Every year at Thanksgiving my mom tries to make my Grandma Johnson’s recipe for Tapioca Jell-O Salad. Every year it tastes less than thrilling. On several occasions, I have attempted to re-create my mom’s recipe for homemade potato salad. It never tastes quite as good as when my mom makes it. It seems that some recipes are just meant for certain people. I’m thinking that Oatmeal Cake must be meant for Connie Ahlden. The Oatmeal Cake that me and Grams made was certainly delicious, but I have a feeling that this recipe goes more smoothly for Connie.
Today is my last day home for Thanksgiving break, so I wanted to spend some time baking with Grams before I head back to school. When I went to her house to pick her up, I quickly discovered that baking would need to be postponed a few hours. Apparently, Grams had decided that she would haul out and hang up all of her Christmas decorations by herself. Since she often forgets what task she is on before finishing, and certainly should not be standing on chairs, I figured I better intervene. I was worried that if Grams was responsible for storing the decorations she took down, we would find frames in the pantry and wall hangings under the sink. I decided to put on some Christmas tunes and get myself into the holiday spirit. We had a lot of fun going through all her decorations, and I most enjoyed putting up her nativity scene. This is one of the pieces that I remember always being up in Gram’s house during Christmas. You can tell that it has been in the family for years by the wear on Mary and Joseph’s face and the hot-glued legs of the sheep. Clearly, that swaddled baby Jesus has watched over the Ahlden Christmas for years.
After putting up Gram’s Christmas decorations, we delved into the baking. The dough turned out thick and smooth by Grams’ constant stirring. The dough turned out well and tasted like a good start. Grams was in a great mood today. I think decorating her house really brought up her spirits. She pretty much took over the recipe when it called to boil the old fashioned oatmeal. I’m pretty sure she is a pro at making oatmeal since it is one of the few things she attempts to make for herself these days. At least oats are heart healthy. We baked the cake for about forty-eight minutes. The last eight minutes we bumped the heat down to 325 degrees because the edges were getting dark.
The trouble we had came with the topping. I have little (or no) experience with using a broiler. Broilers are very TEMPERAMENTAL! Connie’s recipe warned that it would broil very fast, so we just stuck it in for two minutes to start. Already, after two minutes, the topping was getting dark, so we pulled it out. The trouble was that the inner topping was still somewhat runny while the outsides were burning. We decided to remove it from the broiler and hope that the topping thickened up after standing. We looked at it after it set out a few minutes, but it was still runny in the inside. Grams and I turned the broiler back on and gave it two more minutes to broil. Whoa! The edges went dark crispy, and we had to pull off a couple pieces of fried coconut. It actually turned out pretty good considering our inexperience with using a broiler. It tasted good, just looked a little funky. Connie didn’t lie- watch out…it broils fast!
Since it is Thanksgiving weekend, I suppose I should be thinking about what I am thankful for. I guess at this moment, I am thankful for my ability to laugh at our “less than perfect” baking product. I should probably also be thankful that I have not burnt the house down while baking my way through the Ahlden Family Cookbook. I have had a great year with much to be thankful for…
Parents who are a daily reminder of love and devotion. Every day they show me what it means to be a family. 30 years of marriage and they still keep it hot!! The opportunity for Ashley to make new friends and become independent at Parkside. A brother who keeps me in line, but more importantly keeps my laughing. An awesome group of friends who are ALWAYS ready for a girls’ night! The end in sight for my educational career. 1 semester of classes and 1 semester of student teaching left. An amazing boyfriend who loves me even when I throw a 22 year old tantrum because my hair didn’t turn out right. I’m thankful for the six months we’ve been together and the forever still to come. The memories that Grams and I are making while baking our way through the Ahlden Family Cookbook. It comforts me to know that when she forgets these times, I can tell her about them. All of you. You have made me into a writer and listened to my rambling. If you are actually reading this, it is likely that you are someone special in my life. I am thankful for you. Oatmeal Cake—Connie Ahlden Recipe
1 ¾ cups boiling water 3 eggs
1 ½ cup oatmeal 2 ¼ cups flour
¾ cup soft butter 1 ½ t. baking soda
1 ½ cup sugar ¾ t. salt
1 ½ cup brown sugar(packed) 1 t. cinnamon
1 ½ t. vanilla ½ t. nutmeg
Combine boiling water and oats. Let stand.
Cream butter with sugars. Add eggs and vanilla.
Gradually add flour and rest of ingredients.
Bake at 350 degrees in a 9x13 greased pan for 40-50 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.
Topping:
Melt ¾ cup butter. Add 1 cup brown sugar (packed), 6 T. milk, 1 cup chopped walnuts and 1 ½ cups coconut.
Spread on cake. Broil until brown.
Note from Connie: Watch it!!--- It cooks fast!!! (I can vouch that this is very true.)
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