Idea Alley

Peanut butter rules in ooey gooey cake

Recipes that appear in Idea Alley have not been tested by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Alley Kats, I hope you like peanut butter. Both of this week's recipes star the creamy, nutty spread.

I didn't think you could improve on ooey gooey butter cake until I saw this recipe from Jo-Ellen Breedlove.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Ooey Gooey Butter Cake

For the cake layer:

1 German chocolate cake mix OR brownie mix

½ cup butter, melted

1 egg

For the peanut butter candy layer:

8 regular size peanut butter cup candies

3 small Butterfinger candy bars

For the cream cheese layer:

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup peanut butter

3 eggs

½ cup butter, melted

4 cups confectioners' sugar

For the chocolate topping:

½ cup chocolate chips

1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

Heat oven to 350 degrees (325 degrees if using a glass dish).

Mix the cake mix (or brownie mix), butter and egg. Beat until it is combined. Coat a 9-by-12-inch baking pan with cooking spray and then press mixture into bottom of pan.

Cut the peanut butter cups into 4 pieces. Roughly chop the Butterfingers. Spread candies evenly over the cake layer.

Mix the cream cheese, vanilla and peanut butter until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix them in. Add the butter. When this is all combined together add the confectioners' sugar. Spread evenly over the candy bar layer.

Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. It will be puffed up in the center when done. It will jiggle just slightly. Remove from oven and let cool.

Melt the chocolate chips for 1 minute in the microwave. Add the oil. Stir until combined. Spread over the top.

Makes 1 cake.

Diane Tollett shares this peanut butter pie recipe that is a little different from the recipes that ran last week.

"I got this recipe over 30 years ago from the restaurant at Old Washington," Tollett writes.

Peanut Butter Pie

1 baked pie shell

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 cup peanut butter

1 small box cook-and-serve vanilla pudding/pie filling PLUS ingredients listed on package (don't use instant)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Arrange pie shell in pie plate; set aside.

In a small bowl mix the confectioners' sugar and peanut butter until crumbly. Sprinkle 3/4 of this mixture into your pie shell and set aside.

Make the small box of vanilla pie filling according to package directions. Pour on top of the peanut butter mix in the shell. Make a meringue (recipe not included) for the top and sprinkle the rest of the peanut butter mixture on top of meringue and brown in oven for 15 minutes or until peaks start to turn brown.

Makes 1 pie.

REQUESTS

Alley Kats, Joseph Friend needs your help.

Friend writes:

"This recipe was my grandfather's. I think it may be from the Depression era but not sure. ... My grandparents never really measured anything and everything turned out just right. This is the recipe I have for this cake and it just does not turn out right. Sometimes, it does not rise, sometimes it does. I only had it turn out right one time. I wonder if either yourself or one of the Idea Alley readers might be able to help me to fix or know of this recipe."

This is the recipe exactly as Friend sent it to me. Other than the vague mixing instructions I cannot find any reason the cake would not rise.

White Cake With Chocolate Icing Momma Coleman

Ingredients:

1 7/8 cups self-rising flour

1 ½ cups sugar

Sift first 2 ingredients.

3 eggs

¼ cup Crisco

½ cup sweet milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Pour into 3 - 9" greased and floured pans. Bake at 325 degrees.

Icing

2½ Cups Sugar

1¼ cup Pet milk

2 heaping Tablespoons Cocoa

First cook on stove. When done -- sit pan in cold water -- ADD ½ stick oleo until melted -- then apply to cake.

• Aloo Dum (spicy sweet potatoes) as served by the Katmandu MoMo food truck for Dixie Land. "It is so good, and I never tasted anything like it. Hot, tart and spicy, all at the same time," writes Land.

Send recipe requests, contributions and culinary questions to Kelly Brant, Idea Alley, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203; email:

[email protected]

Please include a daytime phone number.

Food on 05/27/2015

Upcoming Events