Walk by Hello: Weekend at...

20 December 2010

Weekend at...

I recently watched a spoof on Weekend at Bernie's and it brought me back to our past weekend in Raleigh. Why you ask? Well there was no party involving recently deceased bosses or party crashers but there was definitely a sense of absolute madness and the unexpected.Maybe because it was the only movie reference with Weekend in the title that I could come up with... Somehow, without warning in those brief two and a half days everyone ended up sick, throwing up, the whole gamut. Our littles were feeling wretched and retching for most of our time there. So long group activities with the other children, outings and train rides. I had moments looking out at the icy day when I felt we were destined to spend the rest of our days in those two rooms..But alas, somehow we recovered, regained our color and our appetites and by the last day we were able to take a quaint, cozy train ride on Santa's Polar Express. It was not to be missed, despite all it took to get there...

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Pecan Cream Cheese Icing:

8 ounces cream cheese
1 stick unsalted butter
1 (1-pound) box confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter 3 (9-inch) cake pans with 1 tablespoon of the butter and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Add the sugar, and beat. In a medium bowl or on a piece of parchment, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, and mix well.

Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the eggs, beating well after the addition of each. Add the vanilla extract and mix. Add the carrots and beat on medium speed until well incorporated, about 2 minutes. Fold in the nuts. Divide between the 3 cake pans and bake until set and a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest in the cake pans for 10 minutes. Invert onto wire racks, remove from the pans, and let cool.

For the Frosting: In a large bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, beating constantly. Add the vanilla and pecans.

When the cake is cool, place 1 cake layer on a cake plate or stand. Spread the top with cream cheese frosting and top with a second and third cake layer, spreading the icing between each layer. Spread the icing around the sides of the cake and let harden slightly before serving. To serve, cut into wedges.