Mocha Cream Cake

33 Variations Birthday Recipe #2 - Mocha Cream Cake

Oh yeah!!!


The history:
This is a cake that my grandmother (who I called Mimi), my dad's mother, made for my granddad and thus my father had it while growing up, loved it and then she would make it for him too.  So when my folks got married my mother got the recipe so she could make the cake sometimes.  In our house growing up, this tended to be made in the month of April - or at least in early spring - for either my dad's birthday or for Easter.  This was the recipe my father gave to me for my 33rd Birthday!


Yesterday was the first time I've ever made the cake.


It's a very impressive looking cake and one that's not terribly difficult to make.  It has three parts so it does take time, but not too much, and all of the steps are pretty darn easy!


Everyone who ate a piece LOVED it, well my nieces were semi-fans, it's a delicious cake but for young palates it's not necessarily what they'd love.  It's not like a chocolate cake, being coffee flavored and all, I gather it's a cake that kids don't always love.  Though they both did try it.


*The cake needs to be refrigerated once it is made!  

Fridge Photos....

 Cake and Chef ... Baker ... ???!!!  :o)  (I think I was talking with my niece.)

 Mocha Drizzle fo'shizzle!  (I'm a dork)

Lion Burger anyone?

So I was out to lunch with some of my new co-workers, I LOVE BEING ABLE TO SAY THAT BY THE WAY, last week and was taken to a burger place in Albany.


"Burger Centric"
Question: have you ever heard of steaming a burger?  
I never had, not before hearing about this place.  But I digress. Good burgers, and a LARGE variety of ways you can have a burger.


Creative titles ... creative ingredients!


I had a garlic kobe burger for my first 'Burger Centric' burger.  Very tasty!


Also on the menu were things like (how weird is this, weeks after I had two of them) Kangaroo, Alligator, Bison, Venison, and if I'm not mistaken Python.


OH YEAH AND NORTH AFRICAN LION!  What?!?!?!  


A.) I didn't know you could eat Lion.
B.) I didn't know Lion was legal to eat, but apparently it is.
3.) For $200.00 for a half pound burger (or $110 for a quarter pounder) I did not try it.
D.) On the way out, we found out it is possible - in other words the owner, who was the one saying this, has said he'd be willing to let us order two Lion Burger Sliders for $50.00
5.) I really might have to try it out - try everything once, right?!
F.) If willing and wanting to do this, one must let them know the night before so they can get the lion.


Hmmmm...food for thought (pun sort of intended)!


:)


Oh yeah...and I love that there's a gal at work who's a foodie like I am!

St. Patrick's Day Food

(I've realized - and gotten a full time job - that I haven't posted on here in a bit ... so here are a few 'over due' posts.)

Everyone's Irish on March 17th!

So it's tradition in a large portion of the US to cook corned beef with cabbage (and potatoes and carrots) for St. Patrick's Day ... is this the same in Ireland?  I highly doubt it - though I do not have fact or fiction statistics to make a definite statement.

I've cooked it a few times.  Funny, the beef comes with a packet of seasonings along with the packaged statement that it's already seasoned ... so it's not really all that difficult.  Put meat in pot, cover with water, add seasoning packet, cook for roughly 4 hours.  About an hour and a half before it's done add the chopped potatoes and carrots, and at about half hour'ish you add the cabbage.

Remove from water.  Cut meat.  Serve and eat (with mayo for the potatoes and mustard for the meat).

One day I'd like to try seasoning it all the way myself ... and adding in some Irish Soda Bread (another "American" St. Patty's Day staple).

Cooking the meal got me thinking though, that it's likely we've taken what would have been cooked in the super lean years ... and in much MUCH smaller portions back then.  Hot water with a bit of meat to flavor it, add some potatoes and veg and then eat.  Then use the flavored water for a soup.  But I digress...

It might not be their tradition, but it's one over here that I love!

Hope everyone had a Happy ... and a Guinness!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

~Father and Daughter Bowing Down (2009)