one

How quickly a year passes... Erik turned one, and we celebrated Peter Rabbit-style. How I love this sweet, funny boy of ours.

Carrot cake, which Erik loved. He didn't know what to do at first, but then just about polished off his whole cupcake (though a good number of crumbs bedecked his high chair afterward).

--------------------------------------------------

Wee bunny-shaped chocolate sugar cookies with just their fluffy white tails frosted.

I made a traditional Swedish kladdkaka -- a cross between chocolate cake and brownies. I used a nonstick kladdkaka pan with raised fluted edges, but any nonstick 9-inch cake pan would do. No need to break out the mixer for this recipe! It's easy to mix by hand.

Kladdkaka 
Swedish Chocolate Sticky Cake

1/2 C. butter

1 1/3 C. sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract (or 1 T. vanilla sugar)

1/8 tsp. salt

1/4 C. high quality natural cocoa powder (I like Penzeys natural high fat cocoa powder)

2 eggs

1/2 C. flour

- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9” cake pan.

- Soften butter and add sugar, vanilla extract/sugar, salt, and cocoa powder. Mix well by hand.

- Stir in the eggs until the mixture is smooth. Add flour, stir until combined.

- Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake on the lower rack of the oven for 25-30 minutes. Don’t overbake -- a tester will still have sticky crumbs.

- Allow cake to cool for 15-20 minutes. Then hold a plate over the pan, invert the pan, and release the cake.

- Optional: Serve dusted with powdered sugar, or with ice cream or whipped cream.

Serves 6.