Just Around the Corner

We've already begun our holiday shopping, picking up little things here and there, and if there's one thing holiday shopping conjures up, it's holiday cravings.

Do you get those? 

Just the thought of Christmas makes my mouth water for sweet-treat deliveries by the postman.  When I was a kid, I especially loved getting fruit cakes (don't laugh) and gift baskets in the mail.  My granddaddy always sent a fruit cake from Collins Street Bakery, and our relatives from New York would enroll us in fruit/dessert of the month clubs. Those deliveries were almost as exciting as Christmas morning.  Lately, I've been perusing the online sites of all my favorite treats.  I have a few...

Bear Claws, Brittle, Baskets; oh my!  River Street Sweets for truly southern treats.

Gambino's Half & Half- You have to go to their website to check these Doberge cakes!

Collin Street Bakery!

Do you have any favorites from your neck of the woods?  Please share : )

What I Woke Up To

Along Came a Spider

Do you see all those little iridescent green specks on it's back?  Yeah?!  Well, get ready to squeal because those are babies on her back.

Wouldn't you know Big Sissy, Bebe, and I were dancing around like fools in the living room (even the dog was getting in on the fun) when I dropped to my knees in my Jerry Lee Louis dramatic flare only to shoot up like a rocket because this spider was centimeters from my knee.  YIKES!  The picture makes her appear small, but she was at least the size of a quarter.  I think she's a common garden spider-maybe a wolf spider so no harm, but I smacked her just the same.  Can't have these creepy crawlies in my house even though she was adding nicely to our festive decor.

I LOVE Halloween!

Decorating!

We especially love the art in Tim Burton's creations such as Corpse Bride and Nightmare Before Christmas

so when I find decor that reminds me of the artwork in his films, I buy it up.  I also fancy Dia de los Muertos inspired pieces which is next on my want list for Halloween decorations.  

Do You See It?

My husband told me once that people often say he looks like Nicolas Cage.  I didn't see/believe it.  Then we went to lunch and a guy came up to him and asked, "Hey, did anyone ever tell you that you looked like Nicolas Cage?"  He gave me that "see I told you so" look and I chalked it up to coincidence.  Then it happened soon after at a Brake Check.  Over the course of our years together, he's gotten this from time to time.

I'm partial to the guy on the left.  What do you think?

Welcome, my Latest Followers

Texas Sheet Cake

The Texas Sheet cake seems to have caught on in popularity over the years and graces many Southern food blogs and recipe books.  Being from Texas, I've grown up with this cake.  It's a staple at most gatherings whether it be on a table at a 4th of July gathering, a family reunion, a potluck, or funeral.  This cake gets around.

There are probably as many versions of this cake as there are calories in it.  So what makes it a "Texas Sheet Cake" instead of a chocolate sheet cake, say, from Alabama?  Well, your guess is as good as mine.  It seems that the history of the Texas Sheet/Sheath cake is a murky one that dessipates somewhere amid the sixties.  You can read a bit about the mysterious origins here.  I love the foodtimeline.org website, by the way.  You can search the background of just about any type of recipe.

Well, back to the Texas Sheet Cake.  I compared recipes from several cookbooks and decided on this one which is out of a book my Mom's art club puts out.  

Here's what you'll need...

1 stick butter or margarine

1/2 cup shortening

4 tbsp cocoa powder or 2 squares bitter sweet chocolate

1 cup water

2 cups sifted All Purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1 tsp salt

2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 tsp. baking soda

Bring butter, cocoa, and water to a boil.  While the mixture is heating, mix flour, sugar, and salt in large mixing bowl.    Pour hot butter mixture over dry ingredients and mix well to incorporate.  Add slightly beaten eggs and soda, stirring well.  Pour into a greased 9x13 pan and bake at 350 degree F oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until tooth pick inserted comes out clean.  While cake is baking prepare the icing.  

Here's what you will need for the Icing...

1 stick butter

6 tbsp. milk

4 tbsp. cocoa powder or 2 squares unsweetened chocolate

1 lb. box confectioners sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans, optional

Heat butter, milk, and cocoa in a sauce pan.  Stir until smooth.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla, mixing until lumps from sugar smooth out.  The icing should be smooth and a little runny, not like a fluffy frosting.

Spread icing on cake as soon as it comes out of the oven.  Top with pecans and let sit for about 30 minutes or until cake is cooled.  Cut into squares and serve.

Sharing @ Designs by Gollum's  Foodie Friday 
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