Mustard on the way....

Over the next week or so my new range of whole grain mustards will launch... watch this space for more details or checkout www.ottsmustard.co.uk or follow me on twitter @ottsmustard

A busy time of year...

who isn't busy at this time of year? I have been spending the last couple of months honing the recipes for my new range of Mustards which will soon be available. More of that and some winter warmers soon!

Dinner at Mr. Underhill's

We had known about Mr. Underhill’s for some time since coming to Ludlow two years ago, and now, we have been supplying the flowers for the restaurant since the fall of 2009. But my first experience at Mr. Underhill’s was in January of this year; all of my expectations completely and utterly surpassed, I thought it was perfect in every way. Unpretentious but attentive and intelligent service.  Food -  where every taste had been so carefully thought about: flavor, texture, intensity, continuity, building to a crescendo, leaving you utterly satisfied - like one of the great romantic musical arches composed by Rachmaninoff. On the wine list, I found one of my all time favorites - a small eclectic wine make from Bonny Doon in Santa Cruz California. I was, all night long, on the edge of my seat. Before we had left that night, we had agreed that Judy would let us know when the next available date we could come again. 

On May the 15th, Phil and I will have been together for 6 years, so when May 12th opened up for us to experience Mr. Underhill’s again, we thought we would also use it as an opportunity to celebrate our time together.

Last night, the experience lived up to its Michelin starred status. Absolutely delightful. The menu was exciting - simple descriptions that tell you exactly what you are about to eat, but once delivered, you are thrilled to see the mastery in which it has been executed. I tried to use a different adjective for each course, but the words failed me. One time I thought I might even shed a tear as I experienced absolute culinary perfection - especially the duck liver custard with sweetcorn cream and lemongrass glaze. It is food that is thrilling, joyous and inspired - small portions (but lots of them) leaving you wishing there was just another bite. By the time you have coffee and chocolates you couldn’t manage another morsel. 

Im sure you must all think I have gone a little over the top about the way I described last night, but I promise you, I have not. You must experience it for yourself to see that I have been absolutely true. If you have never been or haven’t been in a while, call and make a reservation to experience what Chris and Judy Bradley have at Mr. Underhill’s. Thank you to you both. Bravo!

Ludlow Spring Festival

If anyone happens to be in town this weekend for the Spring Festival, please stop in to Abundant Saturday or Sunday (8 & 9 May). We'll be here and would love to say Hi!
Have a great weekend.

Sugar Cookies

Miss Lucy was the matriarch of the Lussenden family. She had lived in Montana all her life and had been the wife of Malcolm for some forty years. Together they had settled in the north west part of the state and owned some of the most beautiful ranch land in Montana. The ranch was called the “A Lazy 6”. She’d done it all... Birthed lambs, calves, fought off grizzlies, shot rattlesnakes, helped Malcom work the herd of their prized black angus cattle from the saddle of her Tobiano Paint mare. She was a real Montana Annie Oakley.

She wasn’t a style icon, but definitely had a style. She was always (I cant stress always enough) in pants (rayon - easy care polyester) and usually in green or light brown (you’ll understand in a minute). Her tops were (again, very easy care) patterned (colorful and bold) and short sleeved.  Her outfits were always set off by her hair. It had always been, and would always be, a fiery orangie-red color that mysteriously escaped any grey.  Mabel, one of the beauticians in the little town of Choteau that did Luciles hair, must have been sworn to secrecy about the color that she used to keep her hair that distinctive and never changing color. 

The Lussenden ranch was adjacent to the bit of land my grand dad first bought in 1973. As Malcolm and Lucile had been ranching for almost all their lives and were ready to retire and in 1974 my grand dad bought the A Lazy 6. The ranch was about a 45 minute drive to town. All but the first 4 or 5 miles was a dirt road. In the winter storms that would snow them in for weeks at a time. The spring kept them busy with fixing fences to miles of jack-leg and pole barbed-wire fences. In the summer they would be busy with haying while the calves were born in the fall. No matter the reason or season, she had food in a pantry that would have lasted for months.... Months. Not just a cupboard with 3 shelves - but a room full of shelves filled with provisions that would “last for a good long while.”

From the turn off from the main road, the house was at the end of a 6 mile track and about halfway of that was visible from her kitchen window that looked east. She could see you coming. At first you could see just the dust and then the color and shape of what was coming up the drive. By the time you got to the house, she had a fresh pot of coffee and hot, out of the oven, sugar cookies waiting - every time. And this is how she did it.

(My dear grand mother being from the south always brought with her, her most impeccable manners. We had to use “Miss” in front of a woman's given name and “mister” before a man’s name. So she was always was - and still is to this day, Miss Lucy.)

Miss Lucy bought orange juice in frozen concentrate that came in the cardboard cans with metal lids. After she made orange juice, she would save the cans (and the lids). She would fill the cans with sugar cookie dough and loosely put the top lid back on and would keep these ever-ready cans of cookie dough in the refrigerator. When she saw someone coming up the road to the house, she would take the can, remove the top lid, use a can opener on the bottom lid and start pushing the dough thru the can, slicing a circle of dough off every 1/4 inch thick and laying these circles onto her baking tray. Into a hot oven where 6 or 7 minutes later were the most delicate, delicious treats. If you didn't already admire her for all she could do outside the house, this remarkable woman could not just cook, but she could bake.

No matter what impression I may have given you from the above paragraphs, I will always hold her in the highest regard. She not only shared many of her recipes with me and taught me about the mechanics of cooking and baking, but she also taught me one of my greatest life lessons. 

A couple years later I had come to visit her at the home she and Malcolm bought after they moved away from the A Lazy 6. They lived right in town now, and because she didn't have the 10 minutes to prepare coffee and cookies after seeing someone coming up the drive, I stood in the kitchen chatting with her while she baked cookies for me. All those times before the cookies were ready before we walked into her kitchen. Now, I was seeing it happen from fridge, to oven, to plate. I knew she never used a kitchen timer and now the cookies had been in the oven for a few minutes and I innocently asked her “how do you know when they're done?” She went to the oven and opened the door and listened. She said to me, “you listen, it will always tell you when its ready.”

At the time, I really didn't pay too much attention. I thought it was a strange thing to say from a little bit of an odd woman in polyester with red hair. I don't know how many years later when I thought about what she said and how it stopped me in my tracks to contemplate this great truth she had laid before me.... Because its not just about listening into an oven filled with cookies. It is being with my daughter Haley, teaching her to drive a standard transmission truck and she asks, “how do you know when to shift?” - well you listen to the engine don’t you? It is about listening for the silence when someone is talking, letting them finish before you start talking. It is about being silently reminded to stop and listen to the quiet things in our very busy lives.

So here it is, Miss Lucy’s, Sugar Cookie recipe that she would make up in advance, as part of her store house of readiness and would always have on hand in orange juice cans, ready to bake at a moments notice.

Miss Lucy’s Sugar Cookies

1 c. butter

1 1/2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. white sugar

1 c. oil

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

4 c. flour

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. baking soda

Cream butter, powdered sugar, white sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Mix in flour, salt, cream of tartar, and baking soda. Place dough on plastic wrap and mold into long sausage shaped rolls. Refrigerate overnight. Cut into circles 1/4’ thick. Leave a little room for spreading. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes minutes. (Bake just until the edges start to turn golden. Don’t over bake.) Makes 75 cookies.

Mexican Cornbread Casserole

Mexican Cornbread Casserole

Its funny what you forget and remember. I hadn’t thought about making this forever. I know I haven’t made this casserole in the last 6 years.  But when I was thinking today about what to make for dinner, I thought about the cornbread recipe I posted yesterday and I was reminded about making this for some reason. Easy and almost one pot and delicious. Its easy to double if you need to feed a lot. This serves 4-6 people all depending on how hungry the boys are. Make the meat mixture first and then make the cornbread recipe to put on top. Scrumptious.

1 pound ground beef

Browned off in a skillet - drain grease off and put aside.

1 onion - diced

1/2 bell pepper - any color - diced

1/2 Jalapeno - minced or quarter or whole - optional and up to you how hot you want it

Saute onion and peppers in a little olive oil for 5-10 minutes.

Add the beef back into the pan. Add

1 can corn - (liquid drained) 12 ounce (+/-)

1 can diced tomatoes (15 ounce +/-)

1/4 cup water

1 envelope taco seasoning (or similar)

1 handful chopped cilantro

Continue to heat for another 5 minutes until hot thru.

Spoon into a 9x13 pan.

Sprinkle onto the beef mixture

2 cups grated cheddar or monterey jack or pepper jack

Make a batch of cornbread and spoon over the meat and cheese.

Bake in a 350F oven for 20-30 minutes until golden brown and the batter is cooked thru.

Cornbread

We left Louisiana in 1966 when I was 5 after dad had finished seminary at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary to start a church in Mt. Clemens Michigan. We lived in the north (Michigan then Montana) until 1993 when I got married, but the south is where our roots were - on both sides of our family. Moms parents, even though not Cajun, were in the heart of Cajun country since the 1930’s. So by the time I was old enough to watch and learn what was going on in the kitchen, grandmother and granddaddy had 35 years of practice making gumbos, jambalayas, etouffees along with red beans and sausage, beignets and dirty rice. Stuffed crabs, fresh oysters bought in 3 foot burlap bags and crayfish boils big enough to feed 100 people became food events. My love affair with making the perfect roux, finding  great boudin and andouille sausages, and understanding the holy trinity of onion, celery and bell pepper was all part of what I was able to learn from mom and her family.

Dad’s family was from the other end of the state in north Louisiana. Rural, country farmers where I found the other half of my culinary passion. Here it was biscuits and sausage gravy, chicken and dumplings, cornbread, ham red-eye gravy, fried chicken with mashed potatoes and milk gravy, black-eyed peas with ham hocks, turnip greens with hot water cornbread, fried catfish, yellow perch and crappie caught fresh from the lakes, fried okra and it goes on and on. Dad’s mom could cook though believe you me! WHEW... Dad picked up a few things along the way being 8 out of 10 kids, but give that woman a chicken and she could save the world. Chickens were always around for more than just eggs. On a nice day during the summer, shed kill and dress maybe 6 chickens at a time, use 1 for dinner and then put in the freezer for later. It was all just part of the life there.

I was lucky because it just wasn't my grandparents that could cook... My mom could also cook. I think mom was a much better cook before the introduction of the food processor came along - because then she got lazy. Instead of chopping onions with a knife, she’d use the food processor and practically juice the onions. So consequently all the flavors of her cooking started to change - not good. I’m not saying that food processors/choppers don’t have their place - just don’t forget that so does a knife.

Anyway - of all the foods I listed above, I'm going to give you the recipe for cornbread as it was a staple. Several times a week, mom would mix up a batch, pour the batter into a black cast iron skillet (the same skillet every time) so it was ready, hot and delicious every time with dinner.

The History....

Mom’s recipe was based on 7 “ones” so it made it easy to remember.... 1 cup flour, 1 cup cornmeal, 1 tbsp baking powder, 1 tbsp sugar and so on.... When we lived in Michigan, we would go to dinner at the home a church member and they would make cornbread for dad. It was always sweeter than how mom would make. It was always sweeter in the north, not so sweet in the south. Dad would always obligingly eat a slice but always complain about it on the way home. Mine is somewhere in the middle - not sweet, but sweeter than how mom made it.

I always make a fresh batch of cornbread when I’m making cornbread dressing. When I do - I always make it exactly the way mom did.

The Pan

Cast iron, cast iron, cast iron. Yes, you can use a glass pan or other baking dish but it wont come out of the pan the same. You’ll have to keep it in the glass pan, slice it and then use a fork or spatula to get them out. So, find yourselves a good 8inch cast iron pan. If you can’t find a used one at a junk shop for a dollar, you’ll have to buy a new one for $30 and break it in with time and lots of use. (A friend I worked with one time, bought a new pan, put a palm sander fitted with emery cloth, turned it on automatic and left if going buzzing around his new pan for an hour. When he came back to check on it he said the bottom was as smooth as glass and saved him years of stirring to get it that smooth.)

Before you start mixing the ingredients. Put the pan on the stove over medium heat. Add a couple tablespoons oil and leave to get smoking hot. By the time you’ve mixed the batter up, you’re pan will be perfect. Here is the thing about cast iron... You can get it super hot and with a good coating of even hotter oil. When you pour the batter into the pan, it immediately starts to seal and prevents sticking. Try this in a greased cold pan and you’ll have to scrape it out.

The Recipe

Preheat your oven to 375F.

1 cup flour
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 tbsp sugar (I use 2-3 tbsp)
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 can evaporated milk (not sweetened condensed)
1 egg

Mix all ingredients quickly until all blended and pour into your hot hot pan. Put into a 375F oven for about 20 minutes - until golden brown on top. 

Here is a good tip to get it out of the pan instead of just turning it out onto a plate and hoping for the best that it all comes out of the pan. Get a good pot holder so you can hold onto the handle with both hands. Give the pan a good shake back and forth until you feel it come loose in the pan. Then you can turn it out perfectly onto a plate to enjoy - with butter!


I haven't found cornmeal in England but i have found a perfect substitution - Polenta. I buy organic polenta from our health food store. I think its exactly the same thing - just a different name.

Things Change - and That's OK

I was 14 - maybe 15 when one of the ladies in the church showed my mom how to make her own mints, like peppermints - only not. The ingredients were cream cheese, powdered sugar, peppermint oil and the color of choice - green, red, blue, yellow - a minty rainbow. In small grey rubber molds - with maybe 12 small but identical depressions, you would force the confectionery putty into the molds and let it sit for an hour I guess. Pop them out onto a plate of sugar and stack them up in your trusty Tupperware box between sheets of waxed paper. 

Like anything new - you get a little excited about it I guess - and mom got excited about these mints. She made them for people coming over for dinner, church open houses, parties - any reason she could find - the mints followed - by what seemed like thousands. At the time, I didn’t like cream cheese and I complained about the taste of the cream cheese that came thru the mint extract. Both my mother and grand mother admonished me on how I couldn’t possibly taste the cream cheese. Over the years I grew to love cream cheese and my taste for many other lovely things grew and grew.
.......

Growing up, we bought most salad dressings in bottles - except ranch of course - a cup of mayonnaise, another cup of buttermilk and a packet of seasoning mix. Who couldn’t resist it. But our blue cheese was always in the back of the fridge and infrequently used. In high school, my friend Marjorie Cannon gave to me a lovely collection of recipes that she assembled and illustrated with vintage sepia drawings. One of them was Blue Cheese Dressing - another cheese that I scoffed in my youth but have grown to rapturously adore. Years later, I re-found her recipe and I was hooked for life. 

Sometimes you fall in and out of habit of making certain things (not for any reason really) - it happens to me all the time. You might change stores, make a move, things change and without realizing you don’t think about making some of the things you like and enjoy. i hadn't made this dressing for years, but i re-found it again and wondered to myself how i could have settled for bottled blue cheese and why i had forgotten to make such a splendid covering. So here it is - a salad dressing that will make you swoon - and never forget about it.

1 cup sour cream

1 cup mayonnaise

6 ounces crumbled blue cheese - as strong as you like

3 tbsp finely diced red onion

2 tbsp white vinegar or lemon juice

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1 clove minced garlic (2 if you’re daring)

1-2 tbsp minced capers (optional)

1 tsp black pepper
Salt - optional (I don’t) the cheese usually has enough salt for me and a few of them are salty in their own right.

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and taste it often with delight. Pour into a container with a good fitting lid. Keeps for a couple weeks. Spoon on liberally to any salad or put the celery stick all the way to the bottom while snacking.

Last night, my youngest daughter Anna asked me for help with a power point presentation for her computer class. She has to use her presentation to illustrate the making of her choice of recipe. While this might not be the easiest recipe, it will certainly be one of the most scrumptious.

I always wondered why German Chocolate Cake was called German Chocolate Cake. For a long time, assumed the recipe must have originally come from Germany. It didn’t. Here’s the scoop.

Contrary to popular belief (not just mine), this cake did not originate in Germany. Instead, the name derives from Baker's German's Sweet Chocolate, which was created in 1852 by an Englishman named Samuel German for the Baker’s Chocolate brand. The original recipe for "German's Chocolate Cake" was sent by a Dallas, Texas homemaker to a local newspaper in 1957. The cake became quite popular and General Foods — which owned the brand at the time — distributed the recipe to other newspapers in the country, and sales of Baker's Chocolate are said to have increased by as much as 73%. The possessive form (German's) was dropped in subsequent publications, forming the "German Chocolate Cake" identity we know today.

So here’s the recipe’s, cake and 2 frostings - the traditional coconut and pecan (or sometimes walnut) between the layers and on top, and then a rich plain chocolate buttercream for the sides.

German Chocolate Cake

Before you begin:

Preheat oven to 350F
(read any recipe all the way thru - more often than not, your recipe will turn out better because you’re better prepared.)

Prepare 3 - 9” cake pans. Lightly coat with butter (or spray with pan spray. This keeps the wax paper in place when you’re putting in the batter.) Use a knife, or a pen to mark a sheet of wax paper around the exterior of the pan. Then cut on the line you just drew. Cut 3 circles of wax paper or parchment paper and put in the bottom of each pan.

Separate 4 eggs into 2 bowls - yolks and whites. Make sure both bowls are very clean and there isn’t any yolk that drops into the whites.

2 1/2 cups cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/ tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Sift together in a separate bowl and set aside.

(remember is you don’t have cake flour, replace 5 tablespoons of flour with corn starch)

1 package (4 ounces) German’s Chocolate

1/2 cup boiling water

Take one package of Baker's sweetened chocolate and mix it with 1/2 cup of boiling water. You are done mixing the chocolate once it is all dissolved. Let this cool before adding it to the mixture.

(if you don’t have access to German’s chocolate and you still want a similar product you can use this substitution. 4 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate and 2 Tbsp sugar.)

1 cup butter

2 cups sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine eggs and sugar and mix on high speed until light and fluffy. 3-5 minutes. Add

4 egg yolks

Add in the egg yolks one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add

1 tsp vanilla

The chocolate mixture

Combine into the batter.

1 cup buttermilk

The sifted flour mixture

Combine into the batter - slowly at first and then on high for 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and then mix on high for another 2 minutes.

(If you don’t have buttermilk, add 1 Tbsp lemon juice or white vinegar to 1 cup milk and let stand 10 minutes.)

4 egg whites

Make sure there is not egg yolk in the whites. Take four egg whites and beat them at a high speed until they’re stiff but not dry. About 4 minutes. (When you lift the beater out of the bowl it should have a peak, or pointed tip at the end of it. This means they are done being whipped.)

Now, fold in the stiff egg whites into the batter. (Don’t stir or beat them in, but gently fold them in.)

Here’s what that means. Using a spatula (or spoon or wire whisk), stir from the bottom of the bowl bringing over the top. This will keep the whites as full of air as possible. Stirring or mixing will break them down and the cake wont be as light.

Pour equal amounts of batter into each cake pan.

Put the cake pans into the middle of the oven and bake 30-35 minutes.

Check for doneness by inserting a tooth pick in the middle. If it comes out clean, continue to cool for 10-15 minutes. If it comes out gooey, then put it back in the oven for another 5 minutes. Check again with tooth pick.

Once your cake layers have cooled, remove them from their cake pans. Using a knife, run it around the inside of the pan to loosen it from the sides. Then flip it over on a cooling rack and remove the wax paper from the bottom. Cool completely. The top of these cakes will be a little crumbly around the sides - don't worry. They will also fall slightly back into the pans as they cool.

German Chocolate Cake Frosting - Coconut & Pecan

In a heavy bottomed saucepan, combine

1 cup evaporated milk

1 cup brown sugar

1 stick butter (4 ounces)

Stir over low heat until butter melts. Turn up to medium heat and bring to a full boil stirring continuously. Turn heat down to simmer and continue cooking for 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

4 egg yolks

Temper the egg yolks by adding a spoon (1/4 cup)of the hot mixture to the egg yolks and mix thoroughly. Add another 3 spoons, stirring after each spoon full. Then slowly stir the egg yolk mixture back to the caramel. Bring back to the heat and boil for another minute (you'll notice how the bubbles change in the mix as the egg yolks are cooked. Remove from heat. Stir in

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup pecans

1 1/3 cup coconut (3 ounces)

Combine into the caramel and let cool completely - stirring occasionally.

Chocolate Buttercream

In a mixing bowl, combine

1/2 cup Crisco

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

And cream shortening and butter with electric mixer until light. Add

4 cups powdered sugar (approximately 1 pound)

3/4 cup cocoa powder

Sift together in a separate bowl. Gradually add sugar/cocoa mixture 1 cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often.

2-5 tbsp milk

When all sugar has been mixed in, add milk 1 tablespoon at a time and beat at medium speed until spreading consistency. It doesn’t seem like a lot of milk, but a little goes a long way. If it seems too thin, add 1/2 cup powdered sugar. Mix until light and fluffy - 3 or 4 minutes.

Now lets put it all together. Put the first cake layer on a plate and spread on 1/3 of the coconut/pecan frosting. Add the second layer, second bit of frosting. Top layer and last bit of frosting. Some people like to leave the cake with the sides exposed, but I like to cover them up with scrumptiousness. I mean if you’re going to go for a slice of it, you might as well go all the way. Spread the chocolate buttercream around the sides of the cake. It will be better the next day.

Once You Start a Task, See It Through to the End

I think I was like most kids, I really loved my grandparents. For me, they became the people I loved the most, even more than my parents. Parents were the ones that had the duty of discipline and expressly teaching responsibility. They were the two that I often times didn’t like. I know I must have frustrated them at times, but my grandparents were special. Of both sets of grandparents, our maternal grandparents were the ones that we spent the most time with. My brother and I would spend entire summers with them while we would only spend a week or so during the summer with my dads parents and the rest of his family. We would also spend Christmas and other holidays with my moms parents. That's just the way it worked out, no other reason I think accept they had the means and resources to be with us more often (and us with them) even thou there were 1200 miles between us.

When I first thought about doing a food blog for my kids, the first things that came to mind was my grandmother making Vienna Sausages in Tomato Gravy, funny I know! But every time I make a cake, I think of her - one summer in Louisiana - a failed attempt at my first cake (from a box even) and her gentle words of what could have gone wrong.

So at the age of 12-ish I got everything ready: chocolate cake mix (Devils Food), oven on, other ingredients out, pans prepared, mixer, beater, bowl, spatula. Right, mix for 3 minutes until the color lightens and the consistency changes just a little, done. But instead of finishing, I got distracted (by what I don’t remember) maybe the TV, but I went into the den (right off the kitchen) and sat down with my grandmother (I guess it was the TV).

So when I remembered that I was still in the middle of “the cake”, I got back into the kitchen and turned the mixer back on “to make sure it was still good and mixed.” I continued with my instructions, dividing the batter between the pans and putting it all into the oven. Of course I didn’t realize when they were done, that they hadn’t risen. I continued with removing them from the pan, cooling on a wire rack and frosting. Excited to receive accolades of my prodigious baking I gave my dear grandmother a slice.

Well what I had made was hardly reminiscent of a cake except it was sweet. Tough, flat and only worthy of the birds. I can not say with any certainty “No birds were harmed in the making of this cake.”

I had cut a piece for me as well, so we sat and ate together (well “ate” is somewhat of an exaggeration you can imagine by now). She kindly explained that I shouldn't have turned the mixer on a second time, that I beat all the air out of the batter, and that once you start a cake, finish it.

So here is one of my favorite of cakes and maybe one of the most forgiving. Because of the carrots and nuts, it comes with texture so if its not perfect, you’ll still make taste buds dance.

Carrot Cake

Preheat oven to 350F

2 1/2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp salt

Combine and sift together and set aside

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

Combine eggs and sugar and mix on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. The color will change to light, pale and lemony. You’ll also notice the consistency change just a little, its called ribboning. You’ll see it in the pattern left by the beaters. Add

1 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Flour Mixture

Stir oil and flour mixture into sugar and eggs and mix for 2 minutes.

3 cups grated carrot

Stir into the batter just until combined

Pour into 3, 8” prepared cake pans

What does “prepared” mean? The old books (and I guess even the newer editions) say to butter and flour the pans. That is to spread a small amount of butter or fat over the inside of the pan, bottom and sides. Next it is to spoon in a little flour and to knock it around the pan, creating a dusting of flour, sticking to all the butter and then knocking the extra flour out of the pan, into the sink or trash bin. Now, they say, that the pan is ready for filling with your carefully prepared batter.

Years ago I read that you shouldn’t butter and flour the sides because it kept the batter from raising properly up the sides. The flour essentially kept the sides from rising while the center rising high. You end up with a cake layer thats not even top to bottom. While this works, one of the tricks of a baker is to get the cake out of the pan in one complete piece. Flouring the bottoms only, pieces of the bottom of the cake still stick and then it become a patch job with the icing.

The method I have settled on is much simpler and guarantees a smooth exit from the pan. Lightly butter or spray the pan with your favorite pan spray and cut a circle of wax paper or parchment paper to fit into the bottom of the pan. Thats really all you have to do. Comes out perfect every time. The butter or spray keeps the paper circle in place while you pour in the batter.

Bake for 25-30 minutes at 350F, 175C or gas mark 4

When done, remove from oven and let cool for about 10 minutes. Then remove from pans and transfer to wire racks to cool completely

To check for doneness simply take a tooth pick or wooden skewer and pierce the middle (or thickest part) of the cake. Into the bottom and out. If it comes out clean, the cake is done. If it comes out with a bit of batter on the tooth pick, put it back into the oven for another 5 minutes and check it again in the same way. There is a “touch” test, but I never do this. Even if I don’t have a toothpick or skewer, I take a piece of straw out of the broom (make sure its clean) and use it in the same way.

Letting the cake cool is an important step. If you try to take the cake out of the pan as soon as it comes out of the oven, the cake is very tender and most likely will break apart when you try to handle it. So remove the pans from the oven, let them cool for about 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and cake. Flip the pan over onto a wire rack and let it fall out. You can then peel off the wax paper. Perfect. Now if you don’t have wire racks, turn them out onto plates with the paper side down. This will allow you to pick the cakes up when cool and then peel off the paper - still perfect. After 10 minutes the fats in the cake are still soft and the cake is set enough and yet still warm enough to make it easy to get out of the pan. If you let the cakes cool completely in the pan, it is more difficult to get the cake cleanly out of the pan.

Now that your cakes are cool, they’re ready to frost.

Cream Cheese Icing

8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

4 ounces butter, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

1 pound powdered sugar

Cream butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. About 2 or 4 minutes. Add the vanilla and powdered sugar. Mix on low speed until combined. On high, continue to mix until smooth. Stir in

1 cup chopped pecans

Any leftover icing can be stored in an airtight container

All ready to go. Mentally divide the batch of icing into 4 parts. Place a little dollop of icing in the middle of your plate. This will keep the cake moving around the plate while you try to frost it. Place the first layer on the plate and put about a quarter of the icing on the layer - pushing it to the edges. Repeat with the second and third layers. Use the last quarter of the icing on the sides. Even if its not the most beautiful cake, it will be much more delicious than my first attempt. Each cake you make will be lovelier than the last.

Now at some point in your baking career, if you ever want to use a piping tip to make a nice design on a smooth iced cake, add the nuts to the cake (with the carrots) instead of the icing. It will be lovely and smooth to put thru a bag.

This is the perfect cake to try first. Anyone you make it for will love it - almost fool proof - just remember, once you start, keep going till its in the oven.