Come this way, honored Odysseus, great glory of the Achaians, and stay your ship, so that you can listen here to our singing; for no one else has ever sailed past this place in his black ship until he has listened to the honey-sweet voice that issues from our lips; then goes on, well-pleased, knowing more than ever he did; for we know everything that the Argives and Trojans did and suffered in wide Troy through the gods’ despite. Over all the generous earth we know everything that happens. (12.184-196)
Ah, The Odyssey. As I’m rekindling my love for reading, I should probably revisit this epic. But what brought it to mind was not at all literary but culinary. A food siren with such an alluring call that I will avoid certain stores that sell them, hum to myself to silence their call, and put on mental blinders as I walk past the bakery in the store. I’m talking about those delicious, pillow-y cake cookies with the icing and sprinkles. Hold me.
As a frequent purveyor of these tempting cookies, imagine my surprise when I happened to be making a cake and noticed a recipe for “cake cookies.” WHAT. I CAN BRING THESE SIRENS RIGHT INTO MY KITCHEN? Yesssssssssssss.
I discovered in the first year of my marriage that you can make these cake cookies with most kinds of cakes. (I tried spice cake, strawberry, funfetti, and yellow.) I also coincidentally discovered that it’s quite easy to gain ten pounds the first year of your marriage.
- 1 box cake mix
- 1/3 cup of oil
- 2 eggs
- Cake icing
- Sprinkles
- Preheat oven to 375. Combine cake mix, oil, and eggs until it forms a dense batter that will hold shape. Form small balls on a greased cookie sheet and press them down with the bottom of a glass. They will spread a bit during baking, so place 1-2 inches apart. Bake for 6-8 minutes until still soft, but baked through. Let cool completely before icing and sprinkling.
- My favorite type of cake is funfetti, but the strawberry and spice were delicious as well. I can't vouch that this will work with all cake mixes.
Hungry yet? These are so simple and tasty. I can’t promise that you won’t eat them all. Now I don’t have to leave my house to hear the siren song. Do you have a certain food siren that calls to you when you’re at the grocery store?