Crock pot cakes

A dear friend of mine was snowed in last weekend. That's not such a bad thing, except that it was my friend's birthday and her family was invited to a relative's house for a special meal.

She was anticipating a good dinner followed by birthday cake for dessert, but with the treacherous roads, of course, the celebration had to be cancelled. Under normal circumstances, she would have just baked a cake for herself and celebrated at home with her hubby and daughters.

BUT (there's always a "but" in a good story!) her stove wasn't hooked up due to kitchen renovations so she couldn't bake anything. She sounded kinda down about it, so I shot a quick prayer heavenward for her, wishing I could help somehow.

As we continued to chat, I suddenly remembered reading about baking cakes in the crock pot. I even tried it once and it turned out pretty good so I shared the idea with her. My friend happened to have a cake mix on hand and Voila! Birthday cake! Well, it did take several hours because it was in a SLOW cooker...but it worked.

So here's some crock pot cake tips and recipes from "Crockery Cookery" published in 1975 by Bantam Books:

"When using a standard cake mix....Cakes are "baked" in a pan set directly on the bottom of the slow cooker, similar to the way you would do it in an oven. It is not necessary to use a trivet or water. Instead of covering the uncooked cake mixture with foil or a lid, cover the top with four or five layers of paper towels. Because there is more moisture in a slow cooker than in an oven it is necessary to compensate for this with the paper towels to help absorb the moist top of the cake mix. Also, leave the lid of your slow cooker slightly open to let extra moisture escape."

The author, Mabel Hoffman suggests that a metal coffee can or any other pan which will fit into your crock pot will work. She also suggests using the high heat setting for the crock pot. Most cakes will bake in 2-3 hours.

Banana Nut Cake

1 (18 1/2 ounce package) yellow cake mix
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup water
2 eggs
1 cup mashed bananas (2 medium)
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

In large mixing bowl, combine cake mix and soda. Add water, eggs and bananas. Beat 4 minutes on medium speed of electric mixer. Fold in nuts. {our into greased and floured 2 quart container.Place on bottom of slow cooking pot. Cover cake with 4 - 5 paper towels. Cover pot and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours. Invert on cooling rack. Serve plain, dusted with powdered sugar or drizzled with a thin glaze.

Applesauce Spice Cake

1 (1 pound 3 ounce) package spice cake mix
1 (1 pound) can applesauce
2 eggs

In large mixing bowl combine cake mix with applesauce and eggs. Blend for 1/2 minute. Then beat at medium speed 4 minutes. Pour into greased and floured 6 cup mold. Place in slow-cooking pot. Arrange several layers of paper towels on top of mold. Cover slow-cooking pot, leaving lid slightly ajar.Cook on high for 2-3 hours. Let stand 5 minutes. Turn out onto cooling rack. Cool; cover with frosting.