Exclusive Recipes from the Lion House's Cakes and Cupcakes

The upcoming Lion House Cakes and Cupcakes cookbook promises to be full of delicious (and time-saving) dessert recipes. (To learn more about the book, click here.) These are some of the recipes that stuck out to us – so much that we decided to try them out for oursevles. To read our staff reviews of these recipes, click here.

Banana Split Cake
Makes 15 servings

Crust
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted

Filling
1/2 cup pasteurized eggs* (enough to equal 2 eggs)
2 cups powedered sugar
3/4 cup butter or margarine, room temperature

Topping
4 large bananas
1 (20-oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
1 (12-oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 bottle fudge ice cream topping
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/4 cup quartered marashcino cherries

For crust: Mix together graham cracker crumbs and butter; press into the bottom of an ungreased 9x13-inch cake pan. Refrigerate 10 to 12 minutes.

For filling: In a large bowl, beat together eggs, powdered sugar, and butter until light and fluffy, approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Spread filling on top of crumb mixture.

For topping: Slice bananas on top of the filling; spread crushed pineapple on top of the bananas. Spread whipped topping on top of the pineapple. Warm fudge topping slightly and drizzle on top of the whipped topping. Garnish the top with nuts and cherries.

Refrigerate at least 4 hours. For best results, refrigerate overnight. This dessert is very rich.

*Pasteurized eggs can be found in the supermarket dairy section by the regular eggs.

Cream-Filled Cupcakes
Makes 24 to 30 cupcakes

Cupcakes
1 (18- to 18.5-ounce) package cake mix, any flavor
1 cup hot water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs

Filling
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 plus ¾ cup sugar, divided
1 cup milk
½ cup margarine
½ cup white shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla
Dash of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tins with cupcake papers and set aside.

For cupcakes: In a large bowl, beat together cake mix, water, oil, and eggs until well mixed. Fill cupcake papers one-third to one-half full. Bake 13 to 15 minutes. Cool.

For filling: While cupcakes cool, combine flour, 1/3 cup sugar, and milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir out all lumps. Bring to a boil and cook until thick. Remove from heat and allow mixture to cool. Add margarine, shortening, remaining ¾ cup sugar, vanilla and salt. Beat with an electric mixer for about 5 minutes until fluffy. Fill a decorating bad that has a number 4 tip attached. Insert tip into center of the cupcakes and squeeze in a small amount of filling. Frost tops of cupcakes with remaining cream filling.

Grasshopper Cheesecake
Makes 16 servings.

Crust
1 ½ cups slivered almonds
¼ cup powdered whey
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ cup butter, melted

Ganache
4.5 oz bittersweet baking chocolate
¼ cup heavy cream

Filling
3 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
Green food coloring, as desired
4 eggs
Whipped cream, for garnish
Chocolate sauce, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

For crust: Place almonds in food processor fitted with an S-blade. Process until almonds are a medium-fine texture. Add whey and sugar and pulse once. Place almond meal in a bowl and drizzle melted butter into it. Mix with your hands until it feels slightly squishy. Press into the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Bake 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned and slightly pulling away from the sides of the pan. Remove from oven and let crust cool while you make the ganache.

For ganache: Melt chocolate with cream in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Whisk well to make a smooth, shiny ganache. Spread evenly over the crust and set aside.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Place a pan of water on bottom rack of oven.

For filling: In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Beat in sugar and sour cream and mix well. Add peppermint extract and food coloring. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until very smooth and creamy.

Pour the mixture into the chocolate-coated crust. Place cake in the oven, on the rack above the pan of water. Bake 1 hour. Turn off oven and prop the door open to cool cake slowly for 1 hour so the cake will not crack.

Remove from oven and chill at least 2 hours. Remove sides of pan and slice into 16 even pieces. Garnish with whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate sauce.

Lemon Surprise
Makes 12-14 servings

1 (18.25 oz) package yellow or white cake mix
1 (6 oz) package cook-and-serve lemon pudding and pie mix
1 (8 oz) container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Prepare cake mix and bake in a 9x13-inch cake pan. Cool. Prepare lemon pudding according to package directions. Spread warm lemon pudding over top of cooled cake. Refrigerate several hours until chilled. Before serving, spread whipped topping over pudding layer. Store cake in refrigerator.

To read our staff reviews of these recipes, click here.

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