Friday, October 23, 2009

We celebrate with cake!

Traditions...
It’s that time of the year for Tracy’s birthday cake. Decadent German Chocolate Cake I might add. In 19 years we have never made anything else.
October 22nd means we get to enjoy this yummyness!

Note to my hubby...
I can’t believe that it’s been 20 years...(October 18th, 1989) since I saw the most handsome young man in my Pearl of Great Price class at Rick's College. Wearing a navy blue and white striped turtleneck, a white cardigan sweater with burgundy and navy blue stripes around the neck and black penny loafers with your curly hair and trendy eyeglasses! It truly was love at first sight and I can’t believe that out of all the all the girls at Rick’s College that I got to be the lucky one to date and marry you!!

Birthday Highlights...

NOW to the cake....
VERY yummy and easy to make!
Other than the occasional Angel Food Cake, I have never made a cake from a mix from the store. Flour, sugar, salt, soda, eggs, butter, cocoa powder, vanilla and milk are the ingredients used to make a chocolate cake from scratch.

Taking staple ingredients and turning them into something yummy and enjoyable is so much fun for me!
The German Chocolate topping is actually staple ingredients at my house as our food storage always has sugar, cans of evaporated milk, coconut, butter and walnuts available to grab.
German Chocolate Cake
(Cake)
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
In a mixer bowl stir together flour , sugar, baking soda and salt.

1 cup butter
1 cup water
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
In a saucepan combine butter, water and cocoa powder. Bring just to boiling, stirring constantly.
Remove
from heat. Add cocoa mixture to flour mixture; beat with electric mixer on low speed until just combined.

2
eggs
½ cup buttermilk
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla
Add eggs , buttermilk and vanilla; beat on low speed for 1 minute. (batter will be thin). Put batter in greased/floured 9x13 inch pan (OR 2 round cake pans).
Bake
in 350 degree oven until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (30-35 minutes)
Cool
10 minutes and remove from pan if desired.


(German Chocolate Frosting)
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
pinch salt
1 cube REAL butter
1 can evaporated milk
Boil ingredients until it thickens. Cool.
Then add
2 tsp.vanilla, 2 cups coconut and 1 cup chopped walnuts OR pecans. Then put on top of chocolate cake. After I put the topping on the chocolate cake, I always chill it for 1 to 2 hours to set it up.
Enjoy!
I just LOVE Tracy's birthday cake tradition.
SO yummy, so easy and SO good!

9 comments:

Connie said...

Oh yum! Happy Birthday to both of you! The cake looks like something worth waiting for!
You look so cute in your birthday picture! What kind of pie was that?
I hope you have a great weekend.

CB said...

I just knew I love you two! Not only are both your birthdays in the greatest month of the year (hee hee) but German Chocolate Cake is DA Bomb.com!!!! Seriously SO GOOD and your "from scratch" version looks Oh So Yummy!!!

I love how this is a tradition that you make for your sweet husband every year and the joy that that brings to your whole family! What a wonderful wife :D

Happy Birthday Tracy!!

Ann Marie said...

What a cute AND yummy post!

I'm so glad that you both had good birthdays! I LOVE cake stands! YAY!

Genessa said...

Happy birthday you guys! You guys are truly the perfect couple!

BJ said...

That cake looks so good, as does everything else on your blog. yum. I continue to try out your recipes and have really enjoyed them. The Hawaiian haystack gravy was really good - much better than cream of chicken soup that I had previously used.

Looks like you and Tracy had a happy birthday. You two are so cute together.

Small House said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAYS!!! I love the fact that you made this cake from scratch!! I hope you two enjoyed the weekend together.

It was sweet how you remembered what your husband was wearing the first time you layed eye on him. We women remember things like that. LOVED IT!

So glad the mummies worked out for the scouts. AND you should know...I made the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with frosting this weekend, and they are loved by everyone!!!!! At a later date I'm posting about these great cookies.

Have a nice quiet rest of a Sunday. Tomorrow....BACK TO WORK!
Sandra

aubreeann said...

hey kimberly! i found your blog ha i remembered when jade told me about it and i think its so adorable! i need all the help i can get with baking and your photos look delicious! :) hope you have a good week :)

aubree grover!

Jek said...

Hey will you tell your husband he is AWESOME for writing all that stuff on Ann's blog! I learned A LOT! I value everything he said and really agree with all i heard. I am not a vaccination freak, like some. I would love his opinion on all other vaccinations. Would he ever give me more infor?? I am Jennifro's sister. All us girls, would LOVE to hear his opinion. my babies are 11 months and have had no vaccines yet, and my 4 year old has had 7 shots. I am not totally against them i am just against the "new" made up stupid ones and I am against the HORRIFIC schedule of 36 shots in a few short years. Seems absolutely rediculous to me! I figure you have until kindergarten so space them out and start later. My email is jeknicol511@yahoo.com No rush, just would like to pick his brain a bit!
Jessica

CB said...

I am making your German Chocolate Cake right now!! tee hee