A week of just me - Day 2

Well, I have a whole Sunday to myself, which is way too much time to think. I had planned to visit a friend and her new baby this morning but she didn't get any sleep last night and so plans naturally changed. I don't go to church for another hour, but once that comes the day will go more quickly. Tonight I'll visit my Grandma and probably study some more. So far I've baked 2 coffee cakes, read about marble source ruby deposits in Myanmar, chatted with an old friend, and tried endlessly to keep myself mentally on par, which is hard when I keep hearing a little person playing in her room. I'ts playing tricks on my mind. All this means the blog obsession is the first to get indulged, after the baking obsession of course. Somehow I've earned a reputation for baking and Nichole asked me just last night to post more of my recipes. Here you go love. This ones for you.

Pineapple Coffee Cake with Toasted Pecans
From Cooking Light magazine

Cooking Spray*
1 (8 oz.) can crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract **
1 large egg
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk***
2 Tbsp. chopped pecans, toasted****
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350.
Coat a 9 inch round cake pan wtih cooking spray; line bottom with wax paper. Coat wax paper with cooking spray.

*I have to interject here. I hate cooking spray. It gets baked onto pans in that nasty brownish speckle that never comes off. I also don't own wax paper, but no kitchen should be without parchment. I cut circles of parchment for the bottom of the pan and didn't worry about there being any waxy residue.

Drain pineapple in a colander over a bowl, reserving 1 Tbsp. juice.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl, stirring with a wisk. Combine ganulated sugar, butter, vanilla, and egg in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended.

Good morning darling.Lets get to work, shall we? As material possessions go, this girl is my most prized.

**Another interjection: If you have not yet switched to using Mexican vanilla PLEASE for the love of all that is good and holy, do it now. Your taste buds will thank you. I promise.

However, not all Mexican vanilla is created equal. I've loved this one (as you can see), Molina is also a good one. You can find it at any latin foods market or even many regular grocers. This bottle came from Walmart in the Mexican food aisle, yup, Walmart. Either way, a bottle this size will run about $6.50-7. If taste isn't motivation enough, maybe the sheer economic prudence will be. I have heard that you can purchase it at the local department of alcoholic beverage control but have not tested that theory. In any case, do not be alarmed if you are carded when making this purchase. ALL extracts are high in alcohol content and bottles this large fall into beverage control realms. But trust me, no matter how good it smells or tastes in baked goods, one little drop plain will convince you instantly that drinking the thing is a baaaaaaaad idea.

Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, begining and ending with flour mixture. Stir in pineapple and pecans.
***I never remember to buy buttermilk unless I'm going to make the world's best fried chicken. Instead, I used a 6 oz carton of vanilla yogurt with enough milk added to yield 8 oz. It doesn't quite have the same viscosity or tang as the buttermilk, but it's delish.

****I usually toast about a billion pecans at once and then freeze them so I can just chop and add them when I need them. If you want them warm just nuke em for a few seconds.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until it proves done with the tried-and-true toothpick test. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Carefully peel off wax paper. Combine powdered sugar and reserved 1 Tbsp pineapple juice, stirring with a wisk; drizzle over cake.

Mmmmm.... mmmmmm..... GBD!

Yield: 12 Servings - unless I'm eating it then it yields 4 servings.