Ten Years Since

Posted on by theexileskitchen by Amanda Ellison Anglin

It’s Baby Boy’s birthday today. It’s been ten years since he’s asked for a German chocolate cake.

I used a box mix for the cake layers but made the icing from scratch.

It takes a lot of bowls and steps to make this two layer cake. Of course, I taste tested along the way. I think it will pass the test.

The chocolate icing is a cross between genache and chocolate butter cream. Adding a half cup of chocolate chips when melting the butter gives it a nice sheen.
I made a dam using some of the chocolate icing to hold the coconut filling in place. 
Top layer before the crumb coat. After covering the entire cake with chocolate icing, it was placed in the fridge to firm up.
Out of the fridge and piped with a few  little shells and rosettes to hold the rest of the coconut icing.

Birthday Blessings from the Exile’s Kitchen. 

Sweet Basil Tea

Posted on by theexileskitchen by Amanda Ellison Anglin
Sweet Basil Tea

What’s your favorite summertime sip? Is it sweet tea or lemonade? A simple syrup using fresh, sweet basil can liven up these tried and true refreshers. I grow pots of fresh basil each summer; I love to cook with it.

Here’s what I do:

I pluck a few sprigs of sweet basil, rinse them and remove the stems. In a 1 quart pot, I put 1 cup of water and a 3/4 cup of white sugar. Then I stir it to dissolve the sugar.  Next, I drop in the basil leaves. Then it simmers over medium heat till it reduces and makes a syrup. I remove the basil leaves and add 2 cups of water into the basil syrup and 2 big tea bags. Then I  steep to the strength that I  prefer. I like it more medium than dark. 

Porch sipping

I pour the sweet basil tea into a pretty pitcher and keep it in the frig. It never lasts long. Serve over ice and enjoy.

Note: The basil syrup can be added to your homemade lemonade. It’s such a nice flavor combo!

Blessings from the Exile’s Kitchen.