Lemon Velvet Cake

I am so very far behind. Painfully. So far behind that I probably will not get caught up this weekend, but I will give it the ol' Girl Scout try. Starting with the Lemon Velvet Cake recipe that I found on Pinterest and tried back in the fall. Beginning last year, I fell in love with lemons, and I've been trying a number of lemon recipes. This cake is just my latest try. And it was good... If you like the sweet-tart taste of fresh lemon products then you must give this soft delicious cake a try as well. You won't be disappointed.

1 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil or olive oil
1/3 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 tsp good quality vanilla extract (I prefer vanilla bean paste)
2 tsp pure lemon extract or fresh lemon juice
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
zest of two small or one large lemons, grated and finely chopped

Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans or one 9x13 cake pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. 

Sift together both flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer beat together the vegetable oil, shortening, vanilla and lemon extract. Beat well at high speed with whisk attachment until light and fluffy.

Beat the eggs in one at a time. Fold in the lemon zest. Fold in the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending the additions with the dry ingredients.

Do not over mix the batter. As soon as it has no lumps in the batter, pour into the prepared pan(s).

Bake at 325 degrees Farenheit for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pans for 10 minutes before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely.

While cake cools, prepare the frosting.

Frosting

8 cups powdered sugar

2 cups unsalted butter
5 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp minced lemon zest (optional)
(I no longer use the milk from the original recipe)

Mix together the powdered sugar, lemon zest and butter until it becomes sort of crumbly.

Add the lemon extract and a little of the milk. Beat until smooth and fluffy, adding only enough milk to bring the frosting to a creamy spreadable consistency. Fill and frost the cake. Garnish with candied lemon zest if desired.

Pumpkin Spice Bread

When I was a teenager, I lived in upstate New York. There was this restaurant and motel on Canandaigua Lake that my parents and I ate at periodically called Kelloggs Pan Tree Inn. After you were seated at Kelloggs, the waitress would deliver a basket full of rolls and muffins. These muffins were delicious, and for years I never knew what they were or even thought much about it. Enter the age of the Internet, and I decided that I wanted to try and make those muffins and began searching to find out what they were so that I could search for a recipe. I was so surprised to learn that they were pumpkin spice bread. While searching for something that might get close to the experience of Kelloggs Pan Tree Inn pumpkin spice bread muffins, I found this recipe and, as we used to do in the old days hehehe, I printed it out. I only altered it slightly by increasing the amount 0f spices in it, but otherwise, I've held to the original recipe. I've received many compliments on this bread, and it is a perfect fall recipe. You really should try it.

3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 16-ounce can pumpkin
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp cloves
1.5-2 tsps cinnamon
1-1.5 tsps nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup chopped walnuts
Sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 350 degrees; butter and flour (or spray with baking spray) two 9x5x3 loaf pans, 1 bundt pan, or three muffin tins. In a small bowl, combine flour, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

In a large bowl, combine sugar and oil until mixed.

Add eggs and pumpkin and combine until blended.

Sift the dry ingredients into the wet and blend until combined.

Add nuts and mix until combined.

Pour the mix into the chosen baking pans, sprinkle with sugar (I use Morena Pure Cane Sugar) and bake. For a bundt pan or two loaf pans, bake 60-70 minutes; for muffins or mini loaf pans, bake 18-22 minutes.

Coconut Macaroons

This recipe is one of the oldest recipes I own. I'm not even sure where it came from. It's in my green index box recipe holder that I've had since I was about 11. These cookies are so fluffy and sweet and just all around delicious! It's a pretty simple and straightforward recipe, so give this a try!

2 egg whites
dash of salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 1/3 cup flaked coconut

Beat egg whites, dash of salt, and vanilla until soft peak forms.

Gradually add sugar, beating until stiff.

Fold in coconut.

Drop by rounded teaspoon onto a greased cookie sheet - I actually used parchment paper rather than greasing the sheet.

Bake at 350 degrees about 20 minutes.