Rum Cake

Mom and Grandma both made this rum cake, but it had been many years since I tasted it, and I had never made it before. I don't know why I waited so long to try out this cake. It is delicious.

As the name indicates, rum is a key ingredient. Mom says that she used to use imitation rum extract. I used the real thing. Either way, the cake tastes great. The recipe uses instant pudding, which helps make the cake so moist. The other ingredients are basic. As for the tube pan, I actually used a bundt pan. Either type of pan could work.

I made this cake for MDS in advance of his birthday. I left out the pecans because, although MDS likes nuts, he prefers no nuts in baked goods. Rum cake makes a great birthday cake. MDS's birthday is two days before Grandma's birthday. If Grandma were still with us, I am sure she would love to have a slice of this cake.

Rum Cake

• 1 package yellow cake mix
• 1 package instant vanilla pudding
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup cooking oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup rum
• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans

For the Glaze:

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 ounce rum

Mix together the cake mix, pudding, eggs, oil, water, and rum. Arrange the pecans on the bottom of a greased tube pan. Pour the batter into the pan. Bake at 325 for one hour. Just before the cake is done, mix together the ingredients for the glaze in a sauce pan and boil for one minute. Remove the cake from the oven and pierce the top thoroughly with a toothpick. Immediately pour the glaze all over the top of the cake. Cool completely before removing the cake from the pan. Enjoy!

Pepper Steak

This recipe is very easy to make, but does take a little longer than some of Mom's other weeknight meals. Nevertheless, you should definitely consider adding it into your rotation of meals. There are only a few ingredients, and they are always easy to find.

I remember Mom making pepper steak with some regularity when we were young. I don't remember anyone objecting to it, and with seven potentially picky eaters, no complaints must mean it was popular.

Pepper Steak

• 1 1/2  boneless chuck steak
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 envelope onion soup mix
• water
• 2 green bell peppers
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• cooked rice

Cut the meat into thin strips about two inches long. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil and brown the meat, turning frequently. Stir in the onion soup mix and two cups of water. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, clean and cut the peppers into thin strips. Add the pepper to the skillet and cook for about 10 more minutes. Blend the cornstarch and 1/2 cup water. Stir the cornstarch into the skillet. Cook for a few more minutes, until the sauce has thickened. Serve over rice. Enjoy! 

Pizzelles

When we were young, Grandma and Grandpa often hosted Memorial Day and Labor Day get togethers. They often invited their friends, Rose and Red. To the left is a photo from Grandma and Grandpa's house in Chicago, featuring (from left to right) Grandpa, Rose, Grandma, Noah, Mom and Megan. Below is a photo from the house on Addison in Riverside, featuring Mom, Mike, Red, Rose and Grandma. Usually, Rose would bring her homemade pizzelles, a delicious Italian waffle cookie. Rose often made anise-flavored pizzelles, a traditional Italian flavor.

Pizzelle means little pizza and the name comes from the round shape. When fresh off the iron, pizzelles are soft and pliable and can be shaped into ice cream cones, mini-bowls or cannoli shells. After a few minutes, the cookie hardens and becomes firm and crispy.

In order to make pizzelles, you need to have a pizzelle iron or press. The modern electric pizzelle irons look a lot like waffle irons, but result in thin cookies. The old pizzelle irons were designed to be used over an open fire or on the stove top. Most pizzelle irons have a waffle pattern on one side and flower pattern on the other side.

Once you made the base batter, any flavoring can be added. Flavoring includes vanilla, almond extract, anise, lemon and orange. For chocolate flavor, add three tablespoons of cocoa powder. For coffee flavor, dissolve a tablespoon or two of instant coffee with the melted butter. When making almond pizzelles, I like to use both almond extract and chopped almonds in the batter. For the recent Fourth of July family party, I even made chocolate almond pizzelles, which were quite tasty. I have not made pistacchio pizzelles, but I may try those next time. At the end of this post, there is a photo of Tim enjoying a pizzelle from my latest batch at Mom's new place in North Riverside.

Pizzelles

• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 2 tsp. vanilla (or other extract)
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• optional: crushed nuts, cocoa powder, etc.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs and sugar. Add the cooled butter and desired flavorings. Sift in the flour and baking powder into the egg mixture. The batter should be stiff enough to drop by spoon. 

Heat up the electric pizzelle iron. Drop a teaspoon of batter onto each grid pattern and close the pizzelle iron. The pizzelles will be ready in about one minute. Remove the pizzelle with tongs and allow to cool on a flat surface for flat pizzelles or immediately shape. Dust with powdered sugar. Enjoy!