That’s how long we’ve been going here at The Food Charlatan! 12 years, 929 recipes, 4 kids, 1 sustained marriage, (praise Jesus, and praise Eric, you patient, patient man), and a partridge in a pear tree.
Eric
The husband…and now Chief of Everything Else here at The Food Charlatan. That’s right folks, my husband quit his job to manage all the hard stuff so that I can keep baking cookies for a living. He’s all mine, ladies. Eric used to work for UC Davis in their development department. In 2018 he took some courses and learned all about how to help my recipes get discovered easier when people are googling. It helped so much. He did tech stuff and other management things over the years. A few months ago, in June 2023, after 10 years, he left his position at UC Davis to help me full time with the “everything else” on this blog! He is literally the best and we are pretty excited about our new adventure!
Laura
Laura is my amazing sister and has worked with me the longest! I hired her about 7 or 8 years ago to help with Virtual Assistant tasks: managing my Facebook page and Pinterest account. She is SO good at her job and I never would have gotten by all these years without her! She helps me with some of the blog formatting and writing these days too. And to my other mom, Kris (Eric’s mom), who claimed 10 posts into this blog that 25% of the content was recipes from her. The same might still be true. Her fine palate has saved me so many times! (Remember the Chocolate Cream Pie? ha!) Thank you for being my kitchen fairy godmother!
The first blog post on The Food Charlatan (2011): Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies 1st Anniversary (2012): Cake Mix Coffee Cake 2nd Anniversary (2013): Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies (I did a photo reshoot of my first recipe, which I totally regret!) 3rd Anniversary (2014): The Food Charlatan’s New Blog Design 4th Anniversary (2015): The Best Chocolate Cake I’ve Ever Had 5th Anniversary (2016): Death by Chocolate Bundt Cake 6th Anniversary (2017): Upside Down Almond Crunch Cupcakes 7th Anniversary (2018): Ginger Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake 8th Anniversary (2019): Sour Cream Coffee Cake, with a Ridiculous Amount of Streusel 9th Anniversary (2020): Homemade Spice Cake 10th Anniversary (2021): Classic Cheesecake (and an IRL party for 10 years! 🥳) 11th Anniversary (2022): Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Well, I hear you sister. I don’t like raisins either, but somehow this cake makes it all ok. All bets are off for the topping though. After the batter is made, sprinkle the top of the cake with a layer of pecans or walnuts, straight up brown sugar, and chocolate chips. It creates the most fun, crunchy, chocolate-y topping. THEN after it comes out of the oven, we drown the whole thing in 5 minute Homemade Buttermilk Syrup, which I posted last week. Amazing on pancakes, amazing on this cake. The syrup (we will call it a “glaze” in the name of cake, but it’s the same thing) pools on top of the cake and you will think it’s ruined but it’s NOT. It seeps in after a few minutes, leaving you with the most decadent, moist, flavorful cake in all the land. It’s truly incredible served warm with ice cream. Leave the nuts out if you must. Or leave the chocolate chips out if you are not a cinnamon-chocolate person (I’m usually not, actually, but the cinnamon is mild in this recipe.) After they have come to a boil add in the baking soda… and watch it fizz up. Set that aside, heat oven to 350 degrees if you haven’t yet, and start making the cake part: Combine your wet ingredients: cream butter and sugar, then oil, then add in the eggs and vanilla extract. Then add all your dry ingredients together. I show them in a large mixing bowl here, but you can actually just add the flour and salt and spices straight to the bowl with the butter, see recipe for details. Sifting always helps a cake from being lumpy. Beat the cake batter until it is just combined. Science lesson for you: beating flour a whole bunch will develop the gluten protein strands, giving it more structure. Great if you’re making bread, which needs to be sturdy. But we don’t want sturdy cake. We want soft, delicate cake. Over beating makes it tough. So just beat until combined! The last step for the cake batter is to pour in the raisins and all the water into the mixture! This feels a little strange because it looks like a lot of water, but I promise it works. Stir to combine everything. The batter will turn out pretty thin. Pour it into a 9×13 inch pan and make sure you distribute the raisins so each slice of cake will have enough. Now it’s time for the topping! Start with the chopped pecans. You can do walnuts if you prefer. No need to toast, they will get toasty in the oven. Do not mix! Next sprinkle on a half cup brown sugar. You can go wild and sprinkle on a bit more if you like, even up to 1 cup. I was happy with the half cup. (and that’s saying something, I’m the sugar queen.) Last topping item: chocolate chips. Add 1 cup. Don’t mix! That’s it! Pop it in the oven and bake for about 30 minutes. While it’s in the oven, make the Buttermilk Syrup. You can kind of see in this picture how cripsy-crackly the topping is, from the brown sugar. It’s so good! After a few minutes of resting, pour the Buttermilk glaze over the top of the cake. No need to add all of it, I like to save some to pour over individual slices. You do you: let your buttermilk dreams speak to your heart. It will kind of look like your pour cake is drowning in too much of a good thing. But never fear! The glaze seeps into the cake in about 10-20 minutes. And you end up with this lovely situation. SO.GOOD.
Pulled Pork Recipe: Slow Cooker or Oven Roasted OR BBQ Smoked Pulled Pork (on a Gas Grill) » to make the most epic pulled pork sandwiches How To Make The Best BLT Sandwich! » bring your ingredients separately, and BOOM amazing picnic sandwich Chicken Salad with Mandarin Oranges » this chicken salad + croissants = amazing picnic food Best Sliders Recipe » You can make these cheeseburger sliders ahead of time! 2-Ingredient Kielbasa Puffs » perfect make ahead finger food at a picnic, and you can use hot dogs for the kids! Classic Deviled Egg Recipe » deviled egg perfection, truly. The trick is to not add too much mayo. One of my dreams for heaven includes asking God to make me a Reel of all the instances throughout time when people are carrying a tray of deviled eggs and they ALL slide off. I laugh just imagining this, every time. Easy Broccoli and Bacon Salad » easy to make and a huge crowd pleaser The BEST Macaroni Salad Recipe » the only macaroni salad recipe you need!
Easy Quiche Recipe with Bacon and Spinach » my favorite quiche recipe, and such a classic for brunch Tomato Tart with Blue Cheese »buttery crust, quiche-like filling, and beautiful tomatoes! The Best Scone Recipe I’ve Ever Made » perfect hand-held pockets of goodness Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits From Scratch » crispy on the outside, soft and tender in the middle Strawberry Cucumber Salad with Honey Balsamic Dressing » simple, delicious, and SO impressive Caprese Salad Skewers Appetizer » seriously, everyone loves this traditional flavor combo Honey-Drizzled Bleu Cheese Strawberry Bites » perfect combination of savory and sweet Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries (Strawberry Blossoms) » these are so elegant and just may be the plate that empties first – they’re that good! Baked Oatmeal from Two Peas and Their Pod Sheet Pan Breakfast Sandwiches from A Beautiful Mess
If you have a large portion of cake or a whole cake to use from the freezer, set it out on the counter for at least one hour or two til thawed through. If you want it warm, place it (unwrapped) in an appropriate size pan and pop it in a 300 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes or until it’s heated to your liking. Let individual portions sit on the counter for about 20-30 minutes, then warm in the microwave at 50% power til warmed through. Or you could try putting it straight into the microwave if you just have no patience for your treat, like me.
Coffee Cake with a Ridiculous Amount of Streusel » I’m all about the MAX amount of streusel in this cake Maple Butter Twist Coffee Cake » it’s like a maple flavored twist of a cake and a cinnamon roll! Pumpkin Coffee Cake » a perfect fall-flavored version of the sour cream coffee cake Best Banana Bread Recipe (Moist!) » super moist, fluffy, and NOT too dense Best Recipe for Zucchini Bread » so stinking easy to make and WORTH IT. check the reviews on this one, people love it. Chocolate Babka » soft and sweet bread filled with chocolate. yum! Cinnamon Sugar Dipped Muffins (French Breakfast Puffs) » an entire muffin, dipped in butter and cinnamon sugar is definitely a treat worthy for any time of day. My girl Sarah (BFF project manager) introduced these to me. The Best Pound Cake Recipe from Sugar Spun Run Coconut Buns from Wild Wild Whisk
