Christian Clarke’s 4th grade birthday party was not all that spectacular. Late afternoon, roller rink, lights dim with the “disco” lights swirling about in a clockwise fashion. I wasn’t even friends with Christian, it was just one of those parties to which everyone in class was invited. In fact, he pestered and teased me horribly, about my robin’s egg blue Chinese pajama pants (unwarranted), and for tapping my fingernails annoyingly against my formica school desk (warranted). So we were not the best of friends, but I went to his birthday anyway. Not being the hugest fan of skating around endlessly in circles, I sat on the sidelines for most of the afternoon talking to his mother, and eyeing the lovely cupcakes that were setting out on the Transformers plates awaiting to be gobbled up by minions of hungry children.

Strawberry Duncan Hines cake mix topped with fluffy white Seven Minute Frosting. They were sweet, delectable, the icing firmly planted with a crisp sugary shell. I loved them. I even asked Christian’s mother for the recipe, she ashamedly admitted it was just a cake mix. Why was she ashamed, cake mixes offer a fine, trustworthy cake? I ran home anxious to procure the appropriate ingredients and try out this delightful treat. My mother remembered 7 Minute Frosting, she said that no one really made it much anymore, but we would give it a try. One hour later, the cupcakes cooled in their individual cups, we piled the icing high atop the cakes. I even waited a half hour, until the frosting got that crackly shell before I dove in, eager to taste the mellifluous cupcake. But it wasn’t the same. Maybe the flashing lights of the disco ball had at the roller rink had been disorienting, making the dessert treats actually seem better than they were. My mother pronounced them too sweet, and the 7 Minute Frosting and Strawberry Cupcakes were filed away, only to be thought of from time to time when my sweet-tooth particularly acted up.

Well, the sweet-tooth acted up this past weekend. I put the same Duncan Hines cake mix (chocolate this time) to good use, and scoured my cookbooks for a 7 Minute Frosting recipe. The only book in which I found a recipe was the trusty old, Joy of Cooking cookbook. I, like many others, have this cookbook but never really use it. In fact, I have an old 1964, tattered, jacketless version from my grandma. But leave it to this book to have not only a 7 Minute Frosting recipe, but also three permutations, an orange, a lemon, and a caramel flavored. I decided on the orange icing, because how can you go wrong with a chocolate-orange combination? Topped with a single perfect raspberry, these cupcakes where not only adorable, but darn good. The crisp shell of the icing enclosed an oozy mess of sugary sweetness, delicately tinged with orange zest. And the cake? Well it was a mix, a good, solid 7 on a 10 point scale. These cupcakes were sweet, but not too sweet, and it is dessert mind you.

7 Minute Orange Frosting
from the Joy of Cooking

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon grated orange ring
1/4 cup orange juice

Place all ingredients in top of a double boiler over rapidly boiling water. Beat constantly with a wire whisk for 7 minutes. Remove icing from heat. Continue beating with a hand mixer until proper consistency is reached, about 4 minutes. Icing will harden slightly over time.