Chocolate Chip Date Cake

This cake has been a Dunn family favorite for many years. When I was little, I thought it was called "Chocolate Chip Date Cake" because it was something to eat when you went out on a date. As I got older, I realized that there are actually dates in the batter, and they are the secret to its moist consistency and good taste. It is a great chocolate cake that is delicious, and not super-sweet. I've added pictures to my recipe (a la "Pioneer Woman Cooks") because I had made this cake wrong for so many years, and then finally, after talking to my mom one day after another failed attempt, I realized what I was doing that was making it not quite as I remembered it growing up. So, forgive my feeble attempts to be creative or funny with my pictures, but I didn't want the same mistake to happen to anyone else! Ok, so let's get started!

The "cast of characters": sugar, flour, vanilla, chopped pecans, chopped dates (found by the raisins in the grocery store), chocolate chips, cocoa, eggs, butter, baking soda, and boiling water (not pictured.)

Start by taking 1 cup chopped dates and putting it in a bowl

then add 1 tsp. baking soda

and 1 cup boiling water

and let stand for 40 minutes. Go for a walk, go play with your kids, watch some "Oprah", whatever.

In the meantime, add 1 Tbsp. cocoa to 1 cup sugar.

Mix well.

Then cream the sugar/cocoa mixture with 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter. Don't even think about substituting it with something else, and heaven forbid, lower in fat.

Add 2 eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Then add 1 & 3/4 cups flour, gradually.

Your batter should be pretty thick after you've added the flour.

Now, here comes the key part (and the thing I had been doing wrong for so long): Add the dates, with the liquid, to the batter. For so long I had been just adding the dates, sometimes straining it, and wondering why my cake was so dry and didn't ever taste like my mom's. The liquid and the plump dates make your cake so moist and good. Oh, and don't worry if you're not a big date fan; you can't even taste them in the cake, they just help with the consistency of the cake.
Now add 1 tsp. real vanilla

and 1/2 cup chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup chopped pecans to the batter. Mix gently.

Now grease and flour an oblong cake pan, this one is 13x9.


Spread the gooey yummy batter in the pan evenly.

Now add another 1/2 cup chocolate chips to the top,

and 1/2 cup chopped pecans to the top.

Bake at 325 for 30 minutes until a toothpick or knife comes out clean.

Let cool and cut into pieces and serve. This cake is really good warm with some vanilla ice cream, and needs no icing! Enjoy!

Orange Carrot Cookies

I love sneaking veggies into Luke's food.  These taste like regular sugar cookies if you don't frost them; with the frosting they are extra yummy and citrus-y.  The credit for the recipe goes to Britney Swensen. I had them at her house and now crave them regularly. Also they have no dairy :) so I can eat all I want.  Just in case you are a freezer fanatic like me, I thought I'd mention that I made the whole recipe but baked just one pan of these and froze the rest (including leftover frosting) to use another day.  Worked perfectly.

3/4 c shortening (it has no trans fats now)

3/4 c sugar

1 egg

1 c cooked, mashed carrots

1/2 t vanilla

2 c flour

1 t baking powder

1/2 t salt

Frosting: 

1/4 c butter

2 c powdered sugar

3 T orange juice

1 T orange zest

(Beat all together until light and fluffy.)

Cream shortening and sugar. Add egg; beat until light and fluffy.  Add carrots and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture. Mix well.  Drop by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheet. Bake at 350 for 12-15 mins. Frost when cooled (or when still a little warm if you like the gooey glaze look). 

illegal chocolate thing

trust me. this recipe should not exist. it's so so so good and so so so not good for you.

12 OREO Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, crushed
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, melted
2 containers (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese Spread
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
4 squares BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate, melted
1 cup thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping

MIX crushed cookies and the butter in foil-lined 9-inch square pan. Press firmly onto bottom of pan to form crust.

BEAT cream cheese in large bowl with electric mixer on low speed until creamy. Gradually add milk, mixing well after each addition. Blend in chocolate. Gently stir in whipped topping. Spoon over crust; cover.

FREEZE at least 6 hours or overnight. Remove from freezer 15 min. before serving to soften slightly. Cut into 16 squares to serve. Store leftover dessert in freezer.

[note: the next time i make this--and there will be a next time--i plan on using an entire package of oreos and using a 9 x 13 pan so that the chocolate topping isn't quite so thick and overwhelming. i can't believe someone actually sat around and thought of rolling oreos in butter. wow.]