Blog With Friends: Thankful

Today’s post is our monthly Blog With Friends project. Each month a group of bloggers get together and each publish a project based on a theme. What’s so much fun about these monthly projects is the diversity of the strengths of the bloggers involved. There’s something for everyone. We have recipes, crafts, sewing, technology, book reviews and more.

This month’s theme is Thanksgiving and here’s a peek at what we all came up with:

I’m the recipe portion of our program, I bet you’re not surprised.

For Thanksgiving I wanted to come up with something a little different as well as special. So I came up with a dessert. Hold onto your hats (do people still say that?) because look what I’ve done now: I’ve fried cake.

Oh, yes I did. And if I do say so myself, it’s genius.

Fried Walnut-Crusted Spice Cake with Caramel Sauce

I chose to make a spice cake because I knew I’d want a sauce on my warm cake, the sauce would be sweet and I didn’t want to cause an epidemic of diabetes. I chose a caramel sauce because it just seemed to go with the spice cake.

I developed a spice cake recipe with a less pronounced spice flavor because it not only would be the choice of my family, but because I didn’t want the other flavors in the dish to be overwhelmed.

HINT: You can make the cake a day in advance and store it in the fridge. When you’re ready to fry, dip each piece in orange juice, then coat with chopped walnuts:

Fry in melted butter until the walnuts start to brown:

The depth of the flavor added by the toasted nuts is not only a delicious addition to the flavor profile, but also serves to balance the sweetness of the caramel sauce.

I served with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream:

It was absolutely amazing. A perfect special occasion dessert.

Be sure to click on the links below to visit all of our Thanksgiving projects.

 

Robin of Someone Else's Genius shows us how to make this Autumn Harvest Wreath. 

Stacy of Stacy Sews and Schools has a sewing tutorial for a Fun and Reversible Table Decor.
 

Shellybean of Follow me home shares a craft to make and use throughout the holiday season, a Thankful Tree.

 Melissa of Home on Deranged tells us about some Technology Tips for Turkey Day

Lydia of Cluttered Genius shares some Kid-Friendly and Kid-Created "Fancy" Thanksgiving Table Decorations.

Christy of Uplifting Families takes us through her children's DIY Thanksgiving Textured Leaf Cards.

Wishing you and your family a very Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

 

Fried Walnut-Crusted Spice Cake with Caramel Sauce

                                                                               ©www.BakingInATornado.com
 
 
Printable Recipe
 
Ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
1 stick margarine, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 ½ tsp lemon juice
1 ¼ cup milk, minus 2 ½ tsp
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
½ tsp allspice
¾ cup cinnamon baking chips
 
1/2 stick butter
¾ cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup heavy cream, divided
1 tsp vanilla
 
4 TBSP butter
½ cup of Orange Juice
1 cup chopped walnuts
 
Directions:
*Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 X 13 pan.
*In a 2 cup measuring cup, place 2 ½ tsp lemon juice. Use milk to fill the cup up to the 1 ¼ mark.
*Cream butter, margarine and sugars. Beat in the eggs. Mix in 1 cup of flour, the baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.
*Beat in the milk mixture, then mix in the rest of the flour. Mix the cinnamon chips in last.
*Bake for approximately 40 minutes, or until the center springs back to the touch. Cool for ½ hour on counter, then move to fridge and cool completely. Cut into 24 squares. Keep in fridge until you’re ready to fry the cake.
 
*Whisk ½ stick of butter with ¾ cup of brown sugar and the salt in a medium sized pot over medium heat until the brown sugar is melted and the mixture is smooth. Wisk in ¼ cup of heavy cream and continue whisking while it comes to a boil. Allow to boil for 3 minutes undisturbed. Remove from heat.
*Carefully whisk in the vanilla and the rest of the heavy cream. Allow to cool slightly.
 
*Fry the cake, approximately 6 slices at a time.
*Place orange juice in a bowl, place chopped walnuts on a plate.
*Melt 1 TBSP butter in a large fry pan on medium heat until hot and sizzling.
*Individually, do not immerse, dip just the bottom of 6 pieces of cake in the juice, then press into the nuts, turn the cake pieces over and dip the other side. Place into frying pan, reduce heat one notch.
*Once the nuts begin to brown, carefully flip them over and brown the other side. Remove to a plate and drizzle with caramel sauce. OPT: Serve with vanilla ice cream.