Product Review and Recipe - Nostalgia MyMini Bundt Cake Maker

I have a thing for tiny things, especially kitchen tools and appliances. Santa left a Nostalgia MyMini Bundt Cake Maker under our tree. It is definitely tiny. It makes three tiny bundt cakes at a time. Really tiny. Miniscule. Each cake takes about a teaspoon of batter. That's all. The baked cakes are just a little bigger than a quarter. Which makes them adorably cute. You could fill them with a tiny squirt of whipped cream. Or a tiny bit of frosting or pudding or even two or three M&Ms. Or just eat them.

They don't take as long to bake as I thought. Because they are tiny, they cook in only a minute or two. I could see myself with four of these little appliances lined up. As one finishes, I pull out the cakes and fill it up again, and the next one should be through cooking by then. Assembly line to efficiently make a whole pile of these tiny cakes. Next tea party, I'll be prepared.

This recipe worked really well in the cooker as well as in my mini doughnut maker. It's a half batch of a regular bundt cake recipe so if you want to make it as a big cake, double it, put in a well-greased and floured bundt pan, and bake at 325°F for about 55-70 minutes.

Yes, that's a quarter by the tea cup and this is my tea set for when grandkids want a tea party.

Cream Cheese Chocolate Teeny-Tiny Bundt Cakes

Makes a whole big pile, no I didn't count them partly because I was eating them almost as fast as I was cooking them, at least for the first few batches.

1/4 c. butter, softened
4 oz. cream cheese (1/2 a box)
3/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. vanilla
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
1/3 c. cocoa powder
1 egg
1/2 c. milk
3/4 c. flour (I like 1/2 whole wheat for the chocolate cakes)

Cream butter, cream cheese, and sugar until blended. Add in vanilla, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cocoa. Beat well, until it's really creamy. Add egg and milk. Beat until it's really fluffy and lighter in color. Stir in flour. Beat for 1 minute on high.

Cook in mini bundt maker - use about 1 t. per spot, cook until the light turns green, about 1-2 minutes. Remove carefully with a fork, they will be very fragile until they cool a bit.

Eat as is or try glazing and decorating them. Or fill with jam or pudding.

Thursday Recipe - Double Cream Cake

This is NOT a diet cake. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It's a pound cake variation that happened because I checked the expiration date on the cream cheese in my fridge. It came out dense and moist and delicious.

Double Cream Cake

1/2 c. softened butter
1 8 oz package cream cheese, softened
1 c. sugar
1/3 c. honey
3 eggs
2 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1 t. salt
1 t. almond extract
1 c. sour cream
2 c. flour
1/2 c. milk

Pre-heat oven to 325°F. Grease a bundt pan. Set aside.

Cream butter, cream cheese, sugar, and honey until fluffy. Add eggs, baking powder, baking soda, salt, almond extract, and sour cream. Beat until very well mixed. Turn mixer speed to low. Add 1 c. flour. Mix in. Stir in milk. Stir in 1 c. flour. Beat just until mixed.

Pour batter into prepared bundt pan. Bake at 325° for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes. Invert onto a plate to finish cooling.

I served mine with raspberry jam. It stays moist for several days.

Thursday Recipe - Cream Cheese Pound Cake

This came out of one of those old cookbooks I own. I lightened it up and cut the sugar. My kids said it was one of the best cakes I've made in ages. It was easy, too.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

2/3 c. butter
1/4 c. oil
2 1/2 c. sugar
1 8 oz. package low-fat cream cheese or neufchatel cream cheese
2 1/2 c. white flour
6 eggs (use 7 if they are medium or small)
1 t. vanilla

Grease and flour a bundt pan. Set aside. Heat oven to 325°.

Cream butter and oil together until fluffy. Add sugar. Cream until well mixed. Add cream cheese. Beat together until very light and fluffy, at least 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat for another 3-4 minutes, until eggs are incorporated and the whole mixture is very light and creamy. Stir in flour just until well mixed.

Pour batter into bundt pan. Bake for 70-75 minutes until a *toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a plate.

We served this with berries and whipped cream. It was delicious and completely disappeared.

*If you have never used the toothpick method, here's what you do:
Stab a toothpick into the center of the cake. Pull it out. If you have wet lumps sticking to it, the cake needs another 5 minutes or so of baking time. If the toothpick comes out with no batter or crumbs on it, or just a couple of very small crumbles, the cake is done. You can also use a butter knife or chopstick to test this way.