48 - Wednesday, September 23, 1992 - North Shore News

Creating cake icing recipes from scratch

MORE ALONG the line of scratch baking, a reader called,
asking me for some old-fashioned cake icing recipes. It’s
Not so much that she wants to save money but that the

commercial products just don’t measure up. .

Also, she’s not been too happy
with various bakery producis that
have looked so pretty but the icing
tasted like Crisco.

I’m not going to bother with
“*Philly” cream cheese recipes as
everyone has one of those. That’s
not saying they aren’t good, and
very easy to prepare. Further-
more, they’re almost foolproof —
perfect for the novice cook.

Unfortunately, my favorite
chocolate icing recipe has been
removed from my files‘as it calls
for an uncooked egg yolk. Most
enlightened publications will no
longer print recipes that encourage
anyone to eat uncooked eggs in
any form.

Salmonella is just too great a
risk.

In one of the following recipes,
you'll find a very hot syrup whip-

- ped into uncooked egg white. Due
to the intense temperature reached
by boiling syrup I feel that the ic-
‘ing is just as safe to eat as a
soft-cooked egg —
safer.

However, please store leftovers.

in the fridge as you would any
perishable protein.
Dot’s Easy Icing
Dot was our next-door

neighbor when I was a kid. Her

husband had a small grocery store

and Dot was always blessed with a

supply of over-ripe bananas. She

made incredible banana cake,

muffins, loaves — ‘so many that

every friend in the neighborhood

received gifts.

Unfortunately, I .was just a

. dumb. kid who didn’t have the

‘sense to record r-ost of her reci-

pes. This icing always topped
_ Dottie’s banana cakes. It’s a small

recipe, enough for just one *~

square cake.

¥z cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 stiffly berten egg white

probably -

Barbara
MeCreadie

BUDGET BEATERS

V2 teaspoon vanilla
¥% cup finely chopped watnuis

In a saucepan, combine sugar
and water. Boil until the syrup
spins a thread — to test, dip the
tip of a silver spoon into the syrup
and pull it away — if the drop of
syrup leaves a filmy thread as you
drop it back into the pot, it’s
ready..

Don’t turn your back — this
can turn from syrup into a house
fire in seconds. With your left
hand holding the hand mixer and
your right hand holding the pot of
syrup, whip the syrup in a tiny
ttickle into the egg white. Add
vanilla, spread on cooled cake and
sprinkle with nuts.

Quick Chocolate Icing
3 tablespoons regulaz shortening
such as Crisco
3 squares unsweetened chocolate
2 cups sifted icing suger (sift be-
fore measuring)
Pinch salt
% cup coffee cream
1 tesspoon vanilla

Melt shortening and chocolate

over simmering water in top of

- DRYERS

“Based on Canadian consumer brand praterance suresys

double boiler. Dump out the hot
water and replace with ice and
cold water. Add remaining ingre-
dients to chocolate mixture and
return the top to the icy bottom
of the double boiler.

Beat with a hand mixer until
smooth, thick and glossy.

This is enough for a two-layer
cake.

Fast and Easy Broiler Icing

I can’t believe the schedule 1%
used to be able to keep! | worked
full-time, kept up a house (men
didn’t do housework in the 1960s)
and entertained as much as our
pinched budget would allow.

Since I was
English classes a day the marking
was .out of sight — figure 112
papers to mark for every quiz,
essay and project. Don’t try tell-
ing me that teachers are under-
paid!

Anyway, this icing whips up in
seconds and is particularly good
on spice or white cakes.

Ys cup soft margarine

7% cup (packed) brown sugar

Y cup whipping cream (whip the
rest to spoon on top)

2 cup finely chopped walouts

1 cun ieng shred coconut

Beat margarine, sugar and
cream. Stir in nuts and coconut.
Spread on hot cakes and place on
middle shelf under heated broiler
until browned. Watch it! This can
burn black in the time it takes
your cat to tip the garbage can.

Rather thar a tin of commercial
frosting, remember that a lot can
be dene with whipped crear. To
fill and frost a. mid-sized angel
food, you need three cups of un-
whipped cream.

There are several ways to
prepare an angel cake for filling
but my two favor:ies are:

@ Cut off the top third and set
aside. Make a tunnel all around
the bottom two-thirds, leaving
"%”’ walls (feed the cake you pull
out to the kids, not the cook).

teaching four-

44 Dot's Easy Icing always topped
Dottie’s banana cakes. 99

Spoon the whipped cream into the
tunnel and replace the top. Frost
with the remaining cream.

@ Simply cut it in thirds (hori-
zontally). Cutting it in half can
leave you with a lop-sided cake as
the top may go slip-slidin’ away.
Here are two filling-topping reci-

pes:
Chocolate Fluff:
3 cups ice-coid whipping cream
1% cups sifted icing sugar
M% cup dry, unsweetened cocoa
powder (this is not a prepared hot
chocolate mix!)
Pinch salt

Stir tegether on low speed and
then whip until fluffy. It can
stand alone but it’s great topped
with toasted almond slices.
Peanut Brittle Topping:
3 cups ice-coid whipping cream
i cup crushed peanut brittle

Whip the cream and fold in
finely crushed candy.
Strawberry or Raspberry Angel

Food Topping and Filling:

1 10-02. package frozen fruit,
thawed

Boiling water as below

Drained fruit juice

1 package sirawberry jello (you
can use raspberry with raspberries
bul some products are quite dark)
1% cups whipping cream, whip-

Thaw berries and drain into a
2-cup measure. Fill measure with
boiling water and stir in jello.
Chill until nearly set and then
whip until foamy. Stir in berries
and whipped cream.

This needs several hours to set
after you fill and frost the cake —
better to do it the night before,
cover with a cake keeper if you
have one or slide into a big paper
bag. The trick is to keep the
wrapper from sticking to the top- ~
ping. :

Refrigerate! :

A thousand

words for

AG A Feo.
Mike Wakefield
NEWS Photographer

it is said that a picture is worth a thousand words.
Now you can get copies of your favorite photos
_ taken by our staff photographers. .
To recieve your copy, come to the North Shore
News and place your order. Please supply us
with the issue date and page number of the
photoyou would like reprinted. Ali photo orders
must be prepaid.

© Rotary controls or
computer touch controls
© Only 27%" wide

e Larger door opening

® No. 1 in long life, fewer repairs,
* Porcelain enamel top

lowest service cost

THR VOCE UF reORTH AND WEST WUNCOUVER

1139 LONSDALE AVE.
NORTH VANCOUVER,
B.C. V7M 2H4