New York Crumb Cake

Over Spring Break Brandon Graham and I went to visit our newly wed friends Mike and Andrea in Tallahassee! It was tons of fun to catch-up and I have to admit it was kind of nice to be the guest instead of the host. (I will admit however- traveling with a baby is definitely not for the faint of heart. You think I would know this by now... but we keep trying. lol)

On our last night there- I got the itch to bake.  Andrea Brandon and Mike fanned the flames and before I knew it I was scouring my Pinterest "Dazzling Desserts" page to find a recipe to try out.  I was thinking something with cinnamon...

Initially I planning to go for something along the lines of cinnamon rolls- but it seemed too work intensive at the time. So the obvious choice was a crumb cake! (...did I just imply that crumb cakes are quick and easy? Yeah no.)

I'd never made a crumb cake before though- so I was going in blind.  The picture looked appetizing and that was good enough for me.  Besides- it was a cake in a casserole dish. Those are always super easy and fail-proof right?

After the necessary trip to the store for missing ingredients, I made myself at home in the Kanis kitchen. (I'm going to do a shout-out to Andrea here for having such an amazingly well-stocked kitchen which included this awesome set of heavy-duty brightly colored mixing bowls. I am in love with them!)

 

THIS is literally the tutorial I followed to make my crumb cake. Apparently the original recipe is from Martha Stewart? I should have known... (NO that is NOT my picture. This is the picture that made my subconscious drool and inspired me to attempt to tame the crumb-cake beast.) Let me suggest to everyone out there that if you have an iphone- resist the urge to refer to it constantly while baking.  You WILL get flour ALL up in there and that is a sad sad thing. 

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The Recipe:

2 Tablespoons canola oil
4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 sticks butter, melted and cooled
confectioners’ sugar 

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So... here I am getting started. You combine all your dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and... mix. :)

1.5 cups of flour

.5 cup Sugar 

2.5 teaspoons Baking Powder

.5 teaspoon Salt

I may or may not have accidentally added 2 TABLESPOONS of salt when I was trying to read this tiny recipe on my flour-covered phone late at  night. (...in case you missed all those excuses it totally wasn't my fault. I was hoping no one would notice...) 

Next you combine your wet "cake" ingredients into a small separate bowl.

1 egg

.5 cup milk

2 tablespoons oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

I liked this part. I thought it was cool to see all the ingredients kind of chilling out separately in the bowl- and then whisking it all together until they were all one milky solution. 

Then you dump that little bowl into the big bowl and mix. :)

At this point- the tutorial I was following had the person using one of those special "spatula spreader" thingys. I saw one in Andrea's utensil jar on the counter- but it had a wooden handle and I wasn't sure how particular she was about her wooden utensils getting wet food on them. I know some people (*cough* me *cough*) are really particular about wooden kitchen tools. She later cleared it with me though and I wish I would have just asked because it would have made my life a lot easier when I had to get the mix from the bowl into the pan.

Make sure you spray your pan with non-stick cooking spray (PAM) first. :)

Here I began to become sincerely concerned about the recipe.  I didn't feel like I had enough cake batter.  It ended up being barely enough to make a super thin layer across the bottom of the pan. I referenced the tutorial again- double checked the ingredient amounts and the pan size... everything checked out. So I took a deep breath- and kept going.

I always wondered how the crumbs in crumb cake were made.  Now I know.

And you're about to know too. :)

Combine your dry ingredients for the "crumb" part in a large mixing bowl. 

2.5 cups flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

1.5 teaspoons cinnamon

Once again don't they look pretty in their own little sections? (I'm a nut.)

I felt strangely powerful unscrewing the top to the cinnamon and pulling out two hefty scoops.  It smelled awesome. Everyone should use cinnamon. It is a gift from the heavens. I sincerely believe in that. Even if it gives me heartburn. lol

Then melt your butter in a small microwave-safe bowl.

2 Sticks Butter

And let it cool to room temperature. 

I was really proud of my butter. I know it was probably like the easiest part of the whole recipe- but normally I always over-heat my butter and it ends up boiling and going crazy all over the place.  This time it was perfect. All melty and ready for mixing!

Combine your butter with your dry crumb ingredients.

Mix!

(check-out that wooden-handled spatula spreader thingy!)

It took awhile for my crumbs to get crumbly enough. I just kept stirring though and they turned out.  My mixture was super sticky so I put in a small handful of extra flour to help move things along. 

At this point- turn on your oven. (I know you forgot to preheat it.)

It should be set to 325 degrees F.

Sprinkle your crumbs evenly across the top of your cake mixture in the pan.

Once again I sincerely thought I didn't have enough- but the crumbs more than made-up for the tiny amount of cake batter and I had enough to go over the top of the pan several times.

Into the oven!

Bake your cake for 20 minutes.

Or "until a toothpick comes out clean". 

The recipe says to rotate your pan at least once.  I just cooked it ten minutes, turned it around, and cooked it for another ten.  I didn't have a toothpick so I used a fork.  After the full 20 minutes it came out clean so I took it out!

I let it cool as long as I could stand before dusting it with powdered sugar, cutting it into squares, and serving. :) I didn't get any pictures of a piece plated... mostly because when I cut it up the cake still wasn't cool and the whole thing started to fall apart into a big mess. haha

But here it is done!

My verdict- the cake was a flop.
I guess my only experience with crumb cake is little debbie's coffee cakes, but this was definitely not what I was expecting. I could really taste the extra salt, which made the cake feel dry. (We all helped ourselves to big glasses of milk to help ease it down.) Despite the "dryness" and even though my fork came out clean- the inside was still all goopy and didn't seem cooked properly.

Everyone else seemed to like it OK- Andrea had another serving... but usually when I bake something it goes fast and this cake was untouched after those initial servings. I didn't HATE it... but I know I definitely didn't feel like having another slice either.

Brandon says he thinks the cake turned out the way it was supposed to and I just didn't like that kind of cake. I'm still not convinced. I feel like it's my mission to fix this recipe and create the perfect moist and crumbly crumb cake.

While I was eating it I kept saying that I thought it needed to be sweeter.  Mike and Andrea protested saying that if it was any sweeter it wouldn't be edible. lol I think it was the powdered sugar that made it "sweet"- but the cake itself definitely needed some softer warm flavor tones. I was thinking "sweet" but now I'm thinking maybe it needed a little more vanilla. I might even try some nutmeg.

I'd like to also try keeping it in the oven longer to see if the bottom would bake more thoroughly.  I might also cover the top with foil to keep it from browning if I keep it in longer. And I will definitely let it cool completely before I slice it. Sometimes it just needs a little more time to set-up and that might help with the "goopiness".

Ah... I don't know. Either way- that's that.

Have you ever made crumb cake?  

Do you have a good recipe or any tips to share?

Bananas over Banana Bread

I grew up honestly thinking I HATED banana bread. But a few months ago I had some rotten bananas and I thought "oh what the heck..." I googled a recipe and low and behold out came a moist, sweet, delicious concoction! One sniff of that bready-goodness and I couldn't help but have a couple of slices   with butter melted right on top.  I ate that stuff like cake!  Soooo good.

I also learned that apparently banana bread is one of Brandon's favorites!  He lucked out because I probably wouldn't have ever tried it if we didn't have those mushy bananas hanging out on the counter-top.

I've figured it wasn't the banana bread I hated... it was the stale dry banana NUT bread old ladies from church would always give my mom for visiting teaching.  Dreadful stuff. Seriously like cardboard or something. ugh.

But this--- THIS... is GLORIOUS.

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs (beaten)

2 smushed overripe bananas

Directions:

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175*C) and lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

2.) Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.  

3.) Cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended.

4.) Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten.

5.) Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 60-65 minutes. (Until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean.)

Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Slice while still warm and top with butter.

EAT LIKE CAKE!

Happy Baking!

Cheddar and Ham Stuffed Crescent Rolls

Mmmmm... tasty!

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls have GOT to be one of the food world's greatest inventions. The possibilities are ENDLESS.  These beautiful, buttery, flaky rolls present themselves as such a deliciously simple platform for all things sweet and savory.

While crescent rolls are delicious on their own- they can also be heaven-sent when you are in need of a quick meal, snack, or even dessert!  For these rolls I laid out the triangles, shredded some cheddar cheese, and laid some small cut-up pieces of lunch meat ham on each one before rolling them up and baking them according to the package directions.  

I've also stuffed them with extra butter, cinnamon, and sugar. DELICIOUS!  

It's like a fail-safe foodie dream!  Add crescent rolls to just about anything and you're good.

Keep in mind that they honestly probably aren't the most healthy things for you. (pfft... but who cares about healthy when you have scrumptious! lol) I like to pair cheddar and ham stuffed crescent rolls with something fresh and light like a salad or some fruit.  It helps me justify all that buttery goodness.

Anyway- I'm not trying to push a product or anything, (Honestly I've used store-brand crescent rolls and they were just about as tasty. I might have not been able to tell the difference if I hadn't of known.)  but here is a link to the "official" crescent roll site where you can find all sorts of fun and tasty recipes utilizing this gluttonous dough!

I'm sure you can google "crescent roll recipes" an come up with all sorts of things too.

mmm mmm yummy yummy!

Happy Eating!

Pineapple Coconut Cupcakes

I posted about these cupcakes before on my personal blog... but they are definitely worthy of sharing again.  When my husband and I taught Sunday school, one of our students brought in some pineapple cupcakes she made all by herself. I was definitely a little hesitant... I don't generally like chunks of fruit in my cake. It usually turns out tough, dry, and nasty.  And that's just wrong. 

But I was pleasantly surprised! I ultimately ended up getting the recipe from her and trying them myself.  I love coconut so I added some hearty sprinkles of the shredded joy onto the tops of my cupcakes but if you don't like coconut- never fear!  They are definitely delicious either way.

DIRECTIONS:

Take a regular white cake box mix. (I suppose you could use yellow but I thought the white was a nicer contrast with the pineapple.) Make it regularly, but dumping in a regular size can of CRUSHED pineapple- juice and all! I cut back some (not all!) of the water needed because the pineapple juice will make your mix pretty runny.) Line a cupcake tin with papers, fill each nearly TO THE TOP. Bake as instructed. Frost, dust with coconut- enjoy!

You can use chunks of pineapple instead, but I preferred a kind of pineapple presence throughout the cupcake rather than catching huge chunks here and there. I just thought it would be too overwhelming. (and Christmas fruit-cake like. yuck.)

My first batch, I sprayed the cupcake papers with PAM, and when I took them out- the paper literally fell off each cake. Not ideal for when you're going to be serving them to a bunch of cubscouts who may or may not have washed their hands beforehand. haha (even without the papers, the cakes were incredibly moist and some of the papers didn't stick too well as you can see from my picture)

I also only filled each paper half way (as per instructions on the box) but for some reason with the pineapple, the mix doesn't seem to like rising, so I literally had half-empty cupcakes when I was done. These ones turned out much better. 

These cupcakes have my baking wheels turning with all sorts of ideas.  I feel like the pineapple platform lends itself to all sorts of glorious toppings. Cherries anyone?!

In the end, these are mouth-wateringly good.  Bake with caution- one will not be enough! They are moist and heavy so your belly may get the "I'm full" message a little late; after your mouth has already indulged beyond it's boundaries. You can justify it though... I mean you ARE eating fruit after all right?