Brown Sugar Pound Cake and the Mixer has a name.

Okay, so I've been eagerly making new things (a new mixer wants to try new recipes, just in case you didn't know) and I tried a terrific recipe last night. Brown Sugar Pound Cake...doesn't that sound fabulous? I got this recipe from Elizabeth's Edible and you can find her post on it here. More good news? It originally came from Cooking Light magazine. How awesome is that?

This is a "grown-up cake" that is not too sweet. Superman and I both agree that would be perfect with a hot tea or a hot coffee. (T in NC, this is definitely a tea-time cake!) I can't decide if I should add a light icing or glaze the next time I make it...I'm leaning towards doing so, but we'll see. Make this cake if you want a not-to-sweet, but-just-right kind of cake. Because it is a pound cake, it is dense, so a little goes a long way...you feel like you really ate something. As you can tell, I really liked this cake. Let me know what you think of it...

Brown Sugar Pound Cake
(adapted from Cooking Light April 2000)

Cooking spray (for your pan)

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter (softened)
2 cups light brown sugar (packed)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 cup fat-free milk
1 tablespoon powdered sugar (for top of cake)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray bundt pan with cooking spray and set aside.

In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk together well and set aside.

In mixer bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy, then gradually add brown sugar and vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each one. Add half the flour mixture and mix, then add the milk and mix, and add the final half of the flour mixture and mix.

Spoon batter into the bundt pan and bake for 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool ten minutes in pan and then flip out onto cooling rack.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Notes: I followed this recipe exactly and it turned out beautifully.


And, now, I know you've all been dying to know (okay, mildly curious, but still!):

Please welcome Minerva to the family! "Minnie" is her nickname already and we are thrilled to have her. Thanks to everyone who gave us hints as to her name, but she definitely perked up with momstheword's suggestion of Minerva. So, Minnie it is!

Our maiden voyage!

Yes, I finally figured out what I was going to make first with my new mixer. It was a tough decision. Last week's cookies were such a disappointment, I wanted to be certain that today's pick was a good one. So, for the maiden voyage of the Kitchen Aid mixer that Superman surprised me with (I'm still squealing on the inside!), I decided to make these awesome Simple Chocolate Drop Cookies from Heather at HomeEc 101. As you can see, Valiant was an awesome sous chef to help me (and play with the new mixer) today and his assistance made it all the more fun. (Everyone has been so excited. They've been impatiently waiting all of 24 hours for me to try out the mixer...it is definitely a family affair!) Simple Chocolate Drop Cookies 1/2 cup butter - softened 1/2 cup brown sugar - packed 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp vanilla (okay, I never measure, I just pour) 1 egg 1 cup all purpose flour 1/4 cup Special Dark cocoa powder (I used regular Hershey's Cocoa) 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/8 tsp salt A couple of handfuls of semi-sweet chocolate chips (see Note) Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar together at medium speed until fluffy (roughly two minutes). Add egg and vanilla and stir until just combined. In separate bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Add to batter mixture and mix gently until just combined. (This is where I threw in a few handfuls of chocolate chips.) Spoon by rounded tablespoon (I used my Pampered Chef scoop) onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-11 minutes. Notes: Since I didn't have Special Dark cocoa powder, I added a couple of handfuls of semi-sweet chocolate chips to make certain the flavor was rich enough. Other than that I didn't make any modifications to the recipe (I did double the recipe for game night...I got 30 cookies out of the double batch). I must say, these are terrific and, as you can see, the kids agree! (Don't mind the tough one - he wasn't going to smile.) The other great thing about this recipe is that it uses stuff I always have on hand, so I can whip them up whenever. Give them a try, you'll really like them. One last note I just had to share with you. The Armchair Housewife found a radio station that plays Big Band era music with online streaming and was kind enough to share the find with us all, so I've been enjoying the Big Band sound for the last two hours...it is amazing. It reminds me of the times we would visit my grandparents and my grandpa would have this music on in the background. It is so fun...click here and push "play" if you want to listen on your computer. (Thanks again, Superman, I love it!)

You are not going to believe what the Fed Ex man delivered to me today!

Look, look, look! Dreams do come true! I do believe in fairies, I do! Can you believe it? I have the best husband in the world...look what he surprised me with:


I'm so excited...I had no idea...he totally got me! I'm soooo lucky! (It is so beautiful, I don't want to mess it up!)

The kids say I should name her...what do you think her name is?

My Dream Machine...

Over the years, I have been incredibly fortunate and I have NO needs. Like anyone else, however, this girl can dream! This is my dream machine...

...isn't she beautiful? All bright and shiny and solid. Look at what she has under the hood:

• 575 Watt Motor
• Bowl-Lift Design
• 6-Quart Polished Stainless Steel Wide-Mouth Bowl with Contoured Handle
• Soft Start Mixing Feature
• Direct Drive Transmission, All-Steel Gears, and All Metal Construction
• Commercial Style Motor Construction
• Includes PowerKnead Spiral Dough Hook, Flat Beater, and Stainless Steel Wire Whip
• Elegant, Satin Pearl Finish

Look at some of the things she can do with all that horse-power:

"Equipped with a high-performance, professional-level motor, the Professional 600™ Series mixer can effectively mix up to 14 cups of all-purpose flour per batch. Powerfully churns through yeast bread dough and triple batches of cookie dough." [That doesn't even mention the pasta-maker attachment!]

Honestly, what is not to love about this baby? As you can imagine, such a well -equipped machine has a list price of $499, certainly not an insignificant amount. After many years of dreaming, I've decided I'd really like to make my dream a reality this year, so I've opened an ING-direct sub-account specifically for her. I figure if I put $25 from every one Superman's paychecks into this account, I can bring her home to live with us for Christmas! [I'm also trying to find more places I can trim the budget so that my dream doesn't interfere with any of our other goals.]

You know, if you haven't done it, ING-direct accounts are painless ways to save for things. They are free, and they let you have a number of sub-accounts so you can save for specific things. We have a Christmas account, a Car account, a savings account, and now, a Dream Machine account. (No, I don't get anything for telling you this...I just think it is an awesome way to save because it is FDIC insured and it is out-of-sight, out-of-mind savings.)

For now, I'll keep using my awesome Kitchenaid hand-held mixer, but I am sure dreams can and do come true...this year will be the year for my Dream Machine. So, what are you saving for? Dreams are a good thing...did I mention I'm already dreaming about 2010s Dream Machine?