Birthday cakes past and present

Co-workers made several dozen of these cupcakes, using my late mom's icing recipe, for my birthday yesterday.

I never thought I'd be posting a recipe here, but yesterday's birthday reminded me of one of my favorites. Actually, it's not mine. It was my mom's recipe for the icing she made for my birthday cake every year until she stopped cooking in her late 80s. After the family who came home for my birthday dwindled, she'd insist that I take the leftover cake with me. The next day, I'd take it to work and share it with co-workers at coffee break. Several of them asked for the recipe, and in 1991, she wrote it out for me to give to them.

Yesterday, a dozen or so of my co-workers had a small celebration for me, and three of my colleagues -- Jane Fuquay, Haley McCall and Suzanne Hall -- made cupcakes using my mom's recipe. It was a thoughtful thing for them to do, and the cupcakes brought back many memories. So here it is, the first in a rare series of recipes for the blog. (Later, I might post her recipe for spoonbread, which is another old favorite.)

Mary Helen Nichols Dale's Raisin-Coffee-Nut Frosting
(from a handwritten recipe, 1991)

3 tbs softened butter
1/2 c confectioners sugar
1/4 t salt
1-1/2 c confectioner's sugar
3 tbs hot, strong coffee
1/2 c raisins, chopped
1/2 c pecans chopped
1/2 c coconut, shredded

Cream butter. Add 1/2 cup sugar. Add salt, raisins, nuts and coconut. Add 1-1/2 cups sugar alternately with coffee and beat until smooth and easy to spread. (You might need to add a few extra drops of coffee. This can be hard on a mixer. I do it all by hand.)

Frosts a 2-layer cake. Use any spice-cake recipe for cake or a good spice-cake boxed mix.