Sunday March 14, 2010 Week 43

Pink Lemonade Cake

1 1/2 cup butter

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup pink lemonade drink mix

4 large eggs

1/2 tsp lemon extract

4 cups cake flour

4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 1/2 cups milk

Lemonade buttercream ( follows)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray 3 9 inch round cake pans with baking spray and then lightly flour.

2. in a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, and lemonade drink mix at medium speed with an electric beater until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in Lemon extract.

3. In a medium bowl, combine cake flour, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternating with milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

4.Spoon batter into prepared pans. Bake for 24 - 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Lt cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and let cool completely on wire racks.

Lemonade Buttercream

1 1/2 cups butter

6 tablespoons frozen lemonade concentrate thawed

1 tsp lemon zest

6 cups confectioners sugar

1 in a large bowl beat butter, lemonade concentrate and lemon zest at medium speed with an electric mixer until combined. Gradually add confectioners sugar, beating until smooth.

Sunday March 7, 2010 week 42

Zebra Cake

easy and the kids loved it. You have to remember to do this the day before you want to serve it!

2 small packages thin chocolate cookies. ( about 36)

2 cups whipping cream

1/4 cup sugar

1 t vanilla

Whip the cream and add sugar and vanilla. Spread about 1 tsp of whipped cream on the cookie. Repeat with about 5 cookies. Very carefully lay them down on their side. Repeat until you have about ten inches of cookie and cream. Repeat making a row next to the first. When you are done ice the entire "cake and put it in the fridge for at least 3 hours to overnight. The cookies turn cakey as the whipped cream sinks in to them. This did not last long at our house!

Sunday February 28, 2010 week 41

With another nod to the French, this week's cake is from Julia Child's Mastering The Art of French Cooking

Gateau a l'Orange

Orange Spongecake

For a 9 inch cake serving 8 people

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

A round cake pan 9 by 1 1/2 inches butter and flour the cake pan

2/3 cup sugar

4 egg yolks

grated rind o f one orange

1/3 cup orange juice

pinch of salt

3/4 cup cake flour

With an electric mixer gradually add the sugar to the egg yolks beating until the mixture thickens to form the ribbon. Add the grated orange peel, orange juice and salt. Beat for a minute or two until the mixture is light and fluffy. Then beat in the flour. Set aside.

4 egg whites

pinch of salt

1 T sugar

In a separate bowl, beat the salt and egg whites together until soft peaks are formed. Sprinkle sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Stir in one fourth of the egg whites into the batter, delicately fold in the rest.

Immediately turn into the prepared cake pan and run the batter up to the rim all around. Bake in the middle of preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. Cake is done when it has puffed and browned, and shows a faint line of shrinkage from the edge of the mold.

Let cool for 6-8 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and reverse cake on a rack. If not to be iced, immediately reverse again, with puffed side up. Allow to cool for an hour or two. When cake is cold, sprinkle with powdered sugar of fill and ice the cake as desired. We put whipped cream on it and it was light and delicious. (We ate the entire cake at one sitting!!!)