1/2 cup boiling water

4 ounces sweet cooking German chocolate

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, softened

4 egg yolks

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/2 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk

4 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Coconut Pecan Frosting

1 cup sugar ( 1 1/2 cups)

1/2 cup butter ( 3/4 cups)

1 cup evaporated milk ( 12 oz. can)

1 teaspoon vanilla ( 1 1/2 tsp)

3 egg yolks ( 4 egg yolks)

1 1/3 cups flaked coconut ( 2 cups)

1 cup chopped pecans ( 1 1/2 cups)

Directions 

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 9-inch square pans or 3 8-inch round pans.

Pour boiling water on chocolate, stirring until chocolate is melted; cool. Mix sugar and butter in large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs yolk, one at a time. Beat in chocolate and vanilla on low speed.

Mix in flour, baking soda and salt alternately with buttermilk, beating after each addition until batter is smooth. Fold in egg whites.

Divide batter among pans. Bake square pans 40-45 minutes or round pans 35-40 minutes. Check for doneness with toothpick in center. Cool and top with Coconut-Pecan Frosting.

Coconut Pecan Frosting: Mix sugar, butter, milk, vanilla and egg yolks in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 12 minutes. Take off heat. Stir in coconut and pecans. Beat until spreading consistency. Allow to cool & thicken before icing cake.

Ingredients

Cake:

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

3 large eggs

3/4 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1-1/4 c. plus 2 tbsp. sugar

2 c. peeled and grated carrots (about 2 to 3 large carrots)

1-1/2 c. sweetened flaked coconut

1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple (do not drain)

1 c. chopped pecans

Buttermilk Glaze:

 1 c. sugar

1/2 c. buttermilk

1/2 c. unsalted butter

1 tbsp. light corn syrup

1-1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

12 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. unsalted butter, softened

2 tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

4 c. powdered sugar

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°F.  Spray 13x9-inch pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.

For cake, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl.  Set aside.

Place eggs, buttermilk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and sugar in a large bowl and mix until smooth.  Slowly add in dry ingredients and mix until just combined.  Gently fold in carrots, coconut, pineapple, and pecans.  Pour batter evenly into prepared pan and bake 35 to 40 minutes or until cake springs back when pressed.

While the cake is baking, to prepare the glaze, add sugar, buttermilk, butter, corn syrup, and baking soda to medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.  Vigorously stir mixture (adding the baking soda will make the mixture foam, stirring will subside the rising foam!) for about 8 minutes.  The glaze will begin to turn an amber color.  When the mixture is a light amber color, remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.  Set aside until ready to use.

When the cake comes out of the oven, immediately poke holes in cake.  Pour the buttermilk glaze over the top of the hot cake and spread evenly.  Let cake cool completely.

While the cake cools, for frosting, add cream cheese and butter in large bowl and beat until fluffy.  Add brown sugar, cinnamon and vanilla extract and mix until combined.  Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  

Once the cake is cooled, evenly spread frosting over cake.  

2 sticks of butter, at room temperature

1 c. powdered sugar

1 c. honey

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

How to make it : 

Whip the butter so it’s nice and creamy.

This is where the room temperature part makes things easier)

Add the powdered sugar and mix it all in. Then add the honey and the cinnamon. Then whip it. Whip it good. (“Ba da ba da da. Crack that whip!”) Scrape the sides and whip it a little more.

Store the heavenly concoction in the fridge or leave it out at room temperature. It’s going to spread much easier at room temperature, but it’s up to you! Serve on rolls, toast, bagels, sweet potatoes, etc. Enjoy! And good luck not eating all of it!

Really love it for the shower. This mixture is

: 2 oz. Dawn, 4 oz. Lemon Juice, 8 oz. White Vinegar, 10 oz. Water.

2 boxes Jiffy Blueberry Muffin mix

4 oz. cream cheese

1 stick “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter”

½ C. light brown sugar, firmly packed

2 eggs

1 ½ C. white chocolate chips

How to make it :

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream together butter, cream cheese, and brown sugar. Add eggs one at a time until blended. Combine muffin mix with the butter mixture and mix well. Fold in white chocolate chips. Chill for at least one hour. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake for 14-15 minutes or until just turning brown around the edges. Cool on cookie sheet for 1-2 minutes. Transfer to wire rack until completely cooled.

***PLEASE NOTE***While we have made these cookies for quite a while and never had an issue with the quality of the finished product

we would suggest baking a small batch at first…if they come out flat, try to chill the batter for a while longer. This really seems to be a key step with this recipe.

Ingredients

For the Brownie Pie

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (¾ of a stick)

3 cups HERSHEY’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (18 ounces)

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

1 teaspoon vanilla

⅔ cup all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon baking powder

1 cup chopped pecans

For the Frosting

1 cup evaporated milk

1 cup sugar

3 egg yolks

½ cup butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups shredded, sweetened coconut

½ cup chopped pecans

Instructions

For the Brownie Pie

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a 9½-inch tart pan with a removable bottom with cooking spray and lightly flour the pan, shaking to remove excess.

Melt the butter and chocolate chips in a glass or metal bowl over a pan filled with 1 inch or so of simmering water. Stir until the butter and chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool.

Beat the eggs, sugar, instant espresso and the vanilla extract in a stand mixer until blended. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and blend to combine. In a smaller bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and kosher salt and then add to the bowl of the stand mixer and mix just until combined. Stir in half of the chopped pecans and pour into the prepared pan. Top with the rest of the chopped pecans.

Bake for 34-45 minutes or until the top begins to crack and the middle is somewhat set but still soft. The pie will deflate somewhat as it cools.

Top the brownie pie with the frosting. Remove from the tin and serve cake at room temperature.

INGREDIENTS

3 cups water

3 cups milk

1 + 1½ teaspoons salt

½ teaspoon pepper

4 tablespoons butter, divided

¾ cup stone-ground grits

6 ounces cheddar cheese, grated

3 pounds shrimp (head-on)

1 tablespoon paprika

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup finely chopped andouille or smoked sausage

1 cup finely chopped onion

2 tablespoons minced shallot

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon green onion, chopped

1 cup stewed tomatoes

1 cup shrimp stock

⅓ cup sour cream

fresh parsley and chopped green onion for serving