GTB RECIPES

BUTTER CRUMSHUS CAKE IS SCRUMPTIOUS!

By Ellen "EJ" Sackett

Food and family. They go together inextricably during the holidays. In our family, the meal (and the hours spent in the kitchen preparing for it) is as much an event as the day itself. A single bite can bring back a flood of memories--a sort of real-life time travel--that keeps the past alive, perfectly merging it with the present.

Growing up, every celebration of "The Big Two" (Thanksgiving and Christmas) began first thing in the morning with the clan's unanimous favorite: Butter Crumshus Cake, named as such because of its scrumptious crumb topping. On Thanksgiving, Butter Crumshus Cake tied us over until turkey time, and on Christmas, we children looked forward to our slice just as much as the presents we were about to open.

Mom could have made this recipe anytime of the year, but she didn't. She saved Butter Crumshus Cake for special. This, even more than the recipe itself, is how a tradition was made.

Here's what she wrote about it in her 1992 cookbook called "Kiss the Cook", written with my father, Dick Ritscher: "Sometimes traditions are born inauspiciously. This delightful breakfast cake, introduced to me by New Fairfield, Conecticut, neighbor Delores Rupple, tastes best the day after it's made. The hustle of Christmas dinner preparations make an easy-to-make, do-ahead cake a logical choice for Christmas Day breakfast. I'll serve it again this year." (Betty Ann Ritscher)

BUTTER CRUMSHUS CAKE

Ingredients

Topping:
3/8 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
Cake:
1/2 cup butter
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup milk

Directions:
1. For the topping, blend butter, flour, and brouwn sugar with a pastry blender in a small bowl. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer or by hand, cream butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Blend in 2 eggs, one at a time; add vanilla and mix well.
4. In another bowl, folk stir flour, baking powder, and baking soda.
5. Add the dry ingredients alternatively with milk to the butter mixture. Beat until smooth.
6. Pour the batter into a 13- x 9- x 2-inch pan which has been greased and dusted with flour. Top batter with crumb topping.
7. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the cake is lightly browned and edges pull away from sides of the pan. Cover tightly until time to serve. Freezes well.

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