Thursday, June 17, 2010

Great Grandma Haller's Lemon Cake



I'm BAAAAAAAACK. (Okay, now reread that sentence, but this time do it like that creepy blonde girl from the movie, Poltergeist.)
So after a ludicrously long absence, I have returned - in all my culinary glory - to the kitchen...right where I belong. I'm in the kitchen; I'm barefoot, but somehow I can't get the pregnancy thing to work out. I'll keep trying though. Good things come to those who never give up. Right? Right!
Let me just get a bit of sad news out of the way. The reason I haven't been baking over the last month or so is because I spent a good majority of my time flying to and from Los Angeles. My grandmother, Veronica McDermott, died at the age of 93. I happen to know she was the coolest lady who every lived AND that she was born in 1917! Do you know what that means?! It means she lived through a lot. A world war. The Civil Rights Act. Vietnam. The Reagan Administration for Christ's sake. Dynasty AND Dallas. She survived both of those shows...not to mention the Pog craze of the early 90s.
In all seriousness, I wanted to think of a way to pay tribute to a woman who loved her family with her entire being. At first it didn't feel possible, but on the day before grandma's funeral, which also happened to be the day before my brother's birthday, we all gathered for a meal and dessert - clearly my favorite part of any meal. We had what we always have for dessert at family gatherings - my great grandmother's lemon cake. DELISH! It occurred to me that the best way for me to keep my grandmother's memory alive, and to share a small part of what she meant to me with the people I love was to share the recipe for this cake which has been the centerpiece for countless family birthdays, weddings, and graduations. This recipe was passed down from my great grandmother to my grandmother and I plan on passing it on to my children (I told you I'm gonna keep trying), and now to all of you. I hope you enjoy it.
If you've still got your grandma, go ahead and giver her a hug. Tell her you think she's great.

Great Grandma Haller's Lemon Cake:

1 lemon cake mix
1 small box of lemon jello
4 eggs
3/4 cup of water
1/2 cup of oil

Mix all ingredients
Pour into greased 13x9x2 pan
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes

While cake is baking, prepare glaze:
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 tbsp. of butter (melted)
Juice of 2 lemons

After taking the cake from the oven, while it is still warm, poke holes in the top of the cake with a toothpick and pour the glaze over the cake.

Cool and Enjoy !!