I made a classic rookie mistake. I started a recipe without making sure I had everything I needed. But I also felt I've baked enough I could probably work around it so I bravely soldiered on. I added this spice and that one, a dash of something else and a big shake of yet one more thing, stirred and made a silent wish for...well, a not-sucky cake. I gave the beaters a lick and the batter tasted delicious. Now drunk on my crazy cake-saving-skill, I added more. More fruit, more nuts, MORE. I spooned the yummy batter into an angel food cake pan. Why angel food cake pan? Because no matter what I do, when I turn my Bundt pans upside down to gently coax out a cake, a substantial portion of the top, or just one side, sticks and I end up with a decidedly un-cake like pile o' cake pieces. My angel food pan has straight sides and a flat top and a removable bottom. I greased and floured like the recipe said. There was no way I was ending up with anything short of a stellar, state-fair-winning cake. I was going to take it to work. I would get recipe requests and pats on the back and be office queen for the day! The timer went off, I pulled out my bee-you-ti-ful golden cake. The house smelled like sunshine and warm quilts and apple orchards and smiling babies. I think I heard a chorus somewhere in the background. I let it cool, I put a rack on top of the pan, flipped it upside down and gingerly lifted off the pan. Once again, a substantial part of the top AND one side were missing. Still stuck in the pan. And then, as if to say "oh, I'm not through yet," the remaining intact portion of cake started to fall apart, right through the bars of the rack until I had a giant pile of warm (delicious!) cake...nuggets? Chunks? Pieces? I am guessing in my glee to add more fruit and nuts that I sabotaged my cake. Being heavy, they sunk to the bottom, (the top of the cake when flipped,) and didn't leave much actual cake batter to keep everything together. If I had cooked this in a regular 13" x 9" pan, all would have been well. This cake tasted so good that I couldn't let it go to waste, so I started thinking of every cake-like treat I had seen...cake pops, triffles, jar cakes...jar cakes, cakes in a jar! Cupcakes in a jar are often regular cupcakes broken in half and placed in a jar, separated by layers of frosting. Well, I had cake and a fantastic caramel brown sugar glaze still warm in the pan, so I pulled out a dozen half-pint canning jars and begin spooning in and packing down. I topped each jar with a healthy dose of caramel glaze and sealed them up. Today, with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and a sprinkle of toasted pecans, these little conglomeration cakes sang. They sang so sweetly you would have thought I meant to do this.
