Lemon Drop Cake

I might have just found a cake to rival the Hawaiian cake. I made this for Sunday with the Lechlers and it was almost gone in an evening. We ate late because we were all gathering to watch the new season of Food Truck Road Race on the food channel. (The time has been changed, by the way, to 9:00 for next Sunday.) The cake and the show did not disappoint. One note about the cake, if you have any left, it is actually tastier, if that is possible, the next day--especially with morning coffee. The cake is very moist and lemon zest added to the icing that is dribbled on top of the cake gives it an extra zip. The good thing about this cake is if you really love lemon you can go all the way, but if you want just a nip, then adjust the lemon dosage. I used real lemons, rather than the bottled kind that was written into the recipe. This recipe is from justapinch.com and you might keep an eye on that site because it has real home-tested delicious recipes for every occasion and every day at home.

Ingredients For Lemon Drop Cake:
from justapinch.com

1 box Duncan Hines moist deluxe lemon cake mix
1 cup buttermilk
1 3oz. lemon instant pudding mix (dry)

icing:
4 cups confectioner's sugar
1/3 cup bottled lemon juice (I used real lemons)
3 Tbsp vegetable oil (I used real butter)
3 Tbsp water

Directions

In large bowl, stir together dry cake mix and pudding mix. In another bowl, combine all wet ingredients and eggs that the cake mix calls for plus the buttermilk.(where your box reads the amount of water (1 1/3 cup usually), put in 1 cup water and 1/3 cup lemon juice to make the cake even more lemon tasting, if you like) Beat with mixer until blended. Add to dry mixture and beat until combined.
Bake in a greased 9x13 baking pan in a preheated 350 degree oven for the time the cake mix box calls for...depending on your oven. It will require a couple minutes longer baking time than cake mix box calls for because of the extra moisture produced by the milk.(This is so true, so Stick a toothpick in the center to check for doneness.)

ICING: Combine water, oil, powdered sugar and lemon juice with a mixer until smooth. Add one more tablespoon of water if consistancy isn't saucy. "Glaze" the cake when just a little cooled. Do not over glaze it because the icing is sweet. Just a THIN layer is required. There will be icing left over for a couple more cakes. Store in fridge and just stir it real good to use again.

Store cake in fridge and serve cold or room temp.(The cake is even better the next day.)

If you follow Betty Rosbottom(the first blog site to the left of my issue) you will note her excitement about the arrival of her new book Sunday Roasts. I can't wait to get a copy of that book.

Sunday Roasts has arrived!
"I can't believe I'm holding two advance copies of Sunday Roasts in my hands. It's my 10th book, my 5th with the wonderful people at Chronicle, and I love the way it turned out." Betty Rosbottom

I am making this idea from smittenkitchen.com this Sunday when guests join the family for Sunday with the Lechlers.

Tomato Salad with Crushed Croutons

"The recipe below is fairly basic, but in the realm of tomatoes and bread, there are innumerable ways to tweak it. For example, I’m having a love affair with crumbly salty cheeses this summer in the feta family; tossing the tomatoes with some fine feta rubble before dressing and crouton-ing them would be amazing. Mint might be a fun change from basil, and if you’re into neither, try flat-leaf parsley for a fresh but mild flavor. I am nearly constitutionally incapable of making a dish that involves tomatoes and not adding small white beans. I resisted today, but would not next time here. Minced olives would be at home sprinkled over the tomatoes, too. And if you’re not so into red wine vinegar, an aged sweet balsamic dotted over the tomatoes would be… I bet I don’t even need to tell you how awesome. Would love to hear how you tweak this, so let me know in the comments.

Crushed croutons
4 slices hearty white bread
1 small shallot, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
1 garlic clove, minced or pressed through garlic press
1/4 teaspoon table salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Tomato salad
1 pound cherry or grape tomatoes, mixed colors if you can find them
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 tablespoon mellow red wine vinegar (yours isn’t mellow? use less)
1/8 teaspoon table salt
Pinch of sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

Handful basil leaves, slivered.

Prepare the crushed croutons: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Tear bread into chunks and pule them in a food processor until coarsely ground (largest chunks can be lima bean sized). No food processor? Keep tearing the bread up until it is in ragged, mixed sized crumbs. Spread crumbs on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with shallots, garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil and parmesan until croutons are evenly coated with oil. Bake until golden brown and dry, about 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly. (Warm is fine, hot might wilt your tomatoes, boo.)

Assemble salad: Halve each tomato lengthwise and arrange cut side up on a platter. Whisk together vinegar, olive oil, salt, sugar and a few grinds of pepper in a small dish. Drizzle over tomatoes. Sprinkle tomatoes with crushed croutons. Garnish with slivers of basil."