<![CDATA[Sunshine Peeking - Blog]]>Sat, 04 Apr 2026 17:45:09 -0400Weebly<![CDATA[Happy Halloween]]>Thu, 02 Nov 2017 04:09:21 GMThttps://www.sunshinepeeking.com/blog/happy-halloweenHope you had a sweet and mummy Halloween!
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I am going to have one heck of a costume collection in a few years!
]]><![CDATA[Apple Pecan Cake]]>Thu, 12 Oct 2017 04:45:00 GMThttps://www.sunshinepeeking.com/blog/apple-pecan-cakePicture
Tastē Thursday~ 'Tis the season for apples! When we lived in Virginia, we enjoyed easy access to orchards, and had a great time picking apples straight from the tree. This year I will have to settle for picking them out of bins at the grocery store, but they are plentiful, and I have a few recipes I am eager to try out. This apple pecan cake is great because it isn't overtly sweet, especially if you don't serve it with the caramel glaze. Instead of covering the entire cake with the glaze, I prefer to serve slices with the glaze on the side for people to individually drizzle over. Not only does this give the cake a longer shelf-life, but it also lets everyone choose how sweet they want their treat.  The fresh morsels of apples inside the cake and the nuts add great texture and a delightful flavor.  We enjoyed it for brunch, but this cake could be enjoyed after dinner as well.  

We have had a heat wave with temps reaching 100 degrees this week, so it feels more like the dog days of summer rather than fall.  Hopefully next week cooler temps will prevail, and I can crank up my oven again.  However, we are gearing up for Halloween at my house, and with three boys trick-or-treating this year I may not need to make dessert until Thanksgiving!  Happy Friday-eve...have a wonderful weekend.
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Apple Pecan Cake with Caramel Glaze
Adapted from Pines and Plantations

Serves: 8-10
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups of Canola oil
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 tsps vanilla
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3½ cups Granny Smith apples (approximately 3 apples), peeled, chopped into small pieces
  • 1 cup pecans, chopped
Caramel Glaze
  • ¾ cups butter (1½ sticks)
  • 1 cup light brown sugar
  • ¼ cup milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325°
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla mixing until creamy.
  3. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add to large bowl. Mix well.
  4. Stir in apples and pecans.
  5. Pour into generously greased and floured bundt pan.
  6. Bake at 325° for approximately 1 hour. Time will vary according to individual oven and pan used, so use a toothpick to check for doneness beginning at around 50 minutes.
Making the glaze (make shortly before serving)
  1. In a small pan, melt butter over low heat.
  2. Stir in brown sugar and milk.
  3. Bring to a boil over low heat, then reduce to a simmer, stirring constantly.
  4. Let boil for 10 minutes, stirring continuously.
  5. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Stir. Let cool.
  6. Once caramel glaze has cooled a bit, pour into small dish for drizzling.

Notes:
*The caramel glaze may become grainy if reheated multiple times.
**This recipe can also be used to make 2 loaves instead of a bundt cake.  Make sure you adapt your baking time.

Apple Pecan Cake with Caramel Glaze (printable version)
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]]><![CDATA[Healing]]>Thu, 05 Oct 2017 01:14:43 GMThttps://www.sunshinepeeking.com/blog/healingPicturePhoto courtesy of https://www.collinsflags.com
Wednesday Wisdom~  So many people in our world are hurting.  This statement would be true if uttered today, last month, or any other day in the past few thousand years.  Sometimes though, it seems truer to our corner of the world than at other times.  This has been one of those weeks.  Trailing on the aftermath of hurricanes that affected thousands in Texas, the Caribbean that is still working to recover from the last devastating hurricane to sweep through there, we woke up to horrific news Monday morning of yet another mass shooting.  For those of us who both live in closer proximity to Las Vegas and listen to country music, we are reminded throughout the day of how much healing, physically, mentally, and emotionally, needs to occur.  This brief list doesn't even mention those throughout Africa that face regular violent upheaval and those in Asia dealing with their own natural disasters.  

When I was looking at quotes about healing, the shallowness of humans healing themselves and how unattainable that is became evident incredibly quickly..."you have the power to heal your life...,let go..., hold on, pain ends (h.o.p.e.), etc."  These feeble attempts at self-healing seem so inadequate when lives across every continent are wracked by war, starvation, unexplainable mass murder, and other evils.  For many, the smaller hurts of a broken relationship or crushed dreams will pass, and we can teach ourselves to move forward. However, this world will always render new hurts and new pain that requires deep healing.  That healing can only come from God, and it may not come as we walk on this Earth.  Unlike the quotes found on the Internet, God does not promise healing here and now, but He does promise that "He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Revelation 21:4  What a sweet promise to grasp when the world seems to be falling apart around us. 


God's words hold true for those who have experienced the most horrific that this world can bring.  It also is true for each of our hurting souls.  Hold fast to the one and only healing hand.
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