Oh darn it! I made a cake for my mother(her birthday tomorrow) and it looks like I forgot a quarter of a teaspoon of baking powder (only noticed this after the cake had been in the oven for ten minutes and I was cleaning up the counter and saw the measuring spoon holding the powder sitting there) so...the cake looks awfully flat. It didn't even rise to be level with the rim of the pan. It's an upside-down plum cake. Maybe it'll be okay after all. It's still cooling on the counter. It just figures--I wanted this to be a nice touch to the birthday dinner for my mother, and my cake is a bit of a sad disaster. Maybe a whole bunch of whipped cream on top will help.
*Cake Update: Turns out I left out 1/2 teaspoon(not just 1/4 tsp.) of baking powder, so it is a plum pancake I am stuck with. I don't even know if the thing is deep enough to stick a birthday candle in. Soup making is much easier than the more exact kitchen science of baking.
I heard this phrase on the radio today, by a commentator:
"...standing on line." That always bothers me. I never say standing ON line. It's standing IN line, isn't ?
As I drove to R's school today to pick up for her up after cross-county, I noticed people scattered around here and there and looking kind of slow-moving and sad. A man on a bench by the beach, looking downward with his head in his hands. A man leaning against the sea wall. Just a lot of lone people. Or else people engaged in walking around outside, seemingly oblivious to the ocean water and blue sky and talking on their cell phones. A little melancholy, seeing that disconnectedness, I had to think. Or maybe I was just reading too much into it. The town seems a little melancholy with all the crowds of summer gone--maybe that is it.
Going to the farmer's market this afternoon cheered me up. There were goats there who wagged their tails when you stroked them under their goat-y chins. I never knew they did that, when they were happy. Buying a big bag of freshly made kettle corn (Korn?) made me(and R and her friend who I picked up from cross-country practice) very happy. As in "eat half the bag before we even could get it home" happy.
While I was at the market, I bought some pretty yellow and green summer squashes to add to the bean soup I made in the morning. I have to say--my 6-bean soup(It should have been 7-bean, but I picked out the nasty Lima beans the night before when I pre-soaked them) came out like a culinary work of art. I do make a rockin' bean soup when I am feeling inspired to make it from scratch. If I may say so... ;-)
*Cake Update: Turns out I left out 1/2 teaspoon(not just 1/4 tsp.) of baking powder, so it is a plum pancake I am stuck with. I don't even know if the thing is deep enough to stick a birthday candle in. Soup making is much easier than the more exact kitchen science of baking.
11 comments:
My mom's b.day is today. Go figure.
I haven't made a cake from scratch in eons - I used to love baking so much... (and already bought a cake mix for son's b.day in a few weeks...)
I'm a little sad about summer too. It was blustery down there, wasn't it?
happy Tuesday!
Ooohh..a comment right away! And, of course, it's from you, Erin. So nice, always, of you to come along and read and comment, even when I don't really say much of anything here.
So, we both have Virgo mothers, do we now? ;-)
Not to sound all too Martha Stewartish, but there is an easy recipe for the cake I found at Real Simple(you could make it with other fruits, too) and I have made this cake before and it is very nice(of course, this one time, I messed up).
Actually, it was sunny and nice and kind of eerily tropical feeling today--but no blustery anything(yet).
Again one of the post that I love.;))
I so recognize the fact that when you really need a cake or a dish to turn out well, it never does.;) Murphys law.;))
I also notice the sadness around me. It always effects me as I am sensitive to the way things are around me and melancholy gets to me at all times, sometimes driving me to tears...
Enjoy your soup; I love squash, it is so significant of autumn, just like pumpkin.;))
xoxo
That's it, exactly, Ms. Protege--"Murphy's Law"! So, I am just laughing about it. And, as it turns out--I have a nice Plum Pancake to serve after dinner!(the cake recipe called for 3/4 teaspoon baking powder and I actually left out a 1/2 teaspoon of it and not just 1/4 teaspoon as I first thought)
plum pancake! lol. i think that's what would happen if i tried to make a cake from scratch. i did make banana bread from scratch yesterday though.
standing on line? yeah, that is so wrong. i also hate when people say--irregardless. there is no such word! it is regardless. period. lol
The cake situation got me laughing through the whole entry :-)...plum pancake...you come up with the smartest things. But hey!, it may be taken as a extravagant/international cuisine cake :-))
The bean soup sounds delicious. Never heard of such before.
Actually, whipped cream can make anything right, in my opinion. I always feel a bit sad at this time of year too. I guess it's because I know what's coming in the way of weather.
Standing on line - nonsense! it sounds as if he's standing on the Internet.
Maybe the folks were feeling melancholy as it was the last day of summer? Sorry about the cake, but remember ... any cake is a good cake :)
c.k.,
I love banana bread! I just like the taste of fresh baked food, so I bake in the colder months a lot(please don't think I am some kind of overly domestic goddess-- I am not)
Claudia,
The plum panckae actually tasted just fine--what a relief! And the bean soup is proably like something you have had--some dried beans cooked with onion, some tomato and carrots, salt and pepper and then I threw in some rice and some more veggies. Very simple fare, good for you and good tasting(if you like beans, that is)
Sandra,
I agree--everything DOES taste better with whipped cream! :-)
Joanne,
Another trueism--"...any cake is good cake!" I like it. And, the cake turned out to be entirely edible-phew! Nice to "see" you here and I like your new profile photo, too.
I had a good guess! The missing ingredient was baking powder! Believe me, when I replied to your comment on my blog I hadn't read yours yet! So, good guess. When Alkis was about to graduate from the hotel school in Geneva, he had to prepare and present a wedding cake for a real wedding reception. 4 executive chefs and 3 professors were there to assess. Alkis was a bit nervous and uptight and he put salt in the cake instead of sugar. The last moment, thank God, he realised his mistake and corrected it! The wedding cake turned out to be a great success and Alkis got 6 out of 6 - that's an A*!
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