Let’s Talk Food: Well-prepared pastry takes the cake on your birthday

Sir Walter Scott wrote: “’Tis thou birthday. Celebrate with joy and gratitude.”

It is difficult to understand why many of us choose to ignore birthdays and find them painful and agonizing. George Sand, the famed French feminist writer of the 18th century, spent her 50th birthday weeping and grieving as she threw herself on the rocks along the coast of Brittany.

I, on the other hand, enjoy every moment of my birthday. I shower myself with gifts, scarf down generous slices of a birthday cake, laugh with joy at the birthday cards and sometimes celebrate for several days, since a single day will not suffice. What better excuse than to indulge in forbidden foods, drink and to receive accolades from friends and family.

The best part of birthdays is the cake. I take a moment to thank the Greeks, who originated the celebration of birthdays with a cake. These ancients created round or moon-shaped honey cakes or bread which they took to the temple of Artemis, the goddess of the moon. Other historians credit the Germans with creating sweetened bread dough in the shape of baby Jesus in swaddling clothes as part of the Christmas celebration. Later they began using a similar recipe to commemorate children’s birthdays for Kinder fest and later a sweeter layer cake which was called Geburstagorten.

Over the years the birthday cake has evolved into many shapes, sizes and flavor. They are usually decorated with the person’s name along with a congratulatory message. The ritual of adding candles goes back to ancient times when the cake was round, signifying the moon and placing candles on the cake to make the cake glow like the moon.

As for the birthday card: They’ve come a long way, baby. The greeting card industry has taken full advantage of birthdays and sells million every year. The ancient Chinese first began the tradition of sending goodwill messages on a New Year. The clever Egyptians created papyrus scrolls to convey messages of congratulations to family and friends. During the 1400s, German artists introduced handmade paper greeting cards using woodcuts.

It wasn’t until 1856 that greeting cards became a part of our American culture. Louis Prange, a German immigrant in Boston, owned a small printing business, and inspired by the greeting cards of his German forbearers, began publishing colorful Christmas cards. Eventually, he included birthday cards. By the 1950s humor was included in the cards and greeting cards for almost every occasion became commonplace.

With the onset of the computer age, the use of electronic greeting cards became a convenient and inexpensive way to remember birthdays and other important dates.

However, nothing has ever interfered with the enthusiastic renditions of the “Happy Birthday” song. In spite of great controversy regarding the copyright, it continues to be sung with great fervor at parties and celebrations. The song began as a greeting to school children and was first introduced as a song called “Good Morning to All.” Two teachers, Patty Hill and Mildred Hill introduced their morning greetings in 1893, which were quickly adopted as the official birthday song.

Fortunately the Hill sisters weren’t on hand to hear a rendition of their song on the occasion of John Kennedy’s birthday. Marilyn Monroe delivered a memorable and tantalizing version that has never been matched.

Eating a birthday cake can become a ritual not simply devoted to one’s birthday. My birthday has come and gone but throughout the year I will enjoy my favorite cake and as my gift to you….I’m sharing it!

Fresh coconut cake

Ingredients, cake

1 large coconut*

2 tablespoons milk

¼ pound plus 4 tablespoons butter

1¾ cups sugar

2¾ cups all-purpose flour

2½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

½ teaspoon coconut extract

2 teaspoons finely grated orange rind

¾ teaspoon vanilla

4 egg whites, stiffly beaten

Ingredients, orange filling

½ cup plus 1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

1 egg yolk

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 to 2 teaspoons Grand Marnier

1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind

Ingredients, Grand Marnier frosting

2-2/3 cups confectioners’ sugar

¼ pound unsalted butter, softened

3 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoons Grand Marnier

Cake preparation

-- Split coconut, reserving inner liquid. Using vegetable peeler, peel “curls” from white interior of coconut. Set aside. Break coconut halves in smaller pieces with a hammer. Trim off brown rind. In food processor, coarsely grate 1 cup of coconut.* In a small bowl combine grated coconut and milk and set aside.

-- In a large bowl combine butter and sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. In medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder and salt.

-- Strain reserved liquid from coconut and add enough water to measure 1 cup. In another smaller bowl combine coconut, water mixture, orange juice, coconut extract, orange rind and vanilla. Mix well.

-- Add a third of flour mixture to butter mixture. Blend well. Stir in a third of coconut mixtures. Repeat with remaining flour and coconut mixtures. Mix well. Carefully fold in egg whites.

-- Divide batter between 2 well greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans. Bake in a preheated 375-dgree oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool in pans on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely before filling and frosting are added.

Filling and frosting preparation

-- In a small bowl combine all filling ingredients and beat well.

-- In another small bowl combine all frosting ingredients and combine thoroughly.

Assembly

Place 1 cake layer on serving plate. Cover with filling.

Top with second layer. Spread frosting on top and sides of cake with decorative swirls. Decorate top with reserved coconut “curls.” Serves 8 to 10.

*Although my home is surrounded by coconut trees, when I fix this cake I head down to the grocery store for packaged shredded coconut or better yet, frozen coconut. You’ll need 2 cups of this coconut, instead of the 1 cup of the “real thing.” Also, I find that allowing the eggs, especially the whites, to come to room temperature is best for a successful recipe.

Ask Doris

Q: My wife and I enjoy a glass or two of champagne but never manage to finish a bottle. Is there any way I can keep the wine bubbling after opening and is there a recipe that uses champagne as an ingredient.

— Louis Vakros, Naples

A: What a good question and totally at the right time. My friend, Mary, who once was a steward on overseas flights suggests that you put a spoon down into the bottle and it has worked for me. Also, here is a great, great recipe for an elegant, light and refreshing ending to any dinner.

Grapefruit champagne sherbet

Ingredients

3 large pink or ruby grapefruit (about 3 pounds)

Grated zest or 1 grapefruit

¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar (depending on sweetness of grapefruit)

1 cup champagne (it can be flat)

Preparation

-- Squeeze juice from the grapefruit, scraping to remove pulp but not the membrane. Strain juice through a fine sieve, pressing on the pulp with the back of a spoon.

-- Mix sugar with juice, stirring every once in a while. The acid will dissolve the sugar in about 20 minutes.

-- Stir in the champagne. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s direction. Serve the sherbet plain or with more champagne in glasses for a sensational ending to a memorable meal.

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Doris Reynolds is the author of “When Peacocks Were Roasted and Mullet Was Fried” and “Let’s Talk Food.” They are available for sale in the lobby of the Napes Daily News. Also available is a 4-part DVD, “A Walk Down Memory Lane with Doris Reynolds.” For comments and information regarding today’s column, contact Doris Reynolds at foodlvr25@aol.com.

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