time to get cookin'

I love our Sunday routine! A good home-cooked meal, dessert, tons of family time.... I love it. I especially had a great time this weekend since we had all five kiddos with us. That's a rarity. The fact that all five kiddos got along all weekend without complaint was even more of a rarity. Since we all had such a nice break (half days Wednesday, Thursday and Friday for the boys and half days Thursday and Friday for Peanut) with such low stress levels, I wanted to do something extra special for our Sunday treats. Enter Pickle's favorite cake and one of my favorite treats...

Last weekend, I made hubby's favorite cake, pineapple upside down cake, and it was meh. I used a cake mix to save time (and because I got scared at the last minute that I could do a good enough job) and it just wasn't that great. I only started making cakes from scratch back in August and I am still shaky on my confidence. But lesson learned.... our family does not like cakes from a box anymore.

So this weekend, I scoured the net looking at different carrot cake recipes until I found one that I thought would fly. And did it ever! It was moist and full of flavor and absolutely amazing! PorkChop had two pieces himself and walked around the table begging for scraps after that. For a child that is not a cake fan under normal circumstances, that was HUGE!

carrot cake from scratch

The other big treat of the weekend started yesterday. I had pinned a recipe for fried baked pickles a few months back and finally decided that it was time to try. I am so thankful that I did! All the kiddos enjoyed them, which was another huge shocker. I really expected the older kiddos to complain and drag their feet but getting them involved in the process of making them made them more than eager to try their taste.

first attempt at baked pickles

I do need to remember next time not to add the shredded cheddar. Since PorkChop reacts very badly to dairy (but has been ok with tiny amounts of cheese) I should have known that these would be too much for him. But then again, I never expected him to want to eat a fried baked pickle. SweetPea either. Instead, SweetPea ate the pickles out of the center and PorkChop ate the breading. If it wasn't for the fact that they are both slightly built, I could call them Jack Sprat and his wife.

I am already planning out our dessert for next Sunday. I am thinking either trying my hand at creating a chocolate covered cherry cupcake recipe or going with a pre-wrote one for triple salted caramel cupcakes. Either way, I think that we need a cupcake day around here.