Forget Buns of Steel. Gimme Honey Bun (Cake).

It's been years since I ate a honey bun out of a cellophane wrapper, but what a treat I thought they were back in the day. Some things are better remembered instead of revisited, so I think I'll leave those wrappers sealed. The fond memories of that unmistakable scent and flavor are probably what made this recipe so appealing. I've been making this cake for around 10 years; it has one of those classic flavors that appeals to most everyone, and it's easy as can be.

(This is normally where I'd show you what the cake looks like. You'll just have to click the link below to see how Betty Crocker's food stylists dressed it up. I'm good at cooking, not so much the photography.)

Honey Bun Cake (from Betty Crocker)

1 pkg butter recipe yellow cake mix
2 sticks butter or margarine, softened
4 eggs
8 oz sour cream
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup powdered sugar
1 TBS milk
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350°. Generously grease bottom only of 9x13 pan. Reserve 1/2 cup dry cake mix.
Beat remaining cake mix, butter, eggs and sour cream in large bowl on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally.
Spread half of batter in pan. Stir together reserved cake mix, brown sugar, pecans, and cinnamon; sprinkle over batter in pan. Carefully spread remaining batter evenly over pecan mixture.
Bake 30-33 minutes or until deep golden brown and cake springs back when lightly touched in center.
Stir powdered sugar, milk and vanilla until thin enough to drizzle, stirring in additional milk, 1 tsp at a time, if necessary. Poke top of warm cake evenly with fork. Spread glaze over cake.

The last time I baked this cake I substituted plain yogurt for the sour cream, and it worked very well. It's a typical substitution, but I was concerned the yogurt may be too tangy.

Honey Bun cake is similar to a coffee cake, not too sweet with just a hint of cinnamon. It's a great cake for a brunch, in the afternoon with coffee or tea, or when you just need to feel like a kid again, without the cellophane.

Potatoes. Make mine sweet.

Aside from the turkey and dressing (we'll get to those in a couple of days), nothing quite says Thanksgiving like sweet potatoes. Don't get me wrong, we eat sweet potatoes at least once a week throughout the year; they just aren't sweet sweet potatoes.

Sweet Potato Casserole is a treat we reserve for Thanksgiving or Christmas. The creamy sweet potatoes are covered with a wonderful, slightly crunchy coconut pecan topping. (In the picture above it's right in the middle next to the green beans; we failed to get an individual shot before it hit the table.) This casserole really should be considered a dessert, and it probably has more calories and sugar per serving than pumpkin pie. Nonetheless, it's a served as a side dish on our table. There are many versions of this recipe, all varying slightly in the amount of sugar or number of eggs. I think this one started out from Southern Living, and we've made a few changes over the years.



Sweet Potato Casserole

3 cups cooked, mashed sweet potatoes
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 milk
1/3 cup melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract (please use the real stuff, not imitation)
2 eggs, beaten
ground cinnamon


Mix well. Spoon into greased 9"x13" baking dish. Sprinkle generously with cinnamon.

Topping:
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 to 1 cup chopped pecans

In medium bowl, mix together until butter is evenly incorporated. Sprinkle over sweet potato mixture.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes or until topping is golden.


There really is a lot of room to play with this recipe. We use a 9"x13" dish, but if you want a thick layer of sweet potatoes and a really thick layer of the topping, use a smaller dish. Generally, we only use half of the topping if we use a smaller pan because 1) it doesn't fit and 2) it's just too much sweet on top (I really just said that...). The leftover topping is great over ice cream and works well as a kind of streusel topping (Just slice some pears or apples, throw them in a pan sprayed with nonstick cooking spray and top them with as much of this yummy stuff as desired. Bake in a 350 oven until the fruit is tender, about 20-30 minutes depending on how much you're cooking.).