My Mother was the supreme Southern cake and pie diva in Dallas in the 50's, 60's & 70's. She auctioned her special cakes and pies for the benefit of her church, and made a bunch of money ($25 for a cake in the 60's WOW) for them. She taught me how to make cakes and pies, but I never got the hang of pie crust until I was much older, so I made cakes, cakes and more cakes. I liked whippin' up a one layer cake that two or "baby makes three" could eat on for a few days or a week, so I developed several recipes. I've made them more "homemade" over the years in that I make my own vanilla and use King Arthur flour that is never bleached or bromated (and employee owned BTW). I use unsalted farmer co-op butter/sour cream/milk, organic free range eggs, Rumford baking powder (aluminum free) and other products that are "as close to the land" as possible. Once you can find your sources, it's not that hard. They actually make the cakes taste like they use to in the "olden days." These four cakes are dead easy to make without a mixer. You just need a couple of bowls, spoons, sifter, whisks and a scraper. They all take less than 30 minutes to put together and bake in under one hour and 10 minutes. All told, you can have a cake in under two hours at most, some in under one hour.
Ruby Red Sour Cream Loaf
from Homesick Texan
The first cake is from a "poor" young chef from Houston who now lives in New York City. She yearns for her Texas food roots, develops recipes using NYC ingredients and makes her favorite dishes. This is a lovely cake that expresses South Texas. There is even a ruby red grapefruit pie served there. Ruby Reds are at the peak right now, and, if you can find them, it only takes one to make this delicious cake. I usually buy some at their peak and cheap (they are 4 for $1 now) and juice and zest them and freeze the results to use all year. Grapefruit sections are good snackin' or added to a spinach, crimini and red onion salad with a fig & balsamic dressing on it. Wash the grapefruit well as you will be using the zest of the skin. I've changed the recipe somewhat.
Serves 8
Preheat oven to 325°
Equipment: 9" X 5 1/2" loaf pan
1 1/2 C all-purpose flour, sifted
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 C butter, room temperature
1 1/2 C granulated sugar
2 tsp ruby red grapefruit zest
2 T ruby red grapefruit juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs, room temperature
1/2 C sour cream, room temperature
Glaze:
Powdered sugar
2 T ruby red grapefruit juice
1 T ruby red grapefruit pulp
Grease and lightly flour the loaf pan; I use butter.
Sift together the flour, salt and soda and set aside. Cream the butter and add sugar and beat until getting fluffy. Add grapefruit zest and juice and the vanilla extract, and mix well. Add the eggs one at a time alternating with the sour cream, and mix in. Add the dry ingredients and beat well until smooth.
Pour batter into the loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool the loaf for 15 minutes and then unmold. Mix the glaze adding powdered sugar to the juice and pulp until thickened, pour on top of the loaf and serve. Freezes well double wrapped.
Note: You could use orange, blood orange or lemon in this recipe instead of grapefruit.
Firelight Inn Blueberry Buckle
Blueberries come in season in the summer at the peak of their sweetness, and I usually buy a bunch and freeze them on a cookie sheet, then double bag them and keep them frozen. I use them all the rest of the year thinking of summer. This recipe is from an inn in Oregon, um, I've changed it somewhat.
Serves 6 medium or 12 small pieces
Preheat oven to 375°
Equipment: 8" X 8" pan
1/4 C softened butter
1/2 C sugar*
1 egg at room temperature
1 1/2 C all-purpose flour
2 tsp natural baking powder (Rumford)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4-1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 C milk at room temperature
2 C fresh or frozen blueberries at room temperature
1/2-1 tsp fresh lemon zest
Topping:
1/2 C sugar
1/3 C all-purpose flour
1/4 C butter
1/2 tsp ground saigon cinnamon
Butter an 8" X 8" pan and set aside.
Cream butter and sugar, add egg and mix. Meanwhile sift dry ingredients together. Add dry ingredients and milk alternately to wet mix and beat well. Combine the topping and cut in the butter. Reserve. Fold in blueberries and lemon zest in cake mixture and pour in the 8" X 8" pan. Sprinkle topping over the cake.
Bake for approximately 40-45 minutes until toothpick comes out clean and top and bottom are browned. I like cooking this in a pyrex square pan. I can see the bottom!
NOTE: The sugar varies by the sweetness in the berries by 1/4 a cup or so. You can use raspberries, strawberries marionberries or cherries.
Vegan Chocolate Cake
This chocolate goodness is the easiest and quickest to bake. You could add some fruits or nuts to the cake or both. It just depends on what you like. I've even added some peppers and toasted pecans!
Serves 8
Preheat oven to 350°
Equipment: 9" round cake pan
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1/3 C unsweetened dutch process cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1 C white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
5 T neutral oil like grapeseed or canola
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 T apple cider vinegar
1 C cold water
Grease and flour a cake pan. On a chocolate cake, I like to use sifted cocoa powder for the flour as it blends in with the cake.
Sift together the dry ingredients and mix together the wet ingredients and then mix together until smooth. Pour into the cake pan and bake for about 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove from the oven and turn the broiler on till hot. Stick the cake back in for maybe 3-5 minutes. Watch it so the top just gets a little crusty, not burned. Remove from the oven. If you are taking the cake somewhere, let it sit for 10 minutes and unmold from pan, if not, just leave it in the pan.
To pretty it up a little, place a lacy paper doily on top and sift some powdered sugar over it. Remove the doily, admire your creative talent, and enjoy!
This cake is very moist, therefore, I recommend broiling it a bit. It is really a good, deep chocolate flavor, and you could add raisins or cherries or nuts or some of both to it to change it up a bit.
Irish Porter Cake
from Forgotten Skills of Cooking by Darina Allen
And now for a little Irish! This is the origin of the infamous fruit cakes we get for Christmas only the real deal and so much better. I can't tell you how good this is. I also make a Guinness Quick Bread that is wonderful. Guess anything made with stout is good.
Serves 20 tiny slices which is what you need to serve as this is really rich(but keeps really well)
Preheat oven to 350°
Equipment: 9" round cake pan lined with parchment paper
1 C butter, room temp
1 C + 2 T golden baker's sugar (I use 1 C superfine white sugar + 2 T molasses; you could also use 1 C + 2 T lite brown sugar [grind to super fine])
1 C Irish stout + 4 T in reserve (Guinness is a little bitter; Murphy's is a little sweet; take your pick)
1 tsp orange zest
1/2 C golden raisins
1/2 C raisins
1/2 C mixed candied citrus peel chopped fine (orange, lemon and grapefruit is what I use with the occasional candied and chopped ginger peel thrown in for good measure!)
3 1/2 - 4 C all purpose flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp ground allspice*
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon*
1/2 tsp ground clove*
1/2 tsp ground ginger*
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg*
1/2 C cherries (dried or fresh coarsely chopped)
3 eggs
Place butter, sugar and stout in a saucepan and melt the mixture together. Add the orange zest, raisins and citrus peel, and boil for 3-4 minutes. Take off the heat and let it cool down to room temp.
Sift the flour, soda and spice together, then add the fruit mixture and the cherries. Whisk the eggs together and add gradually to the batter. Pour in the cake pan and bake 50 minutes to 1 hour and 10 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool 15 minutes,and pour 4 T of the stout over the cake. Cover with foil and keep in a cool dark place for 2-3 days and then serve.
*Or 2 tsp. of a spice mix. I grind my own allspice, clove and grate my own nutmeg "nuts", it just tastes fresher. Sometimes I add a star anise and grind it, too, to give an exotic flavor to the cake.
Happy St. Patties Day, y'all!
So, here are my recipes and I hope you try them and enjoy them. Let me know in comments if you would like me to do a fall version of "Cakes For Two."
What's For Dinner at your place?