SimplEdibles: CHOCOLATE CHIP SPONGE CAKES

RECIPES FOR PUTTING ON A GRAND SHOW AND MAKING A GREAT IMPRESSION ON VERY IMPORTANT PEOPLE

I found this recipe in a children's cook book called "The Children's Step-By-Step Cook Book - Photographic cooking lessons for young chefs" by Angela Wilkes. I made a few changes in the recipe, something I can't seem to help doing whenever I discover a new recipe that I really like and want to try. The original recipe suggests making the cakes either orange, lemon or chocolate but I decided to make mine plain and add chocolate chips instead. As you can see, it is a versatile recipe and is open for all sorts of experimentation and fun. The original recipe also had you making the cake in two layers and frosting it just like a regular cake but, as you can see, mine is not quite like that. Ah well, I just can't seem to color in the lines when it comes to cooking. However, I liked the way the recipe turned out and think I'll be using it often. It was easy to make and didn't require anything special--just a mixing bowl and a wooden spoon. I'll admit my baking pan is a little special, but I'll explain that later on. Here is the recipe:

2 C. self-rising flour

1 C. sugar + 2 T.

4 eggs

1/4 C. butter

1/4 C. shortening

2 teas. baking powder

1 teas. salt

1 teas. vanilla

1/2 C. chocolate chips

1/4 C. powdered sugar

Optional:

For lemon cake: 1 T. lemon juice and grated zest of 1 lemon

For orange cake: 1 T. orange juice and grated zest of 1 orange

For chocolate cake: 1/4 C. cocoa powder

1. Soften the butter in a small bowl in the microwave and add the shortening

2. Add all the other ingredients except chocolate chips and powdered sugar to a medium-size mixing bowl. Stir with a wooden spoon until well-blended.

3. You should be able to drop the batter from the spoon easily. If it is too thick, thin it down with 1 T. of water.

4. Prepare the pan you want to use for the batter. My favorite one is this cute cake pan I bought at a specialty store in Boise, Idaho called "The Co-Op". Once I saw it, I couldn't be happy until I had bought it. It is made by Nordic Ware and is so much fun to use. The trick is to spray it well with Baker's Joy or Pam Baking spray so the cakes pop out easily. It makes wonderful little cakes that are so fancy you'll feel like a professional baker.