Rachel, kudos on the tutor cookies. You are such a good maiden aunt! And you even fed me in my own time of need, as you, Jenny, and Chins provided hardy beef stew and mint-chocolate cake that could vanquish any tree-ripping, sky-weeping storm. Here's a re-cap of the cake, that was simple and yet so very very good:
1 box Pills Devil's Food cake (plus what they indicate to make batter)
1 package mint-chocolate chips
1 (8 oz.) carton heavy cream (or whipping cream)
loads of mint extract
more chocolate
Ok, I have to admit, I was still basically asleep when the cake was made, but that will only make this remembrance more dream-like, and esoteric, right?
Make the cake like a normal cake and mix in the chips. Bake and cool. For the frosting, borrow your nice neighbor's totally sweet hand-mixer/wand that rotates 800-million times per second. Melt some semi-sweet chocolate (I really have no idea how much, maybe 3 ounces). Let it cool, but stay melted. Whip it in with the cream, add enough mint extract so that it hits you like a shot of whiskey, and don't stop till the peaks are stiff. Frost and enjoy the perfect combination of quilted-downhome chocolately-warm goodness and whippet-fresh bright-eyed wonder. We figure we can soup it up a little for the Pills submission, but this is a winner taste, ease, and appearance-wise. And we did not leave it outside in the tempest of rain...
Now, to bring you up to date, last night we
LOVED
Tracy's inspiration: apple dump cake. Which might need a slight name change. Suggestions? Votes? Here are some to riff on or start your own creative juices flowing:
- Apple Goop (*plays on association with everyone's most beloved actress, Gwyneth Paltow!)
- Prairie Pie (*unfortunately plays on association with people stewing prairie dogs)
- Autumn Cobbler (*positive and negative associations with aging Geppetto)
- Butta Flava (*could help develop inroads with various judge demographics)
I don't even want to give this recipe away, but will mention that some cranberries were key to balance and appearance. Maybe Tracy will craft an interpretive dance to fully convey the beauty, symmetry, and grace of this dish.
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Claire,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the cake recipe. Are you guys going to raise bees now that it's legal in the city?
http://tinyurl.com/yed4db3
-Jason (Lillis)
While I'm not opposed to a bee here or there going about his business, I don't think I could submit to the fear of thousands of them on my roof, although the honey would be tasty. There are some sellers at the green market who bring a display case, a glass-encased wall of honeycomb, crawling with bees. It's fascinating but also horrifying.
ReplyDeleteok, i've been thinking of other names.
ReplyDeletehear me out on this one. if we changed to apples to be gala, and if we made the liquor johnnie walker black....
JOHNNIE WALKER BLACK TIE GALA CAKE.
or, "cut the cr**, i need my red delicious."