My Favorite Carrot Cake "Chatham Carrot Cake"

A number of you have expressed interest in my favorite carrot cake recipe and have emailed me for the recipe in response to an offer I made to a commenter on my NY Cheesecake post.  So, because I love sharing my favorite recipes, I'm going to post the recipe, but without any photos.  To provide you all with photos of this wonderful cake, I'd have to make it, and then there would only be the two of us who would eat it as our family is scattered all over New England, and I work from home so I can't take it to work to share.  Ultimately, the cake would only be eaten by me because Ole Sweetie-Pi can't eat nuts, and I wouldn't consider this cake without the nuts.  While I could, probably, over time eat the entire cake by myself and love every morsel of it, I just don't think it's a good idea.  I'm trying to learn to set limits for myself.

Anyway, I discovered this gem of a recipe in a little community type cookbook while I lived in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in a booklet called Cape Cod Recipes (Chatham is part of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, for those of you who may not be familiar with our New England geography, a well-to-do community of fine dining and sandy beaches).  Anyway, I've made this recipe for years, and it is consistently well received with many compliments.  I've been told it's better than carrot cakes from our local bakeries, and I've even wowed potential suitors for Old Sweetie-Pi's daughters. That's high praise indeed, in my opinion. 

Just let me pass along one caveat.  As I said, I've made this cake numerous times and for me it's the only carrot cake recipe I'll use.  I've tried others "just to see" and in the end declare this one to be my favorite.  The caveat:  for whatever reason the cake fell during baking. It's only happened a couple of times;  don't ask me why because I don't know.  Too much liquid from the carrots, too much stirring, not enough stirring.  I'm baffled.  But when I see that disappointing result, I go right back and remake the cake, same day, same everything, and the cake works.  Go figure.

Anyway, enough about me.  Here's the recipe.  I hope you enjoy it as much as my family, friends, and I do.  It's nicely spiced and so moist!

CHATHAM CARROT CAKE

 

2 cups flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

2 cups sugar (I use 1 1/2  cup white  and 1/2 cup brown)

2 cups shredded carrots

1 cup vegetable oil

1 eight-ounce can crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup chopped walnuts

 

 

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.  Set aside.

 

Combine first 7 ingredients and set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs 1 minute.  Add sugar and continue beating until eggs are lemon-colored.  Add oil, dry ingredients, carrots, pineapple, and nuts.  Divide batter evenly between the pans and bake about 30 minutes or until tested done with a toothpick.  Let sit in the pans for about 10 minutes before turning out to finish cooling on a baking rack.

 

Once cooled, torte the cake, that is, divide each of the cake layers in  half across the middle, for a total of four layers. I found this to be a very important step to fully realize the flavor of this wonderful cake.  There's something magical about all that gorgeous cream cheese frosting between the layers.

 

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING :  Combine  until smooth, 4 ounces cream cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 cup butter, 2 cups confectioners' sugar.  (If  I recall correctly, I double the amount of frosting, but use your best judgment).  I use a generous amount of frosting between the layers as well as frosting for the top.  I leave the sides without frosting because it's pretty to see the layers of cake and frosting and it is possible to have too much of a good thing, smiles.

 

If you want, add some finely chopped walnuts to the top layer for decoration.

 

The original recipe called for making this cake in a 13x9 inch pan and baking for 60 minutes.  I've done that, and to tell you the truth, and the cake just isn't anywhere near as good. 

Banana Coconut Upside Down Cake

Banana Coconut Upside Down Cake

Lawsy mercy it has been a while since I've sat down and chatted with you.-- just about three months from the looks of it.  I've missed you all, but I have anonymously stopped by your blogs and oogled and ahhed over your recipes.

I hadn't been feeling tip top for about a year, mostly exhausted, and I thought it was just work-related stress.  Then I developed some unpleasant symptoms which could not be ignored, and to make a long story short, I had a totally unsuspected, potentially life-threatening diagnosis, followed up with some surgery.  I was out of work for six weeks, and have only been back four weeks.  I'm slowly getting my vim and vigor back,  and ever so grateful to be alive.  Time will tell the final prognosis but so far I've been given the green light.

I have to smile. Per doctor's orders, Ole Sweetie-Pi was in charge of the kitchen, grocery shopping, cat boxes, laundry, and just about everything else. I wasn't even supposed to go for car rides in the first stages of healing. Talk about cabin fever. I don't think I've eaten as many submarine sandwiches or frozen dinners as I did during those six weeks.  It's a time I'll look back with fondness.  Ole Sweetie-Pi really came through. 

Anyway, as I make my way back into the kitchen, I'm starting on light (as in weight and time involved, not so much in calories, smiles) cooking.  I used to be quite a snob when it came to boxed cake mixes, but not any more.  They are yummy good!  I found this recipe in one my daily food-related emails, probably Mr. Foods or Recipe Lion, but whatever the source, the recipe was linked to Tablespoon.com.  The minute I saw it, I knew I had to have it. 

This recipe, which makes two single-layer cakes,  is easy to prepare and the result far outweighs the effort.  I made it for dessert for a Saturday night dinner, but promptly ate it as a brunch cake the following Sunday morning.  It was perfect with a steaming cup of hot coffee. 

Banana Coconut Upside Down Cake

1 yellow cake mix
3 whole eggs
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup water

6 bananas, sliced, divided between two pans
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut, divided between two pans

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350* Fahrenheit.  Spray or   grease and flour  two deep 8-inch round cake pans. (I think my cake pans are 8 inches round by 2 inches deep, and I had just barely enough space for the risen cake.)

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the cake mix, eggs, oil, water and sour cream on low until combined.  Increase speed to high and beat for 2 minutes.

Slice bananas evenly over the bottom of the two cake pans.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter.  Add the brown sugar and lemon juice and heat until dissolved.  Pour half of the brown sugar mixture into each of the two cake pans, over the bananas.  Sprinkle coconut over the brown sugar sauce.

Pour the cake batter on top of the coconut, dividing equally between the two pans.

Bake 35-40 minutes or until cake tests done with a toothpick.  Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes.  Invert onto serving platter.  Slice to serve.
Cake is probably best the day it is served, but leftovers can be stored overnight in the refrigerator. Much beyond that and the bananas might not be as appealing as you would wish.

Last-Minute Chocolate Cake with Mocha Frosting

So you've been craving chocolate cake or company's coming and you need something delicious and fast.  You look in your pantry/  No eggs!  No baking powder!  No salt!  But you still want chocolate cake.  Yikes!  Now what do you do?

You absolutely must try this recipe!  I don't think I've ever had a moister or more delicious chocolate cake that was as easy as this to put together.  Talk about easy peasy-lemon squeezy.  Simple pantry items and you are on your way to  a nice square of chocolate cake heaven.

This makes a smallish 8" x 8" cake, which is a good size for me and Ole Sweetie-Pi.  There's no baking powder in it, so it does not rise to the top of the pan, probably about halfway as you can see.  The big bold chocolate flavor more than makes up for its diminutive size.

Last Minute Chocolate Cake
(From the Red Hat Society Cookbook)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 (rounded) tablespoons cocoa**
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter melted
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup warm water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350*F.  Generously grease and flour an 8" x 8" baking pan and set aside.

In a large bowl sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa and baking soda.  Beat in the melted butter, milk, water, and vanilla. Pour into cake pan. 

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.  Let cool completely and frost.

Mocha Frosting

(From the Red Hat Society Cookbook)

1 1/2 teaspoons instant coffee**

1/2 cup cocoa
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners' sugar, or more if needed

Mix the coffee, cocoa and water together in a medium bowl to make a paste.  Add the softened butter, vanilla and confectioners' sugar to make a spreadable consistency.  Spread the frosting over the cake.

Can't you almost taste this!

**MY NOTES:  The original cake recipe just simply calls for 3 tablespoons of cocoa.  I thought it didn't sound like enough and "rounded" the measuring.  In in the end I probably added 3 tablespoons with an extra teaspoon of cocoa (rounded measurements are different than heaping, but you know that, right?).

**The mocha frosting recipe called for 1 tablespoon instant coffee.  Gosh, that's a lot. I reduced the measuring to 1 1/2 teaspoons, and there was just enough hint of coffee flavor that greatly enhanced the chocolate flavor without overpowering it.  I would suggest starting with the smaller amount, sampling it, and adding more if you want a more assertive coffee flavor.  It's certainly easier to add than it is to take away.

Maraschino Cherry Cake with Fluffy Cherry Frosting



When I was a girl, I dreamed of this kind of cake, all pink and soft with fluffy pink cloud frosting.  It was the cake that I imagined princesses ate.  I had forgotten about those dreams until I ran across the recipe for Maraschino Cherry Cake in The American Century Cookbook (The Most Popular Recipes of the 20th Century) by Jean Anderson.  The moment I saw the recipe I couldn't get it out of my head.  My memories came back to haunt me; I needed to put them to rest.  Even in this present day, as I baked it, I imagined little girls in big shoes and big summer hats with bright silk flowers and lots of opera pearls slung about their necks enjoying this beautiful cake.

After making this cake, I can see why my mother never made it, smiles.  This is not a cake for the distracted, disorganized, or harried cook.  And for the safety of all, it would be wise not to have dashing pets and children in the kitchen.  The steps are not complicated, but there is some preparation involved.  While making the syrup for the frosting, you must be attentive or serious burn injury could result.  The frosting, while very good, is sticky and tends to string and flow about when and where you don't want it to. 

Regardless, if you want to feel like a princess or you know a little girl who is, this cake is fulfills all those dreams.

Read through the recipe first to get a feel for how the recipe flows.

Maraschino Cherry Cake

3 cups sifted cake flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

1/3 cup vegetable shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup maraschino cherry juice

3/4 cup milk

1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts

16 maraschino cherries, cut into eighths

5 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Prepare ahead of time:  Coarsely chop 1/2 cup  nuts.  Cut 16 maraschino cherries into eighths and set aside.  They can be put  together in the same bowl as they will be added at the same time. 

Combine the 1/4 cup maraschino cherry juice and 3/4 cup milk in a one cup measure.  Set aside.

The timing of the stiffly beaten egg whites is a little tricky.  Wait too long and they deflate and get weepy.   After creaming the sugar and butter and shortening, I washed off my egg beaters and then beat my egg whites just before the step that adds the nuts and cherries. 

Now onto the cake...

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Generously grease and flour two 9-inch round** layer cake pans and set aside.

Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together onto waxed paper or in a medium bowl; set aside.

Cream butter, shortening, and sugar in a large bowl until fluffy (about five minutes). 

Add sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the milk-maraschino cherry juice mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.  Beat well after each addition.

Fold in nuts and cherries, then fold in the beaten egg whites.

Divide the batter between pans and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until springy to touch.

Cook cakes in pans on wire racks for about five minutes.  Using a thin blade knife loosen carefully around edges and turn out onto the racks.  Cool to room temperature.

Pink Cherry Maraschino 7-Minute Frosting

2 1/2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup maraschino cherry juice

3 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Mix sugar, corn syrup, water and cherry juice in medium heavy saucepan, covered, but with lid askew, and heat for five minutes over moderate heat.  Remove lid, insert candy thermometer, and heat, without stirring, until syrup reaches 242*F. (takes about 10-15 minutes).

In the meantime, put three egg whites in a medium sized bowl and beat until stiff peaks form.

When the syrup reaches 242*F, add the hot syrup to egg whites in a fine stream, beating hard the entire time.  Continue beating until mixture peaks stiffly, about 7 to 10 minutes.

**A final word ~ I used two 8" round 2" high cake pans to obtain a nice tall cake.  Baking time was increased by approximately 6 minutes because of the smaller sized pan.

This kind of frosting is best enjoyed on the day it is made.  It looks okay the second day, but by the third it is definitely weepy and crystallized looking.  I would suggest forgoing this frosting on a day with high humidity as it may not set up well for you.

I found the cherry flavor to be delicate.  The recipe does not call for it, but I am thinking perhaps a bit of almond extract might brighten the flavor.  I would be careful about adding cherry extract; you might end up with something akin to cough syrup.

Date, Banana, Coconut Cake

After my last post where I lamented about all the sugar in the cake I made, I decided to make a cake without refined sugar. This cake is plenty sweet, as the sweetness comes from the natural sugar found in the dates, banana, and coconut.  I think sugar is sugar, regardless of the source, but I feel a little more righteous about its not being the refined stuff.

Sniff, I admit to missing the refined sugar, which gives baked goods tenderness and volume (which is why folks should be careful about tinkering with the amount of sugar called for in baking).  This cake, though tasty, was a bit toothy (read: rubbery).  I don't mind it, but for those who are acutely aware and particular of texture and tenderness, you might feel less forgiving and put off by it. 

I found this recipe in The Herb Companion, a magazine I greatly enjoy for its wholesome and healthy advice and articles on living better. 

Date, Banana, Coconut Cake

1/3 cup mashed bananas
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups water
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups chopped dates

Topping
1/3 cup chopped dates
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Grease and flour a 9x12x2 inch baking pan.

Mash bananas and butter together until creamy.  Add eggs, vanilla and water; beat.  Add flour, baking soda and baking powder. Mix well. Stir in dates.  Spoon batter into prepared pan. 

Combine topping ingredients and sprinkle over batter.  Bake 20-25 minutes  or until wooden toothpick inserted in center of cake tests clean.

Cool cake in pan on wire rack.

Sour Cream Streusel Cake with Cherries

I've been looking for something a little different for breakfast, a take-along for an early family Thanksgiving celebration, and I happened upon this recipe in one of our local grocery store sale flyers. What caught my eye was that this coffee cake not only had streusel, but it also had cherries, a fruit I tend to eat out of hand but rarely use in cooking.  The contrast of bright red cherries nestled in yellow cake, topped with a lovely white glaze looked enticing and delicious.  . 

My cake did not look anything the way it did in the flyer so I checked the store's website, and surprise, surprise the directions were slightly different in preparation.  If I were to make this again, I'd follow the directions in the link provided below in My Notes because I prefer the presentation.  However,  I'm not sure the cherries would really stay atop the cake; I think they may still have a tendency to sink in the batter.

Just two caveats about this cake.  It is very sweet.  A smallish slice of this was almost too much for me, and I love sweet. It was perfect with a cup of black tea, and when I reduced the sugar I normally add to my coffee, the sweetness balanced out the coffee.

 The other thing is this recipe calls for half a cup of cherry pie filling, but a can holds more than a cupful.  What to do with the rest?  If you happen to have some pie crust, you could make quick and easy handheld pies, topped with a little of the glaze from this coffee cake.  Or just eat the leftover cherries, which is what I did, smiles.

Sour Cream Streusel Cake with Cherries

Streusel Ingredients
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt**
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces**
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
1/2 cup cherry pie filling

Batter Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt**
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla**

Glaze Ingredients
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon milk (or enough to achieve desired spreading consistency)

Preheat your oven to 350*F.  Grease a 9-inch springform pan.  Line the bottom of the pan with waxed paper; grease and flour the waxed paper. 

To make the streusel, combine the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt.  Cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Stir in nuts and cherry filling. ** Set aside. 

To make the batter, sift flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in small bowl.  In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter  until smooth, about one minute.  Gradually add brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.  Beat in the eggs one at a time.  Blend the sour cream and vanilla.  Stir in the flour mixture until just blended.

Spread half the batter into the prepared springform pan.  Sprinkle with half the streusel.  Carefully cover with remaining batter (as the batter is thick, I drop by spoonfuls and then  spread/"stretch" the batter over the streusel using a couple of forks or spoons, pulling the batter in opposite directions).  Sprinkle the remaining streusel over the top.

Bake about 50 minutes** or until cake is golden brown and pulls away from the side of the pan.  Set on a rack to cool.  Drizzle glaze on top.

To make the glaze, combine the glaze ingredients and stir until smooth. If glaze is too thick, add additional milk by drops stirring in between, until a desired consistency is achieved.  Drizzle over cake. 

Serves 12

**MY NOTES
I didn't use unsalted butter.  For the streusel I used salted butter and omitted the added salt entirely; for the batter I only used a pinch of salt.

The recipe calls for 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla.  I used one teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract.

The store's flyer says to mix the cherry pie filling with the streusel. The store's website recipe says to keep the two separated and to divide the streusel between the two halves of the cake batter and to sprinkle the remainder on the top of the batter and then add the cherries on top of that.
Please take the time to line the bottom of your springform pan with the waxed paper.  It makes a huge difference in getting it out of the pan and onto a cake plate.

No way did my cake cook in 50 minutes.  At the end of 50 minutes my cake's center was most definitely unbaked and I ended up covering with tin foil and baking another 20 minutes. 

Would I make this again?  I think the idea is good. I would definitely reduce the amount of glaze; in my opinion it's there for looks as the cake is plenty sweet enough.  This is a pretty coffee cake and a  different than what I normally make.  It's definitely good for a larger gathering.  I can say "definitely maybe."

Old Fashioned Butter Cake

How to start this post?  YUMMMM...we loved this cake...we couldn't stay away from it...we ate it for dessert and then we ate it for breakfast...  This beautiful cake recipe is a 100 year old treasure and a keeper!  Reeni of Cinnamon Girl discovered this recipe in an old McCall's cookbook published in 1910, and she too fell in love with this fluffy, moist, easy-to-prepare cake and was good enough to share it with the rest of us so that we could enjoy it as well.  Thank you, Reeni!  If you are not familiar with Reeni's blog, please take a few minutes to go and visit her.  Her food is fabulous, and her photography makes you want more!

At first I was skeptical that a cake recipe made with all-purpose flour could be be both fluffy and moist; in the past, I've only achieved that kind of result when using cake flour.  Also, I pretty consistently only have King Arthur Flour in the pantry, which tends to make a denser (but still delicious!) cake.  Imagine my surprise when my first bite revealed a cake that surpassed all expectations.  I don't know if it's the one tablespoon of baking powder or the four minutes total of beating, but whatever, the secret, this recipe works!
This will be a recipe that I will turn to again and again.

Old Fashioned Butter Cake
(from Reeni's Cinnamon Girl blog) 

2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1  1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Grease and flour two 8 inch x 2 inch baking pans and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Add butter, milk, and vanilla.  With a hand mixer, beat for  2 minutes, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl. 

Add eggs and beat for 2 minutes more.

Pour batter into prepared pans, dividing equally between the pans.  Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Remove from oven.

Cool in the pans for 10 minutes and then turn cakes out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

Frost with your favorite frosting.  I used my favorite chocolate frosting, the one on the back of the Hersey's cocoa can. 

"Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Frosting

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup Hershey's cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar)
1/3 cup milk  (plus an additional few drops to make a nice consistency)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter.  Stir in cocoa.  Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency.  Add more milk if needed.  Stir in vanilla.  About 2 cups frosting

Strawberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake (?)

Buttery, sugary, buttermilk tender, strawberry rhubarb-y,  jammy-oozy coffee cake.  But is this really a coffee cake?  Is it for breakfast or dessert?  It doesn't matter to me, this is very good!  I probably should have waited before cutting into this cake and photographing it, but the aroma was so irresistible that I had to.  Warm, it was like a cobbler with a bottom crust. After completing cooling, the filling was less oozy,  but still delicious, more like a coffee cake. 

We were visiting Sweetie-Pi's sister's home, and her beloved offered fresh-from-their-garden rhubarb, with the warm earth still clinging to the long green and red stalks. He handed me a huge bagful and my eyes lit in anticipation, as I thought of strawberry rhubarb pies and coffee cake.  I found this keeper recipe on Southern Food About.com. 

Strawberry Rhubarb Coffee Cake

(found on Southern Food About.com)

Filling

3 cups sliced rhubarb, (1 inch pieces) fresh or frozen

2 pints fresh strawberries, mashed

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, cut in small pieces

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

Generously butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and have ready a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan (or tin foil on the baking rack) to place under the baking dish to allow for any fruit bubbling over. Preheat oven to 350*F.

In a large saucepan, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, and lemon juice.  Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.  Combine the sugar with the cornstarch and add to the fruit mixture.  Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thickened, and the cornstarch mixture looks clear.  Remove from heat.

In a large bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Cut the butter in with a pastry blender, or use your fingers to rub the butter into the dry ingredients, until you have a mixture that resembles coarse crumbs.  In a separate bowl beat together the eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla.  Add to the dry ingredients and mix to combine. 

Spread half of the batter mixture into the prepared 9 x 13 inch baking pan.  Top with the strawberry rhubarb mixture, carefully spreading as necessary.  Using a tablespoon, drop the remaining batter onto the filling.

For the topping, melt the butter either in your microwave or in a small saucepan over low heat.  Add the flour and sugar and mix until the mixture is crumbly.  Sprinkle over batter.

Place baking dish on the baking sheet and bake for approximately 45 minutes or until the cake is done.  A toothpick inserted into the center of the batter will probably have the fruit mixture cling to the toothpick, but you are looking to see that the batter is cooked. 

Cool cake on rack.  Cut in squares to serve.  Will easily make 12 squares. 

Notes:  This may be sacrilege, but I preferred this cake slightly warm and the filling all sweet, gooey, and oozy. 

Cake took an extra 10 minutes to cook in my oven, a total of 55 minutes.

Strawberry Summer Cake

"Do you want a bite of this?"  I offered  a towering forkful of this strawberry cake to Sweetie-Pi.  "Nah, I don't think so.  I don't feel like anything sweet."  I shrugged, a little disappointed.  "Well, maybe a little bite," he said. He took a little nibble. "Yummm, this is good,"  he said.   "It's really good!"  He wedged the remainder of the cake and whipped cream into his mouth and gave me back an empty fork. Ole Sweetie-Pi showed more self-restraint than I; I ate two pieces and called it dinner.

If you like strawberry shortcake, or strawberry trifles, or just about strawberry anything, I believe you'll really like this. This is going into my keeper file and will be seen on the family groaning board when we are together next.  I can't wait to share it with them.

Reportedly, this is a good keeper, will stay fresh about two days, if properly covered, either at room temperature or refrigerated.  Let me know if this delicious cake last that long in your house, smiles.

 
Strawberry Cake
(originally at Martha Stewart)

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more to grease the pie pan
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pound strawberries, rinsed, dried, hulled, cut in half
2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Generously grease a ten-inch pie plate.**

In a small bowl  whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes.  Then add the egg, milk, and vanilla and mix until just combined.

Add the flour mixture and mix until blended.  Transfer batter to buttered pie plate.  Batter is thick, so you may have to level it a bit with a knife or an offset spatula.

Add the strawberries, cut side down, in a single layer, as closely as possible on top of the batter.  Sprinkle the two tablespoons of sugar over the strawberries.

Bake the cake for 10 minutes at the 350*F temperature.  Then reduce the oven to 325*F about 50 to 60 minutes.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out free of batter, though it will likely have a bit of strawberry clinging to it.  

Let cool in pan on wire rack. Cut in wedges and top with your favorite whipped topping, if desired. 

**I used a deep dish 9-inch, Pyrex pie plate and it worked very well, I thought.  My cake was done at 50 minutes.

Spumoni Cake

This fun and delicious cake starts with a box of yellow cake mix, batter divided into three, with special additions added to give it the spumoni appeal.

I thought this recipe was lost to me forever.  When my mother used to work in a factory making smoke detectors, her company had an employee newsletter where the company would impart  business news and the employees would share personal news such as marriages, births, and recipes.  It was in one of  those newsletters that I saw this recipe, made it once years and years ago, and then lost my copy.  When my mother recently went into a nursing home, I was the lucky recipient of some of her recipes, and this, happily, was among them.

This cake is easy enough to do, just a little time consuming and perhaps a bit messy because of dividing up the batter and the addition of added ingredients, but when it all comes together and you serve it, the effort is worth the smiles.

I suggest reading through the recipe first to see what needs to be added for each layer.

Spumoni Cake

Mix together, until well blended:
1 package (18.5 ounce) white or yellow cake mix
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
8 ounces sour cream
1 small package vanilla instant pudding (either instant or regular is okay)

Divide batter into three bowls.

To bowl 1, add:
1/3 cup chopped walnuts or peacans
4 ot 6 drops green food coloring
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

To bowl 2, add:
1 jar (4 ounces) cut up marachino cherries
5 or 6 drops red food coloring

To bowl 3, add:
2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted

To assemble cake:  Grease one large tube or bundt pan.  Into this pan pour all the green batter, then the red batter, and then the chocolate.  Be sure not to swirl the batter.  Bake at 350*F for 50-60 minutes.  Test with a toothpick. If toothpick comes out clean after being inserted in center of cake, the cake is done.  Cool slightly andturn upside down onto platter.  When cool, drizzle with chocolate icing.

I made a sour cream ganache to go with this because I didn't have whipping cream on hand to make the classic recipe.  Boy, it was, shall we say, interesting, smiles.  It seemed like a good idea, but the sour cream was too tangy and just didn't go well with the bitter sweet chocolate.  Won't be making that again!

Sour Cream Coffeecake

A while back a good friend of mine asked me if I had a good blueberry muffin recipe, and I said no, but I'd try and find on for her.  Since then, I've tried a couple of different recipes, one that proclaimed to be "The Best" and one from a national growers' organization, and both were disappointments.  Talk about doorstops!   Perhaps I just don't have the blueberry muffin touch.

What does my search for a blueberry muffin have to do with sour cream coffee cake?  Well one of the recipes called for sour cream and I though perhaps the sour cream contributed to its heftiness.   So, to test my theory I made this sour cream coffeecake to see if I obtained similar results.

Was I in for a surprise!  This coffeecake is dee-licious and is easily one of the best coffeecakes I've ever made.  For me, it has just the right amount of sweetness, and a pleasing crumb that is substantial without being leaden. This coffeecake is best on the day it is made and is irresistible when served warm.  We can thank the good cooks at King Arthur's Flour for providing us with another keeper recipe.  This can be made in a 9" x 13" baking pan or a 9" or 10" tube pan with removable bottom.

Barbara's Watch Hill Sour Cream Coffeecake

(King Arthur Flour)

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cups sugar

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (yes, I use King Arthur Flour)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup (5 tablespoons) butter, softened

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup (8 ounces) light sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350*F and grease a 9"x13" pan or a 9" or 10" tube pan and set aside. 

In a small bowl, combine the walnuts, cinnamon, and 1/2 cup sugar and set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside.

In a large-sized bowl, beat the butter, oil and one cup sugar together until well mixed.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, sour cream and vanilla, being careful not to overbeat the mixture.

Spoon half the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle with half the nut mixture.  Spoon the remaining batter into the pan and cover with the remaining nut mixture.

If using a tube pan, bake 45-55 minutes.  If using a 9"x13" pan, bake 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm. 

Tomato Soup Spice Cake

It was one of my father's Vermont cousins who originally introduced us to her tomato soup cake. She brought it as a hostess gift when she came visiting, and delighted the family with guessing what the secret ingredient was.  Like me, Mother enjoyed quirky, secret-ingredient recipes, and the idea of tomato soup in a cake was just too much for her to pass up, so she asked for and received the recipe and it immediately frequented our table.

There are a number of versions of this cake but I  added the word spice to the title. The spices definitely stand out, but when one reflects upon the taste, there is a definite pleasant, but not usual, background flavor, smiles, and that would the tomato. Tomato is, after all a fruit, and we should not be surprised or dismayed to see in in sweet recipes.

I've had this cake with both a butter cream and cream cheese frosting and in this instance used cream cheese as I had it on hand. It seems to go well with the spicy flavors and aromas.   The one caveat to this cake is, in my estimation, is that it's a little dry.  As a result, it is best enjoyed with a glass of milk, tea or coffee.

I don't think this will ever have the popularity of a great chocolate cake, but as an heirloom recipe it's worth remembering and enjoying. I know we do.

Tomato Soup Spice Cake
(Best Recipes from the Backs of Boxes, Bottles Cans and Jars by Ceil Dyer)

2 1/4 cups cake flour (or 2 cups all-purpose flour)
1 1/3 cups sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons allspice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1-10.75 ounce cake condensed tomato soup
1/2 cup shortening, softened
2 eggs
1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 F. 

Generously grease and flour two round 8- or 9-inch layer pans, or a 13x9 inch oblong pan. 

Measure  and sift dry ingredients into large bowl; add soup and shortening. Beat at low to medium speed for 2 minutes  

Add eggs and water. Beat 2 minutes more, scraping bowl frequently. 

Divide batter equally between pans or if using the one oblong pan, spread the batter evenly. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes; remove. Cool.

Frost with butter cream or cream cheese frosting.

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I think I read on an old Salada tea tag line (remember those?) that the only way to overcome temptation is to give in to it.  I pretty much adhere to that philopsophy, considering it's not immoral or illegal, grins.

My bloggy friend, Debbie, from Mocha Me, has some some of the most tempting recipes.  She shares my love of  baking, and I know when I go and visit with her that she's been cooking up something irresistible.  With her recent snowy weather she's been cooking up her own storm and among these was this delicious Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting.

Ordinarily, I'm not big on banana cakes as they seem to lack the fullness and richness of the banana flavor that I seek, but the idea of a banana cake with cream cheese frosting enticed me, and with four very ripe bananas  begging for attention, I could not resist.

I am most certainly pleased that I gave in to temptation as this cake is delicious!  The cake is moist, the banana flavor shines through (you'll notice no extracts to compete with the bananas), and the cream cheese frosting is an excellent choice. Once Sweetie-Pi accepted that this is a banana cake and not banana bread, he liked it as much as I do.

Thanks, Debbie, this recipe is a keeper!

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

2/3 cup shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs, whites and yolks separated

2 cups mashed bananas (approximately 4 medium)

1 cup milk

3 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt
 

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1/4 cup butter, softened (if using salted butter, omit dash of salt listed at the end)

4 cups confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

dash salt

Generously grease and flour a 9 x 13 inch baking pan and set aside.  Preheat oven to 350*F.

In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add bananas and milk; mix until just combined. 

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to the creamed mixture; beat for 2 minutes.

In another bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Fold into batter. 

Pour into prepared baking pan. Bake for 30 - 35 minutes***or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and then frost.

For the frosting:  In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla and salt; beat until smooth. Spread over cake. Store in the refrigerator.

***My baking times more closely matched Debbie's; my cake definitely was not done at the end of 35 minutes.  I had to cover with a sheet of tin foil and continue to bake for another 20 minutes or so.  The top of the cake stuck to the tin foil, but frosting repaired its torn appearance and no one was the wiser.  I think the added baking time may have made the cake a little tough, but it still tasted good!

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake with Mousse Filling and Chocolate Frosting

I've posted this Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake once before, but I am posting it again as I have added a mousse filling that brings this cake to an entirely new level.  It is very rich, chocolaty and elegant. If you want a cake that's made to impress, give serious consideration to this beauty. 

The flavor of this cake is over the moon good.  You will think you are riding the tail of a comet, taking you to the place where chocolate dreams are made and come true.  You will not want to come back.

Trust me.

I kid you not.

Ole Sweetie-Pi and I were invited to spend the weekend with his older sister, Susan (who, in her own right, is an excellent cook) and her Significant Other.  I am a little intimated by her.  Susan is the eldest and is accustomed to being In Charge.  I, too, am the oldest sibling in my family and accustomed to being In Charge.  However, as she's had more practice at being the eldest, I am not in charge. Ole Sweetie-Pi and Susan have a family member who was referred to as Fort Gra-Gra.  Apparently, this is a dominant gene that is passed on to the females in the family; this gene does not skip generations.

When this cake was served, and the first forkfuls passed everyone's lips, I waited...and waited for a reaction. Silence...a moment of reverence.  Smiles broke out around the table.

I get to be in charge of making the chocolate cake from now on.

To begin, make the mousse and set aside in the refrigerator.  Bake the cake and mix the frosting.  (Recipes to follow.)  When the cake is baked, let cool thoroughly, and then cut in half horizontally. I think it might be a good idea to slightly freeze the layers for ease in handling.  Place one of the cake layers on your serving plate and pipe a dam of frosting around the circumference of the cake.

 

Fill inside the inside of the dam with a generous portion of that gorgeous mousse and smooth. 

Do this with the remaining layers, leaving the top of the cake plain as it will be frosted.

Frost the outside and top of the cake with the frosting. Decorate as desired; I don't have any real cake decorating skills, but I have dressed this up with chocolate covered strawberries when strawberries were in season. Refrigerate any extra mousse and frosting.  Finished cake should also be refrigerated and taken out just before serving time. 

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups Hershey's cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water

Heat oven to 350* Fahrenheit.  Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

Combine dry ingredients into large bowl.  Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla.  Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes.  Stir in boiling water.  (Batter will be thin.)  Pour into pans.

Bake 30-35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks.  Cool completely.

"Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Frosting

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter or margarine
2/3 cup Hershey's cocoa
3 cups powdered sugar (confectioners' sugar)
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter.  Stir in cocoa.  Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency.  Add more milk if needed.  Stir in vanilla.  About 2 cups frosting.

Chocolate Mousse

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups cold, heavy cream, plus an additional 1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine the confectioners' sugar and 1/2 cup heavy cream.  Stir over low heat. 

Add the semisweet chocolate chips, stirring frequently as they melt and the mixture becomes well blended.

Remove from heat, stir in the vanilla and set this mixture aside.

In a separate, large bowl, beat the remaining 1 1/2 cup heavy cream on medium speed and gradually add the granulated sugar.  When all the sugar has been incorporated, beat the mixture on high speed until stiff peaks form.

Fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture, taking care not to overmix.  Refrigerate for at least one hour before using on your cake.

Pork and Beans Spice Cake

We've had our first official snowfall this season, two inches of snow that is here to stay . It fell softly, pristinely, flurrying, in dizzy spins , obscuring the view of the hills that make our valley, cloaking everything in white silence. It was a day to cuddle up, watch some old movies, and eat cake and drink hot coffee.

My thoughts turned to spice cake. Specifically, pork and beans spice cake. Yes, you read it right. Pork and beans. In a spice cake. Now, don't get all oogly on me here. While this sounds like an unlikely combination, this is a delicious, heavy, but moist cake, with a subtle flavor of cinnamon. If I didn't tell you about the pork and beans, you'd never guess, and you'd like it, too. I think it's an overstatement to call this a spice cake, but what's in a name, right? And besides, what else are you going to do with a cup and half of leftover baked beans.

Before I share the recipe that I found on Recipezaar, I'd like to say that I deviated from the directions a bit. The directions say to mush up the baked beans and a can of crushed pineapple, leaving a somewhat chunky appearance. I cannot do that. I put mine into a blender and puree the two ingredients together until smooth. It's a textural thing. It's a visual thing. It's because of a book I read while I was in grade school.

When we were in grade school, we had to read a biography called Mrs. Mike written by Benedict and Nancy Freeman. The story is set in the early 1900's and is a love story that takes place in the Canadian wilderness, and details the hardships of a young Canadian Mounty and his young bride. One episode describes the young couple at a long table shared by other diners. The details escape me, but I think snow must have been boiled for water, and a tin cup of it was being passed around for everyone to take a swallow. When it was passed to Mrs. Mike, she looked into it and saw a single baked bean floating in it. She passed the mug to the next diner. After 45 years, I still cannot get that revolting imagine of the one baked bean floating in a shared tin cup of water. And I cannot have bits of baked beans bobbing about in my spice cake.

Pork and Beans Spice Cake



16 ounces (about 1 1/2 cups) pork and beans
8 ounces crushed pineapple, undrained
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup oil
4 eggs

Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick butter) at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1-pound box confectioners' sugar
1 16-ounce bag pecans, finely diced, reserving one half cup for decoration

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Generously grease and flour two cake pans. The original directions do not include the size; I used two 8 inch x 2 inch pans, but found the cooking time listed to be too short. A 9-inch cake pan would probably be better.

In a blender of food processor combine the baked beans and the undrained can of crushed pineapple. Process until it's a smooth puree. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Add the eggs, sugar, and oil. Beat at medium speed for two minutes.

Add the bean-pineapple mixture and beat until combined.

Pour into prepared pans and bake for 30-35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Because my pans were smaller than what was probably intended, I baked mine for an additional 15 minutes or so and had to cover the cakes with tinfoil to prevent overbrowning.)

Remove from pans and cool thoroughly on racks.

To make the frosting: For the smoothest frosting, make sure that your cream cheese and butter are at room temperature so that when you beat them there won't be any hard chunks. Put the cream cheese and butter in a medium sized bowl and beat with an electric mixer until well combined. Add the vanilla, beat to combine. Add the confectioners' sugar, stirring with a spoon to combine in the beginning to prevent the sugar from flying all over your workspace, and then using your mixer to thoroughly blend together. Add the chopped pecans (remembering to hold back one half cup).

When the cakes are cooled, level the tops of the cakes if you need to, and place the topside of the cake facing the bottom of the plate (bottomside is facing up towards you). Frost. Do the same with the second cake. Frost the top and the sides. With the one half cup of reserved pecans, liberally sprinkle the top.

Once again I deviated. I did not use an entire 16 ounce bag of pecans; I used walnuts because that's what I had. Also, because nuts are expensive and I'm the only one who enjoys them in baked goods, I eyeballed a generous amount and sprinkled them just between the layers and on the top.

German Apple Cake

One of my pleasures of fall is abundance of fresh apples. This crunchy, juicy, sweet-tart relative of the rose, is available year 'round, but to me there's just nothing like an apple plucked fresh from branches, bowing heavily, with this wonderful, versatile fruit. Apple pies and cakes, apple butter, cider, jams, apple sauce, apple chutney, tarts, dumplings (and even as an ingredient in my turkey stuffing) ...oh, I love them all!! And yes, in my younger days, I was even seen sipping Boone's Farm apple wine.

To start my apple celebration, I wanted to make you this German Apple Cake. It's one of my beloved recipes from the King Arthur Flour 200th Anniversary Cookbook. Be prepared to dirty up several bowls as ingredients are mixed separately from others and then added, but to me the kitchen clean up is worth the effort. Apple-y, cinnamon-y goodness in a moist cake makes it all worthwhile. So perfect for a weekend breakfast sweet. Stays fresh for a couple of days when it's well covered.

German Apple Cake

Preheat oven to 350F. Generously grease and flour a tube pan or bundt pan (could even use a spring form pan if you wished) and set aside.

Apple Filling

3 large apples, peeled and sliced as if for a pie
lemon juice (optional, but nice to aid in prohibiting sliced apples from browning)
5 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Batter

3 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar

4 eggs

1/4 cup apple juice (milk can be substituted, but use the apple juice if you have it)
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Prepare the apple filling first: Pare and thinly slice the apples (as for an apple pie). Sprinkle with the lemon juice. Mix the sugar with the cinnamon but do not add to the apples. Set aside.

Make the batter: Combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, add the sugar and oil and beat for 2 or 3 minutes, until creamy in appearance.

In another, small bowl, beat the eggs until light. Add the juice (or milk) and the vanilla, mixing well. Add to the sugar and oil and beat thoroughly. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients (but not the apples) and gently fold together.

Putting it all together: Pour one third of the batter into your pan. Add a thick layer of apples and generously sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar mixture over the apples. Repeat layers again, ending with a layer of batter. If you really like cinnamon, lightly sprinkle the top with a little more cinnamon.

For a bundt pan or a tube pan, bake for 50-60 minutes.

For the springform pan, bake for 60-70 minutes.

I use a tube pan that has a dark coating, and sometimes my baked goods cook will cook too fast on the outside and the center hasn't had time to catch up. (Dark bakeware can cause heat to absorb too fast on the outside, leaving cakes with an unsightly hump in the middle, which is why I tossed out my dark cake tins and purchased the lighter aluminum alloy. No more humps! However, I haven't made the switch yet on all my baking pans.) I covered with a piece of tinfoil to continue baking without further browning.

Lemon Pudding Cake

I was talking to my youngest brother, Grant, on the phone the other night and he surprised the dickens out of me by saying he follows my blog. Just when I think he is the most exhausting and exasperating tease on the planet, he switches it all around and leaves me dumbfounded with his interest and awareness of FFAHS.

He told me that the recipes that caught his eye were the couple I had posted that our beloved grandmother made for us when we were kids. That started a whole stream of food memories and we spent a good long time reminiscing. One that we both fondly remember and one of the very first desserts I ever learned how to make was one that she taught me, called cottage pudding, a simple, single layer (dry!) vanilla cake with a lemon hard sauce poured over (to give it some moisture and flavor, I'm sure). I made her recipe a short while back; loved the lemon sauce but the cake was definitely Sahara Desert material LOL.

So, for Grant and for my grandmother, I wanted a lemony cake that had the quality of being cake and at the same time having a sauce. I found this on Allrecipes.com. This is a self-saucing pudding cake that bursts with lemon flavor and then sweetness, both flavors separately and deliciously identifiable upon the tongue. It was a good find and one that I would make again.

Grant, dear, you surprise me and you make me smile. Out of any of us, you are the keeper and the archivist of the family memories. For you, I shall, (one of these days), post Grammy's cottage pudding because you want your children's grandchildren to know what their great- (however many times removed) great grandmother made and to have a connection with their past. What better way than to share food?

Lemon Pudding Cake

4 large eggs, separated
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350F. Have read an 8 x 8 baking pan or casserole and a separate baking dish large enough to hold it because you're going to use a water bath. Have ready hot water for the water bath.

In a medium bowl, combine and beat together egg yolks, lemon juice, lemon rind, and butter or margarine until thick and lemon colored.

Onto a piece of waxed paper or another bowl, combine sugar, flour, and salt. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk to the yolk mixture, beating well after each addition.

Making sure that there is no trace of fat in the egg whites, beat egg whites until stiff peaks are formed when you raise the beater. Blend egg whites into batter on low speed of electric mixer. Pour baking dish.

Place a pan of hot water in the oven, with only enough water to come halfway up the side of the baking dish. Set the baking dish into the pan being careful to avoid being splashed and burned by the hot water. (Or you could put the pan and the baking dish in the oven and carefully add the hot water around the edge of the baking dish, being careful not to spill it into the pudding or to burn yourself on the oven door!)

Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes.

My notes: I used a lemon zester to peel the lemon and used the entire peel of one lemon, so I probably had a little more than a teaspoon of lemon, which is fine with me. I love lemon. I added it to my sugar and whizzed it about in my Magic Bullet to make a lemon flavored caster sugar. Caster sugar is a little finer than regular table sugar but not as fine as confectioners' sugar; it gives a little better texture to baked goods. It's an extra step, totally not necessary.

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate "Chocolate Cake & 7-Minute Frosting

My Ole Sweetie-Pi just turned 61, and when asked what kind of cake he wanted, he requested the same cake that his mother made and the one that he's wanted through the years, chocolate cake with 7-minute frosting.

I have several favorite chocolate cake recipes that I turn to again and again; one of them is the back of the can recipe on the Hershey's Cocoa can, "Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate. Cake. This cake is moist, dark, chocolately, and truly deserves its name.

Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake

2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup boiling water

Heat oven to 350F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round baking pans.

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl.

Add eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin).

Divide equally between two pans.

Bake 30-35 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan to racks. Cool completely. Frost. (Because this cake is so moist, be careful when handling it, it likes to stick to the cooling racks.)

This cake is a good keeper; even after three days, it will still as moist as it was on the first day.


Seven minute frosting is not my personal favorite to eat or to prepare. It's sweet, sticky, (like marshmallow fluff) and can be a little cantankerous to get it to the point where you can use it. (The first time Ole Sweetie-Pi asked me for this frosting, I panicked because I had heard how difficult it could be.) Take your time, follow the directions, have your ingredients, bowls, pot, hot water and beater ready; be prepared to stand over it while it's being beaten, (depending on weather, it may take longer than 7 minutes, today it took 15 minutes because it was cold and rainy outside!) and it should work.

Once it's on the cake, it's positively beautiful. It's glossy, fluffy, understated splendor. With just a flick of my offset spatula, I can make little pulls and peaks in the frosting that make me look as if I know how to decorate a cake (which I most assuredly do not!). This is probably the prettiest cake that I make.

Seven-Minute Frosting

2 egg whites
1 1/2 cups sugar
pinch of salt
1/3 cup water
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients except vanilla in the top of a double boiler. Beat one minute or until thoroughly mixed. Then place this over boiling water (making sure the bottom of the pan does not touch the boiling water) and beat constantly at high speed of an electric mixer for seven minutes (frosting will stand in stiff peaks--you may need to beat it longer to reach this point).
Occasionally stir the frosting from the bottom and sides of the pan to ensure that the frosting is well combined.

Remove the pan from the boiling water and pour at once into a large bowl. Add the vanilla and beat one minute, until thick enough to spread.

You should have enough to generously cover tops and sides of two 8- or 9-inch layers, sides and tops, or a 10-inch tube cake.

This frosting is best enjoyed the day it is made. It starts to droop and crystallize on the second day.

I do not have a double boiler. I use a Pyrex bow with a rim of that sits nicely outside the rim of one of my pots. I do need oven mitts to remove the bowl, but that's a small inconvenience for the cost of a single-use pot, considering I have limited storage space.

Next year when Ole Sweetie-Pi is 62, we'll be having "Perfectly Chocolate" chocolate cake and 7-minute frosting. It's a delicious tradition.