Italian Cookies~ Vintage Ware~My Life as a Vagabond (repeat blog)

November 24, 2010 at 2:18 pm | Posted in baking, Food, My Dysfunctional family | 7 Comments
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Please Note:  I am repeating this blog because these make great cookies for Christmas giving.  I’ve been struggling with a few health issues, but I feel confident I’ll be back in the game soon!

I am a cookie fanatic! This past week, I decided I wanted to bake a few of the Italian cookies I had eaten when I was a child in upstate New York.

As I’ve said before, “Cooking with Grace”, is one of my favorite Italian cookbooks because her recipes are so similar to the Italian American foods I remember my great Grandma Defranco serving. I decided to attempt a few of her cookie recipes, and I’m so happy I did!

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Millie’s Orange Drop Cookies
Biscotti all’Arancia

For the cookie dough:
1/2 c unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 c unbleached all-purpose flour
5 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c whole milk
2 large eggs
1 Tbso grated orange zest
1 tsp orange extract (I used a good extract and added a few drops of orange liquer)

For the Frosting:
1 1/2 c confectioner’s sugar
4-5 Tbsp evaporated milk
1 tsp orange extract

Prepare oven with one rack on bottom shelf and the other on second from the top shelf.
Preheat to 350 degrees. Line 3 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, cream butter and sugar with electric mixer. In another bowl, sift flour with baking powder and salt; set aside.

Pour milk into glass measuring cup and heat in microwave to warm (30 seconds). Add eggs and orange rind and extract to the measuring cup and mix with a fork. Add the milk mixture to the creamed butter-sugar-mixture and beat for one minute with mixer.

With mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture about 1/2 cup at a time until mixture is used.

Drop dough by rounded teaspoonsfuls onto parchment paper lined cookie sheets, leaving 1″ space around each cookie.

Bake the first sheet for 8 minutes on the bottom rack; then transfer it to the upper rack and continue baking for 7 minutes. When you transfer the first sheet to the top, place a second sheet on the bottom rack, continuing to bake each sheet on the bottom rack for 8 minutes on the bottom rack and 7-8 minutes on the upper rack. Remove the cookies from the oven as they turn golden. Cool for 2 minutes on cookies sheets, then place on wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

To Frost:
Combine confectioner’s sugar, milk, and orange extract–stir until dissolved.
use your index finger like a paint brush to frost each cookie on all sides, including the bottoms, and set them on a rack to dry. Be sure to cover in the glaze frosting to seal them–that way the glaze holds in the moisture.

Store in an air tight container up to one week or freeze them in a heavy duty freezer bag for up to three months. Try to remove as much air as possible from the freezer bag before sealing. You may opt to frost the frozen cookies after you’ve defrosted them rather than before.

These are perfect with a cup of coffee or hot tea. A little reminiscent of a scone–only a bit more sweet.

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My second batch of cookies are called:

Chocolate Spice Cookies
Biscotti Speziati al Cioccolato

I’m too tired to print out the entire recipe, but if you love Italian American food, I really encourage you to get your hands on this book. The darker cookies in the first photo are the Chocolate SPice Cookies. They aren’t particularly chocolate tasting–more spice. I’m still searching for the ones I had as a kid which I remember as tasting more like chocolate.

I have not tried the following recipes but they’re pretty close to what I made. Grace’s book called for currants–I didn’t add them, I did however add chopped pecans. I used a vanilla powdered sugar glaze rather than the cocoa glazes here. You really need to cover the entire cookie with the glaze to keep them nice and moist.

These cookies are a cake like cookie.

Mostaccioli

Another thrift store find:
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TOTAL: $1.80
As a kid, my family moved so often, I practically grew up in a car, stopping at roadside diners and truck stops to eat. The cups in the photo above remind me of those cafes. I remember my parents would sometimes try to drive straight through from the west coast back to New York. On a few moves they would stop at midnight–or later–to have coffee. I usually ordered a hot chocolate. Searching for my shoes in the dark and climbing out of a loaded car into an often freezing cold night, made sitting in a warm, well lit diner, feel like a special treat. I suppose my attraction to diner ware has something to do with those memories.
My mother and I sat down one day and wrote down every move we had ever made. I just looked at the list and see she forgot to add Houston, Texas.
The old photo below was taken on one of our 66 (possibly 67) moves.
I’m the girl standing up on the back seat holding something that resembles food in my hand. I have no idea what it is. I often stood while we drove. Remember when seat belts were just those hard metal things that hurt your bum when you sat on one? I just kept trying to shove them out of the way or stuff them under the back seat cushion. Times have changed.

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Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake w/ Faux Ganache~ My dog’s birthday party cake!

April 21, 2010 at 9:07 am | Posted in baking, Cakes, dessert, Desserts, Family Fun, Food, Giovanni the Yorkie, photography, Recipes, Uncategorized | 7 Comments
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I’ve been out of commission for a while.  Back surgery.  Needless to say, before my surgery I was a bit stressed.   Rather than lie around and worry about the outcome, I decided to do something cheerful.  My little dog, Giovanni, turned 6 years old on March 1st.  What better way to cheer myself than to throw a party?

Yes, I know I’m running the risk of being labeled “Crazy Dog Lady”.   I’ve been called worse names than that, so I set out to give Giovanni a party.   I invited a few close girlfriends and family members.

I baked a chocolate bundt cake, and Mark made a huge pot of his famous Turkey Chili.

Giovanni’s party invitation was posted on Face Book because everybody seems to check their Face Book page more often than their telephone messages.   The invitation made it clear that this wasn’t going to be one of those “do gooder” parties where people tell you not to bring a gift.  I mean, a dog’s life is limited and this boy loves a new toy.

I was expecting people to tease me, but instead I was a little taken aback by how quickly people replied to the invitation, and everybody sounded so excited.

“We wouldn’t miss it!”

“We’ll be bringing more than one gift!”

“OH! Can’t wait to see little Gio!”

Maybe dog really is man’s best friend.  All of a sudden I realized how much power I have as the owner of a cute little dog that my friends and family seem to adore.  What if I told people Giovanni is now into Le Creuset cookware?  It’s possible, right?

Some of the guests arrived with fancy decorated gift bags filled with tissue wrapped toys and dog apparel.  A few others just kept the toy in the store bag–Gio didn’t care.  He isn’t picky.  Toys that squeak, chew toys, soft fur covered toys, fancy doggy sweaters, and then some!

It was all going swimmingly, until….

Giovanni looked more excited than I had ever seen him before.   He had opened every single gift—all 19 of them.  Yes, that’s right, 19 toys!  I never knew squeakers could be so loud.

I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown.  We all sat in chairs circling the panicky, shaking, drooling, panting, now extremely hyper-active Giovanni!

He was out of control and looked like he was going to pass out at any minute.   Giovanni was now the center of our Universe, and he knew it.   This was just too much for a little five pound pooch.    When I saw his eyes start to roll back into his head, I moved the party guests into the dining room for dinner and tried to hide a few of his toys .

Greedy boy that he is, he followed me staring longingly at each “hiding place” I stuffed a toy in.   He glared at me with his piercing brown eyes.  I knew he was asking, “Whose party is this anyway?”

People, this went on for days, until Mark finally hid the toys in the garage.  I was happy to make Mark the heavy.

The chili was a hit, the cake was a huge success, and  when the guests left, I felt as though I had just thrown a party for a very spoiled toddler.   I was exhausted.   We went to bed early that night.

I’m four weeks out of surgery.  Still recovering from the back surgery itself, but doctor could not remove cyst because it is inside the spinal nerve.  He removed some bone and stitched me back together.    In my heart of hearts, I believe all will be well.

CLICK BELOW TO CONTINUE TO RECIPE FOR BUNDT CAKE

Continue Reading Dark Chocolate Bundt Cake w/ Faux Ganache~ My dog’s birthday party cake!…

Love and Marriage and Cupcakes

February 24, 2010 at 11:22 am | Posted in baking, Cakes, Desserts, Family Fun, Food, my life, photography, Recipes, Uncategorized | 10 Comments
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I’ve  had a busy winter!

My son, Sean, and his fiancee Olivia,  married on December 17th.  Sean’s father and I couldn’t be happier!

It was a small ceremony downtown Seattle.  After the ceremony, the family gathered for a formal dinner at Pomodoro’s, and then we partied at Magnolia’s Mulleady’s where the newlyweds held their reception.

I volunteered to make the cupcake tower for the reception.  I had a few weeks notice and went crazy trying to figure out how to put this idea together.   The couple requested the “Day of the Dead”  pair be the cake topper–needless to say, it is was a unique idea, and I have to say, I really liked the idea of thumbing our noses at tradition.

I made close to 100 cupcakes.  I also piped 80 butter cream roses for the tops of the chocolate cupcakes.

I cheated and used a mix for the chocolate, but I added buttermilk and changed a few things around to make them my own.  The ivory butter cream is homemade.  I used an edible pixie dust to make them glitter under the lights.

I also baked lemon cupcakes–from scratch this time!– and a batch of Hummingbird cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  The mini-cake topper is also a Hummingbird Cake.

I used putty to hold the giant pink martini glasses in place with the layers of depression glass and crystal in between.

Olivia and my mother made molded chocolates and placed them in little cellophane bags with ribbon and a photo of the bride and groom, to give out for wedding favors.  We hung them from a little Christmas tree.  So adorable.

The night flew by and soon the newlyweds flew off to California to enjoy a honeymoon in the sun.

If you would like to read about my cupcake baking adventures please click below–you can find the recipes here too…

Continue Reading Love and Marriage and Cupcakes…

“Day of the Dead” festival in Seattle (2009)

November 10, 2009 at 1:15 pm | Posted in Family Fun, Food, my life, photography | 8 Comments
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“The ”Day of the Dead” (El Día de los Muertos or All Souls’ Day) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and by Latin Americans  living in the United States and Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 1st, and 2nd in connection with the Catholic  holiday of  All Saints Day which occurs on November 1st and All Soul’s Daywhich occurs on November 2nd. Traditions include building private altars honoring the deceased, using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these as gifts.” (Wikipedia)

I am in love with this celebration.  I love the colors, the music, the dancing, the makeup, the food, the costumes, the decorations, the art–the ART !

As much as I whine about longing to live on a farm in the country, I feel blessed to live so close to Seattle.  I have learned more about different cultures by attending the free festivals, than I had ever known before.

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Many more photos plus a wonderful Youtube video behind the cut…

Continue Reading “Day of the Dead” festival in Seattle (2009)…

A Trip to the Country

October 1, 2009 at 5:54 pm | Posted in Awareness, cooking, Family Fun, Food, Mountains, my life, photography, Uncategorized | 7 Comments
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My husband and I finally managed  to squeeze in a mini-adventure.   Fear and the recession made us think twice about spending money on vacations or mini-trips.  We decided to throw caution to the wind and give ourselves a much needed break.

We headed to Eastern Washington to spend a few nights outside of a little mountainside town– Leavenworth–Washington’s own little Bavarian village.

I love this town.  I especially love visiting in autumn, as Eastern Washington is the Apple Capital of America.

viewdeckABOVE: Our balcony view

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ABOVE: We were surrounded by an apple and pear orchard

We found a little roadside stand off the beaten trails.  A farmer offers–on the honor system!–all sorts of fruits and vegetables for 50 cents a pound.  I don’t know about you, but 50 cents a pound is too difficult for me to pass up.  Mark and I filled our trunk with an assortment of apples, pears, and peppers.  We also visited a farmer’s market and bought fresh watermelon and cantaloupe.

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SEE MORE WITH A CLICK HERE…

Continue Reading A Trip to the Country…

Seattle Italian Festival 2009

September 28, 2009 at 7:35 pm | Posted in cooking, Family Fun, Food, Italian food, My Dysfunctional family, my life, photography, Uncategorized | 12 Comments
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Another year at the Italian Festival in Seattle!

There is something about a gathering of Italians–and “wanna-be ” Italians–that makes me look forward to fall in Seattle.   Mother Nature was certainly smiling down upon us–the sun was shining and the weather was perfect!

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My two very favorite things about the festival are the celebrity chef and, of course, the music.  I wait patiently to see our version of the Three Tenors–Fortissimo!

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Above: Seattle’s Version of the Three Tenors!

Continue Reading Seattle Italian Festival 2009…

Future Farmers of America and a Berry Crumble

September 3, 2009 at 1:06 pm | Posted in baking, Chick stuff, cooking, Desserts, Family Fun, Food, gardening, My Dysfunctional family, my life, photography, Recipes, Uncategorized | 19 Comments
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ABOVE: American Gothic? My son Sean, and his fiancee Olivia posed for me.

I was required to bring in five or more prints to present to my photography class.  I had a lot of fun with this project.

If you’d like to see more photos I’ve taken please go to Angelnina’s Photography Blog

In other news….

Berry Crumble

Blackberry season, in my neighborhood, can easily turn to war.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve caught people trespassing on my property to pick the blackberries.  Attempts to deter the berry thieves have been futile.  People will break the law for a free blackberry.  I’ve tried everything–from sneak attacks to police tape.  It simply comes down to survival of the fittest.  So far, a group of four elderly Korean women are burying me.  These ladies are out before the rooster crows!  They can clean out the entire patch of newly ripened berries in a single morning.  Before I manage to drink my morning tea, the early risers have filled their buckets and–I’m guessing–have blackberry pies in the oven.  I was lucky to score a few cups of berries to make my berry crumble.  Thankfully, I had a cup of frozen raspberries to throw into the mix!

Berry Crumble

Filling

3 cups of your favorite berries or mix of berries

1/3 c sugar

1/8 c flour

Tbsp orange juice (opt)

Toss well, and heat a little on stove

-Pour berry mixture into little ramekins– I used 5

Topping

1/2 c flour

1/4 c brown sugar

1/8 c sugar

1/8 tsp Kosher salt

Pulse a few times to combine in food processor

Add

4 Tbsp cold butter , cut up

pulse until size of peas

Pour mixture into a bowl and add 1/4 cup dry oats ( I used Old Fashioned Quaker Oats)

stir in oats.

Place a few Tablespoons of topping over the berries in the ramekins.

Sprinkle sliced almonds over the top.

You will have some topping leftover–place in fridge to use next time!

Bake these on a lined baking sheet  at 350 degrees till warm and bubbly–about 30 minutes +

Enjoy with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream!

A Long Day and a “Big Night”!

April 15, 2009 at 8:09 am | Posted in 4 course dinner menu, baking, Breads, cooking, Family Fun, Food, Italian food, my life, Pasta Dishes, photography, Recipes | 11 Comments
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I just love the movie “Big Night”.  It just makes me happy.  I decided to have my own big night with the “kids”.  Olivia had never seen the movie, so we started early, and made “A Long Day, and a Big Night” out of it!

The Menu:

Italian Salad with Homemade Vinaigrette

Homemade Rustic Artisan Bread

Spaghetti with Great Grandma DeFranco’s Meat Sauce

Strawberry Sorbato and Prosecco Floats- made with homemade Strawberry Sorbato

Sfingi ~ Ricotta Puffs- made with homemade ricotta cheese-and dipped in honey sauce

The kids arrived with a bouquet of daffodils!  For me?  Why, yes!

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I started with my homemade ricotta cheese.

All you need is a gallon of whole organic milk, and 1/3 cup plus two Tbsp white vinegar

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ABOVE: Curds and whey

We invited the kids to take a ride with us up to La Conner to see the Daffodil fields in bloom.  I knew it would give the mixture some time to completely separate out the curds from the whey.

Daffodil Field in Skagit Valley

ABOVE: Last year’s daffodils in La Conner

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ABOVE: Sean and Oliva in La Conner

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La Conner is a lovely little town.  I blogged it last year too.

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ABOVE: Squinting eyes and in mid-sentence.  Yes, I’m usually in mid-sentence.

“Good Lord, what is that big bright thing up there in the sky?”

dsc_03261ABOVE: Mark pointing out the mussels to Sean and Olivia.

PLEASE CLICK BELOW IF YOU’D LIKE TO SEE THE VERY PICTURE HEAVY FOOD POST (20 MORE PHOTOS TO BE EXACT)…


Continue Reading A Long Day and a “Big Night”!…

Chicks and Bread

March 30, 2009 at 8:24 pm | Posted in baking, Breads, Chick stuff, Family Fun, Food, gardening, Italian food, my life, photography, Recipes | 10 Comments
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I did it again.

I bought more chicks.

Why I ever go into the feed store is beyond me.

I really love Buff Orpingtons, and I wish I had started my flock with the Buffs.  Sunday we drove to the  feed store just to “look” at the chicks.  We left with these little gals.  They are just adorable.

Last night I had to move them from the garage into the den.   I realized Mark had used the wrong lamp socket with the heat lamp bulb for the chicks.  After a midnight hunt in the shop, we had no luck locating the porcelain socket–which is really important to prevent fire.  I knew the chicks couldn’t stay in the garage and have enough heat from a 100 watt light bulb, so I brought them in and hung the lamp with a simple 100 watt light bulb–so far, it has worked very well.  The brooder is about 90 degrees.   I was awakened by chick peeps on and off throughout the night.  Today I feel like the mother of  newborns.  Thank God breast feeding isn’t required.  I’m exhausted!

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I’m not naming any of these gals until I’m quite certain there are no cockerels in the bunch.

For those who followed my first time experience with the original flock, you will remember my son, Sean, naming one of my girls “Sean Jr”, and “she” turned out to be a little rooster!  Needless to say, Sean is not allowed to name any of these chicks.  I think it was a curse!

chicks3More chicky butts than faces in this photo, but they were trying to stay warm until we set up the lamp!

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In food news:

I tried a no-knead recipe for a Ciabatta bread.  I found the recipe here at “Food Wishes” an excellent food blog!  He even made a video showing how to make it– step by step.

I had only one problem–my bread stuck to my pan–big time!  I mean it was like I had super glued the stuff down–ripped off half the crust trying to get it off the pan.  I’ve made a lot of bread in my lifetime and never had that happen before.  I’m baking it again, and this time I’m going to oil the pan and then add the cornmeal–maybe I’ll slip some parchment down too!

That said, let me tell you, this bread tastes GREAT!  Look at the texture…amazing stuff, without the kneading.  Granted kneading can be a wonderful meditative experience, but when you don’t have time to, try this one.

bread4Ciabatta Bread looks like a fluffy slipper–it is flatter than a regular loaf of bread.

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It is thicker than this photo seems to show.  I really enjoyed it.  The crust was crispy and the interior was just right.

Oh, I do have a bread stone in the oven and I used my convection bake setting for half the time–which may be how I created a super glue base?  If you have a clue, please clue me!

I have to admit–the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes, that I normally make, is more impressive, BUT this really was fun and it tastes great toasted.  It is a nice change, and it is fun to try new things.

Lemon Cornmeal Cake w/ Lemon Glaze and Texas Sheet Cake (kinda sorta)

March 27, 2009 at 9:57 am | Posted in baking, Desserts, Family Fun, Food, photography, Recipes, Uncategorized | 5 Comments
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April’s Bon Appetit has a great recipe for a rustic cake that is now one of my favorites!

After a long day, I decided to roast a lemon chicken from a recipe in “Cook’s Country” magazine–which was wonderful!–I roasted asparagus and cooked some basmati rice, but I needed a dessert.   Just about the time I had decided to ditch making dessert, Olivia arrived, walked into the kitchen and asked what she could do to help?  I mentioned the lemon cake, and discovered she had been wanting to bake the very same cake –yes, I gave the kids a subscription to Bon Appetit– I love that magazine!  –With Olivia’s help, we tore through that cake recipe and boy, let me tell ya, I am sure happy we did!

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A Slice of our Lemon Cornmeal Cake w/ Lemon Glaze

Angelnina’s Notes to first time bakers:  In this recipe is very important to gently fold liquid into flour mixture-don’t be tempted to start stirring.

RECIPE Can be found here on BON APPETIT’S site

Prior to the lemon cake, I showed Olivia how to bake a chocolate cake from Art Smith’s cookbook.  I have baked many Texas Sheet Cakes, and this is pretty much a TSC to me.  They are simple to make and yummy to eat!  As a matter of fact, I only have photos of Olivia frosting the cake because we all kind of jumped into this one without wasting any time.  I mean, come on people, it’s chocolate!

Auntie’s Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Pecan Frosting

From Art Smith’s “Back to the Table:  The Reunion of Food and Family”

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • Pinch of salt
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter , cut up
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) margarine , cut up
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
  • 3/4 cup sour cream
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting

  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter , cut up
  • 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
  • 1 pound (about 4 1/3 cups) confectioners’ sugar , sifted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (4 ounces) coarsely chopped pecans , toasted
To make the cake:
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour a 13 x 9-inch baking pan, tapping out the excess flour. Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to combine. In a medium saucepan, bring the butter, margarine, water and cocoa to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the butter and margarine. Pour into the flour mixture and whisk well. Add the sour cream, then the eggs and vanilla, and beat well. Spread evenly in the pan. Bake until the cake springs back when pressed in the center, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack.

To make the frosting:
Bring the butter, milk and cocoa to a boil in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the butter. Gradually stir in the confectioners’ sugar, then the vanilla. Stir in the chopped pecans. Pour over the warm cake. Cool the cake in the pan on the rack. Cut into pieces and serve directly from the pan.

ABOVE: Olivia Spreading the Chocolate-Pecan Frosting

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