Gluten Free Baker's German Chocolate Cake Recipe

Yesterday was my Dad's birthday and no birthday is complete without the cake! Growing up as a kid, my Grandmother used to make my Dad his favorite German Chocolate cake for his birthday every year. My Grandma lives across the country, so I unfortunately don't see her too often but I remember when I was in high school she visited us and she made him his favorite German chocolate cake. At that age I was always interested to see what was going on in the kitchen, but I had no desire to bake or cook; I remember always wondering why my Grandma didn't make him a boxed cake mix because a boxed cake mix would be so much easier to prepare than this homemade cake. I watched her in the kitchen spend lots of time making this cake and remember thinking "goodness, preparing this cake takes a lot of time!" Now that I have grown to love cooking and baking in the kitchen, I decided to make my Dad his favorite birthday cake that he grew up having every year. I wanted to enjoy this cake as well, so I had to make it gluten free. I changed the recipe a bit but made it gluten free. I was nervous the cake wouldn't turn out as amazing and delicious as my Grandma's was but much to my surprise it was delicious! In the past I've felt that when I bake with gluten free flour my baked goods turn out to be very dense and their not as moist as normal baked goods with gluten are, but this cake was perfect!

      My Grandma used the recipe inside the Baker's Sweet German Chocolate bar box, but the recipe inside the box is now tailored to bake cupcakes. After researching, I found the recipe on Kraft and it makes a 3 layer German chocolate cake. My Grandma makes her German Chocolate Cake in a 13 x 9 dish with frosting on top. I decided to make my dads as a 2 layer and this was the perfect amount. I used two 8 inch pans. You don't want to frost the sides because the cake is super rich as it is already with the frosting between the layers! This gluten free cake hits the spot, it's nice and light but delicious and sweet! Hope you enjoy this recipe!

Gluten Free Baker's German Chocolate Cake Recipe:

 Ingredients:

• 1 package (4 oz.) Baker's sweet german chocolate
• 1/2 cup water
• 4 eggs, separated
• 2 cups Red Mill's All Purpose gluten free baking flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup salted butter, softened
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 cup buttermilk

Heat oven to 350 degrees

Step 1: Cover bottoms of your 8/9 inch pans with wax paper and grease sides of pans. Microwave chocolate with 1/2 cup water in bowl 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until chocolate is completely melted, stir after they have microwaved for 1 minute and stir until chocolate is completely melted.

Step 2: Beat 4 egg whites in bowl with mixer on high until stiff peaks form, set aside. In a separate bowl mix 2 cups flour, 1 tsp. baking soda and 1/4 tsp. salt. In another separate large bowl beat your 1 cup softened butter with 2 cups sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Add your 4 egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each. Blend in melted chocolate and vanilla. Slowly add your flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating until well blended after each addition.

Step 3: Add egg whites, stirring gently until well blended. Pour into prepared pans. You may have some batter left over.

Step 4: Bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Immediately run small spatula around cakes in pans. Let cakes cool in their pans for 20 minutes, remove and let them cool on wire rack or wax paper on flat surface

Coconut Pecan Frosting Recipe:

• 4 egg yolks
• 1 can evaporated milk (12 oz.)
• 1&1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1&1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup margarine
• 3 cups coconut flakes
• 1&1/2 cups chopped pecans

Step 1: Beat 4 egg yolks, evaporated milk and vanilla in large sauce pan with fork or whisk until well blended. Add 1&1/2 cups sugar and 3/4 cup margarine; stirring constantly, cook on medium heat for 10-12 minutes until mixture is thickened and golden brown color. Remove from heat

Step 2: Add 3 cups coconut and 1&1/2 cups pecans, mix well. Let your frosting sit and cool until it reaches desired thickness/consistency.

Frost top of one of your cakes with frosting, spreading the frosting with a thick layer. Place other cake on top and frost the top of it. Serve and Enjoy!

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DIY Smoothie In a Bag!

Have you ever been in a rush out the door one morning and don't have time to grab breakfast or whip up a delicious fresh smoothie? I know when I have been in a time crunch, I'm focused on making sure my outfits perfect and my hair and makeup are finished rather than worrying about eating. But Breakfast is the most important meal of the day & gives you the nutrients you need to be alert for the rest of the day! So instead of wasting your time in the morning cutting your fruits & vegetables and picking out what ingredients you want to put in your smoothie, I made these smoothie bags! Haven't you ever seen the smoothie bags in the frozen section of your grocery store by yoplait yogurt or Jamba Juice?...These smoothie bags are kind of like those but you get to choose what ingredients you want in your smoothie!  I put these smoothie bags in the freezer which helps keep my ingredients fresh and makes my shakes nice & cold! They're super easy to make and save so much time when you're on the go, just throw one of your bags in a blender, blend it up, pour into a glass and enjoy! 

Here's what you need: 

•Fresh fruit

•Fresh Vegetables

•Large ziplock bags

•Permanent marker

After you take a trip to the market and load up on vegetables and fruits, chop up your fruits and vegetables that you want to make smoothies with. Come up with a few different smoothies you want to make & put the ingredients for one serving in each of the ziplock bags. For example in one bag I put 1 cup spinach in a bag, 2 skinned and sliced kiwi & a 1/2 cup mandarin oranges in one. With the permanent marker I wrote what ingredients were in my bag and also wrote "ADD:" listing what liquid I wanted to add to my smoothie bag when I'm ready to blend it (my liquid was coconut water) Be sure to write the date on your bag too so you don't blend up old fruits! [Yucky!] I hope these smoothie bags help give you a yummy & quick breakfast when you're in a rush! 

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Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

The Fall season is less than a week away and I cannot wait! I love everything about the season but most of all I love the amazing food and warm scents that comes with it. I concocted a delicious and healthy Pumpkin Pie smoothie that is perfect for you to drink up for breakfast during those crisp autumn mornings. Let me know what you think :)

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

 Ingredients:

•2/3 cup of pumpkin purée 

•Half frozen banana

•1/4 cup vanilla yogurt

•1/4 cup almond milk

•Sprinkle of cinnamon

•Sprinkle of nutmeg 

•1-2 drops of honey

(Serving size 1) 

Place the frozen banana into your blender first & then add remaining ingredients. Blend for a few minutes until a frothy consistency is made. Pour into a glass and enjoy! 

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DIY Glitzy perfume stand

In my bathroom I have shelving over my toilet where I keep my perfume bottles hidden in a basket. I have simple taste and like my bottles hidden so it doesn't look too busy in my bathroom; but over time I have gotten annoyed with my perfume bottles being in my basket because I can never see which ones I have, and if I'm ever in a rush I can't easily grab a bottle to spritz and go. So I wanted to make a bold and fabulous perfume stand and after playing around I crafted this super easy to make perfume stand which could also be used as a cake or dessert stand for a party too and everyone whose seen it just loves it so I thought I would share it with you. Have fun and enjoy :)

Supplies Needed:

• Clear glass dinner plate [I bought mine at Dollar Tree for $1]
• Clear glass taper candle holder [I bought mine at Dollar Tree for $1]
• A jar of glossy Mod Podge
• One foam paint brush
• E-6000 glue (not pictured)
• A covered surface (use newspaper or a large trash bag)

Directions:
Step 1: Place your plate face down on your covered surface. Using the foam brush paint the Mod Podge onto the entire back of your plate, be sure to not miss any areas or crevices.

Step 2: After you have covered the entire back side of your plate with Mod Podge, pour your glitter all over the back of the plate. Be sure to not miss any spots! Leave the glittered plate to sit for 15 minutes. 

Step 3: Using your foam brush, paint the entire outside of your candle holder with Mod Podge, ensuring not to miss any spots. Then cover the entire outside with glitter; you may have to pick this up and spin it around so you don't miss any spots on the outside. Leave the glittered candle stick to sit for 15 minutes. 

Step 4: After you have let your glittered plate and candle holder sit for 15 minutes, carefully pick them up and lightly shake so the excess glitter falls off onto your covered surface. Once all your excess glitter has been removed, use your foam brush and paint Mod Podge glue over the glitter layer that's on your plate and do the same to your candle taper holder. Be sure to cover all of the glitter with the Mod Podge on both the plate and candle holder. Let the painted plate and candle holder sit overnight or 8 hours to dry. Don't worry this will dry, I promise! 

   

After your 8 hours has passed you will find that the glue has dried clear and your glitter does not fall all over the place on both the plate and candle holder. The Mod Podge has sealed everything together and created a more finished surface over the glue.

Step 5: Keeping your plate face down locate where the center of your plate is. The plate I used came with an intricate design in the glass and had a circle in the center, so this made it easy for me to find. Remembering or marking where the center of your plate is, squeeze E-6000 glue onto the entire top rim of the top of your candle holder, once you have covered the entire top rim flip your candle holder over and apply it to the back center of your glittered plate. Press the candle holder down, sealing the glue. Carefully flip the glued together plate and candle holder over, be sure to hold both the plate and candle holder in place. You want it to dry together with the heavier plate on top so they will stick together. Let it sit for 4 hours (or until glue is dry). 

 

 & Now you have made your own Glitzy Perfume Stand!

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Are you Counting your Calories?

Do you count your daily calorie intake? It's easy to forget counting calories when it comes to eating your fruits and vegetables, but it's important to do! Whether you're eating fruit for breakfast or enjoying it as a mid-day snack, it's important to know how many calories you are intaking. I love blending fruits and vegetables to make delicious smoothies for breakfast or lunch, but after doing some research I learned that I should be substituting some of the fruits I currently use in my smoothies for some lower calorie fruits. I created this list of the amount of calories fruits and keep it on my phone for reference when I'm grocery shopping that way I always know what low-cal fruits I need to purchase! Hope you enjoy it and find it useful too! Note; the list is organized in descending order of calories.

(Source used to find the information used to create this list: FDA) 

Can't see the image very well? Click Here to download my PDF file version!

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Back to School Organization

This past week was my first week of the new Fall semester, I always enjoyed shopping for new school supplies every year and not going to lie...I still do! But as I've gotten older, the supplies I buy and the things I do to prepare for the new school year definitely have changed, instead of Lisa Frank folders I buy boring, solid colored folders etc. One thing that hasn't changed though is my love for school planners and organization!

 I recently purchased an academic agenda from May Designs and I absolutely love it! It was only $23 and they have so many colors/designs you can choose from to design the outside of your planner, and they also let you customize the font and info you want on the outside, from greek letters to monograms. I chose to put my name on the outside of mine :)

Another thing I did to get organized for the school year is make this super cute and inexpensive Bulletin board to hang over my desk to keep important info on! I have a very simple taste when it comes to decorating and hate how tacky bulletin boards can look, so I wanted to create one that looked like it belonged in my room so I made it the colors of my room-black and white. You can make yours look like it belongs in your room by the matching color of spray paint and ribbon to the colors of your room!

Ribbon Bulletin Board DIY: 

Supplies needed:

• Bulletin Board  (I used to 16x20)
• One can of spray paint (you may need more if you buy a bigger board)
• One spool of wired ribbon 
• Glue gun 
• Newspaper or a large trash bag

How to:

1. Outside on a flat surface layout your newspaper or large trash bag, placing the bulletin board on top.
2. Shake your spray paint and spray paint the bulletin board, spraying the board evenly and standing 1-1.5 feet away from the board. Be sure to spray the outside edges of the board after you're done spraying the surface. Let this dry outside for 2-3 hours.
3. Once your bulletin board has dried, bring it inside and lay it on a flat surface that is near an electrical outlet. Plug in your glue gun. While your glue gun heats up, cut one long piece of ribbon (3 feet) with an angled edge, cut a smaller piece of ribbon (1 foot) and a really tiny piece (2 inches) Take your longest piece and lay it on the corner of your board. If you want your board to display vertically [like mine] then place 1 foot of the ribbon on the top, letting 2 feet of it hang down the left side. If you want your bulletin board to display horizontally, place 2 feet of the ribbon on the top, and let 1 foot hang down the left side. 
4. Once your glue gun is heated up, glue the long piece of ribbon to the corner border of your board. Now gently twist the ribbon piece at the top of your board to make it look like the ribbon is curled, and gently twist the ribbon piece that's on the side of your board to have the same look too. Looking at the ribbon on the top of your board find one spot where the curl is touching the border of your board and glue the ribbon down; now looking at the ribbon on the side of your board find one spot where the curl is touching the border of your board and glue the ribbon down. Depending on what side has the longest piece of ribbon, you may have to glue the ribbon down in two spots. 
5. Now take the one foot piece of ribbon and lay it down, fold it into three sections, where the middle section is the largest(6 inches) and the two side sections(3 inches each) fold into the middle section meeting in the middle. Now glue down the two side sections in the middle of the ribbon. Take your small 2 inch piece of ribbon that you cut earlier and wrap it around the middle of the 1-foot piece you just glued and glue the edges together....now you have your bow! 
6. Take your bow and glue it to the corner or your 3 foot long piece of curly ribbon that's on the border of your bulletin board. Voila! Your bulletin board is complete! Now hang your bulletin board and place everything you want on it! I created a calendar that's on mine and placed a few pictures, and invitations so I don't forget the important stuff! 

I already had a glue gun and trash bag, but bought the rest of my supplies at Walmart and the cost of my bulletin board ended up being only $10.91! [Board=$6.97, spray paint=$.97, ribbon=$2.97]

Download the printable Calendar I made for my bulletin board!
September
October
November
December

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