The Ninja Baker - angel food cake

Angel Cake, #recipesfromtheheart

NinjaBaker — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Today's Cancer & Hospice Awareness Campaign event is being hosted by Kim of Cravings of a Lunatic and Jen of Juanita's Cocina. They teamed up with their blogger friends to help raise awareness and support for Cancer and Hospice. We also would like to encourage everyone to donate to the Canadian Cancer Society, the American Cancer Society and also to the Canadian Hospice Palliative Care Association.

Lung cancer snipped short the life of my Great-Aunt Mabel. The cancerous smoking habit which claimed her life was probably born from a need for relief from the stressors in her life.

Like many caregivers, Aunt Mabel was an angelic presence to all who encountered her kind countenance. Her warm hug meant the world to my five-year-old self who had traveled many hours with a hired chaperone from Tokyo.

Years earlier, Aunt Mabel embraced my mother as a daughter, saving her from an abusive stepmother and neglectful father. She took on the responsibility of child rearing on a single income. (According to my great-uncle, Aunt Mabel’s husband preferred drink to work.)

One of Aunt Mabel's many roles:
Executive Assistant to the President of Montgomery Ward Department Store

Despite the pressures of finances, raising her niece (my mother) and dealing with an alcohol-loving husband, she delivered hot dinners to the table every night. She never complained and smiled frequently. Aunt Mabel also sacrificed her one luxury of tennis lessons and gave them to Mom.

Aunt Mabel

My mother is Dorothy Head Knode. She is a two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist. In the 1950s, in the US, Mom ranked among the top ten US players. My mother was inducted into the Southern California Tennis Hall of Fame in August 2011.

Thanks to Aunt Mabel's sacrifice of her own tennis lessons, my mother enjoyed a successful career.

Multiple Grand Slam winning tennis champion, Billie Jean King, in her induction speech sited Mom's tenacity on the court. Apparently Mom was an inspiring figure in Billie Jean King's youth.

Mom, Billie Jean King & the Ninja Baker,

2011 Southern California Tennis Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

But without Aunt Mabel’s present of the tennis lessons, Mom might have never experienced the prestige and travel that accompanies a prominent player. Mom’s confidence must have been buoyed, too, by all the love Aunt Mabel poured into her famous angel food cake. No family recipe remains. My mother loves to eat but never spent much time in the kitchen. (Her best dish is scrambled eggs.)

According to Mom, angel food cake was one of
Aunt Mabel's best desserts.

Fortunately, I was introduced to Julie Richardson’s Vintage Cakes, which features a grand recipe for angel food cake. The book even includes a whole page dedicated to whipping up egg whites which are crucial to the heavenly dessert. (12 were needed for the Vintage Cakes’ version.)

For the topping, I whipped up 2 pints of heavy cream with a ¼ cup of powdered sugar and ¼ cup of a Japanese peach yogurt drink. The peach yogurt did not translate into any peachy tastes.

A Popular Japanese Peach Yogurt Drink

However, the combo of whipped cream atop my angel food cake works well. I took the cake to dance class and overheard a fellow classmate declare, “This is one of the best she’s made.” (The cake texture is as light and lovely. And the whipped cream topping slides smoothly down the throat into the tummy.) My dance classmate also commented on my edible flowers garnish.“It provides a nice crunch."

Edible flowers add a surprise crunch
to angel food cake with whipped cream frosting.

Out of respect for the author, I will not reprint the recipe here. However, very similar how-tos abound on the internet for angel food cake. Food Network is one source. Martha Stewart as well as the Joy of Baking both have instructional videos.

I do believe angel food cake is the best way to honor Aunt Mabel because she was a real life angel to Mom and all who knew her. Including yours truly. Maybe with better funding of cancer prevention programs, others can avoid succumbing to cancer like my Great-Aunt Mabel. And whilst the war is waged against the Big-C, thank goodness for all the selfless hospice caregivers who are also angels.

Angel food cake in a Japanese Tupperware mini cake taker

Read on to see others' tributes to loved ones.

Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Home-made Strawberry Topping by Cravings of a Lunatic Chili Verde by Juanita's Cocina
S'Mores Brownies in Jars by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Dark Chocolate and Orange Muffins by The Dutch Baker's Daughter
Boston Cream Pie by Pass The Sushi
My Fathers Day Recipe Round Up by Curry and Comfort
Tropical Smoothie by Dinners, Dishes and Desserts
Mini Gugelhupf by Masala Herb
Sauteed Strawberry and Sugarsnap Salad by Cook The Story
Cranberry Cashew Breakfast Muffins by In Fine Balance
Arugula Salad with Sundried Tomatoes and Mushrooms by Crazy Foodie Stunts
Spicy Beef Sliders by Katie's Cucina
Thai Red Curry Soup by Damn Delicious
Suman (Sweet Rice and Banana Leaves) by Culinary Adventures with Camilla
Fresh Vegetable Salad by White Lights on Wednesday
Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream Sundae by The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen
Cinnamon Chip Cookie Butter Bars by The Messy Baker
Berry/Cherry Fro-Yo Ice Cream by Cookistry
Honey Beer Bread by Hungry Couple
Cinnamon-Chocolate Chip Pancakes by The Spiffy Cookie
Chocolate Cherry Granola Bars by Sweet Remedy
Cookies and Cream Brownies by Cooking in Stilettos
Blueberry Lemon Cake by Roxana's Home Baking
Angel Cake by Ninja Baking
Knit (or crocheted) Grey Brain Cancer Mustache Pin by Knit, Purl, Damn!

Wishing you the blessings of health & the buoyant love of family, friends & angels.

The Ninja Baker

© ™ Watkinson 2012

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

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#recipesfromtheheart

angel food cake

Billie Jean King

Angel Liz Cakes, Happy Birthday #SundaySupper!

NinjaBaker — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 03:39:08 +0000

Motivated by the desire to bring families back together around the table, Isabel Laessig of FamilyFoodie.com created a weekly Twitter #SundaySupper event. Enlisting the support of seven fellow food bloggers resulted in recipe exchanges and discussions about how best to encourage families to connect around the dinner table. 365 days later the Family Foodie’s #SundaySupper has expanded to a worldwide movement. So, Isabel is throwing a one-year anniversary birthday bash. Hope you can join the celebration on Twitter at 7p.m. ET Simply type in #SundaySupper in the search field on Twitter. Scroll down and you’ll see that as we commemorate this special day, #SundaySupper participants are celebrating each other’s successful posts from the past year. Before you jump to the links, love to have you read on and discover who I’m honoring and why.

Cartoon Credit

Ever feel like the new kid on the block at work, school or in cyberspace? You don’t know anybody. And nobody sits with you at lunch. You continue on with your work because that is your calling. But it’s lonely. Then, one day, a girl from the popular crowd appears and invites you to share a sandwich. Some might call this person an angel. In honor of the popular food blogger angel who reached out to me, I’ve baked up mini angel food cakes and topped them with mandarin orange cream. So who is this lovely friend? Liz Berg of ThatSkinnyChickCanBake.com. The foundation of the treats I’ve made is based upon Liz’s #SundaySupper New Year’s Potluck with Emeril Lagasse Angel Cake Sandwiches post. Click here for the recipe.

As suggested on Liz’s post, I added 2 small pinches of salt to the flour. I also added a tad of salt as the egg whites whirred in my KitchenAid. (Years ago, I read that in addition to cream of tartar, salt helps to stiffen egg whites into perfect meringue.)

The berries and whipped cream topping at ThatSkinnyChickCanBake.com looked amazing. However, to celebrate the winter season, I used the mikan orange, which is so prevalent in Japan (and California) at this time of year. To 2 cups of heavy cream, I added a ½ cup of powdered sugar and ¾ teaspoon of orange flavoring. For the garnish, I quartered mikan mandarin orange pieces.

The light airy angel cake topped with a burst of orange cream was delightful! As Liz mentioned in her original post, eating angel cake sandwiches is a bit unwieldy. (If you want to mind your manners at the Sunday Supper table.) I vote for extending the pleasure of petite angel cakes with orange cream. So, pop them in open-faced one at a time!

I also recommend trying out the splendid list of recipes listed below by food bloggers who advocate families gathering for #SundaySupper.

Sunday Supper Appetizers:

Hot Spinach Parmesan Dip by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks inspired by Comfy Cuisine
So Simple Pizza Puffs by The Weekend Gourmet inspired by Hip Foodie Mom
Pepperoni and Mozzarella Pull Apart by Noshing With The Nolands inspired by In the Kitchen with KP

Sunday Supper Soups and Breads:

Lasagna Soup by The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen inspired by Cravings of a Lunatic
Easy Italian Wedding Soup by Webicurean inspired by Family Foodie
Roasted Butternut Squash and Sage Soup by Damn Delicious inspired by Cupcakes and Kale Chips
Honey Butter Dinner Rolls by Dinners, Dishes and Desserts inspired by Chocolate Moosey
Chicken Noodle Soup by Big Bears Wife inspired by My Catholic Kitchen
Tomato Florentine Soup by Mama Mommy Mom inspired by The Meltaways
Chicken Soup with Dumplings by Comfy Cuisine inspired by The Messy Baker
Coconut Curry Chicken Soup by My Trials in the Kitchen inspired by Damn Delicious

Sunday Supper Main Dishes:

Portuguese Mussels and Shrimp in Chorizo Sauce by Supper for a Steal inspired by Family Foodie
(GlutenFree) Chicken Bruschetta by The Meltaways inspired by Family Foodie
Feijoada Portuguese Bean Stew by Kimchi Mom inspired by Family Foodie
Lentils and Chorizo Stew by Galactosemia in PDX inspired by Vintage Kitchen
Carnitas Pizza w/ Chipotle-Avocado Crema by girlichef inspired by Damn Delicious
Chicken and Black Bean Enchiladas by Country Girl in the Village inspired by Webicurean
Drunken Meatballs by Small Wallet Big Appetite inspired by The Foodie Army Wife
Goat Cheese Rigatoni Alfredo by Magnolia Days inspired by Family Foodie
Beef Stroganoff by What Smells So Good? inspired by From Fast Food to Fresh Food
Dorie’s Chicken-in-the-Pot by Hip Foodie Mom inspired by Gotta Get Baked
Pulled Pickled Pork by Juanita’s Cocina inspired by Daily Dish Recipes
Hoisin Asian Meatballs by Gotta Get Baked inspired by Damn Delicious
Shrimp-Stuffed Twice Baked Potatoes by Daily Dish Recipes inspired by Juanita’s Cocina
Soy, Orange Juice and Red Wine Marinade by Peanut Butter and Peppers inspired by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Chicken Burger with Curried Cabbage Slaw by Cindy’s Recipes and Writings inspired by Soni’s Food
Corn and Basil Handpies by Curious Cuisiniere inspired by Vintage Kitchen Notes
Lightened Up Slow Cooker Indian Butter Chicken by Cupcakes and Kale Chips inspired by The Meltaways
Jalapeño Popper Chicken Chili by Food Lust People inspired by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
Bigos by Maroc Mama inspired by From Fast Food to Fresh Food
Crispy Coconut Chicken Strips with Sweet Chili Sauce by From Fast Food to Fresh Food inspired by Crispy Bits and Burnt Ends
Pork Loin with Port Shallot Sauce by Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen inspired by Vintage Kitchen Notes
Sweet & Tender Brisket by Daddy Knows Less inspired by Juanita’s Cocina
Fish Tacos by Cookistry inspired by Little Ferraro Kitchen
Homemade Harissa by Masala Herb inspired by The Wimpy Vegetarian
Spicy Seoulful Pulled Pork Sandwiches by Family Foodie inspired by Kimchi Mom
New Orleans Style White Beans & Rice by Catholic Foodie inspired by The Hand that Rocks the Ladle
Spice Rubbed Chicken Tacos with Tropical Salsa by The Urban Mrs. inspired by Family Foodie
Mac n Cheese Cups with Pork Shoulder Ragu by Crispy Pieces and Burnt Ends inspired by Hip Foodie Mom
Paella by My Cute Bride inspired by What Smells So Good?

Sunday Supper Veggies:

Carrots au Gratin by Shockingly Delicious inspired by Juanita’s Cocina
Skillet Spinach Corn with Edamame, Cilantro & Bacon Bits by The Lovely Pantry inspired by Sue’s Nutrition Buzz

SundaySupper Desserts and Snacks:

Chocolate Brownie Tart by That Skinny Chick Can Bake inspired by Magnolia Days
Mexican Hot Cocoa Sandwich Cookies by Chocolate Moosey inspired by Juanita’s Cocina
Cinnamon Apple Chimichangas by La Cocina de Leslie inspired by Juanita’s Cocina
Apple Pull Apart Bread with Caramel Drizzle by Cravings of a Lunatic inspired by Gotta Get Baked
Cherry Tart by Happy Baking Days inspired by Vintage Kitchen
Orange Rolls by No One Likes Crumbley Cookies inspired by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Caramel Apple Bread by The Foodie Army Wife inspired by Fam Friends Food
Rosettes by Simply Gourmet inspired by That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Pumpkin Donut Puffs by Soni’s Food inspired by Daily Dish Recipes
Chocolate Chip Cut-out Cookies by Basic and Delicious inspired by Chocolate Moosey
Nutella Shortbread Bars by Kelly Bakes inspired by Baker Street
Butterscotch Pudding Triple Chip Cookies by Mom’s Test Kitchen inspired by Dinner Dishes and Desserts
Chocolate Fudge Brownie Ice Cream by The Messy Baker Blog inspired by Cravings of a Lunatic
Coconut Cranberry Honey Nut Cookies by Mama’s Blissful Bites inspired by Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
Angel Cake Sandwiches by Ninja Baker inspired by That Skinny Girl Can Bake
Soft Pretzels with Spicy Beer Cheese Sauce by Vintage Kitchen inspired by girlichef
Sweet N Spicy Roasted Spiced Nuts by Sue’s Nutrition Buzz inspired by The Foodie Army Wife

Sunday Supper Breakfast Faves:

Spiced Pumpkin Ricotta Oat Muffins by In the Kitchen with Audrey inspired by Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
Budget Friendly Breakfast Freezable Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Sandwiches by In the Kitchen with KP inspired by Big Bear’s Wife
Raspberry Hot Chocolate by My Catholic Kitchen inspired by Momma’s Meals

Sunday Supper Wine Pairings by ENOFYLZ Wine Blog

Plus: Tablescape by An Appealing Plan, Anniversay Dinner featuring Cheesecake with Fresh Berries originally posted by The Messy Baker Blog

Wishing you the company of sweet angels.

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker's recipes are also available at:

?Allrecipes.com:
The Ninja Baker's Japanese Plum Sweet Memories and Recipes

Bob's Red Mill:
Almond Oatmeal Apple Cookies

Bob's Red Mill:
The Ninja Baker's Gluten-Free Breakfast Cupcake

Wholesome Sweeteners:
The Ninja Baker's Gluten-Free Coconut Chocolate Cheesecake Minis with Espresso Cream

Wholesome Sweeteners:
The Ninja Baker's Gluten-Free Double Chocolate Cupcakes with Champagne Glaze & Optional Lemon Peach Marmalade Filling

?LifeKraze

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#SundaySupper

angel food cake

Emeril Lagasse