Gluten Free Cranberry Nut (Pecan) Cake Recipe, Cheater's Version

Delicious Cranberry Nut Cake!

A couple weeks ago when our grandson was staying the week, we went to Carla's (of The River Flowing Blog fame) so that he could meet her two boys. They are such nice, intelligent, and fun  young men!  I had a hard time dragging our grandson away, believe me.

Well...

While we were there, Carla gave us some Cranberry Nut Cake, which, it turns out, is her younger son's favorite cake. Hmmm.  I took a bite of that cake....

I think it is now my favorite too. At the very least, it's a tie between this and my Williamsburg Orange Cake.

Fresh cranberries, a gift from Carla!

Anyway, please urge Carla to post the recipe for her delicious Cranberry Nut Cake. I decided to try to make it gluten free, but then ran short on time, not to mention my natural bent toward laziness, and went with Hodgson Mill yellow cake mixes instead.

Gluten free cake mix manufacturers have it all figured out that if they put the amount necessary to make a 13x9 cake in their box, you'd never pay what they're going to charge for it. So, they put just enough to make an 8x8 or 16 cupcakes. That will certainly not do. Who wants just a mere taste? So I bought two of them and realized that I could then make a 13x9 and have enough batter left over to make 3 mini cakes. So that's what I did.

Chopped Fresh Cranberries

Gluten Free Cranberry Nut (Pecan) Cake Recipe:  (cheaters' version)

Makes one 13x9 and 3 mini cakes (2x5 cakes, appx.)

Two boxes of Hodgson Mill Yellow Cake Mix

1 c. butter, softened

4 large eggs

2 c. buttermilk

    OR, if you don't have buttermilk, you can substitute 3 T. white vinegar and enough whole milk to make 2 cups. Wait 15 minutes. (Emeril's recipe)

2 t. vanilla extract

1 t. almond extract

(The boxes got pitched, but I'm pretty sure that the ingredients listed above are simply what was listed on the box, times two.) The following ingredients were included because Carla had fresh cranberries and pecans in her cake and that makes all the difference!)

2 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, chopped (pulsed in the food processor and tossed with 1/4 c. sugar)

2/3 c. chopped pecans  

In your mixing bowl, whip the butter. Add cake mixes and mix until well mixed. (Good grief, there's got to be a better way to write that!)

Add eggs, buttermilk, and extracts. Mix on low and then on medium-high until mixture is fluffy. 

Fold in nuts and cranberries. 

Spray a 13x9 cake pan and 3 mini (2x5) pans with non-stick cooking spray. 

Pour enough batter into the 13x9 pan to make it 1/2-2/3 full. It made the baked cake nearly level with the top of the pan. Just enough room for frosting. Divide remaining batter among the three mini pans.

Place all cakes in the 350 degree oven.

Take mini cakes out after approximately 32 minutes, 13x9 out after 43 minutes (not 43 additional, but 43 total). Do test the cakes with a wood pick to make sure they are done. Cool on baking racks.

Frost cakes (optional, of course).

Frosting:

Some butter, some confectioner's sugar, a bit of milk, and a wee bit of vanilla and an even weeer bit of almond. You'll have to wing it for I don't remember how much of anything I put in. But start with 2-3 T. soft butter and go from there. You don't want the frosting so thick that it's unspreadable or rips up the top of the cake, and you don't want it so runny that it doesn't have any body.

Cranberry Pecan Cake - so moist!

So if you're looking for a delicious gluten free cake recipe, look no further.  If you'd like to make it the usual way, please visit Carla and ask her to post the recipe. You can tell her I sent you to pester her. :-)

I served this cake at our recent hymn sing. I'm pretty sure that not a soul would have guessed that it is gluten free. I guess that's a good thing, considering that some people seem to know instantly that if it's gluten-free, they don't want anything to do with it. I won't mention my son's name here.

***

This post is linked to

You're Gonna Love It Tuesday and A Creative Princess and Amaze Me Monday and  Ivy and Elephants and  Tweak it Tuesday and Treasure Box Tuesday

***

Check Out All My Christmas Soaps!

Buy any 5, Get 1 FREE

'Cranberry Tea'

It seemed fitting.

...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at

HomemadeSoapNSuch

and at

Our ETSY Shop 

Sunrise, Wisconsin Barns, and Good Fences

 Sunrises and other scenes from the first week of November, 2015

And this is what happens when there's not enough time to run downstairs and get my camera - an unsatisfactory cellphone shot.

Linking this post to

Judith's Mosaic Monday
and
Theresa's Good Fences

***

Check out my natural, handcrafted vegan soap!

Buy any 5, Get 1 FREE

'Frosted Apple Spice'

'Pumpkin Spice'

CHRISTMAS SOAPS ARE READY

...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at

HomemadeSoapNSuch

and at

Our ETSY Shop 

 

Matthew Henry, Servant of God

Chester.ac.uk

MATTHEW HENRY

1662-1714

Perhaps some of you are familiar with Matthew Henry's six-volume commentary on the Bible.

Matthew Henry's Commentary

A Remarkable Work

From ccel.org:

 

"Matthew Henry was born near Wales on October 18, 1662 and was primarily home-educated by his father, Rev. Philip Henry, and also at the Thomas Doolittle academy from 1680-1682. Henry first started studying law in 1686, but instead of pursuing a career in law he began to preach in his neighborhood. 

"After the declaration of liberty of conscience by James II in 1687, he was privately ordained in London, and on June 2, 1687, he began his regular ministry as non-conformist pastor of a Presbyterian congregation at Chester. He remained in this position for 25 years. After declining several times offers from London congregations, he finally accepted a call to Hackney, London, and began his ministry there May 18, 1712, shortly before his death. 

 

photo from www.churches-uk-ireland.org

Again, from ccel.org:

"Henry's reputation rests upon his renowned commentary, An Exposition of the Old and New Testaments (1708-10, known also as Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible). He lived to complete it only as far as to the end of the Acts, but after his death other like-minded authors prepared the remainder from Henry's manuscripts. This work was long celebrated as the best English commentary for devotional purposes and the expanded edition was initially published in 1896. Instead of critical exposition, Henry focuses on practical suggestion, and his commentaries contains rich stores of truths. There is also a smaller devotional commentary on the Bible from Henry known as Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary."

More recently, I discovered a Matthew Henry book at Amazon, 'A Method for Prayer.'  I want to include a few excerpts from that book:

"When I had finished the third volume of the Exposition of the Bible, which is now in the press; before I proceed, as I intend, in an humble dependence on the divine Providence and Grace, to the fourth volume, I was willing to take a little time from that work to this poor performance, in hopes it might be of some service to the generation of them that seek God, that seek the face of the God of Jacob; and if any good Christians receive assistance from it in their devotions, I hope they will not deny me one request, which is, that they will pray for me, that I may obtain mercy of the Lord, to be found among the faithful watchmen on Jerusalem's walls, who never hold their peace day or night, but give themselves to the Lord and prayer, that at length I may finish my course with joy."

Also, there's an online 'Method for Prayer' website

Basically, in his 'method for prayer,' Matthew Henry prays Scripture. Note above that there are several types of prayer, beginning with Adoration. How often, when we pray, do we simply jump in with our urgent requests, as though God were some sort of good fairy, eager to grant our every wish, rather than spending time with God, Maker of Heaven and Earth, in adoration. I believe there are fifteen pages in the online version that come under the heading 'Adoration.' This is a wonderful resource, as is the printed book, although I prefer the book because it contains the Scripture references from which the prayers are drawn.

From the book again:

"Prayer is the solemn and religious offering up of devout acknowledgments and desires to God, or a sincere representation of holy affections, with a design to give unto God the glory due unto his Name thereby, and to obtain from him promised favours, and both through the Mediator. Our English word Prayer is too strait, for that properly signifies Petition or Request; whereas humble adorations of God, and thanksgivings to him, are as necessary in prayer as any other part of it. The Greek word Proseuche, from Euche, is a vow directed to God. The Latin word Votum is used for prayer. Jonah's mariners, with their sacrifices, made vows; for prayer is to move or oblige ourselves, not to move or oblige God."

"...for prayer is to move or oblige ourselves, 

not to move or oblige God."

 

from Amazon.com

I thank God for Matthew Henry and the gifts he has given the Church in his faithfulness to God.

Have a blessed Lord's Day!

This post is linked to

Roses of Inspiration

ELY CATHEDRAL, Interior, Anglophile Friday

Nave, Ely Cathedral

Some weeks ago, my Anglophile Friday post contained photos of the exterior of Ely Cathedral in Cambridgeshire, England. Today we're finally inside, working our way from the nave to the altar. I'm hoping that the photos here are in the correct order. These are just a few of the photos, but we can't stay in Ely Cathedral forever (although it is tempting).

From easterncathedrals.org:

'The city of Ely may be small in comparison to other cities, but its cathedral is a magnificent structure with a history dating back over 1300 years. Despite its remoteness, Elly has an association with well known kings and saints who have shaped our history: King Canute, William the Conqueror, Hereward the Wake, Henry III, Edward III, Queen Phillipa and Oliver Cromwell.

'The near-legendary founder of this cathedral was Etheldreda, the wife of a Northumbrian king who established a monastery on the spot in 673 A.D. Etheldreda's monastery flourished for 200 years until it was destroyed by the Danes. It was re-founded as a Benedictine community in 970.

'The present structure dates from 1081 and is a remarkable example of both Romanesque and Norman architecture.'

Ely Cathedral Crossing
Lantern and Ceiling of Quire

From elyonline.co.uk:

"When the dust had settled from the collapse of Ely’s Romanesque crossing tower in 1322, there was just a large open space where the crossing tower on its four great piers had been. Rather than replace the tower as it was, they decided to build an enormous octagonal lantern built over this open space. Now known as the Ely Octagon, it is one of the most spectacular spaces ever built in an English church.

"The lantern is supported on eight large stone piers formed out of the first pairs of piers of the nave, transepts, and rebuilt choir. Above this, the superstructure is made of timber, although it was carved and painted to look like stone. The timber–work was done by William Hurley, the king’s own carpenter. The wooden vaults joining the lantern to the piers are largely decorative and conceal the real supporting framework."

Ceiling in SW Transept

Rood Screen

Entrance to the Quire

From ElyCathedral.Org

"Etheldreda (Æthelthryth, Ediltrudis, Audrey) (d.679), queen, foundress and abbess of Ely. She was the daughter of Anna, king of East Anglia, and was born, probably, at Exning, near Newmarket in Suffolk. At an early age she was married (c.652) to Tondberht, ealdorman of the South Gyrwas, but she remained a virgin. On his death, c.655, she retired to the Isle of Ely, her dowry. In 660, for political reasons, she was married to Egfrith, the young king of Northumbria who was then only 15 years old, and several years younger than her. He agreed that she should remain a virgin, as in her previous marriage, but 12 years later he wished their marital relationship to be normal. Etheldreda, advised and aided by Wilfred, bishop of Northumbria, refused. Egfrith offered bribes in vain. Etheldreda left him and became a nun at Coldingham under her aunt Ebbe (672) and founded a double monastery at Ely in 673. (from FARMER, David: The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, 3rd ed. OUP, 1992.)" 

Admittedly, this is extremely a bit odd. Nevertheless, it's amazing to me that Ely Cathedral was founded in 673, back when buffalo were roaming the plains of what we now call the United States (and the British seem to want to call 'America.') :-)

I would be happy to spend a lot more time in Ely Cathedral. It was beautiful and awe inspiring.

Oddly, you don't hear of many people naming their daughter Etheldreda these days, do you.

 In the Quire

 Quire Floor

 Etheldreda Stone (r)

Ah, the missing year: A.D. 673

My favorite, again

***


This post is linked to
InSPIREd Sunday 


***

Check out my natural, handcrafted vegan soap!

Buy any 5 or more, Get 1 FREE

'Lemon Verbena'

...and more! Check out all my handcrafted soaps at

HomemadeSoapNSuch

and at

Our ETSY Shop 

 ***

Have a great weekend, everyone!