Miracle Whip Cake
Dreamy Homemade
Salad Dressing Cake
There is just something to be said for home-baked goodies. Box mixes simply don't come close to comparing with a dish made from scratch with your own two hands.
Mom's Salad Dressing Cake is one of my most favorite desserts. Made from scratch I can feel good serving it to the family. I love that I know what's in there, which is really saying something these days. This is cake is just so moist and tender, it almost melts in your mouth and if stored properly, will last for at least a week and still taste fresh.
Some of my fondest memories growing up are associated with my mother, grandmother and my favorite foods. Oh, how I wish I had my grandmothers mincemeat cookie recipe, we lost grandma over 20-years-ago but the memory hasn't faded. I really don't care for mincemeat pie but I will forever remember those wonderful cookies my grandmother made especially for me.
Speaking of awesome food memories. I don't ever recall my mother making a cake from a boxed mix. If we needed a cake - for nearly any occasion, she'd whip one up in less than an hour and be ready to go.
I've called her many times over the years for her recipe, for some reason I always manage to lose track of it. Her special Salad Dressing Cake has never failed to satisfy a sweet tooth. This cake is so moist and tender, it's absolutely perfect. It goes well with just about any frosting you can imagine. I've included my favorite frosting recipe below.
Salad Dressing Cake
Ingredients:
- 2-cups Flour
- 2-teaspoons Baking Soda
- 1-cup Sugar
- 4-tablespoons Cocoa
- 1-cup warm water
- 1-cup Miracle Whip, Salad Dressing
- 1-teaspoon Vanilla
Mix all ingredients together, beat until smooth. Spray a 13"x9" cake pan with Pam and dust with flour. Bake at 350° for 30-minutes.
Frost when cool.
Never Fail Cream Cheese Frosting
This frosting whips up light and creamy and is a perfect accompaniment for the tangy rich Salad Dressing Cake. Don't be afraid to pile it on nice and thick, it's not too sweet and has a lovely creamy texture that will delight your taste buds.
Ingredients:
- 8-oz. package Philadelphia Cream Cheese
- 5-tablespoons softened butter
- 2-teaspoons vanilla
- 2-cups Powdered Sugar
Beat together cold Philadelphia brand cream cheese (you can use it straight out of the refrigerator) with softened butter and vanilla until combined. Gradually add powdered sugar that has been sifted after measuring. Continue to add more sifted powdered sugar until you reach a consistency and sweetness that fits your taste.
Recipe Background:
This classic chocolate cake recipe is timeless. I spoke with my mother last evening and had the priviledge of reading this page to her. It's a running joke between us -- this cake, that is. You see, I moved around so much as a young adult, mom always left an entire page in her addressbook blank, just for me (both sides) and I can see her leaving a copy of the recipe for this "Mayonnaise Cake". Each year she could count on my calling requesting the recipe once again.
I'm sure I drove her crazy because when I called for the recipe, I always wanted it now. So, like the good mom she is, she would drop everything and go fetch it so she could read it to me over the phone. All I know is someone somewhere must love my mom's cake recipe because they disappeared as fast as I wrote them down.
She commented to me that I had fibbed in this article. She confided in me that she had "cheated" and used boxed mixes when I was a child. I must confess, I have no memory of it. She proudly informed me that she had learned to make the cake from her own sweet-baking mother. Who knows how long this recipe has been around? Some recipes are simply made to be shared and this is one of them.
Growing up we only had Miracle Whip (salad dressing) on the table. Heck, I had no knowledge of mayonnaise and had no idea there was a difference. In this case, I simply love the fact that this recipe calls for no oil, no butter or other fat -- Miracle Whip is used in it's place and while we know the oil isn't good for us, I have to think Miracle Whip has to be a step in the right direction, health wise. And it uses only 2-cups of flour. I would have expected it to take much more.
Using this recipe allows me to feel good about my son eating cake and I crave it. This is a taste that reminds me of home. I can eat a slice of Salad Dressing Cake and feel that all is right with the world. Add a cup of warm Vernor's and Heaven is just around the corner.
Recipe Variations:
I would love to know how the cake turns out if it were to be made with Xylitol, a 100% natural sugar alternative.
While visiting a friend recently, we had the occasion to have delicious home-baked Blueberry Muffins -- made with Xylitol. I was totally impressed with them. Xylitol is sold as a sugar alternative -- a natural alternative that is promoted by the Whitaker Wellness Institute, located in Newport Beach, CA.
This sugar alcohol in Xylitol is derived from fruits, is approximately 50% less sweet than sugar, and has a much lower glycemic rating. As a result, it metabolizes slower in the body and helps support healthy blood/glucose levels.
I've recently started cooking with washed raw sugar, I was a little surprised at the cost -- it's expensive. I used the washed raw sugar in several dishes over the Thanksgiving holiday and noticed no difference as far as cooking is concerned. I have no way to judge if it was actually healthier, I assume it was. I believe I'll try using this sugar in the recipe next time. My mouth is watering just thinking about it now.
Don't forget to brush after you eat your cake!
Share your comments, recipe variations and questions.
