Butter Cream Frosting

I made this frosting for my sons' 3rd birthday and I'm making it again for a surprise birthday party for my niece. This is my Aunt Connie's recipe that is in our family cookbook. My Aunt Anna-Maria and her son Michael used to make it as well and I remember having it at their house several years ago and liking it. This pairs really well with the Hershey's 5-Minute Chocolate Cake. I prefer to make my cakes in a 9x12 rectangular pan and this is the perfect amount of frosting for that size.

Butter Cream Frosting                                                                                                      

This icing will not mix if milk is cold.  Milk must be at least room temperature or heat slightly until warm.

CREAM:

1 stick butter or margarine

AND

½ cup Crisco

 

ADD (slowly, beating as you add sugar) *REALLY SLOW*:
1 cup granulated sugar

 

THEN ADD:

3 Tablespoons flour

 

NEXT ADD GRADUALLY:

2/3 cup warm or room temperature milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

 

Beat a long time until smooth.

Refrigerate the frosted cake before and after serving it.

 

NOTE: This icing must be made slowly and beaten for a long time and completely after each addition.  When you are finished it should not feel grainy – if you have beaten it long enough it will be very smooth – no sugar grains.

Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake

This vanilla cake recipe is the same as the vanilla cupcakes that I just posted. I've never found a vanilla cake recipe that I liked enough to make it again. I'm hoping this cake comes out as good as the cupcakes because they were not dry at all and were so good! I'm not making this full recipe today though - I'm just making the vanilla cake, but I wanted to post the full recipe because it sounds delicious! I love berries and mascarpone so this is definitely my kind of cake!

This vanilla cake recipe is for 3 8" round cake layers. You could also make it into 2 9" round layers or a 9x13" cake instead, which is what I made today. You just have to adjust the baking time.

The whipped mascarpone frosting sounds delicious, but unfortunately I don't have any mascarpone and it's snowing pretty heavily so I can't get to a store today. I'll be pairing my vanilla cake with this whipped frosting that I've made before and already have the ingredients for. It has cream cheese instead of mascarpone, but the general idea is the same. It's a light frosting that is so good paired with fresh fruit. Even though I'm making this in the winter, this recipe sounds perfect for spring or summer!

This is one of the easiest cakes to make. It doesn't have butter in it so you can make it last minute without waiting for butter to soften. The batter comes together so easily. I used my hand mixer for it, but you could even just use a whisk and spatula.

The bake time for my 9x13" cake was about 40-42 minutes. My cake had a big crack in it - I'm not sure why, but it will be covered with frosting anyway so it doesn't matter.

Update - I brought this to a big family celebration and everyone seemed to enjoy it, so I think I've finally found a vanilla cake recipe that I will keep making!

Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake

Recipe from “Life, Love and Sugar” Website

 

This Berry Mascarpone Layer Cake has layers of fluffy vanilla cake, fresh berry filling and mascarpone whipped cream frosting! It’s light, fruity and perfect for spring!

 

VANILLA CAKE:

2½ cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

3 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup water

 

BERRY FILLING:

1½ cups mixed berries (I used strawberries, blueberries and raspberries)

3 Tablespoons water

¾ cup sugar

3 Tablespoons cornstarch

 

WHIPPED MASCARPONE FROSTING:

2½ cups heavy whipping cream, cold

1½ cups powdered sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

16 ounces mascarpone cheese, chilled

 

 

CAKE LAYERS

Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare three 8 inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray and parchment paper in the bottom. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit, so I strongly recommend the parchment paper in the bottom.

Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to a large mixer bowl and combine. Set aside.

Add the milk, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and eggs to a medium sized bowl and combine.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and beat until well combined.

Slowly add the water to the batter and mix on low speed until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to make sure everything is well combined.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake for 24-28 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs.

Remove the cakes from oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling. These cakes can have a tendency to stick to the pans a bit so jiggle them a bit to loosen from the sides of the pan before turning the cakes out to cool.

 

BERRY FILLING

To make the berry filling, add the berries and water to a food processor and puree until smooth. You should end up with about 2/3 cup puree.

Combine the sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Stir in the berry puree.

Cook over medium heat, stirring consistently until mixture thickens and comes to a boil, about 8-10 minutes.

Allow to boil for 1 minute, then remove from heat. Refrigerate and allow to cool completely.

 

FROSTING

Add the heavy whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until soft peaks form.

Add the mascarpone cheese to the whipped cream and whip until stiff peaks form. It will happen fairly quickly.

 

ASSEMBLY

To assemble the cake, use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the top of the cakes.

Place the first layer of cake on a serving plate or a cardboard cake round. Pipe a dam of frosting around the outside of the cake. I use Ateco tip 808 for the dam so that it’s tall.

Spread half of the berry filling evenly on top of the cake layer, inside the dam. It should fill the dam about half way full.

Add some additional mascarpone frosting to the top of the berry filling and spread into an even layer to fill in the remaining dam space.

Add the second layer of cake and repeat the filling layer with the remaining berry filling and additional mascarpone frosting.

Add the final layer of cake on top, then smooth out the frosting around the sides of the cake.

Frost the outside of the cake, then use an icing decorator (I use an Ateco Icing Smoother) to add a striped pattern to the sides.

Finish off the cake with some swirls of frosting and fresh berries.

Refrigerate cake until ready to serve. Cake is best for 2-3 days.

 

Yield: 12-14 Slices

Combine wet & dry ingredients separately

Mix together

Add water, mix again

Pour in greased & floured pan

Bake

Frost & enjoy!

Hershey's 5-Minute Deep, Dark Chocolate Cake & Hershey's One-Bowl Buttercream Frosting

These two recipes have been used in my family for years. It's the only chocolate cake I've ever made, and also works well for cupcakes. The buttercream frosting is also delicious - if you want a double chocolate cake/frosting recipe, look no further! I oftentimes make this with a different frosting though because an all-chocolate cake is pretty rich.

A few things that I want to remind myself when making this (since I only bake 1 or 2 cakes a year and I always forget), if making two 9" rounds, the layers will be pretty thin. This cake looks better if it's made with thicker frosting, as opposed to cream cheese frosting that is also pretty thin. I prefer to make this cake in a 9x13 rectangular pan because then it is not such a thin cake. It's also a lot easier as it doesn't need removed from the pan!

I've made this with various frostings - chocolate buttercream (recipe below), vanilla buttercream, cream cheese, whipped cream frosting (and ricotta filling), whipped frosting (the recipe I just posted earlier today).

Below are a few photos from various times I've made this cake. It's always delicious!

Hershey’s 5-Minute Deep, Dark Chocolate Cake

1¾ cups unsifted all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

¾ cup Hershey’s Cocoa

1½ teaspoons baking soda

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1 cup milk

½ cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup boiling water

 

Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl.  Add remaining ingredients except boiling water; beat at medium speed 2 minutes.  Remove from mixer; stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).

 

Pour into two greased and floured 9” or three 8” layer pans or one 13 x 9” pan.

 

Bake at 350˚ for 30-35 minutes for layers, 35-40 minutes for 13 x 9” pan, or until cake tester (inserted in center) comes out clean.

 

Cool 10 minutes on rack.  Remove from pans; cool completely.

 

Top with your favorite frosting.

 

 

Hershey’s One-Bowl Butter Cream Frosting

                                                           

6 Tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

Hershey’s Cocoa:

            1/3 cup for light flavor

            ½ cup for medium flavor

            ¾ cup for dark flavor

2 2/3 cups confectioner’s sugar

1/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

 

In small mixer bowl, cream butter.  Add cocoa and confectioner’s sugar alternately with milk; beat to spreading consistency (additional milk may be needed).  Blend in vanilla.

 

Make about 2 cups frosting.

9x13 Cake

Made with "Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting"

Made with Vanilla Butter Cream Frosting

Batter in pans

Two 9" round cakes

Made with with Ricotta Filling

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with with Ricotta Filling and Whipped Cream Frosting

Made with Cream Cheese Frosting

Cupcakes

Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting

I'm always on the hunt for new frosting recipes as I just haven't found one that I love. My twin boys turned 5 years old yesterday and I was looking for something new to try. In past years I've made them vanilla cake with vanilla buttercream frosting, chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, chocolate cake with butter cream frosting, and chocolate cannoli cake (ricotta filling and a whipped cream frosting). All of those cakes were delicious but I wanted something new for this year. I came across this Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting Recipe on one of my favorite baking blogs, and it looked perfect!

I made a Hershey's chocolate cake two days ago and I made the frosting yesterday. It was very easy to make. I followed the tips on the blog and my frosting whipped up perfectly. Everyone at my boys' birthday party loved it!

There are a few important things to remember when making this recipe so your frosting turns out the right way. Always use a brick of cream cheese for baking (not the kind in a tub that is meant to spread on bagels). Let it get to room temperature before starting the frosting - I usually leave mine out for 2 hours. I recommend using the paddle attachment for the cream cheese as it kept getting stuck in my whisk attachment; then switch to the whisk attachment when you are ready to whip in the heavy whipping cream. Make sure you are using heavy whipping cream and not just whipping cream, so it will firm up the right way. When you start making the frosting, put your heavy whipping cream in the freezer so it can get really cold by the time you need to add it. Make sure there are no lumps at all in the cream cheese before you add the heavy cream. When you add the heavy cream, slowly add it. After it's all in and you start to whip it on high speed, do not walk away! There is such a thing as whipping the heavy cream for too long - you avoid it by paying close attention to the formation of the soft peaks that you want - and immediately stop whipping at this point. Even a few seconds longer can result in a liquid-y mess which is difficult to salvage. Once your cake or cupcakes are frosted, refrigerate them uncovered for at least 30 minutes to set the frosting. I forgot to uncover mine, but it still ended up fine!

Lastly, the original recipe amounts were for 6 ounces of cream cheese and are listed at the end of the recipe below. I wanted to use the full 8 ounce brick of cream cheese so I put those amounts in this recipe. There was a lot of frosting on my 9x13 cake, but it was so good! This recipe is a keeper for sure!

You can also flavor this by adding some Freeze Dried Raspberry Powder (or whichever flavor you prefer) to the frosting.

Not-So-Sweet Whipped Frosting

Recipe courtesy “Sally’s Baking Addiction” Website

 

Made from only 4 ingredients, this lightly sweetened whipped frosting is creamy and fluffy, yet holds its shape when piped with a piping tip. For best results, review the success tips above and recipe notes below before you begin.

 

8 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

Tip: Freeze the heavy whipping cream when you start making the icing so it is super cold when you add it in - it needs to be very cold!

 

 

In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed until creamy. Add the confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extract, and then beat on medium speed until combined and completely smooth (absolutely no lumps), at least 2 full minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to smooth out.

 

Switch to a whisk attachment (if you haven’t already been using it). Turn the mixer to low speed and with the mixer running, carefully pour in the cream in a slow and steady stream. After all of the cream has been added, turn the mixer up to high speed and whip until thick and stiff peaks form, about 1-2 minutes. This time can vary depending on the exact temperature of ingredients, temperature in the kitchen, and even the humidity. Do not walk away during this time and do not be concerned if your frosting takes longer to whip. You’re looking for a thick, airy consistency with stiff peaks. If you were to shimmy and shake your bowl, the frosting would hardly move. If your frosting appears soupy now or at any point you are working with it, it needs more whipping to introduce more air. If your frosting appears chunky or curdled, it’s over-whipped. To fix, stir 1 tablespoon of heavy cream into the frosting by hand to smooth out again. Use more heavy cream if needed to smooth out.

 

Use it: After you make the whipped frosting, it’s ready to frost your cupcakes, cake, or other confections. After frosting a cake or cupcakes with this frosting, I strongly recommend refrigerating them uncovered for at least 30 minutes to help “set” the frosting (especially when using it on a layer cake). Then you can serve or set out for a few hours before serving. And please note that you’ll notice the frosting becomes thicker and airier the longer it sits in your mixing bowl. This is not a problem and can easily be fixed by gently stirring it to pop any air bubbles. Likewise, if you notice the frosting really airy and looking over-whipped as you pipe it with piping tips, either “massage” the frosting while it’s in the piping bag (sounds weird, but this can help deflate air bubbles) or pipe back into the mixing bowl and gently stir it. You can even stir in a splash of heavy cream to thin/smooth out if needed.

 

Serve or Make Ahead: After the 30 minutes of refrigerating to “set” the frosting as instructed in step 3, frosted confections are fine to serve or sit out at room temperature for a few hours. If you plan to serve later than that, such as the next day, I recommend storing in the refrigerator. Lightly cover as best you can. Confections topped with this frosting can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days.

 

NOTES:

Freezing Instructions: This whipped frosting freezes and thaws surprisingly well. For best results, I recommend freezing the frosting after you’ve already frosted your cake or cupcakes– as opposed to freezing the frosting in your mixing bowl or other container. Frost your baked good(s), refrigerate for at least 1 hour to really set the frosting, and then cover and freeze for up to 3 months. (Note that covering this frosting can get messy and I haven’t found a workaround for that.) Thaw your frosted baked good(s) at room temperature.

 

Can this frosting sit out at room temperature or in a warm environment? A few hours at room temperature is fine. If you’re serving your frosted confections outside on a hot day (I’ve done this a few times), refrigerate your frosted cake/cupcakes for up to 1 day. Remove from the refrigerator 30-60 minutes before serving them. This way they start out a little colder and can last longer in the heat.

 

Can I leave out or replace the cream cheese? No. Instead, I would try a different recipe.

 

Can I tint this frosting a color? Yes. This frosting holds onto food coloring nicely and I strongly recommend using gel food coloring or natural food coloring powder. If you plan to tint the frosting, it’s best to add the food coloring when you add the heavy cream. If you need to add more food coloring after the frosting is done, gently stir it in by hand. If the frosting becomes too thick, stir in a splash of heavy cream to thin out again.

 

Can I flavor this frosting? Yes. Feel free to replace up to 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract with another extract of choice such as lemon or coconut extract. If it’s a potent extract such as peppermint extract, I would only use 1/2 teaspoon. You can also turn this into a whipped strawberry frosting by replacing 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar with 1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberry crumbs/dust.

 

If your frosting begins losing shape: If your frosting becomes unstable or thins out/loses shape overtime, whip it on high speed until stiff peaks form to reintroduce more air.

 

Quantity: This recipe yields about 4-5 cups of frosting. This is enough to heavily frost 12-16 cupcakes (as pictured), a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake, or a 2 layer cake.

6 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar

1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1½ cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

 

For a 3 layer cake, I recommend slightly scaling up the recipe by using one 8-ounce block cream cheese, 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, and 2 cups heavy cream. After adding the heavy cream, you may need to whip the mixture for slightly longer.

8 ounces block full-fat cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 cups cold heavy cream or heavy whipping cream (very cold!)

 

This recipe is very easy to scale up or down. Use 2 ounces of cream cheese per 1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar and 1/2 cup heavy cream. Add more or less vanilla extract. When you are whipping in the heavy cream, reduce or extend that length of time based on the volume. Whip shorter if you scaled down the recipe and whip longer if you scaled up the recipe.

Raspberry White Chocolate Bundt Cake

While I'm on a white chocolate raspberry kick, here is another great recipe. My sister Regina and I both found this Raspberry White Chocolate Bundt Cake recipe online but she tried it a few weeks ago and today I tried it. My raspberry layer was a little runny so I could not keep it from running to the sides, but it didn't really matter. I did not put the ganache on it this time either. It was very easy to make and it was delicious!

This is another recipe that would be perfect for Valentine's Day, breakfast, brunch, or any spring or summertime party.

Raspberry White Chocolate Bundt Cake

Recipe courtesy Alpine Ella website

 

Soft and fluffy bundt cake stuffed with white chocolate chips and a raspberry swirl. It's then covered in a white chocolate ganache.

 

RASPBERRY WHITE CHOCOLATE BUNDT CAKE:

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1¾ cups sugar

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 eggs, room temperature

3 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

½ cup raspberry jam

1 cup white chocolate chips

 

WHITE CHOCOLATE GANACHE:

10 ounces white chocolate, chopped

⅔ cup heavy cream

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

 

Preheat your oven to 350°F. Generously butter your bundt pan using a pastry brush and softened butter (or you could use a spray), making sure you get every bit of the pan.

 

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, sugar and salt for 2-3 minutes until fluffy.

 

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula after each one. Add the vanilla.

 

Whisk together the flour and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk. Start and end with the dry ingredients.

 

Scoop out ½ cup of batter and place it into a small bowl. Mix in the jam and whisk until smooth.

 

Fold in the white chocolate chips with the rest of the batter.

 

Pour half of your batter into the bundt pan.

 

Use a spoon to pour in the raspberry batter, making sure it stays in the middle of the batter and doesn't touch the sides (otherwise you'll see it on the outside of the cake once it's baked – this  way it stays more 'hidden' until you slice into it).

 

Pour over the rest of the batter, trying not to disturb the raspberry layer.

 

Bake for 45-60 minutes. If your bundt pan is a dark metal it will take about 45 minutes, but it will take 10-15 minutes longer if your pan is a light metal.

 

A toothpick inserted will come out with no crumbs. Let it cool for 10 minutes, then place a cooling rack on top of the pan. With your oven gloves on, flip the cake pan so now the cooling rack is on the bottom. Carefully lift your bundt pan off. Let cool completely.

 

Place your white chocolate in a heat proof bowl. In a small saucepan, bring your heavy cream to a simmer. Pour over your white chocolate and leave for a minute. Take a rubber spatula and slowly mix it until the white chocolate has completely melted. Add in your butter and continue stirring. You'll have to leave it until it is the consistency you want - either very pourable and like a glaze or until very thick.

 

NOTES:

Butter: I use European style butter, like Kerry Gold, in my recipes. This will make your finished bake much creamier and richer.

 

Storage: Keep your cake covered at room temperature for up to 4 days. 

 

Pouring Ganache: The best way to pour ganache is to pour it into a jug, and then pour on top of the cake. I like to put my cake on a stand and slowly turn the stand while pouring. 

 

Freezing: Slice the cake without the ganache, wrap tightly and freeze for up to 2 months. Let it thaw out in the fridge before serving.

Baking Pans Review

I started this review of baking pans several years ago and never posted it. I just sent my sister some of my older review posts and want to send her this one as well, so here it is!

Now that I reviewed my favorite Mixing Bowls, Measuring Cups & Spoons and Spatulas to bake with, it's time to talk baking pans. I have a lot of the Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch baking pans and love them. I will admit, I absolutely hate anything that is gold colored...except these! I also usually do not like nonstick kitchen items, but I find them easier to use when baking. I just don't cut baked goods while they are still in the pans to avoid scratching them.

Over the past several years, I started collecting my own bakeware so by the time I got married we didn't need any baking pans. These pans are expensive, so I used my Discover card reward points to get Williams-Sonoma gift cards and used those when I saw this bakeware on sale. They oftentimes go on sale for 20% off, and you can also find some of these items in the outlet stores. Williams-Sonoma also gives a generous 15% military discounts (in stores only).

Sheet Pans
The Half Sheet Pans are my biggest ones and the ones that gets used the most because I use them for cookies. I bought four of these so I can bake a lot of cookies at once. There are Cookie Sheets, but I did not buy those because I prefer to have sides on my pans when baking cookies. There is also now a Three-Quarter Sheet Pan that is larger than the ones I have, but I do not have these and am not sure if I would need them. I find the Half Sheet Pans to be big enough for my cookie baking. When I want to use a smaller pan, I have two Jelly Roll Pans. Sometimes I will use these for pizza, or when making french fries or anything else that does not require the larger pans. I recently purchased the Quarter-Sheet Pan Set of 2, which fits perfectly into the Breville Smart Oven Pro that we received as a wedding gift.

Muffin Pans
I don't bake muffins too often these days, but when I do I have two of each of the 12-Well Muffin Pans and 24-Well Mini Muffin Pans. I also recently purchased two of the 6-Well Muffin Pans to use in the Breville Smart Oven.

Cake Pans
Cake pans come in all shapes and sizes. I have two 9" Round Cake Pans, two 8" Square Cake Pans (perfect for baking brownies), and a 9"x13" Rectangular Cake Pan.

Loaf Pans
I also have two 1-Pound Loaf Pans, and a Set of 4 Mini Loaf Pans.

Shortcake Pans
Although this is no longer available, I also have two Shortcake Pans. These were the first Goldtouch pans that I bought and using them prompted me to buy a bunch more! The little indent in the top makes them great for shortcake and other similar recipes (like the extra batter for Mary Ann Cake with Mascarpone and Berries).

Cooling Rack
This is the only Goldtouch item that I don't particularly like, the Cooling Racks. I bought three of them to go with my half sheet pans to use when baking cookies. While they store well in those pans (and were intended to be used in them), they have scratched them up. They also tear up my kitchen towels when drying them. Recently I bought some of the Steel Cooling Racks, and I like those a lot more.

There are several other Goldtouch pans available, but that is the collection I have. I love baking with these pans. Below are a few other pans that I enjoy baking with from various other brands and stores.

Springform Pan
I have always loved baking cheesecakes, and the Kaiser La Forme Springform Pans are great. I have both the 9" and the 10" since some of my cheesecake recipes use different amounts of batter, and I found out the hard way that the 9" was too small for one of the recipes I make a lot! I also sometimes make more than one cheesecake for a party, so it has been helpful for me to have two pans. I also have a Set of 4 Kaiser La Forme Mini Springform Pans, and honestly have no idea why I bought them, since I have yet to use them! It seemed like a good idea at the time since cheesecake is so rich to make smaller ones and possibly freeze some, but I haven't had a chance to try it out yet.

Bundt Pans
I went through a phase of baking bundt cakes so I have a few different Bundt Pans - a heart shape one that is really pretty and (obviously) great for Valentine's Day and an Anniversary one that is great for any type of bundt cake. My sister Lisa also has the Heritage pan which I also always liked but do not have myself.

Angel Food Cake Pan
A few years ago I purchased two Angel Food Cake Pans that are really great for my Aunt Paulette's pound cake recipe and a coffee cake recipe that my family makes. I've also used them to make Chiffon Cake.

Madeleine Pan
I have two Madeleine Pans that I used once to make a delicious Honey Madeleine recipe and just never got around to making them again. These pans are small (take up little room to store) and very easy to clean.

Mary Ann Cake Pan / Charlotte Cake Pan
I don't know how I came across this pan, and I've only used it for one recipe that I've made a few times, but it was so delicious. This Mary Ann Cake Pan could definitely be used for other recipes. I also have a Charlotte Cake Pan that is very similar. These pans are great for making a cake that you can put a custard or other type of topping on, or fruit. They are very pretty and would also look nice with no topping on the cake.

Pizza Pans
After I got married, I purchased a bunch of pizza pans in various sizes that I thought were the same as the ones my mom has. It turns out they are not (even though they were from the same website she ordered hers from and had the same product number). They are a lot more thin and flimsy than hers are and I don't like them at all. So I recently tested out three 14-inch pizza pans - OXO Nonstick, USA Pan Nonstick, and Nordic Ware Traditional. I made three pizzas at the same time and baked each separately for the same amount of time so I could really compare the pans. The pizza completely stuck to the Nordic Ware pan, even after oiling the pan like I always do. The USA Pan worked fine, but I didn't like the nonstick coating on it. It just had a weird feel to me that I could not get used to. I liked the OXO pan the most and ended up returning the other two. The OXO pan is nice and heavy and seems like really good quality. It is pretty similar to all the Williams-Sonoma Goldtouch pans that I am used to using. I also purchased three more of the OXO pizza pans so now when I want to make pizza for my family I have a few nice pans to use!

Well, after re-reading this review that I wrote several years ago and updating it a bit, I realize how much I miss baking and wish I had more time to spend in the kitchen. Luckily, when I can get around to it, I have lots of great pans that are just waiting to be used!