In case you, too, end up with a cake that falls into crumbles, here is the perfect vanilla cake base to rest those rumpled cake crumbs. I just tried it and I now have two crumb cakes resting on the counter awaiting a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
Basic Vanilla Cake
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and mix until well combined but not overmixed.
Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 20-30 minutes depending on the pan you use.
To make the crumb cake, divide the batter between two oblong pans, square one, or 2-3 round pans. You want about half an inch in the pans because the cake crumbs are the star here.
Any kind of dismayed cake attempt will work. Crumble it up with your favorite spices, nuts, raisins, etc. and layer thickly over the batter in the pans and bake.
You will never fail in the kitchen, again . . . or not that anyone will know!
Saturday, April 30, 2011
From the ashes . . . sort of!
I discovered the hard way that my favorite bundt cake pan might be working as well anymore. Sure, I've had cakes giving me some problems in the past but, today, it only gave me back half my beautiful creation when I gently upended it onto the serving plate.
My son said the cake crumbs were delicious and was grabbing bits every time he passed by the deceased ex-culinary delight. It didn't make much of a dent in the pile of crumbs so I wondered what to do without wasting the cake.
Inspiration struck! A crumb cake which I interpreted to be a thin vanilla cake covered with the cake crumbs crushed with cinnamon and sliced almonds. Yes, I had to make another cake but now I have two cakes! I'm hoping I won't write later to tell you that I had to save yet another cake and now have four cakes!
My son said the cake crumbs were delicious and was grabbing bits every time he passed by the deceased ex-culinary delight. It didn't make much of a dent in the pile of crumbs so I wondered what to do without wasting the cake.
Inspiration struck! A crumb cake which I interpreted to be a thin vanilla cake covered with the cake crumbs crushed with cinnamon and sliced almonds. Yes, I had to make another cake but now I have two cakes! I'm hoping I won't write later to tell you that I had to save yet another cake and now have four cakes!
Santa Ana Winds . . .
In our part of the world, we are blessed to be situated somewhat in the foothills of the area. For views, this is wonderful, however, the winds have a way of sliding down those mountains and making life problematic in the flatlands here. It's call the Santa Ana Winds . . . It is definitely not a mild breeze.
It usually doesn't have a gentle beginning. Yesterday, the forecast said the winds would start around midnight . . . and they did all at once with huge gusts that rattled all our windows. Right now, they are about 35 miles per hour with extra hard blasts that make the 35 mile per hour winds look mild when they stop.
Although we sustain some minor damage in the area, our real worry is when they go on too long during dry seasons and a careless person drops a match or something and we have fires.
Several years ago, California was plagues with massive fires that ripped through a lot of areas. There was a growing fire to the west of us and one had started just to the east of us. The worry was what would happen if they converged. They did and when we had to evacuate at two in the morning, all we could see against the night sky was a tower of flames. Because this fire covered so many cities, we were unable to find another place to stay so we went back home and kept our packed cars at the ready in the driveway. The fire was a mile up our street and the infamous Santa Ana winds were going 35-40 miles an hour in our direction. I remember us all standing in the kitchen, holding hands and sending a prayer to God to please stop the wind. Within 30 minutes, the wind suddenly died down, the firemen got it pushed back from the neighborhood, and it was under control. Lots of hard work on the part of the firemen saved the day but I'm sure the heartfelt prayers of everyone on our street didn't go amiss.
It rained ashes for days. A friend in another state said we should get our insurance to pay for the clean up. We didn't. There were so many other people in worse shape that sweeping us ashes was a small price to pay for keeping our home.
Anyway, it has been rather damp the first part of the month so we are praying that the wind continues just as an annoyance and count our blessings.
It usually doesn't have a gentle beginning. Yesterday, the forecast said the winds would start around midnight . . . and they did all at once with huge gusts that rattled all our windows. Right now, they are about 35 miles per hour with extra hard blasts that make the 35 mile per hour winds look mild when they stop.
Although we sustain some minor damage in the area, our real worry is when they go on too long during dry seasons and a careless person drops a match or something and we have fires.
Several years ago, California was plagues with massive fires that ripped through a lot of areas. There was a growing fire to the west of us and one had started just to the east of us. The worry was what would happen if they converged. They did and when we had to evacuate at two in the morning, all we could see against the night sky was a tower of flames. Because this fire covered so many cities, we were unable to find another place to stay so we went back home and kept our packed cars at the ready in the driveway. The fire was a mile up our street and the infamous Santa Ana winds were going 35-40 miles an hour in our direction. I remember us all standing in the kitchen, holding hands and sending a prayer to God to please stop the wind. Within 30 minutes, the wind suddenly died down, the firemen got it pushed back from the neighborhood, and it was under control. Lots of hard work on the part of the firemen saved the day but I'm sure the heartfelt prayers of everyone on our street didn't go amiss.
It rained ashes for days. A friend in another state said we should get our insurance to pay for the clean up. We didn't. There were so many other people in worse shape that sweeping us ashes was a small price to pay for keeping our home.
Anyway, it has been rather damp the first part of the month so we are praying that the wind continues just as an annoyance and count our blessings.
Too much truth in the first quote!
"My own business always bores me to death; I prefer other people's."
-- Oscar Wilde
"The great thing about human language is that it prevents us from sticking to the matter at hand."
-- Lewis Thomas
"It was a book to kill time for those who like it better dead."
-- Dame Rose Macaulay
"It is bad luck to be superstitious."
-- Andrew W. Mathis
-- Oscar Wilde
"The great thing about human language is that it prevents us from sticking to the matter at hand."
-- Lewis Thomas
"It was a book to kill time for those who like it better dead."
-- Dame Rose Macaulay
"It is bad luck to be superstitious."
-- Andrew W. Mathis
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