Assignment Cake? Completed.

Last week was full of fun (and a bit of stress) as we traveled down to Atlanta for Matt and Lauren's wedding. The atmosphere was phenomenal and it was such a joy to be a part of such a special day. That ever detail reflected something about Lauren and demonstrated her mother, Jackie's ability to capture a feeling with her entertaining--amazing.

You can see photos (and the cake that took two days of work--one of me baking, one of Joel and I assembling in the hours leading up to the nuptuals) at the AsianCajun blog, too.

Cake Hubris?

I know, it's been ages since I've posted. Life is full. Dissertation, teaching, job market, living...it's just full.

So I'll skip over the update concerning Chuck City, and instead offer a preview of the weekend. We're going to Atlanta for the wedding of good friends/family, and I'm...

...baking the cakes.

Yep. For a wedding with 20 guests, I'm making a three-tiered monster, as all in attendance not only want their cake, but eat it, too. My kind of wedding guests!

I'm totally excited (and honored!) to be undertaking such a project. The logistics promise to be difficult. Just to give you a hint of what I'll be working on this Thursday, Friday, and Saturday (with spurts of dissertating in between), my shopping list:

What I believe I will need.....

11 cups flour (cake flour is good, or all-purpose--NOT self-rise!--would work just fine)
1 c cocoa powder (I like Trader Joe's; Hershey's dark also works well)
baking soda
baking powder
salt
9 lbs butter (unslated)
12 c sugar
2/3 c brown sugar
32 eggs
vanilla extract (real stuff, please)
almond extract (real stuff, please)
4 c buttermilk
1/2 c sour cream

2 bags dark chocolate/bittersweet chips (giardelli is good)
cream of tartar
instant coffee (optional; only if you have it)
rum (just need a few tablespoons; whatever you have on hand will be good)

1 c heavy cream

3 c whipping cream
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
a few tablespoons honey

6-8 bags frozen raspberries
5 fresh lemons (for the juice)



-3 boxes for transporting, one that can fit 14" cake with a bit of wiggle room, another for the 10", and a third for the 6".
-aluminum foil (for lining boxes--to be safe, one roll)
-plastic wrap. Not sure what I want it for, but it might help
-two pieces of carboard, one that can make a 10" circle, another a 6" circle (I will cover these and put them between the cakes to make sure that the cake is structurally sound). A box from the liquer store would work just fine.
-wooden skewers (like the kabob sticks) -- I use these to also suppor the layers. One bag will be more than enough.
-standing mixer (I'll try to bring mine; having one there will make my life tons easier--that's right, TWO mixers) and possibly a hand mixer (but not necessary)
-my cake caddy for brining the groom's cake over

bonus: parchment paper, margrin or crisco (for greasing the pan)

Means of decorating the cake/displaying it. Please consult with your beloved; a sheet of plywood cut 16" or larger can be covered in aluminum foil would work just fine. Cloth can be draped over it, or what have you. But some sort of display/transport material would be best worked out ahead of time--I'm assuming L knows how she wants it displayed.

Hope you all caught that--9 POUNDS of butter. 32 Eggs!

It shall be glorious. I plan on documenting the progress and sharing it with you all.

Happy Tuesday!

VD

Yes, yes, I know. I hate schmaltz. You all may remember previous posts where I put up pictures of open heart surgery, joke about venereal disease (hence the "VD" title of this very post), and I generally wear black.

So, while I'm not wearing black (blue, green, and white today, actually), I still try to remember that Valentine's Day can be so very very lonely. And a horrible excuse for buying things. My gift today will be a beautiful evening with soup and games, perhaps with a few heart-shaped biscuits. Because that's how I roll.

And so, since today is overly hyped as a day of buying and receiving, I'd like to remind you that it's the small things that show you love the ones you are with--the making of small things, the small attentions, the very best way life together in community works. Don't go buy tons of flowers, or jewelry, or chocolate (though I'm thrilled to get chocolate any other day) because that's what you are told to do. Make things, be thoughtful. For your co-workers, your family, your friends.

Today, by the way, is St. Valentine's Day. Saint Valentine, I will remind you, is the patron saint of bee keepers.

So on a day like today, I think of all those I love and who love me; if I could, I'd give my favorite bee keeper a hug.

Domesticity

Winter is a time for staying in, building a fire, and reading a good book.

Because I tend to (read: always) run on the cold side, I enjoy curling up in a small ball under the covers with a cup of coffee. And now, recently, I've begun not wanting to travel out as much, but to stay in and make things.

In the past, this has manifested itself as cooking, cleaning, perhaps an odd knitting project or two. But now, it includes mental preparations for making a home. Refinishing furniture, sewing little girls dresses (a good friend in Germany just had her second baby, and she'll need a dress!), mending things.

Mending things?

The other day, I saw a tear in TJ's work overalls. And so I asked if I would be allowed to fix them.

Now, they aren't good as new, but hopefully I would not shame my mother with the job I did (I tend to be careless about small details, while my mother gets all of the small things perfectly). I know, I used white thread when I was instructed to use blue. But you didn't put blue thread in my sewing kit, Mom!

Here's the patch I sewed on:




Does the material in the background look familiar?

Those of you who have been a roommate or a close friend over the past 15 years will recognize the pattern--they are from my favorite pair of pajama pants I've had since High School. In the last year or two, they have gotten quite thin through the seat. A week ago, they tore.

(And what satisfaction I get out of wearing something through!)

Now my pajamas have new life, and hopefully TJ will be stuck thinking of me every time he gets ready for work.

What does the future hold, I wonder?

So much seems to be happening in life right now. I won't be getting into it much, but suffice it to say that my head is spinning. And it includes me trying to write my dissertation in just a little over a year.

As we prepare for another season of Lent at St. B's, I'm reminded about how important spiritual disciplines are. For now, I'm trying to remain in the moment, enjoying what I have. It means focusing on a simple life, looking to God and understanding His blessings in these things, as well as remaining faithful to Him by waiting to see what He has in store.

I look forward to sharing this with you all in the future.

Notes on Theodicy

This morning, as part of my morning read, I came across this passage from Guardini:

"How an evil exist, and the destruction caused by evil exist, in a world God created? God wanted the world to be good and healthy; has it not in fact proved a failure? The answer is that God wished the world to reach its culmination in man's freedom and He must therefore give this freedom the power of decision, even against Himself. But, it is urged, Got knew from eternity what form that decision would take. Why, then, did He create the world at all? One possible reply is that these questions touch upon the realm of absolute mystery and therefore both the questions and any answers we try to give them are necessarily inadequate. None the less, a man has to put these questions; it is the only way he can express the most disturbing note in all existence. Why, then, did God bring a creature into being when He foresaw the way it would go?" (From: "Freedom, Grace, Destiny")

As Sudan stands on the cusp of the Referendum, pray for how freedom is used and the future only God foresees.

Beach Christmas

This Christmas, I departed from the usual pattern of travel to Virginia in favor of the ocean. With a handful of friends and a week for total relaxation (look, Ma, no work!), I packed a few pairs of trousers, a fleece, and some cookies.

A few lovely things about the week. Work was split between all of us; cooking and shared meals made it all a joy rather than the normal burden it can be when cooking for one.

How restful the week has been, and how good to enjoy a few lovely people with minimal stress.

By far the most lovely part of the break was the engagement of two lovely people, Matt and Lauren. Matt is Pam's brother, and so Pam was instrumental in pulling off Matt's plan. Me, with my inability to use digression, did not find out about the plans and my small part in them until the 11th hour. Thank goodness for friends who know you are bad at keeping secrets!

Morning of the engagement (Christmas morning!), Pam and I woke up at 5:45. Pam made up tea, packed a cooler with breakfast things, and we headed out to the beach. We set up and then waited in the car for them to arrive at the scene--a swing on the beach faced toward the rising sun.

How wondrous to participate in some small way!

Now, it's packing and letter writing, and then we head back to Nashville in the morning by way of Atlanta. More excitement and adventures to follow, including baking exercises for my first wedding cake!

For a bit of joy for you all, here's a recipe for Zimtsterne, one of the Swiss cookies I made for everyone to enjoy.