Sweet Hearts & Chocolate Cake with some quilting on the side

 
  
Aren't these the sweetest little Valentine's cookies? I found them on Family.com, which is a Disney-owned site with great resources for crafts and fun food things for children. If you want to make them for your little lovelets, you can find the recipe and directions HERE. I don't have any kidlets, but I'll be making them none the less.

This weekend is the Annual Inventory Sale at the quilt shop where I work part time. It's THE event of the year and our quilting friends from near and far travel over 100 miles from the Yukon to come party with us and score some good deals. We have tables and tables of bolts of fabric on sale, but more importantly, we have a small table front and center with sweets and goodies. We always have a crock pot of spiced cider mulling because it makes the place smell awesome, and it feels great when you come in from the cold.

And then we have chocolate cake.

Let me tell you about this chocolate cake. It is a mystery to me. I think some ladies come more for the cake than they do the great deals on fabric. I made it for our very first Inventory Sale years ago, and it has become a staple. A tradition. A legend. People actually email us beforehand and ask if we will be having chocolate cake at our sale. Pretty crazy, I tell you. But yes, we always have chocolate cake at our sales. It's a very simple cake really, nothing more than a glorified cake mix. It's a recipe that was given to me over ten years ago from our then PA in town, who has since moved away, but her cake lives on. It is the single most often asked for recipe that I own. Which makes it mildly embarrassing to admit that it's first and foremost from a box. But the mystery is this. No one else can make this cake. And by that, what I mean is that it doesn't turn out for anyone else. I have made this cake everywhere....Utah, Alaska, California, Washington, Canada. It's my go-to potluck dessert and it turns out beautifully every time. But whenever I share the recipe with anyone, they always come back and say it didn't turn out. I don't get it.

So in addition to the sweet little Minnie mouse heart cookies above, I will also be making our traditional chocolate cake for our big event this weekend. I will also be sharing the recipe with you, which seems the polite thing to do after I've just prattled on about it for half a page. Unfortunately, I have no good pictures of it, other than one from our Halloween event, where it's sharing prime real estate with pumpkin bread and banana nut bread. But it gives you an idea.

 

Inside Out Chocolate Bundt Cake

1 chocolate cake mix, dry (any brand, any flavor of chocolate)
1 4 oz. package of INSTANT chocolate pudding, dry
2 eggs
1 3/4 C milk
1 12 oz. bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 C chopped pecans

Mix everything really well in a large bowl. Batter will be very thick, and you might be tempted to add more milk. But don't. Spray a bundt pan very thoroughly with PAM spray. Spread batter in pan and smooth out the top with a spatula. Bake for one hour at 350°. Remove from oven and immediately invert onto a plate to cool. I just put a dinner plate over the top of the pan, grab the edges with a kitchen towel and flip it over. It should just slide right out. You do not want the cake to cool in the pan or it won't come out nicely later on. The melted chocolate chips will harden and stick to the sides of the pan and leave little craters in your cake when you release it. Once on the plate, allow to cool completely before slicing. Then with a sharp bread knife, slice into 1" thick slices. Now try to share with others and don't eat the whole thing yourself. But if you do, I won't judge.

I've also been working on the next round in my Round Robin project with three other friends. Next up for me was Jane's quilt. She started with the four center stars. Then Janie (not to be confused with Jane) added a row of embroidered snowflakes. Next up is me.

 
I added a narrow teal border around the snowflakes to settle things so it wouldn't get too chaotic. My first inclination was to mimic the sawtooth stars from the center and add them around the quilt. But again, I thought that would be too busy. So I decided on a two tone angular teal block that brings all the original colors back out and gives the eye a place to rest. When the blocks are side by side, they look like a woven ribbon border.

 

I had hoped to finish this up today, but I got sidetracked and didn't get much accomplished. Tomorrow, I'll finish the blocks and sew them on and get this thing in the mail to the next person.

 

Comments

[Lesly]

That cake looks too delicious, but I won't even try to make it - I've had the experience of trying to replicate a cake from a recipe that "belongs" to someone else - it never works out quite the same! Allyson, you left a comment on my blog asking about my red and blue star pattern. Your profile is set to "no reply" so I couldn't email you - the pattern is called Southern Skies from Jodi Barrow's book Leaving Riverton. It's made using the Square in a Square technique, but you don't have to do it that way.

[Dianne]

OK...those cookies look SOOOO good! Love the quilt...the colors are awesome!

[Lisa D.]

Yum - Allyson Cake! I wonder why no one else can make it? Now I'm going to have to try, just to see if I can prove you wrong!

[Allison]

I can attest that this is the best chocolate cake on record. And even though I don't quilt, I might stop in the store this weekend just for the cake. And thanks to you posting the recipe, I'll never lose any weight. ;)

[Holly]

That cakes sounds great! My husband's all-time favorite cake is a similar recipe, but with lemon cake mix and lemon pudding. I'll try yours, though I'm nervous since no one else has succeeded yet.

That round robin quilt is gorgeous! Your ribbon looks really cool, and Janie's snowflake embroidery is beautiful. I wish we could see the finished quilt when it's complete!

[Karen]

The cake sounds and looks wonderful. Do you use a large or small box of pudding? The blue quilt is very pretty.

[Anita]

I can also attest to the yumminess of this cake. I've got the recipe, but haven't bothered to try making it. (Why should I, everyone else always fails and I can eat Allyson's cake.)

[Mary Flynn]

Funny all the lovely quilt photos but you go and mention yummy chocolate cake and BAM....you have me captivated on that! I feel challenged now to see if I can make it. Hee!! I'll be adding the ingredients to the grocery list.

[Nan S.]

I've never participated in a round robin quilt. Who gets to keep the quilt when it's finished?

[Sheila Carita]

The cake sounds yummy and I love the border you made for the quilt! Such pretty colors and wave pattern.

SHeilaC

[Chamaine]

You are right about the cake! I miserably fail at making it, so that is why I always make you make it for me when you visit and I eat pretty much the whole thing myself...pretty quilt! Have fun this weekend and good luck with it all! My mom always asks about you...

[Christi]

I made the cake! I needed to make a little treat for Valentine's Day and saw your recipe and decided to try it. My husband loves chocolate and I love easy - so it was the perfect match. I must have had the Allyson mojo working because it came out perfectly. Thanks for adding a little sweetness to our day!