Betty G’s Country Recipes

• 1 (8-oz) package semisweet chocolate baking squares, chopped
• 1 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1  1/2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup chocolate syrup
• 2 tsps vanilla
• 1  1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• Powdered sugar, optional
• Garnish:  toasted sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Microwave chocolate baking squares in a microwave-safe bowl at high for 1 minutes and 15 second or until chocolate is melted and smooth, stirring at 15-minute intervals.  Beat butter at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric mixer 2 minutes or until creamy.  Gradually add sugar, beating 5-7 minutes or until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until yellow disappears after each addition.  Stir in melted cocolate, chocolate syrup, and vanilla until smooth.

Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.  Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition.  Pour batter into a greased and floured 10-inch (14-cup) tube pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean.  Cool in pan on a wire rack 10-15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack and let cool completely (about an hour and 30 minutes).  Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.  Garnish if desired. 

Note:  “I made the recipe as written above.  An option is to use Mexican chocolate.  Omit the cinnamon if you use Nestle Abuelita Margueta Mexican chocolate.”

• 2 cups flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp cloves
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 cup sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup finely diced apples

Topping:  Mix the following ingredients to make a crumble texture.

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 2 Tbsp cold butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease Bundt pan.  Sift dry ingredients and blend well.  Melt butter and stir in sour cream.  Add eggs, beating well after each.

Beat butter mixture into dry ingredients and blend until batter is smooth and satiny.  Stir in apples.  Scrape into pan and sprinkle with crumb topping.  Bake 1 hour.  Cool in the pan for 20 minutes.

This is a variation of the Fresh Peach Pound Cake recipe below.  I substituted peach yogurt instead of the sour cream, and it is very good.  I used 1/2 cup peach yogurt, omitted the almond extract and added an extra 2 tablespoons flour.  The original recipe with the almond extract is delicious; however, the flavoring overwhelms the peach taste.  The peach yogurt version highlights the taste of the peaches.

“Our little peach tree has outdone itself this year.  It may have actually killed itself with overproduction.  Two large limbs have broken off.  I had to find something creative to do with them and tried this recipe.  It was so good, I am going to make more for the freezer.”

• 1 cup butter
• 3 cups sugar
• 3 eggs plus 1 egg white
• 3 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 cups chopped, drained fresh peaches
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a large tube pan.  (You can also bake in 3 or 4 small loaf pans.)  Cream butter and sugar; add eggs one at a time.  Add dry ingredients, sour cream, drained peaches and extracts.  Beat well and pour into pan.  Bake 1 hour or until done (check loaf pans at about 45 minutes). 

“I found this recipe recently in the newspaper in the Heloise column and had to try it.  It was worth it.  It is one of the best chocolate cakes I have ever tasted.”

• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 sticks butter or margarine
• 3 Tbsp cocoa
• 1 cup cola (Coke)
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2 beaten eggs
• 1 tsp soda
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows

Combine flour and sugar in a mixing bowl.  Heat butter, cocoa and cola to boiling and pour over the flour-and-sugar mixture, mixing thoroughly.  Mix buttermilk, eggs, soda, vanilla and marshmallows.  Add to the first mixture and stir well.  Batter will be thin.  Bake in a sheet pan, 13x9x2, at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.  Ice while hot.

 ”I only had one stick of margarine when I started to make this icing, so I know for a fact that you do not have to put in both sticks of margarine for it to work.  You might need a little extra cola when you get it mixed together if it is too thick.”

Cola Icing

• 2 sticks butter or margarine
• 3 Tbsp cocoa
• 6 Tbsp cola soda
• 1 box confectioners’ sugar
• 1 cup pecans or walnuts

Combine butter, cocoa and cola.  Heat to boiling and pour over sugar, beating well.  Add nuts and spread on the hot cake. 

“Valerie, my daughter-in-law sent me this recipe.  We had both had a little taste of this dessert while in Arkansas one time and found it to be absolutely melt-in-the-mouth delicious.”

• 1 package yellow cake mix
• 3/4 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1 8-oz container sour cream
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon 
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 4 Tbsp milk
• 1 Tbsp vanilla

Heat oven to 325 degrees.  In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, oil, eggs and sour cream.  Stir by hand approximately 50 strokes or until most of the large lumps are gone.  Pour half of the batter into an ungreased 9×13 glass baking dish.

Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over the batter in the cake pan.  Spoon the other half of the batter into the cake pan, covering the brown sugar and cinnamon.  Twirl the cake with a butter knife until it looks like a honey bun (or whatever design you want to make).

 Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Frost cake while it is still fairly hot.  Serve warm.

To make the frosting:  In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth. 

“This is the frosting that goes with the Chocolate Italian Cake.  Of course, you can find other good uses for it.”

• 1 (8-oz) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 (16-oz) package powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/4 cup buttermilk
• 2/3 cup finely chopped pecans

Beat first 4 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy.  Combine powdered sugar and cocoa; gradually add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with powdered sugar mixture.  Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.  Stir in pecans if desired.  You may choose to sprinkle the pecans over the top of the finished cake.

“I have told people that buying Betty G’s Country Recipes is worth it if only to get this one recipe for Chocolate Italian Cake.  And here I am giving away the secret!  It is just too good to keep to myself.  I won’t tell you that it is an easy cake to make, but it is an unusual, moist and dense cake, and the best part is probably the chocolate cream cheese frosting.”

• 5 large eggs, separated
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1 tsp soda
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup flaked coconut
• 2/3 cups chopped pecans
• 2 tsp vanilla
• Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting (see separate recipe for this)

Beat egg whites at high speed with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form; set aside.  Beat butter and shortening until creamy; gradually add sugar, beating well.  Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating until blended after each addition.

Combine flour, cocoa, and soda; add to butter mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.  Beat at low speed until blended after each addition.  Stir in coconut, chopped pecans, and vanilla.  Fold in egg whites. 

Pour batter into 3 greased and floured 8-inch round cake pans.  (I used two 9-inch round pans.)  Bake at 325 degrees for about 25-30 minutes.

Cool in pans 10 minutes.  Remove cake layers to wire racks to cool.  Spread Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting between cooled layers and on top and sides of cake.

“Mother made jelly rolls especially for my brother, Malcolm.  It didn’t take long for us to devour one, especially while it was still warm.”

• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a jelly roll pan, 15x10x1, and line the bottom with greased parchment paper or aluminum foil.  Combine dry ingredients and set aside.  Beat eggs in a small mixer bowl until very thick and lemon-colored.  Pour beaten eggs into a large mixer bowl and gradually beat in sugar.  Blend in water and vanilla on low speed of the mixer.  Slowly mix in dry ingredients on low speed just until batter is smooth.  Pour into pan and bake 12-15 minutes.  Loosen edges and immediately turn upside down on a towel sprinkled with powdered sugar.  Remove paper.  Trim off crisp edges.  While hot, roll cake and towel together from narrow end.  Cool on wife rack.  Unroll cake, remove towel and spread with soft (not syrupy) jelly.  Roll again and sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired.  Cut in 1-inch slices.  Makes 10-12 servings.

“Tabitha Carter prepared this cake recipe for our Bible Study group. She opened her home to all of us each week and was a very gracious hostess. I could hardly wait to make this cake myself. Truthfully, I couldn’t wait to eat it again!”

• 4 Milky Way bars (2.05 oz each)
• 2 sticks of margarine
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Melt Milky Way bars and butter on low heat. Beat sugar and eggs together, then add the melted candy mixture. Add the flour alternately with the buttermilk. Mix in soda, salt and vanilla. Bake in a greased and floured bundt cake pan for 1 hour. Let cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate.