The Eagle Has Landed

Kason Lapointe and Caleb Hutchinson

This was the photo used for the invitation

On June 19 (the day after Marshall and I arrived home from our tour to Israel and Jordan) we held Caleb's Eagle Court of Honor with his friend Kason Lapointe.  Thankfully, it was all planned before we left and we had lots of help from Kason's mom,  Julia, Kelli Nelson (advancement chair in our previous ward) and several other former scout leaders and friends.  It was a great evening recognizing both boys for their achievement.

Caleb with Roy Given, his 11 year old Scout Leader and mentor

Caleb with Dad and Mom and Karl Nelson,

his Scoutmaster when he was a deacon

Pres Ken Gallacher - Master of Ceremonies

Home Teacher, Stake Presidency, Karate Instructor and Mentor

Caleb with his completed Eagle Service Project

Recycle Boxes for the National Park Service to use at Lake Mead

Way to go Caleb.  You have earned the rank of Eagle Scout and you are a great example to our family!

Oatmeal Cake

I remember an oatmeal cake that my cousin JoAnna Hansen Gale would make when we were children. Today I thought about that and decided to make oatmeal cake for our dessert. Being a 21st century woman, I Googled a recipe and found this lovely recipe for oatmeal cake with toasted coconut topping. It was a big hit with the family so Jecia took a picture and suggested I blog and Pin it. In the old days I would have just copied down the recipe in a 3X5 card and put it in my recipe box.

Photo courtesy of Jecia Hutchinson

(and Marshall Hutchinson who had to hold his fork still while she got the perfect shot)

Oatmeal cake with spices and a broiled coconut pecan topping.

Ingredients:

1 cup quick-cooking rolled oats

1 1/3 cups boiling water
1/2 cup butter, soft

1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

.Coconut Pecan Topping:

1/2 cup evaporated milk

1/4 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup butter

1 cup flaked coconut

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Preparation:

To Make Cake. Combine oats and boiling water, stirring to blend well. Let stand 20 minutes.

In a mixing bowl, cream butter; add sugars and beat at medium speed of electric mixer. Add eggs, vanilla, and cooled oatmeal mixture, beating until well blended.

Into a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Add to creamed mixture, stirring until smooth.

Pour batter into a greased and floured 9-inch baking dish. Bake at 325° for 35 minutes.

While cake is baking, combine topping ingredients in a medium saucepan; mix well. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Spread over hot cake right out of the oven. Turn broiler on; return cake to oven to broil topping for about 4 to 5 minutes. Cool and serve. Serves 9.

Notes:  I added the butter and sugar to the oatmeal/water mix about 2 min after adding the water to the oatmeal and creamed all of it together. I didn't want to wait 20 min.  I also did not have pecans and it was great without them.  Following is the link for where I found the recipe.

http://southernfood.about.com/od/spicecakerecipes/r/bl30826e.htm