8.12.2007

Mom's Boy Scout Potluck Cake

I really like reading and viewing other people's recipes so I thought I would share one of my own. This cake is affectionately named "Mom's Boy Scout Potluck Cake" because I remember it mostly from when my mom took it to the many Boy Scout potlucks I attended for my brother. I don't remember what she called it. It is a great potluck cake because you make it in the 9 X 13 pan so it stays all safe from smushing on the trip and because it's really simple. Here is the main cast:
A yellow cake mix, a container of Cool Whip, a bag of heath bits and a can of Hershey's chocolate syrup. You actually only need about half of the Hershey's syrup and heath bits. This is the second of these cakes I have made with the same bag and can. If you can't find the heath bits you can use a couple Skor Bars broken up into bits. That's what we did back in the day, but the pre-broken bits are a lot easier.

See how simple it is, it uses only 4 ingredients! Well, technically you need whatever the box says to turn it from the mix into a pretty yellow cake but I didn't include those because they vary depending on what mix you get. You could also make a cake from scratch if you want to get all fancy but then you would be taking away from the simplicity and this cake doesn't need it, it tastes good enough with the fanciness. So don't try to be Martha Stewart and just make it from a box. If you are an amazingly wonderful wife like me, you can let your husband lick the batter off the beaters although hopefully your husband won't get this creepy look on his face.
Anyway, here is my cake, complete with the is-it-done fork holes. It looks kinda sad right now, but don't give up on it yet.
Now let the cake cool completely. Don't rush this step or you will just make a huge mess. Now comes the fun, stress relieving part. Get out a wooden spoon or spatula, preferable with a small rounded handle bottom. Upon moving here to live with Craig, I threw out all my old wooden spoons and he doesn't own any with rounded handle bottoms so I used the smallest flat one I could find. It doesn't make much of a difference, I just prefer my holes to be round if possible. Now punch holes all over the cake. I start out with a nice pattern, almost as if I were putting cookies on a baking pan, but by the end I have just put holes everywhere. Be as OCD as you like. You don't want to demolish the cake, but the holes are important so don't scrimp either. The picture might help.
Now take out your can of Hershey's syrup. Again, you don't have to use the syrup in the can, but my mom always got the syrup in the can so I always get the syrup in the can. Start by pouring the syrup into all the little holes you made. It doesn't matter if you get syrup outside of the holes so I normally end up with a little connect the dots effect.
Do you see now why the holes are so important! I actually felt that I was a couple holes short so I went back and added a few more.
Now pour even more syrup over the cake. I typically use about 1/2 of the can. It's starting to look yummy now, albeit a little messy.
Now get out that Cool Whip (which should be thawed by the way). Put dollops of it on top of the cake.
Now spread out the dollops into a nice even layer, being careful not to stir up any of the chocolate sauce. It isn't hard but just keep it in mind. You want a nice pretty white top.
Boring, isn't it? Well now, just don't sit there complaining, get out those toffee bits and start sprinkling. It looks better with just a light dusting but it tastes better with a whole lot so naturally, I put a ton on there.
Normally, at this point I would add a thin drizzle of chocolate syrup over the cake. It looks pretty and you can never really have too much chocolate. But as I mentioned before, this was the second cake I made with this same can and I forgot to save any to use on top. So just use your imagination. Now I know that this may have seemed really simple. And it is. But it is also incredible delicious so I dare you to go make it.

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