Sticky, Icky & Gooey

Today’s card reminds me not to chase my tail so much. It also demonstrates how to make good where you expect bad.

One thing I’ve been doing over the years is assigning recipes to Tarot cards. Now this isn’t new. The Epicurean Tarot did this. Others have done or are doing this. This is simply my attempt to connect two of my loves. but I have to confess something here. I have an addiction.

It’s true. I collect recipes almost obsessively. I rarely actually cook them. More often I eat them in my head. 😀 But this one looked really fabulous and I wanted to make something for my co-workers. So I made this. Wrong. I made it all wrong.  This had another name but it ended up the Sticky Gooey Sweet Treat. Part of that is because, did I mention, I made it WRONG.

Because I made it wrong and it still turned out okay despite my anxiety about it, I’ve assigned it to the card of nightmares and tail-chasing. This is the card that reminds me when I’m over-analyzing things and causing my brain to go into “oh shit oh shit oh shit” mode. And usually, “oh shit oh shit oh shit” mode only needs to be “oops, that’s going to be different” mode.  My clients will hear me ask them what molehill they are making a mountain out of when the 9 of Swords surfaces.

Swords are the mental suit. The 9 is what happens when you lose your focus. There are always things to be genuinely concerned about, but too often we find ourselves doing what my Grannilu called “borrowing trouble.” That’s where you worry about things you can’t control or things that haven’t even happened yet. We build up something in our minds until we are so afraid by what might happen that we don’t even initiate the beginning.

“If I tell Boy X that I like him, he will laugh.”
“All of my friends will hear him laugh and know.”
“I won’t have any friends because they will all be laughing at me.”
etc.

We imagine the worse scenario possible. Every time. 😐 So that’s what happened to me with this dessert. I screwed it up so badly and it turned out okay. Nothing like the original recipe, mind you, but still it was all gone by the time I left work. So my imagined scenario of co-workers throwing up as they ran to the bathroom never panned out. (Still trying to decide if that’s a good thing or a bad thing…hee).

Nine of Swords Sticky Gooey Sweet Treat

1 box (16.5 oz. size) Yellow Cake Mix, Divided
1 whole Egg, Lightly Beaten
1/2 cups Butter, Melted
1 cup Sugar, Divided
3 teaspoons Cinnamon, Divided
1/2 teaspoons Ginger
1/4 teaspoons Ground Cloves
1/4 teaspoons Salt
1 cup Canned Sweet Potatoes (not drained)
3/4 cups Evaporated Milk
2 whole Eggs
1/4 cups Cold Butter, Diced

Cook Time 60-80 Minutes (yes, I mean that)

Preheat oven to 350. Get out an 8×8 pan. Expect the pan to get sticky and gooey. This is where I first went wrong. It called for a 13×9 but I thought, oh no! I can do it in an 8×8. I was right but it wasn’t what I expected.

Crust Step:

Reserve 1 cup of the cake mix for the topping. Pour remaining cake mix into a bowl, then stir in the one beaten egg and the 1/2 cup of melted butter until the mixture is combined. Smoosh it down on the bottom of the pan.

Filling Step:

Combine 3/4 cup of sugar, 2 teaspoons of cinnamon, the ginger, cloves, salt, sweet potato, evaporated milk and 2 eggs together. Using a whisk, stir until smooth. Pause to place 8×8 pan with smooshed crust on cookie sheet. Pour over the crust. Watch in horror as it climbs up, up, up the sides of the pan. Grin because you have learned from my mistakes and put the pan on the cookie sheet already. You did put the pan on the cookie sheet, right?

Topping Step:

Stir together the 1 cup of reserved cake mix, and the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Cut in the 1/4 cup of butter dice using a pastry blender or a fork. Sprinkle evenly over the filling.

Bake at 350F for 35-40 minutes. Try to remove. Realize filling is not set. Bake for another 20-30 checking periodically. If the top jiggles only a little, call it good.

This received rave reviews from my co-workers.

Original recipe can be found (and made properly) here.

Nine of Swords, Rainbow Travellers, Carmen Waterhouse 2012

Seek joy, y’all. Pass it on!

See the whole recipe index here.