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A Piece of Cake
October 2003: Fifth Slice
Newsletter written by Anne Byrn October 14, 2003
A Word from the Doctor
A Word from Workman
5 Chocolate Cakes
Recipe Swap
Bits and Bytes
Do Tell
Do Share
Doctor the Doctor
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A Word from the Doctor
Four years ago I told my husband that if 100 people expressed interest in a Cake Mix Doctor online newsletter, then I'd write one. As you can see, 100 folks did sign up, followed by thousands more. The Cake Mix Doctor idea has grown in your kitchens and communities, and now nearly 30,000 of you receive this newsletter every other month. But with growth comes a bit of change ...new books and a new message board. By now many of you have visited cakemixdoctor.com's new Community Board.
Our Web gal Amy Lewis (aka info@workman.com ) has wanted you all to feel cozy chatting about cakes in the same format, but a change was needed to keep the message board secure and to make it a bit more fun. We've tapped a few of the old-timers and veteran bakers (based on tenure, not age!) as moderators, so check it out soon. And rest assured, being tech-phobic I am tiptoeing into this just as you are. Change, I have learned, is frightening at first, but it offers incredible possibilities.
Change is also in the air as I launch The Dinner Doctor cookbook on October 21, 2003. Cakes have obviously become a part of me. I feel as if I could talk about them in my sleep, and I probably do! While less glamorous than cake, dinner, too, is a subject I know well. It must be all the on-the-job training with three hungry children.
I hope the recipes and time-saving ideas I share in this new book offer doable and fun meals at your house. (And don't worry, there is an entire chapter on desserts, including more great cakes.) I hope you enjoy the two recipes from The Dinner Doctor that I share in this newsletter. And I hope you grow comfortable with the changes on the Web site.
It's fall so let's shake things up, talk cake, talk dinner, talk friends and family. There is a nip in a morning air, Halloween's just around the corner, and high school football adds excitement to our Friday nights.
I feel full of hope about good things to come.
Enjoy!
Anne
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A Word from Workman
Look for Anne LIVE on QVC on Sunday, October 19, 2003 as part of an All Day Cooking Event at 9:00 am and 4:00 pm. And then see the official debut of The Dinner Doctor live on ABC's Good Morning America, Tuesday, October 28 (please note they've just changed this schedule) around 8:45 am. Tune in and see how Anne makes a house call for the whole meal. (Check local listings -- all times are EST.)
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Chocolate Cakes
5 Easy Great Chocolate Cakes
Didn't try the winning recipes from the summer Cake Mix Doctor Bake-For-Charity Contest?
Maryann Wilkerson of Little Rock, AR, won $1,000 for the Witness Project, a breast cancer educational group, with her outstanding Maryann's Chocolate Layer Cake. The four runners-up are also mighty fine. Click here for all of those recipes.
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Recipe Swap
Asian Chicken Salad
(from pages 154-155 of The Dinner Doctor)
Serves 4 to 6 as a main course
1 package (3 ounces) Oriental-flavor ramen noodle soup mix
1/2 cup pre-sliced almonds
3/4 cup bottled red wine vinaigrette
1 package (16 ounces) coleslaw or broccoli slaw mix
2 cups shredded cooked chicken
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
2 scallions, white and green parts, chopped (for 1/4 cup)
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Break up the ramen noodles with your hands and place them and the almonds on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until the noodles and almonds turn light brown, 6 to 7 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, pour the red wine vinaigrette into a measuring cup and stir in the packet of seasoning from the ramen noodle soup mix. Set the salad dressing aside.
4. Place the slaw mix, chicken, cilantro, and scallions in a large serving bowl. Toss to combine the ingredients well.
5. Just before serving, pour the salad dressing over the salad and toss to coat. Scatter the toasted almonds and noodles on top and serve.
Sour Cream Cinnamon Loaf
(from pages 438-9 of The Dinner Doctor)
Makes 1 loaf
Vegetable oil cooking spray, for misting the loaf pan
Flour, for dusting the loaf pan
1 package (19.1 ounces) cinnamon swirl muffin mix (Duncan Hines)
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 large egg
1/4 cup pre-chopped pecans (optional)
1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Lightly mist a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with vegetable oil cooking spray, then dust it with flour. Shake out the excess flour. Set the loaf pan aside.
3. Set aside the packets of cinnamon swirl and of topping mix from the muffin mix. Place the muffin mix, sour cream, egg, and 3 tablespoons water in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 20 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 1 minute longer, scraping the side down again if necessary. The batter should be well combined and thick. Pour half to two-thirds of the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
4. Knead the packet of cinnamon swirl with your fingers a few times, then open it and squeeze the contents evenly over the batter. With a rubber spatula, spread the remaining batter over the top. Place the pecans, if using, in a small bowl and stir in the topping mix. Sprinkle the topping over the loaf.
5. Bake the loaf until it springs back when lightly pressed with a finger, 43 to 47 minutes. Remove the loaf pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Then, run a long, sharp knife around the edges of the loaf and serve warm slices right from the pan, if you wish.
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Bits & Bytes
Three-Curd Cake
Linda Rosenjack of Aurora, OH, explains how she makes an elegant but easy three-curd cake. Bake two yellow cake layer rounds of your choice, and when they have cooled, split them in half horizontally. Place one bottom half layer on a cake plate and spread lime curd evenly over it. Top with the top half of the layer. Spread orange curd evenly on top of this. Place another half bottom on top, and spread this evenly with lemon curd. Top with the remaining top layer half. Frost the cake on the top and sides with stabilized whipped cream (half whipped cream and half thawed whipped topping.) Chill until time to serve.
Shipping Cakes
Nancy Copeland of Manassas, VA, has perfected a method for shipping cakes to family and friends should you want to send others something from your oven. Here is her step-by-step plan.
1. Choose a recipe for a firm cake, like a pound cake or coffee cake, with no frosting.
2. Bake it in a Bundt pan.
3. Cool the cake completely, wrap it in aluminum foil and place it in a large zipper-lock bag.
4. Place the cake in a freezer that will not be opened and shut for a day or two. (This allows it to freeze quickly, which will keep your cake tasting fresher.)
5. Find a small cardboard box about the size of the cake. Get together your supplies for addressing the box.
6. Place two layers of newspaper in the bottom of the box. Place the cake in the bag in the box and pack it with newspaper or packing peanuts so it will not shift in the box. Seal the box with tape, and add the address label. (This will only take 5 to 10 minutes, not enough time for the cake to thaw).
7. Place the cake back in the freezer until you are ready to ship it, or take it immediately to the post office. And there's been a lot of discussion about how to gift-wrap a cake on the Community Board.
Click here to see what your fellow bakers are saying.
A Moister Cake
And Nancy passes along a way to keep those glazed Bundt cakes even moister. Instead of turning out the cake and glazing it on the cake plate, she pours the glaze over the cake while it is still in the pan cooling. If the cake has baked above the rim of the pan you will need to poke holes in the cake with a wooden skewer or toothpick and slowly pour the glaze over it so that it soaks up the glaze.
Spicing Up Cake
Many readers have written that spice cake mixes are difficult to find. They want to know how to turn a yellow cake mix into a spice cake mix. Here is how I do it: Add 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice, and 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg to a yellow cake mix and stir well. Continue with recipe, and enjoy!
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Do Tell!
I'd love to share some of my favorite ideas for food gifts (both cakes and savory), as well as yours, in the December newsletter. Please send gift ideas that are a snap to prepare, whether they be cakes, breads, snacks, you name it! Send them to anne@cakemixdoctor.com with Holiday Food Gifts in the subject line.
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Do Share!
Gerald Lee of Charlotte, NC, and his sister have reminisced about the Spanish Bar Cake that used to be sold at the A&P supermarkets under the Jane Parker label (A&P house brand). "We talked about how Mom often brought one home from her Saturday grocery shopping and how we looked forward to them." Does anyone have a recipe for this nostalgic Spanish Bar Cake? (I remember them fondly, too, but have never made one). Please send the recipe to anne@cakemixdoctor.com.
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Doctor the Doctor
Melanie Moore of La Mesa, CA, writes that she made Old Fashioned Apricot Nectar Cake from book one for a Labor Day picnic. "I came home from a late-night ingredient shopping spree to find I'd forgotten to buy apricot nectar. Rather than go back out, I substituted apple juice. It got rave reviews."
And Laura Restrepo of Pembroke Pines, FL, says she loves the Chocolate Covered Cherry Cake because it has few ingredients and is low in fat. So, one day she used a yellow cake mix, a can of apple pie filling, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon and vanilla extract (plus the 2 eggs). She baked it in layers, then frosted it with the Quick Caramel Frosting from book one and two. What a hit! And she wasn't finished doctoring! The next time she used a spice cake mix, can of peach pie filling, 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice and vanilla extract (plus the necessary 2 eggs). Frosted with the same caramel frosting, it was "another winner."
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Next Issue: December 2003
Holiday cake and gift giving ideas from you and me.
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