March 2018 | The Honest Spoon

I have fond memories of my parents dragging us around on weekends and WEEKDAYS. After dinner, we'd drop in on an aunt or uncle’s house for coffee. Or, someone would drop in on us. It was no big deal. It was NORMAL No checking in first. No calling ahead. No planning and play dates. You just drove to your destination and hope they'd be home. If not, try another family or friend. Regardless of where we ended up, the scene was consistent. The grown ups would chat around the dinner table having coffee, and us kids would be off entertaining ourselves- playing with toys or tumbling around the yard. We did this often. We were informal. And if someone dropped in for coffee and you found your pantry empty of cookies or cakes to serve- you whipped something up real quick.

This morning I found myself short on time. We had places to be, things to do. I was silently lamenting the never ending schedule of events, sports, and to do lists. I reminded myself that I was raised on how to make quick, easy, delicious meals and sweets with a few ingredients and little time. As I sorted through my pantry I came upon a box of pancake mix (which I rarely use). Then, I remembered! My Mom used to make this coffee cake with Bisquik. This was a GO TO in the 80s. Talk about OLLLLLDDDD SCHOOOOLLL! It often found its way to the table when all the adults were having coffee. In fact, I sent a picture of this to a couple of my cousins with a "remember this?". We used to LOVE IT when our Moms made it!

Moral of the story: if you are short on time for breakfast or if you have a last minute guest- try this! It's quick, 30 minutes start to finish, and it's likely you'll have everything you need to make it. It's not fancy. But it has that rustic appeal and it's good! For this I used blueberry jam (I make cases of blueberry jam every summer) and lemon glaze. I like the contrast of blueberries and lemon. In the classic version my Mom use to use grape jelly (so so so good. but I don't have grape jelly at home) and plain glaze (just omit the lemon and replace the water with milk. If you don't want to make the glaze, just dust it with powdered sugar. The end result is flaky and a bit dense, like a scone, with a hit of sweet from the jam. I think you are going to love it!

OLD SCHOOL COFFEE CAKE

| serves 8 |

INGREDIENTS:

2 Cups Pancake Mix (like Bisquik or Trader Joes Brand. Do not use a "just add water" mix)
3 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 C butter, room temperature
1/3 C cold milk
1/2 fruit jam of choice ( I used homemade blueberry)

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Add ingredients, except fruit jam, to food processor. Pulse until combined. OR mix ingredients in a bowl until well combined.

3. Prepare a piece of parchment pre-measured to fit a half sheet pan. Sprinkle parchment with flour and place dough on top.

4. Shape into a thin rectangle, about 1/.2 inch thick & 8x12 inches overall. You may roll out evenly with a rolling pin but it's not necessary. Trim sides so they are straight.

5. Spread fruit jam evenly over top leaving about 3 inches on each side and 1 inch on top and bottom. Cut diagonally down the sides that do not have the jam. Wrap edges over top.

6. Carefully lift parchment and place on sheet pan. Bake for 15-17 minute or until lightly golden brown.

7. Remove coffee cake from oven and let cool about 10 minutes. Drizzle lemon glaze (see below) over top and serve.

LEMON GLAZE:

1 Cup powdered sugar
zest of one lemon
1 1/2 tablespoons water

Prepare Lemon Glaze by mixing powdered sugar, Lemon zest, and water in a bowl.