Baking can be fearless

I tried something over the weekend I'd never done before --- baking in the crockpot.

My kids suggest coming up with gift ideas for me is impossible, 'cause I already have everything I want. I think that's a cop-out; an excuse for lack of imagination. I can think of several cool things I want, and with all this high-tech dot-commery, nano-technology an genetical-engineery stuff we have today, they dang sure ought to be available.Contributing: Amelia Nielson-StowellAnd I learned that baking times can vary greatly depending on the size of the crockpot.Along with her family and a lot of friends, she entertained so many people Saturday that there were enough crockpots to trip the breakers at the Frodshams' Farmington farm.The recipe, which I found on www.bettycrocker.com, had a layer of apple pie filling on the bottom and a pumpkin cake on top. It said it took 90 minutes to 2 hours to bake, but it took closer to 3 hours. It was worth the wait, though, and I wasn't worried about it burning."She had to do something to get her mind off it," Barbara said."We have had issues with the professional homeless," Bret said. "They roll up in brand new Suburbans and send the kids in to get stuff. These days we have the Delta Center security, who have helped to cut down on that a lot."It worked--too well. Tearing the Velcro loose activated the magnets. Popping the magnets free cinched up the compression straps. Messing with the compression straps caused the Chinese puzzle buckles to engage. I'll have to sell it with a Winchester 94 .30-30 in it. It ain't coming out. Not in one piece, anyway and I'm not gonna take a cutting torch to it.Cool CakeE-mail: jgreaves@desnews.comIt started 15 years ago when Barbara Frodsham's friend came to her days before Christmas, miserable about a divorce she was going through.The Frodshams have seven children, 27 grandchildren and two great- grandchildren, all of whom travel from near and far to attend the event. But these days, the event is so large they need a lot of help from the community."Everyone wants to do something, they just don't know when and where," said Frank Frodsham, Barbara's husband. "We just provide a place."To get you thinking about what might be a winner, we have some recipes from Jennifer Hennes, of Berryton, who plans to enter in the cookies and pie categories. Her pie crust recipe intrigues me --- I'm looking forward to tasting it.

Send requests or recipes to be shared to: Lisa Sandmeyer, Recipe Exchange, The Topeka Capital-Journal, 616 S.E. Jefferson, Topeka, Kan., 66607-1194 or lisa.sandmeyer@cjonline.com.

Author: Capital-Journal