Thanksgiving Goodness ~~. The Cake of Goodness

Thanksgiving is only 2 weeks away!!!

YAY!!

It just makes me so happy to spend time with my family

giving thanks to our amazing God for all He is

and loving us right where we're at.

That 's HUGE!!!

So this week we are talking desserts.

So why desserts before turkey?

Well I've said for years now that when I get old,

I'm eating dessert first!!

So when I'm like 80 (which doesn't seem that old

at this point)  =)

I'm gonna kick it dessert style.

I LOVE dessert.

Unfortunately, I really LOVE dessert.

I used to be able to leave it really well,

but these days, not so much.

menopause.

anyways.....

And I love pumpkin!!!

The funny thing is, 

I don't love pumpkin pie.

I don't even like it.

BLECH!!

Weird.  I know.

But pretty much all other pumpkin has me at hello.

I'm fickle like that =)

So this year for my Thanksgiving posts I really wanted to include

a couple of my blog friends.

The two I wanted to feature are two of my ALL TIME FAVORITES!!

I love real people.

People who love Jesus with ALL that is within them.

These two girls are FULL ON lovers of Jesus.

I love their hearts.

This week I am featuring the gorgeous Deidre 

at Raising Future Esthers.  

She is one of the sweetest thangs I have ever gotten the 

chance to "meet".  Bloggy speaking.....

Well ya know.

Her wit and humor always has me in stitches,

and her ponderings on the LORD make me want to

grow deeper in my walk with Him.

She is a gem.  

A beautiful rare gem in a world of coal.

I love her.

When I asked if she would want to contribute,

she didn't even hesitiate.

She sent me this beaut of a recipe.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake (A.K.A. The Cake of Goodness)  =)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 (15 oz) can pumpkin

3 large eggs

2 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 T. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350.  Spray the inside of a bundt pan with nonstick spray.  Mix together butter and sugar on medium speed until well blended.  Add the pumpkin and eggs and mix completely.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.  Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture.  Mix on medium speed just until combined thoroughly.  Pour batter into pan.

Prepare the streusel ...

Streusel Topping

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 brown sugar, packed

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbs. butter, melted

Mix together and sprinkle over the cake batter.

Bake for 50-55 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.  Cook on a wire rack about 15 minutes.  Invert the cake on a plate, then invert again on another plate, so that the streusel is on the top.  Cool completely.

I mean seriously, look at this gorgeousness.

I made this yesterday.

I had planned on making it last week, but life got right in the way.

It happens.

So I strugged it off, put the butter back in the fridge,

pulled it back out yesterday and voila!!

Now let me just say, for some reason I call this Pumpkin Crumb Cake

as you can see below,

BUT it is clearly Pumpkin Coffee Cake as stated in above recipe 

by the amazing Deidre.

Yes I changed the name.

I am cool like that.

Or not so much.

It got stuck in the head people.

anyway.....

The funniest thing, I meet  my girl, The Beautiful Miss A, 

on Wednesday evenings before chuch, and we go to 

Hebrews and have dinner and coffee and then we scoot

ourselves right on over to church.

Well last night, when she got in the car, I handed her a

bowl with a generous amount of this cake in it,

and she started inhaling it!!  

It was the funniest thing.

I asked her what she was doing?!!  

And she said she was SO hungry!!!  

I mean she is scarving it down,

and she says, I wonder if they'd let me bring this into

Hebrews.  To which I told her they have a sign on their

door saying you can't bring in food or drink, to which she

says,  

BUT IT'S MY MEDICINE!!!  HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I laughed SO hard.  After we ate our din and was getting our coffee

for the road, she says, I wonder if I could bring in the cake NOW.

She was STILL thinking about it.  I LOVE HER!!  

And this cake!!! 

You need to make it.  

Why you ask? 

Well it's delicious.

And beautiful.  

I mean look at that picture.  The Beautiful Miss A didn't even 

think that was the cake I made.  She thought I pulled that 

picture off the internet.  Silly girl.  =)  

And you will be a culinary rock star in your own home.

Score. 

Well Miss Deidre sent me another recipe too.

I haven't had the opportunity to make it yet,

ya know with the whole life getting in the way issue,

but it sounds DELISH TOO!!!

Another YUMMY one is Cherry Pineapple Dump Cake.  

Cherry Pineapple Dump Cake

1 can crushed pineapple
1 can cherry pie filling
1 box yellow cake mix
2 sticks butter, melted

1 bag half pecans

Seriously, just dump the above ingredients in a 9x13 glass dish and bake on 350 for 50 minutes.

I seriously want to try this one!!!

So there you have it.  Two new delicious recipes to add

to your holiday goodness.

Please go visit the lovely Deidre.

You will love her heart, and her children.

Her girls E and O are the sweetest and  funninest  thangs.....

just like their mama.

This is a beautiful family with a heart for Jesus.

It just doesn't get any better than that!!

Be sure and check back next week as I have one more

special guest for you to meet.  You are gonna love her too!!!

And we'll be talking Turkey =)

Have a Blessed and Beautiful day ~~ dawn