Perfect day for a minty iced tea and a good book in the backyard. I’ve just finished Ruth Reichl’s (of Gourmet magazine and New York Times restaurant critic) autobiographical book, Tender at the Bone: Growing up at the Table, and it was thoroughly enjoyable. A great read for just such a Sunday afternoon!

Because I am a very lucky person, and have great people in my family, I recently received a fantastic parcel in the mail. It was filled with goodies from the Liberty of London line at Target. Since we don’t even have Target in Canada (yet), my very generous and crafty aunt took pity on her poor foreign niece and offered to smuggle some across the border (okay, not really smuggle, sent totally legally through the mail, but you get the point). Although I have yet to bake anything beautiful enough to sit on this tiered tray, it sits on my dining room table where I can admire it every time I go by. The mugs I get to enjoy every morning with my coffee and the shirts are ideal for this hot weather. Although many of the items on the website were out of stock shortly after the line launched, it looks like they are re-stocking things, so if you missed out the first time around you may get as second chance.

Although it’s not the start of summer officially yet, the May long weekend is symbolically the change of seasons around here. And there’s no better way to celebrate that than a community gathering to light off pyrotechnics in the local park. This is an annual tradition in our neighbourhood – just people bringing their own fireworks in wheelbarrows and wagons and taking turns putting on a show from the baseball field. It’s pretty wild.

my new pincushion :: Chicken run cushion ::  A little customer order… :: Untitled

a beautiful copy, i :: leon’s quilt top :: Menemsha Quilt (for Baby Miles) :: shaping up!

The Twin Sisters: Norma and Loretta Springbud :: work in progress :: Stag in the Bushes :: cake stand…

home… :: garden party :: Spring cranes :: Vintage fabric Christmas trees

For the second in this series of birthday cakes, I’ve really been looking forward to making this Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake from Smitten Kitchen. To my mind, it’s hard to go wrong with a chocolate and peanut butter combination, although I’ve never made a layered cake so I was a bit apprehensive about that part of it. But then it turned out that, although a bit time consuming to go through all the steps, surprisingly it wasn’t too difficult. I made the cakes the day before and they kept in the fridge well over night. Follow her advice to do the crumb coat layer of icing – this was brilliant. The first layer I did looked hideous with crumbs everywhere, then I popped it in the fridge for awhile and then did the final layer which looked lovely in comparison. My glaze was a bit too thick for some reason so it didn’t drip quite as beautifully as I had hoped. We made some jokes about how it looked a bit like Ian’s hair actually, or maybe a lego head. But whatever, not bad for a novice effort. The cake itself is wonderful and moist. The icing and glaze are delicious as well, but be warned, this is a very rich and sweet cake. We sliced it into 20 thin slivers and many people at the party still couldn’t finish theirs. It did receive many rave reviews though, particularly from those in the crowd with more of a sweet tooth, so if that’s the type of cake you’re looking for this one comes highly recommended.

I’ve had my ipod for ages, but only recently felt the need to come up with a case for it, mostly to keep the earphones from getting tangled in my bag.

What I came up with is fairly functional, but I think I’ll make another one at some point with a few tweaks. I didn’t want to mess with anything fancy that had cutaways for the screen and control pad so I made it mostly to hold the ipod while it isn’t it use, but in retrospect it would be pretty useful to be able reach the controls more easily. And I added a pocket in front to hold the earphones, but underestimated how big they are so they don’t really fit. Live and learn, I’ll make a new version someday but this is good enough for now.

I’ve been browsing a copy of Martha Stewart’s Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts. It’s a very pretty book, impeccably styled as Martha always is – kind of like reading a greatest hits of Martha Stewart Living Magazine. The project section is always my favorite part of the magazine anyways. There’s a nice section in the book on techniques and materials at the front and then its organized alphabetically by topics – aprons, curtains, flowers, nursery, pillows, upholstery, etc. Lots of lovely project ideas, and a complete set of patterns and instructions on a disc at the back, which seems like a good idea. Although I haven’t tried any of the patterns yet, I’m sure it will come in handy soon.

I’ve been looking for a good reason to try out some cake recipes – with only two of us in the house it seems a bit excessive to make a cake for everyday consumption. So when a certain special someone’s birthday came around, I thought it seemed like a perfect opportunity. And since we’re spreading the celebrations out over two weekends, I’ve got two chances. First up, this Toffee Pudding Cake from Rose’s Heavenly Cakes, with a Stout and Skor Ice Cream from the Beer Bistro Cookbook.

The Beer Bistro is one of our favorite restaurants, and this ice cream in their cookbook was too intriguing to pass up. Then I saw the toffee cake recipe which is made with stout also and I thought it seemed like a good match. The stout in the cake gives it a great rich flavour, without actually tasting beer-y and the toffee sauce is amazing. The ice cream was outstanding as well, the beer flavour was lovely and subtle, and nicely paired with the yummy skor bar. Overall, a very successful cake adventure. Stay tuned for part 2!

Stout and Skor Bar Ice Cream
from the Beer Bistro Cookbook

9 egg yolks
140 g (5 oz) granulated sugar
550 ml (2 1/4 cups) whipping cream
300 ml (1 1/4 cups) sweet Caribbean stout
360 g (12 oz) Skor bar chopped

In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until light and fluffy. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring cream to a boil. Remove from heat and, whisking constantly, slowly add cream to egg mixture. Whisk in beer.
Process in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer’s directions. Remove ice cream from the machine, stir in chopped Skor bar and allow to set in the freezer.

Makes about 1.25 l (5 cups).

Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake
from Rose’s Heavenly Cakes

For the batter
1 cup stout beer, preferable Guinness extra stout
1 teaspoon baking soda
About 6 large dates, pitted
6 tablespoons unsalted butter [65F° to 75°F (19C° to 23°C)]
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups (sifted into the cup and leveled off) bleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

For the butterscotch toffee sauce
1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar, preferable Muscovado
1 vanilla bean
16 tablespoons unsalted butter [65F° to 75°F (19C° to 23°C)]
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/8 teaspoon salt

Prepare one 9 by 13-inch baking pan, bottom coated with solid shortening, lined with parchment (no need to coat the parchment or sides).

Set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) for at least 20 minutes. [If using a Pyrex or dark pan, bake at 300°F (150°C)].

Prepare the dates
In a small saucepan, bring the beer to the boiling point. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the baking soda. It will fizz up a lot. Pour the beer mixture over the pitted dates. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Remove the dates to a food processor and add a little of the beer mixture. Process until a paste is formed. Gradually add the rest of the liquid through the feed tube. The mixture will be very smooth, dark, and glossy. Scrape it into a bowl and keep it covered until ready to use.

Make the batter and bake the cake
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater, beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy. In a small bowl, lightly whisk the eggs. With the mixer on medium speed, gradually add the eggs in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. (The mixture may appear curdled, but after adding the flour, it will be smooth.)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add one-third of the flour mixture to the batter and mix on low speed for 10 to 15 seconds just until incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add half the date mixture and mix just until incorporated, about 15 seconds. Repeat with another third of the flour mixture, then the remaining date mixture, and finally the remaining flour mixture. Mix just until the batter is uniform in color and no streaks remain.

Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed. Using a silicone spatula, scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface evenly with an offset spatula. The pan will be about one-third full.

Bake for 15 minutes, rotate the pan halfway, and continue baking for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until a wire cake tester comes out clean when inserted in the center and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center.

Let the pan cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a small metal spatula between the sides of the pan and the cake, pressing firmly against the pan, and invert the cake onto the prepared baking sheet. Reinvert it onto the second sheet or cutting board. Serve at once or reheat for 5 minutes in a 350°F (175ºC) oven. The cake will be about 1 1/4 inches at the sides and 1 1/2 inches in the center.

Make the butterscotch toffee sauce
While the cake is baking, make the toffee sauce. In a small saucepan, place the brown sugar. With a small sharp knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise in half. Scrape the vanilla bean seeds into the sugar. Rub the seeds in with your fingers. Remove and reserve the pod. With a silicone spatula, stir in the butter. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the heavy cream, lemon juice, salt, and the reserved vanilla pod. The mixture will be slightly grainy but will become totally smooth on standing. Reheat, if necessary, and remove the vanilla pod before serving. (a confession – I didn’t have a vanilla pod, so I added about 1 tsp of vanilla extract and it seemed to work okay)

Cut the sticky toffee pudding into thirds the long way and fourths the short way. Set each portion on a serving plate. Pour 3 tablespoons of the toffee sauce on top of each serving, allowing it to cascade over the sides and pool onto the plate.

I miss the weekend already……

….brunch at Lady Marmalade. Delish!

1. Tiered Cake Stand by Giver’s log
2. Ruffle Shirt by Tea Rose Home
3. Spring Rings by Miss Priss
4. Vintage Book Planner by Just Something I made
5. Modern Outdoor Planter at Apartment Therapy
6. T-Shirt Shrug at Lu Bird Baby