Treat of the Week: Clove Cake

In honor of this year’s “Ham for Miss Landers Day,” my mother created a new recipe. This clove cake is the perfect treat for such a special day. First of all, cloves—a key ingredient in baked ham. But, since ham doesn’t make for a good cake, this clove cake features the sharpness of raisins and the mellow hum of cinnamon.

Baked in a “Bavaria” mold, this delicious clove cake is moist and flavorful. The preparation begins with the creaming of butter and sugar. Then, five eggs are whipped until fluffy separately and added to the creamed mixture before the rest of the ingredients are added.

This brings out the best in the cloves which can have a very aggressive taste. Here, however, they’re subtle and pleasing, smoothly married to the flavors of the raisins and the cinnamon. It’s the sort of cake Miss Landers would have served with iced tea, lounging on her patio with her tennis-playing boyfriend while Beaver looked on with innocent jealousy. “Something wring, Beaver?” Miss Landers would ask. “Gee, Miss Landers. Ummm…I just want a hunk of cake.” And, a hunk of cake you shall have, Beaver…always.

In the name of the Beaver, the Hoss and the Holy Landers...Amen.