Umm..yeah, I’d say that’s chocolatey! So what makes it a “breakfast cake,” you ask? Well, this cake is actually a pound cake. When I was growing up, my Granny Flash would often eat sliced and toasted poundcake for breakfast with coffee. So, in a round about way, this cake is perfect for breakfast.

You can also eat it any other time of the day. Got it? Good.

German Chocolate Breakfast Cake

Ingredients

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray two 8-inch loaf pans with cooking spray, then dust with flour. Shake out any excess flour and set pans aside.
2. In a large bowl, blend cake mix, butter, milk, eggs and vanilla with an electric mixer on low speed for about a minute. Increase speed to medium and beat two more minutes. Stir in pecans and coconut, then divide the batter between the prepared pans, smoothing out with a rubber spatula. Place pans in the oven side by side.
3. Bake loaves for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool completely before removing from pans.

Makes two large loaves

Now, you know this would make the perfect breakfast.

Hope you enjoy! Have a great Thursday. The Duchess

Is there anyone on the planet that doesn’t love pesto? I mean, how can you not? The color is vibrant, the flavor is intense and it seems to go great with just about anything (pasta, bread, cake…ya know). While I certainly love the traditional basil and pine nut pesto, I thought it would be fun to play around with different herb and nut combinations. We had our parents over last Sunday for burgers in the backyard, so I decided to whip up a parsley and pecan pesto to toss into a roasted potato salad. YUM! It exceeded my expectations.

Different herbs and nuts…same awesome color. I didn’t add any cheese, although it would have been great with parmesan. Since we live in the South, we love pecans. They have such a distinct and slightly sweet flavor. The rather mild flavor of the parsley allowed the pecans and garlic to really shine.

Since there wasn’t any cheese in the pesto itself, I tossed the roasted fingerlings with the pesto and some grated parmesan for an awesome twist on potato salad. Holy Yum!!

The Duke flipped for these potatoes! He loved the subtle crunch from roasting the little fingerlings. This recipe is definitely a keeper for our upcoming spring parties and summer cook outs.

Alright…back to the beach for me. Have a wonderful day!The Duchess

The Duke and I had been dating for about a year and a half, and we’d been talking about marriage. We both knew it was going to happen, but I just didn’t know when he would pop the question. I was in my senior year of college at the University of Florida, and was home for Spring Break. Along with my parents, I hosted the Duke and his parents for dinner. Mom made her famous Garlic Fried Chicken and I made this cake.

That would be the one and only Hummingbird Cake. This cake is a staple in the South. It’s moist and rich, thanks to the mashed banana, crushed pineapple, and decadent pecans.

After that spring dinner with the Duke and his folks, my sweet Granny Flash leaned over to me and said, “If that meal doesn’t get you a ring, I don’t know what will.” Granny was right. The Duke proposed about two weeks later!

To make this cake, make sure you’ve got plenty of good pecans, preferably from Georgia.

This recipe first appeared in Southern Living in 1978, and it continues to be one of the most-requested recipes by readers. I’ve tried a few different forms of the recipe, but this time I used one that I found on Oprah’s website. Art Smith, her long-time personal chef, authored this sweet recipe.

The batter was thick and oh, so sweet. I inadvertently baked the cake it two 8-inch pans, instead of the 9-inch pans that were called for. They came out ultra thick, which is something that I find hard to achieve. I was so thrilled with the thick layers!

Can you see why the Duke continues to request this cake? I make it every once in a while, for special occasions. The cake is so sweet that I don’t really think it needs to be iced all the way around. Plus, I love the look of the layers. It looks really homemade and rustic.

You have got to make this cake this Spring!! It will be the perfect dessert at your Easter dinner. And if you get the urge to make Hummingbird Cake, this is the only recipe to use. Like I said, I’ve tried a few recipes before, but this blew all others out of the water!

Have a great week! I’m off to ladies’ lunch. Life is so good when you’re on vacation.
The Duchess

Have you seen the price of granola in the grocery stores?? It’s ridiculously expensive. I love the crunchy stuff, but am tired of paying an arm and a leg for it. I decided to try my hand at making it, which cuts down on the cost and the fat. I found a lot of great recipes over at Two Peas and Their Pod. You must go visit Maria and Josh’s site. They’re a cute married couple who love to cook together, and Maria has a few awesome recipes for granola.

I used her recipe for Granola with Coconut, Dried Cranberries and Almonds as my base. Instead of cranberries and almonds, I used pecans and dried apricots. What a great combo!

Before baking, I spread everything but the fruit and nuts on a cookie sheet. Maria’s original recipe made a ton of granola, so I did half a recipe. It worked out perfectly.

The bright orange color of the apricots is really pretty for Spring. You can easily mix in any nuts and dried fruits that you like, making this granola your own. It’s great sprinkled on top of Greek yogurt.

Well, I’m off to work. It’s our last week of school before Spring Break! Yahoo!! The Duke and I are headed to Miami for Spring Break, but more on that later. Have a great day. The Duchess

Have you heard of the website Eat Better America? I discovered it last summer and I just adore it. It’s got tons of great tips for living a healthy life and hundreds of wonderfully healthy (and more importantly, tasty) recipes. I subscribe to their E-newsletter, and last week a recipe for a breakfast cookie popped up in my inbox.

One of my friends had asked if I knew a recipe for a breakfast cookie a while back, so this was just perfect. It’s a very wholesome recipe, packed with honey, peanut butter, bananas, dried fruit and nuts. They’re quite moist and very filling…the perfect morning fuel!

I chose to stir in dried cranberries and pecans, but the cookie would be great with any dried fruit and nuts. I’m thinking of trying dried apricots and maybe even toasted coconut next time.

I like eating these cookies straight out of the fridge with a dollop of honey Oikos on top. The creamy yogurt and hearty cookie really get me going for the day.

I hope you all have a wonderful week. Only two weeks until Spring Break! Woohoo!!! The Duchess

Last weekend, for the Duke’s birthday, I made cinnamon rolls-not from scratch, though. I love making breads from scratch, but I’m not about to get up before the crack of dawn to make a dough that has to rise for an hour or two before breakfast. No way, jose. So, what’s a girl to do? Use frozen bread dough, of course! You thaw the bread loaf, roll it out and fill with butter and cinnamon sugar, roll it up, and you can even let it thaw over night in the fridge. The results are pretty great, if I do say so, myself.

I’d say they look pretty much like the real thing. And they tasted just great. In fact, if I hadn’t told the entire blogosphere that I used frozen dough, you’d probably all think I made them myself. I’m just an honest person, though, and would never want to mislead you.

Oh, yum. I would eat these everyday for breakfast if it didn’t mean I’d gain 300 lbs. There’s just something so perfect about a hot and sticky cinnamon pecan-y breakfast roll.

For a balanced breakfast, serve thick-cut bacon alongside rolls. It’s all about balance, folks.

With that, I hope you have a wonderful weekend! Get out there and enjoy this gorgeous weather.The Duchess

At any rate, the Duke and I had a fabulous weekend. We celebrated his 31st birthday on Saturday with food, food and more food (and a little karaoke with friends ). We went to Ruth’s Chris with our parents for dinner, but unfortunately I don’t have any photos to share My camera was malfunctioning. But let me tell you, it was a darn good meal. I rarely eat red meat, so when I do, I make sure to make up for lost time. I ordered the ribeye and the Duke ordered the petite filet. The waiter that brought us our steaks thought he had it mixed up. I didn’t even eat a quarter of the steak, but it was so delicious. There’s nothing like a salty, fatty steak. Oh yes.

I didn’t make the Duke a birthday cake this year, but I did make him a fabulous Paula Deen recipe that he took to work on Friday. It’s another gooey butter cake. Paula make lots of different varieties and they’re all sinfully good. We’ve tried lemon, pumpkin, and now, German Chocolate. Since this version has pecans, it’s perfect for this week’s My Girl, Paula! challenge for nuts.

Believe it or not, this recipe also starts with a box of cake mix! The bottom layer is a wonderfully chewy chocolate cake, and the filling consists of cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, pecans and coconut…need I say more?

OK, I have to brag on myself here. I didn’t have one single bite of this cake! I’ve really been doing well with my Lent fast (no desserts). I almost had to get the Duke to cut it for me, because it was just too tempting. But, I rose above the urge and was able to cut the cake without sneaking a single taste.

The Duke’s coworkers really enjoyed this funky spin on a classic cake, and I’m sure you will, too. With that, I hope you have a wonderful week. Can you believe it’s already March??? Crazy!The Duchess

So after my exhausting day yesterday, I woke up starved this morning. I scarfed down this entire oatmeal pancake.

I’ve made it a few times before, but this time I added pecans to the batter and topped it with chopped apples and a smear of my almond butter/peanut butter/ sugar-free syrup mix. It was the perfect Sunday morning breakfast!!

So the other day the Duke and I were at his parents house when I noticed his mom’s LARGE cookie sheet. She makes fantastic cookies, just ask the Duke . Anyway, I casually commented about how I loved it (she said it could hold 2 dozen cookies at once!), and how I needed to get one eventually. Low and behold, the next day she shows up at my place with a package of three new cookie sheets, including the huge one.

Do I have the best mother-in-law, or what??

After she left I was inspired to bake. I couldn’t let her newly-bought cookie sheets sit and collect dust, now could I? So I rummaged around the pantry and freezer (I store my nuts and baking chips in the freezer-they last much longer), and found pecans, white chocolate chips and coconut. What the heck, I thought…let’s give it a whirl. I used my go-to batter recipe with the addition of the aforementioned ingredients and a pinch of cinnamon. The result? A fantastically perfect cookie!

I think you’ll definitely love these sweet and salty cookies. On another note, after trying a more personal daily account of blogging this week, I have to say I’ve enjoyed it! It’s fun to post more than just recipes. That being said, I think I’ll keep it up, and only post recipes on Monday, Thursday and (maybe) Saturday, just like I used to.

Thanks for putting up with me! Keep the comments coming and don’t forget to follow me. Hugs and kisses! The Duchess

Anyway, now that school is out for break, I’m sure you’re all knee-deep in holiday baking. Here’s another quick and delicious rice crispy treat recipe. The kids can certainly help with this one, so bring ‘em into the kitchen and get cooking!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. Good luck on your last-minute Christmas shopping!The Duchess

Now that it’s fall, I’ve been testing out some pumpkin recipes. I was searching for a pumpkin cookie recipe, so I turned to Jenny at Picky Palate. Incase you can’t tell, Picky Palate is my go-to blog. I just adore Jenny’s simple and tasty recipes. She’s so gosh darn creative, too!  She’s been known to make cookies with everything from panko crumbs to Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Anyway, she had a super easy pumpkin cookie recipe that I adapted into cookie puffs, if you will. Jenny’s original recipe called for Spice Cake mix, but I only had Yellow Cake Mix, so I rolled with that. These really could not get any easier, and they make a cute presentation for your upcoming fall parties. Once again, they were a big hit in the teachers’ lounge!

These puffs are incredibly moist and make the perfect sidekick to a tall glass of milk. Don’t forget to “Share and Save” below if you like this recipe. Thanks for visiting! Have wonderful autumn week. The Duchess