The word “cake” is used to describe anything from one or more layers, that are filled, unfilled, frosted, adorned or plain to pancakes. They are special and are often associated with life’s milestones i.e.birthdays, weddings, showers, engagements, or they can be enjoyed simply as a dessert or snack.

Technically, today’s cakes are a sweet  foodstuff prepared by baking a  flour-based dough or batter. The term cake also may refer to any round, flat disk of food, such as a pancake. They lend themselves to limitless variations depending on the flavorings added to the basic ingredients, the shapes of the pans used in baking, and fillings, icings and decorations used. 

Webster says: Cake: a sweet food made from a baked mixture of flour, eggs, sugar and fat.  But, to me a cake is a beautiful sweet celebration of life.

1. CLEAN PLAYING CARDS … When those queens are looking gray, put them in a plastic bag with a half-cup of flour. Shake for a minute.  Remove the cards, and shuffle the deck a few time over the sink to clear.
2. UNSTICK A LID … Have a plastic container that closes a little too tightly for your tasty?  Dip the container edges in flour to prevent sticking.
3. CLEAN HEAVY WHITE FABRICS… Spot-clean white canvas, leather, faux leather, vinyl and even curtains by rubbing flour into the dirt lines, than brushing clean.
4. MIX UP SOME GLUE … Whip up craft glue for kids by mixing 1 part flour with 3 parts water.  Boil, stirring, until it becomes a past; store in the fridge.
5. MAKE CLAY … Knead together 1 cup water, 3 cups flour and 1 tsp. vegetable oil.  Add food color.  To store, moisten and wrap in plastic and put in the fridge.

Don’t grease baking sheet unless directed.  Most recipes have ample fat to prevent sticking.

Want same-size cookies:  Use a small ice cream or cookie scoop to measure them out.  Then, roll each one up in a small ball in your hands and place on cookie sheet.

Avoid a gooey mess by coating your fingers with cooking spray before shaping sticky cookies like macaroons or Rice Krispies Treats.

Always place cookies 1 or 2 inches apart on baking sheets to prevent them from melding together.

Expiration dates are really a sell-by date.  Eggs are usually good for at least two or three weeks after that.

If you have any questions you would like covered, let me know.

Heart Shaped Measuring Spoons

Exact measuring is not always necessary in a recipe. If you are cooking  a soup, stew, or stir-fry, it usually doesn’t require exact measurements. Sometimes in cooking you will hear non-technical terms such as: dash, pinch and smidgen. Traditionally, these were known as very small amounts, although, exactly how much they equaled we didn’t really know.

Since then, these non-technical terms have come to be more uniformly defined. A smidgen is ½ pinch or 1/32 teaspoon. Two smidgens equal one pinch.

We generally know a pinch as the amount you can get between your thumb and forefinger; however, now a pinch is ½ dash or 1/16 teaspoon. Two pinches equal one dash.

Originally, a dash was a term used when measuring liquids. Now the term has come to be used with both liquid and dry ingredients. A dash is 1/8 teaspoon. Eight dashes equal one teaspoon.

If these non-technical terms appeal to you, some companies do sell measuring spoons that measure a dash, a pinch and a smidgen.

Measuring Ingredients

When using dry ingredients like flour, baking power or soda or sugar, it helps to measure them in the appropriate cup (whether it calls for a tablespoon, ½ cup, 1 cup, etc.) and then using the straight edge of a knife, to level it off even with the top of the measuring cup. Start off by overfilling the measuring cup and spoon and then level it off. You can do this over a paper plate, which will make it easier to fold and pour the excess dry ingredient back into its container.

When measuring liquids in a liquid measuring cup, it’s important to do so at eye-level, so that you get it right on the appropriate measuring line. If you are looking down into the liquid measuring cup, you may misjudge.

If you are using a measuring spoon, it’s not a good idea to do it over the bowl you are mixing ingredients in. It’s too easy to spill, so measure the ingredient off to the side and then pour into the bowl.

It’s also important to pay attention to the way an ingredient is supposed to be cut. If a recipe calls for ½ cup of diced green peppers, you want to make sure that you have actually diced the green peppers, not just cut them into chunks. Some recipes may call for an ingredient to be chopped or minced, so again, pay careful attention to what is required and then make sure the ingredients are placed in the measuring cup so that they are even with the measurement line you are aiming for.

Measuring ingredients like peanut butter and lard can be tricky. Rub the inside of the measuring spoon or cup with a small amount of oil so that it’s easier to scoop out of the cup or spoon. Just like with your dry ingredients, you should also level off these ingredients with the straight edge of a knife.

Heart Shaped Measuring Cups

An important factor in being a good cook is to understand how to properly measure ingredients. With many recipes, the correct measurement of ingredients can either make or break a recipe. This is especially true in baking where every tiny teaspoon counts!

There was a time when cookbooks did not use terms like teaspoon, tablespoon or cup. Instead, they used phrases like “nice leg of spring lamb” or a “handful” of beans. Sometimes, a recipe would reference the size needed to another item, such as “the size of a walnut.” Recipes would also indicate personal preference by terms like “sufficient” salt. After all, what is sufficient for one person may not be sufficient to another.

It wasn’t until 1896 when Fannie Farmer introduced the “Boston Cooking-School Cook Book” when exact measurements were introduced. In the United States, we generally measure liquid ingredients and dry ingredients by volume. Elsewhere in the world, cooks usually measure dry ingredients by weight. In fact, worldwide weight is typically the universal way of measuring.

Folding egg whites-Recipes sometimes direct you combine a small amount of whipped egg whites into the batter.  This lightens the batter, which will minimize the deflation of the remaining whipped egg whites during the folding process.  To fold, gently turn the whites and the batter with spatula to combine-never stir.