Tag Archives: baking

Eggnog Pumpkin Bread

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Veronica

It usually takes me months to get around to posting a recipe, but I couldn’t wait with this one. I made it today, and I’m posting it today because I’m durn proud of it! I threw a bunch of stuff together in a bowl and was delighted when it came out even better than I expected.

It started with the marked down holiday baking stuff last year. I can never resist it. Among bags and bags of peppermint baking chips, I bought maybe ten boxes of pumpkin spice pudding mix, having no idea what I was going to do with it. (Making pudding with it would be too obvious.) Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I bought some eggnog because I can’t resist that either. I have to have at least one glass of eggnog a year. I love it. However, I don’t need a whole half gallon all to myself and my husband won’t touch it, so I now had two things I wanted to include in a recipe in order to get rid of them–pumpkin spice pudding mix and eggnog. And then I found the finishing touch–something I’ve been scouring the store shelves for for two years! Cinnamon baking chips. I was ready to bake, baby.

The loaves came out super-moist thanks to the pumpkin and pudding mix…and maybe the rich eggnog and oil had a little to do with it, too. :) There is a good balance of flavor between the pumpkin and taste of eggnog, enhanced by extra rum and nutmeg. The cinnamon chips are perfect with the flavor of the bread but they can be left out if you prefer. I hope you try it this holiday season!

Eggnog Pumpkin Bread

I weighed my flour and sugar as I measured them so I could be sure to get the same amounts the next time I make the bread. If you don’t have a scale, be sure to scoop the flour into the measuring cup with a spoon and level it rather than scooping it with the measuring cup, or you may get too much flour in the recipe, resulting in heavier, drier loaves.
Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

3 cups (13 ¾ oz) all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups (11 ¼ oz) granulated sugar
1 (3.4 oz) package Jello Pumpkin Spice pudding mix*
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
3 eggs
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
1 ½ cups eggnog
½ cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon rum or 1 teaspoon imitation rum extract
1 (10 oz) bag cinnamon chips

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour two 9×5 loaf pans; set aside.

Stir the dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, beat the eggs and add the eggnog, pumpkin, oil, and rum. Beat until incorporated and smooth. Pour liquid into the flour mixture and stir just until moistened. Add the cinnamon chips and fold them in until combined.

Divide batter between prepared pans and bake 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack ten minutes, then remove from pans to cool completely on rack.

*You could probably substitute another flavor of pudding mix, like vanilla, if you can’t find the pumpkin spice, and just add some extra spices to the batter to make up for it not being in the pudding mix.

Recipe by Veronica Miller

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Posted in Bread, Sweets and tagged baking, eggnog, eggnog pumpkin bread, pumpkin spice pudding mix, recipe. Bookmark the permalink.

Lemony Orange Cake

Posted on August 4, 2009 by Veronica

We recently celebrated my Dad’s 61st birthday and I meant to only provide a Banoffee Pie, but I’ve been in an experimental baking mode lately and we ended up having a dessert-athon with three cakes in addition to the pie…all for only 8 guests!

The surprise favorite turned out to be this Lemony Orange Cake. It is heavier than a regular cake, but lighter than a pound cake and extremely moist with a wonderful orange glaze that locks in the moisture. The citrus flavors make it the perfect summer treat.

Lemony Orange Cake

Printable recipe

Cake
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (3 ounce) package instant lemon pudding mix
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 teaspoon lemon extract

Glaze
1/3 cup orange juice
2/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

Grease & flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).

In a large bowl, stir together cake mix and pudding mix. Pour in the 3/4 cup orange juice, oil, eggs, orange zest, and lemon extract. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

Once it’s cool, fit the Bundt pan back over the cake and flip it over so the cake is back in the pan. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook 1/3 cup orange juice, sugar and butter until it comes to a boil and continue to boil for two minutes. Pour the glaze over the bottom of the cake and use a spatula to spread to the sides so that it drips down evenly on all sides and on the inside circle. You don’t want all the glaze sitting on top, you want it to drip down so it can soak into the cake evenly. Allow to soak for 10 minutes, then place a serving plate on top of the pan & flip it over so that the cake comes out on the plate. Glaze will dry so that the cake can be covered with plastic wrap until serving. If made more than two days in advance, store in the fridge. Don’t worry–it will stay moist even if made several days ahead!

3 Comments

Posted in Cake & Frosting and tagged baking, cake, citrus, lemon, lemony, orange, recipe. Bookmark the permalink.

Old-Fashioned Carrot Cake

Posted on June 21, 2009 by Veronica

Dennis’ Grandma Joy turned 90 this month, and when I found out there was going to be a family celebration, I immediately volunteered to make the cake. I jump at any opportunity to aid in a celebration, especially if baking is involved!

She requested carrot, and I was tempted to make The Best Carrot Cake, since it’s my favorite, but I opted to make a more old-fashioned cake because I thought Joy might appreciate a cake that brought back memories. This is my own recipe, adjusted from several I found in cookbooks.

*Update 9-22-09: I received many compliments on the cake at the party, but Grandma Joy recently told me that people at her Church are still talking about that cake and how good it was. So please take their word for it and not my awful, hastily-taken picture’s representation!

Veronica’s Old-Fashioned Carrot Cake

Printable recipe

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
4 eggs
2 ½ cups finely shredded carrots
¾ cup vegetable oil
½ teaspoon freshly grated ginger
½ cup crushed pineapple, well drained & juice reserved
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
Cream Cheese Icing (recipe follows)

Add enough water or rum to the reserved pineapple juice to equal 1 cup. If you already have a cup of juice, you can add as much rum as you want—you just want at least one cup of liquid. Heat to boiling, remove from heat, and stir the raisins into the hot liquid. Leave to soak.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans & set aside.

Stir dry ingredients together in a large bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda & cinnamon.

Strain the liquid off of the raisins. Whisk eggs in a medium bowl & stir in remaining ingredients: oil, ginger, carrots, pineapple, raisins (but not the soaking liquid) & walnuts.

Stir the wet mixture into the dry and stir until combined. Divide the batter between the two round pans and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool completely on wire rack, then frost with cream cheese icing.

Cream Cheese Icing
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
2 packages (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
8 cups (2 lbs.) sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese, then add the sugar and vanilla. Use milk or additional sugar to change the consistency to thinner or thicker as needed. (Most people would use half this amount of sugar, which makes a more creamy frosting, but I make it thick for decorating.)

Makes: About 5 1/2 cups of icing.