion.

When we started to plan the menu for the BBQ, I asked him what he wanted for his birthday cake. He jumped up and shouted "your coconut cake! Oh, wait, no how about the Zuppa Inglesa?... no, no, wait... maybe the Tres Leche cake."

The boy, was CONFUSE. Time to save him me some time, because when Marie posted the cake for the month of June and the Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake fell on the Saturday of the BBQ, I did not waste time in telling him that THIS WAS HIS BIRTHDAY CAKE for him and his 20+ guest, period.

He knew by this time I was drowning in the details of this "simple" party, so he totally agreed and we went with it.