Cakes: October 2005 Archives

Also known as Watergate Cake and coverup icing from the 1970's Nixon scandal.

1 box plain white cake mix
1 (3.4 ounce) box instant pistachio pudding mix
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup ginger ale
3 large eggs

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350
degrees F. Lightly mist a 13 x 9-inch pan with vegetable oil, then
dust with flour. Shake out the excess flour. Set the pan aside.

Place cake mix, pudding mix, oil, ginger ale and eggs into a large
mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed for 1 minute.
Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber
spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more,
scraping down the sides again if needed. The batter should look well
blended. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top
with the rubber spatula. Place the pan in the oven. Bake the cake
until it springs back when lightly pressed with your finger, 35 to 40
minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and place it on a wire rack to
cool completely, 30 minutes more.

Meanwhile, prepare frosting.

Frosting
1 (3.4 ounce) box instant pistachio pudding mix
1 1/2 cups milk
1 8 ounce container frozen whipped topping, thawed

Whisk pudding mix and milk together in a large mixing bowl. It should
thicken up but not set, from 2 to 3 minutes. Gently fold in whipped
topping. Spread the top with frosting. You can sprinkle toasted nuts
over the top, if desired. Store, covered, in the refrigerator.

I am serving this cake at Christmas. The pudding makes it lightly green. The pistachios are a holiday favorite of my husband.

Young's Luxury Double Chocolate Stout

This is a most incredibly smooth beer. It is so dark that light does not pass through the glass. The head forms and is the most beautiful creamy head that is almost like silk on your tongue. You will want to drink this beer cool but not icey cold. You want to sip and savour and enjoy every tiny bit of it in your mouth. I promise you this is a beer that deserves to be given a fair chance. You MUST acquire and test this one out. It is not a beer you want to drink every day. It is not really a beer you have with a meal. You might enjoy it with a dark chocolate dessert. Beer and chocolate are excellent pairings! (I am thinking this beer might be excellent in a recipe I have for a chocolate cake made with a dark stout. When my shipment arrives I plan to try it. If it turns out the way I hope I might also add it to my cake-in-jar gift list.) This is one of those you pour on a crisp evening, sit by the fire with a good book or movie in your most comfortable jammies and simply enjoy and relax.

Cake

2 cups stout
4 sticks unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch)
4 cups all purpose flour
4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups sour cream

Icing2 cups whipping cream
1 pound bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped

For cake:
Preheat oven to 350��F. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans with 2-inch-high sides. Line with parchment paper. Butter paper. Bring 2 cups stout and 2 cups butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Transfer cakes to rack; cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack and cool completely.

For icing:
Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chopped chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate until icing is spreadable, stirring frequently, about 2 hours.

Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with second cake layer. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with third cake layer. Spread remaining icing over top and sides of cake.

I can't remember where I first got this recipe. Credit belongs to someone but I don't know who. I do know there are other versions spread around the world.

Do not substitute ingredients or take short cuts because you will get a yucky cake.

2 2/3 c. self-rising flour
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. vegetable oil
1 stick butter (real butter)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp distilled white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
1 c. buttermilk (no substitutees -only real buttermilk)
4 bottles red food coloring

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour three 9 inch round pans or line them with waxed or parchment paper. (I often will divide the batter and make 5 - 8 very thin layers. It makes the cake more decadent to me.)

Cream butter and sugar. Add oil and eggs one at a time mixing well after each egg.

Mix together vinegar, buttermilk and then all 4 bottles of the food coloring. Yes, you do need all 4. You want this to be a rich deep Christmas red cake not pinkish or weak red.

Sift together the flour and baking soda.

Alternately add the three mixtures a little at the time until all three are combined.

Stir in the vanilla and mix well.

Pour into the cake pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean - 20 - 25 minutes maybe more depending on your oven.

Let the layers completely cool before you try to frost them.

Cream Cheese Icing
1 package of cream cheese (philiadelphia brand is best) softened at room temp.
1 stick of butter softened at room temp.
1 box confectioners sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 - 1 c. finely chopped pecans

Mix the cream cheese and butter together until it is well combined. Add the confectioners sugar a little at a time to combine it well. Add the vanilla and mix well. Add the chopped nuts and mix until it is creamy as if whipped.

Frost each layer. If you make the several thinner layers you will most likely need to make 2 batches of icing -which I do anyway because I like thick coats of icing.

This cake is fine on the countertop for a day or two. After that time refrigerate. It never lasts long enough around our house to need refrigerating.

Let me remind you to not substitute ingredients. When you see red food coloring in your grocery store go ahead and start collecting it. It will begin to disappear fast at the holidays and the day you decide to make the cake is the day you won't find the first bottle left on the store shelf.