My Birthday Cake

I will start by saying, I LOVE MY BIRTHDAY!  I am like a 5-year-old when it comes to my birthday, I just love it.  What’s not to love, 1. I get cake, 2. I get to spend time with family and 3. I get to pick my favourite dinner, it’s a great day

As a baker I do a lot of cakes and I love doing them, but I refuse to do my own!  I couldn’t careless what kind it was, what it looked like, just as long as someone took the time to make me one, it means so much.  This year I decided on something a little different.  A while ago I saw a recipe on Pinterest for Popcorn Cake.  I’m sure your face just shriveled up and you thought ‘ewww… that’s gross’ as most people did when I told them that I was having Popcorn Cake for my 33rd Birthday.

Before you decide that you don’t like it just because of the name….give me a minute!  This is not an ordinary cake, this is something quite different.  Replace the ‘cake’ with popcorn and candy and the ‘icing’ with melted marshmallows and you come up with this delicious concoction….

Popcorn Cake

Adapted from  Cookies & Cups

2 bags of microwave popcorn, cooked to directions
Marshmallows***
Mini Eggs***
Pretzels***
Butter***

*** Mom does not measure, she adds until it ‘looks right’

1. Pop popcorn and allow to cool

2. Combine marshmallows and butter, melt in microwave or on stove

3. While marshmallows are melting prepare your bunt pan by liberally spraying it with cooking spray

4. Combine cool popcorn with mini eggs and pretzels

5. Pour melted marshmallows over popcorn mixture and stir

6. Pour into prepared bunt pan, cover with foil and allow to cool

This is when I arrive…all excited to see my ‘cake’.  It is still in the bunt pan….Fingers are crossed hoping the thing will come out in once piece!

Ta-da!!!

Look at that!!!

I will mention that Mom decided to make her famous Rice Crispy Squares with the left over marshmallows, ‘just in-case’

Company arrived and time to slice into it

Getting a little nervous as it is looking like a horrid rice cake….

but I am optimistic!!

Looks can be deciving…it was delicious!

I loved this Popcorn cake!  It was different than anything I had ever had.  There were so many different textures, from the light popcorn to the hard mini eggs,  every bite was a whole new adventure.  The flavour was amazing…each bite was different.  It was perfectly balanced, not too sweet, not too salty.  When you bit down on a chunk of salt from the pretzels it brought your mouth to life and just seemed to accent all the flavours.  This was a very light dessert that doesn’t weigh you down and you wont feel guilty for eating it, which is good because it is addicting! The flavour possibilities are endless as you could add anything you like to the mixture.  I would recommend this and will be definitely be making it again! We were surprised that even the next day it was good, it didn’t go all soggy as we expected.

Though Mom’s Rice Crispy Squares are delicious, ‘the back up plan’ was not needed!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzels

I saw this recipe a few months ago, they looked delicious! I mean what’s not to love, salty pretzels (love them), peanut butter (love it), chocolate (love it) all three together? It has to be delicious! I would love to meet the person who thought it would be a good idea to put chocolate and peanut butter together, Genius!  I got this recipe from Stephanies Kitchen.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzels

1 cup of peanut butter

2 Tbsp softened butter

1/2 cup icing sugar (you may need more)

3/4 cup brown sugar

Pretzels (the waffle shaped ones)

1 bag good quality chocolate

1.  In a medium bowl, combine peanut butter and butter, mix until smooth.

2. Add icing sugar and brown sugar, stir to combine.  This is where you may need to add more sugar.  You want to be able to roll the mixture in your hands without it being sticky.  Try it, if it is too sticky add more icing sugar until it reaches the right consistency.

3. Use a teaspoon to measure out equal amounts

4. On a cookie sheet, lay out a single layer of waffle pretzels

5. Place peanut butter balls between 2 pretzels and press together, place in the fridge

6.  Melt your chocolate in microwave or in a double boiler, which ever you prefer

7.  Dip cooled pretzels in chocolate and place on a parchment lined sheet.  Allow chocolate to set.  Enjoy!

These were pretty good.  Not quite as good as I expected.  Next time (and there will be a nice time) I will use the filling I put in my Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Squares.  I found that the brown sugar made them kind of gritty, it really didn’t dissolve.  I may also use mini regular shaped pretzels, not quite as much ‘pretzel’ in them, as it was a little overpowering.
It was a good first try.