Making a Cake Mix Special!

Not long after we were married, I had the most wonderful piece of chocolate cake with thick, white, frosting on top. Dave's mom has been making this frosting for many years and it quickly became my favorite. She told me it was called Seven Minute Frosting. I wanted to share the recipe with you.

Not the greatest photo quality with the old point and shoot camera

                                                                                  

I had never tasted this frosting before. It is creamy with an almost marshmallow-y consistency. In fact, I thought at first that it must have a jar of marshmallow cream in the recipe (it doesn't). It is so good! The name comes from the fact that you must whip the frosting over a double boiler for seven minutes.

The recipe is as follows:

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 c cold water
2 egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar OR 2 tsp. light colored corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla

In the top of a double boiler, combine sugar, cold water, egg whites, and cream of tartar or the corn syrup. Beat with electric mixer for 30 seconds.

Now place over boiling water (upper pan should not touch water). Cook, beating constantly with the electric mixer on high speed about 7 minutes or til frosting forms stiff peaks. As you're standing there mixing, 7 minutes will seem to go on forever, but believe me, you'll be glad you did it!


 Remove from heat and add vanilla. Beat 2 - 3 minutes more or til it reaches spreading consistency. This frosts the top and sides of 2  8-or 9- inch cake layers or a 13 x 9 pan.

If you don't have a double boiler, you can improvise. You will need an oven proof bowl (like Pyrex) that will fit over a pan of boiling water. The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Keep it at a low boil and mix for 7 minutes.

It is a little more work than some frostings, but well worth the effort. There is usually a line in our kitchen of people wanting to lick the bowl and the beaters. When you've tasted that first bite of delectable frosting on moist, chocolate cake ....you'll want a second piece right away! You'll also understand why that cake does not even last one full day at our house.

My mother-in-law makes the chocolate cake from scratch, but I use a Pillsbury Devil's Food Chocolate cake mix. I usually cook it less than what the back of the box says because I don't like a dry cake.

I hope you and your family enjoy it as much as we do! It's a simple way of dressing up a plain cake mix for your family.

Linking up to www.impartinggrace.com          

 and www.savvysouthernstyle.blogspot.com   

and www.frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com and  www.atthepicketfence.com

kellyskornerblog.com  martysmusings.net