Monday, January 17, 2011

College Care Packages

Change continues in the Nord Kitchen. There are now fewer seats around the dinner table and I've become a regular at my local post office.

With two off to college, Care Package production has gone into high gear. An all time favorite and sure to help make new friends is a Yogurt Rum cake. It is very simple to make and will ship well. Once, while cleaning out the liquor cabinet I found a small bottle of rum, left over from a long ago trip to Bermuda. The rum was 150 proof and there was only about a tablespoon remaining. Just enough for this cake. Flavor might have been a bit overwhelming for some but was a big hit with the college crowd. Recommend using an amber rum like Mount Gay - - my personal favorite.




What you need:
1 cup plain unsweetened whole milk yogurt
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon rum (light amber recommended)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray sides of 10 inch round springform pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the yogurt and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla, oil, rum and whisk again. Pour the flour mixture into the yogurt mixture and whisk until just combined. Do not over mix.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let stand for 10 minutes. Once completely cooled, slide into a gallon size food bag and prepare for packing.

If you decide to keep for yourself, serve slightly warm or a room temperature. You can always make another one tomorrow.

For more ideas about feeding college kids away from home, check out the Boston Globe article, Mother knows (cooking) best

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