Butterscotch Chewy Cake - Vintage Pillsbury Award Winner!

"Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days." 

 

- Doug Larson

I was shopping at our local thrift store and I heard the employees talking. I heard the words, "wow this is old! What is it? Is it a scrap book? It's recipes! This is so cool!" I promptly came over and said, "O.K. what are you talking about, and where is it?"

 

What they were referring to was this book I'll call The Scrapbook. It was made from a tailors book that talks about their prices and the clothes they offer. Nowadays it would be a brochure, but this is a full on hard cover book. The owner of this book glued recipes over the pages. There are a few calenders glued to the back page, the first one starts in 1926. Google tells me this recipe from a Pillsbury baking contest dates to 1955. At least thirty years of recipes have been collected in this book, her whole adult life.

 

This recipe is easy to make. You just need a bowl, a whisk and a spoon.

I'm a lover of vintage items. I have my own vintage shop, even. So I was all over this. This book tells a story about the times through food. I started to think about it. My father is 80 years old. He was born in 1933. He was a child during the later years of the making of this book. This book was made by someone who lived during his mothers era.

Right before going in the oven

It was the depression. There was no internet. How did they get recipes? Probably through friends, people at church and passed down from their mothers. Cookbooks, if you could afford them.

Right out of the oven

Newspaper articles and food labels with delicious sounding recipes must have felt like a gift. What a perfectly sensible idea to glue them to the pages of an already existing book! During a depression you do what you gotta do to provide your family with a tasty and hearty meal. A great and timeless lesson in resourcefulness.

 

 

The scrapbook made from a tailors book, I love how art deco it is.

I have a collection of vintage cookbooks myself, but this was more special. More personal. I wanted to cook from it right away.

This is incredible. She used it her whole adult life, 30 years of collecting. There are calenders glued to the back from 1926, and the recipe I used from a label that dates to 1955. 

Loose in the last few pages of the book was a leaflet from Pillsbury, with the recipes of the prize winners from 1955. Turns out Pillsbury has been sponsoring baking contests for 64 years and counting.

The book includes recipes of all kinds

The recipe that caught my eye was this butterscotch chewy cake. I love the flavor of butterscotch and it was easy and quite straightforward. I crossed my fingers that the recipe would still work after all of these years.

There are pictures! It is interesting to me to see what was in fashion.

I'm happy to announce that yes, indeed it did work. It produced exactly what it advertises. A chewy cake. The texture is a cross between a snack cake and a blondie, or a brownie. I enjoyed it alone as a casual snack in the afternoon. But we really devoured it topped with butter pecan ice cream and caramel sauce. A sundae is how this cake shines. The texture stands up to the ice cream and caramel without getting soggy. And since the weather around here has been unseasonably warm, it was a welcome treat.

Even handwritten recipes, waffle cake, sounds good!

The cake is super easy to make. It really just takes a few minutes to throw together. It's just a few basic ingredients, eggs, flour, lots of pecans, etc. - with one exception. Scotch. Scotch whiskey to be specific.

There are even diet tips.

Scotch isn't included in the original recipe, I added it. Here's why. I've made a few different butterscotch desserts in my life, (I'm not talking about artificially flavored butterscotch like those chips) that included it. It really brings home the taste of butterscotch without tasting like alcohol, since it's baked. If you absolutely can't use alcohol you can go ahead and omit it. But I do recommend it for the best flavor.

labels with recipes

While I'm very happy about my new book, I'm also a little sad, that this book isn't in the hands of the family of it's creator. More and more in this digital age I find people don't hold onto things like they used to. I attend garage sales where they are selling their mothers items and not passing them down like previous generations would. With shows on TV like Hoarders, no one wants to be a pack rat. Which part of me totally understands.

Call me sentimental, but I like these little pieces of yesteryear, in a tangible form to hold in my hands and dream about times past.

 

My free range chickens are always looking for a treat. I think they thought I was bringing this outside for them.

 

 

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Butterscotch Chewy Cake

Adapted from the 2nd prize winner of Pillsbury Grand National Recipe and Baking Contest 1955, Mrs. Richard Enloe Atlanta, Georgia

Ingredients

4 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

2 cups (400 g.) packed brown sugar

2 Tablespoons butter - melted

1 1/2 cups (190 g.) sifted all purpose flour - sift first then measure

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups (146 g.) chopped pecans

3 Tablespoons Scotch Whiskey (optional, but recommended)

For serving

Ice cream, butter pecan or vanilla or whipped cream - optional

Store bought or homemade Caramel Sauce - optional


Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 180 degrees Celsius, Gas Mark 4. Grease well a 13 x 9 inch pan, set aside.

Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add brown sugar, vanilla and melted butter and stir together. In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the egg mixture and stir together well, until incorporated. Add the chopped nuts and the scotch whiskey (if using) and stir again until well blended.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for 25 minutes or until it springs back lightly when touched lightly in the center, and until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream, I used butter pecan ice cream and store bought caramel sauce for topping and it was marvelous!

Killer Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

 

 

 

 

"Always Do Your Best. Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse and regret."

 

-Miguel Angel Ruiz

  

 

This is a cake I've been making for many years, I can't believe I hadn't blogged abut it sooner. It's really a home run. It's so moist and full of flavor and texture. An awesome cake overall. And who doesn't like bananas and chocolate?  But this isn't the cake I intended to make for today's post.

 

 

Mixing together the streusel

 

 

I made 2 different carrot cakes. The first cake was good. I made it again to see if I could make it better.  It was good, but not really great. I knew I could do better.

 

These are my frozen bananas. You can use frozen bananas, just make sure you thaw them first and drain off the liquid.

Then I decided to go in a whole new direction and make this killer cake!

 

I tell you about my failures for a few reasons. For one, I want you to know that I really care about the recipes I post here. I only post my best recipes. I don't post recipes that are just o.k. or so so. I like to do my best. One of the greatest little books I've ever read is by Don Miguel Ruiz called The Four Agreements. One of those agreements is, always do your best. That one has always been my favorite and resonated with me the most. I don't want you to make one of my recipes and be disappointed because it wasn't everything I promised.  I know you have better things to do with your time and money spent on the ingredients.

 

 

 

Another reason for me sharing my failures, is that even though I'm a decent cook and baker, I still have days where I feel like my baking sucks and I can't seem to get it right. Which is fine, it's just like anything. Even Leonardo DiCaprio didn't get every acting job he went out on when he first started, (it's said that he went on something like 85 auditions before ever getting hired) that's just life. And sometimes we need to carry on with following our dreams and with what makes us happy despite setbacks in the moment.

The cake before adding the streusel

And one more reason for me telling you this? That's why I don't have recipes posted here as often as I probably should. But hey, we're all different and that's what works for me, for now anyway.

Ready for the oven

   So, back to the cake. This is seriously delicious cake.  So good in fact that I felt the need to add the adjective of "Killer" to it's name. It's moist, it's flavorful, it has streusel on top, and it's a great use of leftover bananas. It's good as a coffee cake during brunch, or for a casual dessert any time of day. This cake really rules, it is my best. So I wanted to share it with you.

Hot cake right out of the oven - This cake makes your house smell seriously amazing.

 

 

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Killer Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

Recipe by Me, Melissa aka The Alchemist

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups flour (208 g.)

3/4 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 cup (183 g.) chocolate chips

1/2 cup (50 g.) chopped walnuts

1/2 cup (96 g.) sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter at room temperature

1 egg

1 1/3 cups (336 g.) very ripe and mashed bananas about 4 medium bananas - previously frozen is fine, just make sure you drain the water from them first

1/4 cup (59 ml) yogurt or sour cream

2 tsp. vanilla extract


For Streusel Topping

1/4 cup (46 g.) chocolate chips

1/2 cup (78 g.) brown sugar

1/4 cup (24 g.) oats

1/2 cup (69 g.)  flour

1/4 cup (57 g.) (4 Tablespoons) butter, melted

pinch of salt


Topping

A few tablespoons of chocolate chips for topping the streusel


Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 180 degrees Celsius, or Gas Mark 4.

Make the streusel. In a medium bowl mix all of the streusel ingredients together except the butter. Add the melted butter and stir together. Set aside.

Prepare an 8 inch square pan by spraying it with non stick spray, set aside.

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts, set aside. Beat together (with an electric mixer or stand mixer) the butter and sugar until fluffy. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the egg and mix together until incorporated. Beat in the mashed bananas, vanilla extract and yogurt (or sour cream if using.) Add the dry ingredients and stir it in the batter with a spoon until all is incorporated.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle on the streusel topping. Add a few more chocolate chips on top of the streusel, if desired. (I did, just so they would be obvious on top of the cake, so when you see it you know there's chocolate there.) Bake in the preheated oven for about 50 - 65 minutes. Wiggle the cake to check for doneness. If it's still jiggly in the middle, it needs more time. It's done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool cake on a wire rack. I think it's best served warm. When cool, wrap it well. It should keep a few days. It freezes well. Wrap individual portions in plastic wrap, then place in a zip top bag. Defrost portions at room temperature for an hour or 2. Or microwave a piece for 30 seconds or so for an instant treat from the freezer!


I hope you love this recipe like I do! Happy Baking!

Gingerbread Loaf

 "Before you go out into the world, wash your face in the clear crystal of praise. Bury each yesterday in the fine linen and spices of thankfulness."

- Charles Spurgeon
 

I love ginger. Some of my favorite recipes are full of the stuff. This time of the year it's just fitting. When the weather outside is cool, ginger just warms me from the inside. It's definitely fall around here. The leaves are falling from the trees, the air is crisp, the seasons are changing.
 
 

This gingerbread loaf is one of those great recipes I turn to over and over again. It's full of delicious warm spice that gives you a big hug from the inside. Moist and full of ginger, it also gets some great flavor from the molasses and brown sugar.

Lots of ginger in this recipe, fresh and dried, the fresh ginger I grated on the microplane to get very fine. Freezing the ginger first assures the ginger gets grated finely and doesn't just turn to mush.

 

 

This recipe makes one loaf. You can easily double it to make 2, give one to a friend or freeze a loaf to remove from the freezer when you want something yummy on the fly. Quick bread such as this freezes very well. Just make sure you wrap it good. Meaning wrap it 3 times with plastic wrap then place it in a gallon size zip top plastic bag. Wrapped super awesome like that, it will last for at least 6 months.

 

Cinnamon, allspice and cloves gather together with the ginger to provide lots of warm spice

Thanksgiving is almost here! Can you believe it? November is the month of being thankful. My sisters are posting something they are grateful for everyday on facebook. What a nice tradition to focus on it for a whole month instead of just one day. I've started writing everyday in my gratitude journal. Something I had put aside and forgotten about. I am really grateful for having this blog to express my creativity. I am SUPER grateful for all of you readers, I really do appreciate you being here. A heartfelt thank you from me to you.

The batter

 

More Ginger Goodness

 

Ginger Molasses Skillet Cake - This cake is amazing!

 

Triple Ginger Cookies - These chewy cookies are spicy and full of 3 kinds of ginger.

 

Rhubarb Ginger Bars - These buttery bars are divine!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vintage Arnold Wiggs Mint Green Dish, Tablecloth with Leaves, and Hand Embroidered Napkins, available at my Etsy Shop, House of Lucien.

 

 

Speaking of House of Lucien, I'm having a November sale! Take 15 % off your entire purchase through November! Enter coupon code, NOV2012. Coupon will expire Dec. 1st.

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House of Lucien now has a Facebook Page where everyday I share a quote and highlight an item

from my shop, called Today's Treasure. I'd love to see you there!

  

 

Gingerbread Loaf

Adapted from Chow

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups (225 g.) all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon ground ginger

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger on a microplane (peel the ginger first) (freeze the ginger first to make it easier) or very finely chopped

1/2 cup (118 ml) well-shaken buttermilk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

8 tablespoons butter (114 g.) (1 stick), at room temperature

1 cup packed (200 g.) dark brown sugar

1/2 cup (118 ml) molasses

2 large eggs, at room temperature

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 180 degrees Celsius, Gas Mark 4.

 

 Grease a 9-inch-by-5-inch loaf pan with butter, dust with flour, and tap out excess.

Combine flour, dried ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, allspice, and cloves in a large bowl. Whisk to aerate and break up any lumps; set aside. In a separate medium bowl, stir together buttermilk, vanilla, and freshly grated ginger until combined.

Combine butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until light in color and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in molasses until well combined then add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until well incorporated.

Stop mixer and scrape bowl and paddle (mixture may look separated and curdled). Add one third flour mixture beating on low speed just until flour is incorporated. Add half buttermilk mixture and once batter is smooth add another third flour mixture. Add remaining buttermilk and mix until incorporated. Add remaining flour mixture, and beat until incorporated and smooth.

Pour into prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and cake is pulling away from sides of pan, about 45 minutes. Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes and then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

Berry Cream Cheese Crumb Cake

 

“All in all, it was a never-to-be-forgotten summer — one of those summers which come seldom into any life, but leave a rich heritage of beautiful memories in their going — one of those summers which, in a fortunate combination of delightful weather, delightful friends and delightful doing, come as near to perfection as anything can come in this world.”  

 

-  L.M. Montgomery, Anne's House of Dreams 

 

I've just returned from vacation to the Oregon coast, and Grants Pass, Oregon on the Rogue River. It was fabulous. We had such a great time, relaxing, sight seeing, frolicking in the water, exploring small towns, and eating well. At every stop the weather was perfect. The places we stayed, we were welcomed with exuberance. It was a magical trip.

 

Much of the Oregon Coast is undeveloped, and gorgeous

 

My favorite day of our trip,we kayaked all day on the Rogue River. Not just kayaked, we got out and swam in the river. At some points I got out of the boat and floated down the river, it was so fun. There were places where we would "pull over" to the shore. We were going up stream, then down stream, up and down a few times. So to go up stream, once we hit the rapids, (not really big rapids, but still rapids) of course it's impossible to paddle against that. So we would pull the kayak over, and walk it up stream, past the rapids.

 

The view from our room on the Rogue River

One of those times at the shore I looked over, and in front of me was a mass of wild blackberry bushes, full of ripe blackberries!  I couldn't believe my eyes, it was like a mirage. We had already been out for hours, so we could use a snack, what more could we ask for? We ate berry after berry, perfectly ripe and sweet, warm from the sun. There were so many of them, I was looking for a way to take some with me. The only vessel I had was my almost empty water bottle. We swiftly drank that water and filled my Sigg bottle with blackberries.

 

 

Some of the many geese that live on the Rogue River

 

I got back to the room and put some of those berries in a bowl, added a packet of sugar (meant for our morning coffee) and added 3 or 4 of those little half and half creamers that were in our fridge (also meant for coffee) to enjoy my second berry snack sweetened with cream.

 

 

 

Some of the wild blackberries I picked in Oregon mixed with some frozen blueberries to make the compote for this cake

 

I took the rest of the berries home, added some blueberries I had in the freezer, and made a compote that tops this cake.

 

 

 

Spreading the cream cheese layer on top of the cake layer

 

This cake has the flavors of a cream cheese danish, but in a cake. The cake itself is rich and buttery, topped with lemony cream cheese, then brown sugar crumb topping and finally topped with the slightly tart berry compote.

 

 

 

The crumb topping goes on top of the cream cheese layer

It's really delicious. Perfect for a weekend brunch.

The berry compote thickens to almost a jam

If you haven't picked some wild berries lately, you can use almost any type of berry, or even another type of fruit. Raspberries would be awesome, peaches or plums sound equally amazing.

Ready for the oven


 

 

 

 

 

I'm glad the berries I picked turned into something so scrumptious!

 

Forever I will look back at this recipe with a special fondness.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Berry Cream Cheese Crumb Cake

 

 

Ingredients

 

For the Cake

 

2 1/4 cup (337g.) flour

 

1/2 cup (100 g.) sugar

 

2 tsp. baking powder

 

1/2 tsp. salt

 

1 egg

 

1/2 cup (118 ml) whole milk, soured by adding 1 tsp. lemon juice or vinegar and let sit on the counter for 5 minutes

 

4 Tablespoons sour cream or plain yogurt

 

1/2 cup butter (1 stick) (113 g.) melted

 

2 tsp. vanilla extract

 

 

For the Berry Compote

 

about 3 cups (about a pint and a half) (18 oz) or (510 g.) berries (I used blackberries and blueberries)

 

1/4 cup (50 g.) sugar (more or less depending on the sweetness of the fruit)

 

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

 

 

Cream Cheese Layer

 

1 - 8 oz package (227 g.) of cream cheese at room temperature

 

1 egg yolk

 

1/4 cup (50 g.) sugar

The zest from one lemon - done on a microplane is best to get it very fine

 

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

 

 

For the Crumb Mixture

 

1 cup (150 g.) flour

 

1 cup (150 g.) packed brown sugar

 

1/2 tsp salt

 

1 tsp. cinnamon

 

1/2 cup butter, (1 stick) (113 g.) , melted

 

 

Directions

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 180 degrees Celsius, Gas Mark 4.

 

Grease a 9x13 pan, set aside.

 

Start by making the berry compote. Add all of the ingredients of the compote, to a saucepan and cook on medium heat, stirring frequently until it's thickened, about 20 minutes or so. You want it thick, but not quite as thick as jam, it shouldn't be as sweet as jam, so it serves as the slightly tart component with the sweet cake and crumb mixture. Taste it to see if it tastes good, if it's super tart add a little more sugar. While that's cooking, start making the cake.

 

To make the cake: In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients. The flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In another large bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients. The egg, melted butter, sour cream (or yogurt), soured milk, and vanilla extract.

 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Stir them together until incorporated. The batter will be thick. Spread the cake batter into the greased pan.

 

Make the cream cheese layer- Stir together all of the ingredients for the cream cheese layer, and spread it on top of the cake layer.

 

Make the Crumb Mixture - Add the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon to a large bowl and stir. Add the melted butter and stir until crumbs form. Crumble the mixture over the cream cheese layer.

 

Now add the berry compote to the top. Spoon the berry mixture over the crumbs in 4 wide strips down the cake, so that some of the crumbs still show.

 

Bake the cake for about 25-35 minutes in the preheated oven. You want the cake portion to be done, of course. The rest will set up while it's cooling. Use the tip of a knife or a toothpick inserted in the center. If you don't get any cake batter on it, then it's done.

 

Let it set up before you slice it, on the counter for a few hours or in the fridge for an hour or so, till it's room temperature.

 

I would store this cake in the fridge, covered, since it has the cream cheese. But I would serve it at room temperature.