Happy Halloween!
Here’s a moist and flavorful recipe that is sure to put a smile on your face for the holiday! One of the main ingredients is mayonnaise. I have made this cake for years and it’s one of my most requested recipes. You can find the full recipe here. For this cake I used cream cheese frosting and holiday sprinkles but you can use anything that you like. Enjoy!
As I was rummaging through my hand written recipes this morning, an odd shaped piece of paper brought back memories of Aunt Nance. She was Jim’s Aunt, and a very special person. She would often bake this cake and bring it along to family gatherings. The chopped dates in the recipe are undetectable after baking but they are essential as they add great flavor and moisture to the cake.
Years ago, I asked Aunt Nance to share the recipe with me and this is the piece of paper she slipped in my hand as I was leaving the gathering.
When I finally got around to baking the cake, I noticed that mine wasn’t as dark and chocolatey as hers was. After investigating further, I realized that she had forgotten to include 2 tablespoons of cocoa in the recipe. The cake was still quite delicious so I make it both ways and it’s always a crowd pleaser.
Westhaven Date Cake
1 (8 oz.) package dates, chopped
1 cup boiling water
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. salt
chocolate chips
nuts
powdered sugar
Over chopped dates, pour 1 cup boiling water; let cool. Add baking soda and set aside. Cream together butter and sugar. Add eggs, vanilla, flour, cocoa powder, and salt. Pour date mixture into dry ingredients, mix well. Pour into a greased and floured tube pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips and nuts over batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, and cool cake before serving.
I have been making this recipe for years. While this cake is delicious anytime, I think the flavor is best when the cake has had a day to sit. However, once your family knows that the cake is out of the oven, the countdown begins as to when it’s cool enough to eat. And after the first slice is gone, it seems only minutes before the rest of the cake follows and only a few crumbs are left at the bottom of the baking pan. Either way, this is an awesome cake recipe.
The mayonnaise may seem like an odd ingredient but it sure makes this cake moist and flavorful.
Rich Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake
2 cups hot tap water
2 cups mayonnaise
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups sugar
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray with non-stick spray, a 9×13 inch pan.
In a large bowl, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa and baking soda. Add the mayonnaise, water, and vanilla. Beat for about 2 minutes. Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.
This past weekend, we celebrated my daughter’s graduation from high school. I knew the temperature was predicted to reach 90 degrees so I got all of my baking out of the way during the week, while the temperatures were mild and breezy. A couple of weeks ago, I saw that the local market was having a sale on cake mix. I had cake mix coupons to stack onto the sale price so the final price came out to 75 cents per box! I bought 5 boxes and remembered that I had a great recipe for Chocolate Chip Cake Mix Cookies. I thought that this would be a great addition to the dessert table at the graduation party. These cookies are crunchy on the outside and chewy in the middle. They have great flavor and the guests really enjoyed them. Store in an air-tight container (if they last that long).
Chocolate Chip Cake Mix Cookies
1 box yellow cake mix
2 cups old fashioned oatmeal, uncooked
3/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
Combine cake mix, oatmeal, and sugar in large bowl; mix well. In a medium bowl, combine oil, eggs and extract; mix thoroughly. Next, add wet mixture to dry ingredients, stir well. Stir in pecans and chocolate chips.
Use a small ice cream scoop to drop on ungreased cookie sheets about 2″ apart. Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Late study nights and early morning swim practices have been a household routine these last several weeks. As the school year winds down, it seems that my children have been bombarded with advanced placement tests, college standardized tests, and final exams. Thinking about our busy schedule this afternoon, I realized that I haven’t baked a fun dessert in a while. Hoping to whip up something delightful, my Candy-Coated Triple Chocolate Brownie Recipe was the first thing that came to mind. A wonderfully sweet treat, sure to put a smile on anyone’s face!
Candy-Coated Triple Chocolate Brownies
2 cups sugar
5 eggs
1 cup canola oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips
1/2 can prepared milk chocolate frosting
1/2 cup candy coated chocolates
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9×13 baking pan. In a large bowl, mix together first 4 ingredients. In a second bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, salt, and chocolate chips; mix into egg mixture, just until moistened. Pour batter into pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until set brownie edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool for 5-7 minutes before spreading prepared frosting over brownies. Sprinkle with coated chocolate candies. Cool completely before cutting into squares.
Simply Made Kitchen and Crafts 