This is a public apology to my husband. I am sorry I am not the baker you are.
(Yep, my husband is a wonderful baker…one of his many wonderful qualities and I am very lucky…And I promise you all that I will find his brownie recipe and post it, once I pry it off his computer…) Every year my husband makes me this wonderful 4 layer Black Forest cake from scratch. It is a delicious masterpiece, and I am sorry that although I searched for the picture I took of it last year, I could not find it to share with you all. You would think I could at least make a semi descent cake for his birthday, even if it was from a mix… Sigh. It is not so.
Last year I didn’t get to go to the store to buy a mix (snow storm) so I walked next door to my in-laws and got a cake mix from their stock piled basement. I pulled out the mixer, followed the directions and put it in the oven to bake. What came out was not edible. Seriously. It was flatter than a pancake and hard as a rock. I had to toss it out. Okay, this one may not have been my fault, since when I looked at the date on the box afterward it was five years past expiration….
Then came today. I got out my Hershey chocolate cookbook and found a cake recipe. We had all the ingredients, and the kids were sleeping; I was set to go. I followed the directions to a tee, but when I used the mixer it was evident that something was wrong. Maybe the recipe is missing something, I don’t know, but it was VERY, VERY thick. Like, it would NOT come off the beaters without my prying it with my fingers. And there wasn’t even enough batter to cover the bottom of the pan. I could cry.
It did taste good – hey, I licked my fingers off, okay? So I put it in the oven, thankfully not for the full 45 minutes the recipe called for… It came out about 1/2 inch thick and not very cake-like. I guess I expected that. My husband graciously ate it with ice cream, saying it tasted like a brownie.
So, Sweetie, I am sorry. Next year I will go to the store and BUY you a delicious cake – even if there is a wicked snow storm, it will save us all from Mommy trying to bake…
Jill says
Just blame it on your equipment. Clearly the mixer and the oven are at fault here, not you! Oh, and at the risk of sounding cliche, it’s the thought that counts!
admin says
Yes, I’d like to think it was the thought that counts for his gifts, too, which the children helped pick out…
admin says
Yes, it is a good thing my baking skills weren’t what caught his eye. And, I like how God gave me a husband who CAN bake, it balances us out nicely.