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A Note from the Doctor
A Note from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Q & A
Recipe Swap
Hot Tip
Next Issue: April

Who says you need a low-carb diet to shed holiday pounds? Just visit the Cake Mix Doctor's house, and I'll put you through the rigors of a winter clean-fest. You'll eat all the cake you like, and you'll still go home feeling fit!

It started when we moved my desk from one room to the next. That led to cabinets being dusted, floors scrubbed, closets cleaned out, pictures rehung, outgrown clothes taken to charity, and finally 12 boxes of cookbooks hauled in from the garage - slowly, so I didn't wind up at the chiropractor.

But I am sure you have plenty to do in your own busy homes, especially with Valentine's Day approaching. Reading our Cake Mix Doctor Community Board, and the iVillage message board, of which I am the guest February cook, it appears all sorts of heart-shaped, chocolate-draped desserts are already in the planning stages. If you are short of ideas on what to serve your loved ones, check out these boards. And, here are my top picks for love-ly Valentine cakes:

• Love Cake (book 1)


• Chocolate Love Cake (book 2)


• Quick Red Velvet Cake (book 1)


• The Perfect Chocolate Cake (book 2)


• Triple Decker Strawberry Cake (book 1)


• Devil's Food Hearts (book 2)

Whatever your passion, lemon or chocolate (or both!), I do hope you partake of it. Have a happy, healthy, and safe February and March, and just bake your heart out!
Happy Baking,
Anne

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It was your presence that helped convince iVillage.com to make Anne "Cook of the Month" for February (ignore the "for January," iVillage is working on a correction). While the site was always a hit, as far back as October The Atlanta Journal Constitution started interviewing and noting regular site denizens like Barbara McCarthy of Pomona, CA. And check out how you made John DeMers of The Houston Chronicle want to be "a doctor."

There are now over 14,000 subscribers to "A Piece of Cake" and growing. The Community Board has never been livelier. Your are truly the icing on our cake!

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Since the new year arrived and the diet books are selling like buttered hotcakes, I wanted to share some reminders on how to reduce the amount of fat in your cakes. Anytime vegetable oil is called for in a recipe, you can substitute a fruit puree for much of that oil. This puree might be applesauce, mashed bananas, pureed apricots or peaches, prune puree, or canned pumpkin. It might be any of those pureed and strained baby food fruits.

Begin by reducing the amount of oil by 1/4 cup, and then adding 1/4 of the chosen puree. The next time, be more adventuresome and go up to 1/2 cup, if desired. Choosing the flavor is tricky as the cake tends to take on the fruit flavor. Applesauce is a little strange in chocolate cake batter, for example, but it is delicious with yellow or white cake. On the other hand, bananas are naturals for chocolate batter, and pumpkin marries nicely with spice cake batter. Be creative!

Champagne Cake: Another Valentine Cake

New bride, Sally Cole Miller of Grants Pass, OR, wanted a Champagne Cake as her wedding cake but couldn't find a baker in town to make one. She ended up with a carrot cake. "It was beautiful, but it wasn't my dream cake." So Sally set out to create that cake so others might have a dreamy cake. And she plans on serving this cake for her first anniversary.

Champagne Cake: Use a white cake mix and substitute Champagne for the water. Add the eggs and oil called for on the box, plus one drop of red food coloring to give it a pale pink color. "It smells wonderful while baking," Sally says, "and it is a great idea for Valentine's Day."

Authentic Red Velvet Cake Frosting

Jo Ellen Helmlinger of Columbus, OH, once researched the history of Red Velvet Cake for Duncan Hines. She says a Mock Whipped Cream Frosting (also known as Poor Man's Whipped Cream or Depression Icing) was the first and most traditional frosting used on that cake. "I know that many people now use cream cheese frosting, but it is hard to beat the silky texture and buttery flavor of this frosting."
Thanks, Jo Ellen. The yummy recipe follows:

Mock Whipped Cream Frosting

5 tablespoons all-purpose flour, sifted
1 cup whole milk
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Place the flour and the milk in a 2-quart saucepan. Whisk together over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool slightly. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Chill this mixture overnight.

The next day, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy in a large mixing bowl. Add the vanilla. Add chilled milk mixture and beat until the frosting has the consistency of whipped cream. This is enough frosting for a 9-inch two-layer cake.

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Q. Is it possible to convert the Chocolate Macaroon Ring Cake into a two-layer cake using the macaroon filling between the layers?—Andrea

A. Because the filling contains eggs, I would not use it as an uncooked filling between layers. Instead, fold the sweetened, flaked coconut into whipped cream and flavor with almond extract. Frost with the Chocolate Pan Frosting.

Q. I hear carrot cakes taste very good using baby food carrots. If I were to substitute pureed baby carrots instead of shredded carrots, how much should I use? —Ellen Davidson

A. Those baby food days are a blur right now, but I would calculate this one by weight. If a cup of shredded carrots weighs about 4 ounces, then I would substitute 4 ounces of baby food carrots. So, 2 cups of shredded carrots equals 8 ounces baby food carrots, 3 cups is 12 ounces, and so on. (I am sure I will hear from a mom/math major telling me I am all wrong!)

Q. My husband has a very old recipe for a cake that his mother used to bake. She passed away several years ago, and he has asked that I bake her cake for him. One of the ingredients is Spry. I don't know what it is. Do you? —Christine M. Jessup

A. Spry was once a brand of vegetable shortening. It was introduced in 1936 to compete with Crisco, but was later discontinued. I am guessing you can add another vegetable shortening. Anyone ever tried this?

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Linda's Tucson Lemon Cake

When D. Polly Kendrick requested a Tucson Lemon Cake recipe in December, I had no idea how near and dear lemon cake recipes were. Citrus grows well in sunny Arizona, where lemon and orange trees bear prodigious fruit, and the residents of Tucson and Phoenix look for ways to incorporate them in their baking. But I found you don't have to reside in Arizona to love lemon cake.

What makes this cake distinguishable is the 13-by 9-inch pan size and also how you poke it with holes right after it comes out of the oven. Then you spoon over a tart lemon juice and confectioners' sugar glaze that seeps down into the hot cake. Hungry yet? Several variations follow.

The first is a sheet cake made by Linda Williams in Nashville, TN. Wouldn't you know? I was looking for a Tucson cake, and this one arrives via e-mail from Linda who is just down the road, as we say! It's a great cake, and begins with a yellow cake mix. To make this cake even more lemony, add a teaspoon of grated fresh lemon zest to the glaze.

Makes 20 servings
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Baking time: 35 minutes
Assembly time: 3 minutes

Cake:
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix
1 package (3 ounces) lemon gelatin
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream

Glaze:
2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2 lemons)

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 13-by 9-inch pan with vegetable oil spray. Set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix, gelatin, eggs, oil, milk, and sour cream in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more. The batter should look well combined. Pour the batter into the pan. Place the pan in the oven.

3. Meanwhile, whisk together the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set it aside.

4. Bake the cake until the top lightly springs back and it is golden brown, about 35 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Immediately poke holes in the top of the cake with a fork, being careful not to tear the cake. Spoon the lemon glaze over the cake so that it seeps into the holes.

5. If possible, Linda says to wait until the cake is cool to cut. But to be honest with you, we could not wait, and we ate it warm. It was delicious!

Elaine's Lemon Supreme Cake

Elaine Haren says this cake will be a favorite of yours and anyone who tries it. And it was similar to many recipes sent in by readers such as Cristina Nikkel and Melissa A. of Costa Mesa, CA, who says she knows it as Maryanne's Lemon Cake. Her 80-year-old co-worker named Maryanne used to bring this cake into the office. And she added grated lemon zest to the glaze. My husband adored this cake because the glaze was more lemony and tart than the other recipes. There is also more of it to soak into the cake.

Makes 20 servings
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Baking time: 35 minutes
Assembly time: 3 minutes

Cake:
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain lemon cake mix
1 package (3 ounces) lemon gelatin
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water

Glaze:
2 cups confectioners sugar, sifted
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 3 to 4 lemons)

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 13-by 9-inch pan with vegetable oil spray. Set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix, gelatin, eggs, oil, and water in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more. The batter should look well combined. Pour the batter into the pan. Place the pan in the oven.

3. Meanwhile, whisk together the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl. Set it aside.

4. Bake the cake until the top lightly springs back and it is golden brown, about 35 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Immediately poke holes in the top of the cake with a fork, being careful not to tear the cake. Spoon the lemon glaze over the cake so that it seeps into the holes. Cool, then slice and serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Note: I baked this cake in both a 13-by-9-inch pan and the Bundt pan. If you want to bake this recipe as a Bundt, it will take from 38 to 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove the pan from the oven and let it cool 10 minutes. Loosen the cake from the sides of the pan, but leave the cake in the pan. Poke holes in the cake, being careful not to poke all the way through to the bottom. Spoon over most of the glaze, reserving 1/3 cup to glaze the top. Let the cake cool in this glaze in the pan another 15 minutes. Invert the cake onto a serving plate. Thicken the remaining glaze with enough confectioners' sugar so that it will drape over the cake.

Bert's Lemon Cake

Bert Phillips of Greenville, TX, says she has been making this lemon cake for years. "Whenever I took it to a church dinner my daughter and the pastor's son tried to sneak it off the table so they wouldn't have to share!" Our family loved this cake, too, for it was moist from the pudding mix, and my girls loved the easy way to make the glaze. Just whisk together thawed lemonade concentrate and powdered sugar. Another reader, Leila Sisson Barrett Case of Americus, GA, remembers this recipe in the 1960s when it was called Lemonade Cake. And speaking of lemonade, I could see toting this cake to a summertime picnic and serving it with homemade peach ice cream. Yum.

Makes 20 servings
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Baking time: 35 to 38 minutes
Assembly time: 5 minutes

Cake:
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain lemon cake mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) instant lemon pudding
4 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons water

Glaze:
1 can (6 ounces) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 13-by 9-inch pan with vegetable oil spray. Set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, oil, and water in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more. The batter should look well combined. Pour the batter into the pan. Place the pan in the oven.

3. Meanwhile, whisk together the thawed lemonade concentrate and confectioners' sugar in a small bowl. Set it aside.

4. Bake the cake until the top lightly springs back and it is golden brown, about 35 to 38 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven. Immediately poke holes in the top of the cake with a fork, being careful not to tear the cake. Spoon the lemon glaze over the cake so that it seeps into the holes.

5. Return the cake to the oven and bake 3 to 4 minutes longer, or until the glaze has warmed through.

6. Cut into squares and serve warm with ice cream.

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Jennifer of Aurora, IL, suggests this fast frosting redo: Begin with a can of store-bought vanilla frosting and add 2 tablespoons buttermilk and 2 teaspoons almond extract. "It cuts the sugary taste of canned frosting and it makes it so smooth and spreadable."

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How to frost a beautiful cake, Moravian Sugar Cake, and to grease or not to grease, that is the question. Plus details on an upcoming recipe contest.