LET THEM EAT CAKE

     "Biscuits" evidently keyed some good memories for several of my friends.  Nancy Showalter wrote:  "My grandmother made a grape jam cake that no one liked but me.  She only made it when company was coming and we sat in the "front room".  I found a paper bag with all my grandma's handwritten recipes in it and the grape jam cake recipe was in the bag.  After I stopped crying, I decided to make the cake - it was right before Easter so all my family was coming for dinner.  The cake was exactly as I remembered and no one liked it so I knew I had made it right!  That cake made me think of my grandma and how much I missed her and how sweet the memories are!  I  understand the biscuits and share your joy!"  I could never have retold this as eloquently as Nancy so I have used her words.  I loved this memory, Nancy.
     My niece Bobbi wrote that her single working mother Carol taught her to cook and provided well for their family.  Also, that she would have dinner ready when her mother got home from work.  A lot of their recipes were modern recipes using ingredients like Campbell's Soup.  It wasn't until she married into the Abold family that my mother-in-law Doris who was her husband's grandmother, and her own mother-in-law my sister-in-law Barbara, taught her how to make dishes from scratch and she added those dishes to her repertoire.  She also loves that her own children ask for her "how to's and recipes" and that sharing and cooking together and laughing in the kitchen make memories that become traditions.
     My friend Holly wrote:  "My grandmother Harris couldn't cook at all...she would put a whole chicken in a pot of boiling water and cooked the poor thing until lunchtime.  The same with the meat for dinner, once lunch was over she'd put a roast in a pan and cook it until dinner time.  She was great!  Everything tasted the same and as kids, the blandness of the meal was perfect."  Holly, I've used your words, too.
     My sister-in-law Suzanne told me of when she was a new bride and made and decorated a sheet  cake for our mother-in-law Doris' birthday dinner.  In transporting the cake in the car there had been a vibration that had made the cake separate and the cake cracked..  She was thinking of how she could take toothpicks and more frosting and try to cover up the crack when my husband's boys Jimmy and Johnny, who were under ten years old, met her at the door, looked at the cake, and exclaimed excitedly that she had made a San Andreas Fault Earthquake Cake!!!  This surprised her and made her feel so good that she had made such a special cake.

Here's the recipe for Nancy's Grandmother's Grape Jam Cake:
     CAKE:  6 eggs, 1/2 c. butter, 3 c. flour, 2 tsp. baking soda mixed in 1 c. buttermilk, 1 lb. raisins, 2 c. sugar, 2 lbs. nuts your choice, 2 c. jam, 1 tbsp. ea. of allspice + cinnamon + nutmeg + ground cloves., 1 c. coconut, dash of salt.  FILLING:  2 c. sugar, 1 c. milk, 2 egg whites, 1 stick butter.
     Nancy made three layers but thinks 2 layers would work  better.  There weren't any directions  on how to mix so Nancy just added as the ingredients appeared in the recipe and baked at 375 degrees till the toothpick came out clean.  She says:  "I hope someone tries this and likes it!!! xxxoooo"  OH, also, she says you can use blackberry jam, too.

     Nancy, I'm definitely going to make this cake it sounds so rich.  I live in the country and I'm going to pick up the extra ingredients I need next time I'm in town.  Love, Sandy

     EPILOGUE:  I made the cake!  Both Rod and I loved it.  I had three huge layers too big to make into one cake so I glazed the tops of each individual layer.  I also used 1 3/4 lbs. pecans and I baked it at 375 degrees in my convection oven but feel 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes or till toothpick comes out clean would be better for me.  On the filling 1 c. milk was too much and it was runny so I added powdered sugar to make a glaze.  I will make this cake again but I think I will make it in loaf pans or a sheet cake pan and glaze the top.  The cake was delicious...2 thumbs up!!!