Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake

Jennie has a really great lake nearby called Megunticook Lake (there are over 3000 lakes in Maine!). This is Sloan and Amelia making a sand castle.


Chauncey and Reese were having some fun in the sand too! Chauncey broke his arm when we came back to the lake on Thursday. Poor guy, it's his 4th broken arm, this time he fractured his radius right at the elbow. He broke it when he was trying to get up on the dock and he slipped, banging his elbow.

This is the finished sand castle. This is such a great place to play, lots of sand and the water is really shallow for a long way out. Jennie gave her kids the belly button rule, they can't let the water go past their belly button.

• This is a really great coffee cake, the cake is nice and moist and has such a great flavor because of the cream cheese. The topping is really yummy too! It is pretty easy to make, and I love baking it in a springform pan, it makes it nice and thick!
  
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• Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake
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• 1 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
  
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
  
• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup sugar
  
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• In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and 1-1/4 cups of sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt with a whisk; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. Pour into a greased 9-in. springform pan. Combine the chocolate chips, cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle over batter.
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• Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen. Remove sides of pan. Cool completely before cutting.