A brief note from Margery M. Clark of Baltimore requested a recipe for a cake that she made years ago that contained sausage and was made in a tube pan.

Alberta Cannon of Fayetteville, N.C., responded with a recipe and a note: "I have had this recipe for sausage cake many years, and I hope it's what she's looking for. This recipe was given to me by a friend many years ago. I usually make it for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, and my family enjoys it."

Sausage Cake

Serves 12 to 16

1 cup raisins

1 pound pork sausage (not in casings)

1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon ginger

1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup cold strong coffee

1 cup chopped walnuts

Pour boiling water over raisins and let stand 5 minutes. Set aside. In a mixing bowl, combine meat and sugar; stir until well blended. Add eggs and beat well.

In a separate bowl, sift flour, ginger, pumpkin-pie spice and baking powder. Stir baking soda into coffee. Add flour mixture to meat mixture, alternately with coffee mixture, beating well after each addition.

Drain and dry raisins on a paper towel, then fold them and walnuts into the cake batter. Turn batter into a well-greased and -floured bundt pan (9-cup size). Bake 1 1/2 hours in preheated 350-degree oven, or until golden-brown. Cool in pan 15 minutes before turning out.

Tester Laura Reiley's comments: "This is very akin to a traditional Welsh spice cake made with bulk sausage, or other English spice cakes made with suet. The fat from the sausage adds great moisture and body to the finished cake, which has a mild, spicy flavor imparted by the ginger and pumpkin-pie spice. It is best when it has had a chance to sit for a few hours. After it cools, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. It will last for a very long time in the refrigerator."

Recipe requests

Olivia J. Walker of Baltimore requests a recipe for blackened salmon and for a hot crab dip.

Elsie Plumer of Baltimore writes that she is "looking for a good cream of crab soup recipe," and adds, "If anyone has a good one I would love to have it."

If you are looking for a recipe or can answer a request for a hard-to-find recipe, write to Ellen Hawks, Recipe Finder, The Sun, 501 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD 21278. If you send more than one recipe, please put each on a separate sheet of paper with your name, address and daytime phone number.

Important: Please list the ingredients in order of use, and note the number of servings each recipe makes.

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