Ruined birthday cakes and other wonderful things about John Hicks!

In honor of Father's Day, the Des News ran a feature story this morning about French Toast (not entirely sure of the connection, but - hey - it's free ink!)

They told the story of my 16th birthday cake - one that is a family legend. (It is at the end of the story below.)

So many of my good childhood memories involve those in which we were lucky enough to have John Hicks II become our dad.

Thanks for your patience. Thanks for your humility. Thanks for being a great example. And thanks, most of all, for your love.

Thanks to John, a wonderful dad to us all!!!



A toast to Dad: Celebrate Father's Day with a delicious breakfast
By Valerie PhillipsDeseret News
Published: June 11, 2008
Father's Day and French toast make a great combination. French toast is simple to make, and it's hearty enough to satisfy a dad-size appetite.
And it's not just for breakfast anymore, according to Donna Kelly, author of "French Toast: Sweet and Savory Dishes for Every Meal" (Gibbs Smith, $16.95). In fact, about a third of recipes in her book are savory dishes, such as Southwest Chipotle Cornbread and French Toast Pizzas.
"Who doesn't love French toast? It only calls for three ingredients — bread, eggs and milk — so it's very versatile," said Kelly, who spends her workdays as a Utah County prosecutor and much of her free time cooking.
She said this popular breakfast food comes from the original French recipe pain perdue, or "lost bread." It started as a way to use up stale bread, by dipping it in an egg-and-milk mixture and cooking it.
"The concept lends itself to an almost infinite variety of flavors and versions," she said.
French toast can be made into egg-rich brunch casseroles or stuffed with everything from fruit to nuts to sausage to whipped cream, or topped with all kinds of syrups, sauces and streusels. When cubed, it becomes a sturdy dipper for fondues.
One of her favorite recipes is called Southwest Chili and Cheese, a casserole that borrows from Kelly's upbringing in Tucson, Ariz., and her love of Southwestern cuisine.
"It's fabulous, it's totally my own brainchild, unlike a lot of recipes where you get the idea from someone else and then work on it to make it your own," said Kelly. "It's got a nice fluffy texture, and it's got cumin, which is my favorite spice."
Should you be treating Dad to French toast on Father's Day, Kelly has four general rules to keep in mind:
1. It's always better if you use stale bread. "The bread has to be dry to absorb the custard mixture, which is what makes the classic French toast texture," she said. "If you use fresh bread right out of the package, it will get too soggy and fall apart while cooking."
To make fresh bread more "stale," leave the slices out on a wire rack for several hours or overnight, so the air circulates on both sides. Or in a pinch, dry it in on the racks in your oven at 200 degrees for 20 minutes.
2. Always cover the pan with a lid while it's cooking. "That way, the toast will cook all the way through the middle before it starts burning on the outside."
3. The best batter ratio is three eggs to 1 cup milk. "Not enough eggs, and the French toast doesn't have any texture," said Kelly. "Too many and it won't absorb into the bread."
4. Don't use large amounts of sugar in your egg batter. "It will cause it to burn," said Kelly. "If you want sweet in French toast, buy sweeter bread."
Kelly uses cooking as a stress reliever from her legal career. In the past few years she has written or co-authored several cookbooks in Gibbs Smith's popular "101 Things" series — "101 Things to Do With a Tortilla," "101 Things to Do With Chicken," "101 Thing to Do With Canned Soup" and "101 Things to Do With Tofu."
"I try out all my recipes on my family," she said. "Every Sunday night I have 15-30 people for dinner, they're friends of my own kids, mostly college students who don't have anywhere else to go."
No wonder there's a sign in her home that says, "Donna's Test Kitchen."
In honor of Father's Day, Kelly offers this story of her own father's cooking prowess:
"On my 16th birthday, my mom had just gotten home from the hospital from giving birth to my youngest sister. She was in no shape to make her traditional 'from scratch' birthday cake. So my dad, with his positive 'can-do' attitude, but no cooking skills of any kind, took the challenge."
He painstakingly put together the batter and carefully placed the cake in the oven. Unfortunately, Kelly's brothers came home from school and decided to broil hot dogs and turned on the broiler without looking inside the oven.
"When the billows of smoke filled the kitchen, we all realized the cake was, literally, toast," Kelly continued. "Undaunted, my dad started from scratch once again. But this time, he mistakenly put two tablespoons of baking powder in the batter. He realized the mistake and tried to compensate by adding more flour, but Cake Number 2 turned out like cornbread and was inedible."
Party time was drawing near, so he rushed to get a store-bought mix cake in the oven. "He frosted it still hot, but at least it was edible and somewhat resembling a birthday cake!" Kelly said. "Now, every time I see a cake mix cake, I think of my dad, who taught me that the most important ingredient in any home cooking is love."