Italian Wedding Cake

Several years ago, when I first started at my current company, someone made this cake for a carry in event and it was wonderful. I, of course, asked for the recipe and make it from time to time. The ricotta cheese mixture, as it bakes into the cake, gives it a bit of a cheesecake flavor/texture. I love the whipped topping too.



Italian Wedding Cake

1 Marble Cake (or Yellow Cake and 1/4 cup cocoa) Mix, prepared according to package directions.

I wasn't able to get a marble cake mix in my preferred brand locally, so I used a yellow cake mix and after mixing it pulled out 1 cup of the batter. I placed the remainder of the batter into the prepared pan. Then, to the 1 cup of batter I had reserved, I added 1/4 cup of cocoa. Then, like with a marble cake mix, I added the chocolate batter in spoonfuls and then ran a knife through it to make the batter marbled.



In a bowl, combine the following:
2# Ricotta Cheese
4 eggs
1 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Blend until well combined. Spoon on top of the cake batter in the pan.


Bake at 350 for 1 hour.

Topping:
1 tub Whipped Topping
1 small box Chocolate Pudding
1 c milk

Combine and spread on cooled cake.



Enjoy!


Disclaimer

Chocolate Banana Upside Down Cake

Today was the 50th Birthday of one of my coworkers. When I looked into my pantry to decide what to make this morning, I realized that I had some bananas that I thought would be good to use, as they were starting to reach overripe. I had some butterscotch chips, so I thought that maybe I would make some sort of banana butterscotch bars, but I wasn't well prepared, as I was out of flour. That meant banana bread was out of the question too. I didn't have a 'plain' cake mix that I could mix in the bananas, but I did have a chocolate cake mix that came with a fudge filling. I also had no frosting and wasn't really in the mood to whip any up. So, I decided that I would do a banana upside down cake with what I did have on hand. The mix was for a full cake, so unlike my pineapple upside down cake, I made it in a 9x13 pan.



Chocolate Banana Upside Down Cake

Banana Topping
6 T Butter
1/2 c brown sugar, packed
3 bananas, sliced

Melt the butter in a saucepan and stir in brown sugar until dissolved, allow to simmer for a couple of minutes. Pour the sauce into buttered pan. Distribute banana slices over the bottom of the pan. Set aside.

Chocolate Cake

Prepare cake mix according to package directions or whip up your favorite homemade chocolate cake. Gently pour over the bananas.

Bake according to package directions. Allow to cool on wire rack for 15 - 20 minutes. Invert onto plate. Slice and serve.

I had a piece this morning when it was still warm, it was so delicious and the banana topping made it so moist. I do recommend a more ripe banana, they tend to be a little sweeter and in my opinion a little less 'starchy'.


Disclaimer

12 Days of Christmas Cookies: Lemon Cookies

One of my Christmas cookies each year is a lemon cookie. Normally, I make Lemon Bars, but this year I decided to go with Lemon Cookies.

The recipe for Lemon Cookies is so simple and yet the result is so easy. My childhood best friend was the source of this recipe. The recipe is appropriate year round (especially yummy cold in the summer) and I have tried it with Strawberry and other flavors of cake mix as well.

Lemon Cookies
1 - box Lemon Cake Mix
1 - egg
1 - tub Cool Whip

Mix to combine ingredients. Place mixing bowl in freezer for about 15 minutes (makes it easier to work with). Roll dough into balls and roll in powdered sugar. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes on the pan and then transfer to cooling racks.

Disclaimer