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Daisy Cakes founder shares recipes for 2 classic southern confections

4:01
How to make classic southern desserts the whole family can enjoy
Kirstin Teig
ByGood Morning America
September 03, 2018, 11:48 AM

Daisy Cakes started as a small business idea and thanks to one sweet investment has become a recipe for success.

When Kim Nelson presented her idea for homemade cakes -- recipes handed down from her grandmother -- on season 2 of ABC's "Shark Tank," Barbara Corcoran took one taste and invested in the company.

Now Nelson's baked goods brand has expanded to cookbooks. Her traditional recipes for southern confections are all packed inside her latest, "Daisy Cakes Bakes: Keepsake Recipes for Southern Layer Cakes, Pies, Cookies, and More."

Kim Nelson's new cookbook "Daisy Cakes Bakes: Keepsake Recipes for Southern Layer Cakes, Pies, Cookies, and More."
Kirstin Teig

Nelson joined "Good Morning America" to show her decadent Mississippi Mud sheetcake and classic red velvet cake.

Check out the full recipes below!

Kim Nelson's recipe for Mississippi mud cake

Bake this decadent chocolate and pecan sheet cake with her full recipe here.

Kim Nelson's Mississippi mud sheet cake from her latest cookbook.
Kirstin Teig

"I remember the first time I had this cake at a friend’s birthday party during junior high school," Nelson writes in the book. "The cake reminded me of my favorite ice cream, rocky road. I could have eaten the entire mud cake by myself - at thirteen years old, I remember thinking it was the best combination of ingredients I had ever tasted."

Kim Nelson's recipe for red velvet cake

Recreate this classic cake with cream cheese frosting at home using Nelson's recipe here.

Kim Nelson's red velvet cake from her new cookbook "Daisy Cakes Bakes: Keepsake Recipes for Southern Layer Cakes, Pies, Cookies, and More."
Kirstin Teig

"Red velvet is a Southern holiday tradition," Nelson writes. "I'm surprised by the number of people who say it's just a chocolate cake with red food coloring in it. I always feel the need to let them know 'not where I come from!' One tablespoon of cocoa does not a chocolate cake make. When that bit of cocoa combines with a touch of vinegar, a lovely reddish hue results. Adding food coloring amps up the 'wow' factor."

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