Banana Nut Rum Cake

Banana Nut Rum Cake

Where did August go? Seriously, where did it go?? I can’t believe it’s September 1st already! Is it only me, or does anybody else feel like August just flew right by?

They say we should be getting our first appearance of termination dust on the mountains either this weekend, or sometime this coming week. For those of you who are not familiar with the term “termination dust”, it’s an Alaskan term that refers to the first dusting of snow on the very tops of the mountains – which signals the end of summer. Of course, I could already tell that summer was nearing an end here, because the leaves have already started turning color and falling to the ground, and the temperatures are quite cold now in the early morning hours. Right now it’s pouring rain outside and the mountains are covered with thick clouds, so I’ll have to wait until the clouds clear before I can see if there is any termination dust up there.

In the meantime, to celebrate the first day of September and the long Labor Day holiday weekend, I decided to make this Banana Nut Rum Cake. It’s hard to describe just how unbelievably delicious this cake is. You might think that it taste’s like Banana Bread, which it does somewhat, but the cake is a lot less dense than Banana Bread, and has a much lighter texture. The combination of banana, walnut, and rum makes this a very flavorful cake, and the Rum Glaze on top is just fantastic. It’s a perfect dessert to enjoy on these cooler summer/autumn days.

Have a safe and wonderful Labor Day weekend everyone!!

~Enjoy~

Banana Nut Rum Cake

Banana Nut Rum Cake

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
3 medium ripe bananas, mashed (approx. 1 1/2 cups)
2 eggs
1/2 tablespoon rum extract
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine milk, melted butter, bananas, eggs, and rum extract. Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until mixed. Reduce speed to low and gradually add in the flour mixture. Beat just until well combined – approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Fold in the walnuts by hand.

Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool in pan for 10 minutes. Invert onto serving plate and cool completely. Drizzle with Rum Glaze, if desired.

Rum Glaze

2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons rum extract
1 tablespoon milk
1 – 2 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
In a medium bowl, beat butter, rum extract, milk, and 1 cup powdered sugar until smooth. Gradually mix in additional powdered sugar until the glaze is thick enough to drizzle over the cake.

Glazed Spicy Mexican Brownies

Glazed Spicy Mexican Brownies

Looking to spice up your day? Well these Glazed Spicy Mexican Brownies just might do the trick. I should warn you though… you’re going to want to pour yourself a tall glass of milk while munching on them. Not because they’re dry, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. These are incredibly moist brownies. No, you’re going to want that glass of milk because these brownies are SPICY!!! They’re rich, chocolaty, and spiced up with a generous dose of chili powder, cayenne pepper, and cinnamon.

I would call these more of a “grown-up” brownie. If you’re planning on sharing them with the kids, I would suggest cutting back a bit on the spices – unless you have children who enjoy spicy food.

I have to head back to the kitchen now. We’re having an all-day potluck at work on Monday and I’m bringing Overnight French Toast. I really hope they like it…

~Enjoy~




Glazed Spicy Mexican Brownies

1 cup butter
2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup chopped walnuts, divided

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 13-inch baking pan.

Place butter in a large microwave-safe bowl and microwave for approximately 30 seconds, until butter is melted. Let cool slightly. Add the sugar, eggs and vanilla extract to the bowl and mix with a spoon until combined. Add the cocoa, flour, cinnamon, chili powder, cayenne pepper, coffee granules, salt, and baking powder. Mix until the batter is nice and smooth. Fold in 1/2 cup of the chopped walnuts. Spread the batter into the prepared baking pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Remove from oven and set on a wire rack. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup chopped walnuts evenly over the top of the baked brownies.

Baked brownies with walnuts on top

Cool brownies to room temperature before topping with Glaze (recipe below)

Spicy Chocolate Glaze

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup milk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons instant coffee granules
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon butter

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan.

Set the burner to medium low heat. Cook and stir with a whisk until the sugar is dissolved and everything is well combined.

If glaze is too thick, add more milk. If it is too thin, add a little bit more cocoa powder. (It should be thick enough to stick to a spoon but thin enough to pour)

Turn off the heat and let the mixture cool until it is still pourable. Spoon glaze over cool brownies.

Glazed brownies

Let the glaze set before cutting brownies.

Baked Doughnut Mini Muffins with Chocolate Glaze

Baked Doughnut Mini Muffins with Chocolate Glaze

How does that saying go… if it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck. Well, what if something looks like a muffin, but tastes like a doughnut? What do you have then?? Well you have these wonderful, tasty Baked Doughnut Mini Muffins!!

I wanted to try making a baked doughnut, but I didn’t have a doughnut pan. So instead, I put the dough into mini muffin cups and voila…. out came these cute little mini muffins that taste like a doughnut.

The Chocolate Glaze is perfect on top of these little gems too. It’s the same type of glaze that you’d find covering a doughnut in a bakery, and it really helps to give these little muffins that “doughnut” look and taste.

~Enjoy~




Baked Doughnut Mini Muffins with Chocolate Glaze

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup milk

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 18 mini-muffin cups.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together. Alternately add dry ingredients and milk to butter mixture. Mix until just combined.

Fill prepared muffin cups about three-quarters full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until tops are lightly golden.

Remove from oven and let sit in pan for approximately 5 minutes. Remove muffins from pan and place on wire rack to cool.

When cool, dip muffins in Chocolate Glaze and decorate, if desired.

Makes 18 mini muffins.

Chocolate Glaze

1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 cup powdered sugar
5-6 tablespoons milk

Place all ingredients in a medium bowl. Whisk until smooth.
Dip top of muffins into glaze. Let set-up for approximately 2 minutes. Decorate with sprinkles, if desired.

Orange Chocolate Chunk Bundt Cake with Mocha Glaze

I used two of my favorite products in making this recipe — True Orange and Ener-G Egg Replacer.

True Orange is a new product from the makes of True Lemon and True Lime. The “True” products are little packets of crystallized fruit flavoring that have zero calories, zero carbs and no artificial sweetening. You can use them for baking/cooking, or you can add a packet to your bottled water or tea. They store well in my pantry, and taste as close to the real thing as any other product I’ve ever come across.

Ener-G Egg Replacer mimics what eggs do in recipes, yet contains no eggs. It’s main ingredients are potato starch and tapioca starch flour. It replaces egg whites as well as egg yolks in baking, and one 16 ounce box, which sells for under $7.00, is equal to 100 eggs. For each egg called for in a recipe, you just dissolve 1 1/2 teaspoons of Ener-G Egg Replacer in 2 tablespoons of warm water, and add it to your recipe. How easy is that? Ener-G Egg Replacer is another product that has become a staple in my pantry.

Both of these products work very well together in this recipe. This cake turned out moist and delicious, and the orange and chocolate flavor combination has always been a favorite of mine. 🙂

~Enjoy~

Orange Chocolate Chunk Bundt Cake with Mocha Glaze

3 teaspoons Ener-G Egg Replacer
4 tablespoons warm water
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter-flavored shortening
6 packets True Orange
2 tablespoons water
2/3 cup chocolate chunks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup bundt pan.

Combine Ener-G Egg Replacer and 4 tablespoons warm water in a glass or small bowl. Stir until well combined. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda and salt. Add milk and shortening. Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 4 minutes, or until well blended.
Add egg replacer and beat for an additional 2 minutes. Stir in True Orange and the 2 tablespoons water; mix well. Fold in chocolate chunks.

Pour batter into prepared bundt pan.

Bake for 40 – 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Invert onto serving plate and cool completely.
Drizzle with Mocha Glaze; if desired.

Mocha Glaze

3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
1-2 tablespoons warm water

In small bowl, dissolve 1 teaspoon instant coffee granules in 1 tablespoon warm water. Stir in powdered sugar until smooth. If necessary, add more water until glaze is easy to spread. Spoon glaze over cake.