“Why can’t you just dump it all in,” asks my ingenious 8 year old nephew, Flynn.  Later as Gwen was icing the cake, Paul, my brother (Joe), and Flynn chorused all at once, “Why don’t you just dump it all on there?”  The Dargas and Chenoweths think a lot alike.

I wasn’t going to bake today because I was feeling lazy.  But when you get a text asking if you are baking because your niece and nephew wanna come over to hang, you immediately, and without hesitation, say yes.

What started as a cozy, mellow morning with Paul and Flynn doing all of the jobs I hate to do (namely greasing the pan and pounding butter with a rolling pin to soften it, hence the “We’re doing this the manly way,” quoted from Paul) and Gwen and I mixing all of the ingredients, turned out to be a huge family affair with my brothers: Joe and Peter, nieces and nephews: Gwen, Flynn, Aubrey, and Ascher, two dogs: Hudson and Sherman, and Paul and I all running around the house, playing soccer in the front yard, playing in the Land Cruiser (Ascher’s favorite), taking photographs with Uncle Paul’s camera, and making an all around ruckus.  It was a blast!

Oh, and the coffee cake turned out great!

Cinnamon Roll Coffee Cake (recipe care of divascancook.com)

INGREDIENTS:

CAKE:  3 cups all-purpose flour, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1 cup white sugar, 4 teaspoons baking powder, 1 ½ cups milk, 2 eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla, ½ cup butter (melted)

CINNAMON TOPPING:  1 cup butter (softened), 1 cup brown sugar (packed), 2 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon cinnamon

CREAM CHEESE GLAZE:  2 oz cream cheese (softened), 1½ cups powdered sugar, 3 Tablespoons milk (may need more), 1 teaspoon vanilla extract