Pistachio and Orange Liqueur Cake {Watergate Cake}

Okay, so raise your hand if you were alive when President Richard Nixon resigned?  How many of you watched his speech on TV?  Ah, even fewer...Okay, how many of you (or your parents) saved the newspaper announcing the resignation?  As I thought...Not a lot of you.

That's okay my friends, because we have the Watergate Cake to bring back that very pivotal time in political history.  And, just for the record: I can answer "yes" to each of those questions.  Yup, I'm that old.  :)  This single event in our history was my first real introduction into politics at a very young age.  We were living in Northern Virginia at the time of the Watergate Scandal and I was learning about U.S. History, so this had real meaning for me as a young history geek.  I'll never forget those times...

So, most of you don't know that I am a history geek.  Yeah, I read those really long and fairly dry presidential biographies and such.  The people on my commuter bus just roll their eyes when they see my books...I've received some flack for my geekness.  It could be worse...

This cake was developed by the folks at Jello when they introduced pistachio pudding.  The date coincided with the Watergate Scandal, so coming up with a name was pretty easy.  It's quite likely the only green cake widely known, but I think most folks have lost its original name.  So, pretty cool for me that this cake covers both my hobbies: the blog and reading history books...A true win-win for this geek.

Blog baking lore has it that this cake is so aptly named Watergate cake because Jello's pistachio cake was filled with nuts and covered in fluff much like the Nixon administration has been admonished.   Go ahead...Roll your eyes...

Watergate Complex, U.S. National Register on Historic Places

I really wanted to try a pistachio cake for a while, just sounded so good...This one is easy and the ingredients are simple.  I used salted pistachios which really added a huge pistachio flavor.  Very moist and holds up well to all that frosting. 

I used the ombre' frosting style that you see all over Pinterest.  I learned how to make the ombre' frosting from a video by Stephanie at 52 Kitchen Adventures (link below).  I highly recommend watching her video if you are a visual person, like me. 

You'll see this cake again sometime soon in its "scratch" version.  I bought myself a cookbook for my birthday this year: Vintage Cakes.  So, the cake is really "Part 1: Watergate Cake" with its "scratch" cousin coming soon. 

Pin It

Limoncello Raspberry Cream Sandwich Cookies

Pillowy lemon cookie sandwiched with luscious tart raspberry filling...Yes, I died and went to heaven.  I never knew a sandwich cookie could be this easy and this decadent. 

The pudding in the cookie helps keep them soft and adds richness.  The raspberry filling is kicked up a few notches with the addition of raspberry puree and Frambroise.  We wouldn't be bakin' it with booze, otherwise!

An elegant cookie, yet so easy to pull together.  Heaven.

This recipe is from my super creative and ever imaginative blogger buddy, Dorothy at Crazy for Crust.  She comes up with some very special treats like...Avocado Frosting, Cherry Icee Cupcakes, Cakeball Cookies and PB&J Tart.  She also runs a weekly party, Crazy Sweet Tuesday, where lots and lots of food bloggers show their creative wares.  Her Whatever Friday features a weekly wrap-up of her recipes and what's happened in her life.  She is The Iron Blogger!  :)

I've learned so much from Dorothy and thankful that I met her in blogger land...

Please check out Dorothy's blog when you can...You won't be disappointed.  Ever. 

Creamy lemony cookies with tart raspberry centers. 

Heaven. 

I'm sharing this over at Cake of the Week's Baking with Spirit Challenge for May: Limoncello! 

Pin It

Harvey Wallbanger Cake for Picnic Day

I made this cake for a small gathering on Unitrans alumni friends in Davis last weekend.  It was the 98th Picnic Day celebration and the 1st Picnic Day at the Park for me and my Unitrans buddies.  Our fellow alumni, Mike, has gathered at Davis Central Park for years and I was lucky enough to stumble on his mini-party last year for the first time.   As you might remember I helped organize a reunion of my Unitrans buds last October...The pictures pretty much told the story.  No bus driving this time, but we had a blast, replete with a great BBQ at Mike's beautiful home (off the golf course) in Woodland. 

My friend, Lisa, gave me this recipe.  It started with a phone call...I rarely answer my phone (as most of my friends know...).  When I heard Lisa's voice, it sounded kinda concerned.  She had planned to make her father's favorite bday cake, Harvey Wallbanger, and couldn't find a key ingredient: orange cake mix.  The cake is based on the cocktail which dates back to the 1950s.  Once I heard the NAME of this cake, I was IN! 

So, onto the internet search to figure out what this cake was all about...I found a few recipes with pictures.  Intriguing.  Fun.  Different.  Galliano?  I needed a REASON to buy some...Really.  It's the truth.  I have a fondness for this Italian vanilla-anise liqueur after many a Unitrans trip up to Poor Reds for amazing Golden Cadillacs and the best tasting ribs on EARTH.  Mind you, after a few too many cocktails at a very young age, most ANY food is going to be the BEST you've ever tasted.  ;-) 

A few weeks later, Lisa had successfully made the cake with a yellow mix and she saved me a piece...Moist and such a different, yet amazingly complex flavor.  I knew I had Picnic Day plans with my Unitrans buds (Lisa's husband, Ivan, and I drove buses together...you see the connections here) and THIS WAS THE CAKE! 

Unitrans alumni meets Poor Reds memories meets Picnic Day at the Park!

Pin It

"Almost" Tortuga Rum Cake

Last year, my brother, Chris, and his family went on a family vacation cruise to the Caribbean.  They brought me back two very interesting things, two things I've heard legend of for many, many year: Tortuga rum cake and Tortuga rum.  The former is FAMOUS, world-wide as a secret, age-old family recipe from the Tortuga Rum Company in the Cayman Islands.  Their rum cake was delicious!  (shhhhh...I ate the mini size in one sitting, it was a generous dessert portion...)  And, their rum cake is make with a special "premium five-year old, oak barrel aged Tortuga Gold Rum," which is NOT available to the public.  Nor is that damn recipe!  :(  Here is a shot of their product, I'm sure you've seen these boxes in fancy culinary stores.



My version on my new cake stand!



I knew I wanted to make rum cake some day with my Tortuga Rum, but needed to do some research and wait for the right time.  I can only bake so much booze-infused goodies...I found this recipe and used 1/2 Tortuga Rum and 1/2 Myers Dark Rum AND added vanilla bean paste into every step.  I only owned Bacardi, and well, I wanted something special for this cake.  Needed to try it first, just to make sure, before I made one for Chris and Katie, my SIL.  I must say, this cake was so moist and rich and yummy and boozy!  All the key essentials to a successful BIWB experience.