Sweet Treats: White Chocolate Cake

It’s no secret that I’ve had a sweet tooth for the latter part of this pregnancy.  And no sooner did I see this recipe posted by a friend on Facebook, than a craving for it set in.  White chocolate is an absolute weakness of mine, and I stand absolutely no chance against it when I’m pregnant.  So I started baking right after I put the kids to bed last night.  At around 10pm last night I told my husband that he needed to pause the show that we were watching on the DVR because I had to go to the kitchen to get my cake out of the oven.   Totally unaware that I was even making a cake, he replied, “Who are you making a cake for?”, to which I responded, “Um, me?  And, well, anyone else who might want some…”, all the while hoping that no one else wanted any.  Clearly, this cake was mine.  Without further adieu, here is the ridiculously easy recipe (that you probably already have most of the ingredients for in your pantry)…

For the cake you will need:

1 pkg. white cake mix
1-1/4 c. water
3 eggs whites
1/3 c. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 oz. white baking chocolate, melted

For the filling you will need:

1 1/4 c. Semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 1/2 tbs. butter

For the frosting you will need:

1 can (16 oz) vanilla frosting
3 oz white baking chocolate, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 oz frozen cool whip, thawed

Step 1 – Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease 13×9 inch pan.

Step 2 – In a medium sized mixing bowl, combine cake mix, water, oil, egg whites, and vanilla.  Beat on low for 30 seconds, then beat on high for 2 minutes.  Stir in white chocolate.

Step 3 – Pour batter into a greased 13×9 pan and bake for 25 minutes (or until toothpick comes out clean).  Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes.

Step 4 – While cake is cooling, melt chocolate chips and butter in the microwave.  This took about 1 – 1 1/2 minutes.  Stir until smooth and spread over warm cake.  You might want to allow the chocolate to sit on the cake for a minute or two before trying to spread out the frosting or it might tear the top of your cake.  Allow cake to cool completely.

Step 5 – In a medium bowl, beat frosting until fluffy, then add in melted white chocolate and vanilla.  Beat until smooth.  Fold in cool whip.

Step 6 – Frost cake!  You can eat this cake right away, but I found that it tasted better after it had been refrigerated for a few hours.  Regardless of how you decide to serve it, make sure to store the cake in the fridge when it’s not being eaten (unless, of course, you decide to eat it all in one sitting!).

Enjoy!