Does this look the very model of a modern major general? I know. And yet. Pirates of Penzance this week--with our freckle-sprinkled Ben as the patter-singing general himself! We are so excited. After that there will be more recipes, step-by-step sour dough, and fun, fun, fun!
But I will say, I've been making this donut cake a lot recently, with a cup of spelt flour swapped in for a cup of white, and with almost double the amount of nutmeg. Fabulous. My favorite plain cake ever.
Also making lots of this tamale pie, but, thanks to our little vegetarian friend, with tofu chorizo swapped in for the ground beef. Also fabulous. I follow the tofu chorizo recipe from Deborah Madison's book This Can't Be Tofu! which, despite having a kind of retro I-can't-believe-it's-not-butter name, is actually full of great recipes. You can also buy various soy products, of course, or make it with ground beef, which is how it's best.
Meanwhile, Snow Child. I think I made it sound like a kids' book, and it does sound like one, but it's not. Just to be clear. There are teens who would really love it, but there's a miscarriage at its heart (that's not a spoiler, don't worry) and it's very grown-uppy. Just before you sit down to a nice big gynastrophic read-aloud with your little ones.
I also forgot to mention that Little, Brown will ship neither to a P.O. box nor to another country. If you have won, and live in Uruguay without a street address, let's see what we can figure out together. Also, please email me your address and info, winners, please. Chosen randomly (although I was tempted to pick only people who praised me and/or promised to roast their own coffee), and Susan and jen, please note the time and date stamps and look up your comments, since there were multiple Susans and jens:
Susan Mar 23, 2012 08:03 AM
jen Mar 23, 2012 01:12 PM
Library Lauren Mar 25, 2012 06:36 PM
Congratulations! And everyone else, thank you so much for entering, and please hang in there on your library wait list. It comes eventually. It does.
Oh timing! I am getting some sourdough starter for my classroom and we're going to bake with sour dough next week while studying Westward Expansion. I hope your post comes through in time.
ReplyDeleteCongrats to the winners!
ReplyDeleteThat donut cake sounds amazing. I casually mentioned that I'd been considering roasting our own coffee to my husband today. He was a little skeptical, but I think I can win him over. Question - does the air popper have to only be for coffee because popcorn will forever taste like coffee after you've used it for coffee beans? I have a lovely 1981 air popper (The Poppery), and I'm just not sure I am a two air popper person.
I think Ben carries hot pink better than most people I know.
lastdogz, yes. it must be designated for the coffee. it will taste and smell like coffee ever after. but i hear you! i hate the multiple devices. you could get a whirley-pop for the coffee. . . different instructions, but same idea.
DeleteI was inspired to make your "Donut Cake" last night, and my family dubbed it Egg Nog Cake instead. Yummy, no matter what you call it! Somehow, my cake didn't deflate in the middle. I wonder, do you think I could add some mashed bananas to the cake batter near the end? Seems like a cup or so of mashed bananas would go really well.
ReplyDeleteBreak a leg, Ben! :-) (I do not mean that literally, of course....)
ReplyDeleteAfter you are done clapping for the fabulous Mr. Ben, I so hope that the promised fun, fun, fun includes the instructions for the upcycled sweater-blanket, because that first photo has made me yearn for it all over again. :)
ReplyDeleteI can't tell you how pleased I am about winning a book! And now the bonus of a recipe for donut cake. Really. Winning all over the place.
ReplyDeleteI love Nigella Lawson's buttermilk birthday cake, so this donut cake is right up my alley. The addition of nutmeg and that bit of cornmeal sound dreamy.
Go, Ben! Can't wait to hear about his performance.
Thanks, Catherine, for everything.
I went haywire and ordered the coffee and popper all at the same time. Thanks for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteThis has nothing to do with this particular post, i've just been inspired to write a comment for the first time ever. Although I read all the baby center posts, etc., as you wrote them, I went back and read a few today and thought I would leave you a long overdue message. I hope you know that there are scores of readers out there like me that never comment but think your writing is incredibly wise, funny, and beautiful. thank you thank you!
ReplyDeleteDitto, me, and thank you! And all this time reading I never realised that I could be in a different country and even a continent and still win! I could have won a bottle of your preserves, Catherine! and I wouldn't ever like eat it or anything, but it could have been sitting there mixed in with my stuff, just as though I actually knew you
DeleteCatherine,
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering if you would consider putting a few links on your home page when you have a moment. For example, I'd love to have a link to the Utah friends' site and I can't remember the name of the new magazine that is all about crafts and doesn't have any ads. I didn't buy it when you first posted and now when I search "Catherine Newman magazine" I mostly get Wondertime, which just makes me miss it all over again! I like to support you when I shop and I'd love to be able to get to those options from your main page. Thanks!