A Cake A Day...or Broke and Crying in Salalah

I realized last night that I can't do this cake challenge without a sturdy mixer. The problem is, I don't have a sturdy bank account. Mixers aren't cheap! I can't, however, beat the ingredients for sponge cake-by hand-until the batter is double in volume. A six layer sponge cake!

Why does this picture have only five layers when the recipe clearly makes six? I bet the baker in the test kitchen muffed it up like I will.

So it's off to K&M after school today for a mixer. I can't, under any circumstance, go price them at Lulus (as you know from my previous post). Shudder. I called the husband (aka His Lordship or Sir) and told him I was getting a lift after school with another teacher. A man teacher! There was a pause. A moment of silence if you will, while he considered my options. Permission was granted. For the lift to the store, that is, not the purchase. A woman's salary, within the context of Islam, is her money. Whatever salary a Muslim wife earns is supposed to be for her personal use. All household expenses are paid for by the husband. Does it really work this way in 2014? Yes, many times it does. Do Muslim women help out with household expenses if need be? Yes, many do. But we don't have to, dang it! When a good husband (note I said good..not dictatorial) considers whether his wife should gad about with coworkers and friends, he isn't deciding if he trusts her. Unless he's a lunatic. You see, wives are the heart of the home, and since many of the fine people of Salalah live to rubberneck and talk about each other, "talk" is to be avoided if one wants a harmonious life in this fine city.

It will come as a shock to those of you who've known me for years, but if he said to wait until HE could take me to the store, I would have accepted his judgement. Ok...not without quiet grumbling (when I hung up the phone), but I would have said fine. And sighed very heavily. Really. Man I'm perfect!

The Recipe

Sponge Cake with Chocolate Frosting
Totally copied and pasted

• 1 3/4 cup(s) cake flour
• 2 teaspoon(s) baking powder
• 1 1/4 cup(s) (plus 3 tablespoons) milk
• 1 cup(s) (plus 2 tablespoons ) unsalted butter, plus 2 tablespoons
• 4 large eggs
• 2 cup(s) granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) salt
• 5 teaspoon(s) vanilla extract
• 6 ounce(s) unsweetened chocolate
• 6 3/4 cup(s) confectioners' sugar
• 1 tablespoon(s) decorative sprinkles

1. Make the cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottom of a 9-inch by 13-inch baking pan. Fit parchment paper into the bottom of the pan, butter the parchment and pan sides and dust with flour. Set aside. Sift the flour and baking powder together and set aside.
2. Heat 1 cup of milk just to a boil. Stir in 2 tablespoons butter and keep hot. Beat eggs in a large bowl using a mixer set on high speed until they become foamy. Add the granulated sugar, salt, and 2 teaspoons vanilla and beat until batter doubles in volume and becomes very thick and pale -- about 5 minutes.
3. Reduce mixer speed to low and add the hot milk and butter. Add the flour mixture, in 1/4 cupfuls, scraping sides occasionally. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean -- 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack. Release the cake and cool completely.
4. Make the frosting: Melt the remaining 1 cup butter and chocolate over a double boiler. Transfer to a large bowl, add the confectioners' sugar and beat using a mixer set on medium speed. Add the remaining 3 teaspoons vanilla and 1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons milk and continue to beat until fluffy.
5. Assemble the cake: Cut the cake into two 9-inch by 6 1/2-inch halves. Split each half into 3 layers using a long serrated knife. Place one layer on a cake plate. Spread 1/2 cup frosting over the layer. Repeat with remaining layers. Frost cake top and sides and decorate with sprinkles.

You have no idea how badly I messed up this cake. See where it says 5 teaspoons of vanilla? I read 5 teaspoons of salt. And I looked twice. I thought to myself...really? How is that possible? Surely the cake will be ruined! But I added it. And the cake tasted like salt. All that butter, milk, sugar...the new mixer I paid 250 bucks for....all for naught.  5 teaspoons of salt!  Mehdi nearly bent over double laughing. Said "Walah I will spend 365 days full laughing." Hardy har har mister. Haaaaardy har. Ah well. I had runny frosting left over from yesterday and a spare box cake, so that is in the oven. People at work are expecting something, and I can't bring them a salt brick. Rest assured I will not use the expensive chocolate today though..that frosting will have to wait. I am wasted from stress. As soon as I take this cake out of the oven, I am making popcorn (salty) and am going to snack myself into oblivion. 

The Salt Brick

Tomorrow is another day Scarlett.

Love,

Felicia El Aid