Mad About Maida

Irish Whiskey Cake Source:  Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.) , pg. 159 . This is an old-fashioned fruit cake with the distinct taste of caraway seeds and the kick of Irish whiskey. If you do not like the taste of caraway, you can probably eliminate it or reduce it. I have to confess I usually do not like caraway seeds but I did not mind them in this recipe. The recipe calls for diced candied orange peel but I used a diced candied mixture that I had purchased during the holidays for fruit cakes. It is very pretty when sliced. Allow it to chill before slicing and serving (see the note at the end of the recipe). 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. mace 1/4 tsp. salt Finely grated rind of 2 lemons 1 TBS. plus 1 tsp. lemon juice 5 oz. (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter 1 tsp. vanilla extract 1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed 2 eggs, separated 1/2 cup Irish whiskey (or Scotch, bourbon, whiskey or blend) 1/...

Williams Sonoma Chocolate Cake Source:  Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.) , pg. 77 and in  Maida Heatter's Book of Great American Desserts  (Alfred A. Knopf, 1982, pg. 113). Whenever I visit a shopping complex with a Williams Sonoma store, I have to go inside even though I find most of their things outrageously expensive. We have a friend who used to do cooking demonstrations in a WS store and she was always bringing us neat kitchen items that she could get with her discount. Thanks to her, I think I have everything I could possibly need in the kitchen.  It turns out that WS recipes are not that bad either. This cake has an unusual item - port wine. This is the first cake I have ever made with wine in the batter. It is rather simple, with only a few ingredients, and it is impossibly good. This is a very thin cake with no frosting and it looks very elegant. It can be served warm, right out of the oven, or it is fine later. Imm...