Bougie Grubs
Hello, my name is Angela Evans.
Let me introduce you to my alter ego, Bougie Grubs! What is Bougie Grubs, you may ask?
Bougie Grub started with my love of food and the ability to make people feel special with my dishes. As a working mom, time was limited, and my opportunities to make these beautiful dishes were few and far between. So, I began my effort to create dishes and desserts that would only take me 30 minutes to prepare, but would look like it took me all day! What I didn’t know was this “fun pursuit” would become a necessity.
Four years ago, I began to have debilitating headaches. After working a full day, I had little energy. I didn’t want my family to suffer because I was suffering, so I would tap into my Bougie Grubs alter ego and fix amazing meals in record time! A year ago, I found out the cause of my headaches was a rare condition called Chiari Malformation. This condition is caused when your brain is larger than your skull. I had surgery to help correct the issues I was having, and I was put on medical leave. If you know me, I usually have several projects going on at the same time. Being physically unable to be my normal self was a hard pill to swallow. Instead of getting depressed, I did something positive with my newfound excess time.
Since food brings me extreme joy and I mastered the craft of fixing fancy meals without using all my energy, I started creating more meals and sharing them with the world. I have created fond memories around the dishes I have made. Being able to share the ease of preparation so the next person can create equally fond memories has brought me joy. It has been the best hobby. It’s been rewarding, and I have learned so much about myself.
I challenged myself this year to create and decorate a bakery-style cake once a month. I have decided to share these recipes monthly with the wonderful readers of Texarkana Magazine through Talk Tuesday. So, in celebration of Chiari Awareness Month and the kickoff of the fall season, I am starting with one of my favorites. Let me introduce you to Bougie Grub’s Sweet Potato Layered Cake!
Click here to watch the video
INGREDIENTS
Cake
1 Box Cake Mix—Butter Recipe (made as directed)
1 Small Roasted Sweet Potato mashed
1/2 tsp Vanilla
Frosting
2 containers Cream Cheese Frosting
2 Tbsp of Cinnamon
Pecan Topping
1 stick Sweet Cream Butter
1 1/2 cups Pecans
1 1/2 cups Brown Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Mix cake ingredients as directed on the box.
3. Add mash sweet potato and vanilla to the mix.
4. Pour in cake pans and bake for 25 minutes.
5. Remove from pan and cool completely.
Pecan Topping
1. Add butter and brown sugar to a pan on medium heat. Melt together, stirring often.
2. Once the mixture is melted, add pecans and vanilla.
3. Cook for three minutes, stirring often.
4. Set aside and let the mixture cool.
Frosting
1. While pecan topping is cooling, mix cinnamon and frosting together.
2. Frost cake and top with pecans.
ENJOY!
