Tag Archives: cake

Jun6

Blueberry-Pecan Cake for a Happy Father’s Day

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Blueberry-Pecan Cake

Just in time this recipe is coming to you for a Father’s day treat. The establishment of Father’s Day has an interesting convoluted history.  In 1910, Sonora Smart Dodd, whose father, William Jackson Smart, was a Civil War Veteran, told her pastor that fathers should have a similar holiday as mothers did. Her father was a single parent who reared his six children in Spokane, WA. And she was in great admiration of him. She originally wanted it on her father’s birthday, June 5, however because there wasn’t enough time for the pastors to arrange their sermons, the holiday was deferred to the third Sunday of June. The holiday never really caught on however, in 1913 a bill was introduced in Congress for the national recognition of Father’s Day.  Congress resisted because they felt that the holiday would become too commercialized. President Coolidge recommended it in 1924, but once again is was defeated by Congress.  In 1957, Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith wrote a proposal accusing Congress of ignoring fathers for 40 years and pointed out that it wasn’t fair to celebrate only one parent—the mother. So finally, in 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first presidential proclamation honoring fathers and designating the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day.  However, the day wasn’t made a permanent national holiday till 6 years later when President Richard Nixon signed it into law in 1972.  Whew!!!!  Finally!!!!

A Happy Father’s Day to all Fathers everywhere.

Ingredients:

Non-stick cooking spray

2 tsp. all-purpose flour

5 Tblsp. butter

3/4 C. granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2/3 C. low-fat buttermilk

2 tsp. grated orange rind

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 ½  tsp.vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1/4  tsp. baking soda

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

2 C. fresh or frozen blueberries (you can use as little as 1 C)

1/3 C. finely chopped pecans (but you also can use walnuts)

2 Tblsp. sifted powdered sugar

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

  1. Coat a 9-inch round spring form pan with cooking spray and dust the pan with 2 tsp. flour
  2. Place butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Cover and micro on high 1 minute or until butter is melted
  3. Add granulated sugar, stirring with a whisk.
  4. Add eggs, stir well.
  5. Stir in buttermilk and next 6 ingredients (buttermilk through baking soda); stir well
  6. Lightly spoon 1 ½ C. flour into dry measuring cups and level with a knife. Add flour to mixture, stirring just until blended. (Do not over stir.)
  7. Stir in blueberries and pecans/walnuts.
  8. Spoon mixture into prepared pan, spreading evenly.
  9. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until lightly browned and a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
  10. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack.
  11. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and cut into wedges.
  12. Bon Appetit

Are you a frustrated, overworked or timid cook? Call Margot for help @ 721-3551

& please feel free to email her @ TempInnKeeper@mindspring.com or to visit her blog for more recipes including these: http://blog.TempInnKeeper.com

Margot is a self-taught enthusiastic & passionate cook. Having been an inn-keeper for 5 years at her own inn, she accumulated a lot of good recipes which she loves to share.

 

May29

Quick-Quick-Quick Skillet Cake

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QUICK—QUICK—-QUICK  SKILLET CAKE (and easy as well)

Here’s an iron skillet cake that I love.  It’s so easy to make and so good to eat.  I use either walnuts or almonds for the topping.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1/4 tsp. baking powder

Pinch of salt

1/2 tsp. vanilla for a walnut topping or almond extract if using an almond topping

2 large eggs

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 stick sweet butter, melted

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts or almonds

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350

  1. Butter a 9-inch iron skillet and sprinkle some flour over it all.
  2. In a medium size bowl whisk the eggs and sugar together.  Add the butter and whisk until satiny.  Stir in the flour mixture; whisk until smooth.  Spread batter in the skillet and top with the walnuts or almonds.
  3. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
  4. If you wish, drizzle some raspberry jam over it. I do and it makes it extra yummy and pretty.
  5. Serve slightly warm or at room temp.  I tie a pretty napkin or scarf around the handle.
  6. Ice cream goes great with this.

Bon Appetit!!!!

 

 

Apr19

Gingerbread Pudding Cake

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A Recipe……………from my table to yours

And I had but one penny in the world, thou should’st have it to buy gingerbread.

— William Shakespeare, “Love’s Labor’s Lost”

 

Having good yummy smells coming from the kitchen is always a delight at any time of the year, however, during holiday times, because everyone’s senses seem keener with the anticipation of good things to arrive, this is just a perfect recipe to make. I have found that the easiest thing to do with this type of recipe is to put all of your spices out on one side of your mixing bowl and as soon as you have added it, to place the spice on the other side.  That way there won’t be any confusion.  I also use the ¼ sized measuring teaspoon for all of the spices and for the salt and soda.  So, for instance, for the 1 teaspoon of ginger, I used 4 of the ¼ teaspoons.  For me that is the simplest way, but do whatever is best for you.

 

As a side note, an early form of gingerbread can be traced to the ancient Greeks and Egyptians who used it for ceremonial purposes.  It appeared in Europe with the 11th-century crusaders who brought the spice back from the Middle East for the well to do to experiment with.  Gingerbread became so popular in Europe that there were even gingerbread fairs.

 

Gingerbread Pudding Cake (a breakfast delight!)

8 servings

Step One

1 ¼ C. flour

1 tsp. ground ginger

¾ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. ground cinnamon

¼ tsp. ground nutmeg

¼ tsp. ground allspice

¼  tsp. ground cloves

¼ tsp. salt

Step Two

¼ C. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.

¼ C. sugar

 

2 Tblsp. beaten egg (from 1 egg)

 

½ C. light molasses

½ C. water

 

¾  C. brown sugar

 

 

Step Three

1 ½ C. hot water

5 Tblsp. unsalted butter, melted

 

SERVE WITH

Whipped Cream or Yogurt

Pre-directions

*Preheat oven to 350.

*Butter 8 X 8 X 2 inch inch glass baking dish

Step 1

*Whisk flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves and soda in medium bowl.

Step 2

*Using electric mixer, beat the ¼ C. room temp. butter and the ¼ C. sugar in a large bowl until blended.

* Beat in the 2 Tblsp. egg.

*Stir the ½ C. molasses and the ½ C. water in 1-cup glass measuring cup.

*Add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 additions alternately with molasses mixture, beating to blend between additions.

*Transfer to prepared dish.

*Sprinkle the ¾ C. brown sugar over all.

Step 3

*Stir the 1 ½ C. hot water and 5 tblsp. melted butter in a 2-cup glass measuring cup.

*Carefully pour over top of batter (there will be lots of liquid on top of cake).

Baking directions

*Bake until gingerbread is cracked on top and toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

Serving hints

*Scoop warm pudding cake into shallow bowls.

*Serve with whipped cream or yogurt.

 

(It may be a bit tedious to make, but it’s worth it as you will see.) 

 

Bon Appetit

Margot Van Horn

http://www.inn-ovation.info

inn-ovation@earthlink.net