A Good Cake Ruined

I'm sure you've heard of rice pudding, you've heard of noodle pudding, and of course you are familiar with Jello pudding.  Well, the Pudding Cake I chose as today's frightening food uses none of the above. No, indeed, this is a very special cake. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you: EGGPLANT PUDDING CAKE!

When I discovered the recipe for this culinary treat, my first thought was, "Who comes up with this stuff?" My mental picture of eggplant dresses it in bread crumbs, tomato sauce and mozzerella cheese, none of which I ever want to see in a cake recipe. Then I glanced through the recipe. It is almost identical to the recipe for zucchini cake, in which the zucchini is doing perfectly well as the squash of choice. The zucchini does make the cake nice and moist when it is baked. On the other hand, baked eggplant gets an almost slimy texture. My theory is that this recipe is the invention of a home gardener overun with eggplant, who was trying to use it in every way imaginable. I can't imagine that any dish with the name of Eggplant Pudding Cake will be well recieved by the kiddies.  Retitled appropriately, maybe it stands a chance of acceptance. Gardener's Pudding Cake? Moist Pudding Cake? Secret Ingredient Pudding Cake? Anything but:

EGGPLANT PUDDING CAKE

1 pkg. yellow cake mix, 2 layer size (NOT the kind that has pudding added)
1 pkg. vanilla flavor instant pudding, 4-serving size
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup oil
2 cups grated, peeled eggplant
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/8 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Blend, then beat at medium speed of electric mixer for 4 minutes [this probably renders the eggplant all but invisible. Good idea. Pour into a greased and floured fluted tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour 10 minutes, of until cake tests done. Do not underbake. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove from pan and continue cooling on rack. Sprinkle with sifted powdered sugar, if desired.

Note:For mellowing of flavors, cover and store overnight.

This recipe was taken from: A Collection of the VERY FINEST RECIPES ever assembled in one Cookbook CONVENTIONAL AND MICROWAVE, Becker Publications, 1979 [Quite a name!]