Betsey Johnson was born in Chicago but moved to South Amherst when she was 13. Then, she lived abroad for a number of years with her diplomat husband, Chad, before coming home again.
Johnson has been a stalwart member of Five College Learning in Retirement for years, and was happy to get into our cooking class.
Now 89, she is a wonderful combination of graciousness and pure New England candor (there’s no one better at the dry, throwaway statement).
When we were at Gail Gaustad’s to sample the sunchoke bisque that had initially not turned out well (Tasting Circle, May 13), Johnson remarked, “I made a roasted cauliflower soup once that I shall not be making again.”
She now lives in a small auxiliary apartment originally constructed on family property for her mother, Marjorie MacLeod, who died at 106. On the morning we visited, the house offered breathtaking views of sloping meadows and the Pelham hills.
Johnson chose to feature her family’s traditional chocolate birthday cake and homemade vanilla ice cream, but first, as one cannot live by cake alone, she served us a chard frittata with corn bread. While she handed us our laden plates, she said, “I know this is not evenly distributed, but if you got less, I know you’ll be quiet
about it.” Can you tell she raised
five children?
The chocolate cake recipe came from her mother’s friend Libby Morgan, who was profoundly deaf but nevertheless a wonderful cook. It has been made since Johnson was 10 or 11, and since she is going on 90, that’s a long time. She insists it is best made with Pillsbury flour.
Libby Morgan’s
Chocolate Birthday Cake
10-12 servings
2 cups Pillsbury flour
2 cups sugar
2 scant tsp baking soda
½ cup unsweetened cocoa
2 eggs
½ cup buttermilk
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup hot water
Generously grease a tube cake baking pan. First line the bottom with waxed paper; then butter it.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Sift the dry ingredients together, then add the liquids.
Bake for about 40 minutes. It is easy to over-bake this cake — begin to check for doneness after around 30 minutes.
Turn out the cake, peel off the paper and let it cool on a rack, then frost.
Although her mother always made this cake with 7-minute frosting, Johnson prefers a chocolate butter frosting.
Chocolate Butter Frosting
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
A bit of milk
Melt butter and chocolate; cool a bit, then beat into confectioners’ sugar. Add vanilla, and a bit of milk to make it a good spreading consistency. Frost the cake and refrigerate before serving.
Nina Scott is a retired UMass professor of Spanish. She has lived in Amherst since 1968. Katy van Geel is a retired librarian and CPA, and moved to Amherst in 2007.