In cooking, and entertaining, there are many magical tricks that turn something ordinary into something special. In this blog I have waxed upon more than a few such as:
Ultimate “Secret Recipe” Brownies
Doubling the recipe or reducing the pan size makes thicker “Magical” brownies.
Adding lime zest to any dish or dessert
The zest adds a “Magical” freshness to the flavor.
Welcoming guests with signature drink
Having something “Magical” prepared for friends as they enter a party can
One of the most magical things I have ever seen is NANA’S CHOCOLATE CAKE. The magic started with my wife Susan’s mother. Helen, (Nana to her grandchildren) used to make a chocolate cake that everyone raved about. The grandchildren especially loved this cake. On the surface, there is nothing special about the components of the cake. It is made with Duncan Hines Classic Yellow Cake Mix and Chocolate Icing made off of the recipe on the box of Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate. But there is a magical trick.
Helen was a beauty queen at 17 and at 80
Nothing gave Helen more joy than her grandchildren (Todd, Brian, Lindsey & Jennifer)
Back in the day when Helen was making this cake for my children, I used to run a division of Baker’s Chocolate for General Foods. One day I had a group of food scientists and chocolate experts in a room and described Nana’s cake and asked what made it magical? The magic was in the icing. It was the icing that the kids really loved and the difference was in the texture. It is firm, almost like a helmet on the cake. One nerd of a scientist, started going off on the fat system, saying Nana might use a specialty fat that made the icing firm. Then Rudy Meznick, the real chocolate expert, asked: DOES SHE PUT THE CAKE IN THE REFRIGERATOR. That is a magical trick.
The beauty of this trick, and the story, is that it is multi-generational. Susan is now Nana to our grandchildren. There is nothing more magical to them than Nana’s chocolate cake. They love it and ask for it around every birthday or other family event. They don’t care anything about the food science. To them…the cake is pure magic
Susan – Nana to this crew Hadley, Max, Dylan, Declan & Emma
Nana’s Cake is Magical
Just remember to put the cake in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours before serving
The grands sharing (or fighting over) the last piece of magic
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