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| Southern fruitcake is just the thing for a cold winter day |
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If you went to the Taste of Home Cooking School last week, you saw me up there hustling around. They asked me to help out backstage again this year, and I love doing it.
Things went pretty well. I didn't make any major mistakes, didn't leave out any ingredients, I figured out how to turn on the stove and I didn't have to use that fancy-dancy can opener that I can't get to work. All in all, it was a good night.
Except that I had a nasty cold and I felt rotten. The cold lingered for days, and I didn't feel like doing much of anything except sleep and read. Fortunately for me, my sweet husband pampers me when I'm sick and takes care of mundane things like dinner and dishes.
By Thursday I felt more like myself, and I decided to reward him with dessert. I found just the thing in a new novel from Laura Childs, the author of one of my favorite mystery series, The Tea Shop Mysteries. Her new book, "Blood Orange Brewing," comes out next month, and like the books before this, it kept me hooked from opening page to ending.
Theodosia and the tea shop gang get embroiled in another murder, the curmudgeon Detective Tidwell eats scones and, as always, reluctantly accepts Theo's help in solving the case. Best of all, Ms. Childs includes 12 recipes! Woo hoo!
I made the Low-Country Black Bean Soup a couple of weeks ago, and we loved it. Since I still wasn't feeling up to snuff, I chose to make Ms. Childs' Southern Cuppa Cuppa Cake for Ron's reward dessert.
Few ingredients, little measuring, you just mix and bake - it was perfect. I used fruit cocktail, as the recipe suggested, but I think peaches or cherries would be splendid in this dessert. It's not like a regular cake, but more dense and it doesn't rise much. A big scoop of vanilla ice cream definitely tops it off just right.
Watch for "Blood Orange Brewing" soon. Bake some of Haley's Almond Scones and settle down for a delightful afternoon of reading. The recipes will become treasured additions to your collection, and the book will earn a permanent spot in your library.
Southern Cuppa Cuppa Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray an 8-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup fruit cocktail with syrup (I used the cherry-lovers kind)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons melted butter
Pinch of salt
Mix all ingredients together by hand in a large bowl. Pour into lightly greased 8-inch square baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until brown and bubbly. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Reprinted from "Blood Orange Brewing," by Laura Childs, Berkley Prime Crime Hardcover, copyright 2006.
Sharon Vail lives in Powell Butte, where she's happy to be over the cold and back to her usual cooking and baking. Ron is happy about it, too. Readers may contact her at" svail3@netzero.net. "Cooking from the heart of Oregon |
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