Cake

Recipe Finder gets more requests for St. Patrick's Day desserts than any other holiday, even Christmas. Here are two favorites from last year.This recipe is from Anita Healy of Millers.Irish whiskey cake1 package (18 1/2 ounces) yellow cake mix1 8-ounce package vanilla pudding mix1/2 cup milk1/2 cup oil1 cup Irish whiskey (or less, to taste)4 large eggs4 1/2 ounces (about 1 cup) crushed (or coarsely ground) black walnutsGLAZE:1/2 cup (1 stick) butter1 cup (8 ounces) sugar1 tablespoon water1 cup Irish Whiskey (divided)

Lela J. Klingler of Santa Rosa, Calif., requested a recipe for a Strawberry Shortcut Cake that she once enjoyed. She no longer has the recipe for it. "If any of your readers have it, I'd be so happy to receive it." Ann Mattoon of Baltimore responded. "I believe this is the recipe Lela Klingler is looking for. It came from a bag of Pillsbury flour about 20 years ago." Strawberry Shortcut Cake Serves 12 1 cup miniature marshmallows 2 cups (two 10-ounce packages) frozen, sliced strawberries in syrup, completely thawed 1 package (3 ounces)

A brief note from Margery M. Clark of Baltimore requested a recipe for a cake that she made years ago that contained sausage and was made in a tube pan. Alberta Cannon of Fayetteville, N.C., responded with a recipe and a note: "I have had this recipe for sausage cake many years, and I hope it's what she's looking for. This recipe was given to me by a friend many years ago. I usually make it for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, and my family enjoys...

To Illinois via North Carolina, a favorite cake has landed where it should.Karen Budzinski of Crystal Lake, Ill., asked for a peanut-butter cake recipe which "my neighbor's mother made when she was living. The cake is now a memory and no one seems to know how to make it," she wrote.Julia Holland of Fayetteville, N.C., answered. "This recipe comes from a cookbook with a copyright date of 1947. I collect cookbooks, and I hope this is what she wants. It is surprisingly good."Holland's peanut-butter cakeServes 122 cups plus 2 tablespoons cake flour5 3/4 teaspoon baking soda3/4 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon baking powder1/3 cup butter1/3 cup peanut butter1 1/3 cups sugar2 medium eggs2/3 cup buttermilk1/3 cup orange juiceHeat oven to 350 degreesGrease 2 9-inch layer-cake pans, line bottoms with wax paper and grease paper.

NO, MY TREE will not be up, lighted and decorated by this Thursday. I've got another three weeks. My attitude has nothing to do with procrastination. In the household where I grew up, the Christmas tree never went up before Dec. 24. A wreath went on the door about five days before, but no sooner.The weeks before Christmas werea time for something else.Christian tradition brings us a season that begins today, the first of the four Sundays of Advent. Advent is the time "when the faithful are admonished to prepare themselves worthily to celebrate the anniversary of the Lord's coming into the world," says my ancient edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia.

A cake from the 1930s, called the Lindbergh or Lindy Cake, was the request of Josephine Richardson of Bel Air. Ethel E. Yuenger of Harvard, Ill., responded. "I knew I had a copy of the recipe. Having a daughter named Linda, I have made it several times and we did enjoy it." A 1970 Pillsbury Bake-Off winner, Cheesy Dapper Apple Squares, was requested by Katherine Harrington of Albuquerque, N.M. Her answer came from Robin Fuchs of Arnold, who wrote, "I've collected many cookbooks over the years, even from back in the 1800s.

Item: Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe cake mixes What you get: 1 cake or 24 cupcakes Cost: About $1.60 Preparation time: 19 to 50 minutes, depending on pan used Review: Every time I make a red velvet cake, I spill red food coloring all over myself as well as the kitchen. But now Duncan Hines has made indulging in this old-fashioned dessert a little easier. The company also has added German chocolate to its cake-mix line. I baked one of each and found them both moist and delicious. It was so easy I was even inspired to make the icings typically used on these cakes - from scratch.

Food, fireworks and family gatherings -- Americans celebrate the Fourth of July with a big bang.Enlist the help of family and friends to plan the celebration. For an alfresco supper try old favorites such as baked beans, fried chicken, potato salad and a molded gelatin salad.Everything except the chicken and the decorations for the cake can be made ahead. All dishes are portable, making potluck possible.For a grand fireworks finale, serve this Fourth of July Flag Cake while the Roman candles are going up outside.

Here's a wish come true. Joan Cornish had recently written to ask for a Wishing Well Cake recipe. Thanks to Gladys Blankman and S.M. Kujawa, both of Baltimore, for the recipe.Gladys says this cake, which does not use baking powder or baking soda, is very good. "I clipped this recipe from the paper so long ago that it has yellowed with age. It is a very good cake served plain or with ice cream or fruit."Wishing Well Cake1 cup soft type margarine2 cups sugar5 eggs3 to 4 teaspoons almond extract1/2 teaspoon salt2 cups sifted all-purpose flourBlend together margarine and sugar.

How about a Swiss-steak dinner followed by a dessert of banana-pineapple cake?Swiss steak cooked on top of the stove was the request of Blanche Moan of Crystal Lake, Ill. She wanted to duplicate a dish made by her sisters, who are now deceased. "All I can remember is that it was delicious," she said.Food tester Laura Reiley chose a recipe from Boots Reichart of Glen Arm to fulfill Moan's wish.A banana-pineapple cake similar to one made by Herman's Bakery several years ago was the request of George M. Walter of Baltimore.