Tasty Tuesday on Wednesday- a Day Late But Not a Recipe Short

So I have no great excuse for not posting yesterday even though I started my day super early and was busy until 10 p.m. I had spent all day Monday working on these two Lord of the Rings banners for one of my best friend's middle son whom I've known since before he was born. He's a senior this year at George Fox University and an R.A. for a group of freshman guys. He had asked me to make these as he is doing a Lord of the Rings themed floor. They did take a lot longer than I thought, but I am pleased with the results.













With the busy-ness, I thought it would be fun to delve into some of my recipe boxes and find a few simple recipes to share with you. I love collecting old recipes, so I am feeling blessed with the three boxes of my Nana's and Grandpa's recipes. The large file folder is my collection of recipes gleaned from magazines and the internet over the first years of marriage.





I decided to share a simple recipe today for what my Nana called, "American Strudel". Being originally from Austria, she made the most amazing strudel. As she was also a very creative cook and baker, she also loved to try her own version of recipes. This is where we get this delicious and simple strudel. I love how it says "it freezes beautifully, baked or unbaked, and can be ready in moments for unexpected guests". We've enjoyed it for breakfast, afternoon snack, and for dessert- especially when served with ice cream. It's a great recipe to use this time of year as you can make up a batch when you've got a free moment then have it ready for family or guests!

Tasty Tuesday- Truvy Cake with a Twist

A Disclaimer: You'll find the ingredients and directions throughout this post, but it's so easy that I'm going to forgo an actual recipe. 

Our oldest son, Josh is home for a week before heading back to Mt. Angel Seminary to start his first year of theology. Generally, when the kids are home, I try to cook/bake at least a couple of things they like. While we were talking yesterday- and we tend to talk a lot when he's home, especially as he has just completed a three week silent retreat- he mentioned how much he has realized he likes cake. 

With this in mind, I decided to bake a cake. I wanted to do something easy, but I wasn't sure what kind to do. I just happened to be on Instagram when I saw a post from Southern Living Magazine. It was a video of the movie Steel Magnolias where Dolly Parton's character, Truvy shares her recipe for a "Cuppa, Cuppa, Cuppa" cake.  It's a really- we're talking really really- simple recipe for a cake. Basically, she says "You take a cuppa flour, a cuppa sugar & a cuppa fruit cocktail (with its' juice) & mix it and bake until golden brown and bubbly".  

I didn't have any fruit cocktail, however, I had a 1/2 of a pint jar (yep, that's a cuppa) of homemade mincemeat in the fridge that I thought might fit the bill. There wasn't as much liquid in it as I thought it needed, so I scavenged around and found an almost empty bottle of orange lemonade we had drank at my youngest' going away dinner last week. I mixed those two up and voila, had a nice citrusy/raisin/date/nuts concoction that I thought would work.

I got out Grandma's mixing bowl and proceeded to follow Truvy's instructions. It looked pretty good as I poured it into a 9" square pan while my toaster/convection oven was heating to 350 degrees. I popped it in & set the timer for 30 minutes. After about 6 minutes, I realized something didn't feel right. Once I thought about it being a southern recipe, I knew what the problem was- I had just used regular flour without any added leavening. Truvy, being a true southern gal, would've used self-rising flour. I immediately pulled the cake out, added 1 teaspoon baking soda and a good dash of salt, mixed it up and popped it back into the oven. I figured even if it didn't turn out well, I could always use it for trifle or crumble. 

After 30 more minutes, I pulled out the cake which had a nice rise and golden color. We decided to have it after dinner with some vanilla ice cream- especially since, as Truvy says, "the ice cream cuts down on the sweetness". So the next time you or one of your family members gets a craving for cake, you don't need to look any farther than your pantry and fridge for a "Cuppa, Cuppa Cuppa" to make a delicious cake!