Yesterday I was looking for a good recipe for Coffee Cake. I was craving an old-time kind of taste. Coffee cake and coffee, I imagined, now that is cozy! I came across a favorite of mine the Pioneer Woman she is fabulous and I went with one of her recipes. Here is the link with the recipe http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/06/the-best-coffee-cake-ever/. I modified in two ways,  1) by using Saigon cinnamon instead of the regular cinnamon which to me has more of an intense taste to it! 2) I did not cook the pecans in it as my son has a nut allergy. Well it came out terrific!  The Pioneer Woman calls it the “Best Coffee Cake Ever”, and I think I have to agree.

Here is the best part of it, when the cake came out of the oven the whole house smelled of cinnamon!! My son was coming home from school and I opened the door to greet him and he said “oooh what did you bake I smell something good”. He soon proceeded to take several tastes of my cake going back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, like a little squirrel gathering nuts! He loved it.

Here are some other joys about it! Prior to my son returning home from school, I was outside talking with my neighbor. When my son came home and opened the front door, my neighbor who was standing outside  also smelled the sweet aroma of baked goods!!!!! She asked what I was making and I told her.  Of course, she smiled.  Later after the cake had cooled a bit, but was still warm I brought her a piece to share with her husband. She was thrilled and hugged me for it!!  WOW!! NICE! Now even though, it was only a piece of cake, I felt that I had given away a little piece of happiness and sprinkled it with cinnamon!! That’s what it’s all about for me, spreading some joy! I was very happy inside to share this and feel that I was a nice neighbor, especially when in today’s world we don’t even know our neighbors.

This morning I had a piece of coffee cake with my coffee and I thought, “this is simple happiness”. Yes I already had my protein through an egg and some Vitamin C with orange juice. So the latter part of my breakfast was a little piece of comfort.

I had comfort in that the coffee cake symbolized to me, something simple, something that goes far back. I remember as a child thinking grown ups had coffee cake with coffee and this was an American type of thing. Growing up in an Italian family, coffee cake was a bit foreign, however when I saw my parents indulging in it, I thought “wow, they are Americanized” and I suppose I thought they were getting comfortable with the American traditions. So it made me feel more comfortable, especially since I  didn’t start to speak English until age 6.

So even though coffee cake is on the surface a treat, underneath it for me, I experienced a feeling of snug comfort and peace.  There was a fulfillment in giving to others a little joy, and giving some comfort to the self! I hope you can make this recipe and enjoy the pleasure of it!

Love,

Maria – Baking and thinking!