Skies, Unleavened Pound Cake, Shabbat

I enjoy looking up, especially through trees, when walking in a nature or natural setting. I like it when one can see jet trails within tree branches, such as in this capture.

I like the view-through effect, looking between or through trees in order to see the sky.

I liked the way the sky was reflected in the water.

It is time for Skywatch Friday! Visit here, for more sky scenes from around the world.

Tonight I will light my Shabbat candles, and will reflect on the Passover/Pesach, which will be upon us sooner than we might realize. Friday, April 6, 2012 is Passover eve. That is one week away, and coincidentally, it falls on Shabbat.

I have begun the ritual house cleaning, the storing, moving, lending and disposing of items, both food and otherwise. I still have to bake and prepare a few things, and will get to it immediately, in order to finish cleaning house.

I will be making my traditional unleavened pound cake. I serve it with small glass bowls of apricot preserves, orange marmalade, and strawberry preserves placed around the pound cake on a large platter. The recipe and a photo of a finished pound cake is below:

Unleavened Pound Cake

Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar (I use sugar substitute)
4 eggs (I use egg substitute for cholesterol purposes)
1 1/2 tsp.vanilla + a dribble more
1/4 tsp.nutmeg
2 c. flour (for Passover I used 5 /8 cup of potato starch for each cup of flour mentioned in unleavened recipe)
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:
Cream butter, gradually adding sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time. Sift together flour, salt and nutmeg.

Gradually add dry ingredients to egg mixture and beat until thoroughly blended. Turn batter into greased loaf pan or bundt cake pan. Bake at 325° for 1 hour. Cool cake in pan. Check after 50 minutes to make sure it doesn’t overcook, as ovens vary. Makes one loaf or bundt cake.

Don’t be alarmed that it won’t turn out to be as high as normal, remember, it is an unleavened pound cake.

Please take a moment to look up to the skies, and reflect on events that have transpired where you live, in your personal life, in the world, and within your family. Be well, stay safe.

Shabbat Shalom!

March 30, 2012 – 7 Nisan, 5772

No permission is granted to reproduce my reviews, prose of any sort, and photos without my permission.

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Jewaicious Pound Cake Recipe

The above photograph was taken of my regular/”leavened”  pound cake while it was cooling off on a rack on my counter top.  Unfortunately I didn’t capture it when it had powdered sugar sprinkled on it.  But, nonetheless, my family and friends gobbled it up last year during our Rosh Hashanah dinner.  I put the pound cake on a large circular tray, positioned apples around the pound cake, along with some honey in slender bowls for dipping.  I also alternated bowls of orange marmalade for the pound cake.  I think it made a nice presentation.

Here are two recipes.  One is leavened and one is unleavened:

Regular or “Leavened” pound cake

2 c. flour
2 c. sugar (sugar substitute works quite well)
2 sticks butter, softened
1 tsp. each: almond and lemon flavoring
2 tsp vanilla (I use two for a sweeter taste, but some might like a less sweetened cake, and one tsp of vanilla will work well)
5 eggs

Mix all ingredients (adding the flour a little at a time) and spoon into greased and floured bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, depending on ovens.  Mine took 50 minutes.
——–

Unleavened pound cake

Ingredients:
1 cup butter softened
4 eggs or egg substitute (I used egg substitute)
1 cup sugar or sugar substitute (I used sugar substitute)
2 tsp.vanilla
1 tsp each of almond flavoring and nutmeg
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. flour (for Passover use 5 /8 cup of potato starch for each cup of flour)

For the unleavened pound cake, one must remember that it will not rise considerably like the regular or “leavened” pound cake will.  It will be a heavier consistency.

Directions:

-Cream softened butter gradually adding sugar until light and fluffy looking
-Add vanilla flavoring and add eggs one at a time
-Sift together flour, salt and nutmeg.  Gradually add dry ingredients to egg, sugar and butter mixture and beat until thoroughly blended
-Turn batter into greased bundt pan. Bake at 325° for 1 hour (or until a toothpick comes out clean. Some ovens need a bit more or a bit less time. Mine baked in 55 minutes.
-Cool cake in pan for ten minutes, then move to a wire rack to completely cool
-Sprinkle with powdered sugar, or serve with your favorite topping, such as orange marmalade.