Cherry Cake Pop Recipe!

Do you say cake pops or cake truffles? Either way, there's nothing quite as cute, bite-size and party-ready than these cherry-shaped treats! Equally as fun to make as they are to eat, I'd love to share this super easy cake pop recipe with you...

Easy Cherry Cupcakes!

You gals already know that I'm having  feelings about cherries this summer! Let's keep this thing going, shall we? Here's a quick cake-mix hack and cute decorating idea for easy cherry cupcakes...

5-INGREDIENT CREAMSICLE CAKE!

Orange you glad it's summer!? For me, once the sun's out and the barbecue's going, it's all about friends, family and fun. To kick off the season, I'm sharing an easy 5-Ingredient Creamsicle Cake and cute citrus-themed DIY project that you can share with your summer crew. Can't wait to hear what you think!

The Bachelor Predictions & Cupcake Engagement Ring!

One day I will take a better picture of this cake! In the meantime, I want to share this quick-and-dirty cupcake idea with you. It's perfect for an engagement party, bridal shower or watching the finale of The Bachelor cuz duh!

Rosé Wine Bottle Cake!

A lady should never have to choose between wine and cake. That's why I'm brining two bottles to celebrate my dear friend's birthday: One to pop, one to slice! Most wine bottle cakes take themselves so seriously. Nope! This rosé confetti cake is all about fun...

How-To Make The Most Epic Horse Cake EVER! Step-By-Step Instructions, Just For You xo

Birthday cakes don't have to be so serious after you turn 20, 30, 40...heck! Even 100! I love a sophisticated layer cake but compared to a frickin' multicolored horse!? It's not even a question which one I'd rather have my candles in. 

The Best Sticky Toffee Pudding Recipe Ever (With Sea Salt Toffee Sauce)!

We had a few friends over this weekend for a Brit-inspired feast: Boyfriend made roast beef with Henry Bain sauce, popovers and curried carrots—I made sticky toffee pudding. I was so excited to break out this recipe! It's something I learned how to make in culinary school from our pastry chef, Chef Anna (love). I hounded her for the recipe and I still carry it around with me in my little notebook. 

Traditionally, sticky toffee pudding is a steamed dessert. Chef Anna taught us how to make them in cupcake-like pans to streamline the process. The cake gets its "stickiness" from chopped dates, then is topped with a sweet-and-salty toffee sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream—it's kind of like heaven. I hope you enjoy it! xo Erin

STICKY TOFFEE PUDDING CAKE WITH SALTED TOFFEE SAUCE

SERVES: 12

FOR THE CAKES

2 cups packed chopped pitted dates

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature 

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup chopped dark chocolate, melted and cooled slightly

Vanilla ice cream, for serving

FOR THE TOFFEE SAUCE

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature 

2 cups packed light-brown sugar

1 cup light corn syrup

1 cup heavy cream

1 to 2 teaspoons sea salt

1. Make the cakes: Preheat oven to 350˚. Lightly coat a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or melted butter.

2. Bring the dates and 1 1/2 cups water to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat; cook 3 minutes or until dates soften. Remove from heat. Stir the baking soda into the date mixture. Let cool, then pulse in a food processor or blender until smooth. 

3. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl; set aside. Beat the butter and sugar in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined. Fold in the melted chocolate and date mixture using a rubber spatula. 

4. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean with a few moist crumbs. Transfer to a wire rack and cool slightly. 

5. Make the toffee sauce: Put the butter, light-brown sugar, corn syrup, cream and sea salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. 

6. Poke cakes all over with skewer (this helps them soak in the toffee sauce). Divide among plates or small bowls. Top with toffee sauce and vanilla ice cream.

How To Make: A Super Easy Coconut Cake, Mmm!

Good morning, lovely friends! We're shaking the sand out of our swimsuits and packin' our things to head back to Brooklyn. In the meantime, here's a recipe for the simple coconut cake I threw together for an impromptu birthday party this week. It's decadent, coconut-y and perfectly toasty (kind of like boyfriend's cheeks right now). I hope you enjoy it as much as we did :) See you back here tomorrow! xo

 
EASY COCONUT CAKE
SERVES: 8 

FOR THE CAKE
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda 
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup coconut milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 to 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut

FOR THE FROSTING
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
2 to 3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons milk
1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut, plus toasted coconut for coating

1. Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350˚. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper; spray with cooking spray and dust with flour, tapping out the excess. 
2. Beat butter and granulated sugar in a bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until combined. 
3. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a bowl. In another bowl, whisk the milk, coconut milk and vanilla. Alternate adding the flour mixture and milk mixture to the butter in 5 additions, starting and ending with the flour mixture, beating until just combined. Fold in the coconut using a spatula. 
4. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Let cool in the pan 10 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack and cool completely. 
5. Make the frosting: Best the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined. Alternate adding the confectioners' sugar and milk until you reach your desired consistency and sweetness. Fold in the coconut. 
6. Slice the cake, horizontally, into 2 layers (if desired). Fill and frost. Press on toasted coconut, if you're in the mood. 

Simple Sweets: Pecan-Vanilla Tea Cakes!

Welcome back, lovely friends! Here's a little something sweet to get you through the day: pecan-vanilla tea cakes...nutty little cakes that are perfect for dunking in the best homemade coffee or tea, mmm! I wanted to keep things super simple for you, so the batter is made entirely in a food processor—just make sure you don't over-mix or the cakes will come out tough. They only take a few minutes to pull together, so give 'em a try and let me know what you think.

PECAN-VANILLA TEA CAKES

MAKES: about 2 dozen

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup pecan halves

2 large eggs

1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

2/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cocoa powder, for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚. Spray pastry molds or mini muffin pans with cooking spray. Arrange the molds on a baking sheet about 1 inch apart (do not let the molds touch).

2. Pulse the sugar and pecan halves in a food processor until the pecans are in small bits. Add the eggs and pulse until just combined. Add the butter, milk and vanilla and pulse to make a loose batter.

3. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Add to the food processor and pulse until just combined. Spoon batter into the prepared molds. Bake until the cakes spring back when lightly pressed, about 10 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and cool slightly in the molds, then unmold and cool completely. Dust with cocoa powder. Serve with coffee! 

Fun fact: I saved the molds I used from the Good Housekeeping basement! We have a bunch of fabulous, vintage baking tools in storage and I was lucky enough to be able to take these home with me. They're kind of precious, right?

The Best Pistachio Pound Cake Recipe Ever!

For years and years I've been searching for the perfect pistachio cake recipe with no success. So many of the recipes I found called for pistachio pudding mix at some point (which is essentially just green almond pudding with pistachio flecks in it)—bleck, bleck, bleck! What I really wanted was a dense, moist cake that was simple and rustic but splendidly rich with toasty, nutty flavor. I hope you enjoy it

Good Housekeeping's Signature Sour Cream Coffee Cake Recipe!

Our test kitchen opens up for public tours the second Friday of each month. Groups come in, we show them our kitchen and we feed them coffee cake. That's the drill. The coffee cake recipe is always the same and it's delicious—other editors from around the institute always come by for scraps in the morning after we trim and cut the cakes. The original recipe calls for pears (as seen below) but we'll use whatever seasonal fruit looks best.

GOOD HOUSEKEEPING SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE

SERVES: 10 to 12

FOR THE STREUSEL

2/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

4 tablespoons margarine or butter, softened

2/3 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

FOR THE CAKE

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups sugar

6 tablespoons margarine or butter, softened

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups sour cream

3 firm Bosc pears (about 1 1/4 pounds), peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch pieces

1.     Preheat the oven to 350˚. Line a 13-by-9-inch baking pan with aluminum foil; grease the flour and dust with flour.

2.     Prepare the streusel: In a medium bowl, mix the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon with a fork until well blended. With your fingertips, work in the butter until evenly distributed. Add the walnuts and toss to mix; set aside.

3.     Prepare the cake: In another mediun bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.

4.     In a large bowl with a mixer on low speed, beat the sugar and butter until blended, scraping down the bowl often with a rubber spatula. Increase the speed to high, beat until creamy, about 2 minutes, occasionally scraping down the bowl. Reduce the speed to low; add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.

5.     With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding the flour mixture and the sour cream, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, until the batter is smooth, occasionally scraping the bowl. Fold in the pears with a rubber spatula.

6.     Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly. Sprinkle the top with the streusel mixture. Bake the coffee cake 40 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack 1 hour to serve warm, or cool completely in the pan to serve later. Makes 16 servings.

[Recipe from Good Housekeeping. Photographed by me!]

Edible Gift Idea: Snowy Mini Almond Pound Cakes!

Hi there! How are you all holding up? I don't know about you but I've been stressing a bit about my gifting list. There are so many people I 'd like to give a little something to for the holidays but my present-buying-fund is already stretched thin! Edible gifts are the obvious answer but they can be kind of cheesy, right? I mean, how many times have you given/received cookie-mix-in-a-jar?! 

I'd rather get/give a little something that's simple, beautiful and really well made—like a treat you'd get as a parting gift at a très-chic restaurant here in NYC. These mini almond pound cakes come to mind. We made them for a big meeting here at the magazine but I think they'd be perfect as a little Christmas love token as well. What do you think?


ALMOND POUND CAKE 
Adapted from the Good Housekeeping Great Baking Cookbook 

2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
½ teaspoon almond extract
Sliced almonds and confectioners' sugar, for decorating (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 325˚. Grease and flour a 9-by-5-inch metal loaf pan (or grease small disposable loaf pans, as seen in the photo—about 5 per recipe). 
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Beat the butter with a mixer on medium speed until creamy. Add the sugar and beat until light and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add the flour mixture and beat until just combined.
3. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan; sprinkle sliced almond on top. Bake 1 hour or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a rack 10 minutes, then run a small knife around the sides of the pan to loosen and invert to remove. Cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

YUM! Dr Pepper Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

As part of the festivities this weekend, I made my lovely friend a cake spiked with her favorite soda: My Dr Pepper Red Velvet Cake comes out super moist—exactly how I like it!—because I stir a little warm Dr Pepper syrup into the cake batter, then brush the finished cakes with it right before frosting. The sour cherry candy–decorations gave the cake an extra soda-flavored kick. It looked a little Christmasy in the end but really, who cares? We were too busy stealing licks of frosting and treating ourselves to second helpings to notice :)

DR PEPPER RED VELVET CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

SERVES: 10 to 12

FOR THE CAKE

Unsalted butter, softened, for the pans

1 12-ounce can Dr Pepper

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

2½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1-ounce bottle red food coloring

FOR THE FROSTING

2 8-ounce packaged cream cheese, at room temperature

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

½ teaspoon vanilla

Pinch of salt

3 cups confectioners' sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons heavy cream (or Dr. Pepper syrup)

1. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 325˚. Butter two 9-inch-round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment; butter the parchment and dust the pans with flour. Bring the Dr Pepper to a simmer in a skillet over medium heat and cook until reduce by at least half, about 15 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Beat the vegetable oil and granulated sugar with a mixer until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Add the buttermilk, vanilla, red food coloring and ½ cup of the hot Dr Pepper syrup and beat until combined, scraping down the bowl as needed. Beat in the flour mixture in 4 additions (do not over mix). 

3. Divide the batter among the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool in the pans on racks for 15 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto the racks and cool completely. 

4. For the frosting: Beat the cream cheese and butter with a mixer until smooth. Beat in the vanilla and salt. Alternate adding the confectioners' sugar and heavy cream (use Dr. Pepper syrup, instead, for an amped-up soda flavor; it will change the color slightly) until you reach the desired consistency and sweetness. 

5. Put 1 layer on a cake platter and brush the top with some of the remaining Dr Pepper syrup. Spread about 1 cup frosting on top, then top with the remaining cake layer; brush with more Dr Pepper syrup. Cover the entire cake with a thin layer of frosting (this is a crumb coat, it doesn't have to be perfect) and chill until firm, about 30 minutes. Cover with the remaining frosting.