Swedish Visitng Cake

Last week I ordered the cookbook: Baking from My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan. It arrived on Saturday and I was way too busy to even glance at it. I have to admit that having the book in the house and not having the time to look it over was driving me batty. So Sunday morning I woke up determined to give it the once over. I browsed through it several times realizing that it wasn't enough to just look through it...I HAD to bake something. I decided on the Swedish Visiting Cake...first because the idea of cooking it in a cast iron pan intrigued me and second because I happened to have all the ingredients on hand. The entire cake is mixed by hand; so there's not a lot of cleanup and it comes together in minutes. The idea behind the cake, according to Dorie, is that you can start making it the minute visitors arrive in your driveway and it will be finished by the time they are settled in your house. The cake bakes fluffy and moist on the inside with a crunchy golden exterior. Topped with sliced almonds and sprinkled sugar; it's delicious served both straight from the oven or cooled. Yes, I've tried it both ways.