I can’t be the only person who thinks Nan’s are wizards…
with a twist of the wrist, a tinkle of their nose and crack of the dish towel and… BAM… Fresh baked goods.
Hair still freshly pinned, not a spec of dust on the apron or a single dish in the sink. Wizards I tell you… Wizards!
So many memories sitting around and enjoying the sweet treats Nan so effortlessly threw together. Fresh breads, cookies (mmm… Chocolate chip cookies), pies (she made a mean blueberry pie, like no other!) and cake, chocolate cake to be exact.
This past December our family lost one of its backbones, the heart you could say. It was unexpected, it was devastating and it was eye opening.
Through her loss and the loss of my wife’s grandmother and both of our fathers in the past 22 months, we as a family learned that life is far to short and precious to take for granted so;
live, love, laugh and forgive.
We only get to go through this life once, we need to live it to its fullest potential and live out each and everyone of our dreams.
All of you reading this, you are my dream, you are the reason I started this blog and this, THIS is one of my happy places (Apart from my wife and children, but that’s given!)
This is not work, this is love, every word, every post and every recipe is sharing a little more of my love for sugar and flour!
After my Grandmothers funeral we all gathered at her house to tell stories, have a cup of tea and just enjoy one another, as we always did when at Nan’s house.
I remember calling Nan several times over the years to ask her for recipes or for tips on how to create such amazing baked goods, so I couldn’t leave without flipping through her recipe box just one more time.
She was so proud of that box, every recipe so meticulously placed in categories, perfectly hand written or typed by typewriter on recipe cards. You could feel the love in every stain on the pages but yet they still seemed so pristine.
I left that day with more than a recipe, I left that day with every bit of the love she poured into her recipes on that card and I left with it in the breast pocked of my coat, close to my heart where she will always remain!
Today I want to share that with you. I want to share in her love and I want you to taste what I so lovingly got to taste at Nan’s table.
| Prep Time | 10 minutes |
| Cook Time | 35 minutes |
| Passive Time | 2 hours |
| Servings | 8x8 pan |
- 1 Cup White Sugar
- 1 Large Egg
- 1 Cup Milk
- 2 TBSP Butter or Cooking Oil
- 1.25 Cups Flour All Purpose works
- 5 TBSP Cocoa
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 scant tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 1 Pinch Salt
Ingredients
| |
- Preheat Oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit Place all ingredients except vanilla into large mixing bowl. Beat for 5 mins with rotary beater or electric mixer Add vanilla and mix well Pour into 8x8" pan or 2 layer pans and bake 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
The above instructions are given as written on her recipe card.
You can use a stand mixer, if doing so, reduce the mixing to about 3 minutes.
Remember to grease your pans, GOOP works best!
This cake would also be a GREAT chocolate cake to use for a Black Forest Cake.
Aaron thank you so much for sharing your Nan’s recipe. I am going to try this over the next 2 weeks as Cecil loves his sweets. You are one very talented young man that is for sure.
You are very welcome!
You will have to come back and let me know what you think 🙂