Microwave Mug Cake for a Zoom Celebration

My favorite flour company posted a photo of a mug cake recently. Hudson Cream Flour has a baking community on Facebook. Hudson Cream Flour is produced right in our home county - Stafford County, Kansas, by Stafford County Flour Mills. (We actually live on the Reno County side of the county line, but we identify as "Stafford County." That sounds like a buzz-worthy thing to say these days, don't you think?) You can become a member by checking out Hudson Cream Baking Community on Facebook.

Anyway, it reminded me that I had never posted a recipe of a microwave mug cake that was part of a 100-year-anniversary celebration for my Stafford PEO group.

On March 23, we celebrated 100 years of Chapter BK, PEO, an international organization that advocates for education for women, as well as other philanthropic endeavors.

I agreed to chair the anniversary committee. But with the regulations still in place for meetings due to Covid-19, we opted to have a Zoom party, rather than gather in person.

The 12 founders from 1921 would probably have been appalled. On their initiation day, the 12 Stafford ladies gathered for a formal meal, prepared by the Stafford High School home economics students. Then, for the chapter's 50th anniversary, the women had a luncheon at the Brown Tea Room in Stafford. The Golden Girls (the remaining 50-year members) arrived to the festivities in a limousine, chauffeured by one of the husbands. They had a meal of escalloped chicken, glazed carrots, creamed peas in timbale shells, perfection salad, rolls and lemon chiffon pie. (I had to look up "timbale." I'd never heard of it before, but it sounds fancy to me!)

I'm thinking that a microwave cake and a paper bag of party supplies would not have sufficed for the gentile ladies of yesteryear.  Of course, back in 1921, there were no microwaves anyway!

 

The committee members prepared "party packs" that were delivered to each members' front porch ahead of time. It included a commemorative mug in which to make the microwave cake, a cake "kit" (complete with candle), a craft kit to make a paper daisy, party hat, party blowers and a daisy napkin. (Our PEO flower is the marguerite - a daisy.)

I experimented with several recipes. Randy wasn't complaining. Eventually, I came up with one in which our committee could supply all the ingredients except for 1/4 cup of milk, which each member provided on her own.

My friend, Betty, packaged the dry ingredients into snack-sized plastic bags. She put the liquid ingredients in a 2-ounce plastic cup. I provided a 2-ounce container of prepared buttercream frosting, tinting it yellow and using a star-tip to swirl it for a "party" effect. (I thought I'd gotten a photo, but I guess not!) We added a small baggie with extra sprinkles and a candle to make it party-worthy!

This is one of the  pages from A Century of Sisterhood, a book I made to celebration the anniversary, and shows our Zoom party and mug cakes.

Then the ladies made their own cakes at home and ate them while I gave the program. 

I went through history books and other anniversary programs and ultimately did a 26-page book.

It included biographic information about each founder and photos when available. The book also had information from the 25-, 40-, 50- and 75-year anniversaries. I also included summaries about what the world was like at each of those milestone anniversaries, which occurred in 1921, 1946, 1971 and 1996.

This was from the silver anniversary and showed the remaining founders at that time.

This was a double-page spread from the 50th anniversary at the Brown Tea Room.

And here's a photo from the 40th birthday. Things were definitely more formal back in those days. They didn't plan a special event, yet look how dressed up they all were for a regular meeting!

As I said, I'm not sure our microwave cake would have passed inspection back in the day. But we 2021 ladies were surprised how good they were. (Of course, warm cake is good anytime. And the buttercream frosting certainly makes anything taste better!)

 

Microwave Mug Cake

for a Zoom Party

Put the following dry ingredients in a snack-sized bag:

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/8 tsp. salt

1 tablespoon sprinkles

Put the following into a 2-ounce plastic cup with secure lid:

2 tablespoons canola oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon almond flavoring

 

PARTYGOER WOULD NEED TO ADD:

1/4 cup milk

 

BEFORE THE PARTY:
1) Wash & dry your mug.
2) Have 1/4 cup milk available to use.
3) Have a match or lighter available to light the candle!

TO PREPARE MUG CAKE (We will do this during the party!):
1) Put measured (provided) dry ingredients in the provided mug.
2) Add plastic container of wet ingredients (provided.)
3) Add 1/4 cup milk. (YOU PROVIDE.)
4) Stir well with one of the forks, thoroughly combining wet & dry ingredients.
5) Place mug on a plate or paper towel in your microwave (just to catch any overflow).
6) Microwave 90 seconds. It WON'T look like a cake baked in the oven because it doesn't brown. But it should "spring back" like a "normal" cake. If it doesn't seem done, put back in for a few more seconds. However, don't overcook. It will continue baking after removing from MW.
7) It's hot! Use a potholder to remove.
8) Top with provided frosting, light the candle & ENJOY!

 

I also provided a 2-ounce container of prepared buttercream frosting in each partygoer's sack. We had 22 possible participants, so I used 1 1/2 times the recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction.

 

Vanilla Buttercream

Recipe and commentary from Sally's Baking Addiction blog

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

4-5 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup heavy cream, half and half or whole milk at room temp

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 tsp. almond extract

Food coloring (as desired)

With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 4 and 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar, the heavy cream, and extracts. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to medium-high speed and beat for 2 full minutes. Taste. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet. I always add 1/8 teaspoon.

Adjust if needed: You can control the consistency at this point– add up to 1/2 cup more confectioners’ sugar if frosting is too thin or more heavy cream if frosting is too thick (add only 1 Tablespoon at a time, beat together, then taste and add more if desired).

Use immediately or cover tightly and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. After thawing or refrigerating, beating in a splash of heavy cream or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed.

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1. Quantity: This recipe is enough to frost 12-16 cupcakes or a thin layer on a 9×13 inch quarter sheet cake. Follow these ratios for a 2 layer cake and these ratios for a 3 layer cake.
2. Confectioners’ Sugar: If your confectioners’ sugar is particularly lumpy, I recommend sifting it 1-2x before measuring and using.
3. Heavy Cream: I love using heavy cream for the creamiest consistency. You can use half-and-half or whole milk instead if needed. The lower the fat, the less creamy your buttercream will be. Whichever you use, make sure it’s at room temperature. Otherwise your frosting could separate or appear grainy.

Winter Snowscape Dessert with Snowmen

Dessert is important at women's meetings.

Maybe we don't want to admit it out loud, but it's true. It seems women are genetically predisposed to the promise of a sweet treat at the end of a business meeting.

It was my turn to provide the refreshments at a PEO meeting for one of our January meetings. And I was in search of a treat that would speak to the stark, winter landscape.

I did consider doing a warm dessert, like chocolate cobbler topped with ice cream or an apple cake with a warm caramel sauce. But my mind kept returning to snow and snowmen.

When I found a recipe for White Chocolate Lasagna, I decided it would become Winter Snowscape Dessert for my PEO sisters.

 

 

I also clicked on numerous links for building my own snowmen out of food, not snow. I got the ingredients to cover large pretzel rods. But when I tried it, the eyes, nose and buttons ended up sliding off the top of the pretzel.

So Plan B was born. And they turned out pretty cute, if I do say so myself. Actually, I didn't have to say: My PEO sisters said so, too.

The downside? Constructing a snowman army is time consuming. But the dessert was pretty simple and quick, so I guess it all balanced out.

I know everyone has transitioned to thinking about Valentine's Day this month. But there's some snow in the forecast today. And no matter what Punxsutawney Phil says, I'm fairly confident we're not done with winter. 

Want to try it? Here's how. Enjoy!

Winter Snowscape Dessert

1 pkg. Golden Oreos
6 tbsp. butter, melted
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
16 oz. frozen whipped topping, thawed
7.8 oz. white chocolate instant pudding mix (or use 2 small packages)
3 cups whole milk
White chocolate bar (opt.)

Crush Oreos using a food processor to get a fine crumb. Melt 6 tablespoons butter. Combine with Oreos. Press into the bottom of a 9- by 13-inch pan, covering it evenly.

In a medium bowl, blend softened cream cheese and butter, mixing well. Add powdered sugar; mix again. Add half of the whipped topping. Blend well. Spread out over the crust layer.

In another bowl, combine pudding mix and milk. Beat until thickened. Pour over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate at least 5 minutes.

Top off with the rest of the whipped topping. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.

Optional: You may top the dessert with white chocolate curls. (Mine didn't make nice, long curls like I'd envisioned, but maybe that made it look more like snow.

Marshmallow Snowmen

Large marshmallows (2 per snowman)
White coating chocolate
Lifesaver gummies
Mini or micro-mini peanut butter cups or Hershey's Kisses
Black piping gel
Orange piping gel
Pretzel sticks, broken in half
Flat gummy candy like Airheads or fruit leather
White sanding sugar (opt.)

Melt coating chocolate. Put a little coating chocolate between the marshmallows to stick them together. I used Airheads and cut them in half for the scarves. I added the scarves right after putting the marshmallows together. The excess chocolate helps stick the scarf to the body. If needed, I added a little more coating chocolate on the underside of the scarf to attach it more firmly.

Attach the peanut butter cup to the Lifesaver gummy to form the hat. Attach the hat to the top of the snowman.

Using piping gel, make dots for the facial features.

On a piece of waxed paper, put a small dollop of melted coating chocolate. Sprinkle with white sanding sugar, if desired. Press the completed snowman into the melted coating chocolate. You may have to hold it up for a minute or so until it begins to set up. You can't work too far ahead or the chocolate will get too hard and you won't be able to press it into the chocolate dollop.

After the snowman is firm, snap pretzel sticks in half. Press broken ends into melted coating chocolate. Push into the bottom marshmallow.

Note: You may have to reheat your coating chocolate in the microwave if it starts to get hard.

All It's "Crackered" Up to Be

The request was simple enough: I was to bring a fruit-type salad and crackers as my contribution to a PEO salad supper.

I could have gone to the store and purchased crackers. Nobody asked me to make a homemade version - much less two. But when do I ever make things easy on myself? (Answer? Rarely.)

And did I mention I was already in charge of making "fancy" cookies for a South Central Community Foundation grants award reception the very same evening? And, if truth is told, no one told me I had to make "special" cookies for that either. I just think an event like that deserves a festive flair.

For recipes: Macaroons, Pumpkin No-Bakes, Mexican Wedding Cookies, M & M Bars, Scarecrow Bars

Do I ever make things easy on myself? Same answer as above.

Thankfully, I could make both the cookies and the crackers ahead of time. So, between helping move cattle, feeding cattle, working cattle, recording my radio reports, blogging, volunteering and assorted other tasks, I made homemade crackers.

My sister, Darci, shared a recipe she and her husband Andrew had enjoyed while they were visiting friends in New Zealand. When I was tasked with cracker duty, I remembered that earlier recipe via email. It required a trip to Glenn's Bulk Foods to get all the different kinds of seeds, but they turned out well. They were chock-full of flax, sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.

I also remembered some cheesy crackers that were served at a local restaurant's Valentine sweethearts' meal several years ago. Since that restaurant is no longer in business, I wasn't able to track down her specific recipe. But Trisha Yearwood and the Food Network to the rescue. What's not to like about butter and cheese? The cheesy crackers are had plenty of both, along with flour and seasonings.

The PEO ladies didn't eat enough of the crackers.

Randy and I enjoyed some with homemade tomato and rice soup last week. I stashed most in the freezer and then used them as an accompaniment to two different kinds of soup at a Bible study Tuesday evening.

In the photo above, the crackers are pictured with a tomato rice soup that can be found at this link on my blog. On Tuesday night, I served the crackers with a Slow Cooker Potato Soup and a Slow Cooker Chicken and Rice Soup.

My church group also got the leftover cookies.

Sue's Crackers

From Wellington, New Zealand via my sister, Darci

1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup flax seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cup spelt flour or rice flour  (I used rice flour)
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup olive oil
Sea salt for sprinkling (opt.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix seeds, salt and flour. Add water and olive oil; mix.

Spread thin on a 16 X 12 inch baking sheet with lip. Sue's instructions say to divide into two pieces and roll between two sheets of parchment paper until 3 mm thick (that's 1/25th inch - so it's very thin. I probably didn't get it quite that thin.) I then just put the bottom parchment paper with the dough on the baking sheet.

Lightly sprinkle with sea salt, if desired.

Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and crisp. Place on rack to cool. Break into pieces.

You can serve as crackers. The "crumbles" are delicious as a crunch element in a creamy tomato or potato soup.

Cheese Crackers

Modified from the Food Network

1 cup butter, softened
3 10-oz. bricks sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded cold, then left at room temperature
4 cups flour
2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
Dash of garlic powder
Cooking spray

Note: Don't use already shredded cheese because it's treated with an anti-caking agent. Shred your own for this recipe.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Put the softened cheese and butter into the bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer. Using the heaviest mixer paddle, beat until the mixture has the consistency of creamed butter.

In a large bowl, combine 3 cups of the flour with the salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and garlic powder. Gradually add the seasoned flour mixture to the cheese mixture, beating well after each addition. Add the remaining 1 cup of unseasoned flour a little at a time until the dough is somewhat stiff but still soft enough to be manipulated. You will likely not need to add all 4 cups of flour.

Use a 1-inch cookie scoop and scoop onto baking sheets that have been sprayed with cookie spray. (Or use parchment covered baking sheets.) Press down using a glass or you may use a fork. Bake until golden brown and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes, depending on your oven.

The original recipe made these into cheese straws. I don't have a metal cookie press, and I couldn't get the dough to push through the press I had, so I made them as explained above. However, if you have a better cookie press, here's the instructions for making them into cheese straws:

Lightly spray 4 cookie sheets with cooking spray. Put a portion of the dough into a cookie press fitted with the star tip and press the dough onto a cookie sheet into long strips that run the length of the pan. Repeat until the pan is full. Bake until straws are golden brown and crisp, about 20 minutes.

With your hands or a sharp knife, break or cut the long strips into 3-inch lengths. Use a flat, thin spatula or an egg turner to remove the cheese strips from the pan. Allow them to cool on a wire rack. When they are completely cool, serve or store in a tightly-covered container.

This makes a lot! The original recipe said 4 dozen cheese straws. 

Kindness Rocks

 

 "It's the thought that counts."

We've all heard it ... though hopefully not when the wrapping paper is coming off of a present we've carefully chosen.

When you look up the origin of the phrase in the Oxford Dictionary, it says this:

Used to indicate that it is the kindness behind an act that matters, however imperfect or insignificant the act may be.

It seems to be the perfect phrase to describe my PEO chapter's foray into a national project, Kindness Rocks.

Photo from the Kindness Rocks website

When Randy and I were at the Black Hills National Cemetery, we found a rock on a memorial marker there. (See below.)

Later, when I was trying to come up with an idea for a PEO program, I remembered the rock. I was chairman for our annual PEO fundraising night. In recent years, each member has brought homemade or purchased items for a silent auction. The proceeds would go to PEO Projects - both our annual local scholarship for a high school senior girl and for PEO International projects, many of which benefit education for women.

This year, we decided to try something different: Each PEO member was asked to figure out the financial investment of time,  effort and supplies she would have expended to make baked goods, frame a photo, construct a handmade quilt or some other project. Then, she could just contribute that amount of money to the treasury. 

Part of the entertainment in previous fundraisers was the silent auction itself. So I was looking for a fun activity to fill the time. Our Stafford Recreation Commission Director Jan VanDam came to mind. She brought the Kindness Rocks Project to Stafford. She'd worked with children at Oktoberfest and led a session at the Senior Center. She'd toted her rocks and paints to the Stafford Library and other organizations. We seemed to fit the demographic - in other words, anyone who could wield a paintbrush or a marker!

So, what is The Kindness Rocks project? According to their website,

Goal #1: Inspire others through randomly placed rocks along the way…

Goal #2: Recruit every person who stumbles upon it to join in the pursuit of inspiring others through random acts of kindness

Jan brought the rocks and paint. The committee supplied some oil-based Sharpie markers. And the PEO ladies brought the ideas. 

Some are true artists. Some - like me - are not.

But all of us brought a can-do attitude. And the results were as varied as the people who made the rocks. And there's true beauty in that. For some of we "paint-challenged" ladies, I'd purchased some scrapbook idea-ology word bands and metal wire at Hobby Lobby (an idea I found on the blog, Skip to My Lou.

But there were plenty of artists in our group, too, as evidenced by these creative rocks:

 

When the evening was over, Jan took the rocks and sprayed them with a clear acrylic coating. And these missives of kindness and hope went out into the streets of Stafford. As the video says:  

What our world needs now is kindness and connection.

What if we were able to block out all the negativity that surrounds us 
and we were only receptive to thoughts, ideas and images
 that were positive and uplifting? 

What if kindness became a connecting force for good?

Together, we can make it happen ...

With the deluge of disheartening news in the world, I hope that the someone who finds a rock that says "Smile" or "Be Kind" or "Enjoy" gets a gentle nudge to do just that. 

Spreading a little kindness? It seems like a good idea to me. And even better? We raised more money for PEO projects than we had in recent years - a total of $890! That money will spread a lot of kindness, too, both locally and nationally.  

Here's a link to a downloadable "how to" from The Kindness Rocks website. And here's another blog that gives tips for crafting the rocks, Crafts Unleashed.