Brown Sugar Pound Cake with Caramel Drizzle

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I recently baked this cake for a potluck brunch.  I love recipes based on brown sugar. It goes great with coffee or as you can serve it as a dessert.  In my opinion, it’s always a good time for cake.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and start by creaming 3 sticks of softened butter.  (This is obviously not a healthy recipe, but sometimes you need to indulge!)

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Add your sugars and beat until fluffy.

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Then add one egg at a time, beating well between each addition.  I actually googled why you add them one at a time.  If you add them all at once, they won’t let themselves be worked in.  By adding them gradually, they can emulsify with the fats in the mixture.  (This concludes science class.)

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In a separate bowl, combine your flour, baking powder, and salt.  Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternating with the milk.  Begin and end with the flour.

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You don’t need to over-mix it…just make sure it’s all combined.

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Stir in toffee bits and pecans.

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Spoon into your prepared bundt pan.  Mine says it holds 10-15 cups and it worked perfectly.

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Bake and let cool for 30 minutes.  The cake is more likely to fall apart if you don’t let it cool.  Patience is the toughest part of baking.

This is a great time to lick the bowl…if you’re into that kind of thing!

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And, the MOMENT OF TRUTH….Please tell me that you hold your breath when you flip your cake over.

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Once the cake is completely cooled, you can make the caramel drizzle.  Note: the caramel must be applied immediately, so don’t make it until the cake is ready.

The caramel is easy to make…no candy thermometer needed, but you have to stir constantly.  Combine the brown sugar and condensed milk over medium high heat and bring to a boil.  Whisk constantly…seriously.

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Reduce heat and let simmer for 5 minutes…continue whisking.  It’s a nice arm workout.

Remove from heat and add the butter and vanilla.

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Drizzle the caramel over the cake immediately.  It cools very quickly.  It helps to place parchment or wax paper under your cake to catch the little puddles of caramel.

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It’s so pretty!

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INGREDIENTS:

1-1/2 cups butter, softened
2 cups light brown sugar, packed
1 cup granulated sugar
5 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1 – 8 ounce bag of toffee bits
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 recipe CARAMEL DRIZZLE (see below)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Spray a 12 cup Bundt pan with nonstick baking spray with flour. Set aside.
Beat the butter until creamy. Add sugars, beating until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture in thirds, alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat until just combined. Stir in toffee bits and pecans.
Spoon batter into prepared pan.
Bake until a wood pick inserted near the center of cake comes out clean, 75 to 85 minutes. (Mine only needed to bake for 70 minutes.)
Cover top of cake with foil to prevent excess browning if necessary.
Let cake cool in pan for 30 minutes.
Remove from pan, and let cool completely on a wire rack. NOTE: Don’t freak out if your cake doesn’t come out perfectly.  GOOD NEWS! We get to cover all the imperfections with yummy caramel! Place wax or parchment paper under your cake to catch the caramel.
Spoon Caramel Drizzle over cooled cake.

Recipe from Lady Behind The Curtain

 

CARAMEL DRIZZLE

INGREDIENTS:

1 – 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a medium saucepan, combine condensed milk and brown sugar; bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly.
Reduce heat, and SIMMER for 5 minutes, whisking constantly.
Remove from heat; whisk in butter and vanilla.
NOTE: Make sure you drizzle the caramel while it’s still HOT. When cooled the caramel does somewhat harden, and it does cool quickly!

This recipe is from The Taste of the South’s Southern Cakes Magazine.

#choosejoy

The Franklin Classic

We started the day with a 4am alarm to bake for the post-race brunch. My husband requested his favorite breakfast casserole.  I also took the brown sugar bundt cake that I posted yesterday.  I’ll post the recipes shortly:)

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I had a Picky Bar and coffee before we left the house.

The new Cookie Doughpness is SO good!

The new Cookie Doughpness is SO good!

Time to race: The Franklin Classic! We met up with so many awesome friends. Our entire community runs this race.
I ran in my favorite Saucony Kinvara 5’s. The yellow makes me so happy:)

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Lots of love for Fleet Feet Racing!

This was my first time running both the 10k (7:00 start) and the 5k (8:30 start).

***Preface: I don’t run short, fast races very well.  My stubbornness lends itself to endurance!

I didn’t taper for these races and I’m in the middle of training for the Chicago Marathon.

 

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My husband had a great 10K race!

The course is hot and hilly.  Every year I question why I run it.  It’s mostly because I want to run with my friends (peer pressure at it’s finest), but also because it supports Mercy Community Healthcare. I beat last years time by 27 seconds. Not a huge difference, but this year I had so much more breath control. I felt more relaxed. Progress.

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10k splits: 7:49, 7:50, 8:04 (hills), 7:47, 7:36, 7:28
Finish time.  10th in AG.  48:14

I probably should have found a seat in the shade, but instead I stood around socializing in the sun.  I felt a little stiff for the 5k, but I just reminded myself that it was temporary. Also, the hills weren’t as bad on the 5k course.

5k Splits: 7:31, 7:34, 7:37
Finish time.  5th in AG 23:45

This was only my 2nd 5k.  My first was in July and I ran a 21:xx.  My friend Corrie said that I was on the 50k to 5k plan!

Conclusion:  Short-distance runner are badasses. Today’s races just made me want to puke.  Can you tell it was hot?!!!

Just finished the second race...wiped out!

Just finished the second race…wiped out!

I drank Cocogo Lemon-Lime in my handheld for both races.  I definitely needed it today!

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Use code: JENCHOOSESJOY (all caps) for 10% off your order!

We stayed to cheer on our friends for their awards and then the best part of the race…brunch afterwards hosted by our friends Alex and lauren!!!! Thank you SO much for hosting a bunch of stinky runners!!!  Everything was incredible!

Just look at this spread!

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My friends are seriously good cooks.  I made sure to try it all!

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The obligatory post-brunch pic…

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We took our full bellies home for a much needed shower and rest.

After a full day, I didn’t really feel like cooking so we headed out for celebratory pizza at Mellow Mushroom. I love their build your own salad menu!

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Romaine with cucumber, shredded mozzarella, and portobello mushrooms

And of course their pizza!

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Tell me about your Labor Day!
What’s your favorite race distance? Do you stick to that distance or run others?

#choosejoy