Anna Belle's Angel Food Cake

This might be the most important recipe I share with you. I’ve already written about both of my grandmothers (here and here), but this recipe is the one truly at the heart of my Dad's family. My grandma McGraw would always have an angel food cake around--I think I even remember her keeping them on-hand in her freezer. Cooking is something I enjoy, but it really was her gift. We have her on old family videos measuring with eggshells. Crazy! Everything in the kitchen was so intuitive to her.

So, to master this somewhat tedious recipe is really to see what wealth of knowledge she had that was so second nature to her.

Notice all of my notes I've had to add--it's a science!

Is it a little intimidating? Yes, but do it anyway! Just imagine how tasty that cake will be--heavenly, some would say. Ha! I couldn't resist.

So, let’s get started . . . Here's what you need to know before baking. It’s imperative that you set your eggs out the night before you plan on making your cake. They need to reach room temperature. If you forget to do this, then bake some cookies instead and save the cake for another day. Speaking from experience . . . just don’t even.

So how many eggs will you need? I buy a pack of 18 jumbo eggs to use; this gives me an extra or two if I mess one up (again, speaking from experience). Also, invest in one of these doo-dads. Using that thing was seriously the highlight of my morning.

Can I use a hand-mixer? Only if you plan on getting ripped at the same time. I let my kitchen aid whip the egg whites for 10-15 minutes.

Now, with all that said, these are the tips I’ve gathered from my family and my own experience. I’d love to know if you have any secrets for the perfect angel food cake!

 Anna Belle's Angel Food Cake

Verbatim from recipe card. My notes in italics.

Sift cake flour and measure: 1 1/3 cup + 3 tbl. cake flour and 1 1/3 cup + 3 tbl. granulated sugar. Sift together 7 times. 

Yes, you will be wearing some of this by the time you're done.

Have eggs at room temperature (leave out at least 6 hours, preferably overnight) and measure 2 1/3 cups egg whites (about 16 jumbo eggs). 

Beat with 2 tsp. cream of tartar, 2 tsp. vanilla, and 1/2 tsp. salt (until foamy). (Foamy means a solid, white foam, not egg froth.)

Beginning to beat the egg whites, 6-8 speed.

This is what foamy looks like, when you add the sugar.

Slowly add 3/4 cup sugar (about 4 speed). Should stand at high peak once thoroughly whipped. (Total whipping time is about 10-15 minutes.)

Folding in sifted mixture; pull from sides and bottom of the bowl.

All combined.

Don't skip this step! Run a knife through it to get rid of air bubbles.

Fold in sifted flour mixture little at a time and put in angel pan. Run dinner knife through mixture and bake at 350, 45 minutes or a little more. (Never take out early! Bake full time even if it looks browned.) I put a ring of foil around pan before baking. It should keep it from running over. (I don't do this.) If it's a little moist on top, bake until it's firm to the touch. Put over funnel to cool (or a beer bottle or soda bottle; cool inverted for about 30-45 minutes; dislodge from pan by running a dinner knife around the edge; scrape the crumbs on the side of the pan into a bowl for the best treat ever).

At 45 minutes, nice and fluffy, but I gave it 10 more to make sure it was done.

Mr. Adams is cooling bottle of choice today. Ignore the messy kitchen!

It's so tall! Egg whites, you did your job! 

The moment I flip this cake over to cool is always the most terrifying moment of my life, but by some miracle (all those egg whites), it works! Now it's time to relive my childhood and scrape the pan. 

Happy Easter weekend to everyone. Enjoy!

-Madison

Kiss Me, I'm Irish

Fun fact: I have Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and English ancestry. Very conflicted, right? There are the McGraws (Irish), the McCaskeys (Scottish), the Owens (Welsh), and the Halseys (English). Now, I haven't done extensive research into any of these family lines—only the Scottish arm of the family has been traced. But growing up, I was always very adamant about my Irish ancestry because I loved St. Patrick’s Day so much. I never really did much to celebrate it; it just seemed so mythological and ancient--not the everyday (fun fact #2: I wanted to be a paleontologist/archeologist as a kid, so this obsession with old things was not new).

So this year in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, I’m doing two things. First, I actually looked up a Wikipedia list of famous Irish people, and it was unending. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Liam Neeson
2. Cillian Murphy
3. James Joyce
4. Oscar Wilde
5. C.S. Lewis
6. WB Yeats
7. And honorary Irishman, Norman Reedus.

I actually don't watch "The Walking Dead." More of a Boondocks Saints fan myself.

Second, I’m revisiting my two favorite Irish foods: soda bread and Jameson.

Irish Soda Bread

Ignore all those soda bread recipes that are dressed up with fruit, nuts, and other mix-ins. True Irish fare is simple. And apparently, there is a Society for the Preservation of Irish Soda Bread. They are very firm about this point: “Flour, Salt, Baking Soda, Buttermilk.  Anything else added makes it a ‘Tea Cake!’”

Here’s their recipe. It took me about 5 minutes to mix it all up and throw it in a pot.

I use my fancy measuring cups for special occasions. 

I love my dutch oven!

The original recipe suggests using two cake pans to simulate the "bastible pot"--I have no idea what that is--but since I have a dutch oven now, I went that route. I have used cake pans in the past though, and they work just fine.

Ta-da!

This will make some great sandwiches or French toast.

Jameson & Ginger

We call this drink a whiskey ginger at my house, but today it’s strictly Jameson. This is one of my favorite mixed drinks year-round, and as soon as you try it, it’s going to be your usual too.

The theme today is green.

Start with some ice in your highball glass. Add the Jameson (1-2 oz. depending on your taste). Top off with ginger ale. Squeeze a slice of lime in it and use as garnish.

One for me, one for Dane.

Now that I have a drink in hand, I’m going to do one last thing for St. Patrick’s Day. It’s been a while since I’ve watched Boondock Saints.

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

-Madison

“Yeah, it’s St. Paddy’s Day, everyone’s Irish tonight. Why don’t you just pull up a stool and have a drink with us?” –Murphy, Boondock Saints

Christmastime Sweets

Christmas is my favorite time of year. I highly identify with Buddy the Elf as far as my level of excitement about this holiday. 

IT'S CHRISTMAS! 

And of course, one of the best parts of Christmas is the food—not even eating the food, but making it. So many families have customary Christmas candies and cookies and make a whole day of it—I know mine does.

My Grandma McGraw would make sugar cookies, as well as a plethora of other treats. I remember her little attic would be packed with card tables set with wrapping paper and ribbons and garment boxes lined with wax paper and filled with goodies. 

As I got older, I started icing sugar cookies with my aunt, but I have always made a slew of treats with my mom. We’d make various almond bark confections, dip pretzels in chocolate, bake cookies, etc. There would be new recipes we’d try every so often, but there are two cookies in particular that my mom always makes: no roll sugar cookies and molasses cookies. Now I have made these cookies with my oldest niece for the past two years. And in the spirit of adding some new to the old, I have put my mark on the Christmas cookie tradition and added to the line-up Oreo balls.

Typically, my nieces and nephews go for the Oreo balls first, but adults (shamefully) love them just as much. These are the first to go. However, sugar cookies are just so easy to grab as you walk past the dessert table too many times. These are for your traditionalists who love a good sugar cookie, and these melt in your mouth like butter, so they’re winners. Lastly, the usually over-looked molasses cookie. These are far more delicious than they get credit for. These are for your friends and family who like something a little different—still very holiday-esque, but not your typical cookie. They’re chewy and not overly-sweet—a good chaser to uber-sweet Christmas treats.

Oreo Balls

These have been all over pinterest for quite some time now (and you’ve probably tried them before at some point), so I’m just going to leave you the recipe.

No Roll Sugar Cookies (No roll, as in no rolling pin, though you do roll them into balls.)

Cream together:

1 c sugar

1 c powdered sugar

1 c butter, softened

1 c vegetable oil

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Sift together:

4.5 c flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cream of tartar

Add flour mixture to creamed mixture until blended. Chill dough.

Now for the fun part! Roll into walnut size balls. You’ll need a few bowls, a small glass with a flat bottom, and colored sugar crystals for this.  

Our Boulevard beer sampler glasses work great for this. 

Take your glass and dab a little oil on the bottom of it (I just tap the glass on the dough a little since that’s a bit oily).  I use red and green sugar crystals and keep them in separate bowls. You’ll dip the bottom of the glass in the sugar, then lightly press a dough ball (don’t press it too thin—it doesn’t need to be completely flat).  

Remember: not too thin! These don't expand much in the oven.

For each dough ball, you’ll want to get more sugar on your glass. You’ll only need to re-oil a few times for the whole batch. If you need to clean your class, dip it in water. And if you’re feeling really crazy, you can mix the red and green sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 9-12 minutes (for my oven, it’s 10). These cookies don’t get golden brown—if they do, you’ve over-baked them.

Ta-da! Buttery and crumbly (though even these are a hair on the thin side).

 Molasses Cookies

Cream together:

1.5 c shortening

2 c sugar

½ c molasses

2 eggs

Sift together:

4 c flour

¼ tsp ginger

¼ tsp cloves

4 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

Add flour mixture to creamed mixture until blended. Roll into 1” balls then roll in sugar. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. You don’t want to over-bake these—chewy is good! Once they start to develop little cracks and crevices, they are good.

Also good with coffee. 

Tips: Once done baking, let your cookies sit for 2 minutes before removing them from the pan. When you store cookies (especially the molasses cookies), include a piece of bread in your container. This will keep them nice and soft.

Merry Christmas! 

-Madison

Last Minute Thanksgiving Treats

So you’d think having a food blog would mean I’d have some elaborate Thanksgiving recipes for your entire feast. Ha. As my students would say, "Ain't nobody got time for that." Just like everyone else right about now, I’m busy. But I do need to bring some treats to family get-togethers.  So rather than a full post, I’m going to show you two recipes I’ve made in the past and will be making this Wednesday.

Pumpkin Cookies

I made these delightful things for some of my students recently, and they got rave reviews. From teenagers. So, yeah, they’re good. These cookies are really more like little cakes or muffin tops. They’re not too sweet, and I could eat these for breakfast with my coffee every morning. Note: I leave off the nuts and the glaze. (Again, "Ain't nobody got time for that.")

 Chocolate Pie

If you’ve read or watched The Help (which I highly recommend if you haven’t), you know about Minny’s legendary chocolate pie. This recipe is the one used on set for the movie, and yes, it’s as good as you imagined it would be. It’s somewhat custard-like, somewhat caramel-like. Again, it gets high marks at potlucks.

One last thing, whatever you cook up this Thanksgiving, I hope you are sharing it with those people whom you are truly thankful for. Happy holidays!

Enjoy!

-Madison