Cake & Tea

“Life, my brethren, is like plum-cake.
In some the plums are all on the top, and we eat them gayly,
till we suddenly find they are gone. In others the plums sink to the bottom,
and we look for them in vain as we go on, and often come to them when it is too late to enjoy them.
But in the well-made cake, the plums are wisely scattered all through, and every mouthful is a pleasure.
We make our own cakes, in a great measure, therefore let us look to it,
my brethren, that they are mixed according to the best receipt,
baked in a well regulated oven, and gratefully eaten with a temperate appetite.”
-Louisa May Alcott

Although I am not nearly as organized as my dear mother … I suppose I am like my mom … if in only a few ways. She used to make her own mixes for the pantry, canned during the summer and fall, cooked from scratch for her family, she even had a big bowl of muffin batter she kept handy in the fridge so as to prepare fresh muffins at any time.

Thinking ahead makes a job much easier.

I’m not one for freezer meals, but I do think make-ahead mixes, home canned foods and pre-made homemade muffin batter sounds very enticing.

I’ve posted about some of the mixes I have prepared for the pantry before here and here and here.
Here is another good mix for your pantry – a homemade cake mix to make your busy days more manageable.
Now, this is a cake mix – it is not super healthy (although you could adjust the ingredients to be just that) but it is a treat.
And it is much more healthy than the boxed mixes you would find on the store shelves.

For your mix:

2 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
1 tablespoon of baking powder
1/2 tsp. of salt

Prepare multiple jars at a time so as to make your baking days even more simpler. Store in a mason jar in pantry.

{You may adjust the recipe to make it a chocolate cake or spice cake … by simply adding cocoa or cinnamon, etc.
Add in a jar of home canned peaches and it will be a peach cake. Applesauce is another great addition. Nuts or chocolate chips.
Be creative.}

To prepare the cake:

3/4 cup of milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup of melted butter
3 eggs

Mix together after dumping contents of mason jar in a large bowl. Grease your pan of choice.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Sprinkle with icing sugar and enjoy for afternoon tea or an after dinner treat.

Do you have homemade mixes you have added to your pantry?