Monday, April 16, 2007

Better than......

My mother-in-law had a birthday last week and I was asked to bring birthday cake. I know that she likes chocolate cake so I decided to make her a Better Than Sex cake. I know what you're thinking - it probably is completely inappropriate to make this for my mother-in-law. But it's SO good. I decided not to announce the name of the cake but I told her privately....fortunately she has a good sense of humor and wasn't mortified that I would make this cake.

I have tried a couple of variations and they are all good. So here's the recipe - from my memory! (Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures....so you'll just have to make it yourself to see what it looks like.)

Better-Than-Sex Cake (or Better-Than-? or Better-Than-Almost-Anything....some of the name variations I've run across)

1 German chocolate cake mix (Betty Crocker's is my favorite)
water, oil, eggs to make cake (according to package directions)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 jar (16-17 oz.) caramel, butterscotch or fudge ice cream topping
3 cups sweetened whipped cream - or 1 pkg. Cool Whip, thawed
1 pkg. toffee bits

Make cake according to package directions for a 9x13 pan. When the cake is finished baking, remove from oven and let it cool for about 15 minutes.

Poke holes in the top of the cake (not all the way through) about 1/2" with the handle of a wooden spoon (or with a long fork). Pour the sweetened condensed milk over all and let the milk soak into the cake. When the milk has been absorbed, pour the caramel topping evenly over the whole cake. Let the topping settle in as well. When completely cooled, cover the cake and refrigerate it at least 2 hours or overnight.

Frost cake with sweetened whipped cream and sprinkle toffee bits over all.

You'll have to decide for yourself if it really is better than sex....All I will say is that it IS pretty damn good.


Hilda (my husband's late grandmother)'s secret to making perfectly sweetened whipped cream: Chill a metal bowl and the beaters until they are nice and cold. Pour your cream into the bowl. Pour granulated sugar into the center of the bowl. When you can see a small peak of sugar poking through the cream in the center of the bowl, you have enough. Beat on medium - medium-high speed until stiff peaks form.

3 comments:

Becky said...

This is a GOOD (no, its a GREAT) cake. Martin's grandparent's made this cake one day when we were there...and they were very open about the name of the cake! They started telling a story about a photo they had taken by a road sign (or something) that had other meanings...and I was blushing and started tuning them out :-) but it was funny.
I like to make cakes from scratch, but ever since I got the Cake Doctor book, I've basically only used cake mixes. For Lillie's b-day, I made a white cake (mix) w/ vanilla pudding and vanilla yogurt. It was really moist and flavorful, but not too strong on the flavor. I also made her a chocolate cake w/ cinnamon, but we ate that cake before she got any!
Becky

DeniseMarie said...

I've heard about the Cake Doctor book, and have thought about getting it. Glad to know you like it, Becky.

I've made the better than sex cake a couple of times, and it is always a big hit. (My mom even made it for a Bible study class and she told them the name of it, too.) I never put the whipped topping on, though, for a couple of reasons: 1) in general, I don't care for whipped cream frostings, and 2) I think the cake is fantastic and just doesn't need it. I usually have it available on the side (ala Sally!) for those who wish to add it, but I find that most people don't.

Kellyry said...

Yummy...I'm suddenly wanting this cake (have made it before, also minus the whipped cream topping for the same reasons as D mentioned). It's so rich and would perfectly meet my PMS needs at the moment.