Getting baked with Dr. Pepper

Have I mentioned my insane collection of Bundt pans? No?

I am using this pan to bake my cake in.

Take my advice here. If you want to collect something interesting and useful but want it to be something that's easy to store and won't take up a bunch of cabinet space DO NOT, I repeat, do not collect Bundt pans. Not that I don't love them, because believe me I truly do. Those Nordicware pans are so awesome and well crafted you just cannot find a better quality cake pan out there. They make a pan for every holiday, many sizes, and a ton of non-holiday pans that are beautiful. 

Many cakes have been baked in the fleur-de-lis pan. Another favorite is the holiday wreath. 

The Perfect Pumpkin pan makes an adorable round pumpkin, the halves sandwiched together with a little icing. I have so many I don't even remember the names of them all! Sadly........ they do not fit in the cabinets.  Not even close. My Bundts have to live in rubbermaid tubs in the extra bedroom and now they don't get used very often. That's the drawback of collecting Bundts......

Then........ one day....... browsing the internet....... and hello! A cake recipe using just a mix and a can of soda recipe! It's time to break out a Bundt pan! Even better than just a Bundt recipe- I can make this a Dr. Pepper Cake. I love love love Dr. Pepper (yes I am an unhealthy soda drinker- no judging) so I was super curious about the idea of baking a cake using nothing but a cake mix and a can of soda.

Dr. Pepper Bundt Cake

1 box red velvet cake mix

1 12 oz can Dr. Pepper

nonstick cooking spray

Turn oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl combine cake mix and Dr. Pepper. 

Beat with a mixer or whisk by hand until smooth and thick. 

Pour into Bundt pan that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a toothpick tests clean,or whatever time the cake mix package states. 

Let the cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes, then turn out onto rack to cool.

It was COLD in the house and the glaze thickened a  little
too quickly on me- it was hard to drizzle but was still
delicious. I sprinkled chopped chocolate over the glaze.

Combine a little powdered sugar and enough additional soda to make a pourable glaze, or heat a half a can of prepared frosting just enough to pour it. Drizzle over the cake.

This is definitely a fun and easy to make cake. Starting with cake mix makes it a snap, and yes, I know, it's a commercially produced product, but I find many scratch cake recipes just come out too dry and with a glazed cake (as opposed to a lot of frosting) moisture in the cake is important. It reminds me of church cookbook recipes. Yes, the Dr. Pepper is another nod to naughty foods, but hey, it's CAKE! It's ok to eat a little naughty stuff once in a while.

Bundt cakes are always a hit. They are easy to transport and in a pinch you can eat a slice with your hands. Pretty convenient! This easy recipe is inspiring my brain to think up lots of cake mix and soda combinations so don't be surprised if you see an orange or strawberry cake around here soon.

My mom's Mushroom Steak- a 70s classic

It's the stuff 1970s era casseroles were made of. Good old cream of something soup. 

Maybe your mom or grandmother made tuna and noodles back in the day. In the upper Midwest our mothers often made something called "hotdish" and every mom had a different recipe. Some moms made tator tot casserole. Whatever she made with it, most of the time these familiar dishes started with the same basic food- canned cream of something soup. Whoever invented this stuff surely didn't intend that people actually eat them as is. Yuck. Cream of celery soup in a big bowl? No thanks. But add some cheese, chopped veggies, some noodles and a can of tuna and we're in business!

Cream of chicken and some rice made a great base for some pork chops or chicken pieces- baked until the edges of the rice were crispy and browned. Cream of celery and tuna and those crunchy chow mein noodles made a great quick dinner that I used to love. Cream of mushroom went with everything- meatballs, chunks of stew meat, chicken, pork, and of course.....tator tot casserole.

My mom was the Queen of Round Steak. Oh how she loved the stuff. She made everything beef with round steak. Pepper steak. Stroganoff. My favorite- smothered steak. She would cut up some round steak (back then it was common to find big round steak cuts as big as serving trays with the bone in the middle), pound it with her meat mallet, dredge in some flour and sear, and pour over a couple cans of cream of whatever- usually mushroom or celery- pop it in the oven for a couple hours, and that cheapo cut of meat would be as delicious and tender as any good roast. She often added a can of mushrooms (she was a steadfast supporter of the Richelieu Stems and Pieces in a can) and an onion sliced into rings spread out on the bottom of the pan and a little sprinkle of parsley on top. 

My tastes have changed significantly over the years and I rarely buy food items like canned soup these days, preferring to make my own from homemade. But every once in a while I just get a craving for some of those wonderful food memories and I grab some cream of something soup.

Erika's Mushroom Steak, Lakehouse Style

minute/cubed steaks- enough for 4 portions

1 small onion, sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon seasoned salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon Herbes de Provence

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon oregano

2 bay leaves

2 cups beef stock

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

flour, salt and pepper

cooking oil

In a Dutch oven, heat a couple tablespoons of oil.  Season the steak pieces with salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Brown in the hot oil until nicely browned on both sides. Remove from pan. If needed, add another tablespoon or so of oil. Add the onions, garlic and dried seasonings, stir well.

Deglaze the pot with the beef stock. Whisk in the cream of mushroom soup. Return the steaks to the sauce and cover. Bake in a 300 degree oven for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Gravy will be nicely thickened and steak will be tender and delicious.

**Note- You can slice up half a package of mushrooms, saute them, and add to the sauce with the steak before popping in the oven, if you like. I didn't have any or I would have.

This dinner is nothing even remotely gourmet. It's not something a talented chef would create. It's not something you would order in a restaurant. What it is, is a memory on a plate for me, like a visit my mom again. Laughing over her hilarious stories and funny broken English. Teasing her about the rolls she burned in the oven. Remembering a time in my life when Mom was just a phone call away. Those were the best times.

Homestyle Pork Roast

Sometimes you just have to have good homestyle comfort food. For many of us, especially in the Midwest, that's a nice pork roast. Bacon has become a trendy item to cook with, but it also makes an excellent self-baster and tastes amazing in just about anything. Pork roast happens to be my personal favorite and apparently I live in the right state for it.

Roasts are not only delicious, but they are easy to prepare and many times leave you some delicious leftovers for another meal or two. Options for sides are endless, gravy or not, it's all up to you. This recipe is very flexible too. Change up the herbs to something you like or have on hand. Don't like or don't eat pork? No problem. Grab a beef roast and go with that. Some roasts are better braised or cooked low and slow in a crock pot, but this particular recipe you want to use a fairly shallow, open pan to allow the bacon to crisp up. To make Bacon Wrapped Pork Roast, you will need:

boneless pork loin roast (mine was about 3 lbs)
bacon
1/4 cup olive oil
herbs- I used thyme, rosemary, marjoram
3-4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
4 TB grainy German mustard (or more for bolder flavor)
salt and pepper

Trim pork roast of any silverskin or excess fat. Place the roast in a heavy duty zip close bag- like a freezer bag. It's going to be a gallon or maybe 2 gallon bag depending on the size of your roast. To the bag add the herbs, oil, mustard, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Close the bag removing as much air as possible. Then massage the bag to combine the ingredients and completely and evenly coat the meat. Place in fridge and marinate overnight.

When ready to roast, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove roast from bag, it's not necessary to remove excess marinade. Using bacon slices, wrap the roast completely, using twine to hold the bacon in place. 

Yes, I was out of kitchen twine, so I used yarn- hey it worked!!

Put the roast on a rack in a roasting pan. As you can see, I had to improvise a little and make a "rack" from foil "sticks". Roast uncovered at 350 degrees at least an hour or until meat thermometer registers 160 degrees. If you find the bacon is browning too quickly, tent the roast with foil. Remove from oven and allow to rest about 10 minutes before slicing.

I served the roast with mashed potatoes and green beans from our garden (thank you, pressure canner) and it was delicious. The roast was moist and tender and we skipped the gravy completely. This is a great meal for a lazy weekend day, Sunday dinner, or a cold dreary day when the heat of the oven would be welcome. As long as you have the oven on, why not throw in an apple pie? Let me know what time, and I'll be over for dinner!