What a nice sister you are - I hope you get to enjoy the cakes with her. I love home made pound cake it's one of my favorites. I have a sour cream recipe that I usually make. Years ago I had a cold oven brownie recipe that I used with my old GE oven but I can't do that with my new oven.

When I turn on my oven it goes into preheat mode which means both the top and bottom heating elements turn on to bring the oven to the set temperature faster.

Everyone should have a birthday cake or pie for their birthday. That is so sad. You are one special sister to do this for her. Hope she had a nice birthday.

Actually today would have been my dad's birthday.

grandmamary I used to bake cakes for EVERYONE's birthday. It didn't matter they lived in Germany, France, Australia or South Africa, I baked, and I enjoyed "celebrating" their birthday, by eating cake. Over the years, I quit. But, I do bake myself a birthday cake, and enjoy eating it too, sometimes with friends that drop in, sometimes by myself. Sheila, you are a good sister!

Moni

So very nice of you. I'm one of those who doesn't generally like cakes, birthday or otherwise. Too dry, the icing is sometimes too thick and sweet. But I do love ice cream. My Mom always made us fancy cakes for our birthdays when we were kids. I remember one, she bought a paper merry go round, complete with horses, and place it atop the cake. Thanks for bringing up a very pleasant memory!

Vicsgirl, I like heavy, moist cakes made from scratch. Boxed cake mixes make dry cakes. Our family does not like icing, so except for the zuccchini cake I bake and frost with Philadelphia Cream Cheese frosting, they aren't iced.

Sheilajoyce - I think you just answered my question. The pound cake sounds really good and I was wondering if you ever drizzled anything on top. I'll bet a lemon drizzle would be really good. How do you usually serve it?

this was a fave of my mother's that she made for friends...couldn't find the version with walnuts...and where it called half cup chopped she'd up it, lol...

http://www.landolakes.com/recipe/1523/pumpkin-pound-cake

Blfenton, we eat it plain and snack on it whenever the urge hits. My sister wonders about serving it with berries. I think a lemon drizzle would be very nice too. So would a chocolate glaze.

Love pound cake! Great toasted with butter! Restaurant here serves with fresh strawberries and lemon curd! Yummy~

Y'all reminded me of one of the few funny stories about my mother.

She was an awful cook (in all fairness, her mother had been ill for years & lay on the couch all day & taught the younger daughter to cook & keep house while my mother worked in the fields with the men).

Our vegetables were always boiled to death, some meals were all white (cauliflower, mashed potatoes, cabbage, etc), meat, including steak, was fried, & there was no such thing as dessert.

At Thanksgiving, I'd stop at Jack in the Box on the way "home" to get something to eat, just in case, & at Christmas, I always brought tortilla chips & salsa.

One holiday, my mother made a chocolate cake, & it was *luscious*.

My sister-in-law even complimented it & asked for the recipe, & my mother said,

"I got the recipe off the back of the package of baking chocolate.

but it said to use 4 squares (or some such), & when I broke it, it all came apart, so I said 'd@m-nation!' & threw the whole thing in there."

& that's how I learned you can add more of the luscious stuff than the recipe calls for.

We eat cakes very seldom, and don't like icing. As a kid I always asked for Angel cake for my birthday. I've been meaning to try Sheila's cold pound cake, and I keep forgetting.