Cakes and Charcuterie and Food, Oh My!

My mother-in-law, now 98 years old, was an incredible baker. She was a wonderful cook and prepared Sunday lunch for all of us until she broke her hip in 2021. She was beginning to forget things at that point and so her skills weren't as good as they had been . . .but she was still amazing.

I didn't know how to bake from "scratch" when I married into the family. My mother-in-law shared her recipes with me.

A family favorite is her homemade German Chocolate Cake.

When she made it, she put the chocolate icing all over the whole cake with the filling only between

the layers. My daughter-in-law and I both love the filling.

I made the cake for her birthday earlier this month and I doubled the filling recipe.

It is a three layer cake.

It has lots of pecans which we love! It has

lots of eggs AND I used a lot of dishes.

Here is the finished cake. I used the fudge icing on the sides. I used a lot of filling between the layers and I used the filling on top.

It was the first cake that I've baked in the new Wolf Oven! I'm still having to learn how it cooks.

We went to our regular supper club. We've been together since 2004. I made a charcuterie board. The host/hostess is in charge of the main course and each couple signs up for one of the other components. I signed up for the appetizer obviously. The hostess made a shrimp/corn chowder that was so good and so filling.

We celebrated the three November birthdays (daughter-in-law, son, and daughter) a week ago and I made Sweet Potato Casserole using my sister-in-law's recipe. I doubled the recipe. I baked a plain sweet potato for me because there is so much sugar in this yummy recipe. My family loves it.

Mark and Glenn grilled the steaks and I made the sides. I roasted asparagus and heated up  Lesueur Peas because my son-in-law likes them.

For dessert, I made a pumpkin roll.

It turned out beautifully.

We served it with a dollop of whipped cream on top.

Last weekend involved lots of eating! On Sunday night, we went to our neighborhood supper club. The hostess cooked pork tenderloin. She is 84 years old and was such a sweet hostess. One person brought two sides - roasted brussels sprouts and carrots WRAPPED IN BACON. Yes, I meant to use all caps. Another person sent her fall salad which was yummy. She and her husband were unable to attend because her sister was very sick and they were driving to check on her. I need to text and see if she is ok. I took the appetizer which was Club Crackers WRAPPED IN BACON. I then sprinkled a little brown sugar on each one and a tiny sprinkle of red pepper. You bake them on a rack. They are yummy but they do not look pretty.

What have you been cooking lately?