The miracle dessert

The fact that we had dessert tonight was a miracle. Actually, the fact that we even had DINNER was a miracle. The latch on the oven door jammed shut with our dinner and dessert inside and I ended up taking apart the front of the oven using various tools that I generally try to avoid.  So  I  learned a lot about the inner-workings of oven doors, the dinner was pretty dry, and the dessert was a little overcooked. The dessert was still yummy, however, and I was just glad to rescue it in time. If it was that tasty after being trapped in the oven too long, I will definitely be making it again under the proper baking conditions!

The whole reason we  had dessert tonight  in the first place was because I had a craving. In our house we usually have dessert for one of three reasons, in the following order: 1) We're having company 2) Mommy has a craving 3) Mommy's just in the mood to bake. My craving all day today was  for this particular dessert that is in my "recipes to try" file: Praline Pudding Cake.

This recipe was originally from Cooking Light magazine, years ago, although I changed a few minor things. If I were making this one again, I would not over bake it (ha ha) and I would drizzle caramel over the top, which of course would make it not-so-light,   but oh-so-good.  I love several things about this recipe. One is its simplicity:  you mix everything together,  put it in the oven and it bakes into two layers-- one is cake-like and one is pudding-like. Also, there's the fact that it uses basic ingredients that I usually have on hand, so I can make this dessert on a whim... in a pinch... whenever!

Praline Pudding Cake
serves 8, technically, but you're going to want to make it serve 4 or 5!
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cup plus 1 T all-purpose flour, divided
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup milk
1 Tablespoon baking soda
1/4 t. salt
3 T butter, melted
1 t vanilla
1 3/4 c boiling water
whipped cream and chopped pecans, for topping

Preheat oven to 350.
Combine brown sugar and 1 T flour in a small bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix together 1 1/4 cups flour, granulated sugar, 1/2 cup pecans, baking powder and salt. Combine milk, melted butter and vanilla  and add to flour mixture, stirring only until moist. Spread batter into 8x8 baking pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. Pour boiling water over batter AND DO NOT STIR. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes or until pudding is bubbly and the cake part springs back if touched lightly in the center. Serve warm with toppings, if desired. (And give the caramel drizzle a try!)

Enjoy.