Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

By: Cathy Lowe, Food Network 

One day I had wanted to make double chocolate chip cookies and I searched everywhere for a recipe. I finally found this recipe off of food network and they were a hit. They are chewy, soft and they never go hard. 

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 Cups Flour
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 2 Sticks Butter, Softened
• 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
• 2 Large Eggs, Beaten
• 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
• 1/2 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa
• 2 Cups Chocolate Chips, 2 Hershey's Chocolate Bars, Chopped Or M&M'S
• 1 Cup Chopped Walnuts (Optional)

Directions:  

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 
2. In a bowl stir together flour, salt, and baking soda. In another large bowl stir together butter, both sugars, eggs, vanilla and cocoa. Gradually stir flour mixture into butter mixture and mix until combined. Stir chocolate chips and walnuts, if using, and stir to distribute evenly. 
3. For cookies: Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheets and bake about 10 minutes. Cool on a baking rack.
4. For bars: Pat dough into a greased 9 inch square baking pan and bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cut into squares when cooled. 

*I made my cookies with chocolate chips and walnuts and they were delicious!

Chocolate Crinkles

By: Better Homes And Gardens Cookbook

These cookies are a hit to all friends and family. I got all my friends hooked on them when I make it for them every Christmas. They are crunchy on the outside and nice and chewy in the inside.

Ingredients:

• 4 Eggs
• 1 3/4 Cups Granulated Sugar
• 4 Ounces Unsweetened Chocolate, Melted And Cooled Slightly*
• 1/2 Cup Cooking Oil
• 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla
• 2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 2/3 Cup Powdered Sugar

*I didn't have any unsweetened chocolate so I just used dutch cocoa powder and a little vegetable oil. For 4 ounces of chocolate, you use 12 Tablespoons of dutch cocoa powder or 3/4 cup. Plus 4 Tablespoons of vegetable oil, unsalted butter or shortening. Just place both ingredients into a bowl and mix until combined.

Website:http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html

Directions: 

1.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, granulated sugar, melted chocolate, oil, baking powder, and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined, scraping side of bowl occasionally. Gradually beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Cover and chill for 2 to 24 hours or until dough is easy to handle.
2.  Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease a large cookie sheet; set aside. Place powdered sugar in a small bowl. Shape one portion of dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in powdered sugar to coat generously. Place balls 1-inch apart on prepared cookie sheet.  
3.  Bake cookies in the preheated oven about 8-10 minutes or until edges are set and tops are dry. Do not over bake cookies. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool. (Cookies will deflate slightly upon cooling.) Makes about 36 cookies.
   

Three Tier Wedding Cake

My cousin was getting married and she asked her sister and I to make her wedding cake. We said yes instantly but it wasn't so easy. We had a couple of trials with dying fondant, no fondant, flowers, colors, frosting and decoration. When it was all over, the cake turned out great. Here's how we did it.

Ingredients:

• 2 Ready-To-Use White Rolled Fondant 24 oz. Pkg.
• Performance Pans Round Pan Set Of 3 (6in x 3in, 10in x 3in, 14in x 3in)
• Cake Leveler
• 6in, 10in, 14in Cardboard Circles
• Easy-Glide Fondant Smoother
• Any Kind Of Ribbon And Color
• Etc (Rolling Pin, Paring Knife, Powdered Sugar)

Directions: 

1. Choose any kind of cake mix and pour it into the three cake pans, bake and cool completely. Take the cake leveler and level off the tops of all the cakes for a crisp, flat top. Frost with butter cream frosting until thin and smooth. Butter cream keeps the fondant soft, it helps the fondant stay on and it goes with any kind of cake flavor.
2. While the cake is cooling, sprinkle some powdered sugar onto a board and roll out the fondant until it reaches a 1/4 thickness. Make sure that the fondant is bigger than the size of the cake pan so it can cover the sides and the top. Do this for all of the tiers.
3. Take one piece of fondant at a time and carefully place it over the cake. Using the Easy-Glide Fondant Smoother to smooth out any lumps or air bubbles that are under the fondant. One section at a time, pull down the fondant along the sides and smooth it out, leaving any access fondant on the bottom. Take a paring knife and cut along the bottom of the cake, removing the fondant. Leaving a nice and clean edge on the cake. Repeat for all tiers.
4. Now, place the 14in cardboard circle onto a plate or a board (whatever you choose to serve it on). Carefully pick up the 14in x 3in cake with a flat edged spatula, or just a regular spatula and place it evenly onto the cardboard. Take the 10in circle and place that right in the middle of the 14in cake. Again, slowly place the 10in cake on top and repeat with the 6in cake.
5. All you have to do to finish it up is measure out some ribbon along the bottom of each cake layer and cut where it meets. Take some frosting or pins and attach the ribbon together. We found a long piece of black ribbon that was wrapped around a box on a gift. It had a bow right in the middle and it was long on the sides, perfect for the cake. Again, we placed the bow in the middle on the top tier and brought it down the sides, attaching it with frosting or pins. Now you have an elegant and clean wedding cake.

Classic Spritz Cookies With Royal Icing

By: Wilton Cookie Max Cookie Press

These cookies are as cute as can be! I made these for my friends as a Christmas gift and they all loved it. I served them in these little metal cans with snap on lids that had all different Christmas pictures on it. I had actually gotten them for under a dollar at the Christmas tree shop and they worked great!

 Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 Cups Butter
• 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
• 1 Egg
• 2 Tablespoons Milk
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
• 1/2 Teaspoon Almond Extract
• 3 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

Royal Icing:

• 3 Cups Confectioners' Sugar
• 1/4 Teaspoon Cream Of Tartar
• 2 Egg Whites, Beaten

I got the royal icing recipe from http://allrecipes.com/. It is a great website that my whole family uses all the time. We get most of our recipes from there and we change them to make them our own.  

http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?sku=2104-4003 
*Here is the cookie press that I used to make these cookies. It works great and its easy to use.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F. 
2. Thoroughly cream butter and sugar. Add egg, milk, vanilla and almond extract; beat well. Stir together flour and baking powder; gradually add to creamed mixture, mixing to make a smooth dough. Do not chill.
3. Place dough into Cookie Max and press cookies onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned around edges. Remove cookies from sheet; cool on rack. Makes 7-8 dozen cookies.

Royal Icing Directions:

1. In a bowl, sift together confectioners' sugar and cream of tartar. Using electric mixer, beat in 2 beaten egg whites for about 5 minutes or until mixture is thick enough to hold its shape. 
2. I separated the frosting into 8 plastic cups with spoons. Once each cup had an equal amount of frosting, you can then choose your 8 colors. As you can see I used 8 colors, green, blue, pink, brown, purple, red, yellow and orange. http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?id=3E30C97E-475A-BAC0-5A609FE5C5506685&fid=77280EB2-475A-BAC0-5E9420B5D0EEE74A
3. I cut a small little corner off in each of the bags so not a lot of frosting comes out too quickly. Then sit down with a nice cup of coffee, tea or an energy drink because you will be sitting there for a while. For all of mine, I detailed it a lot so it took me longer. Just make sure that you have the patience to frost, if not you can ask your friends or kids to help you decorate. 

*If you have any frosting left over, like I did, I just wrapped them up and placed them into a bowl and stuck them into the fridge. Just be aware that the frosting does harden after a while, I found that out when I made another batch and there were little chunks or hardened frosting coming out of the bag. Just keep frosting and designing, they will still come out great.

Oreo Shaped Chocolate Cake With Vanilla Butter Cream Filling


Once people see this giant Oreo cake, their eyes widen. They think that you spent a lot of time working on it but actually it is just a mold. As simple as that.

Ingredients:

• 1 Box Devils Food Cake (With Box Ingredients)
• 1 Container Of Prepared Vanilla Frosting Or Vanilla Butter Cream

http://www.delish.com/recipes/cooking-recipes/martha-stewart-basic-buttercream-recipe
*Here is the recipe that I used for the inside of the cake and to pipe on the designs on the top. I actually cut the recipe in half because there was double of what I needed.


Directions:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-lot-SILICONE-BIG-Oreo-Sandwich-layer-cookie-Round-Cake-mold-Pan-Baking-set-/110831088706 
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/goldtouch-nonstick-sandwich-cookie-cake-pan-and-mix-set/  
*These are some sites that sell the Oreo cake mold pans if you don't have any.

1. Place the cake molds onto two cookie trays. I moved the oven racks so they were in the middle. I used Pam spray butter to grease my pans. You can use anything, just make sure that it fills in all the nooks and crannies.
2. Mix the cake mix, eggs, oil and milk (My mom uses milk instead of water in all of her recipes. It makes the cake moist and creamy.) Pour the cake mix into the two molds and bake them. Wait until they are cool enough to handle and carefully pop them out from the mold.
3. Once the cake is out, place it onto a plate or stand and fill the center of the cake with the frosting. Save about 1/3 of the frosting for decorating. Take about a 1/4 cup of the frosting and put it into a freezer bag and snip the corner of the bag. Set aside.
4. I used a brown dye for the "chocolate" color. Put a couple of drops to start off with and continue until you get the brown color of your liking. Again, fill it up into a bag but use a big star tip to decorate the outside with. Now follow the design and pipe from top to down on both pieces of cake.
5. For the last step, grab the white frosting and pipe over the design so it really shows on the cake. Now, you have made a giant Oreo cake!

Black And White Heart Cookies

By: Old-Fashioned Bake Sale Book

These heart shaped cookies are basically sugar cookies with a little cream cheese in the dough. They are soft and a little chewy. In the book you are supposed to dip them half way in chocolate but it didn't look like enough to me so I decided to drizzle the melted chocolate over it. Get creative with your baking and cooking design. You can never mess anything up, you just come up with something else. And heck, it might even been better than you imagined.

Ingredients:

•  3/4 Cup Sugar
• 1 Cup Butter, Softened
• 1 Package (3 Ounces) Cream Cheese, Softened
• 1 Egg
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons Vanilla
• 3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1 Cup Semisweet Chocolate Chips
• 2 Tablespoons Shortening (I Just Used Butter)

Directions: 

1. Combine sugar, butter, cream cheese, egg and vanilla in a large bowl. Bea at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl often, until light and fluffy. Add flour; beat until well mixed. Divide dough in half;wrap each half in waxed paper. Refrigerate 2 hours or until firm.
2. Preheat oven to 375F. Roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut out with lightly floured 2 inch heart-shaped cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 7 to 10 minutes or until edges are very lightly browned. Remove immediately to wire racks to cool completely.
3. Melt chocolate chips and shortening in small saucepan over low hat 4 to 6 minutes or until melted. Dip half of each heart into melted chocolate. Refrigerate on cookie sheets or trays lined with waxed paper until chocolate is firm. Store, covered, in refrigerator.

*When the chocolate is melted, let it cool down for a minute or two and then take a freezer bag or a piping bag, I used a sandwich zip lock bag, put your finger into one of the corners of the bag and stick it into a bowl or a big cup. If you cuff the top of the bag around the bowl or cup, when you pour the chocolate into the bag, it will not fold over or get in the way. Once the bag is ready, let it cool down a little more so you can hold it with out it burning your hands. Cut a small tip off of the bag and drizzle any pattern onto the cookie. Simple.
 
Makes about 3 1/2 dozen

Brooklyn Blackout Cake

By: Butter Sugar Flour Eggs Cookbook, Written By Gale Gand, Rick Tramonto, Julia Moskin

The Brooklyn Blackout Cake is heavenly. It is a three tier, full of chocolate cake. The cake is thick and chocolaty and it is paired with a rich chocolate custard. Covered with the cake crumbs its self. If you are a chocolate lover, this cake is for you! I actually posted this cake on Facebook, like all of my other baked goods, and my friends from my old work had wanted a piece. I brought a big chunk of this cake to them and one of my friends gave me that look like they thought I was crazy. I thought that it was so funny, but by the time that I left, everyone had eaten that cake until there was one bite left, haha!

Ingredients:

• 8 Tablespoons (1 stick) Butter, Softened At Room Temperature
• 1/4 Cup Vegetable Shortening (I Didn't Have Any Shortening, So I Used Butter)
• 2 Cups Sugar
• 3 Eggs
• 2 Teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract
• 3/4 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon Salt
• 2 1/4 Cups Cake Flour*
• 1 cup Whole, 2 Percent Fat, Or 1 Percent Fat Milk

Custard:

• 3 Cups Water
• 2 1/2 Cups Sugar
• 1 Tablespoon Corn Syrup
  
• 1 1/2 Cups Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• Scant 2/3 Cup Cornstarch
• 6 Tablespoons (3/4 stick) Unsalted Butter, Cut Into Pieces
• 1/2 Teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract

* If you don't have cake flour, like me. I use this really handy website for substitutions: http://www.joyofbaking.com/IngredientSubstitution.html. For every 1 cup of cake flour it is equivalent to 3/4 cup of all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. For this recipe, you use 1 1/2 cups plus 2 1/2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour mixed with a little over 4 tablespoons of cornstarch.

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. Butter and flour 2 (9-inch) cake pans. Cut 2 circles of parchment paper or waxed paper to fit the bottoms of the pans, then press them in. In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or using a hand mixer), cream the butter and shortening together. Add the sugar and mix until light and fluffy. One by one, add the eggs, mixing after each addition. With the mixer running at low speed, add the vanilla, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and mix. With the mixer still running at low speed, add about 1/3 of the cake flour, then about 1/3 of the milk, and mix. Repeat with the remaining cake flour and milk and mix. Pour into the prepared pans and bake until dry and springy to the touch and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean (a few crumbs are okay), 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks and let cool completely, to room temperature. Using a long serrated knife, cut the cake layers in half horizontally. Reserving 3 halves for the cake, put the remaining half in a food processor, breaking it up with your hands. Pulse into fine crumbs.

Custard Directions:

1. Pour 2 1/2 cups of the water, the sugar, corn syrup and cocoa powder into a large non-reactive saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, whisking occasionally. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the remaining 1/2 cup of water and the cornstarch. Whisk into the cocoa mixture in the saucepan and return the mixture to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking constantly, until very thick, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter and vanilla. Pour into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, lightly pressing the plastic against the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Chill until firm, about 45 minutes.
2. To finish the cake, place a cake layer on a cake plate or serving platter (reserving the most even layer for the top) and spread with cooled custard. Top with another layer of cake, then custard, then the final layer of cake. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining custard. Coat the cake with the cake crumbs. Chill until ready to serve, at least 2 hours. Serve the same day.

Paula Deen's Red Velvet Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting


By: Paula Deen in 2007


These red velvet cupcakes are TO DIE FOR! They are the best red velvet cupcakes that I have ever made. All I did to the cupcakes were decorate them, Paula Deen gets all the credit.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
• 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1 Teaspoon Cocoa Powder
• 1 1/2 Cups Vegetable Oil
• 1 Cup Buttermilk, Room Temperature
• 2 Large Eggs, Room Temperature
• 2 Tablespoons red Food Coloring
• 1 Teaspoon White Distilled Vinegar
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

 Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 1 Pound Cream Cheese, Softened (Two 8 Ounce Packages)
• 2 Sticks Butter, Softened
• 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
• 4 Cups Sifted Confectioners' Sugar
• Chopped Pecans And Fresh Raspberries Or Strawberries For Garnish

 Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.
3. Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

 Cream Cheese Frosting Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.
2. Garnish with chopped pecans and a fresh raspberry or strawberry.
3. Cook's Note: Frost the cupcakes with a butter knife or pipe it on with a big star tip. 

*I had wanted to put something chocolate on top of the cupcake to accent the cocoa in that batter and to add some color to the top. To make the chocolate hearts is actually really simple. Here's the recipe.

Chocolate Hearts:

•  2/3 Cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (You Can Use Any Kind Of Chocolate That You Prefer Or Have)
• 1 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Directions:

1.  In a double boiler, over medium-low heat, add the chocolate chips and the oil into the bowl. Occasionally stir the chocolate until it is melted. If you don't have a double boiler, you can always use a small sauce pot with one inch of water in it and a heat proof bowl on the top. No big deal, you can also use the microwave for 20 seconds on high.
2. Once the chocolate is melted, bring it off the heat and let it cool for a couple of minutes. Long enough for it to not melt a plastic freezer bag. 
3. Line a baking sheet with either parchment paper or plastic wrap. If you have a silicone sheet, that will be great too.
4. When the chocolate is nice and cool, transfer it over into a plastic freezer bag and carefully snip off a small hole on the end. Make sure that no chocolate comes through until you are ready to use it.
5. Now, carefully pick up the bag full of chocolate and make some hearts on the parchment paper. I had made enough hearts that I was able to put two hearts on top of each cupcake. You can put as many as you want on there as you like.
6. Pop the tray either into the freezer or it was cold enough outside for me to put them out on the porch to cool and harden. It shouldn't take no more than 10 minutes to harden.
7. Once you take the chocolate hearts out, carefully peal them off the paper and place them onto the cupcakes. Just be aware that the chocolate will melt quickly so if you need to place it back into the freezer, go ahead.
8. To add just a little bit more color and some fun onto the cupcake, I sprinkled some pink crystal sprinkles onto them.

Chocolate Cappuccino Cupcakes

By: Old-Fashioned Bake Sale Book

 This recipe is one of the best cupcakes that I had ever made. They have a rich chocolate flavor and they are super moist inside. The cool thing about this recipe is that you can change anything that you want in it so it is kid friendly, and you can either take the easy way out and use a store bought cake mix and frosting or make them from scratch.  

Ingredients:

• 1 Package (18.25 ounces) Dark Chocolate Cake Mix*
• 1 1/3 Cup Strong Brewed Or Instant Coffee At Room Temperature
• 1/3 Cup Vegetable Oil Or Melted Butter
• 3 Large Eggs
• 1 Container (16 ounces) Prepared Vanilla Frosting*
• 2 Tablespoons Coffee Liqueur (Optional)
• Grated Chocolate (Milk, Dark, Or Espresso Chocolate Candy Bar)
• Chocolate-Covered Coffee Beans (Optional)
• Additional Coffee Liqueur (Optional) 

* I actually make the box cake mix from scratch if I don't have a box cake mix of that flavor. Same with the prepared vanilla frosting.

Dark Chocolate Cake Mix From Scratch Recipe:

•  1 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 3/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons White Sugar
• 1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons Dutch Cocoa
• 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
• 1/8 Teaspoon Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Shortening Or Butter

Vanilla Frosting From Scratch Recipe:

• 3 Cups Confectioners' Sugar
• 3 Tablespoons Butter, Softened
• 3 Tablespoons Milk
• 3/4 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

*I don't use the liqueur when I make this recipe. I use strong coffee in the cake batter and espresso to pour over them when they are cooled. Also, I just keep the frosting recipe the same and omit the liqueur as well.


 Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 24 regular size (2 1/2 inch) muffin cups with paper muffin cup liners.
2. Beat cake mix, coffee, oil, and eggs with electric mixer at low speed 30 seconds. Beat at medium speed 2 minutes. 
3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups filling 2/3 full. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely.
4. Combine frosting and 2 tablespoons liqueur in a small bowl; mix well. Before frosting, poke about 10 holes in the cupcake with a toothpick. Pour 1 to 2 teaspoons of liqueur over top of each cupcake, if desired. Frost and sprinkle with chocolate. Garnish with chocolate-covered coffee beans, if desired. 

* I just used a regular sized freezer bag and filled it with the frosting. I cut off the tip of the bag and piped away. I'm not going to lie, the chocolate curls on the top of the cupcakes were accidental. I tried to make the Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Curls, and I over cooked the chocolate in the microwave. No big deal, I continued to use it and spread it in the pan. Instead of making curls I just chopped it up and sprinkled it on top. It still turned out great, just not what I intended. But, who cares?! You make something out of it and try something new.


Here is the Pioneer Woman's Chocolate Curls Recipe:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2008/06/how-tomake-chocolate-curls/

Carrot Layer Cake

By: The Old-Fashioned Bake Sale Book      

Christmas of 2011, I found my favorite gift ever. I had gotten a 25 piece set from Wilton and my own turn table. I was so excited and once i saw that I had a basket weave tip, I knew that I was going to create a basket cake for Easter.  

 Ingredients:

Cake:

•  1 Package Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe Classic Yellow Cake Mix
• 4 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 3 Cups Grated Carrots
• 1 Cup Finely Chopped Nuts
• 2 Teaspoons ground cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting: 

• 1 Package (8 ounces) Cream Cheese, Softened
• 1/4 Cup Butter Or Margarine, Softened
• 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
• 4 Cups Confectioners' Sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour, or spray a two 8 inch or 9 inch round baking pans.
2.  For cake, combine cake mix, eggs, oil, carrots, nuts and cinnamon in a large bowl. Beat at low speed with electric mixer until moistened. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour into prepared pans. Bake at 350F for 35 to 40 minutes r until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool.
3. For cream cheese frosting, place cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Beat at low speed until smooth and creamy. Add confectioners' sugar gradually, beating until smooth. Add more sugar to thicken, or milk or water to thin frosting, as needed. Fill and frost cooled cake. Garnish with whole pecans or learn how to decorate it like the picture using the Wilton tips and dyes.

How To Decorate: 

How to turn a plain old carrot cake into something special. Like a giant basket with little goodies inside to snack on.

1. You start off splitting the frosting into two, saving 1/3 of it in a small bowl so you can turn it into grass and the other 2/3 in the bowl that you made it in. 
2. In the smaller bowl, you take any kind of light green color, I used Wilton's Leaf Green Gel Icing. You take between an 1/8 of a teaspoon to a 1/4 of a teaspoon of green dye and mix it into the frosting. It should turn into a nice vibrant green color, which is perfect for making grass for the inside of the basket and for the outside.
3. Now, you can either use just a freezer storage bag or a piping bag. I used a clear piping bag and you take a coupler which is just a white top with a screw on ring that holds your tip in place. If you don't have one that's fine, just place your tip in the inside of your bag and cut a small hole on the end so the tip goes through, simple. If you have the coupler, all you need to do is place it in the inside of the bag and mark where it stops, cut that end piece off and pop the coupler through. Attach the Grass Tip (Wilton tip #233) on the outside and hold it in place with the ring and fill up your bag with green frosting, set aside.
4. With the remaining cream cheese frosting, add about 1/4 of a teaspoon of any purple color, or of any color that you prefer. I used Wilton's Violet color for mine. Just either turn on your mixer and combine or just hand stir it in. You should have came out with a nice pastel purple color for the basket.*I actually saved about 2/3 cup of purple frosting into a bowl so I would have filling for the inside of my cake.* Again get your bag ready but use a Basket Weave Tip (Wilton tip #48). Fill it up with the purple frosting and you are ready to pipe. Here are some picture examples that I had found on About.com on how to create the basket weave look for the sides of your cake.
5.  
6. Once you have created the basket weave design all around the sides of your cake, switch the tip to a Closed Star Tip (Wilton tip #30). The closed star tip will give you the effect of the edges of a real weaved basket. All you need to do is hold the piping bag in your hands, keeping your hands close to the tip so you can have a better, sturdier hand while piping. How to create the ridged edge, you need to place the tip near the cake and make a spiral motion, giving the edge a wavy look.
7. Grab the bag of green frosting with the grass tip and hold it upward in the air, right above the top of your cake. Now, just squeeze the bag and pipe straight up, letting the frosting hang loose. Just continue to make a circle around the cake and fill in the center.
8. Continue to hold the piping bag full of green frosting and make some grass along the bottom of the cake platter so it looks like the cake is on the ground.
9. I just went to the store and bought some candy coated chocolate eggs and some milk chocolate bunny's. Just place the bunny's into the cake and decorate the eggs around.
10. With the remaining purple frosting I had just added some more purple dye to it, so I would have a different look for some drop flowers. To create drop flowers, I used the Drop Flower Tip (Wilton tip #129). You hold the bag straight up, give pressure and squeeze out the frosting, letting go at the size that you want by pulling the tip away from the flower. To make the middle of the flower, I switched the grass tip to the round tip (Wilton tip #3). Using the green as an accent to the purple to create the dot in the middle of the flower.
11. Finally, to finish off the cake, all I used were some 5 purple pipe cleaners to create a handle for the basket. Just attach two pipe cleaners together, taking the other two pieces and just wrapping them around the attached ones. Now, just make a bow with the last piece and attach it to the top. Stick the pipe cleaners into the sides of the cake and your done! You have just created a cool basket cake for Easter. Enjoy!