cake and cold

Very cold here, but I like it. It feels like real winter. We are going to get our Christmas tree this afternoon, as soon as it starts to get dark. We'll walk down the street to our local market with our little red wagon and cart one back from the lot. It's a city thing, for sure. When I was little my dad, brother and I would walk to our next door neighbor's yard, where he had a little Chrismas tree farm. My dad would bring his saw and my brother and I would choose the tree and my dad would cut it down. We'd carry it back to our house in the dark, where my mom would be cooking something warm and comforting for dinner. I asked my daughter if she wanted to go out to the country to get a tree this year, but she said no. She'd rather go down the street since it is our family tradition.

I baked this coffee cake yesterday. It's one of my favorites because it's easy and always comes out well.

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 eggs
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream or plain whole milk yogurt

5 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan or Bundt pan.

Put the butter in a large mixing bowl and beat for several seconds. Add the sugar and beat until smooth. Add the eggs and beat for 2 minutes, or until light and creamy. Put the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl and stir with a fork to blend well. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and beat until smooth. Add the sour cream or yogurt and vanilla and mix well.

Spoon the batter into the pan. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until a straw comes out clean when inserted into the center. Remove from the oven and let rest for 5 minutes in the pan. Invert onto a rack and coool a little bit before slicing. Serve warm.

Gourmet Magazine December 2001