My Prairie Cookbook (30 page)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ cup (1 stick/115 g) unsalted butter, softened

½ cup (110 g) firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1¼ cups (300 ml) buttermilk

For the Frosting:

1½ cups (330 g) firmly packed light brown sugar

2 egg whites

1 tablespoon light corn syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon salt

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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour two 8-inch (20-cm) round cake pans.

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Make the cake: Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg in a medium bowl.

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Beat the butter in a mixing bowl until creamy. Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla and beat using an electric mixer on high speed for 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl often. Add the sifted dry ingredients, alternating with the buttermilk, mixing on the lowest speed just until smooth.

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Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 30 minutes, or until a wooden skewer or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then turn the cakes out of the pans onto the rack to cool completely.

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Make the frosting: Bring a pan of water to a boil. Combine the brown sugar, egg whites, syrup, vanilla, salt, and ⅓ cup (75 ml) cold water in a medium heatproof mixing bowl. Beat for 1 minute using an electric mixer on high speed. Place the bowl over the boiling water and cook, beating constantly for 7 minutes, until soft peaks form. Remove the bowl from the heat and continue beating with the mixer until a spreading consistency is reached.

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Put one cake round on a cake plate and spread one-third of the frosting on top. Set the second cake round on top and frost the sides and top of the cake with the remaining frosting.

Talk about a perfect prairie dessert. You could use canned peaches for this, but it's just so much better with fresh peaches. Besides, I seriously doubt any Ingalls woman worth a hoot would use anything but fresh in-season peaches!

Serves 8

½ cup (1 stick/115 g) unsalted butter

2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar

¾ cup (95 g) self-rising flour

¾ cup (180 ml) milk

2 cups (300 g) sliced fresh peaches

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

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Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

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Put the butter in a 9-by-13-inch (23-by-33-cm) baking dish and place it in the oven until the butter melts. Remove from the oven, tilt the dish to distribute the butter all over the bottom, and set aside.

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In a medium bowl, mix together 1 cup (200 g) of the sugar and the flour and stir in the milk. The batter will have a few lumps, but that's okay. Pour the batter on top of the melted butter.

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Put the peaches, the remaining 1 cup (200 g) of sugar, and 1 cup (240 ml) of water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes.

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Spoon the fruit on top of the batter and then slowly pour the liquid from the saucepan on top of that. Be careful not to mix the fruit into the batter. Sprinkle with the cinnamon.

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Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until bubbling and the top is golden. Serve warm.

You might have figured out by now that I'm not much of a raisin fan. Once while I was shooting a movie in Canada, my leading man invited me to dinner at his parents' house. The dinner was amazing, and my friend whispered in my ear, “Wait until dessert.” Imagine my surprise when these gorgeous butter tarts came out. I cut into one, butter oozing everywhere, and then I saw them . . . the dreaded raisins. There was no way out, so I put a bite in my mouth, ready to act like it was the best dessert ever. Imagine my surprise when it turned out to be just that. To this day, these butter tarts are the only food I enjoy that contains raisins.

Makes about 24 tarts

For the Tart Shells:

5½ cups (685 g) unbleached all-purpose flour

1½ teaspoons salt

1 pound (455 g) vegetable shortening, cold, cut into pieces

1 large egg

1 tablespoon white vinegar

For the Filling:

2 cups (290 g) raisins

2 cups (440 g) packed light brown sugar

½ cup (120 ml) maple syrup

¼ cup (60 ml) light corn syrup

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

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Make the tart shells: Sift together the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Use a pastry cutter or two knives to work the shortening into the flour until it resembles coarse meal.

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Whisk together the egg, vinegar, and 1 cup (240 ml) of water in a medium mixing bowl, then add the mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a fork until the dough just begins to hold together. Press the dough into a ball, then transfer it to a lightly floured surface. Give the dough several quick kneads with the heel of your hand to make it smooth, then shape it into a ball. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.

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Make the filling: Put the raisins in a medium saucepan, cover with cold water by 1 inch (2.5 cm), and bring them to a boil over high heat. Drain, then immediately transfer the raisins to a medium bowl and add the brown sugar, maple syrup, corn syrup, and butter; stir until the butter melts and the mixture is well combined. Set aside to cool for 3 to 4 minutes.

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Beat 1 of the eggs in a small bowl, then add it to the raisin mixture and mix well. Repeat with the remaining 3 eggs. Stir in the vanilla.

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Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).

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Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to a ¼ inch (6 mm) thickness. Use a 4-inch (10-cm) round cookie cutter to cut out about 24 rounds, gathering the dough scraps into a ball and rerolling as needed. Fit the rounds into standard-size muffin pans, then fill each about three-quarters full with the filling. (Stir the filling before filling the tarts.)

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Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the crusts are light golden and the filling is barely set. Let cool, then lift out the tarts with a knife.

Chess pie—it's so simple and down-home. Kind of like pecan pie, but without those nasty crunchy pecans. Just the gooey buttery goodness of what surrounds them. The cornmeal adds a bit of texture. This pie is really rich, and it tastes even better the next day, after spending a night hanging out in the fridge. Serve this with ice cream, whipped cream, or just plain.

Makes one 9-inch (23-cm) pie