Glazed Apple-Maple-Bacon Cake

You can find this recipe all over the internet. I don't claim it as mine. However, that picture right there, that is mine. Yeah, I went there. I made a cake with bacon. It was delicious. And yes, it's cake. The world needs cake right now. I'm posting another cake I made for a another friend's birthday. Yes, it's also a bundt cake. You can make this in a square pan, but for large groups I find a bundt is easier for sharing. But that's just me. And now on the the bacon dessert...

Glazed Apple Bacon & Maple Cake
(Serves 8)
The Cake

• 8-10 strips of bacon, fried crispy. You can reserve two pieces to sprinkle on top, if desired).
  
• 2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2/3 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 teaspoon maple extract
• 3/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 cup peeled, diced apples
• 1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped

The Glaze:

• 6 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• A pinch of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease bundlt pan or 8-inch-square pan.
3. Cook bacon until browned and crisp. Drain to remove excess bacon grease. Set two slices aside for garnish, if desired. Finely chop the remaining bacon.
4. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.
5. In another mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar.
6. Add the eggs and maple extract to the butter and sugar and beat at medium speed until light.
7. Reduce speed to low and add the buttermilk. Beat until well-blended.
8. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients in and beat till the contents are fully mixed and consistent in consistency.
9. Stir in the apples, pecans and bacon.
10. Pour the batter into the pan and smooth out the top with a spatula.
11. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and a cake tester inserted deep into the center comes out clean.
12. Transfer the cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes.
13. Remove from pan and cool completely before icing.
14. In a small bowl, whisk confectioners’ sugar, maple syrup and cinnamon until smooth and clinging to the back of a spoon. Drizzle over the cake.
15. Garnish with bacon bits, if desired.

My Easy Cake Recipes

So here a long while back I found a Pampered Chef recipe for Pumpkin Spice Cake that you can make it quickly and easily.

You started with boxed Spice Cake mix, added pumpkin puree, and 3 eggs. The original recipe says to microwave the cake, but I did that once and I didn't like the texture. It was kind of rubbery, so I just bake the cake. It takes 14 minutes to microwave and 30 minutes to bake. I can deal with the extra 15 minutes.

I also made an icing, but until recently my icing was always too drippy, so I would just microwave a can of frosting until soft enough to stirring up and drizzle over the cake.

There was another recipe where you mix Devil's Food Cake mix with cherry pie filling and 3 eggs. There seemed to be a formula. So, as you can imagine I started experimenting.

So, here's a recipe for an Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake. And I'll post some other combinations too. If you come up with one, feel free to add it into the comments!

Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake

There is a basic formula I have found for really easy, delicious and unique cake recipes using boxed cake mix, including a Pumpkin Spice Cake. Here is one I made for a pot luck today. Since people were asking for the recipe--here it is. I'll be adding other variation as well, so you can enjoy a whole lotta cake without a whole lotta hassle!

Easy Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cake
Ingredients:

• 1 box yellow cake mix
• 1 14 oz. can pure pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup chocolate chips

• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions:

• Preheat oven according to cake box instructions.
• Mix together cake mix, eggs, and pumpkin.
• Stir in chocolate ships
• Pour into greased bundt pan
• Bake according to cake box instructions
• Cool completely drizzle cake with icing.

Note: You can even cheat on the icing. Buy vanilla or cream cheese frosting and microwave for 30 seconds or so. Stir until smooth. Drizzle over cake.

Double Dark Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Filling

Ingredients
For the cake:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder [Note 1]
• 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

For the Filling [Note 2]:

• 1 16 ounce package frozen raspberries, thawed
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

For the Frosting:

• ½ cup unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder
• 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Garnish:

• chocolate chips (optional) [Note 2]
• fresh raspberries (optional)

Instructions: 
1. Bake the cake.

• Preheat the oven to 350 F.  
• Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch round baking pans. [Note 3].
• Stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl.  
• Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla; beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).  
• Pour batter into prepared pans.
• Bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  
• Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks.  
• Cool completely.

2. Make the raspberry filling [Note 4]:

• Drain raspberries, reserving liquid. 
• Add enough water to liquid to equal 1 1/4 cups. 
• In large saucepan, combine liquid, sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; mix well. 
• Heat and stir until mixture boils and thickens. 
• Cool completely. Stir thawed raspberries into cooled mixture.

3. Make the frosting [Note 5].

• Melt the butter in a medium bowl.  
• Stir in the cocoa.  
• Alternately add confectioners’ sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency.  
• Add small amount additional milk, if needed.  Stir in vanilla.

4. Assemble the cake.

• Level off both cakes using a serrated knife. 
• Place bottom cake on a cardboard cake circle.  
• Pipe a ring of the chocolate frosting around the outside edge of the cake.  Fill the area inside the ring of frosting with a thick layer of the raspberry filling.  
• Place the second cake layer on top. Frost the sides of the cake layers with chocolate frosting.  Pipe a decorative border of the chocolate frosting on top of the cake.  Fill the area inside this border with a thick layer of the raspberry filling.  Garnish with chocolate chips, fresh raspberries, and/or additional frosting if desired.

Notes:

1. You can substitute cocoa powder if you prefer.
2. In the picture, I shaved a Dove Chocolate bar with vegetable peeler.
3. I like three layers so I use three pans. Be sure to start checking after 20 minutes as the thinner layers bake faster.
4. If you add another layer, there is more than enough filling.
5. I make an extra half-batch. You'll need a little extra for the extra layer and there is never enough frosting.