csamom

This dish was a collaboration with my daughter.  She has been wanting to write for the blog, so she did the cake recipe (It was based on a recipe in her cookbook).

First the Jam.  It is a refrigerator jam because it doesn’t have enough sugar to be canned – at least that is what I read here.  I had rhubarb from my farmer and strawberries from the garden.  Sadly, I think both seasons are ending here and it is time to move on, but we have seriously enjoyed our strawberries and rhubarb this year! 🙂

Back to Jam…

• 1 lb. rhubarb, sliced 1/2″ thick
• 2 t. vegetable oil
• 1/4 c. sugar

Heat the oil in a large skillet, add the rhubarb and sugar.  Saute until the rhubarb has given up its liquid and is still a little firm.

• 1/2 lb. strawberries, hulled and sliced (I had a lot of tiny strawberries from the garden, so I left most of them whole and just sliced off their tiny tops.)
• 1/4 c. sugar

In a medium bowl, combine the strawberries and sugar and allow to macerate.  I ended up storing both fruits separately  in the refrigerator over night.  Combine the rhubarb mixture and the macerated strawberries in a medium sauce pan on low heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb has lost its shape.

THAT is how easy the jam was!

And then we had cake… :)  Take it away  Cheese Girl.

This recipe came from my new-ish cookbook that I have not made anything but lemon bars from. Mom was looking for a shortcake recipe but she decided that the biscuit type cakes that that recipe made were too much like biscuits and flipped through the pages until finally landing on this: Kentucky Butter Cake. Bastardizing them to fit our need of individual cakes I christened them Butter Muffcakes. Perhaps not the best name possible but it suits the cakes nicely.

Butter Muffcakes:

First, preheat your oven to 325°.

• 1 cup butter
• 2 cups sugar

Then, place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and mix with an electric mixer until creamy, about 2 minutes.

• 4 eggs

After that, add the eggs one at a time, and mix until smooth after each egg. As yummy as it looks resist the temptation to eat the uncooked batter. Remember that there are 4 eggs in it and keep your fingers away from the bowl.

• 2 tablespoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda

Fourth, mix in the vanilla, baking powder, salt, and baking soda and combine for 1 minute.

• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 cups flour

Alternately add the sour cream and flour, 1/3 at a time, mixing after each addition. Mix for 3 minutes after all of the sour cream and flour are added.

• Non stick cooking spray
• Flour

And finally, spray then flour your muffin tin to ensure that the muffcakes can come out. Fill the cups half full and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Mini Bundt

Butter Muffcakes can be eaten alone or with jam. Mom flipped hers over and topped it with jam, but I had a flash of inspiration, cut the top off, topped the newly cut  muffcake with some jam, added a small mound of jam to the side, put the top on the slant, and deemed it beret style.

Beret-style

CSA Mom here:  I took these to a party on Friday and got rave reviews.  The cake was moist and not too sweet and the jam had just enough tartness.

My husband and son were out of town for a few days, and there aren’t any left, so they totally missed out this time.  Too bad for them!

Waaahaahaahaaaa – evil laugh.