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Accidental Low-fat Holiday Cake

by Staff Writer

I guess it really is true that some of the best discoveries are made by accident.

I’ve been doing a lot of “playing catsup� since the phone went down, and then came back up. I’ve got a ton of e-mail to and other online tasks to get thru, not to mention getting ready for the holidays, and the prep work for a non-profit I’m starting that aids abused men.

So it shouldn’t be any surprise to note that when I got a yen for cake yesterday, I forgot an important ingredient, and only remembered it when the cake was in the oven. The 1/3 cup of oil called for on the back of the cake mix got left out, and I wondered how bad it was going to be!

We were so pleasantly surprised by this cake, I thought I’d share the recipe. It’s also incredibly easy, and it looks and tastes Xmas-y. Now, I’m no nutritionist, so I can’t tell you just how low-fat this recipe is, considering the nuts have quite a bit. But the lack of that much oil has got to count for something!

Accidental low-fat cherry-nut cake

1 box white cake mix
3 eggs
1 cup water
1 cup walnuts
10-12 maraschino cherries

To food processor (yes, this is a different thing!) add the walnuts and give them a pulse or two to get them started chopping.

Add the rest of the ingredients, and process for about 30 seconds. Pour into prepared (greased and floured) cake pan, and bake at about 350 degrees for 30 mins, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.

THAT�S IT!

I used a 10-inch springform pan, because that’s what I grabbed, but this will also work well in a bundt pan, or anything similar.

Don’t bother to frost it. We served it with a scoop of ice cream, but if you want to continue the low-fat theme, then it will also go well with some fruit, or all by itself.

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