Texas Sheet Cake

 While I am a Californian (NorCal thank you very much), through and through, I have to say this Texas Sheet Cake has won me over (just a little bit) for the Lone Star state.   Although it's technically a "cake" I actually liken it more to a cakey brownie topped with fudge icing and toasted pecans.  One taste and I was hooked.

I happened upon this Cook's Country recipe when I was looking for a treat to bring in to the office.  It had to be something delicious (obviously), easy to make (no mixer required!) and could feed a crowd.  Check, check, check!   Plus, I knew my chocoholic colleagues would  go crazy for the deep, rich flavors.

If you have a party or potluck this would be the perfect dessert to make.  Tết, or Vietnamese New Year, is coming up soon and I think I'll be bringing this to our family celebration.  I have a feeling some of my diabetic-fearing relatives will think it's too sweet, but I say life's too short NOT to eat cake.   Just have a small piece!

German Chocolate Cake

Don't be fooled by its name because German Chocolate Cake has nothing whatsoever to do with Deutschland.   This yummy dessert consisting of layers of moist, chocolate cake filled with coconut-pecan icing is actually American in origin and named after chocolate-maker Sam German.  Apparently he formulated a dark baking chocolate that was used in the original recipe.  See, you learn something new every day! 

I find that most versions of German Chocolate Cake have cloyingly sweet frosting.  Not my cup of tea at all.   When I saw that the Cook's Illustrated recipe called for less sugar I knew I had to make it.    The cake is super moist (with the addition of sour cream) and the coconut-pecan icing provides a delicious, chewy and nutty contrast.  

 What I really like about this cake is that it doesn't require any decorating skills at all to achieve a beautiful finished product.  If you're a novice baker this is a great recipe to try.  No need for a decorating bag or fussy decorating tips.  Simply split the cooled cakes in half and fill with the icing.   It couldn't be easier!  This recipe works great as cupcakes as well if you want a different twist. 

TWD Pecan Sticky Buns

Caveat comedentis: this week's TWD recipe, Pecan Sticky Buns, should probably be saved for special occasions.  Regular consumption of this much butter and sugar will have your doctor prescribing Lipitor and insulin to you in a heart beat, trust me. 

The sticky buns start with a rich, egg-y brioche dough that is laminated with butter.  (Laminate - just a fancy schmancy pastry term for creating layers in the dough with butter.) The dough was a dream to work with and super easy to roll out.  But with its 15 minutes of non-stop kneading I have to tell you it really did test the strength of my Kitchen-Aid professional stand mixer.  I'm happy to report that in the battle of dough versus machine, the machine prevailed.  A true workhorse, I tell you!

Rather than baking the buns on the same day I ended up freezing the cinnamon and nut filled brioche logs to finish at a later time.  Unfortunately I found that postponing the baking inhibited the dough's ability to proof and rise in a timely manner.   It took over 24 hours for the buns to expand enough to fill the entire 9-inch cake pan.

Once baked all was right with the world - the buns puffed and browned beautifully.  Sadly, I found the topping disappointing.  The butter and brown sugar separated and didn't meld in to the thick and gooey caramel that I was expecting.  Next time I think I'll reduce the butter used from 8 tablespoons to 6 tablespoons (per cake pan), substitute dark brown sugar for light and pre-cook it before pouring in the the cake pan.  This recipe wasn't necessarily a home run for me, more like a work in progress.

Head on over to Eat Drink Man Woman Dogs Cat and Cookies on Friday if you'd like to try the recipe for yourself.

Sour Cream Pecan Coffee Cake

Lucky for my wallet I'm not what you would call a Starbucks coffee fanatic - tea is more my poison.  But one thing that would always get me in their shop was the reduced-fat cinnamon swirl coffee cake.  Forget about it being low-fat, I was seriously addicted to the super moist butter cake with delicious bursts of cinnamon and brown sugar.  

At about $2/slice it was turning in to an expensive habit so I wanted to find a version I could make at home. When I first saw Never Enough Thyme's Sour Cream Pecan Coffee Cake on Tastespotting I had a feeling it was exactly what I was looking for.   One bite of the baked cake and I knew I struck gold.  Starbucks doesn't use pecans in their version, but I love the addition of the crunchy nuts in this recipe.  If you can believe it the coffee cake tastes even better after a few days.  Eat your heart out Starbucks!