What a Crock: Brown Sugar Spice Cake

The Rundown
It's important to remember that great crock pot recipes shouldn't be limited to savory dishes. Every now and then I stumble upon a dessert recipe that turns out to be a real winner. A quick glance at the ingredients in this Brown Sugar Spice Cake recipe had me intrigued. Tomato soup in a dessert? Let's see how it turned out.

The Taste
Impressive--I was shocked at how good this recipe tasted. The tomato soup provided the moistness the dish needed, but at the same time wasn't overwhelming in taste. The cake turned out a little crumbly, but that's really not a problem. It mixed wonderfully with the vanilla ice cream, and the layer of gooiness under the cake gave the dessert a "molten" feel. The Brown Sugar Spice Cake was not too sweet or heavy and would be a perfect dessert to make during the holidays for a large group. Serve warm, but I also ate it cold and had absolutely no complaints.

The Ease
This proved to be another easy crock pot recipe. It qualifies as a "dump and run," but don't run too far. While most crock pot dishes take six to eight hours, this one will be done in a little under three hours. Preparation includes mixing the soup, water, cake mix, and eggs to make the batter and then topping it with a combination of brown sugar, cinnamon, and water. We even got a little crazy and threw in some finely chopped crystallized ginger.

The Kid Factor
I'm guessing your kids will like this one, and it represents a nice variation from the overexposed chocolate desserts. I love any dessert that's topped with vanilla ice cream, and this spice cake recipe is no different. Also, a child of any age can help put this crock pot recipe together. It provides a perfect opportunity for them to help out in the kitchen, and kids generally get excited about constructing desserts.