Espresso Chocolate Turtle Cake

This cake is for the coffee enthusiast who also loves chocolate and caramel.

Recipe Ingredients:

1 (18-ounce) package dark chocolate cake mix
1 1/3 cup water
1/2 cup light olive oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon instant espresso coffee
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (14-ounce) bag caramels, papers removed
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Toppings: Ice cream, caramel sauce, chopped nuts and fresh fruit

Cooking Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a 13x9x2-inch pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine cake mix, water, light olive oil, eggs, espresso coffee powder and cinnamon. Beat at low speed for 1 minute, scraping bowl continuously. Do not over mix.
3. Pour half of the batter into prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, heat caramels and evaporated milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until caramels are melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in chopped pecans.
5. Pour caramel mixture over warm cake in pan. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Then spread remaining batter over all. Bake 30 minutes longer.
6. Remove from oven and cool cake for a least 30 minutes.
7. Serve warm turtle cake with ice cream, drizzled with caramel sauce, additional chopped nuts and a garnish of fresh fruit.

Makes 24 servings.

Nutritional Information Per Serving (1/24 of recipe): Calories: 280; Total Fat: 16g; Saturated Fat: 3g; Cholesterol: 30mg; Total Carbs: 35g; Fiber: 1g; Protein: 4g; Sodium: 240mg.