The most hideous cake of all time

This weekend I had plans to make a lovely 3-layer white cake with lemon filling and marshmallow frosting.  Sounds good right? Yeah...

The lemon curd came out great- I have a recipe I cut out of a county living magazine years ago that I love.  Simple, homemade, delicious.  Baked my cake layers, they came out fine.  Right before we were ready to have dessert I made my frosting- it's a marshmallow frosting, a lot of similar recipes call it "7 minute" frosting, the recipe I use actually calls it "finger frosting" and I will explain why later.

Anyway... this is where it all started going downhill.  The frosting didn't fluff.  Wrong word- peak.  I beat it on high for 20 minutes hoping it would do its thing, but it did not.  So I put it on the cake anyway.  But it was kind of heavy and soupy. 

Lovely, right?  It gets far worse.  I put dowels in the cake to support all the layers.  But the top layer started the break apart and slide off.  I tried to save it with more dowels, but to no avail.

One chunk fell off, followed by others...

The structure was severely compromised... so I gave up and scooped it into a dish. 

It was pretty sad.  Thankfully, my family is so great that they all ate it anyway.  Where did I go wrong?  I have reflected on this a little bit and I have some ideas...

First of all I wanted to make a 3-layer cake using box mixes.  A box mix makes 2 9-inch layers, so I thought I would use 2 boxes, make 3 layers, and use the rest of the batter to make 12 cupcakes that I could freeze and use later.  But when I poured my batter into the 3 9-inch pans I thought to myself, there is a lot more rooms in those pans... if I just add a little more batter to each I could have some nice thick layers!  So I did.

Also, I was tired.  I did not feel like greasing and flouring the pans.  So I sprayed them with Pam.  Same thing, right?  They are nonstick pans anyway, what's the point of having nonstick pans if you still have to grease and flour them?

Okay.  So when I took them out of the oven they were a little more dome shaped than I would have liked.  I knew I would need to trim them so they would be flatter.  Then it was time to take them out of the pans... which went okay.  But the middle of the cakes stuck a teeny tiny bit, and made a few little fissures in the center.  Didn't fall apart though.

Next step... the frosting.  The recipe is called "finger frosting" because you mix up all the ingredients in a pot on the stove with your finger until it gets too hot to touch.  Then you know it's done, and you transfer it to the mixer and beat it on high for 10 minutes.  So this finger method... not super precise.  I mean, it relies a lot of the cook's tolerance for pain.  First time I made it I stuck my finger in and thought, "ouch, must be ready!"  them my mom stuck her finger in and was like "that's not hot!  needs more time!"  My mom is a toughie.

Anyway, so first of all I do not like stirring it with my finger the whole time, so I was wisking it with a wisk.  And I was talking to my brother while wisking.  Maybe a little distracted.  When I finaly stuck my finger in it was really hot... well, what I considered to be really hot.  So I put it in the mixer.

Did I overcook the frosting?  I think I may have.  Did that cause it to not peak properly?  It's possible.

So then when I assembled the cake, it fell apart.  Were my layers not flat enough and/or too heavy because I used extra batter?  Maybe.  Was it all aggrevated by the fact that the center of the layers had cracks and were therefore more likely to split?  I'm pretty sure that is the case.  But are the tiny cracks the result of not greasing and flouring the pans properly?  I'm not completely sure.

Anyway, next time I attempt this I will do less "winging it." 

I feel like I need to go bake something pretty right now to redeem myself.

Spinach Pie

A vegetarian friend of mine has been asking me for this recipe : )  My mom has been making this for as long as I can remember, and it is one of my favorite recipes of all time.  It's so good that even the spinach haters in your life will be asking for seconds.  Trust me, I know from personal experience.

1 pie crust
2 (10oz). packages of frozen chopped spinach
1 large minced onion
3 tbsp. butter
3 eggs
1/2 tea. salt
1/2 tea. pepper
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup milk or cream
1 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350.  Defrost spinach and squeeze to remove excess water.  Saute onion in the butter over medium heat until translucent.   Stir in spinach, salt and pepper.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, ricotta, parmesan and milk.  Mix thoroughly, then add the spinach mixture.  Stir until blended, then pour into a pie crust.  Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until set and lightly brown on top.

Oh man I am about to have seconds right now.

Some notes:
 I usually lighten up this recipe by using low fat milk and ricotta.  You could omit the pie crust too, but I love it so I usually don't.  Also, you can substitute crumbled feta for the parmesan - my husband loves when I make it like that.

Yum.

Chicken and Cornmeal Dumplings

Last week's ice storm- pretty to photograph, bad to drive in.

I am not the biggest fan of snow and cold.  Warm and cozy food helps make winter more bearable.  So today I wanted to try a new cold weather meal.  Read a few different recipes, then created my own.  Happy to say this was one experiment that had great results!  So yummy I had to share.  

Ingredients:

5 cups chicken stock

2 dried bay leaves

1 large onion, cut into thin strips

2 cups carrots, cut into ½ inch pieces

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1.5-2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into chunks

3 tablespoons butter

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups frozen peas

For the dumplings:

½ cup cornmeal

½ cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 ½ tablespoons butter

½ cup milk

In a large pot, bring the stock, bay leaf, onions and carrots to boil.  Simmer for around 10 minutes.  Add salt, pepper and chicken, and simmer for about 20 minutes longer until carrots are soft and chicken is cook through.

While chicken is simmering, make the batter for the dumplings.  Combine cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.  Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, then add the milk and mix until combined. 

In a very small bowl, melt 3 tablespoons butter in the microwave.  Stir in 3 tablespoon flour and combine to form a paste.  Remove the bay leaves from the pot and whisk in butter mixture until it is combined with the liquid.  Add 2 cups frozen peas.

When the pot begins to simmer again (the frozen peas will cool it down temporarily), add the dumplings.  Form 1 tablespoon batter into a fat disk by rolling it in your hands then flattening slightly.  Place dumplings on the top of chicken and vegetables.  When all the dumplings are formed, cover and allow to simmer over low heat for 10 minutes, until dumplings are plump and cracked on top.

Use a ladle to share chicken and dumplings into bowls while hot.  Recipe serves 4-6 people.

Oh man, I cannot wait to eat some leftovers tomorrow!  I wish I was hungry enough to eat more right now, haha.

Elmo Cupcakes

My baby is turning one!  The birthday boy really loves Elmo, so we made these cupcakes.  They looked really cute!

The cupcakes are white cake with marshmallow frosting.  We colored the icing red (actually pink because I ran out of food coloring) and then sprinkled red sugar on top.  For the eyes, cut a big marshmallow in half and then add a dot of black icing for the pupil.  An orange gum drop makes the nose, and the mouth is drawn on with black icing.

Of the batch of cupcakes, we only made about a third look like Elmo- others had a dusting of red sugar or M&M's.  

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

First of all, Happy Thanksgiving!  

I LOVE this time of year, but sometimes all the cooking and baking that goes along with it is exhausting!  I made these pancakes last night as a simple supper, and they were super fast, very tasty, and made the kitchen smell wonderful, too!  

They'd also be great for breakfast : )

Pumpkin Spice Pancakes

1 1/2 cups pancake mix 

1/2 cup oatmeal

1/4 cup flaxseed meal

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon cloves

2 eggs

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1 cup milk

The batter has this pretty orange color.  Sometimes I use recipes that don't call for a whole can of pumpkin, and this is a great way to use up the rest.  This recipe makes 12 medium pancakes.  Next time I'll double it and eat them for breakfast all week!  

my serious little man

Lately I have been struck by how grown up my baby is getting.  Yesterday at “cuddle-ups” (baby story-time @ the library) was one of those moments.  Most of the babies that could walk or crawl were moving around the room, but baby G just sat on my lap and watched the librarian.  This from the child who usually only stops moving to eat and sleep.  He was very attentive, mouth slightly ajar, eyes fixed on this little old lady singing a song with a duck puppet on her hand.  Okay, I’ll admit he got antsy eventually, and tried to crawl out the room, eat the wheels on some other lady’s stroller, and pull the frizzy hair of the mommy sitting next to us.  But he sat still for a very long time.

It kind of reminded me of when he was just a few months old- he was kind of a serious baby.  He always had this furrowed-brow, pensive expression; we used to joke that he was saying “are you people really equipped to be parents?”  He smiles and laughs often now, but he still kind of has a serious personality, I think.

Serious is maybe not the right word.  He is focused.  He often surprises me by how focused he can be.  The perfect example- the TV remote control.  He loves that thing.  It must be because we are always keeping it away from him (the forbidden fruit).  Also, maybe because it has buttons to push.  And some of them light up when you push them.  Anyway, the remote control is always on his radar, and he is constantly watching and waiting for the moment when we leave it within his reach.  Then he’ll pounce.  Sometimes we’ll put it where he can’t reach it or see it, like under a pillow.  But he doesn’t forget.  He’ll be happily playing, then all of the sudden crawl over and try to push the pillow out of the way.  Or he’ll reach up to be held, but as soon as we sit him next to us on the couch, he’s reaching for the remote.

It will be interesting to see how this  character trait manifests itself as G get older.  Isn’t it fascinating the way babies are born with distinct personalities right from the start?

On challenging the media's portrayal of childbirth...

This morning I was watching the “Rachel Ray” show, and she had a segment featuring the birth experience of one of the show’s style contributors, Greta. After a doctor’s visit, Greta was admitted to the hospital to be induced (they didn’t say why). She labored for a few hours, and while they didn’t explicitly mention that she got an epidural, she is shown putting a little mask over her eyes and taking a nap after 8 hours, so I am guessing she did. Some hours later, she had not made enough progress, and so her doctor performed a c-section.

Now I am certainly not suggesting that the actions of this woman’s doctor were influenced by what would make her birth better for television. But there are so many similar stories out there portrayed on shows like "A Baby Story." Forget about births on sitcoms, which are almost always completely ridiculous. It made me think- what impressions of childbirth you would have if the only information you were going on was what you saw in the media. This would actually be a really fascinating research project. Maybe someday I’ll do the research and write a book on it! (just kidding… mostly)

I began reading about childbirth before I even got pregnant, because I felt a need to really educate myself, and not to accept the portrayal of giving birth that you see on television shows, or merely trust my doctor to tell me what to do. And I was really inspired by my mother, who had four natural, unmedicated births. I came to believe that giving birth should not be treated like a physical ailment, sickness, or disease.

Expectations are such a powerful thing. If you view childbirth as something to be feared, that causes pain, that is riddled with dangerous complications which are likely to come up, and that needs to be managed with drugs, then those expectations are likely to play out. Think about the difference it can make if you understand what is happening with your body, accept the pain as having a wonderful purpose, and expect that you will be able to find the strength to get through one contraction at a time, just as generations of women have.

I am not one of those people who suggest that giving birth in a baby pool in your living room, or even in a birthing center with a midwife, is the only way to go. I went to the hospital to have my baby, and saw an Ob-Gyn for all my prenatal visits. There are certainly occasions when medical intervention is necessary, and I appreciate having those things accessible if really needed. And being induced or getting an epidural does not always equal additional complications.

But I am personally in favor of natural, unmedicated childbirth. This is in large part because I think that there is truth to the theory of the “spiraling cascade of interventions.” Greta’s story was the classic example of this- they use drugs to induce you before your body is really ready, then the pain from the contractions in this unnatural state is so severe that you get an epidural, which results in your movement being more restricted, and your labor stalls, and eventually a c-section is needed.

But I also support unmedicated childbirth because giving birth naturally was one of, if not the most empowering and exciting experience of my life.

I recognize that pain management in labor is a personal choice, and I completely respect whatever decision a woman makes. But I would encourage women to examine the assumptions they have about childbirth, and think about where they come from.