As Published by The Georgetown Guide-Let Them Eat Cake!

Delicious Cake w/ both fruit & Icing

Let Them Eat Cake

Culinary Quips

By Elizabeth Sabol-Jones

Published: Thursday, February 2, 2012

Updated: Thursday, February 2, 2012 18:02

Original Link to The Guide

For this week's quip, I thought I would take readers through a couple of scenarios in which baking a cake can go awry. As a Chinese language major, the nuances of the language bleed into the various facets of my life, including the kitchen.

In Mandarin Chinese, when you run into an unfortunate situation and feel the need to shout out your frustration, zaogao is a pretty common expression. Now, you may be asking yourself, What does a Chinese cry of distress have to do with a foodie column? Here's your answer: Zaogao's direct translation into English is "wretched cake." And honestly, when you think about it, what could be worse in a kitchen than taking the time to make something, especially a cake, only to taste it and realize you messed up.

Fallen Cake

As I wrote in my previous column, cooking and baking are about taking risks. I would definitely propose that when you first start your culinary adventures in the kitchen, you must recognize that success is one part skill, one part intuition, two parts precision and a whole lot of luck. So even if you think you've made a mistake, make sure you try to problem solve a bit before abandoning your culinary efforts.

So, here are some tips for when things get dicey in the kitchen so that you don't have to start over from scratch, literally:

1. If you have noisy roommates who jump around too much or you mistakenly slam the oven door at the wrong moment, your cake could collapse in the center. It could be still tasty, but if you were aiming for presentation, the Chairman from "Iron Chef" would definitely take off points. Your cake goes flat due to the fact that the rising process was disturbed. As the rising agent (baking soda, baking powder, etc.) works its magic, the stability of the cake's structure becomes more sensitive to disturbances that affect the chemical processes.

Remedy: Never fear, icing is here! If you're concerned about the looks of your cake, and you're planning to frost it, the icing will cover up any sunken-in appearance the cake may expose. Additionally, flipping the cake upside down and then frosting it will give you an even surface.If you want to add an extra ingredient to your solution, fruit could be used as a cake topper that fills in the space where the cake went flat.

2. On some occasions, you might sit down with a lovely slice of cake only to realize it's incredibly dry. This usually happens when the cake pan is too shallow for the amount of batter, or if the cake has been left in the oven too long.

Remedy: One way to prevent this from happening is to use the "toothpick method." First, make sure you check on your cake a few minutes ahead of the suggested bake time. Often the time a cake needs to bake varies based on the oven, altitude and ingredients, so it never hurts to check a couple of minutes early. Second, stick a toothpick straight into the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean or with a couple of crumbs, you're basically done. If you're very worried about dryness, then don't wait for the toothpick to be clean, and take the cake out when only a few crumbs are left.

Now, if you've already removed the cake and found it is incredibly dry, here's a creative solution: Pour something on it. Yes, it is as simple as pouring a bit of liquid over your finished product to add some moistness back. A bit of orange juice will give it a citrus flavor or a cup of coffee can curb the sweetness while rejuvenating the cake's texture. And, for the over-21 crowd, a little Bailey's never hurt anyone. The sky's really the limit on what you decide to use, but be sure to pour in small increments so as to avoid flooding your creation.

Almost Perfectly Risen Cake

Elizabeth A. Sabol-Jones is a junior in the College. She can be reached at saboljones@thehoya.com. CULINARY QUIPS appears every other Friday in the guide.

Freshmen15: Sweet Tooth Solutions pt. 1-Frozen Treats

Hello again my freshmen and returning nomsters,

I hope you found some solid suggestions from our first Freshmen15 post. While savory sandwiches and pizza delivery is important to the student foodie experience around G'town, satisfying solutions for a sweet tooth are equally crucial to a student's survival. So here we are with some of our favorite frozen sweet tooth solutions around G'town's campus. And not to self advertise too much, but considering Nightly Noms is a late night, bakery delivery service, if you need to solve a baked good craving, we're not a bad place to start! Not to mention we cater to birthdays, dinner parties, meetings, and groups of students who are in need of a fresh, homemade, baked good that reminds them of home! But, we'll talk more about Nighty Noms in our Freshmen15 post about on-campus options.


Frozen Treats:

T Sweets Wisconsin & P Street

T Sweets: Thomas Sweet (Wisconsin & P) is home to some of the best sweets in the Georgetown area. With ice cream, malts/shakes, frozen yogurt, and fudge, you'd be hard pressed to not find something you want to devour on their menu. Now, you really can't go wrong with any of your options, but my personal favorite is the Peanut Butter Oreo Swirl frozen yogurt (so amazingly nom-worthy!). The frozen yogurt is silky smooth and quite creamy! Ice Cream at T Sweets is also very tasty and with waffle cones and numerous topping options, how can you go wrong?! In addition to all of the above, T Sweets also has their signature "Blend-In" option (~DQ's Blizzard), meaning you can have a taste of every option with ice cream, froyo, and toppings all in one if you so choose.

Fun fact: they also make ice cream cakes!
$3-$7 Website

Sweetflow, courtesy of Sweetgreen

Sweetgreen: Locally sourced organic ingredients made into salads and wraps an tart froyo (aka "Sweetflow") with toppings ranging from fresh fruit and nuts, to chocolate chips and baked apples? What's not to like about Sweetgreen's healthy approach to fast food dining? Created and operated by three former Georgetown students (Woo! Go Hoyas!), Sweetgreen provides the Georgetown area with custom made salads and tart froyo. The ingredients are fresh and provided from local farmers, making the veggie options at this salad bar to die for! They also have a location in Dupont Circle and a Sweetgreen truck that serves up salads, froyo, and warm oatmeal to waiting customers.
Fun fact: you can use the froyo toppings/salad toppings interchangeably, meaning granola or baked apples can be added to a salad visa versa. 
Online ordering available.
$4-$11Menu/Website



Wingo's: (Wisconsin & O St.)Known for their wings and variety of sauce options, Wingo's acts as one of Georgetown's hotspots for late night/delivery dining; but did you know they also have awesome milkshakes!? Thick and creamy, a Wingo's milkshake is sure to satiate any craving for ice cream/dairy (but watch out for the "dairy coma" aftermath!). While Wingo's has the traditional offerings of chocolate, vanilla, etc, if you're looking for something with a larger "wow factor" go for the Coffee Oreo or Cookie Dough. They also offer an "extra thick" option if you're looking to really up your calcium intake.
 $4-$12 Website/Menu



Enjoy the warm weather!