Mini Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Bundt Cakes

This is my 100th post!! To be completely honest, I’m really surprised that I’ve made it this far. I never realized when I started blogging how addictive and fun this whole world is!! And not only is it fun, but my time in the kitchen has completely transformed, and I have found a true passion and love!!

So what better way to celebrate my 100th post than to make a recipe from another food blog!?! I signed up for Taste and Create again, and didn’t realize the timing – that my 100th post would end up being a recipe from another food blogger. But I really can’t think of a better way to say thank you to everyone out there that is so nice and so supportive. I try to think of what life would be without the internet – I think my husband would get mighty sick of hearing me talk about food, or the next cookbook I want, or what I want to make for dinner sometime. But I have “met” so many amazing people out in the blogosphere who share my same love and don’t tire of hearing about food! So – THANK YOU – for all of your wonderful comments, emails, and support. I really don’t know if I would still be doing this without all of you!

For this round of Taste and Create, I was paired with Brilynn from Jumbo Empanadas. I have been reading Brilynn’s blog just about as long as I have been blogging. Hers is a blog that just about everyone out there is linked to – not only because of the wonderful food she creates, but for her wonderful sense of humor. Now, if you’ve been to her blog at all, you will know that she is a HUGE Dorie Greenspan fan. In fact, if I didn’t already own Dorie’s book – Baking From My Home To Yours – I would run right out and get it after seeing everything that Brilynn has made. Once found out that I was being assigned Brilynn’s blog, I knew I could just go pick up my copy of that book and make anything, and chances are that Brilynn has blogged about that recipe. But instead, I honestly spent a couple of hours reading back through her blog, going deep into the archeives, reading posts from before I even knew about blogging. I didn’t even realize how much time had passed because it was so enjoyable to go back and read. I had a list of recipes that I wanted to try. Well, this month has been a crazy one. I didn’t even cook one thing this past week (except a treat for a birthday at work) and the deadline for Taste and Create is tomorrow. So this morning, I went through my list and found one of the recipes from Brilynn’s blog that I didn’t need to go to the grocery store for. And I am really glad that I went with this recipe!!

First of all, you should go and read Brilynn’s post. She made these wonderful Mini Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Bundt Cakes that didn’t turn out so mini. She talks about how mini is supposedly deemed “cute”, but I have to say, in cases of cakes like these – the bigger the better for me!! I did make these in mini bundt pans, but mostly because I never have an excuse to use this particular pan. But, boy – is it a lot fussier to fill the small molds than it is to just throw it into one big pan!! So Brilynn – I actually like the big ones better because they are not as high maintenance as the small ones!!!

My husband has already eaten 3 of these today, so I am hoping to unload some on my family tomorrow before he gains 10 pounds this weekend. These are staying in the recipe file!

Bri’s Not So Mini Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Bundt Cakes
from Jumbo Empanadas

INGREDIENTS
1 ¼ cup sour cream
3/4 cup butter
¾ cup white sugar
¾ cup brown
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup chocolate chips
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Grease bundt pans.
Cream sugar and butter together until well blended. Add sour cream and eggs one at a time and beat well. Add flour, baking soda, and baking powder and mix well. Stir in vanilla and the chocolate chips.
Mix the remaining brown sugar with the cinnamon.
Pour some of the batter into the prepared pans. Sprinkle generously with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Cover with cake batter, then more sugar and cinnamon mixture and then top with cake batter.
Bake at 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) for 8 minutes. Lower heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake for an additional 20 minutes. (Cut back on baking time if doing minis!!)