Posted in #Recipes

Snickerdoodle Cake

A snickerdoodle warm from the oven is like a comforting hug in cookie form. With its slightly tangy flavor; soft, chewy and tender texture; and sweet cinnamon coating, the cookie couldn’t be cozier. This snickerdoodle cake recipe takes everything you love about a snickerdoodle cookie and transforms it into a moist and delicious three-layer cake.

Each layer features a cinnamon-sugar swirl to re-create the sweet snickerdoodle flavor. To complement the cookie’s slightly tangy taste, a cream cheese frosting flavored with cinnamon and vanilla tops the cake. Whip up this recipe when you need a cake for a special occasion, whether it’s a birthday, a baby shower or to celebrate successfully making it through another week.

Ingredients for Snickerdoodle Cake

  • Butter: Softened butter adds a rich, buttery flavor to the cake.
  • Canola oil: Using a neutral cooking oil, such as canola, adds extra moisture to the cake.
  • Brown sugar: Brown sugar gets its signature flavor and color from the addition of molasses. You can use either light or dark brown sugar in this recipe, but dark brown sugar has a stronger molasses flavor.
  • Eggs: You’ll use whole eggs and additional egg yolks in the cake batter. Separate eggs when they’re cold, but use room-temperature eggs for baking.
  • Sour cream: Sour cream adds moisture and a slightly tangy flavor to the cake.
  • Vanilla extract: Vanilla extract adds complexity to the cake’s flavor.
  • All-purpose flour: Flour contributes to the cake’s structure and light crumb. To make this cake gluten-free, use a gluten-free flour baking blend.
  • Baking powder: Baking powder is the primary leavener that helps the cake rise. Test your baking powder for freshness before using it.
  • Salt: A little bit of salt enhances the overall flavor of the cake.
  • Cinnamon swirl: Sugar and ground cinnamon are combined to swirl throughout the cake.
  • Cream cheese frosting: The cake gets covered in a tangy and sweet frosting made with cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon and confectioners’ sugar.

Taste of Home

Posted in #Recipes

30 Fall Cake Ideas for Cozy Autumn Gatherings

When it comes to desserts, I think fall has the most delicious flavor combinations. Our fall cake ideas showcase the best of the season, with recipes filled with apples, pears, cranberries and pumpkin. Paired with fall spices like cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, these cakes are as cozy as pulling on a favorite sweater.

My favorite autumn cakes fill the kitchen with rich, warm aromas, like a coffee cake loaded with fruit or apple pie-inspired cupcakes that balance sweet and tart. This collection also has cake ideas for fall holidays, so you can make a cake to go with other spooky and sweet Halloween treats or a turkey-themed cake for Thanksgiving. If you really want to impress, try a piecaken, which combines pie and cake in one towering, centerpiece-worthy dessert.

These autumn cakes are also great for quiet evenings at home. A spiced Bundt goes beautifully with mugs of French hot chocolate after dinner, while a pumpkin loaf shared around the fireplace feels just right. To keep cakes fresh, store them in airtight containers at room temperature or in the refrigerator (for creamy frostings) and enjoy them all week when the craving for something sweet and seasonal strikes.

Taste of Home

Posted in #Recipes

47 Halloween Food Ideas You Have to Try

A lot of effort goes into the costumes, decorations and playlist for a Halloween party. Investing time in all the fun Halloween food ideas can really set up the party for success too. We’ll help! These Halloween finger foods, entrees and desserts range from cute and easy to intricate and downright spooky, so there’s something for every level of scary!

Looking for Halloween snacks for guests to graze on? We have a plethora of monster-fied appetizers, like mummies in a blanket, guacamole shaped like Frankenstein’s monster and jack-o’-lantern empanadas. Bonus: A Halloween charcuterie board is easier than it looks! For anyone cooking a full Halloween feast, adorn the table with candleabras, spiderwebs, and one or two of our spooky entrees, like a ghost-shaped pizza, boo-ritos or bewitched chili.

Our Halloween desserts shine (and scare!). From witches’ brooms and fingers to cookies shaped like bones dipped in “blood” (chocolate strawberry sauce) and even eyeball-shaped desserts, there are Halloween treats cute for kids and creepy enough for adults. At adult-only parties, whip up one or two Halloween drinks, and your party is sure to be scary good.

Taste of Home

Posted in #Recipes

10 Old-School Dump Cake Recipes That Will Become Your Favorite Desserts

Dump cake recipes derive their name from the method in which they are made—you simply dump the ingredients into a baking dish and bake. A dump cake has the crumbly texture of a cobbler mixed with the buttery goodness of a cake. For the most part, you’ll only need a baking dish, a can opener, and a couple spoons to make these recipes.

Southern Living

Posted in #Recipes

Pecan Pie Dump Cake

Our new favorite dump cake tastes like a cross between a gooey pecan pie and a buttery, cakey cobbler. The base is rich and custardy from eggs, corn syrup, and brown sugar—sweet, caramel-like, and slightly creamy thanks to the touch of heavy cream. The butter yellow cake mix on top bakes into a soft, slightly crisp golden crust, especially around the edges where it caramelizes with the sugary filling.

Toasted pecans add crunch and depth, with warm notes of pumpkin pie spice that round out everything. It’s indulgent, nutty, buttery, and deeply comforting—especially with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting over the top.

Recipe Tips From The Southern Living Test Kitchen

  • Some of our dump cake recipes use butter in slabs on top of dry mix. We enjoy the texture of the cake made from melted butter rather than the slabs for this recipe. You get a denser, chewier, brownie-like texture from the melted butter rather than a crispy, crumbly top. Evenly drizzle butter to avoid dry spots.
  • Place cooled cake in an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator for up to four days.
  • This cake can also be frozen for up to two months. Thaw overnight in the fridge and reheat.
  • Don’t skip tenting the ake with foil after 25 minutes. This keeps the cake from overbrowning, and it helps the cake cook evenly without any dry spots.
  • Cooling for at least 15 minutes after baking helps the filling thicken up and makes for cleaner slices.
  • You could use spice cake mix instead of yellow cake mix and pumpkin pie spice.

Editor’s Note: This recipe was developed by Giovanna Vazquez; the headnote was written by Kimberly Holland.

Southern Living