Cake

Jill Freebird Jacobs

There is a meme that I have shared on FB before because it makes me laugh. It says, “How do you like your eggs?”  The response is, “um, in cake.”

I think people are like cakes.  All cakes have flour, eggs and sugar as base ingredients.  Humans share basic anatomy, heart, brain, lungs et cetera.  Combined with the base ingredients, there are thousands of types of cakes.  Each one has special added elements that make them unique.  Chocolate ganache cake and angel food cake are two of my personal favorites, but they couldn’t be more different.  Not even close to interchangeable, even though they are both cake.

My appreciation for cake comes from its baked good status.  In general, cake is good.  I have tried a few cakes that I will never try again as they weren’t to my taste, but I wouldn’t say they aren’t cake.  Some cakes I avoid because an ingredient or two turns my stomach.  I don’t worry about those cakes too much, just leave them in peace. Other cakes are a joy to behold.  So many good cakes available.  I believe we should savor and enjoy cake.

A good cake is really complete with gobs and gobs of icing.  Icing on top, between the cake layers, on the sides.   Of course it’s always cake whether there is icing or not, but icing adds so much flavor.  Good icing draws out the base ingredients and makes the cake so much sweeter than when it stays bare.

Cake is also really good with a glass of ice-cold milk or hot coffee.  It doesn’t need trappings to be a good cake, but they round the cake out into a fabulous dessert experience.

So, enjoy cake.  But remember, cake needs to be preserved.  If you leave a cake out in the air all alone it gets terribly dry and crumbly.  If it is refrigerated, but not well-wrapped, it becomes stiff and unyielding.  Cake needs to be well taken care of, and I need to get to the store.