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For many years I took Valentine’s pretty seriously and hoped red roses and chocolates would be delivered to my doorstep by Prince Charming. A few of those years they were…but the majority of my most meaningful Valentine Days have been spent swapping cards and baking chocolate cake at home.

At our house Valentine’s is more family-focused than Victoria Secret, more down-home than Tiffany’s. It’s a fun day to express love and gratitude to all. I try to bake a little something special on Feb. 14, and this year with it being on a weekend that makes the task even easier.

What best to bake for your Valentines? The Best Red Velvet Cake from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns! This wacky but wonderful cake is redder than a traffic light, and the flavor? Well, it will stop you in your tracks.

Also perfect for baking this weekend are some new cookies I’ve just concocted. They begin with a brownie mix, one of my favorite pantry staples. You add a little flour to give them a boost, then butter, eggs, and chocolate chips. Add a smidgen of ground coffee to the batter and the brownie cookies become a perfect waker-upper for the late afternoon. Or bake a cake that your sweetheart just happens to love.

I just spent a long weekend in Florida teaching classes at three Aprons cooking schools in the Publix supermarkets. Just in time for Valentine’s we baked the red velvet, the Chocolate Raspberry Cake, the Lemon Lover’s Layer Cake and my new lighter version of Stacy’s Chocolate Chip Cake. Valentine’s and lighter recipes? They don’t seem to go together, but they do if the one you love needs to cut back on fat.

My new book has lots of ideas and substitutions for cutting back on fat in baking and not sacrificing the yummy factor. Speaking of yummy, try the pumpkin version of my Gooey Butter Cake, shared by a reader I met in Cincinnati. To you and yours on Valentines and all month long….XOXOXO

Happy baking!
Anne

Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/annebyrn

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Earlier this month, Anne posted on her blog about a foolproof bake sale standby--the Bake Sale Caramel Cupcakes from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns. We shared the recipe with friends, one of whom used it to contribute to her office's Haiti earthquake relief bake sale. Read her story, and see the delicious results, at the Workman blog.

Congratulations to the PARADE Magazine's "The Winner Bakes the Cake Sweepstakes" winners Cathy and Bob Seiple from Livingston, NJ! They'll be visiting Nashville later this month to spend a day baking with Anne. Their favorite recipe is the Banana Buttered Rum Cake from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns! The Seiple family are big banana fans, so Cathy subs in banana instant pudding for the vanilla listed in the recipe for extra banana flavor!

For even more posts about Anne's books, visit http://www.workman.com/blog/tag/anne-byrn/

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Chocolate Chewy Brownie Cookies

For ease of preparation, use a small scoop to plop just the right amount of dough – about a generous 1-inch ball – onto cookie sheets. Place the bowl of dough in the refrigerator between batches because it’s easier to scoop up if it is chilled. You can make these as small or as large as you like, but be sure to keep an eye on the oven and decrease the baking time should you be baking cookies smaller than the 1-inch ball. For kids, omit the coffee, but for adults, add it! My husband could not resist the coffee-chocolate combination! For that pretty Valentine gift, tuck these cookies into a red box or bag lined with parchment paper.

Makes: 4 dozen cookies
Prep: 5 minutes
Bake: 10 to 13 minutes
Cool: 2 to 3 minutes

1 package (about 20 ounces) brownie mix
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon ground coffee or instant coffee, if desired
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar, for sifting, if desired

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Set aside 2 ungreased baking sheets.

2. Place the brownie mix, flour, melted butter, eggs, and coffee, if desired, in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are just combined, about 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Fold in the chocolate chips with a wooden spoon.

3. Using a small scoop or spoon, drop cookie dough by generous tablespoons or 1-inch balls about 2 inches apart on the ungreased baking sheets. Place the baking sheets one at a time into the oven, and bake the cookies until they are firm around the edges but still soft in the center, 10 to 13 minutes. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool on them for 2 to 3 minutes. Then, using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks and dust with confectioners’ sugar, if desired. Serve warm or let cool 20 minutes before storing.

***
Pumpkin Pie Ooey Gooey Butter Cake

As promised from the last newsletter I am sharing a pumpkin cake recipe from a Cincinnati reader. While at the book festival there in October, Susan Vanell-Charpentier mentioned to the crowd that she had created a pumpkin version of my Gooey Butter Cake. She made it for Thanksgiving instead of the usual pumpkin pie and passed along the recipe. It’s hearty and smells delicious while baking and is perfect for the snowed-in weekends becoming so prevalent in winter 2010.

Makes: at least 30 bars
Prep: 20 minutes
Bake: 45 to 48 minutes
Cool: 30 minutes

For the crust:
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg

For the filling:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs
3 3/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Set aside an ungreased 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan.

2. Make the crust: Place the cake mix, butter, and one egg in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 1½ to 2 minutes. The batter should come together into a ball. Pat the crust over the bottom and ½ inch up the sides of the baking pan, and set the pan aside.

3. Make the filling: Place the cream cheese in the same bowl used to make the crust and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until fluffy. Stop the machine and add the pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs and beat on medium speed 1 minute. Stop the machine and add the confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Beat on low until the sugar is well incorporated, 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Pour the filling into the baking pan and place the pan in the oven.

4. Bake the cake until it has browned around the edges but the center still jiggles when you shake the pan, 45 to 48 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool 30 minutes before slicing.

As I write this newsletter I am preparing to leave for the very last stop on my book tour. I’ll be visiting Books-A-Million in Columbia, SC on Saturday, February 13 from 1-3 pm. What began in September with trips to QVC, then moved to New York and Good Morning America, and sent me cross country to Utah and Colorado, zigzagging in the middle of the country, down into Texas and Florida, throughout the South and up into Ohio, has been one more fun cake baking odyssey. I haven’t the space and I am sure you don’t have the time for me to rattle off all the details of my tour but I wanted to share some of the highlights and make a few restaurant recommendations should you get to these places any time soon.

One. Good Morning America. No matter how many times you are on national TV, it’s very early in the morning, and there are loads of people in the studio with their eyes on you, not to mention the millions at home who are watching, and the food segment is toward the end of the program. All these things combined can make you a little crazy. What I love best is seeing someone famous walk down the halls. In the last two visits I have seen former President Jimmy Carter, author Anna Quindlen, and on this trip TV icon Bob Barker of The Price is Right fame. He may be in his 80s but his “Come on Down” booming voice was so pitch-perfect that one sweet audience member from Iowa was swooning and asked to give him a hug. Hmm, they hugged for an awkwardly long time and it was on camera. I loved meeting Sam Champion – a great guy – who made the early wake-up call and nervous jitters all worthwhile.

Two.  Alligator and arugula. They have nothing in common except that while in Cincinnati at Books by the Banks festival I shared a book signing table with Thane Maynard, director of the famous Cincinnati Zoo. And I didn’t know Thane had brought some of his friends along in foam boxes behind us. What with all the thumping and bumping coming from the boxes, I asked Thane what was inside. A smile ran across his face, and he opened one box and an armadillo jumped out and scampered to my side of the table. They can’t see, Thane explained, and use their sense of smell to guide them.

This little guy smelled cinnamon because I had just finished my cooking demo of cinnamon swirl coffee cake. Thane then opened the second box holding a baby alligator, pretty cute, until it lunged toward me, I shrieked, and everyone in the convention hall looked our way. Pretty smart on Thane’s part as the lines got longer at the table…. As for the memorable arugula, it was found in a new age version of the Waldorf salad at the Palace restaurant in the elegant Cincinnatian Hotel. Baby arugula and frisee lettuces were tossed with big caramelized walnuts and shavings of sharp white cheddar cheese and to the side tiny apple cubes were coated in a creamy vinaigrette. I’d endure alligator again to enjoy that salad.

Three. Meadowlark Restaurant. I crave simple, fresh food when traveling, and this bright, fun, neighborhood restaurant in Dayton, Ohio, was so good I just wish I could pick it up and plop it in Nashville near my home. There is a strong emphasis on warm salads and fresh vegetables, an amazing carrot and ginger soup, creative grilled cheese sandwiches, fries tossed with garlic and herbs, grilled fish, and throughout lots of multi-cultural flavors but with a very light and feminine touch. www.meadowlarkrestaurant.com

Four. Atlanta. When I travel to Atlanta, which was my home for 15 years, I don’t stay at a hotel, instead with my sister Susan and her family. Susan and I checked out a new restaurant called Haven, in the Lenox Mall area. Southern meets French bistro, Haven was dark and cozy and you wanted to stay far longer than you should. We loved the okra pods sliced lengthwise, tempura battered and fried as a nibbly start. Then came halibut with eggplant-flavored pasta and sautéed peppers, a green salad topped with Spanish olives and oranges, and then old-fashioned banana pudding served in none other than a Ball jar. I’ve seen moonshine in a jar but never, ever banana pudding. www.havenrestaurant.com

For more of Anne's Bits & Bytes from the Road, visit her blogon Friday.

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Spring is hopefully in the air, a rhubarb cake and a few more surprises.


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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2010_02_first_slice_8.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2010_02_first_slice_8.php Wed, 10 Feb 2010 10:42:49 -0500

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The other night I awakened suddenly, dreaming I had overslept for morning television, of all things! At first I couldn’t grasp where I was – Hilton, Sheraton, Hotel Monaco, no, just at home – which I realized once my dear hubby shared one of his familiar snores.

For once, I felt relieved to hear the snore for I was at home in my own bed and wasn’t late for any break of dawn appearance. I’ve overslept on book tour before and don’t ever want to do it again.

Thanks to the alarm on my cell phone I can wake up without worrying about the front desk not calling or my inability to set the alarm clock in the hotel room. It’s funny how travel simplifies your life. I can roam the country for four days at a time with a couple of blouses, slacks, boots, and my cell phone. OK, maybe an apron and some mascara, but really I don’t need much these days! It’s been great fun to travel the past two months with the Cake Mix Doctor Returns!

I’ve been back to favorite cities like Dallas and Houston, Lexington and St. Louis, Denver and Cincinnati, to name just a few. And I’ve visited Salt Lake City for the first time since I was a child. Thankfully my cakes in Salt Lake and Denver rose beautifully this trip.

I’ll be sharing tastes and tidbits from my tour in the next newsletter, including high altitude suggestions and great recipes and restaurants I’ve found along the way. I love this adventure we share, of being busy and still finding time to bake.

As we roll into prime-time baking season and usher in a new year I want you to know that you make what I do a real joy. From my family to yours, I wish you the best holiday season and a bright, hopeful, peaceful, and happy 2010!

Happy Baking!
Anne
Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/annebyrn

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Here at Workman, we're fortunate to have a library-full of cookbooks at our fingertips year-round, but it's Anne's dishes from What Can I Bring? that always show up at office parties and in our homes during the holidays. Read about some of our favorites, and get the recipe for Anne's amazing, easy-to-tote Cranberry Tart, on our blog!

We've also got a Hot Spiced Apple and Cranberry Cider recipe perfect for warming up on chilly December evenings.

For even more posts about Anne's books, visit http://www.workman.com/blog/tag/anne-byrn/

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Hot Tips

• Thanks to Maria in Houston who has baked apple pies all her life and shared her favorite apple for the job – canned White House York Imperial sliced apples. Maria was at Sam’s Club while I was there signing. She was stocking up on big cans of these apples to make her famous pies.

• And thanks to Jackie Davis for mentioning that Trader Joe’s sells mint cocoa, perfect for adding to chocolate frostings this season.

• Kathy Fitzgerald of Riceville, TN, was at my Athens, TN, signing and shared a high-protein substitute for sour cream. She bakes for a friend who is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer and needs protein. So Kathy pulses 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese with 2 tablespoons milk in a food processor and substitutes this for 1 cup sour cream in her cake recipes. The cottage cheese contains 40 grams of protein.
  

Gifts for the Cake Baker

About to buy a gift for a friend who loves to bake? Here are a few gifts all bakers would love to open.
-A new cake saver. Pick out a durable one with a handle and a locking lid. Tie a bow on the handle and place a freshly baked cake inside (try the Pumpkin Cranberry Christmas Cake, recipe below).
-A cake stand. Like shoes, you can’t have too many. Your first cake stand needs to be stainless steel or glass. These are the most durable and any cake looks great on them. Then move into ceramics in basic colors or brights—one of my favorites is a pink scalloped stand, on which I place cupcakes or a chocolate layer cake. Search flea markets for antique glass stands. Also fun are stackable stands for a multitiered look when the baker entertains.
-Bowls. Bakers always love a new bowl—a large stainless steel or a retro glass one. Maybe it’s a set of nesting bowls, which are perfect for small kitchens. Maybe it’s a bright orange ceramic bowl to be used for mixing and also holding goodies on
Halloween.
-Metal icing knives. Again, the more the merrier. I love the short chubby ones for icing cupcakes. And the long professional ones frost an attractive cake.
-Baking supplies. No one can pass up pretty cupcake liners, fun sugar sprinkles, sanding sugars in glorious colors, or a fine bottle of vanilla extract. Chocolate, espresso powder, good cinnamon—the list could go on and on. Package these in a reusable plastic storage bin or an antique basket.

Miracle Grease

That’s what accomplished cake baker Jessica Lea of Chattanooga calls her combination of flour, oil, and Crisco that she uses to spread into baking pans before adding the cake batter. She told the crowd at Barnes & Noble in Chattanooga about it while I was there for a signing. And she followed up, sharing the recipe with me. “I have baked well over 100 cakes with this and every cake has slid perfectly out of the pan…I don’t even have to run a knife around the edges of the pan.”

1 cup flour
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup solid vegetable shortening (Crisco)

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One of my favorite recipes from the new book is not only a great one to bake for your family during the holidays but also one to give to friends as a gift.

Pumpkin Cranberry Christmas Cake

Serves: 12 to 16
Prep: 30 minutes
Bake: 50 to 55 minutes
Cool: 40 to 45 minutes

For the cake
Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pan
Flour, for dusting the pan
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup dried sweetened cranberries
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow or vanilla cake mix (see Note)
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin, about 2 cups
2⁄3 cup vegetable oil
1⁄3 cup bourbon or water
4 large eggs
For the glaze
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup bourbon or apple juice

1. Make the cake: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Place the pecans in a baking pan and toast them in the oven while it preheats until they are fragrant and deep brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
2. Lightly mist a 12-cup Bundt pan with vegetable oil spray, then dust it with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pan aside.
3. Remove the toasted pecans from the oven and let them cool, then set aside 1/2 cup of pecans for the cake batter and 1/4 cup for the topping. Leave the oven on.
4. Place the raisins and cranberries on a cutting board and chop them in thirds.
5. Place the cake mix, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, pumpkin, oil, 1⁄3 cup of bourbon or water, and the eggs in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are combined, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 11/2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. The batter should look smooth and thick. Fold in the reserved 1/2 cup of toasted pecans. Then, fold the raisins and cranberries into the batter and pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan, smoothing the top with the rubber spatula. Place the pan in the oven.
6. Bake the cake until the top springs back when lightly pressed with a finger, 50 to 55 minutes. Transfer the Bundt pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool for 15 minutes. Run a long, sharp knife around the edges of the cake, shake the pan gently, and invert the cake onto a wire rack. Let the cake cool completely, 25 to 30 minutes longer.
7. Meanwhile, make the glaze: Place the butter, 1/2 cup of brown sugar, and 1/4 cup of bourbon or apple juice in a small pan over medium-high heat. Bring just to a boil, stirring constantly, then reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer until slightly thickened, 2 minutes, stirring. Set the glaze aside.
8. Slide the cake onto a serving plate. Using a long wooden skewer, poke 12 to 16 holes in the top of the cake. Spoon the glaze over the top of the cake and garnish it with the reserved 1/4 cup of toasted pecans. Slice and serve the cake or wrap it and serve the next day.

Keep It Fresh! Store this cake, in a cake saver or in a tin lined with cheesecloth, at room temperature for up to five days or for up to ten days in the refrigerator.
Note: In a hurry? Substitute a spice cake mix for the yellow and omit the spices. And, forgo the glaze. Dust confectioners’ sugar on the top before slicing.

And from my cookbook, What Can I Bring?, is this elegant salad you can prep ahead and take with you to a holiday get-together. I love the fresh, bright flavors and colors of this salad pairing romaine lettuce, roasted beets, blue cheese, and toasted walnuts.

Roasted Beet Salad with Walnuts and Blue Cheese Dressing

What Can I Bring? p. 96
Serves: 6 to 8
Prep: 60 to 70 minutes

6 medium-size beets
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup walnut halves
2 large heads romaine lettuce
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 tablespoon milk, or more as needed
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled blue cheese, such as Gorgonzola or Stilton
1 medium-size red onion, cut into thin slivers
1 large navel orange, peeled, separated into segments, and chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F
2. Rinse the beets and trim off the root ends and the beet greens, leaving an inch of the stems intact. Set aside the beet greens for another use. Slice the beets in half lengthwise and place them cut side up in a shallow baking dish. Drizzle the olive oil over the beets. Tent the baking dish with aluminum foil. Bake the beets until they are tender, 40 to 45 minutes.
3. Remove the baking dish from the oven; reduce the oven temperature to 350 F. Let the beets cool, then peel and cut them into bite-size pieces. Cover the beets with plastic wrap and place them in a cool spot or refrigerate them.
4. Place the walnuts on a rimmed baking sheet and bake them until they are lightly browned and the skins come off easily, 7 to 8 minutes. Set the walnuts aside to cool.
5. Meanwhile, rinse and dry the romaine, discarding any ragged, limp outside leaves. Place the romaine in clean linen or cotton kitchen towels or a loosely tied bag.
6. Place the sour cream, mayonnaise, cider vinegar, and milk in a blender or food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until smooth, about 5 seconds. Add more milk as needed to achieve a pourable consistency a little thicker than heavy cream. Transfer the sour cream mixture to a glass bowl and stir in the blue cheese.
7. To serve, tear the romaine into bite-size pieces and place in a salad bowl or on a large platter. Arrange the beets on top along with the onion and orange. Spoon the dressing over the salad, scatter the toasted walnuts on top, and serve.

Tote Notes: Tote the blue cheese dressing, walnuts, beets, onion, and orange in separate containers. Bring the romaine lettuce in the salad bowl or on the platter covered with plastic wrap, then assemble the salad at the gathering.
Plan Ahead: Roast the beets, chop up the orange, and make the salad dressing the day before, then refrigerate them. You can toast the walnuts then, too.

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Tales and treats from the road. A fun pumpkin bar recipe from a Cincinnati reader.


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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_12_fifth_slice_7.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_12_fifth_slice_7.php Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:38:35 -0500

A Word from Anne
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Good Morning Texas! in Dallas, with host Amy Vanderoef

It’s book tour time, and I’m writing this newsletter before I catch an early morning flight to Atlanta, the next stop with The Cake Mix Doctor Returns.

I’ve learned through the years that in addition to an apron and some bright blue TV blouses, the most important thing I should pack is a smile. OK, some hand sanitizer, comfortable flats, vitamins, and a favorite thin black Sharpie for signing books, too.

When my kids were little I recall the bliss of an empty hotel room, room service, and a good book. I still like that. But now I look forward to seeing my old friends in every town, the media escorts whom I have gotten to know, who have awakened early to dash me to TV, stayed up late baking my cakes, and have gotten drenched in the rain so I could hold their umbrella and stay dry. I’m always reminded what a small world it is, too.

At my New York City signing a couple of weeks ago, in walks our community board moderator T. Martin, a student at Columbia University. Then in walks a college friend, Chris Marshburn, whom I had not seen in 30 years! I never dreamed when writing these cookbooks that the most rewarding part would be meeting and reconnecting with people along the way. But it is, and I love it.

Happy fall baking and hope to see you on tour!

Anne

Win a trip to Nashville for you and a guest to bake with Anne from Parade magazine!

Learn first-hand how to make extraordinary cakes out of ordinary cake mix. The prize includes airfare, a two-night hotel stay, a baking lesson, tea, and cake with Anne, and signed copies of all of Anne's books. Visit parade.com for details and how to enter.

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Best Gifts are Homemade
You heard it here - holiday baking is hotter than ever. That’s what the news stories say because the poor economy is causing us to reassess extravagant spending on gifts. But you’ve probably been baking homemade food gifts even when time were good! I surely have. We make cookies and chocolate toffee and cakes.

My Chocolate Espresso Pound Cake (p. 236) from the new book is just right for gift giving, as are all the Bundt cakes in the book. Bake them in one large pan or in several mini-Bundts, cool, then wrap in clear cellophane and tie with a bow. What was I thinking walking into a Container Store in Dallas with no suitcase space to take home the cute boxes, bins, and tags for food gifts? I can’t wait to start baking!

Tunes to Bake By
“If I knew you were coming, I’d a baked a cake,” is just the tune to listen to while baking this month. Click here to check out this recording from Eileen Barton on YouTube.

Can you think of other tunes to bake by? What about MacArthur Park’s “Someone Left the Cake Out in the Rain…” or “Sugar Sugar” from the Archies? Any other suggestions? We’ll pass those along in the next newsletter.

Doctor the Doctor
You will find several new variations of my classic Darn Good Chocolate Cake in The Cake Mix Doctor Returns, but here is one more: Reader Carol Fields says she calls hers Death by White Chocolate Cake. Instead of chocolate cake mix, she uses either French vanilla or white and instead of chocolate pudding mix she uses white chocolate pudding mix. Then she folds in swirl chips instead of semisweet chocolate chips. And for the icing? “I melt vanilla and chocolate icings and pour one of the icings over the top of the Bundt cake and let it run down the sides and then I drizzle the other icing over the first. I’ve gotten rave reviews for this cake.” Yum.

Do Tell
Since we’ve talked so much about Bundts in this issue, I’ll include a tip for glazing them from reader Marilyn Risch of Texas. She said that after the Bundt cake has baked and been removed from the pan, place the glaze in the pan that the cake was baked in. Place the cake back in the pan and let it cool completely in the pan. The cake will soak up the glaze and when you turn it out of the pan, the cake has absorbed the glaze and there is a pretty finish on the top of the cake.

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One of the most favorite cakes from the new book is Nancy’s Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake. We are baking it for book signings and festivals, and all ages love this cake. I thought the nuts in the streusel filling might not appeal to everyone, but it’s funny, in Ft. Worth last weekend, the coffee cake with pecans was the first one eaten! Texans love their pecans.  So make this with or without nuts. It’s perfect for brunches and office parties this holiday season.

Nancy’s Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

Serves: 16 to 20
Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 40 to 45 minutes
Cool: 20 minutes

For the cake
Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pan
Flour, for dusting the pan
1 package (18.5 ounces) plain butter recipe golden
cake mix
1 cup sour cream
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
For the topping
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1. Make the cakes: Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly mist two 9-inch (or one 13 by 9–inch) metal cake pans with vegetable oil spray, then dust them with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pans aside.

2. Place the cake mix, sour cream, oil, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, 30 seconds.
Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat until the mixture lightens and is smooth, 2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. Pour half the cake batter into the 2 prepared cake pans, dividing it evenly between them. Smooth the tops with the rubber spatula.

3. Make the topping: Combine the brown sugar, pecans, if using, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Spoon half of the topping over the batter in the cake pans. Pour the remaining cake batter over the topping in the two cake pans, dividing it evenly between them. Spoon the rest of the topping over the cake batter.

4. Place the pans in the oven side by side. Bake the cakes until they are golden brown and the tops spring back when lightly pressed with a finger, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer the cake pans to wire racks and let the cakes sit until nearly cool, 20 minutes. Slice and serve the cakes while still a bit warm.

Keep It Fresh! Store these cakes, covered with aluminum foil, at room temperature for up to four days or for up to one week in the refrigerator. Freeze the cakes in the pans, covered with aluminum foil, for up to three months. Let the cakes thaw overnight on the counter before serving.

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High altitude baking in Denver, more tales from the road, and an especially festive cake for the holidays.

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_11_a_piece_of_cake_fourth_slice.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_11_a_piece_of_cake_fourth_slice.php Sun, 01 Nov 2009 10:00:57 -0500

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I can’t believe August is here. In our world my children have finished their camps and jobs, but not their summer reading. School is around the corner, we can feel it coming, but we’re not ready for homework.

That’s when we love August.  It’s relaxed and it’s hot. It’s also my birthday month, and I have many fond childhood memories of swim parties and churning homemade ice cream with friends.

At our house we’re savoring what August brings in our basket from a local farm – eggplant, yellow squash, Cherokee black tomatoes, poblano peppers and loads of fresh basil. Basil thrives in steamy August, so make pesto, layer sliced tomatoes with basil leaves and fresh mozzarella cheese, wrap marinated shrimp in basil leaves and slices of prosciutto before grilling, throw hot pasta into a bowl with chopped basil, tomatoes, grated Parmesan, garlic, and toasted pine nuts, then feast.

August is my month to breathe a bit before I hit the road on book tour with my new cake book. It has been nearly 10 years since my first Cake Mix Doctor was published. My youngest child, John, was in a highchair when I wrote that book, and now entering fifth grade and a Star Wars fan, he named the new book. Actually he wanted it to be called “The Return of the Cake Mix Doctor,” but for brevity it became “The Cake Mix Doctor Returns!”

Sorry Star Wars fans, there won’t be any light saber fights, just 160 new cake recipes, a photo for every recipe in the style of the first two books, and many classic recipes improved. I’ve listened to your comments, gripes, and praise and have included specific frosting amounts should you need to frost a layer cake, Bundt or just cupcakes. Plus, I’ve baked a wedding cake. And so can you.

If you're a fan of the extra movie scenes at the tail end of a DVD or just like to see a bit behind-the-scenes, click here to check out these photos I took at our Cake Mix Doctor photo shoot in New York in February.

So happy August and happy baking! In this newsletter I share reader comments about those peanut butter cookies of last newsletter, uncover and savor a lost chocolate cake recipe, and give you an amazing taste from The Cake Mix Doctor Returns!

May the cake be with you!
Anne

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Anne is going on tour this fall, check to see if she'll be in your town! Visit CakeMixDoctor.com for a full schedule and the latest updates.

Anne is kicking things off with two appearances on QVC on August 30th; In the Kitchen with David starting at noon EST and Now You’re Home with Jill starting at 5pm EST. The first 25,000 QVC viewers who order the cookbook will receive a free box of Betty Crocker SuperMoist Devil’s Food cake mix, so make sure to tune in!

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Thanks for all the fun feedback after I shared Sylvia Carter’s peanut butter cookie recipe in the last issue of this newsletter. Many of you could not believe that recipe would work without flour. And many of you were thrilled it didn’t contain flour because you could bake it for your family and friends on gluten-free diets. Here is some of the cookie mail I received:

- Always use a plastic fork when pressing down on peanut butter cookies before they go into the oven. The batter won’t stick to the plastic fork. – Lesley Swiacke

-The cookie recipe is just as good using Splenda for those who must watch their sugar. My husband is diabetic so I am always looking for recipes that I can convert to sugar-free. I replace the sugar cup-for-cup with Splenda. I also add a couple teaspoons of sugar just to make sure the cookies brown correctly. – Charlotte Marshall

-I have been making this recipe for about 10 years now and absolutely love it. Try it with Jif peanut butter, which has a higher molasses content. My best hint is to use this recipe in a cookie press! We have made peanut butter blossoms (flower shape) and peanut butter snowflakes with great success. – Jenni Ball-Lindsey

-I have made these flourless peanut butter cookies for many years with one variation. After I take them out of the oven I wait a minute and then plunk an unwrapped Hershey’s Kiss on each one. – Mary Anderson

Hungry for peanut butter cookies but missed the recipe? Click here for the June newsletter…

Q&A

Q. I have paid for your cake books over and over as I make a different one at least once a month and sometimes two or three for my husband’s bridge group. I now have a reputation to uphold which is why I am writing. What am I doing wrong when I make the German chocolate cake with the coconut and pecan icing baked in? It falls both times I have made it. We love the flavor and when I flip it over you can’t tell, but it doesn’t look great coming out of the oven. – Patricia Lyons, Cumming, GA

A. Patricia, because I, too, have experienced this same problem in the last year, the cake mysteriously falling as it cools, I wondered if either the mix or the frosting had been reformulated since I first tested this recipe. Working on my new book, I found a solution, and I share my secret to a More Amazing German Chocolate Cake. It is both an answer to your question and a sneak peek into The Cake Mix Doctor Returns! I hope you find that the little bit of flour added to the batter helps stabilize this cake and keeps it from falling. And this cake has the same great, and amazing, flavor!

More Amazing German Chocolate Cake

Serves: 12 to 16
Prep: 10 minutes
Bake: 42 to 47 minutes
Cool: 35 to 40 minutes

Vegetable oil spray, for misting the pan
Flour, for dusting the pan
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain German chocolate cake mix
1 container (14.5 ounces) coconut pecan frosting (see Note)
1 cup water
1⁄3 cup all-purpose flour
1⁄3 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar (optional)

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly mist a 12-cup Bundt pan with vegetable oil spray, then dust it with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix, frosting, water, flour, oil, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and scrape down the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the batter for 11/2 minutes longer, scraping down the side of the bowl again if needed. The batter should look smooth and thick. Pour the batter into the prepared Bundt pan, smoothing the top with the rubber spatula, and place the pan in the oven.

3. Bake the cake until the top springs back when lightly pressed with a finger, 42 to 47 minutes. Transfer the Bundt pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool for 15 minutes. Run a long, sharp knife around the edges of the cake, shake the pan gently, and invert the cake onto a wire rack. Let the cake cool completely, 20 to 25 minutes longer. Sift the confectioners’ sugar over the cake, if desired, then slice and serve.

Store this cake, in a cake saver or loosely covered with plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to five days. Freeze the cake, wrapped in aluminum foil, for up to six months. Let the cake thaw overnight on the counter before serving.

Q. I love to bake, especially homemade cakes. But for some reason my cakes always come out dry. I tried adding extra sugar, extra butter, and even added some sour cream…What do you suggest for me to do to have my cakes come out moist? – Cynthia Jimenez

A. If you are making a from-scratch cake, the two reasons it could be dry are that you are baking it too long (oven might be running too hot) or you are measuring the flour incorrectly. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, then level off the top with a knife. Don’t dip the cup into the flour bag which causes you to pack the cup with flour and thus add too much flour to the cake. Make sure you are using all-purpose flour, and if you are in a region of the country that sells White Lily flour, use it because it is lower in protein than most flours and perfect for making cakes. And if all else fails, Cynthia, try one of my recipes beginning with a cake mix. They are always moist!

Doctor the Doctor

Sandi Hayes of DeRidder, LA, wrote saying she loves to bake for parties, teacher luncheons, the people at her husband’s office, and is always looking for a cake that makes a great impression but isn’t a lot of trouble. She made my Melted Ice Cream Cake from the first book using coffee ice cream and a white cake mix, adding bourbon-flavored vanilla and her signature chocolate glaze. I begged her for the glaze recipe so that we all might make this to spoon over vanilla ice cream or an ice cream cake!

Sandi’s Chocolate Glaze

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons melted butter
2 to 3 tablespoons warm brewed coffee (leftover from the morning pot)

Place the confectioners’ sugar and cocoa powder in a small bowl and whisk to combine. Pour in the melted butter and coffee, adding enough coffee for the mixture to be pourable. You can substitute warm water for the coffee, if desired.

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Nadine Fox had lost this chocolate cake recipe, one she had clipped from Real Simple magazine. Lamenting her loss, she asked me, and I asked readers in a recent newsletter if they had such a cake recipe. And in the end, Nadine’s computer was repaired and she found the missing recipe on her hard drive, much to the delight of all of us who were dreaming about such a moist and chocolate-packed cake with this lightning-fast ganache frosting.

I tweaked the recipe a bit, adding a little more water as I do in my Darn Good Chocolate Cake, a recipe that is almost identical to this one. But this is baked in layers, and this makes a wonderful birthday cake, whether you frost it with the Cool Whip ganache, a real ganache made with hot cream and chocolate (see my Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor book), or simply frost with whipped cream. Enjoy!

Chocolate Fudge Layer Cake

1 package (18.25 ounces) plain chocolate cake mix
1 package (3.9 ounces) chocolate instant pudding mix (see Note)
4 large eggs
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2/3 cup warm water
½ cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Easy Chocolate Ganache:
1 package (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and place a rack in the center of the oven. Grease and flour two 9-inch round layer pans.

2. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, sour cream, water, and oil in a large mixing bowl and blend with an electric mixer on low speed until just moistened, 30 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 1 minute, or until smooth. Fold in the chocolate chips. Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the top. Place the pans side by side in the oven.

3. Bake the cake until it is firm when slightly pressed with a finger, 32 to 35 minutes. Remove the cake layers to a rack to cool 15 minutes.

4. Run a knife around the edges of the pans and invert the layers once then again onto the wire rack so that they may cool right side up. Let the layers completely cool, 30 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, prepare the ganache. Place the thawed whipped topping in a microwave-safe medium to large bowl and add the chocolate chips. Microwave on high power for 1 minute 30 seconds, then remove and stir until the chips have completely melted. If you need to return the bowl to the microwave for 15 to 20 more seconds, do so, then stir until the chocolate has melted. Let the ganache rest on the counter for 5 minutes until it thickens and is pudding-like in consistency.

6. To assemble, place one layer on a cake plate or stand and spread the top with a generous 1/3 cup ganache. Place the second layer on top of the first and frost the top and sides generously. It helps to place the cake in the fridge for 3 to 4 minutes after you have lightly frosted the sides so the frosting sets. Then remove the cake, spread on the remaining frosting, and return it to the fridge so that the frosting is firm to the touch, 3 to 4 minutes. Garnish with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar, a few raspberries or a mint sprig. Slice and serve.

Note: For less shrinking as the layers cool, use a half package of the pudding mix and save the remainder for another cake.

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I begin book tour, and hopefully I travel to a town near you. I’ll see you in New York, St. Louis, Nashville, Cincinnati, Dayton, Fort Worth, Dallas, Houston, and Atlanta. And I’ll be blogging and tweeting from the road.

Follow Anne on Twitter at http://twitter.com/annebyrn

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_08_third_slice_8.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_08_third_slice_8.php Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:13:57 -0500

A Word from Anne
A Word from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Recipe Swap
Next Issue

Every great recipe has a story. Some of my favorite cakes have tales to tell - the Darn Good Chocolate from my late aunt Louise who baked it once for my mom and my mother completely claimed that recipe, as only sisters can do! And Susan’s Lemon Cake is not, as it turns out, from Susan’s kitchen but from her Atlanta friend Sally Roy.

There is Bereavement Corn from my What Can I Bring? Cookbook, the epitome of Southern funeral food, prepared to console many Nashville families. And there is Eighteen-Minute Salmon, which I share in this newsletter, a recipe that has made its way through the creative recipe pipeline, the fastest and most delicious way to fix salmon in the summertime.

Why do we tell food stories? It’s not just the taste of food but it’s the anticipation of it, the planning, prepping and presentation. We used to joke that our family was so food-obsessed that we’d hardly finish one meal when we were discussing the next. A weeklong trip in the mountains involves not only packing hiking shoes and tennis racquets but also pasta salads and crabmeat dips and ripe tomatoes and fresh banana bread for breakfast. We love good food and we love to talk about it.

Stories are something you hang onto once the meal’s over. They become memories and memories become traditions and all of the sudden your children know the stories and they pass them on. This summer, when life slows down, why not share recipe stories with your friends and family. It’s as simple as baking a cake or cookies and telling everyone where you got the recipe.

I’m sharing a cookie recipe in this newsletter that has a simple story. It was given to me several years ago by food writer Sylvia Carter of Newsday. Sylvia was interviewing me in a New York Starbuck’s and we were talking great, fast recipes. Sylvia said these cookies were her favorite and everyone is amazed they don’t contain flour. I couldn’t wait to get home and bake these mystery cookies, and believe it or not, you don’t miss the flour. They may be perfect for gluten-free diets. Bake these cookies this summer for the lemonade stand or a picnic or just to start a new tradition at home.

Happy Baking!
Anne

Celebrations and cake always seem to go together, and we're celebrating a lot this summer! Not only do we have Anne's newest book, The Cake Mix Doctor Returns, to look forward to, but it's also the 10 year anniversary of the book that started it all--The Cake Mix Doctor. To help us celebrate, share your own food stories. Send us photos of your cakes--birthday cakes, valentine's day cakes, anniversary cakes, or just-because cakes! Post them on our forums or e-mail them to info@workman.com, and you might be featured in Anne's blog!

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Dinner Doctor: Summer Strategies

No doubt, our dinner table is a different place in summer. We tend to eat later because of the heat and the more relaxed pace. Meals are designed around fresh local produce. We grill a lot. And what goes into the oven had better be able to be done quickly. That’s why I love this salmon recipe from my cookbook, What Can I Bring? A salmon fillet is covered with a quick mix of honey, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic any time during the day – in the morning or at the last minute – chilled until time to cook, and then only spends 18 minutes in the oven. We eat this with sticky rice the first go-around and cold leftovers with potato salad or pasta salad if there are remainders. This is also a delicious marinade/glaze for chicken.

Eighteen-Minute Salmon

1 salmon fillet (about 1½ pounds)
1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
1/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons grated peeled fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, crushed

1) Place the salmon in a 13- by 9-inch glass baking dish and set it aside. Place the soy sauce, honey, ginger, and garlic in a small mixing bowl and stir to combine. Pour the soy sauce mixture over the salmon, lifting it up with a fork so that the marinade can run underneath and coat the salmon well. If you have time, cover the baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate it 2 hours. Or set the salmon aside while the oven preheats.
2) Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
3) Uncover the salmon and bake it until the soy sauce mixture forms a glaze and the dish flakes around the edges, about 18 minutes. If the fillet is thicker in the center than at the edges, the center will cook less quickly; add a few minutes more baking time if needed. If you cut the salmon into pieces, the edges will be less likely to overcook. Remove the pieces of salmon from the oven as they test done. Or, do as we do in my house – cook the salmon all at once, saving the edges for the kids and the more rare center for the adults who prefer it that way.

Do Share:
Nadine Fox writes that she clipped a chocolate cake recipe from Real Simple magazine and cannot find it. The cake began with a mix and the icing was made with Cool Whip and chocolate and it turned out like a ganache. Nadine is wondering if anyone else clipped the recipe and might share it? It is, as she says, “the best chocolate cake ever!” Please send to anne@cakemixdoctor.com because now we all want to bake it!

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You must use Skippy peanut butter in this recipe, says Sylvia Carter. I took her word for it and bought a 16.3-ounce jar, and it was just the right amount needed. After spooning 1-inch rounds of dough onto the cookie sheet, press down the rounds with a fork to get that classic peanut butter cookie top. Then bake. And let the cookies rest on the cookie sheet for 3 to 4 minutes to firm up before removing with a spatula.

Sylvia’s Peanut Butter Cookies

Makes 4 to 5 dozen
Prep: 10 minutes
Bake: 12 minutes
Cool: 3 to 4 minutes

2 cups Skippy creamy peanut butter
2 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda

1) Place a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2) Place the peanut butter, eggs, sugar, and soda in a large mixing bowl and blend with an electric mixer on low for 30 seconds to combine, then increase the speed to medium-low and blend for another 1 to 1½ minutes, until the batter is smooth. It will be stiff.
3) Dollop 1-inch rounds onto cookie sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each round. With a fork, press down on the top of each round in a north-south direction, then turn the fork or the pan and press down in an east-west direction for a cross-hatch pattern. Place the pan in the oven, one pan at a time, and bake for 12 minutes.

A reader’s amazing chocolate and coffee glaze for summer vanilla ice cream, gluten-free cake mixes, and some sneak peeks inside the new Cake Mix Doctor to be released in the fall.

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_06_second_slice_7.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_06_second_slice_7.php Tue, 16 Jun 2009 12:13:56 -0500

A Word from Anne
A Word from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Recipe Swap
Next Issue

Home seems to be the hottest restaurant scene as the economic downturn forces cooks to stay put. And I don’t hear a lot of people whining about their missed meals on the town. Instead, I hear chatter about the pot roast in the oven, the Mexican lasagna in the fridge, pizza night in the family kitchen, and double coupon days at the supermarket. Could this be a positive something in an otherwise dreary time? Like a breath of springtime around us, a daffodil forcing its bright yellow head through the frozen lawn?

Amid this chaos, home is where we can improve our lives. We can plan warm meals, cook healthy food, and try to get more exercise. I am old enough to remember having to scrimp and save. My first job as a newspaper writer in Atlanta paid so little that I was fearful of not being able to pay the rent. So I didn’t eat out at lunch for the first couple of months, packing a cheese sandwich and dining at my desk. My father raised an eyebrow thinking I must be anti-social, but I was just worried I couldn’t make ends meet. A raise came within the year, and my finances improved. Now I think back on those lean years with a smile. Recipes I cooked in my 20s were inexpensive pots of chili or red beans and rice. And thankfully I love the flavor of simple, inexpensive foods, whether they’re Italian, Middle Eastern, or Southern. 

Right now our family is eating pasta with red sauce, pot roast, and bowls of homemade vegetable soup. Leftovers go into lunch boxes and to feed me while I write cookbooks! For these tough times, I offer a recipe that will make your family thankful for dinner. It’s our vegetable soup recipe, first printed in The Dinner Doctor. It begins with ground beef or turkey, you add canned tomatoes and frozen veggies or fresh if you’ve got them, and let the soup simmer to doneness. As for cakes to bake when times are lean? Look for specials on mixes and stock up on your favorite flavors. Keep them simple, such as an orange cake using carton orange juice or the Darn Good Chocolate Cake using ingredients in your pantry and fridge. Enjoy sharing good food with friends and family. Think positive, hopeful thoughts. Things will improve.

Happy Baking and Happy Spring!
Anne

Looking for something to cook tonight? The Recipe Corner isn't just for sweets! Check out the dinner section for delicious dishes like Barb's Taco Ring, Chicken Piccata, or Greek Pasta Salad to add to your dinner rotation.

Everyone has a few tried and true dinner dishes they whip up almost every week. Tell us yours! Visit our forums to swap your family's favorites.

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Not-so-dreary food trends
I have combed newspapers, magazines, and online news for food trends for 2009. And here are some of the prognostications I think you’ll see this year:
1) Potlucks. We call it “What Can I Bring?”
2) Trading down. Shopping for house brands and generics. I’ve found a big savings on breakfast cereal, canned vegetables, and other staples such as cooking oil, sugar, and frozen vegetables.
3) Resourcefulness. Making more with less. This may not be our father’s Depression but we could surely use our thrifty grandmother right now to pass along sure-fire ways to be more resourceful. One way is to not waste the food you buy. Know what’s in your freezer by labeling containers with a name and date and clean out the fridge once a week. I do this on Sunday, making a pasta sauce or veggie stir-fry. Food is so costly you just don’t want to dump it.
4) Coupons. It’s cool to clip.
5) Vegetarian meals. Or just eat less meat to save money. Put half the ground beef in a sauce or soup and add more veggies.
6) Cook for others in greater need. Cook dinner for a family struggling emotionally or financially.
7) And oatmeal. Oh sure, oats have been around forever but to recently see New Yorkers walking around with to-go cups full of warm oats and toppings instead of bagels slathered with cream cheese, this said more than a financial headline. It was as if Wall Street was paying for the excess of its past and frugal, humble, healthy oats have been forced into fashion. Less is more. Arriving back in my Nashville kitchen. I surveyed the oats selection in our pantry. Quick-cooking for tossing into cookies, old-fashioned for cooking in a big pot for breakfast, but I’ve never been a fan of the instant. The best oatmeal (porridge) I ever tasted was in Ireland, with cream poured over the top. Guess I can suffer through the recession with a few excesses, right?
  
Where’s the mix?

Thanks to all of you who have emailed asking about the progress of my all-natural cake mix. I am happy to say the chocolate is complete and delicious, moist, crammed with shavings of Callebaut chocolate. It’s not yet in stores because it’s waiting for us to perfect the vanilla (yellow) mix. Both cake mixes should be out by fall and when I have more news as to availability and pricing I’ll pass it along.

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These recipes are both good basics that appeal to everyone. The soup keeps well in the freezer for last-minute meals. And the jelly roll recipe is one I have developed after requests from so many of you. Fill it with the jam or crushed sweetened fruit of your liking. Perfect for spring, the soup is for the cool days, the jelly roll for warm meals outdoors.

Family-Style Vegetable Soup

Makes 8 servings
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 35 minutes to 1 hour

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound ground beef or turkey (see note)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, with their liquid
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes, with their liquid
Water to fill both cans of tomatoes
1 can (14 to 14.5 ounces) beef broth
1 package (16 ounces) frozen mixed vegetables
1 bay leaf
1 cup uncooked macaroni or other small pasta

1. Place the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Crumble in the ground beef or turkey and break it up with a wooden spoon. Add the salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the beef browns all over and is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the 2 cans of tomatoes with their liquid. Fill both cans with water and add this to the pan. Add the beef broth, frozen vegetables and bay leaf. Stir and bring the mixture to a boil for 3 to 4 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and let the soup simmer until the flavors blend, 20 minutes.
2. Stir in the pasta and cover the pot. Let the soup simmer until it has thickened somewhat and the pasta is al dente, about 10 minutes. Or let the soup simmer longer if you have time, over low heat, for up to an hour. Ladle into bowls and serve.

Note: To save money, use only 8 ounces ground beef in this recipe.

Jam-Filled Jelly Roll

Makes 12 servings
Prep: 15 minutes
Bake: 18 to 22 minutes
Assemble: 5 minutes

Vegetable oil spray for misting the pan
Parchment paper
1 tablespoon butter for greasing the parchment paper
1 package (18.5 ounces) plain butter recipe cake mix
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
½ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar, divided use
¾ cup seedless raspberry jam

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly mist a 12- by 17-inch pan with vegetable oil spray then place parchment paper on top to fit. Brush the paper with melted butter. Set aside the pan.
2. Blend the cake mix, eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla with an electric mixer for 30 seconds on low. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 1½ minutes more, scraping the sides down again if needed. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing it out with the rubber spatula. Place the pan in the oven.
3. Bake the cake until it is golden brown and springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.
4. Sift 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar over the top of the cake and place a clean cotton kitchen towel on top of the cake. Run a long, sharp knife around the edge of the cake and invert it onto a rack. Peel off the parchment paper. Using the kitchen towel, roll the cake, jelly-roll style, and let it cool completely, covered with the towel.
5. Meanwhile, melt the raspberry jam in the microwave for 20 to 30 seconds.
6. Gently and slowly, unroll the cake and spread the jam to completely cover the cake.  Roll the cake back into the jelly roll. Cut off the two edges to give the cake a finished look.
7. Place the jelly roll on a serving platter and dust with the remaining tablespoon confectioners’ sugar just before slicing and serving.

Summertime baking, news on the new cake book, and more good reader questions

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_03_first_slice_7.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2009_03_first_slice_7.php Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:52:23 -0500

A Word from Anne
A Word from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Recipe Swap
Next Issue

It’s the first week of December and I’ve just put away the turkey platter from Thanksgiving. A fragrant Vermont balsam fir wreath from my sister has just arrived via UPS, and in slow motion I pull it from its box and hang it on our front door. There’s no stopping time. Christmas and the winter holidays are here. And whereas everyone complains the holidays will be leaner, quieter, and less hectic this year, that’s fine with me. I prefer homemade food gifts, yearn for the same heirloom ornaments hung on the tree each year, and listen to Bing Crosby music in my car. My teenage children roll their eyes at the music, but they are all over the chocolate toffee, pumpkin bread, sugar cookies, and lemon cakes that come out of our kitchen.

Yes, it takes a little longer to bake your own holiday gifts, but the time spent is worth it. Time spent…perhaps our valuable time is the commodity we have the most of right now. With less time in the mall we’ve got more time in the kitchen, right? Simple glorious food brings us together with family and friends and is just the stress-reducing tonic we need. I hope you enjoy this newsletter and the spectacular Limoncello Cake recipe to serve for a special meal. Lemons are my ingredient choice of the season – simple, unaffected, and able to enliven a cake, cheesecake, pie, even a cup of tea.

Happy baking, happy holidays, and happy 2009!
Anne

Ten Cheap Decorating Tips

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This fall I was a guest speaker at a benefit luncheon in Jackson, TN, called TableScapes. Libby Murphy was the organizer and right before I walked onstage to talk, Libby introduced me to her mother Josephine Murphy. Both said I needed to try Josephine’s famous “Limoncello Cake.”  I don’t know if it was my lack of hearing, or my nerves, or the noise in the room, but I thought Libby said “lemon Jell-O cake.” I told her I had a cake with Jell-O in my first book. “Not Jell-O,” Libby and her mother corrected me. “Limoncello, the Italian lemon liqueur.” Aha! I could hardly keep my mind off the thought of such a cake as I spoke to the crowd.

Fortunately, Libby sent me the recipe, which follows. I’ve made a few tweaks to suit my tastes, but I have mentioned how Josephine bakes it as well. Limoncello is found where liqueurs are sold. Some brands are sweeter than others, and the Murphy ladies prefer the Danny Divito brand if you can find it. If yours is not sweet, dust a little confectioners’ sugar on top of the glazed cake before serving. Limoncello is a little pricy but you’ll have plenty left in the bottle for serving to your guests or saving for the next time you bake this cake.

Limoncello Cake
(from Josephine Murphy, Jackson, TN)

Serves 12 to 16
Prep: 25 minutes
Bake: 48 to 52 minutes
Assemble: 10 minutes

For the cake:
1 package (18.25 ounces) yellow cake mix with pudding
½ cup Limoncello
½ cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 very large or 2 small lemons (for ¼ cup lemon juice and 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest)
¼ cup water

For the glaze:
4 tablespoons butter
1 very large or 2 small lemons (for ¼ cup lemon juice and 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest)
1 cup sugar
¼ cup Limoncello, or more to taste

• Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Mist and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan, shake out the excess flour, and set the pan aside.
• For the cake, place the cake mix, Limoncello, oil, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest and water in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds to incorporate ingredients. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more, or until the batter is lighter in color and has thickened. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place the pan in the oven.
• Bake the cake until the top springs back when lightly pressed with a finger and the top is golden brown, 48 to 52 minutes. Remove the pan to a wire rack to cool 20 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edges of the cake and invert it onto a wire rack to completely cool, 30 minutes. Poke holes in the top of the cake with a wooden chopstick, spacing them one inch apart.
• For the glaze, place the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. When it has melted, add the lemon juice and sugar, stirring constantly. Bring the mixture to a boil, and let it boil, stirring, for 4 to 5 minutes, or until it has thickened and the sugar has melted. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lemon zest and Limoncello.
• Slide the cake onto a serving platter. Slowly spoon the glaze over the top of the cake, allowing it to seep into the holes. With the spoon, scrape up what glaze runs off the cake and spoon it back over the top, repeating this process until no more glaze puddles around the cake. Place the cake under a cake dome, preferably for several hours, before serving.
• Slice and serve with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar.

Note: Josephine Murphy places 1 cup finely chopped pecans in the bottom of the Bundt pan before she pours in the lemon batter. In the glaze she uses 1 stick butter and ½ cup Limoncello.

Valentine cake and winter soup.

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2008_12_fourth_slice_6.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2008_12_fourth_slice_6.php Wed, 03 Dec 2008 14:22:47 -0500

A Word from Anne
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My heart goes out to the residents of the Gulf Coast who have endured Hurricane Gustav. I am thankful this storm was not another Katrina.

Our house has been hectic as we’ve celebrated summer birthdays and the kids have now headed back to school. I’m sharing a photo of a cake my older daughter baked for me recently. She and my younger daughter gave me the cupcake pan for my birthday and baked a giant chocolate chip cake in it. Two weeks later she headed off to college as a freshman. How can such a happy cake make a mother cry? When I asked my daughter what foods she would like for her last few meals at home, she said fried onion rings, burgers on the grill, and what she calls my Potato Stacky Thing, teenage-speak for Potatoes Dauphinoise, a recipe I learned to make many years ago in France, before I had a family, before I ever thought about counting calories. It’s more a method than a recipe, but here is how it goes:

Potatoes Dauphinoise (aka Potato Stacky Thing):
Scrub one large baking potato for each person you are feeding. If you like leftovers scrub an extra potato for the pan, as we say. Peel the potatoes then slice crosswise as thinly as you can. We use a mandoline. Mist a 2- to 3-quart casserole (depending on the number of potatoes you use) with a little vegetable oil spray, place a layer of potato slices on the bottom, slightly overlapping, in rows. Scatter slices of fresh garlic over the top, add a light sprinkling of salt, and scatter a handful of grated or shredded good Parmesan cheese on top. Repeat with layers just like this until you have used all your potatoes and nearly filled the pan. End with potatoes. Pour heavy cream around the outside edges of the potatoes and let the cream trickle in between the potatoes until the pan is half full of cream. (I use about 2 cups cream for 4 to 5 baking potatoes, for example). Sprinkle the top with a little Parmesan and paprika. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 60 to 70 minutes or until the potatoes can be pierced with a fork and are tender. Remove from the oven, remove the foil, and cut into squares and serve with steak, roasted chicken and grilled fish.

I remember the meal I wanted more than any other food when I returned home to visit my parents. It was my mother’s fried chicken with milk gravy, and for dessert, her chocolate cake. To me, and I guess to my children as well, the comings and goings of life center around food.

Happy Baking and Happy Fall!

Anne

Anne dishes out her best potluck pointers in an article for The Star Ledger on the art of potluck.

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Chocolate Chip Cupcake Cake (Lighter Stacy’s Chocolate Chip Cake)

Ever since Nashville cook Stacy Ross passed along the recipe 10 years ago it became a favorite of our crowd. But through the years I have sought to lighten it up mostly in response to your emails about how to make this great cake with less oil.

SERVES 12 TO 16
PREP: 20 MINUTES
BAKE: 65 TO 70 MINUTES IN THE CUPCAKE PAN; 50 TO 55 MINUTES IN A BUNDT
COOL: 40 MINUTES

Vegetable oil spray for misting the pan
Flour for dusting the pan
1 bar (4 ounces) German chocolate
1 package (18.5 ounces) plain butter recipe golden cake mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix
1½ cups milk
½ cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Mist a Nordic Ware Cupcake pan with vegetable oil spray and dust it with flour. Shake out the excess flour. Set the pan aside.
2. Break the German chocolate bar into four pieces. Grate the bar using a food processor or a hand grater until the bar is finely grated. (If you are using a food processor, insert the steel blade and drop the chocolate pieces into the processor one at a time.) Set the grated chocolate aside.
3. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, milk, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds or until ingredients are incorporated. Stop the machine, fold in the grated German chocolate, and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping the sides down again if needed. Fold in the chocolate chips. Transfer the batter to the two sides of the prepared pan, smoothing it out with the rubber spatula. Place the pan in the oven.
4. Bake the cake until it is golden brown and springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, 65 to 70 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Run a long, sharp knife around the edge of the cake and invert the two parts onto a rack. Let the cakes cool completely, 25 to 30 minutes more. Assemble the cake, following the directions with the cake pan. Frost with my Fluffy Chocolate Frosting or your favorite chocolate frosting. Top with sprinkles and birthday candles and serve.

Note: You can bake this cake in a regular Bundt pan at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes.

High gas and grocery prices have put the squeeze on everyone, and this summer we shared many of your clever ideas for saving money in the kitchen. Here is one more, from Jen Spaeth of Ozark, MO, who saves both time and money by buying in bulk.

“I buy the large family packs of ground beef and cook it up that same day. I add chopped onion to flavor it slightly. Then, after it’s drained, I divide one-pound helpings into freezer bags. I lay them out flat on a cookie sheet and stick them in the freezer. They stack great that way and thaw faster. Then, whatever I want to fix that uses cooked ground beef is almost done before I start – tacos, spaghetti, chili, the list goes on.”

Our family saved money this summer by cooking more meals at home. I taught my 10-year-old son how to make an omelet and he soon became the breakfast chef, eager to open the refrigerator to see what he could chop and add to the omelet. His favorite? Sauteed onions and Cheddar, and a few capers for crunch. So it was a winning situation all around – fewer meals out, healthier ingredients from our own kitchen, and a sense of accomplishment by learning how to cook.

To read other winning money saving ideas, visit Anne's blog.

Reduced-Sugar Cake Mixes

Mary Keaveny of Collinsville, IL, wrote asking if I had any suggestions for doctoring up the reduced-sugar cake mixes that contain Splenda. I have tried both the yellow and chocolate mixes and think they benefit from doctoring. Here is how you can turn either one into a pound cake:

Reduced-Sugar Pound Cake
To a 18.25-ounce package of reduced-sugar yellow or chocolate cake mix add:
4 large eggs
½ cup vegetable oil
1¼ cups milk
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon pure almond extract, optional

Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl, beating on low for 30 seconds, then medium-high for 1½ minutes. Pour into a misted and floured 12-cup Bundt pan and bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. Let the pan cool 10 minutes on the rack, then invert and let cool completely, 30 minutes. Slice and serve with fresh fruit.

Baking for the holidays.

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]]> http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2008_09_third_slice_7.php http://www.cakemixdoctor.com/newsletter/2008_09_third_slice_7.php Tue, 02 Sep 2008 15:33:29 -0500

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This has turned out to be one of the most beautiful springs I recall in Nashville with redbud, dogwood, cherry, and now azaleas in bright full bloom. It has also turned out to be one of the most costly seasons as we can’t decide what is getting more expensive—gasoline or food? We can carpool and consolidate errands to buy less gasoline. Saving money at the grocery store is just as challenging but a bit more enjoyable.

Last night I grilled flank steaks that had been marinating for two days in an oil, vinegar, and garlicky marinade in the fridge. The leftovers are going into black bean chili for tonight. Dry black beans are soaking as I write this column. I will cook them until tender with onion and garlic, then fold in the chopped flank steak, canned tomatoes, cumin and chili powder and cook down until thickened. To the side—corn cakes on the griddle, like my mom used to make, using white corn meal mix—and a green salad.

And because the cost of lettuce is rising, I’m putting in a salad garden by my back door. I may have to compete with the rabbits for it but at least I’ll feel I am doing my part to bring our grocery bill down.

Cooking well and saving money may take practice but it can turn out delicious results. Some of my favorite meals are what I call “peasant food”—beans and rice, stratas, stews, and pot roast. They are flavorful, feed many, and are loved by all.

Here are a few of my suggestions for making the most out of this expensive time at the supermarket:

• Learn to love peasant food—beans of all types, pasta, meatless meals, and omelets.
• Cook lentils and serve with yellow rice and garlic bread. Follow the package directions, and I use a couple of chicken bouillon cubes for flavor, added to the water, as well as two bay leaves, four whole cloves, a chopped half of an onion, and two chopped carrots. Cook 40 minutes, until they are soft. We love lentils with grilled fish, especially salmon, and with sausages, too.
• Cook your own whole roasted chicken and get a second meal out of it by removing the meat from the bones and turning it into tomorrow night’s chicken potpie. Or make chicken salad, chicken burritos, or chicken soup on day two.
• Clean out the fridge, knowing what’s in there so foods don’t go to waste.
• Buy generics if they are less costly. I buy store-brand tomatoes and beans all the time.
• Stop eating out and begin eating in. Take your lunch to work. Brew your own cup of coffee at home.
• Plant a vegetable garden for summertime harvesting.
• And since you already like to bake, you’re way ahead of the game. Bake, don’t buy! Save by buying chocolate chips, vanilla, oil, eggs, and other staples at warehouse stores. Try the 365 Whole Foods semisweet chocolate chips—they taste like premium but less expensive than the gourmet brands. Buy butter if it ever goes on sale and store it in the freezer up to six months. Freeze leftover cookies and bars for future meals.

I’d love to hear your money-saving ideas! Let’s call these ideas Cheap Eats. Send them to anne@cakemixdoctor.com. We’ll share them on the Cake Mix Doctor homepage. For the month of May, the best idea of the week gets a copy of the “Cheap. Fast. Good” cookbook from Workman. It was written by the authors of Desperation Dinners and is filled with great ideas for saving money on food.

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But a more travel-friendly and year-round cake is the following recipe, which I adapted from one sent to me from Jerrie Chilcote of Nashville. This is similar to a lemonade cake her friend makes and you can prepare it with pink lemonade or limeade. Jerrie suggests using prepared white or lemon frosting, but I prefer the whipped cream. Bake and serve right from the pan with sliced fresh strawberries - perfect for spring. Enjoy!

Pink Lemonade Party Cake

Makes 16 to 20 servings
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 30 to 35 minutes

1 package (18.25 ounces) lemon cake mix (plain or with pudding)
1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
Glaze:
1 6-ounce container frozen pink lemonade concentrate, thawed
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
Frosting:
2 cups sweetened whipped cream

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place a rack in the center of the oven. Mist a 13-by 9-inch metal baking pan. Dust with flour and shake out the excess flour. Set the pan aside.
2. Place the cake mix, water, oil, and eggs in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated, 30 seconds. Scrape the sides of the bowl and increase the mixer speed to medium. Blend for 2 minutes or until the batter lightens. Turn the batter into the pan, smooth the top, and place the pan in the oven.
3. Bake the cake until the center springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, about 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and let rest 15 minutes.
4. For the glaze, combine the lemonade concentrate and confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Poke a long-tined fork into the top of the warm cake every 1/2-inch, wiping the fork occasionally to remove crumbs. Drizzle the lemonade glaze over the top of the cake.
5. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator to chill, for 2 hours. Remove the pan from the refrigerator, spread the whipped cream over the top, slice and serve.
Note: It is sometimes hard to find a 6-ounce can of pink lemonade concentrate. You can buy a 12-ounce can, thaw and just use 3/4 cup.

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I always love to travel to Florida on tour (especially when it’s cold in Nashville!) and see Libbie Jae, a great cook, caterer, and media escort. When I was in Tampa, Libbie was catering a large party and told me the cutest way to present salad for a crowd. She made phyllo cups to hold the salad, and placed these on a pretty platter. To make the cups, line large muffin tins with three layers of phyllo pastry you have brushed with melted butter between each layer. Press the phyllo into each cup, then bake at 350 degrees for 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove the pan from the oven, let the cups cool, then remove them to a wire rack to cool completely. Can bake the day ahead of serving.

And food stylist extraordinaire Gloria Smiley in Atlanta gets the most beautiful award for her presentation of my 12-Layer Taco Dip, assembled in a springform pan. Gloria made sure to press cubes of avocado or olives or tomatoes into the sides of the pan as they layered the dip, so that when it was unmolded there was a pretty ring of tomatoes, and avocadoes and olives around the edge of the mold.

In Need of Wedding Cake:
Terri Clayton says she will be making her first-ever wedding cake in June. “It will be a 3 or 4 stacked tier chocolate iced cake. First off, I am NOT a professional and this will all be at my expense. The bride (and groom) is a “chocoholic”. She would like the top keepsake layer to be a devil’s food type cake tier. She would like each of the other 3 tiers to be different from each other. BUT all need to blend with the chocolate icing. I have not decided whether to try a chocolate ganache,(which I have never done before, but will practice with between now and then) or a chocolate buttercream. We have been talking about a chocolate mint tier but have found no recipe for that as of yet. We are also discussing having a regular “white” wedding cake tier maybe with a strawberry or raspberry filling. I would like to know if you have any suggestions for cake flavors (and the recipe) and maybe a filling or two.” Send wedding cake ideas to anne@cakemixdoctor.com and I’ll share them first with Terri then with you in the summer newsletter.

Getting Closer to the Unusual Spaghetti Sauce:
Kerry DeWolf of McDonough, GA, writes in response to my request for a quirky spaghetti sauce recipe using canned soups. “My dear late mother used to make a sauce that contained all of the ingredients listed except for the chicken and rice soup. In fact, I cannot remember her making spaghetti sauce any other way. It was very simple–brown a pound of ground beef with some chopped onions, then add a can of tomato soup, a can of mushroom soup, and a fairly hearty amount of chili powder, and a little water if needed. I love Italian food, and this was always the dish I requested for my birthday dinners. I know it sounds weird and not very Italian, but it was a family favorite for all of us, too.” It sounds a little odd but also delicious, Kerry, and I think we are getting closer to uncovering the recipe Patty Kent of Winnetka, IL, requested in the last newsletter. Does this sort of spaghetti sauce recipe sound familiar from your past or family recipe files? Send it to anne@cakemixdoctor.com

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Every two years, right after my book has been published, I go on tour. It’s a chance to step out of my comfort zone and head to new cities, appear on morning TV, talk on local radio, share lunch with the newspaper food editor and often teach cooking classes at night. It is something I await and bemoan.

Oh, I love traveling, even with the long lines and the crowded airplanes because traveling reminds me that my world – the life at home in Nashville – is just a tiny dot on the map. In Phoenix, I appreciated the warmer weather even though the locals were bundled up in coats and hats for an unexpected cold snap in the 50s. From my room on the 20th floor of the downtown hotel I could see for what seemed like miles in the wide-open Southwestern landscape. I could get used to this big horizon, and I could get used to the spicy, aromatic food of this fair city. Denver, too, has that large sense of wonder to it.

Anne on television in Louisville, K.Y.

We usually pick a couple of recipes to show on TV, ones that will appeal to everyone no matter the city. And so I shared the Greek Pasta Salad recipe in Denver, and in Phoenix, and again in Tampa the following week. It’s a terrific salad for toting to dinners and lunches and potlucks and into television stations all year long. Make it with medium shell pasta, fusilli, penne, you name it, then fold in the chopped cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, feta, olives, mint, and the olive oil and lemon juice dressing. Everyone who tasted this salad along the way, no matter the city or the station, loved it. I know you will too.

Happy Cooking!
Anne

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Despite her extensive traveling in 2007, Anne is still on the road in 2008! She's visiting towns and cities with toteable goods in tow, and she might be coming to a place near you. Check her tour schedule to find out. If you're not able to make it to an event, don't worry. Get on the virtual tour bus with Anne by making the Greek Pasta Salad recipe below and looking at more pictures from her tour on her blog.

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I love this pasta salad; it’s so straightforward in flavor, easy to prepare, and pretty to look at. And, it’s interesting enough on the buffet table that it doesn’t get overlooked. Use whatever short pasta you’ve got in the pantry—shells, penne, or spirals. What makes the salad Greek is the seasonings—garlic, oregano, and mint—as well as the add-ins of kalamata olives, cucumbers, feta cheese, and tomatoes. Serve the salad from a nice ceramic bowl, and garnish it with pickled banana or cherry peppers or whole steamed and peeled shrimp. Or, just let the salad speak for itself.

Serves 8
Prep: 40 to 45 minutes

1 pound medium-size shell or other short pasta (4 cups)
Salt
2/3 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (1 lemon)
2 small cloves garlic, crushed in a garlic press
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Freshly ground black pepper
2 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 1/2 cups chopped cucumber (2 medium-size or 1 large cucumber)
1 cup chopped red onion (1 medium-size onion)
1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled feta cheese
1/2 cup chopped pitted kalamata olives
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint or parsley
Pickled banana or cherry peppers or steamed shrimp (optional), for garnish

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Stir in the pasta and 1 teaspoon of salt, reduce the heat to medium-high, and cook the pasta, uncovered, according to the package directions until just done, 8 to 9 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, place the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and oregano in a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Set the salad dressing aside.

3. Drain the pasta well in a colander, shaking it to remove the excess water. Transfer the pasta to the large mixing bowl with the dressing. Stir to coat and let the pasta come to room temperature, about 20 minutes.

4. When the pasta is cool, fold in the tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, feta cheese, olives, and mint or parsley. Stir to combine well. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and/or black pepper if needed. Transfer the salad to a serving bowl and serve at once garnished with the banana peppers or shrimp, if desired, or cover and refrigerate the salad until serving time.

Big Batch: This salad is easy to double or triple, but cook the pasta a pound at a time, and mix the salad one batch at a time.

Tote Notes: Tote this salad right in its serving bowl and bring the optional garnish of peppers or shrimp in a separate container, if you like. Cover the serving bowl with plastic wrap that sticks securely to the rim of the bowl to make traveling less messy. If possible, let the salad come to room temperature before serving. Then stir the salad again and top it with the garnish, if using.

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Potluck With A Plan
It’s an amazing feat to plan a potluck for 50, but Peggy Stanifer and her staff did just that recently in London, KY, at the Laurel County Public Library. Local cooks either brought one of their favorite recipes or made recipes from my new book.

The amazing part was that Peggy didn’t assign dishes and she just hoped people would all make something different so that the menu wouldn’t have a lot of duplication. Well, I was truly amazed that two people made the pineapple casserole and that was the only duplication. Even then, when two people make the same recipe it seldom comes out the same!

As one of the last people to go through the line, I thought to myself I am going to see what dishes are empty as this will tell you the most popular recipes to bring to a potluck. There were four clean-plate recipe winners — Perfect Deviled Eggs, Bebe’s Green Beans, Broccoli Corn Bread, and the two pans of Pineapple Casserole with a Cheddar Crust, all from What Can I Bring?.

Testing For The New Book
We’re busy at home testing recipes for a revision of The Cake Mix Doctor, due in stores in the fall of 2009. It has been fun to revisit some old favorite recipes and to try some lighter variations. If you’re looking to trim calories this month, try Susan’s Lemon Cake using unsweetened applesauce instead of oil. Or, substitute vanilla low-fat yogurt for the sour cream in the Darn Good Chocolate Cake. Don’t worry – it’s still darn good!

Valentine Cakes
What cakes would I like my Valentine sweetie to bake for me? The Chocolate Cherry Chip Cupcakes, Darn Good Chocolate Cake, Perfect Chocolate Cake (all from the Chocolate Cake Mix Doctor), or the Warm Chocolate Cupcakes with Molten Centers (from the Cupcakes! book), or the German Chocolate Cake (from What Can I Bring?) Did I mention I love chocolate?

Update On The Cake Mix
Many of you have asked the status of the cake mix I am developing. Well, the vanilla and chocolate mixes are nearly complete, but the packaging is still in the works.

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When in Winnetka, a charming town north of Chicago, recently Patty Kent came to my book signing and asked me if I had ever heard of a spaghetti sauce that contained some canned soups. Now, brace yourself here. The recipe she described contained not only canned chicken and rice soup, but cream of tomato soup, and cream of mushroom soup, and was seasoned with chili powder. It was an odd-sounding recipe that turned into a family favorite. Her mother-in-law was famous for it, her husband adores it, and Patty is searching for the quirky recipe and its history. Please send the recipe to anne@cakemixdoctor.com

Debbie Williamson of Lexington, NC, is looking for a Pink Lemonade Cake recipe. "It is made by a bakery in our area and is delicious. Can you help?" Debbie says the cake can be made in layers or as a sheet cake. Please send your ideas to anne@cakemixdoctor.com

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Spring cakes, entertaining ideas, more news from the road.

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Sitting in the school carpool line with the windows rolled down, I'm putting the finishing touches on this newsletter. What I love about fall is more than the cooler temps that allow me the pleasure of fresh air versus air conditioning. I love the hope and optimism the start of a new school year brings. New classes and teachers, new clothes, a football team with a new quarterback, applications to college, a freshman year—they all spell a fresh start. I'm feeling the same way about my new book out soon, a wee bit of a departure from the tried-and-true cake mix books but still jammed with great recipes and geared to the same busy audience—you and me.

It is called the What Can I Bring? Cookbook and, with more than 200 recipes and countless menus and suggestions, hopefully will be your answer to that age-old question of what to bring to a dinner party, a picnic, a potluck, a tailgate, that good friend, or just prepare at home when you've got the crowd coming over to your place. And each recipe includes suggestions on how it can be wrapped for traveling. I wrote this book after it was suggested to me by a friend and newspaper colleague and after traveling on tour and talking with book escorts on how they entertain.

These days we all love to gather with friends and family but no one likes to prepare the entire meal. Well, maybe a handful of people, but soon perfectionists tire of it, too! Look for the book on store shelves around the first of November. Many of my favorite recipes are inside, including the Fresh Apple Cake recipe I am sharing with you today.

Happy Baking!
Anne

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Look for Anne on QVC this Sunday, Oct. 7. She'll appear on the "In the Kitchen with Bob" show from noon to 2 p.m. Eastern time. She'll show you more than a dozen recipes from the new book, including some of her favorite recipes to tote to parties—Missy's Chicken Tortellini Soup, Jan's Bruschetta, her sister's recipe for Cowboy Caviar, the wonderful Baby Blue Salad, her Aunt Elizabeth's Banana Pudding (a potluck staple), and the apple cake. Call in and talk with Anne on Sunday, or catch her on QVC again Wednesday, October 10th at 7am or on Thursday, October 11th at noon.

You can also see Anne on Good Morning America Monday, Nov. 19, and on tour in these cities:

• Nashville, TN - Davis-Kidd Booksellers, 6 p.m. Nov. 15


• St. Louis, MO - Left Bank Books, 7 p.m. Nov. 26


• Dayton, OH - Books & Co, 7 p.m. Nov. 27


• Chattanooga, TN - Barnes & Noble, 12 p.m., Dec. 1


• Raleigh, NC - Barnes & Noble Cary, 7 p.m., Dec. 3


• More cities, including Lexington, Memphis, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Jacksonville, and Tampa in 2008

For a full listing and more details, take a look at Anne's blog entry here.

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Since you can't be in the QVC studio with me and taste a bite of the apple cake, I'm sharing the recipe here. It's a from-scratch cake (but an easy one) and perfect for using those crisp fall apples. You could create a cake mix version by preparing a spice cake, using buttermilk, folding in chopped apples, baking in a Bundt pan and topping with this caramel glaze. Use any flavorful apples you can find—Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Winesap, you name it. And if you've got more pears than apples, use ripe and firm pears instead. This is a great cake to take tailgating or to a neighborhood potluck because it won't slip and slide, and you come home with a clean plate every time.

Serves: 16
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 75 to 80 minutes

CAKE:
Vegetable oil spray for misting the pan
Flour for dusting the pan
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 cups chopped raw peeled apples, cut into 1-inch chunks, from 3 large apples
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

GLAZE:
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
3 tablespoons heavy (whipping) cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly mist a 12-cup Bundt or 10-inch tube pan with vegetable oil spray, and dust the pan with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pan aside.

2. Place the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and oil in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on medium-low until the mixture lightens, 2 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together the flour, cinnamon, soda, nutmeg, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the batter and stir to combine using a wooden spoon. Fold in the apples, walnuts if desired, and vanilla.

3. Transfer the batter to the pan and place the pan in the oven. Bake until the cake springs back when lightly pressed with your finger and it begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 75 to 80 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan for 25 minutes, then invert onto one wire rack (for the Bundt pan), or then again onto another wire rack (for the tube pan), so that it is right-side up. Meanwhile, prepare the glaze.

4. Place the butter, sugars, cream, and vanilla in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Let the glaze boil for 1 minute, stirring, then remove the pan from the heat.

5. Poke a few holes in the top of the cake with a bamboo skewer or fork, and spoon the glaze over the warm cake. Let the cake cool completely before slicing.

You'll Love Apple Cake Loaves:

Pour the batter into two 9- by 5-inch loaf pans and bake at 325 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes. After cooling, remove the loaves from the pan and glaze.

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Christmas Cookbook Orders
Many of you have emailed wanting to order a copy of the Christmas cookbook/magazine I wrote last year. Oxmoor House Publishing in Birmingham has copies still in stock should you like to order. Call 1-800-491-0551 or click here to order.

My Cake Mix Line
Thanks to all of you for your suggestions on my Cake Mix Doctor line of cake mixes. As I might have mentioned earlier, the majority of you wanted an all-natural cake mix, but not necessarily from organic ingredients. So, all-natural it is! A chocolate mix and a vanilla mix are in development now, the packaging is being designed, and I feel like an expectant mother! The beauty of these mixes is their natural flavor, their ease in preparation, and their light and moist texture. We are shopping for a distributor, so in the next newsletter I should be able to tell you when these mixes will be in the marketplace. Continue to send cake mix suggestions to anne@cakemixdoctor.com.

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Judging from the email comments I've gotten since I ran the recipe for the Symphony Brownies, we're all a little crazy about chocolate and about brownies. Karen McKinney of Tampa writes the secret of these brownies is to not refrigerate them. If you do, "the creamy mousse-like filling sets up hard and stays that way forever. They are too good to let that happen." Amen, Karen!

And Patricia Lynch of Plainville, MA, loves to bake cupcakes with her niece and nephew. She buys the hard-to-find larger cupcake liners—the 3- to 4-inch size—from the supermarket bakery. And during different holidays she also buys sprinkles by the pound from the in-store bakery. "They are much cheaper than buying them on the baking aisle. They usually have the seasonal colors in huge containers since they are making cupcakes, too." Love that ingenuity!

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Lori Matzke of Minneapolis baked Susan's Lemon Cake from my first book and wanted to bake it again with less oil. So she substituted 2/3 cup organic apple sauce for the oil and voila! "Most excellent...a huge crowd-pleaser. I have made it seven times since finding the recipe." Lori, I'll tell my sister Susan you lightened her recipe, and she'll be thrilled.

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Sweet Potato Cake ideas from readers. Holiday baking tips and gift ideas.

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The newspaper headline read something like this: "Whoever stole spring, we wish you would return it..." For us down here in Nashville this was a bizarre and uncomfortable spring with unseasonably cold Easter temperatures that zapped perennials, tomato plants, peonies, hostas, hackberries, and azaleas. And now the temperatures have soared into the 90s. Half of my yard looks like summer, the other with the remnants of fall. And it's only May, a time at our house that is full of field days, piano recitals, exams, graduations, and the beginning of summer.

Yikes! Can it be nearly summer? For the first week of summer break serving my kids breakfast at noon seems novel. After that, they are on their own to cook. If provided with the raw materials for smoothies (fruit, yogurt), panini (cheese, good bread, maybe ham), and pizza (crust, sauce, toppings, cheese) they can cook for themselves.

In this newsletter I am sharing a few recipe ideas that you or your kids might enjoy trying out. I am sharing, too, feedback from readers about Easy Bake Oven recipes, a gizmo that is fun for all ages. And I share some humorous thoughts on moms, what with Mother's Day this Sunday. Parents need to laugh with spring nearly gone and summer at our doorstep.

Happy Baking!
Anne

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Spring has finally arrived (and for some of you summer is getting a head start), and it's time to think of picnics and dinner parties. Luckily for you, cakemixdoctor.com is full of recipes from years past, just waiting to be rediscovered. Check the Recipe Corner for warm weather toteables, or look in the Newsletter Archive for tips on transporting cakes like these.

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Brownie Bliss: My sister Susan shares the family passion for chocolate and brownies. Just when you think you've seen or tasted it all, here is another fun rendition of the doctored-up brownie. And it's been "out there" for a year or so, so my apologies to not crediting the source of this inspiration. It just might have come from Hershey's, the maker of the Symphony Bar.

• Symphony Brownies: Bake your favorite box of brownie mix by the package directions. Some people like to add another egg to make them more "cakey" in texture. Spread half of the batter in the 9-inch square pan, and top with unwrapped Symphony chocolate bars, either whole, side-by-side, or broken into bits. These candy bars come in various sizes - I found the 5-ounce to be the most common. Use one or two bars for this size pan. Spread the remaining batter on top of the chocolate bars so that it reaches the sides of the pan. Place the pan in the oven to bake as directed on the package. The brownies will have a rich, almost chocolate mousse-like center. For a larger 13-by 9-inch pan, use two packages of brownie mix and place three of the 5-ounce bars in the center.
• My Best Brownie Idea: I love the convenience of a brownie mix, but I adore the flavor and texture of the cakey brownies my mother used to make. So in trying to recreate them in a fast version, I poured a package (Ghirardelli) of brownie mix into a mixing bowl, added a stick of very soft, almost melted, butter, and 2 eggs. That's it. No liquid. After a minute of mixing on low, I spread this into a 9-inch square pan and baked at 350 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes, or still soft in the center. These were the most unbelievably good brownies I have created. And we have made them at least once a week since then... with chopped pecans on top, doubling the recipe (2 packages mix, 2 sticks butter, and 4 eggs) for the 13-by 9-inch pan, and with added chocolate chips. Bake these for springtime parties and picnics, or let your kids make these this summer.

Chuckles about Moms: Mother's Day is coming up soon, the Sunday my family takes me out the lunch and I receive a much-treasured note or piece of art from my son's second-grade art class. I know my two daughters love me, but their art classes no longer produce these tender displays of affection. I ran across something about moms in those mass e-mails we are prone to receive. It's fitting and funny:

Answers given by elementary school children to the following questions:

Q. What ingredients are mothers made of?
A. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.

Q. What kind of little girl was your mom?
A. My Mom has always been my Mom and none of that other stuff.
A. I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.
A. They say she used to be nice.

Q. Who's the boss at your house?
A. Mom doesn't want to be boss, but she has to because Dad's such as goofball.
A. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.

Q. What does your mom do in her spare time?
A. Mothers don't do spare time.
A. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.

Q. What would it take to make your mom perfect?
A. On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.
A. Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.

Easy Bake Oven Ideas:

Several months ago reader Debbie Briggs asked if I knew how she could make her own baking mixes for the Easy Bake Oven.

"I was at the store the other day and just could not bring myself to pay $5 per mix for one of their mixes. I have four little ones and I'll admit that I'm a little thrifty. Any ideas?"

Thanks to so many of you for writing with creative tips:

Jennifer Poe is a second grade teacher who makes her own baking mixes with 3 tablespoons of any cake mix and 1 tablespoon water. This batter would work in the Easy Bake pans. But Jennifer's class creates their own oven by pouring the batter into 5-ounce Dixie cups. "We sit them in an electric skillet on 350 with the lid on for 15 minutes and they are great!"

Susan Fawcett was assembling an Easy Bake Oven cookbook for her young niece. One recipe also called for 3 tablespoons mix but with 1 tablespoon milk. Bake in a preheated Easy Bake for 15 minutes.

From Lori Bizjak and others, here are some online sites that offer more Easy Bake recipes:

www.budget101.com
www.thefunplace.com
http://www.recipezaar.com

And lastly, from Betsy DiCostanza, is this great Easy Bake Oven memory:

"I loved my oven and used it a lot. It was my all-time favorite Christmas present. God bless my mother. I know I must have driven her crazy, replacing the light bulbs and wanting more mixes! I still remember my mother wrote to the manufacturer because back then (35 years ago) they didn't sell the refill kits...I still have my oven and some of the pans. It is one thing that I cannot part with from my childhood."

Recreate childhood this spring and summer, pull out the Easy Bake Oven and try these reader ideas.

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You will adore these warm cinnamon puffs and will be amazed that they were made from frozen biscuits. They're perfect for brunch or snacks. And while they reheat well in an uncovered pan, they're best freshly baked. Thanks to Shirley Hercules of the Nashville Herb Society for this recipe:

Cinnamon Puffs

Makes 24 puffs
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 15 to 17 minutes

6 frozen biscuits
3 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Thaw the biscuits only long enough to cut them into four quarters, 3 to 4 minutes. You will have 24 quarters.

2. Melt the butter in the microwave or on the stove. Set it aside. Place the sugar in a small bowl and stir in the cinnamon. Set this aside. Mist a miniature muffin pan with vegetable oil spray. Dip each quarter into the melted butter, then dredge in the cinnamon-sugar. Place each quarter in a muffin tin. When all the quarters have been dipped and dredged and placed in the pan, place the pan in the oven.

3. Bake until the bottoms of the puffs have browned and they have risen and lightly browned on top, 15 to 17 minutes. Remove from the pan and serve at once.

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Sally Kerr of Toronto wrote to say how much she loves the Best Pound Cake recipe from The Dinner Doctor. "You are so right, everyone loved it."

Sally, who calls herself the coffee-cake queen of the family, now makes this cake filled with cinnamon, sugar and mini chips. You pour a third of the batter into a tube pan, layer on cinnamon and sugar and miniature chocolate chips, then another layer of batter, then more cinnamon and sugar and chocolate chips, then spread on the last of the batter. Bake until the top springs back and the cake tests done. Sally has also added butterscotch chips along with the chocolate chips.

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Anne Shebroe of Sarasota, FL, is looking for a Bundt cake recipe that contains a yellow cake mix, cinnamon, cooked sweet potatoes, crushed toasted walnuts, and golden raisins. It has a rum glaze. Does anyone have such a recipe? Yum! I have a sack of sweet potatoes and would be ready to test it the minute it arrives. So please send it to anne@cakemixdoctor.com, and I'll share the recipe in a future newsletter.

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Summer cakes, and I share a recipe from my new cookbook, What Can I Bring? , to be published this fall.

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A Word from Anne
A Word from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Recipe Swap
Ingredient of the Month
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Happy Valentine's Day to you all! I can't think of a group of folks I would rather give a big hug to than this Cake Mix Doctor online community as it approaches a population of 50,000. Yikes! Was it this time about seven years ago that I said I'd write a newsletter if maybe 100 people signed up to receive it? Be careful what you wish for...

What I love about you is your generosity and your creative ideas. Your Easy-Bake Oven ideas were fantastic and will be shared in the next newsletter. And your feedback on my idea to make my own cake mix was invaluable. Most of you said you would like a natural cake mix, not so much organic but one with the best ingredients. You would choose vanilla and chocolate first although you had loads of suggestions for fun cake mix flavors, such as tiramisu. You'd love recipes with the mix, but you're divided on whether the frosting/glaze should be included in the box. Some folks just like to make their own.

I know how that is, getting accustomed to a frosting recipe that works and gets rave reviews—you just stick with it. For me, that is the Chocolate Pan Frosting or the velvety Chocolate Ganache.

So what are you baking for Valentine's Day? Share your stories and pictures on the Community Board here. I'll share below how to turn your favorite chocolate cake recipe into a heart cake. And in the Recipe Swap I share a dreamy wintertime coffee cake, this one containing bananas.

Here's hoping winter will soon melt into spring, which will bring us strawberries and pleasant days in the sunshine.

Happy Valentine's Day!
Anne

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More and more of you are enjoying A Piece of Cake from Anne each month, and we at Workman Publishing want to thank you for your support of Anne and her books. As our special Valentine's Day gift to you, we would like to offer you an ID code for a FREE online 2007 Page-A-Day Calendar. You can keep it for yourself, or give it to a friend or relative for Valentine's Day.

To redeem, just visit Pageaday.com, register, and use the following Calendar ID code: CMDV-7240000002.

(This offer expires on March 1, 2007, so be sure to sign up today!) And if you have any questions, send an email to info@workman.com with Free Calendar Offer in the subject line.

Happy Valentine's Day from all of us at Workman!

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We Never Cook Alone: Carol Faver of Marietta, GA, read my story about feeling my late mother's love in the room when I spoke to a group of her friends recently. And Carol beautifully says, "We never cook alone." When we cook we "bring with us all the people from our past who taught us, cooked with us, inspired us, made us the cooks we are today. I feel the presence of so many people when I am in the kitchen that I seldom feel alone. Life continues through us and in the simple things we do each day of our lives."

Bake a Heart-Shaped Cake: It's a cinch and you can do it tonight. I have a large heart-shaped pan, one that is about 10 inches wide and about 2 inches deep. It holds the same amount of batter as a Bundt pan.

I poured the batter for the Triple Decker Raspberry Chocolate Cake from the Chocolate Cake Mix Doctor into the prepared pan. You can get the recipe from CakeMixDoctor.com here. It takes about 50 to 55 minutes for this cake to bake. Then I frosted it with the Chocolate Ganache and topped it with fresh raspberries while the frosting was still a little sticky. Just before serving, I dusted it with confectioner's sugar. It was a winner of a cake, as you can see.

Should you not have a heart-shaped pan, pour your favorite chocolate cake batter into one 9-inch round pan and one 9-inch square pan, or a square and round 8-inch pan or 10-inch pan. Any size is fine as long as they match. When the layers have cooked and cooled on a wire rack, cut the round cake into two semicircles. On a large platter, place the square layer turned in such a way that it looks like a diamond. Place a semicircle on each of the two top sides, rounded edges up, to turn this into a heart. Frost and decorate with raspberries.

What Can I Bring? Cookbook: This is the name of my newest cookbook, due in bookstores in early fall. Just in time for potluck season and entertaining, I hope, for this book answers that age-old question, the first one you ask when someone invites you to dinner.

Organized by salads, appetizers, vegetable sides, and desserts, it is where I hope you will go when you need to take a great salad or main dish or dessert to a party.

There will be plenty of menus to help you pair recipes that complement each other. And whereas this cookbook will be a bit of a departure for me (including a handful of wonderful scratch cakes), it will reach out to the busy cooks, those who don't have a ton of time to cook and want to rely on convenience and creativity. Here are some ideas from the new book on how to top your favorite box brownie mix before it goes in the oven.

10 Toppers for a Box of Brownies

Just before you place the pan of brownie batter into the oven, sprinkle a handful of something yummy over the top

• Crushed peppermint candy


• Chopped peppermint patties


• Toffee bits


• Chopped walnuts and semisweet chocolate chips


• Dried sweetened cherries and milk chocolate chips


• Chopped macadamia nuts and white chocolate chips


• Minced dried apricots tossed with a dribble of almond extract


• Miniature marshmallows and chopped milk chocolate bar with almonds


• Dollops of raspberry jam


• M&Ms

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Krista Donahue of Vista, CA, sent me this scrumptious recipe for banana cake. Krista bakes this in a tube pan and layers the oats and coconut mixture in the batter by spooning a third of the batter into the pan, adding some topping, etc., ending with topping. I liked the oats mixture so much better when it had browned in the oven, so I poured all the batter into the tube pan and then topped it generously with the oat mixture and baked. And, I added a little cinnamon to the batter because I thought those bananas were crying out for cinnamon. Once a cake doctor, always a cake doctor...

Serves: 12
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 50 to 55 minutes

Topping:
1/2 cup old-fashioned, uncooked oats
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons cold butter

Cake:
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas (3 medium)
2/3 cup sour cream
4 large eggs
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain yellow cake mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place a rack in the center of the oven. Lightly grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan with vegetable shortening and flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pan aside.

2. For the topping, place the oats, coconut, brown sugar, pecans, and flour in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture is crumbly. Set it aside.

3. For the batter, place the bananas, sour cream, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and blend with an electric mixer on low speed until just combined, 30 seconds. Add the cake mix, pudding mix, and cinnamon, and mix on low for 30 seconds, then scrape down the sides of the bowl, and blend on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes, or until smooth and well combined.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Spoon the topping over the batter and place the pan in the oven. Bake until the cake is well-browned and the top springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, 50 to 55 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven to a wire rack to cool 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto the rack to finish cooling topping-side up. Slice and serve.

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Don't let February escape without sampling some of the more dazzling citrus in the produce market. They perk up our cooking and make us healthier at the same time. I adore the Cara Cara oranges, which have this wonderful rosy tint to the flesh and a sweet floral flavor. And for a slightly deeper hue, I found blood oranges in Costco. Yes, you have to buy a large sack, but share them with friends. I sliced the peeled blood oranges onto a romaine salad with roasted beets, toasted walnuts and a little crumbled blue cheese. And I am planning to make my Orange Bundt cake from the first Cake Mix Doctor with the oranges—juice from the blood oranges in the batter—and thinly sliced and peeled oranges around the baked cake.

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Springtime cake ideas, and all of your wonderful reader suggestions on creative baking using the Easy-Bake Oven.

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I greet the last days of the year with reflection, appreciation, and exhaustion. Maybe it's the newspaper food editor in me, but I am instinctively thinking back on the best recipes and meals—savoring braised lamb shanks with friends, tiramisu in Italy, home-smoked salmon, a sweet potato cake, roasted beets and crumbled blue cheese on a green salad, and bread baked in a Le Creuset pan. These are foods I want to carry forward into 2007. And I try each year to be more appreciative, mostly for good health. The exhaustion that comes at year's end is easy to explain. As a working mom I take on more than I can handle. It's hard to say "no" when the projects sound fun or the fund-raising committee begs for my help. And this year has been a busy one, with two books completed, the Christmas bookazine with Oxmoor and a new Workman book to be published most likely in September 2007.

My New Year's resolution? Savor every minute more and stop the multi-tasking, but then, just how long do you think I can last without doing two or three things at once? This evening I made a batch of chocolate toffee, finished up my Christmas cards, listened to Larry King on TV, called my friend Mindy, worked on this newsletter, and wrapped a few presents. I came about this habit honestly. My mother would just say she was "busy," and I remember there was always something in her hands—knitting needles, a skirt to hem, a good book, or the telephone where in the days before voicemail she made a point of answering every call. Will my children remember me being busy, sitting at this computer making another deadline? Probably. But hopefully they'll also recall the homemade holiday gifts I made and the laughter we shared. So maybe I ought to change my resolution to "laugh more in 2007." That is one resolution I will keep.

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In this last issue of A Piece of Cake for 2006, we at Workman would like to say thanks to all of you out there signed up for this newsletter, sharing your experiences on the Community Board, and supporting Anne's books year after year. Special thanks go out to our moderators, Mary K, T Martin, and George, who have kept the Community Board a friendly haven for bakers of all levels. It's been an exciting year for all of us, first with the release of the Christmas Cookbook, which we hope you'll enjoy for years to come, plus a new look for Cakemixdoctor.com. We hope you'll keep an eye on Anne's blog in 2007 for a taste of what you can expect from her highly anticipated new book, along with tips, recipes, and more.

Happy baking this holiday season and beyond,

Workman Publishing

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Here is a festive and brightly colored cake, perfect for New Year's Eve. It comes from reader Toni Ferro-Arthur who says this recipe always gets "rave reviews." Top it with a simple dusting of confectioners' sugar, a chocolate glaze or a glaze of confectioners' sugar and milk. My children loved the explosion of colors inside.

Spumoni Cake

Makes 12 servings
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 45 to 50 minutes

Vegetable oil spray for misting the pan
Flour for dusting the pan
1 package (18.25 ounces) plain white cake mix
1 package (3.4 ounces) vanilla instant pudding mix
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
1 can (5.5 ounces) chocolate syrup
1 teaspoon butter flavoring and a drop yellow food coloring, if desired
1 teaspoon rum flavoring and a drop green food coloring
1 teaspoon pure almond extract and a drop of pink food coloring

Topping:
1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar for dusting

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mist a 12-cup Bundt pan with vegetable oil spray and dust with flour. Set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix, pudding mix, water, oil, and eggs in a large mixing bowl and blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 30 seconds. Increase the mixer speed to medium and blend 1 1/2 minutes more. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and remove three, 3/4 cup portions to three smaller bowls. Set these aside. Stir the chocolate syrup into the batter left in the mixing bowl. Stir the butter flavoring and yellow food coloring, if desired, into one of the portions. Stir the rum flavoring and green coloring into another, and stir the almond extract and pink coloring into the third.

3. Pour the chocolate batter into the prepared pan. Pour one color at a time over the chocolate batter, being careful not to pour the colored batter too close to the edges of the pan, keeping the colors in the center. Place the pan in the oven.

4. Bake the cake until it springs back when pressed with your finger, 45 to 50 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven to a rack to cool for 20 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edges and invert the cake onto a rack to completely cool. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve.

Note: Since the batter has a pale yellow color, you don't need to add the yellow food coloring unless you want a more dramatic appearance.

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Here's a simple request from Debbie Briggs who wants Easy-Bake Oven® ideas using regular-size cake mixes. "I just could not bring myself to pay $5 per mix for one of their mixes," says Debbie, "but I can't figure out how to split the mixes." Any Easy-Bake Oven® bakers out there? Send your tips to anne@cakemixdoctor.com, and I'll pass them along to Debbie and share them in the next newsletter.

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I am developing a line of cake mixes, and I would love to get some feedback from you, the readers of my books and newsletter. I know what I'd love to include in the mix, but what are your suggestions for what would be the perfect cake mix?

• What are your favorite flavors and how would you like the mix to be packaged?


• Would you prefer having a frosting or glaze packaged along with the cake mix or would you rather make your own?


• Many readers have asked for an all-natural cake mix. Does this matter to you?


• Would you be willing to pay more for a healthier cake mix or one that's organic?

Send your thoughts to me at anne@cakemixdoctor.com with Cake Mix Suggestions in the subject line.

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Quick Valentine's Day dessert ideas. And a sneak peek at my new book.

A Word from Anne
A Word from Workman
Bits & Bytes
Recipe Swap
Do Tell
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Hello from the newsletter desk, and my apologies for not writing sooner. It's been one crazy year, finishing up a new cookbook to be published September 2007. And I've been collaborating with Oxmoor House publishing (Southern Living) on a Christmas cookbook to be on newsstands soon, hopefully just in time to meet your holiday recipe needs. So, I'm back. I can't believe fall has flown by and that the best food holidays of the year are upon us...

Earlier in the fall I was the guest at a ladies club here in Nashville, and I was asked to speak to the membership about my books, about cooking when you are in a hurry, mostly light and entertaining stuff. Yet, this was a place where my mother had been a longtime member, and since her death five years ago from breast cancer I had not seen many of her friends gathered all in one place and sitting in front of me. Fearing my voice might crack and tears might fill my eyes when I thought of her, I told the crowd of more than 200 that I could feel my mother's love in the room. Then, instead of tears, I felt relief. My mom's love was in that room, and I have learned it's amazing where a mother's love turns up.

A friend recently told me she still bakes bread the way her mother did just so she can smell the bread baking in the oven. "When that bread bakes, my mother is in the kitchen." I couldn't get that thought out of my mind so I pulled my mother's bread recipe from a wooden box and baked it last weekend. I could have been 10 all over again and walking in a trance into her kitchen to follow that heavenly smell. My family feels the same way when we frost a caramel cake with my mom's caramel frosting, and Christmas would not be Christmas without her toffee—the production of it, the candy thermometer, the chopping of fresh pecans and breaking apart milk chocolate bars. In all these recipes, Bebe, as we called her, is with us.

No doubt there are recipes in your family that remind you of ones you love. Pull them out and bake them this week. Our world is an unsettled place, and the daily news is depressing. But you can boost the love in your home and in your community by sharing recipes and food and love. A mother's—or father's, or aunt's, or sister's—love can fill a room. Let the aroma or just the story of a familiar recipe surround you.

Happy Baking,
Anne

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New things are cooking at CakeMixDoctor.com. You may have noticed that this newsletter looks a little different than in the past. In fact, there are little updates all over the site, including a new way to search for recipes, but the most exciting addition is Anne's blog on the homepage! She'll be updating it with tidbits about her new book, baking news, and all kinds of other things she wants to share between newsletters. 'Tis the season for holiday baking and the Cake Mix Doctor is on-call. As always, if you have any questions, email me at info@workman.com, and we hope that you all enjoy the new features.

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Ambrosia Cake

The photographs were shot at my home in June. Yes, June! We had a turkey in the oven, greenery on the front door, and the air conditioning humming. I will most likely host Christmas Eve for our extended family this year, and so these stress-saving tips from the book are ones I live by:

Christmas Dinner Stress-Savers:

• This time of year, refrigerator storage space is at a premium, so start a new holiday ritual—a weekly refrigerator cleaning.


• Plan ahead. Have the table set, flowers arranged, and anything non-food related done the day before.


• Designate an area for beverages so guests can serve themselves.


• Identify serving pieces and utensils for each dish ahead of time.


• Prepare as many recipes ahead of time as possible.

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Many of you were in search of a Cinnabon Cake, and whereas the Honey Bun Cake in my first book might be the closest thing to a soft and delectable cinnamon roll, I searched for something new. What evolved is a wonderful Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake recipe, just right for holiday brunches and gift-giving.

Cinnamon Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Serves: 12 to 16
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 52 to 55 minutes

Vegetable oil spray for misting the pan
All-purpose flour for dusting the pan
1 package (18.5 ounces) plain butter recipe yellow cake mix
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, if desired
1 cup sour cream
4 large eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly mist a 10-inch tube pan with the vegetable oil spray, and dust with flour. Shake out the excess flour and set the pan aside.

2. Place the cake mix and flour in a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Measure out 2 tablespoons of this mixture and place it in a small bowl. Add the sugar, cinnamon, and pecans, if desired, to the small bowl and stir to combine. Set this aside.

3. Add the sour cream, eggs, oil, water, and vanilla to the large mixing bowl with the cake mix and flour. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are incorporated. Stop the machine, and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the speed to medium and blend 1 1/2 to 2 minutes more, or until the mixture is well combined and has lightened in texture. Spoon half of the batter into the prepared pan. With your fingers scatter all but 2 tablespoons of the sugar and cinnamon filling on top of the batter. Spoon the remaining batter into the pan, and carefully spread it out so as not to disturb the sugar layer. Sprinkle the remaining filling on top of the batter, and place the pan in the oven.

4. Bake the cake until it springs back when lightly pressed and the top has lightly browned, 52 to 55 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, and place on a rack to cool for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the pan, and invert the cake once, then again so that the cake rests right-side up on the cooling rack. Let it cool for 30 minutes, then slice and serve.

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Shelley Lindstrom writes about how much her husband loves the Perfect Chocolate Cake (Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor). "My husband said it was the best thing he's ever eaten! My question is that the frosting never reached a consistency that I could spread. It was so fudgy all I could do was drape it off the sides—which was fine by me, but I never got a complete cover on the sides...Can you give me an idea of what might have gone wrong?"

When you work with cooked frostings, such as this frosting for the Perfect Chocolate Cake, you need to begin frosting the cake when the frosting still appears runny. It will go on smoothly, and it will set up on the cake as it cools. If you wait too long, and the frosting hardens, it is nearly impossible to smooth over the cake. When this happens, place the pan in a bowl filled with a little hot water, stir, and the frosting will loosen up and be easier to spread.

And Dolores Hardy wants to know the best way to drizzle glaze onto pound cakes. "When I use the spoon it doesn't look right to me."

Depending on the thickness of the glaze, I often pour right from the saucepan. I hold the pan in my right hand above the cake, and with my left hand rotate the cake plate so that the glaze goes full circle. You kind of make a zig-zag motion with the pan, sort of a front-back, back-front, so that the glaze covers the front edges, top, and the inner edges as well. If all else fails, buy clean plastic squirt bottles from a cookware shop or restaurant supply store and pour the glaze into these. Squirt them onto the cake, warming the glaze up with your palms if it gets too cold to pour. We like to glaze gingerbread cookies during the holidays, and I will fill squirt bottles with glaze so my children can easily glaze cookies with designs once the cookies have cooled.

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A wonderful cake for New Year's Eve. A terrific frosting from a reader. And more of your questions, and my answers.

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