Well, it's finally Christmas season. I feel like just yesterday I was on a boat in a bikini, drinking and having a blast. But alas, summer has actually left Bermuda. On Sunday, the boy, Amari and I went to the Santa Claus parade. I still think it was a bit early to have a Christmas parade but oh well. Amari had a blast. He got tons of candy and was beyond excited to see Santa.
This year, I've decided to do things a bit different for Christmas. Since both the boy and I are December babies (my bday is December 5 and his is December 23), it gets to be a bit much. My sister is also a December baby, the 18th. So needless to say, the month is busy. I've decided that I won't do a traditional Christmas. Yes, we have a tree that will be decorated this weekend. And of course we will have a huge meal and lots of wine for Christmas. But, I don't want to go big on the gifts.
Amari is very spoiled from everyone in my family. I don't allow myself to spend more than $100 on a gift for him because I hate the fact that he equates Christmas to a ton of presents. This year is no different. I'm scaling way back and not even expecting any gifts. Sure, I would love a fabulous pair of earrings or some new knives but at the end of the day I feel the holidays should solely about friends, family, food and wine.
This year, I want to instill in my son that experiences are far more important than possessions. I want him to remember the fun he had, not the stupid toys which he will outgrow in a few months. I want him to remember how amazing my eggnog cheesecake is and how much he loves my mom's cassava pie. You know, the stories we tell as adults.
I'm sure I've mentioned this before, my son loves to bake. He regularly joins me in the kitchen when I'm baking for fun or doing orders. On Sunday, he was adamant about making a cake. I had made one the night before for my cousin's birthday and he was most upset about not being able to join in.
So, we decided to make an eggnog cake. It's such an easy cake so I'm not going to do step by step photos/instructions. You basically cream the butter and sugar then alternate the wet and dry ingredients.
Simple Eggnog Cake
Ingredients
one stick softened butter
one cups sugar
one teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
few grates of fresh nutmeg or a pinch of dried
two eggs
half cup eggnog
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
pinch of salt
Glaze: half cup powdered sugar, splash of eggnog. Mix together until smooth.
Instructions
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees and spray a 9 inch cake pan with cooking spray (or line a cupcake pan to make cupcakes)
2) Mix together flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
3) Cream butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy
4) Add eggs one by one and mix until combined
5) Add vanilla and nutmeg.
6) Add the dry ingredients in three batches alternating with eggnog until batter is smooth.
7) Pour batter in pan and bake for 25 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
8) Let cake cool and cover with glaze if you want. The cake is perfectly yummy by itself.
9) Enjoy!
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