I'm heading down to my Mother's house for Easter, and I offered to bring a cake or cupcakes knowing that I had some cake mix and frosting in the cabinet I recall buying a while back and wanting to use. It was one of those grocery store specials that was too good to pass up, I snagged a Devil's Food cake and Classic White frosting.I hop up on the ladder to get into the back of my pantry (yes, this is an Omen that you need a ladder to reach it), and pull the goods down thinking 'Awesome Choice For Easter Cake'.
Unless you are a very close friend, you don't know that my husband does all the food shopping (this is for all of our safety). This means that I probably get the good luck to food shop a few times a year, and when I go, that's when things like cake mix and frosting end up in the cart.
Smartly, I checked the expiration date on both the cake mix and the frosting, the 'best by' date was some month in 2011. If you're frugal like many people, you might think to yourself, now is it REALLY expired, how bad can it taste being 2 years out of date? I tossed the cake mix first, figuring it wouldn't rise if I made it. But the FROSTING... everybody imagines the shelf life on goods like this has got to be right behind Twinkies. I popped the lid, peeled back the intact foil and stuck my finger in. Smooth texture - not dried at all, smelled OK, so I tasted it. At first I was expecting vanilla, and semi-surprised that it was flavorless. Then I realized it's White. What the hell does WHITE taste like?
I can't recall what fresh WHITE frosting really tastes like, maybe lard, but 2 year expired white frosting tastes like plastic, complete with an aftertaste of more plastic. I'm sure the taste is from the can it's in that is no doubt breaking down. I would rather they say "can expires on this date" because if I was on a desert island, I probably would have frosted a pineapple or palm fronds with it because it was still creamy and decadent. I like food, and I'm always willing to try almost anything out, and I'm sure I'll do it again. I've only officially grossed myself out from eating old spaghetti once, you gotta know your boundaries right? Who's with me? ; )
P.S. Don't worry Mom, I threw it out. It will be Lemon cake instead.
