Wrapped in a bow for a Thanksgiving gift. I need to find some cinnamon colored ribbon to wrap for Christmas.

Why oh why did I wake up so early this morning? My eyes opened at 4:23 and all I could think about was new ideas of things to bake for the holidays. I laid in bed for a few minutes and then decided, get up and just start baking. So I browsed my ‘to-bake’ list to se what I had previously decided I would make. Then I took inventory of my cupboards and fridge. Almost no sugar left! What am I going to do? Use brown sugar. Perfect!

I am on a constant journey of trying to bake and cook yummy tasting dishes, but at the same time I want to minimize the fat, salt, and sugar. I have become accustomed to the taste of cake baked with applesauce rather then oil or butter. My taste-buds have learned to enjoy quick breads and cakes with a lower sugar content. Which is beneficial for me, but when it comes to making baked goods as gifts, I decided I should probably go the whole 9 yards and splurge. Ya, I do splurge occasionally and eat a full fat and full sugar dessert. And of course it tastes amazing! I just try to minimize the frequency of this occurring.

So as I was making the batter I took a little taster. Oh my word. This might be one of the best cakes I have ever made. The batter was creamy, flavorful, and so scrumptious. Seriously I couldn’t stop ‘accidently’ getting batter on my hands. Oops, now I have to lick it off (of course I was my hands after each time). Which is why the cake making process this morning took much longer then it needed too. I am extremely excited to give these mini pound cakes as gifts. I know the recipients will enjoy the fresh homemade flavor.

adapted from Smittin Kitchen
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 cups brown sugar
6 large eggs
3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly butter a 10-inch tube pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper. Alternately, you can use a 12-cup bundt pan, and simply butter and flour it.

2. Place the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugars, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, at least five minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla, then the flour, cinnamon and salt all at once. Beat just until incorporated.

3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan (I used mini loaf pans) and shake lightly to even out the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 45 minutes.

4. Place the pan on a cake rack and cool for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

Different Cake pans:
I used 7 mini loaf pans
You can use 1 bundt cake pan (Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes) or 2 regular loaf pans (Bake for about 1 hour) also.