How you doin’? Soft drinks or flavored sodas gained in popularity in America in the late 1800s. The undeniable hero was Coca-Cola. Aside from being a damn good beverage it had many uses… cleaning toilet bowls and chrome bumpers, being two of its most iconic uses.
 
Coca-Cola Company has been based in Atlanta for years, so it makes good sense that this cake has become a true Southern classic. It’s also a beloved dessert at Disneyland California Pavilion since we added to the menu in the late 1980’s
 
There is no great alternative to a chocolate Coca-Cola cake because Coke and chocolate are a match made in cake heaven. The result is a moist and tender cake with rich cocoa flavors topped with a thin chocolate frosting. The Coke complements and deepens the chocolate flavor, and the carbonation in the soda acts as a leavening agent in the cake raising it to great heights. The shiny, crackly glaze, also flavored with another hit of Coke, is the perfect contrast to the fudgy, moist dark interior.
 
A couple of things to consider when making Coca-Cola Cake: only use natural cocoa (Hershey’s or Guittard) in this recipe, not Dutch-processed. Natural cocoa is more acidic than Dutch-processed and is needed to react with the baking soda to create the best rise.
 
Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream for an extra-decadent treat.
 
Prep time:  20 minutes
Bake time:  60 minutes
Yield:  12 servings / 1 (9x13-inch) cake
 
Ingredients 
For the cake
Nonstick cooking spray
1 (12-ounce) can Coca-Cola (not Zero or Diet)
2-sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter
1/2 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1-3/4 cups granulated sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup room temperature sour cream
2 large room temperature eggs
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
 
For the icing
1 (12-ounce) can Coca-Cola
1 stick (4 ounces) cubed unsalted butter
1/4 cup unsweetened natural cocoa powder
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
 
Directions
To make the cake

1. Preheat an oven to 350° F.
2. Spray a 9 X 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
3. To bloom the Coke and cocoa powder in a medium saucepan, combine the Coke, butter and cocoa. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook, stirring often to make sure it doesn’t boil over, until the butter is melted and the ingredients are well-combined, about 7 minutes.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool for 5 minutes.
5. In a large heatproof bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt.
6. Pour the warm Coke mixture into the flour mixture and whisk until no dry streaks remain.
7. Whisk in the sour cream, eggs, and vanilla until combined.
8. Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan, spreading it into an even layer. Bake the cake until the edges pull away from the sides of the pan and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 28 to 30 minutes.
9. Remove from the oven and let it cool in the baking pan on a wire rack while preparing the frosting.

To make the icing

1. In a large saucepan, bring the Coke to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil, undisturbed, until the Coke has reduced to 1/3 cup, about 15 minutes.
2. Add the butter and cocoa to the reduced cola and continue to cook, whisking constantly, until the butter is melted, and the cocoa is thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.
3. Add the powdered sugar and salt and whisk until smooth.
4. Immediately pour the frosting over the warm cake, spreading it into an even layer.
5. Let the frosted cake rest until cooled to room temperature and the frosting is fully set, about 2 hours.
6. Slice and serve.

ChefSecret: Spreading frosting over a hot cake may seem a bit unusual, but the heat allows it to spread easily over the cake’s surface and gives the frosting a shiny sheen. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Quip of the Day:  A man comes home from the grocery store with a 12 pack of Coca Cola and throws a can at his friend.
Friend: What the hell? What was that for?!
Man: Relax… it’s only a soft drink.
-------------------------------------------
Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to [email protected]. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/perspectives-on-food.
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to  Feeding America, Tunnel to Towers, Union Rescue Mission and/or American Red Cross.

#Baking #Dessert #Cake #RetroCocaColaCake #ChocolateCake #CocaCola #Guittard #Hershey #Recipes2025 #URM #T2T #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #SamaritansPurse #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 
 
                                                                              ©PERSPECTIVES/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2025

How you doin’? Tomorrow is the start of the Jewish holiday of Purim, and Monday is St. Patrick’s Day. Here’s a dessert that works for both… an apple tartlet and a Purim hamantaschen. This super easy economical apple dessert is perfect for a quick finish to a meal. Sweet, crispy, moist and kid-friendly. It’s a bit on the ugly side but the taste more than makes up for that.
 


My Apple Duff Dessert is delicious, hot or cold and even great for lunch boxes. It can baked ahead of time and be popped into the oven when you take the dinner out. Serve it with ice cream, yoghurt or just plain naked. It really doesn’t get any easier than this Apple Duff Dessert.
Give it a try, it’s the easiest home baked apple pastry dessert you can make.
 
Prep time:  15 minutes
Bake time:  15 to 20 minutes
Yield:  2 Apple Duffs
 
Ingredients 
1 crisp sour apple
5 teaspoons light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2-1/4 tablespoons raisins or sultanas
1-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 sheet of puff pastry (I prefer Pepperidge Farms)
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons of water
2 small scoops of ice cream as a topping
 
Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 475° F.
2. Peel and core an apple.
3. Cut the apple in half around the middle.
4. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, raisins and butter.
5. Stuff the sugar mixture into the cored holes in the apples pressing in firmly.
6. Cut pastry sheets in half and place an apple half on each half of pastry.
7. Gather the edges of pastry up and squash the edges enclosing the apple.
8. Give the stuffed pastry a good squeeze all over to expel air and ensure a good seal.
9. Whisk the egg yolk and water to make an egg wash.
10. Brush the tops of the filled pastry with egg wash.
11. Bake 15-20 minutes in 475°F degree oven until crispy brown all over.
12. Serve with custard, cream, ice cream, yoghurt or just plain naked.

ChefSecret:  I prefer to use tart green apples… after all it is St. Patrick’s Day.

Quip of the Day:  What do you get when two leprechauns have a conversation? A lot of small talk.
-------------------------------------------
Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to [email protected]. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/perspectives-on-food.
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to  Feeding America, Tunnel to Towers, Union Rescue Mission and/or American Red Cross.

#Baking #Dessert #StPaddysDay #StPatricksDays #Purim #Apples #AppleDuff #PepperidgeFarms #Recipes2025 #URM #T2T #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #SamaritansPurse #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup  
                                                                                    ©PERSPECTIVES/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2025

How you doin’? I have another Instant Pot challenge for you. You can assume (from prior writings), I love working with my Instant Pot and I love PIE! I am overly fond of any kind of pies. As a kid, I grew up on pies from Du-pars and Knott’s Berry Farm. Pies are so typically American—every region in the United States has their own style of pie.
 
Growing up I was addicted to Hostess brand fried fruit pies that are still sold in grocery and convenience stores today. You probably know the ones that sit at the end of the junk food aisle along with the mini donuts. They are made with apple, cherry, lemon and even chocolate pie fillings topped with a sweet, powdered sugar glaze. As cheap as they may be, they’re still tasty and satisfying—just peel back the wrapper and take a couple of bites.
 
Recently on an episode of Somewhere South (PBS), Vivian Howard introduced the pie customs of the South including hand pies. Vivian’s schtick is to dig deep into the lesser-known roots of Southern food, Southern cooking, Southern hospitality and Southern living. Very entertaining!
 
So, in the following recipe I created a marriage of “fried” apple hand pies and my Instant Pot. For this recipe you need to have the Instant Pot air fryer lid (or any other air fryer). You can use most any fillings of berry, cherry and more, but for this recipe I have selected a buttery apple-cinnamon mixture. These pies bake in less than 10 minutes in an air fryer. So last minute, hot apple hand pies are possible in just a few minutes before sitting down to an evening dinner. Quick and easy hand pies will be in the mouths of your family in minutes! That makes a good evening even better! 
 
Start with a premade supermarket pie crust. You can also use a canned apple pie filling, or you can follow my recipe below. If you don’t have the Instant Pot air fryer lid you can use any brand of air fryer. Your almost-from-scratch air fried apple hand pies will have a light and flaky crust and a delicious, sweet cinnamon apple filling.
 
Prep time:  30 minutes
Bake time:  15 minutes
Yield:  4 small hand pies
 
Ingredients 
For the filling
2 diced medium Granny Smith apples
4 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons cold water
1/2 (14 ounce) package pastry for a 9-inch double crust pie (you can use any store brand)
cooking spray
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
 
For the glaze
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon milk, or more as needed
1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
 
Directions
To make the apple filling and assemble the pies

1. Combine the apples, butter, brown sugar and cinnamon in a non-stick skillet. Cook over medium heat until apples have softened, and the sugar starts to thicken; about 5 minutes.
2. Dissolve the cornstarch in cold water. Stir into the apple mixture and cook until it thickens, for about 1 minute.
3. Remove the apple pie filling from heat and set aside to cool while you prepare the crust.
4. Unroll the pie crust on a lightly floured surface and roll out slightly to smooth the surface of the dough.
5. Cut the dough into small rectangles so that two can fit in your air fryer at one time. Repeat with remaining crust until you have 8 equal rectangles, re-rolling some of the scraps of dough if needed.
6. Wet the outer edges of 4 rectangles with water and place some apple filling in the center about 1/2-inch from the edges. Roll out the remaining 4 rectangles so that they are slightly larger than the topped ones. Place these rectangles on top of the filling; crimp the edges with the tine of a fork to seal.
7. Cut 4 small slits into the tops of the pies.
8. Spray the basket of an air fryer with food release cooking spray. Brush the tops of 2 pies with vegetable oil. Using a spatula, transfer pies to the air fryer basket.
9. Insert basket and set the temperature to 385⁰F. Bake until golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the pies from the basket and repeat with the remaining 2 pies.

For the glaze

1. Mix the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract in a small bowl. Brush glaze on warm pies and allow it to set.
2. Serve pies warm or at room temperature.

-------------------------------------------
ChefSecret:  I prefer to use tart green apples, but any firm tart apple will do.

​Quip of the Day:  Q. Why is it so difficult to work at an apple pie factory?  A. Because they have such a high turnover rate.
-------------------------------------------
Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to [email protected]. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/perspectives-on-food.
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to  Feeding America, Tunnel to Towers, Union Rescue Mission and/or American Red Cross.

#Entrees #MexicanChocolateOatmeal #ChocolateOatmeal #Oats #Breakfast #B'fast #HotCereal #QuakerOats #PerspectivesOnFood #Recipes2025 #URM #T2T #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #SamaritansPurse #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 
 
                                                            ©PERSPECTIVES/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2025