Category: Southern

Pecan Pie Cake

This recipe comes from a facebook post and is from the blog Sweet Jeanette. (http://sweetjeanette.blogspot.com/2011/12/pecan-pie-cake.html) Jeanette got the recipe from Southern Living Magazine.

We all know Southern Living recipes are all awesome and Pecan Pie and Cake all rolled into one must be good. So here’s the recipe:

Pecan Pie Filling

1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

3/4 cup dark corn syrup

1/3 cup cornstarch

4 egg yolks

1 1/2 cups half-and-half

1/8 tsp salt

3 TBSP butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (the real stuff)

Whisk together the first 6 ingredients in a heavy 3-quart saucepan until smooth. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, and boil for 1 minute, or until thickened. Remove from heat; whisk in butter and vanilla. Place a sheet of wax paper directly on surface of mixture to prevent a film from forming, and chill at least 4 hours.

Now for the cake….

Pecan Pie Cake

3 cups finely chopped pecans, toasted and divided

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1/2 cup shortening

2 cups sugar

5 large eggs, separated

1 TBSP vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

3/4 cup dark corn syrup

Sprinkle 2 cups pecans evenly into 3 generously buttered 9-inch round cake pans; shake to coat bottoms and sides of pans.

Beat butter and shortening at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy, and gradually add sugar, beating well. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla.

Combine flour and baking soda. Add to butter mixture alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in remaining 1 cup pecans.

Beat egg whites at medium speed until stiff peaks form, and fold one third egg whites into batter. Fold in remaining egg whites. (Do NOT over mix). Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake at 350 for about 20-25 minutes. I always set timer to go off 5 minutes before to be safe. Silly oven!

Check for doneness with the old toothpick inserted into center test.

Cool in pans on wire racks for about 10 minutes, then invert onto the wire racks. Put some wax paper down under the wire racks… Trust me! You’ll be glad you did!

Brush the tops and sides of layers with corn syrup, and cool completely. (See, aren’t you glad you listened?)

Spread half of pecan pie filling on one layer, pecan side up. Place second layer, pecan side up, on filling, and spread with remaining filling. Top with remaining layer, pecan side up.

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Here’s the Pinterest link for Pecan Pie Cake: Pecan Pie Cake

Sharon Springfield

Pecan Pie Cake

Tags cake, desserts, pecan, pie

Cakes Desserts Southern

Mississippi Mud Cake

Mississippi Mud Cake

Easy version:

Brownie mix for 9×13 size pan
3 eggs
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup half & half
1/2 cups chopped pecans
1 large container of Marshmallow fluff
1 container of dark chocolate frosting

Prepare a 9×13 glass baking dish by greasing it with crisco or butter.

Mix up the brownie batter substituting butter for the oil called for in the mix, half & half instead of water and 3 eggs instead of one. (If your mix’s instructions are different, just adjust the amounts of butter and milk to the called for amounts of oil and water.) Stir in the nuts after the batter is no longer lumpy. Spread evenly in the baking dish and bake according to the times given on the mix.

Cool brownie layer on a wire rack for 30 minutes. While still slightly warm, spread the marshmallow fluff all over the top of the brownies. Cool in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Remove the lid and foil from container of frosting. Microwave for 30 seconds and stir until smooth and pourable. Pour over the marshmallow layer, spreading it if necessary to coat the whole cake.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple hours before serving.

If you like my recipes, be a sweetie pie and share on Facebook,
Like my page “I Love To Cook” and Pin these yummy recipes on Pinterest. 🙂

Here’s the Pinterest link for Mississippi Mud Cake: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/280278776784206954/

Sharon Springfield

Mississippi Mud Cake

Tags cake, chocolate, marshmallow, Mississippi Mud

Cakes Desserts Southern

Red Velvet Poke Cake

Duncan Hines Red Velvet Cake Mix
Cheesecake Instant Pudding
Oreos
Cool Whip

Bake the Red Velvet Cake as directed in a 9×13″ baking pan. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, poke holes at 1 inch intervals into the top of the cake, about halfway through cake.

Mix up the pudding using directions for pie filling. (uses less milk) Spread the pudding over the cake, smoothing the pudding into the holes.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate the cake for 2 hours. While the cake is chilling, crush Oreo cookies into crumbles for the top of the cake. Once the cake is chilled well, spread Cool Whip onto the top of cake and sprinkle with crushed Oreos.

*Photo found online – credit unknown – if its yours, will happily link to your post.

Sharon Springfield

Red Velvet Poke Cake

Tags cake, desserts, poke cake, pudding, red velvet

Casseroles Holidays Side Dishes Southern Sweet Potatoes Vegetarian

Sweet Potato Casserole

What would Thanksgiving be without Sweet Potato Casserole? In my family, I’m the one who always gets to bring it because I know the best sweet potato casserole recipe ever! My secret is the crunchy buttery topping with coconut, pecans and brown sugar. It’s so delicious and sweet that I usually eat it last, like a dessert. The fluffy mashed sweet potatoes spiced with pumpkin pie spices like cinnamon, ginger and all spice are just heavenly! So if you’re looking for the best sweet potato casserole recipe, take it from this southern girl, here’s the only one you need.

Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe – Cooking your sweet potatoes:

First of all, you have two options of how to cook your sweet potatoes. You can either bake them until they’re soft and scoop out the inside of the sweet potatoes and discard the skins, or you can peel the sweet potatoes, cube them and boil them in a pot of water until they are fork tender then drain them and mash with a potato masher. I’ve done it both ways and they both work equally well. I usually use about 5 or 6 medium sized sweet potatoes.

Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe

Ingredients:

Mashed cooked sweet potatoes
1 egg
1/3 cup milk or flavored liquid coffee creamer (hazelnut or vanilla)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Mix together the above ingredients with your mashed sweet potatoes. Spread them into a 1 1/2 quart casserole dish.

Sweet potato casserole recipe topping:

1/4 cup softened butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Mix together the topping ingredients and sprinkle over the casserole. Bake in a 350○F oven for 20 – 30 minutes. The topping should be bubbly and browned. The smell should be amazing and will summon you to the oven when it’s getting close to done. Serve this awesome comfort food at your next Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner and everyone will be begging you for your Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe.

Remember to return often to my blog for more great recipes.

Sharon Springfield

Tags casserole, sweet potato

Casseroles Corn Holidays Side Dishes Southern Vegetables Vegetarian

Southern Corn Casserole

This southern classic – Corn Casserole – is rich and buttery, sweet and creamy and a must have at our family gatherings for holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. This goes well as a side dish for spicy dishes like Chili, Cowboy Stew, and Cheesy Manwich Chicken Pasta.

1 cup self-rising cornmeal
3/4 cup self rising flour
1/4 cup sugar
dash of salt
1/3 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg
1 can creamed corn
1 1/2 cup buttermilk

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add the next 4 ingredients and stir just until combined. Pour into a greased 2 quart casserole dish. Bake at 400° for approximately 30 minutes. The middle should not jiggle when pan is shaken around. If its not firm then bake longer.

Spoon it out to serve.

This is similar to the recipe using Jiffy corn muffin mix, but I like to avoid pre-packaged foods whenever possible. You could use a cornbread mix if you want and omit the cornmeal and flour. I hope you enjoy my recipe for Southern Corn Casserole. If so, share with your friends and Pin it on Pinterest.

Southern Corn Casserole

Sharon Springfield

Tags casserole, corn, corn casserole, southern food

Chicken Main Dish Southern

Southern Fried Chicken Paula Deen’s Recipe

Post author By Sharon
Post date May 28, 2009
No Comments on Southern Fried Chicken Paula Deen’s Recipe

2 lbs cut-up chicken

Sauce mixture

4 eggs
1/3 cup water
1 cup hot sauce (I use Louisiana Hot Sauce, Tabasco might be hotter)

Seasoning blend

1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Dredging mixture

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Heat peanut oil in a large deep pot to 350°F (do not fill more than half full–you don’t want a hot-oil spill-over accident!).
For sauce mixture: in a medium-sized bowl, beat the eggs with the water.
Add hot sauce and whisk together well.
Pour this mixture into a large plastic zip-top bag.
For seasoning mixture: In a small bowl, combine 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper and 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder.
For dredging mixture: In a another bowl, mix flour, baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt.
Rinse and pat dry chicken pieces with a paper towel.
Cut breast pieces in half across ribs.
Sprinkle chicken generously on both sides with seasoning blend.
Drop a few chicken pieces of chicken into bag of sauce mixture and squish around to coat thoroughly.
One piece at a time, roll chicken in flour mixture and drop into hot oil.
Don’t crowd chicken pieces–I cook about half the chicken at a time.
Fry chicken until brown and crisp.
Drain on paper toweling.
Dark meat will take about 14 minutes, white meat about 10 minutes.
Remember smaller pieces cook faster than the larger ones.
You can check for doneness by piercing to the bone in the thickest part with a fork.
If the juices run clear, it is done.

8 Servings

Tags Chicken, fried chicken, paula deen, southern

Ham Pineapple Southern

Cola Basted Ham – Paula Deen’s Recipe

Post author By Sharon
Post date May 25, 2009
No Comments on Cola Basted Ham – Paula Deen’s Recipe

8 pounds ham , spiral cut
1 12 oz. can cola
1 20 oz. can pineapple, slices
40 whole cloves
10 maraschino cherries

Lightly oill a shallow roasting pan. Place ham, cut side down, in pan and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

Heat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in lower third. Pour cola over ham and cover with foil. Bake, basting every 30 minutes, until an instant read thermometer inserted 2 inches into center (without touching bone) registers 140 degrees, about 1 1/2 hours. Drain pineapple slices and arrange on ham, attaching with cloves, and place 1 cherry in center of each; bake 15 minutes more. Transfer ham in pan to a wire rack and let stand 10 minutes before carving.

Tags coca-cola, glazed, ham, paula deen, southern