A Christmas tradition continues, I always make a "Christmas Cake" - usually it is a bundt cake of some sort and this year is no different.  This year I changed it up a bit and made my red velvet bundt cake.  We love the hint of chocolate mixed with the luscious cream cheese 'drizzle" frosting and the red gives it the festive Holiday feel. This cake is great for any time of the year - just decorate to suit your occasion. ~Enjoy! Diane 

Red Velvet Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting 
 Ingredients
Cake:
2 1/2 Cups Flour
1 3/4 Cups Sugar
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
3/4 teaspoon Salt
2 Tablespoons Cocoa Powder
1 1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil (I like canola)
1 Cup Buttermilk
2 Large Eggs, (room temperature)
2 Tablespoons Red Food Coloring
1 teaspoon Distilled White Vinegar
2 teaspoons Vanilla

Frosting:
4 Ounces Butter, Softened
8 Ounces Cream Cheese, Softened
2 Cups Confectioners' (powdered) Sugar
1 Teaspoon Vanilla

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray a bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray. (I prefer "Pam with Flour for Baking")  
• In a medium mixing bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and cocoa.  Set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, add oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar and vanilla. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium, for 1 minute.  Turn mixer to low and add flour mixture, about 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until each addition is just combined.
• Pour batter into prepared bundt pan and bake in preheated oven 40-55 minutes or until a cake tester or toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs.  Cool completely before frosting.
• Meanwhile make frosting; In a medium mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and cream cheese until just smooth and combined.  Turn the mixer on low and add the confectioners' sugar slowly until frosting is smooth.  Stir in vanilla.
• Spread or pipe frosting over completely cooled cake. (I place my frosting into a quart baggie, snip one corner and pipe frosting over cake - then fill center of bundt with remaining frosting) 

Recipe Adapted from: Kiss my Bundt
Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home ​

     I can't even count how many different types of cookies my Mom made during the Holidays each year.  I know my friends always went crazy for her chocolate chip cookies during the year. Christmas was different - my family always had giant celebrations and parties around Christmas and New Years. and my Mom cooked and baked for it all and everyone went crazy for all the cookies. I remember my brother and I sneaking around the house trying to find her hiding places for all of the cookies!!!  My Mom was smart - with six kids in the house - she'd store them in tupperware containers and hide HIGH up on shelves in various rooms in the house!!!  My brother and I would try and sneak some without anyone knowing...making sure to leave the pile of cookies looking "as natural as possible" and not raided by two cookie monsters!!  The hardest cookie to cover up that you were sneaking were the Pecan Butter Balls!!!  Confectioners' sugar has a way with attaching itself to everything that you don't want it too!! LOL  I'm sure my Mom got a kick out of my brother and I standing there with smiling, sugar rimmed faces as we said "I don't know who has been in the pecan balls?!"   Here it is - all these years later and I am sharing her recipe...I hope you enjoy these as much as we still do today!!  ~Enjoy! Diane 


Phyllis's Pecan Butter Balls
-a family recipe
​
Ingredients:
2 Cups Flour
1 Cup Butter
1/4 Cup Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 Cup Pecans, chopped 

Directions: 
Preheat oven to 325 

Cream butter and sugar together until smooth. Add in salt, vanilla and flour until combined.
Add in pecan, and mix well. 

Shape into 1-inch balls (flour your hands) and place onto ungreased cookie sheet. 

Bake 25 minutes or until very, very light brown.
Let cool, then roll in confectioners' sugar and store in an air-tight container. 

Recipe by: Phyllis C. (my Mom) 
Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home 
Yield: Approx 4 dozen

​Photos Below: Double Batch of Pecan Balls for the Holidays 

    "Traditional marmalade combines sweetness of the oranges, with the bitterness of the peel, in a perfect flavor combination. Throwing a few cranberries in there, add sourness, and a little crunch, that make this recipe well worth trying!"
~guest post by JD Provence, Texas

Cranberry Marmalade
3 pounds oranges
4 cups sugar
3 cups fresh cranberries (optional)
6 cups water
1 Tbs vanilla extract (or paste from 3 vanilla beans) 

Wash all fruit and let drain. Remove all blemishes, tops, and bottoms, from oranges and cut oranges into thin slices. Remove all seeds and place oranges in large saucepan or pot, along with 6 cups of water. Bring to full rolling boil, reduce heat to prevent burning, and simmer until orange peels are tender, about 15-20 minutes. Add sugar, bring back to boil, reduce to simmer and cook, uncovered, until mixture thickens. Test for doneness by placing small amount on frozen plate. When mixture will no longer "run", and thin skin forms, it is ready for canning, remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Place 1\2 cup raw berries into bottoms of half pint jars, add a ladle-full of marmalade mixture, stir to distribute, finish filling, allowing 1/4" head-space, and waterbath process 10 minutes for sea level, adjusting for elevation in your area.
Depending on your preference, you may want to chop your orange slices into smaller pieces than rings. I used a stick blender with good results.

Makes 5-6 half pints

Recipe adapted from "Tangerine Marmalade by Martha Stewart" by:JD Provence for Canning and Cooking at Home
Photos by: JD Provence