Happy birthday, Mom {The Perfect Yellow Cake}

Baking on the fritz has been off the fritz for some time now. My baking has diminished in frequency and my posting has become almost nonexistent. Just because I haven't written doesn't mean I haven't been baking. In fact, I baked up the perfect yellow cake just a few days ago. I know, I know....the perfect cake and I didn't even share the recipe? Don't fear, the world's best from scratch yellow birthday cake is about to follow. I can't take one ounce of credit for the creation of this cake recipe (I didn't even tweak a thing, not even the amount of vanilla extract). And I can't take an ounce of credit for the birthday in which was celebrated. That blessed day is all thanks to God who smiled down on the earth sixty six years ago when He gave life to my Mom.
October 16 is my Mom's birthday. I forget most everyone's birthdays now a days. I have a lot of them to remember - that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. But I never forget my Mom's birthday. It is a day I am immensely thankful for because my Mom is my absolute best friend in the entire world. If I were into "BFF" bracelets then my Mom and I would each be sporting them. You know the kind I'm talking about. Each necklace or bracelet has half of a heart and when you put the two halves together you get a whole. The two friends together are "besties". This is the jewelry of elementary school but a principle that lasts a whole lot longer. Try forever.
For as long as I can remember my Mom has been my most faithful companion. Her steadfast love and endless care for me dates back to before I was born. She started pouring out her love for me while I was in the womb and she's never quit. She is the greatest blessing in my life.
It may seem a bit biased to call my Mom the best in the world but I have my reasons for such claims. She is level headed, wise, funny, giving, generous and selfless. It doesn't matter how much time we spend together she never runs out of things to say. She is always up for an outing and loves to wander and explore. Yet she also loves a relaxing game of Scrabble where no one keeps score. She laughs at Everybody Loves Raymond even if she's seen the episode ten times already. And she cries nearly every time she gives a prayer request or praise report in church.
Quite simply my Mom brings with her an ease and comfort everywhere she goes. If Mom is there then love is there, too. She is the glue that holds our family together. She has created a home that is sweet and inviting and always welcomes you with open arms.
On my Mom's birthday I wanted to make her the perfect cake because she is the perfect Mom for me. I read lots of cake reviews. I didn't want to bake a bomb. Finally I settled on a cake that required eight egg yokes - eight! I figured with that many egg yokes it had to be good. And I was right.
My Mom devoured more pieces of cake then she would like me to share so I will keep that number top secret (a little post-birthday present for her). Let's just say the cake was a home run, slam dunk, hit of a birthday cake. I give all my thanks to David who (according to AllRecipes) claims the fame this cake deserves.
If you want to celebrate your Mom with a yellow cake that will knock her socks off and show her how much you love her (because we all know that's exactly what a good cake says to a dessert loving Mom) then I suggest David's Yellow Cake. Save the egg whites and make an omelet. Or feed them to your dog. Either way the cake will be a hit and the egg whites will go to good use.
To top off your cake I suggest a chocolate cream cheese frosting. The measurements for my go-to frosting aren't exact. It starts with about a 1/4 cup melted butter, 2 cups confectioners sugar, 3 tablespoons half and half and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese. Have a cup of water handy to smooth out the frosting as you beat it with an electric mixer. When your taste tester deems it perfect you can then frost your cooled cake. Then stick sixty six candles in it and sing a happy birthday to your amazing Mother.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

The name of this post is "Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes" but really it should be called "An Unexpectedly Good Treat."
If you are like me then this combination of fruit, flour and chips all molded into one miniature cake sounds off-putting. Cupcakes should not contain bananas. Or chips for that matter. At least that's what I had always believed until I stumbled upon this recipe. In it I found an odd assortment of ingredients that I didn't believe could work well together in one paper lined muffin tin. But there it was, in black and white, topped with a chocolate cream cheese frosting. I found this recipe in my favorite cookbook, The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook that I keep referring to on this blog. I highly recommend it. Trust me, it's worth the splurge. Each recipe I've tried has been a success and these strange little cupcakes are no exception.
This unexpected recipe with unexpected ingredients actually produced an unexpectadly tasty result. The crumb of the cupcakes was just right thanks to the nontraditional method of preparing the batter with oil and whipped egg whites as opposed to good ol' butter. And the frosting made almost entirely of cream cheese was the perfect balance to the sweet banana of the light and airy cupcake below.
For reasons I can't explain, when baked at 350 degrees for twenty-two minutes, these strange bedfellows of ingredients came together to make perfectly round, perfectly moist cupcakes. I didn't see the success of these cupcakes coming but I am pleased to report that they were not at all an utter disaster - as I had expected.

While delivering these unique cupcakes to my dessert loving loved ones the lesson of the unexpected cupcake dawned on me...
There are sets of life circumstances that I often assume will be bad. I expect sickness, heartache, loneliness and trials to produce negativity in my life. I look at my life's road blocks and detours as things to just get through and survive.
But sometimes all of those circumstances can produce something unexpectedly good.
Joseph is a prime example of horrid circumstances working together for his ultimate good. He was sold into slavery and thrown in prison even though he had done nothing wrong. Most would say that his situation was rotten and unjust. Yet, God has something glorious in mind for Joseph. He took those undesirable circumstances and did something unexpectedly amazing with them and with Joseph.
God used Joseph to prepare Egypt for a coming famine. Through Joseph's interpretation of dreams, God was able to sustain the people of Egypt through years without a harvest. Even Joseph's brothers were spared thanks to the storehouse of food Joseph had set aside.
When Joseph's brothers came to Egypt in search of food they must have been shocked to find their brother, who they sold into slavery years ago, second in command and overseer of the lands of Egypt. Unexpected? You bet!
But Joseph said to his brothers, "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." (Genesis 50:20).
God took a life that looked as good as dead and did something totally unexpected with it, He used it to save an entire nation. Joseph had been a slave and an inmate, not exactly the pedigree for second in command over a country. But that's how God works, He takes the unexpected and uses it to glorify His name and further His Kingdom.
That's exactly what He did with Joseph and that's exactly what He can still do today in the unexpected circumstances of my life and yours.
Multiple Sclerosis has thrown me a curve ball with the word, "unexpected" written all over it. But I believe in the ability and will of God to do extraordinary things with the unexpected. He can use my MS to bring praise to His name and further His Gospel. I don't know precisely how He plans to do that with my unexpected life just yet but I trust that the plan He has for me is being worked out even now, in the trials and difficulties of my illness.
Unexpected, yes. But good? Most certainly, yes. Even the most unlikely of life's ingredients can come together to make something beautiful. Just like Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes.

Disposed of Apple Blondies {inedible falilure}

Five minutes to peel, core and slice the apples.
Ten minutes to measure, mix and beat dough ingredients then fold in the apples.
Thirty minutes to bake at 350 degrees.
One hour to cool.
Twenty minutes to beat (and attempt to salvage) malfunctioning frosting.

Ten seconds to destroy in the garbage disposal.

The Apple Blondies were an inedible disaster. My first entirely inedible disaster to date. The tops of the blondies were brown - golden actually. But, once cut, a mushy, gushy, disgusting center was revealed. The tops had cooked but the apples inside and the surrounding cakey dough had reduced to a slimy mess.
And the frosting. Oh goodness don't get me started! Who puts raw brown sugar in frosting? No right-minded dessert love wants a crunch in their creamy frosting. No one. I don't even eat frosting and I don't want it to crunch. Frosting is meant to be smooth and silky. Frosting is to dessert what sheets are to a bed. And just like sheets shouldn't be scratchy, frosting shouldn't be crunchy.
After twenty minutes of working with my disastrous frosting the crunch was almost dissolved thanks to ridiculous amounts of confectioners sugar, low heat and even more ridiculous amounts of butter.
After saving the frosting (or at least making it edible) I went to cut into the bars and discovered that the situation was much more dire than a crunch in the frosting. The bars were complete mush - clumpy, sugary, soupy mush.
I took the pan of apple slime to the sink, dumped, rinsed and turned on the switch to crush the inedible ball of dough into a disposed of memory.

Some days, some recipes, simply cannot be saved. Poor apple blondies, they looked like they had promise. The pictures were deceiving - golden brown bars topped with creamy, white frosting (seriously there could not have been brown sugar in the bars pictured!) But the reality of my own apple blondies was anything but tantalizing. So I had to face the music, or, more accurately, the mushy bars, and admit to defeat.
I came, I baked and I didn't conquer the apple blondies.
Oh well. Bake and learn.

Failed apple blondie take away: Pictures don't tell the whole story. So Pinterest picture gazer beware. Think before you bake!
And don't ever put raw brown sugar in a frosting...ever.

Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Maple Frosting

There is a kids show on TV called "The Suite Life of Zach and Cody." Don't jump to conclusions, I'm not sitting at home spending my evenings tuned into the Disney Channel catching up on my latest tween sitcoms. I have, on the other hand, witnessed snippets of this show while visiting my nieces and nephews. Trust me, that was enough of Zach and Cody for me. Their "suite" life lived out in a luxury hotel wasn't my kind of entertainment or my kind of "suite" life.

I happen to have my own kind of suite life and it isn't found in a hotel room or in a gold lined plate delivered by room service.
My suite life revolves around the sweet that is received through the act of giving. True sweetness is found in the blessing of being a blessing. Every other life leaves an overindulgent, sickeningly sweet aftertaste. But the sweet life of a giving life warms the soul, spreads love and always leaves the giver with a lighter spirit and fuller heart.

The truly sweet life is one that isn't focused on the self. It isn't concerned with accumulating stuff or even experiences. It isn't focused on its own desires, wants or even its needs (obviously I haven't reached that point in my spiritual maturity, I'm a work in progress).
Acts 20:35 says in quoting Jesus, "it is more blessed to give than to receive." Who could say it better than Jesus himself?

I was reminded of this scripture and this truth again this week as I laid in an oxygen chamber receiving hyperbaric oxygen therapy. I had taken a break from this type of therapy for a couple of months but wanted to give it another shot to see if it could help my MS.
Don't get me wrong, I believe oxygen therapy can be beneficial but as I laid in that chamber I couldn't help but feel like I was in the wrong place. I couldn't give to anyone while shut up in that chamber. I couldn't bless anyone or share the love of Christ with anyone while laying in a glass tube. All I could do was look straight ahead at a TV playing some meaningless rerun. The life giving oxygen I should have been relishing was actually making me feel dead inside. I wanted out of that coffin like contraption. I wanted to get back in my kitchen and get back to blessing other people!
That is when I remembered Acts 20:35: giving is better than receiving. It was then that I realized I wasn't meant to be laying in that oxygen chamber. I was created to be a giver.
So I'm out of the chamber and back in the kitchen. This is where I'm supposed to be, preparing delicious desserts and blessing my beloveds.
That is truly the sweetest life and it is a life infinitely better than any "suite" life sitcom.

As an ode to the sweet life today I am baking Sweet Potato Cupcakes with Maple Marshmallow Frosting. And then I will give them away… That's my kind of therapy.

To try out this delicious recipe and become a believer in sweet potato baked goods visit the link below!
http://overtimecook.com/2013/11/20/sweet-potato-cupcakes-with-maple-marshmallow-frosting/

Iced Oatmeal Cookies

This morning I had four little reasons to start baking. Their names are Lucas, Hailey, Eliot and Juliette. They are four of my ten nieces and nephews and this morning they came over for a babysitting date with Grandma (my Mom) while their Mom's had a morning out with yours truly, the childless sister-in-law.
The kids in my life are one of the primary reasons I bake. It is how I bless them. On days when my leg is flaring (like today) and my digestion leaves me house bound (way too often) I can still impact the lives of those adorable little kids by baking treats they'll love.
Little Eliot is one of my biggest fans. When I pull into the drive way, open his front and walk in with a tray, plate or tin full of the latest goodie he always comes running asking in the cutest little voice you've ever heard, "What did you bake today, Stephie?" He always uses my name and is always the first to dig into whatever dessert I have on hand. I don't think anyone loves what I bake as much as Eliot.
This morning got busy in the kitchen. I woke up knowing that by ten o'clock I wanted to have a special treat baked and ready for the kids to enjoy when they arrived. Eliot would be excited to see what sugary surprise I had in store and the rest of the kids would be more than willing to dig into a cookie at ten in the morning.
In an attempt to keep this dessert semi-healthy (a stretch to say the least) I decided to stick with an oatmeal cookie. This is a faux Archway cookie. It is a classic oatmeal base with a sugary glaze. Like I said, healthy is a stretch when describing this cookie. But, hey, oatmeal is healthier than chocolate chips, right? And after all this is Grandma's house. Dessert at ten in the morning isn't off limits!

So to the recipe we go! This delicious and classic treat comes courtesy of Annie Eats. You can check out her blog and the recipe at http://www.annies-eats.com/2014/09/04/iced-oatmeal-cookies/.
For a classic cookie beloved by little hands and grown ups alike I highly suggest giving this cookie a try. If you're really feeling decedent, have it for breakfast. I won't tell, and neither will Eliot. After all, he's a morning cookie lover, too.

Yellow cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting {Welcome Home Cake}

Have you noticed that I sort of just disappeared? I have a good excuse, I promise. 

Today brings to an end a sixteen day journey up and down the eastern side of the United States. Sounds exciting, doesn't it? The excursion began by heading down through the hills of West Virginia, the southern megapolis of Charlotte, North Carolina and into the hot and humid South Carolina. For one week my parents and I spent our yearly week vacation in Hilton Head Island. I'll spare you the details but the week didn't go quite as planned. The heat was brutal and took a toll on my muscles, sending me into a state of fritz. 

As the hottest week of the year in Hilton Head drew to a close so did our beach vacation. Next stop: Annapolis, Maryland. Mom and I spent three days wandering the harbor and taking in the historic charm Annapolis has to offer. Then it was on to our next and final stop, Brewster, New York. 

This last stop was for a surprise seventy fifth birthday party for my Aunt Joyce. The party went off without a hitch and the surprise was a success! 

After spending an extra day in New York visiting with family, Mom and I packed our bags and pointed our car in the direction of home. We both eagerly stuffed the car to the brim and pushed the gas pedal with a bit more force. More than anything we both just wanted to get home. 

So you see this is why my baking adventures have come to a screeching halt. Besides a large pan of apple crisp my baking has been nonexistent, something I write with sadness, not relief. I've missed the habit of baking and being in the kitchen. I've missed getting my hands dirty and smelling the sweet scent of accomplishment rising in the oven. I'm beyond relieved to be home not just for the comfort of my own bed but the familiarity and convenience of my own oven and cupboards stocked full of baking necessities. 

Being away for over two weeks reminded me that there truly is no place like home. It is so easy to look at dots on the map and pictures of beautiful places and think, "Oh, if only I were there! Life would be so much better, easier and happier if only I were there!" (wherever there might be.) But then you get there and realize that "there" wasn't all it was cracked up to be. The traffic is chaotic. The kitchen is lacking the most basic of cutting utensils. The humidity is unbearable. The store aisles are confusing. The bed pillows are awkward, with lumps in all the wrong places. 

Before too long I'm longing for home.

Now don't get me wrong, my home and the town I live in is far from perfect. But it's home. Even with all of its flaws, drawbacks and imperfections I would choose it over any other place in the world. I would pick my house even though the dishwasher doesn't work, the doors never shut properly, the shopping centers have seen better days and the neighbors' yards are far from pristinely manicured. I love my hometown despite the fact that it is deemed "the mistake on the lake" and desperately lacking in the area of nightlife and "excitement".

What I learned in these past two weeks is that what I have right at home, my little simple life, is just right. Sometimes I lament the status of my life and wish it would change. I want different health, a group of friends, a purposeful job and a social life. Instead of soaking in the goodness of my life just the way it is I start looking around at what other people have and I immediately start to covet, lust and desire a life different then my own. 

But the truth is that desiring someone else's life is a lot like desiring another town or an exotic location. It may sound appealing but the reality is that there is no place like home. No matter how great someone else's life may look from afar it has its flaws. It may look perfect on the surface but live in it for a while and the allure will likely wear off. Before you know it you'll be longing for your life back.

My life isn't perfect. My health isn't perfect. I don't have friends or any social circle to call my own. I don't have a date on Friday night or a Bible study group on Thursday morning. 

But I love my life and I wouldn't trade it for any other. I wouldn't wish away my illness or trade my solitary life for all the popularity in the world. If God sees it fit to heal me then hallelujah! And if He gives me friends then thank you God! But I'm not wishing away the time I have now and the life I have now. I am going to embrace it, love it and soak in all its goodness because that's what it is, good. Life is good. My life, the way it is right now in this moment, in this town, is good and I don't want to miss a minute of it by wishing it were different.

Today I am celebrating just that, the good life I have, by baking a cake that to me says, "welcome home." A yellow sheet cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting. When I was away at college before I would come home for the weekend I was known to call my Mom and request a yellow cake with chocolate frosting to be warm and ready upon my arrival. Mom never disappointed. She would have that cake timed perfectly so that the inviting, comforting scent of cake baking in the oven would fill the house as I pulled in the driveway. That cake was my welcome home banner, the perfect way to say hello, a warm embrace with every bite. 

So in honor of coming home to the place where I belong, to the place where I have been planted and where I have been given a good, full and beautiful life I am baking my welcome home cake. I'm back and I couldn't be happier. 

The recipe for the yellow sheet cake can be found at Baking Bites (http://bakingbites.com/2005/10/happy-birthday-to-me/). 

This is a must repeat recipe! At first I was skeptical that the cake had turned out. It looked dense - not what I expected. But my taste testers assured me the cake had a delicious flavor and wasn't dense at all. I topped the cake with a chocolate frost. I didn't use a recipe, just the directive of my Mom as she guided me in the art of eyeballing chocolate frosting with a touch of cream cheese. My measurements were something along the lines of half a stick of butter, half a cup semi-sweet chips, a couple of squares of dark baking chocolate, a few tablespoons of hot water, about 2-3 cups of confectioners sugar and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese. I melted the butter and chocolate first then beat in the sugar, adding water as needed. Finally I added the cream cheese and beat on high for a few seconds to make sure everything was fully combined. The result was perfect! The consistency was thick yet spread well and most importantly was a delight for the taste buds!

If you have something coming home or you just want to celebrate the blessing of being in your own home sweet home I suggest baking this cake. Home is always a place worth celebrating, so go ahead and bake a cake.