Something's Cooking!

Something has been cooking around here, and the kitchen is busier than ever. But it's not putting food on the table!

Recently, I was invited to join Answers.com/WikiAnswers as a floating supervisor in the Food and Cooking category. Woo Hoo! Add "Supervisor" to my tag line! The girl has leveled up!

So I've been  reading the guidelines and learning the ropes, preparing to blow those spammers right off the Internet! My reference books and Julia Child cookbook collection are lined up beside my desk along with "Elements of Style" and "Mr. Peabody's Guide for the Modern Know-It-All." Supervisors, you see, are responsible for correcting punctuation and wording as well as generally enforcing online civility. And that's all before one even begins to offer practical guidance to chefs who have never been closer to a kitchen than the Cooking Channel on cable TV.

Clearly, I'm going to need to budget my time if delectable odors ever waft from my kitchen again.

So what shall we cook today? Something celebratory and oozing with self-congratulation. How about ...

Recipe: Know-It-All Almond Joy Cake


This is a small cake, formulated for 4 people, 6 if you're stingy. Bake in a small pan as shown here, or double the recipe for a standard-sized cake.

1/4 c. canola oil or melted butter
3/4 c. raw sugar
1 egg
1 Tbs. vanilla or 2 tsp. vanilla + 1 tsp. almond extract
1 c. buttermilk (1 c. milk + 1 tsp. vinegar)
1 c. all purpose unbleached flour
2 Tbs. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
2/3 c. unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 c. chocolate chips dusted with 1 tsp. flour
topping:
1/2 c. whole or halved almonds
1/2 c. chocolate chips
2 Tbs. butter

Brush small baking dish with oil, line with long strip of parchment paper. Oil paper.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat oil (or butter) with sugar and egg for 2 full minutes.
Add flavorings and buttermilk.
Combine dry ingredients and stir in only until moistened.
Gently stir in dusted chocolate chips.
Turn batter into prepared pan.
Bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees or until cake tests done.
Using parchment strip, remove cake from pan to cooling rack.
When completely cool, arrange almonds on top of cake.
Melt chocolate chips with butter; stir and pour over cake.
Chill until glaze is set, then cover and keep at room temperature.