Seattle — I was making my own birthday cake. How did this happen!? It was very clearly wrong. You shouldn’t make your own birthday cake. It arrives by the magic of love, and is accompanied by a glowing candle in the air and a song sung in his honor. This was axiomatic. It was also hot — my birthday is in August — the old Magic Chef electric stove cranked up, making the apartment even hotter, even though all the windows were wide open.
All I wanted to do was go and dive into the lake. This was my clearly stated birthday wish. , started making in the spirit of exactly what was called Malicious Yaki. It was a good way to spend my time… nice. Admittedly, part of me wanted something more dire. Baking a cake is the opposite of jumping into a lake, especially in August.
The cake has two layers, a chocolate situation. In a state of innocent bliss after making my childhood trauma with the Mad Hatter tea cake from the “Alice in Wonderland” cookbook I took it home from the library — it turns out the recipe is complicated and calls for a lot of eggs. Somehow anti-rising as an inedible low-lying sludge out of the oven—I eventually recovered and achieved some baking prowess with the dawn of adulthood. I was able to make Aunt Edith’s dinner rolls. I could make a cake. I discovered I could even make pie crust, and have deployed this skill several times at quiche serving.
Like me, you baked your own birthday cake in a hot apartment. Ding! Time to test with a toothpick: clean, done. I chilled it as much as I could. The top will be a little bumpy, so I used a serrated knife to carefully level it. they were not Dryness is difficult to describe. “Dry” is one word. Any flavor is baked to a gritty texture. I looked at my birthday cake and two rounds looked back at me.
There was only one thing left to do. I picked up half of the cake and lifted it through the open window. to degas in the same way. I may have cried tears of self-pity on my birthday. I didn’t swim that day.
Even the raccoons don’t touch the cake. Someone drove the car more than halfway and saw no effect. Sitting there, refusing to take it apart, for several days, I finally went outside and dejectedly moved both layers to the trash.
This was many years ago. The relationship didn’t last long, but my fear of baking bread continued, even after I finally realized it wasn’t my fault — the old magic chef’s thermostat failed and like crazy, It was about 100 degrees hotter than the setting. During that time, I was blaming myself for making bad choices and baking bread with a resentful mind that helped prevent real problem solving. Get a thermometer inside the oven and it will tell you what’s really going on. Loyal and true.
Still, today, when I bake, I stick to something very simple. Professional bakers do it with great skill and you pay them a pleasure. I’m not back to pie crust. I had Le Pichet for quiche and Mama for pie and was delighted in both cases.
When it comes to cakes, I pretty much only make one of the following. She has much better recipes for kids than the person who wrote the Alice in Wonderland cookbook). To make it even easier, it’s supposed to be mixed in the pot, but I found it to be a lot more troublesome than washing the bowl. ). On her website, Katzen tells the children/me: Because when a real chocolate cake comes out of that oven, it feels like a miracle. ”
truth! Make sure your oven is adjusted correctly. This cake will not make you cry.
Very easy, very good, not overly big chocolate cake, also vegan depending on the candies you roll out
It’s worth getting really good cocoa powder, not just for this cake, but for life in general. Use whatever kind of candy you like: toffee candy bars, or leftover candy canes, chocolate bars, or vegan chocolate bars (or sub-chocolate or vegan chocolate chips). Skip if it’s going to be and make powdered sugar snow. it still looks clean. This cake serves about 6 people. — Bethany Jean Clement
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (get the good stuff!)
1/3 cup coconut oil (melt if hard)
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or white vinegar
Up to 3 tablespoons of your favorite candy bar or other favorite candy — chop, crush, or crumble to about the size of a chocolate chip.
powdered sugar/powdered sugar
A cut-out heart (or another design) from heavier paper that fits in an 8-inch or 9-inch pan
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
3. Add remaining ingredients except candy and stir until smooth.
4. Pour the cake batter into a 9 inch round cake tin (8 inch square glass or metal baking dish will also work) and use a spatula or large spoon to scrape everything off and smooth the top of the impending portion . cake.
5. Sprinkle the candy over the cake batter.
6. Bake on the middle rack of the oven until a toothpick sticks through the middle and is almost clean.
7. Let cool for about 10 minutes, then flip the plate over the pan so the cake is present on the plate. If the cake doesn’t come out, don’t worry. It can be served in a frying pan. Please continue.
8. Place a paper heart or other design on top of the cake and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of powdered sugar through a sieve or fine sieve and sprinkle with snow. Carefully lift the paper design. Serve with a sense of accomplishment.
— Adapted from recipes from Mollie Katzen’s book Honest Pretzels
