Jan Fulcher is excited about the opportunity to encourage,inspire and educate women to discover their personal hosting and entertaining style. Enhancing relationships and connecting through the art of hospitality is the focus of her message. Having developed her joie de vivre over the course of thirty-three years of entertaining, traveling and training throughout Europe and the United States, Jan blends stories of experience laced with humor and insight. Jan has raised three daughters and has been happily married for over thirty-three years. She brings her passion for family heritage, traditions, friendships and intimate connection to her work with clients as a hospitality coach and speaker.
While I have received pleasure and joy in planning, presenting and hosting for the majority of my life, the truth is, many people do not. Helping others to experience enhanced connections through hospitality has been my mission through my presentations with Joie de Vivre, and now with Compass. (more…)
Bread pudding is usually not a dessert that would be synonymous with bridal shower food. However, this is a recipe that is in a class all it’s own. I have made adjustments to the original to make it more festive and absolutely irresistible. (more…)
No kidding, that is what she said…”this is the best birthday cake I’ve ever had.” As a Mom, that is music to my ears. As a host it is a wonderful compliment. When I think about the number of birthday cakes the recipient had experienced in her 23 years of celebrations not only for herself but also including friends and family the numbers start to become fairly impressive. When I think about the fact that this comparison also includes the times when I fought rush-hour traffic, illegally parked and spent more than a pretty penny on the designer, specialty bakery cakes…well then, NOW you’ve got my attention.
Okay, I have probably gone on long enough about the success of this cake. It is probably time to give you a little history on the recipes and their unique qualities that make it a special treat to bake, decorate and serve. The cake itself is a rich, dark chocolate devils food, moist and heady. The frosting is also chocolate but light and smooth with flavor. I served the cake with a side of coffee ice cream that complimented the chocolate for a complete finish. (Actually, requested by the birthday girl). There was literally a moment of silence to appreciate the decadence of taste experienced by each party participant. It was a beautiful sight to behold!
The cake recipe was given to me within a collection of favorites by my future Mother-in-law. It was designed to be a 9×13 pan cake to be frosted in the pan and served for casual gatherings. It has been enjoyed in my husband’s family and now our own for over 50 years in just that style. Since I was considering the recipe for a layer cake, I consulted with my Mother-in-law for approved adjustments. She has more experience with the original recipe than I and I consider her one of the best cooks I have ever known.
Layer Wacky Cake
Preheat Oven to 350 degrees
3 cups of Flour
2 cups of Sugar
2/3 cup of Cocoa
2 teaspoons each of Baking Soda, Salt, Vanilla and Vinegar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups cold water
Sift flour and measure. Then sift the flour again with all dry ingredients together. Creating three wells, pour vanilla into one hole, vinegar into another, and the oil into a third hole. Pour the cold water over all the ingredients and mix until smooth. Add eggs one at a time mixing after each addition.
Bake in two greased and floured 9″ layer pans approximately 30-35 minutes, checking after 28 minutes for doneness. Use a toothpick inserted into center of cake. Cake is done when toothpick comes clean when removed from cake.
Allow the cake to cool in pans for 10 minutes. Loosen sides and remove cake from pan onto plates for further cooling while preparing frosting.
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While the Wacky Cake recipe has a matching Wacky Cake Frosting, that recipe was not suitable for a layer cake requiring a more decorative frosting. I found this recipe in an old stand-by cookbook that I have used as a resource for about 34 years. It was given to me by my husband’s aunt who enjoys quite a reputation for her fabulous pies. Straight from the FAMILY CIRCLE COOKBOOK, with a copyright year of 1974, I followed this recipe exactly as written. I found it to be an interesting way to make frosting and was pleasantly surprised at the ease with which it spread on the cake and set with a pretty glistening finish.
CHOCOLATE VELVET FROSTING
1-1/2 cups Sugar
6 tablespoons Cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups boiling water
3 squares Unsweetened Chocolate
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter or margarine (I used butter)
1 teaspoon vanilla
Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a heavy, medium-size saucepan; stir in boiling water until well blended.
Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and bubbles for 1 minute. Add the chocolate squares and butter, continue cooking and stirring until chocolate and butter melt; remove from heat; stir in vanilla.
If available, use a kitchen-aid style mixer bowl. Pour the ingredients into the stainless bowl of the mixer and mix until smooth. Put the bowl into the fridge and chill. Remove the bowl to repeat mixing every 10 minutes or so, returning to fridge after mixing. Once the bowl and frosting is cool to the touch, the frosting is ready for spreading on the cake. Makes enough to fill and frost two 9-inch layers.
I hope you enjoy this cake whether as a special indulgence or as an opportunity to experience new techniques with baking.
Bon Appetit!
Jan
In this current economic environment, there are more and more women attracted to the benefits of home based businesses. The beauty of the in-home business is that it affords women more choices for childcare, eliminating commute time and the opportunity for entrepreneurial success. Hosting events or meetings compliment successful home-base businesses and give an added boost to the bottom line. (more…)
While I have been compelled to plan, prepare, present and host for well beyond my adult life, the truth is, most people are not! That realization is the catalyst behind my mission for Joie de Vivre. (more…)
If you are not now, what would it take for you to become comfortable having friends over for a casual evening? (more…)
It has been exciting to me to see the amount of response and support I have been receiving from my last post requesting recipes and stories related to our connection to comfort food. (more…)
As I scan the latest issues of my favorite food magazines, I am amazed to see that the hottest, trend-setting recipes are those that are getting back to basics. (more…)
As requested, here are some ideas for recipes that are “user friendly” for the host, designed to feed a housefull of hungry guests and are a welcome contrast to traditonal holiday meals. (more…)
