coffee cake

Daily Prompt: It’s a Fact

I like to bake to calm myself down.

Yesterday’s blog post was very cathartic for me and I was so happy to finally release some of my true feelings into the universe.  Just because someone’s truth is not pleasant does not mean that they should bury it inside feeling shame for things they could not control and did not want.  It’s one thing to harp on things another to finally state the facts.

So last night I wanted to use up the rest of my sour cream before it goes bad and found this great recipe that I divided in half and changed ever so slightly to lower the sugar and sodium content.  It was from my vintage Betty Crocker’s Cookbook that I received as a gift at my wedding shower in 1972.  

The recipe was for Sour Cream Coffee Cake.

This book has been well used through these many years and it shows.  Below is the recipe I prepared because I only wanted one loaf and the recipe above is for two loaves.  I also did not add any additional salt, used low sodium/sodium free baking powder and cake flour instead of all purpose.  If you are using all purpose flour, you only need 1 1/2 cups flour.

To me, less is always more when it comes to ingredients and seasoning.  You have to be careful in baking to have the right fats and leavenings with your binding ingredients but you can play around with recipes to get desired flavor or results.  No recipe is carved in stone so to speak.  Much like the recipe below is not exactly half of the above recipe but it came out great.

When the cake was finished baking in the loaf pan, I microwaved 2 Tbs butter with 1/4 C brown sugar for a few minutes, checking every 30 seconds or so to thicken, then stirred in about 1/2 cup pecan halves to coat.  When the cake was finished I spread it evenly across the top while it was hot and everything set when it cooled.

 

Daily Prompt: Sugar, ah Honey, Honey

My one and only vice at this time.  As a borderline diabetic, I’m ashamed of myself as any alcoholic would feel falling off the wagon every time I over indulge and know I do it with some risk.  I have always loved sweets, but mostly just chocolate and ice creams with some kind of fudge or chocolate in it or on it.  For years I kept my cravings under acceptable control.  A piece of chocolate here and there.  A small bowl (or two) of ice cream after dinner in the evening.  Now it’s over the moon due to once I start eating sweets, it’s hard for me to stop.  I started drinking coffee with International Delight French Vanilla which is so delicious on its own and it sets my palate for more sweets like maybe a donut or scone instead of oatmeal, toast or an egg.

Since I’m new in my small town, about two months now, I have already visited a couple local bakeries in the morning if I wake up and feel the need to get out because it’s just too quiet and they have a no noise thing before 8:00 am.  I’m po’ so a buck or two for something sweet is better than forking out four or five dollars for an omlette.

Enjoy the visions of sugar (not plums) dancing on my screen!


View this post at your own risk of drooling and spontaneous eating frenzies. For entertainment purposes only!