Click here to listen to this post about snacks for book club on Candidly Kendra Eats:
A few nights ago I hosted my book club for our monthly discussion.
Have you ever been part of a book club? For the uninitiated, this is book club: snacks and books.
This month our book was Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility.
Are you a Jane Austen fan? I think our group was split down the middle. Several enjoyed her witty observations of humanity; but others got stuck in the slow plot.
But hey, one thing I can say…I was a big fan of the snacks!
I served coffee in pretty teacups. I said it was “coffee because we’re American; but china teacups because it was Jane Austen.” (The honest truth is that I forgot to stock up on tea.)
Along with our coffee we had Coconut Crunch Cake and Reese’s Pretzel Bites.
Coconut Crunch Cake was a recipe that I found twenty years ago in my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. I changed the name, but that’s all. The recipe is just as perfect as it was twenty years ago. It is a tender yellow cake (made from scratch) with a crispy coconut topping. It comes together super fast and might be your new favorite! I hope you’ll give it a try!
The Reese’s Pretzel Bites were my concession for the non-coconut lovers in the group. All I did was melt Reese’s peanut butter cups on mini pretzels, and then top each one with another pretzel while they were still hot. You’ve gotta try these! You’ll be surprised at how great they are! Personally, we liked them best frozen.
Here are the recipes! Do yourself a favor and try them out!
Coconut Crunch Cake
Ingredients
For the cake
- 1 ⅓ cup flour
- ⅔ cup sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ⅔ cup milk
- ¼ cup butter, softened
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
For the Crispy Coconut Topping
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 tbsp butter, softened
- 1 tbsp milk
- ½ cup sweetened flaked coconut
Instructions
For the cake
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and baking soda. Add milk, butter, egg, and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer until well combined.
- Pour into a greased 9 inch round cake pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.*
- Cool the cake for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and place on an oven-safe baking sheet.
- Set oven to broil. (500°)
For the crispy coconut topping
- Combine all the ingredients into a bowl.
- Spread the ingredients on the hot cake.
- Broil for 3 to 4 minutes until crispy and lightly browned.
- Carefully move the cake to a serving plate, if desired.
Notes
Reese’s Pretzel Bites
Ingredients
- 24 mini pretzels (twists)
- 12 Reese's peanut butter cups
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300°.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Lay 12 pretzels out on the baking sheet. Top each pretzel with a peanut butter cup.
- Bake for 4 minutes.
- Top each one with another pretzel, pressing down just slightly. Cool. If desired, chill in the refrigerator until cool.
