Pound Cake & Anjipedia!

This has been a month for baking Pound Cakes. In a quick span of 2 weeks, a couple of these cakes have emerged from the oven and rapidly devoured. This buttery, light textured cake, is lip-smackingly good and so perfectly ‘old world’. Each bite unfailingly transports me back to my childhood, where this version of ‘sponge cake’ was regular fare for evening tea.

Nothing about the Pound Cake connects me to my friend, Angie. There are no stories of ever eating or sharing this cake with her. Neither have we deliberated over its recipe. And we do love our food! In fact, we attempted to make chocolate mousse once, where I had carried a recipe and yet bungled up the gelatin process, while Angie had patiently measured and whipped up the cream and meringue. We committed mousse suicide, but we were in chocolate and cream heaven! And yet, so many aspects connect – the old world charm, comfort and warmth of security.

With Angie, I found a friend, a roommate, a confidant in college and a second home in Mumbai. I call her the ‘girl with a golden heart’. To know Angie, means to know the entire collective of the world around her. Her father, who upon our first meeting, instantly reminded me of my own. Like my father would with my friends, all Angie’s dad wanted to know each time we met was what I would like to eat for snack and if I would stay for dinner. And it didn’t matter if the gap between the two occasions was less than an hour! Along the hour, he would regale us with stories of Mumbai in the old times, his days in Glaxo, interspersed with the latest gossip of friends and family. Angie’s mom, whose meatloaf (I aim to get the recipe and the dish right one day) is one of my favourite dishes among many that she has fed me. Imagine Mr. Weatherbee with his head stuck in the refrigerator, with Jughead’s food obsession; and that is what I was each time I entered her home. Where elsewhere, I would usually have been thrown out of the house, all she said to me, in her quiet voice was, “Warm it and eat child, or you will fall ill!”  I grew up in a household where the doors were open for all, literally and figuratively. And I found the same years later in Mumbai.

And Angie has got all of that. From being there for people who matter to her, to knowing a whole range of stuff, to being sociable and caring for people. I have never known her to have regrets but have always seen her to know her mind. There wouldn’t be any long sessions of gyan, but sharp advice doled in matter-of-fact tone, accompanied with a direct gaze. Of late, she has also earned the name Anjipedia, because she is a storehouse of information – ranging from exciting gossip to motherhood to general information. As one friend put it, “I call Angie to even find out about plumbing issues”. And between her husband, whom I lovingly call Papa Bear (not to his face of course), and her, there is still an open door and welcome stay for friends and family. She doesn’t need to say it. She cares. Period!

In my usual state of anxiety and chaos, Angie is the logical voice in my head; the one, which says, “Shit happens! Move on”. She is the rock who has seen me through some of my significant lows in life; who has held my hand through my toughest gig as a mother. It is only now that I’m learning to let go. I watch her with amazement and wonder how she accomplishes what one usually aspires to…being a hands-on mom and yet finding time for herself; of wearing multiple hats and flipping them adeptly as per need; yet conveying the message, “You can always count on me!”

Angie-fantastic!

Pound Cake
A Pound Cake has got its name from the measurements of its ingredients, which needs to be a pound each of eggs, sugar, flour and butter. Although there are different versions of this cake, some with healthier options of oil instead of butter, others using vanilla essence or fruits; this is the one recipe I arrived at post baking different versions and recipes. In some places, this is also called a sponge cake, but that, too me is another cake altogether. As always, this is an easy and fun recipe, which can be made even by little kids.
Ingredients
Eggs – 3 large eggs, at room temperature
Castor sugar – 4/5^th cup or 182 gms
Lemon rind – 1 medium sized lemon or 2 small lemons
Flour – 1 cup + 2 tbsps + Cornflour – 2 tbsps
Baking powder – 2/3^rd tsp
Butter – 4/5^th cup or 190 gms, melted
Baking dish: 8-inch square pan or 9-inch loaf pan

Method
Preheat the oven to 180^O C/ 356^O F. Grease and line your cake pan with butter or parchment paper.
In a bowl, beat eggs lightly for a minute. Slowly add sugar one third at a time at beat until the egg mixture is creamy in colour and doubles in volume. Add the grated lemon rind.
In a separate bowl, sift and mix flour, cornflour and baking powder. Slowly fold in the sifted mixture, with the help of a wooden spoon. I usually add the flour one-third at a time and use the cut and fold method, to allow more air into the mixture.
Once done, fold in the melted butter, one-third at a time, pouring over the wooden spoon. The use of the fold technique helps in making the final cake light and fluffy.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden brown in colour and a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Be careful not to overbake, since the cake tends to dry rapidly.
Cool on a wire rack. You can sprinkle the top with confectioner’s sugar or slice and serve plain. Will keep, well wrapped, several days at room temperature, about one week when refrigerated.

Enjoy!