Granny's Oatmeal Cake

Ingredients:

1 cup minute oats
1 ½ cup boiling water
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
¼ cup shortening
¼ cup butter
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 ½ cups flour
Coconut topping, see below

Directions:

Pour water over oats and let stand for 10 minutes. Cream together sugars, shortening, and butter; add beaten eggs, beat well. Sift dry soda, salt, cinnamon and flour; add alternating with oats.

Bake in greased 8x12 baking pan at 375 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.

Coconut topping:

1 stick butter
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup cream
1 cup nuts, pecans or walnuts chopped, optional
1 cup coconut, flaked
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

Mix together and spread mixture on cake just out of the oven; Put under broiler until coconut is brown. Watch very closely as it burns easily

Variation: Substitute the nuts for another cup of coconut.


Source: Granny's Favorites Cookbooks

The Great Pumpkin Cakes

These are the ultimate confectionery tribute to Charlie Brown's Great Pumpkin. The little round cakes are surprisingly easy to make—just put two cupcakes together, frost and decorate with vines and leaves. —Sharon Skildum

Ingredients

 

• 1 package yellow cake mix or cake mix of your choice (regular size)
• 2 cans (16 ounces each) vanilla frosting, divided
• 1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons orange paste food coloring
• 12 green gumdrops
• 1/2 teaspoon green paste food coloring

Directions

• Prepare and bake cupcakes according to package directions. Fill 24 greased muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350° for 15-18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
• For frosting, in a small bowl, combine 1-1/2 cans frosting; tint orange. Cut a thin slice off the top of each cupcake. Spread frosting on 12 cupcakes. Invert remaining cupcakes and place on top; frost top and sides.
• For stems, place one gumdrop on each pumpkin. Tint remaining frosting green. Cut a small hole in the corner of a pastry or plastic bag; insert #5 round tip and fill with a third of the green frosting. Pipe curly vines from pumpkin stems. Using green frosting and #352 leaf tip, pipe leaves randomly along the vines. Yield: 1 dozen.

Originally published as The Great Pumpkin Cakes in Taste of Home Halloween Party Food

Nifty '50s Ice-Cream Cone Cakes

Kids of all ages will enjoy these chocolate-malted mini-cakes-in-a-cone!

Ingredients:

12        flat-bottom ice-cream cones

1 1/4    cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour

3/4       cup sugar

1/3       cup malted milk powder, if desired

1/4       cup baking cocoa

1          teaspoon baking soda

1/4       teaspoon salt

1/4       cup vegetable oil

1          teaspoon white vinegar

1/2       teaspoon vanilla

2/3

cup cold water

1       quart chocolate or vanilla ice cream

6       candy or plastic straws

         Frozen (thawed) whipped topping, if desired

12     maraschino cherries, if desired 

 

Directions: 

• 1 Heat oven to 350°F. Place cones upright in medium muffin cups, 2 1/2x1 1/4 inches, or rectangular pan, 13x9x2 inches. Mix flour, sugar, malted milk powder, cocoa, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Beat oil, vinegar and vanilla with wire whisk. Stir oil mixture and water into flour mixture about 1 minute or until well mixed. Pour batter into cones, filling each to within about 1 inch of top.
• 2 Bake about 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Remove cones from muffin cups to wire rack; cool completely.
• 3 Top each cake with a small scoop of ice cream; freeze until ready to serve but no longer than 1 hour. Just before serving, cut straws in half and insert into ice cream. Garnish each with a dollop of whipped topping; top with cherry.

Expert Tips

Make your next party a '50s theme, and here's the perfect dessert! For a clever serving tray, loosely cover a muffin pan with colorful napkins, and nestle the cones into the cups. Turn up the bebop and party!
You can use Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® devil's food or chocolate fudge cake mix instead of the cake batter recipe. You'll get about twice as many cake cones as with the Ice-Cream Cone Cakes recipe (or bake cupcakes with the extra batter). Bake cupcakes 20 to 25 minutes.

Source: BettyCrocker

Loaded Mashed Potato Cakes

Ingredients:

2 cups cold mashed potatoes
1 cup shredded cheese (such as cheddar)
1/2 cup flour
6 strips bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
2 eggs
2 tbsp fresh basil, chopped
2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
4 tbsp butter or margarine

Healthier Options: fat free/low fat substitutions and turkey bacon

Directions:

Fry the bacon until crispy and drain on a paper towel until cool. Crumble into small bits. Place the bacon bits into a large bowl.

Pour off all but 2 tbsp of bacon grease from the frying pan and over medium heat cook the garlic and onion until translucent.

Add to the bacon bits along with remaining ingredients (except butter/margarine) and blend well with a spoon or your hands (it'll be sticky).

Wash and dry your frying pan, then melt 1 tbsp of butter or margarine in it over medium heat.

Scoop up about 1/4 of a cup of the potato mixture and form it into a ball. Place it in the hot pan, flattening it out until it's about 1/2 - 3/4" thick.

Fry for about 3 minutes on each side, until they are lightly golden brown.

For best results, serve immediately, while hot and crispy.

Top with green onions, sour cream or ketchup.

Source: SpendWithPennies