Holiday Cakes For All Seasons - Recipe

Ebony, Dec, 2000 by Charlotte Lyons

When it comes to desserts, cakes are synonymous with the holiday season. Some people feel that no holiday celebration would be complete without such delights as an Easy Red Velvet Cake, Bacardi Holiday Rum Cake, Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cake or the traditional Holiday Fruitcake. If you don't plan to visit the bakery, the following recipes will help you to bake your own holiday creation.

Lemon Meringue Cake

1     cup sour cream
1/4   cup milk
2/3   cup butter or margarine, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
2     eggs
1     teaspoon lemon extract
2     teaspoons fresh lemon juice
2     teaspoons grated lemon rind
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2     teaspoons baking powder
1     teaspoon salt

Lemon Filling

1   cup sugar
3   tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup water
2   teaspoons grated lemon rind
4   egg yolks

Meringue

4   egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup sugar

Combine sour cream and milk; set aside. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 2 round 9 x 1 1/2 -inch cake pans. In large mixer bowl, mix butter, sugar, eggs, lemon extract, lemon juice and rind until fluffy. Beat on high speed, scraping bowl occasionally, for 5 minutes. Sift flour, baking powder and salt together; add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake until wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool layers 10 minutes; remove from pans and cool completely. Meanwhile, combine 1 cup sugar, cornstarch and salt in medium-size heavy saucepan. Gradually stir in water, lemon juice, butter and rind. Cook over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Beat egg yolks slightly; gradually stir in about 1/4 of hot lemon mixture into egg yolks. Return egg yolk mixture to saucepan and cook 2 to 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Cool. In large mixer bowl, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and vanilla until foamy. Gradually add 3/4 cup of sugar, beating until stiff peaks form.

To assemble cake: Heat oven to 450 degrees. Split each layer in half horizontally to form 4 layers. Place 1 layer on ovenproof serving plate; spread with 1/3 of the filling. Repeat with remaining layers and filling. Spread meringue over sides and top of cake. Bake frosted cake for 4 to 5 minutes or until meringue is light golden brown. Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.

Yields 1 cake

Easy Red Velvet Cake

1   package German chocolate
    cake mix
1   cup sour cream
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1   3-ounce bottle red food
    coloring
3   eggs

Combine all cake ingredients in large bowl at low speed until moistened. Beat 2 minutes at high speed. Pour batter into greased and floured 9-inch round pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes and remove from pans. Cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8-ounce package cream
  cheese,  softened
1 stick butter or margarine
1 16-ounce package powdered
  sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla

In medium mixer bowl, beat cream cheese and butter on high speed until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar and continue beating until it's spreadable. Stir in vanilla. Fill and frost cake. (Nuts may be added if desired.)

Yields 1 cake

Bacardi Holiday Rum Cake

3     cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2   cup packed light brown sugar
2     teaspoons baking powder
1/2   teaspoon salt
1     cup unsalted butter, softened
2/3   cup milk
1/3   cup dark rum
3     eggs
2     cups chopped pecans

Rum Glaze

1 1/4 cups sugar
1/3   cup water
1/4   cup dark rum
4     tablespoons butter
4     cups confectioners' sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch bundt pan. Combine flour, sugars, baking powder and salt in the bowl of a mixer. Add butter and mix on low speed with paddle attachment until the butter is worked in completely; the mixture will have a sandy appearance. Combine milk, rum and eggs in small bowl. Whisk to blend. With mixer on how add milk mixture to dry ingredients and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cups of the pecans (reserve 1/2 cup). Pour batter evenly into pan. Bake 55, to 60 minutes, until top of cake springs back when touched.

While the cake is baking, make rum glaze. Combine sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add rum, then turn off heat. Add butter and stir until melted. Pour 3/4 cup of this syrup into a separate container for moistening the cake. Add 2 cups of the moistening the cake. Add to the syrup in the pan and whisk until blended. Add one more cup confectioners' sugar and whisk until blended. Add remaining sugar as needed to make a thick, but pourable glaze.

When cake is done, remove from oven and let cool 10 minutes in pan. Invert the cake onto a rack with a large plate underneath. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, pierce cale all over, spacing marks about 1-inch apart. Spoon reserved rum syrup over cake to soak in. Transfer cake to a clean plate and pour thickened glaze over top. Sprinkle with reserved pecans immediately.