By Stephanie Younger

The Easter Bunny

I don’t know about you, but I don’t have the time to bake a cake very often. This past Easter weekend, however, I decided to take advantage of the holiday and bring out my favorite recipe. Oh, the smell of baking can fill an entire house, can’t it? It reminds me of how much I love a home around the holidays, and how much a kitchen is really the heart of a home.

This is why at my Open Houses I often bake chocolate chip cookies right there in the client’s oven. The moment a prospective buyer enters they are immediately hit with the smell of cookies in the oven, and it often reminds them of happiness, family, home sweet home. And that’s before they’ve even had a look around! It’s amazing how much our sense of smell can guide our decisions and lead us to where we belong.

Oh, and if you want the recipe for my chocolate cake, here you go!

Darn Good Chocolate Cake…

Ingredients:
1 package of plain devil’s food or dark chocolate fudge cake mix
1 package (3.9 oz) instant chocolate pudding mix
4 large eggs
1-cup sour cream
½ cup warm water
½ cup vegetable oil
1 ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips

Instructions:
• Place rack in center of oven and preheat oven to 350. Lightly mist 12-cup bundt pan with cooking spray, then dust with flour. Shake out any excess and set aside.
• With an electric mixer, mix cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, sour cream, warm water and oil in a large mixing bowl for one minute on low.
• Scrape down sides and continue to beat on medium speed for 2 more minutes, or until well combined.
• Fold in chocolate chips with spatula until well distributed. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 45-50 minutes (until cake starts to lightly pull away from the sides of the pan).
• Remove from oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes.
• Run knife along the edge of cake and invert onto a serving plate. Best if served warm.
• Serves 16… good with whipped cream and fresh berries or drizzle with chocolate frosting.

So let your nose lead you home, and if you are in the market for your first home, or a new home, let me know. If you would like information about the buying and selling of Westchester real estate, Playa Del Rey real estate, Marina Del Rey real estate, Playa Vista real estate and other Westside real estate, contact me directly at 424.203.1828 or by email at Stephanie.Younger@telesproperties.com

Happy baking!

Filed under: Family, House and Home, Marina Del Rey Real Estate, Playa Del Rey Real Estate, Playa Vista Real Estate, Westchester Real Estate on April 17th, 2009