Easy Double Chocolate Bundt Cake

I enjoy baking "from scratch" but there are also days when things are busy and you just need a little short cut. This recipe uses a cake mix as a starting point, but by adding a little bit extra than the  normal cake mix directions would require, you create a really moist and delicious chocolate cake without too much fuss. 

Ingredients:
I box of white cake mix with pudding in the mix
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
3/4 cup water
1 package of instant chocolate pudding
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup butter softened
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
Powdered sugar for dusting the completed cake

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour a bundt pan or prepare using Bakers Joy spray.
In a large bowl combine the cake mix, sugar and pudding. Using an electric mixer add in the oil, water, buttermilk and butter. Mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Fold in the chocolate chips.
Pour into the prepared pan.
Bake for 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes and then remove from the pan.
Allow the cake to cool completely on a wire rack.
Dust with powdered sugar.

 Enjoy!!

Cranberry and White Chocolate Chip Scones

Have you ever made homemade scones? Normally they require you to roll the dough and and then cut it into triangles before baking. However, my friend recently introduced me to a great kitchen item that makes the finished scones look even more uniform and luscious. It is called a scone pan and it is made by Nordic Ware. I have another baking pan from Nordic Ware and I love how the items I make in it turn out, so I was confident that this pan would also produce great baked goods. My friend and I have been having fun experimenting with various scone recipes and our families are benefiting by getting to try all of the yummy creations. Today I am going to share one recipe that I recently made, and will share some of the other ones in future posts.
This time I made 2 separate batches. In one I put the craisins and white chocolate chips, and in the second one I only added the white chocolate chips. The craisins I used were the blueberry flavored ones and they were amazing! You can have fun customizing yours however you'd like.

Cranberry and White Chocolate Chip Scones


Ingredients:
1/3 cup low fat buttermilk
1 large egg                                                      
3 cups flour                                                   
4 tsp baking powder                                                        
1/2 tsp baking soda                             
1/4 tsp salt
8 Tbsp cold butter
3/4 cup craisins (I used blueberry flavored craisins and they were wonderful)
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 375 F. Grease pan if you are using a scone pan or grease a cookie sheet. Beat the egg with the buttermilk and set aside. Soak the craisins in 3/4 cup of water and set aside. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Slice the butter into small cubes and add to the bowl and then use  a pastry cutter or two butter knives to combine all of the ingredients until it resembles coarse meal. Drain the craisins and blot dry with a paper towel. Gently fold the craisins and white chocolate chips into the mixture, and then add the sugar. Stir in the buttermilk and egg mixture with a fork until a soft dough forms. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead only until it is all combined. Be careful not to knead the dough too much. At this point roll the dough into a round shape and cut into eight pieces if you are not using a scone pan, and place the pieces onto the prepared cookie sheet. If you are using the scone pan, separate the dough into eight equal sections and press into each cavity of the pan.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until medium brown in color. Let cool for 20 minutes in the pan. Remove from the pan and cool completely. These make a great breakfast treat or a special snack and are a great accompanied by a warm cup of tea or coffee.

                                                                 Enjoy!