MiMi's Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake

My granddaughter's birthday was this past weekend and she decided she wanted a "home-made" Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake for her birthday cake.  I had not made one in quite some time and as I started looking to make sure that I had all of the ingredients on hand, I was surprised to find that I did not have this recipe on my blog!  

My granddaughter likes this cake with vanilla ice cream on it, topped with maraschino cherries!  I have to say it is pretty delicious like that! 

This is one of those cakes that "haunt" you 'til it's gone!  

1 1/2 cups butter, softened

3 cups sugar

5 eggs 

3 cups All Purpose flour

1/2 cup cocoa

1 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 (8 oz.) sour cream

1 cup boiling water

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Soften butter.

Cream butter well.   Gradually add sugar to creamed butter, beating well. (This is the secret to a good pound cake....creaming the sugar and butter until smooth and creamy.)

Add eggs, one at the time, beating well after each addition.

Combine flour, cocoa, soda and salt in a separate bowl.  

Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture, alternately with sour cream -- beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Mix well after each addition.

Add boiling water and mix well.  Stir in vanilla flavoring.

The batter will look somewhat thin after the addition of the boiling water.

Pour batter into a well-greased and floured tube pan.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until cake tests done. 
(Cake is done when a toothpick inserted in middle of cake comes out clean.)

Cool cake in pain on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes.

Invert cake onto plate.

Flip cake upright on wire rack to cool completely.

After completely cool, place cake on cake plate for serving.

ENJOY!!!

Cranberry Goat Cheese Log

This is SO easy, but SO yummy!  I love any recipe that only has 2 ingredients and this one has 2 of my favorite things at that!

I LOVE goat cheese AND I love anything cranberry!

1 (6 oz.) bag of dried cranberries *

1 (11 oz.) goat cheese log, plain or any flavor desired, softened

* I found Pomegranate-infused cranberries, but plain dried cranberries are also fine.

Simply press dried cranberries into the goat cheese log, covering all sides of the log completely.

(It may seem like you have too many cranberries, but just continue pressing berries firmly into log and rotating until all surfaces of goat cheese are completely covered. Moisten fingertips, if necessary.)

Once you have the entire goat cheese log covered with all of the dried cranberries, wrap the log in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4-6 hours.

Prior to serving, set out at room temperature for a few minutes to soften goat cheese slightly and make it easier to slice.

Serve with crackers of your choice.