Month: January 2022

Our 95 year old Aunt Grace wrote this sign above on her kitchen cabinet.  She is 97 now and still lives by this motto. What a great one to adopt and embrace. 

It got me to thinking about birthdays, although mine is not until April.  There are two philosophies about birthdays. Some like myself celebrate them like a national holiday. A Birth- “day”? Are you kidding? Not enough. Birthday “week” ? Yes! But Birthday “MONTH”  has always been more the norm in our household. 

There are of course those who look upon it as “just another day” or a reminder of getting older.  Of course that is true : the more birthdays we have, the older we are.  But Aunt Grace’s quote urges us to forget the number which is after all what it is , just a number and celebrate , be grateful and LIVE. 

And birthdays SHOULD be celebrated to the fullest. I am sure I inherited this credo from my family. As I was growing up my mom made my birthday special even days before the actual date. She would leave cards or small little trinkets for me to find leading up to the big event. And it was a big event in our house. I was born on my Grandfather’s birthday and we lived with him until I was 16. Our mutual birthdays were big gatherings.  In an Italian family like my own, the grandparent’s home was the hub.  Even Sundays with no birthdays on the horizon were big events with sometimes 15 people or more around a table meant for maybe 10, people overflowing on either end. I chuckled once when I heard a friend say that they could not entertain in their apartment as they only had a small table and not enough room. There was no such thing as “not enough room “ in my childhood home.  There were only more chairs added. 

And of course a cake is in order for any celebration but especially birthdays. 

Here is one from my husband’s side of the family : Italian Creamcake. I do not know why it is has Italian in the title. I have tried over the years to find the origin of the cake and it does not seem to have any Italian roots. The only thing I have found is that it is from the Southern states and first was noted in cookbooks of the late 1930s. Whatever the origins , it always gets raves at any table and is especially a favorite of my brother’s who has a January birthday. 

Actually why wait for an occasion? It elevates even an ordinary day into a celebration with 3 moist lovely layers and a decadent cream cheese frosting.  

But if you do make it for a birthday, remember : don’t count the candles, just enjoy the sweetness in each bite. Another great motto to live by!

Italian Creamcake

1/2 c. margarine

1/2 c. shortening

2 c. sugar

5 eggs separated

1 c. buttermilk

1 tsp baking soda

1 tbsp vanilla

2 c. flour

4 oz coconut flakes plus 4 oz  more for decorating

1 c. chopped pecans

Frosting

2 -8 ounces cream cheese at room temp

1/2 cup margarine ,  at room temp (can also use butter)

3 c. confectioner’s sugar

1-2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup chopped pecans (can use more after cake is frosted, for decoration)

1. Grease and flour 3-9” pans with solid Crisco
2. Cream shortening, margarine and sugar until light and fluffy
3. Add egg yolks one at a time. Beat well after each addition.
4. Combine buttermilk, soda and vanilla in a separate bowl.
5. Add alternately with flour to the creamed mixture. Begin and end with flour.
6. Add nuts and coconut,
7. Beat egg whites till stiff and fold into batter.
8. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Check at 25 minutes and take out when a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
9. For frosting : beat cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar until smooth.
10. Add margarine and mix till smooth with 1/2 c nuts or more.
11. Use nuts for decorating and additional coconut

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