Crazy Chocolate Cake

Despite the manager's best efforts, on occasion the local store is sold out of eggs and waiting for their next shipment to arrive. There are a few solutions to this problem when it comes to keeping up with dessert cravings.

1) Special order eggs from Nome and have them delivered by plane (for a price of course)
2) Use powdered eggs (the success rate for this is hit or miss)
or
3) Collect recipes that don't require eggs (bingo)



This perfectly moist and delicious chocolate cake magically doesn't require eggs. It's like the anti-recipe to my eggnog post the other day.



Go ahead and mix it by hand right in the pan. Crazy huh?



After mixing the dry ingredients make three holes in the mixture. The holes will be the temporary home for the vanilla, oil and vinegar. Pour water over the entire pan and mix again. I find a fork works best.

Side Note: This preparation method is also handy if you don't have a working mixer because the one you got for a wedding gift 8 years ago decided to give up the ghost and you can't afford to replace it at the moment. *sigh*



It's optional but you can also throw a handful of chocolate chips on top, you'd be crazy not to.

Crazy Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:
3 c. flour
2 c. sugar
1/3 c. cocoa
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 T. vinegar
3/4 c. cooking oil
2 c. water

Directions: Mix the dry ingredients directly in the cake pan. Make three holes in the mixture for vanilla, vinegar and cooking oil. Pour water over the whole mess and stir with a fork until it's well mixed. Sprinkle a handful of chocolate chips on top if you'd like. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 - 40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

~AnnMarie

Homemade Eggnog: Possible and Delicious

This is one of my favorite recipes to share at holiday gatherings and special parties. You may or may not be a fan of the eggnog that shows up in grocery stores at Christmas time but love or hate it this is something completely different. I happen to dislike store bought eggnog very much. This, however, tastes light and rich and just plain amazing.



The ingredients are few: eggs, milk, sugar, salt, nutmeg, vanilla and cream.



Whisk together the eggs, salt and sugar.



Stir in one quart of milk.



Heat over low heat until the temperature reaches 160 - 170 degrees. Stir constantly or you will have bits of cooked egg in your nog and that's just plain weird. I have saved it from egg chunks by using my immersion blender to reincorporate the separated egg.



Place in an ice water bath (or snow bath if you live in a place that has piles of snow right outside the front door).



Stir in another quart of milk, nutmeg and vanilla.



The proper thing to do now is to take some heavy whipping cream and whip it until soft peaks form. Us poor bush dwelling folks don't have access to heavy whipping cream unless we special order it. So, our emergency substitution for real whipping cream is Dream Whip. It virtually has an endless shelf life. I recommend buying this for your backup Armageddon supplies. That way if the world around you is crumbling you can still have nice desserts.



I normally put the eggnog a punch bowl, top with the whipped cream and sprinkle nutmeg on top for a pretty effect. For this photo my coffee mug will have to do.

I promise you, even the most skeptical party goer will be crazy for this if you can get them to take just one sip.

Homemade Eggnog

Ingredients:
1 dozen eggs
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 quarts milk (divided)
2 T vanilla
1tsp nutmeg
2 c. heavy whipping cream

Pretty punch bowl  

Directions: In a heavy 4-quart saucepan, whisk together eggs, sugar & salt. Add 1 quart of the milk. Cook and stir over low heat until 160 - 170 degrees. Stir in vanilla, nutmeg and remaining milk. Cool in an ice water bath. If the mixture separates mix it in the blender. It'll fix things right up. Cover and refrigerate for 3 hours or more. When ready to serve, beat cream until soft peaks form. Whisk gently into cooled milk. Pour in to a chilled punch bowl. Sprinkle with nutmeg. 

~AnnMarie

Play Dough: For Birthday Gift Emergencies

One challenge of living in a remote location is being creative with last minute birthday party invitations. Getting a call to attend a child's birthday party may happen just a few hours (or minutes) before it begins. No one expects you to take a gift but since giving gifts is fun I try to find something to give the birthday kid.

Swinging by a big box store on the way to the party is just not an option so I'm forced to find other solutions. I am not one bit shy about re-gifting gently used toys or books from my son's toy box. However, if you're not into that sort of thing, a great second option is homemade play dough. Play dough can be made in a matter of minutes with just a few simple ingredients.



All you need is flour, salt, cream of tartar (which I have a lifetime supply of for some reason),



oil, water,



and food coloring.



Combine flour, salt and cream of tartar in a saucepan.
Pour the colored liquid into the prepared mixture.



I decided I wanted a brighter color so I added more food coloring.



Heat over medium heat and stir, stir, stir until a ball forms. If you're a sissy like me you might need someone to take over the stirring job part way through to give your arm a rest.

Some people add yummy smelling extracts at this point to make the play doh experience even more enjoyable.

 

Let cool and knead until smooth.

I usually double the following recipe.


Homemade Play Dough
1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 cup water
1 Tbs. vegetable oil
food coloring
optional: vanilla, peppermint or almond extract

1) Combine flour, salt and cream of tartar in a saucean. In a bowl, put water, oil and food coloring. Gradually stir wet ingredients into the dry ones until mixture is smooth.

2) Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until a ball forms. Remove from stove and cool.

3) Knead the play dough until smooth. Store in an airtight container or Ziplock bag: dough lasts up to four months.

~AnnMarie