simple things

Posted on | May 19, 2008 | 23 Comments

Have you seen Tastespotting?  Beware, it’ll make you do things you have no intention of doing.  Make you want to cook things you previously had no intention of cooking.  I added Tastespotting to my Bloglines and after two days, I was acting completely irrational.

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I paid a small fortune for fresh Bing cherries.

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Which I then cooked in butter, brown sugar and a wee bit of basalmic vinegar (to cut the tartness of the cherries).

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I love vanilla.  My sister brought this back from Mexico for me and it’s divine.  I take huge whiffs of it and have been known to dab a tiny bit behind my ears.  Vanilla and black Sharpies are two of my favorite smells.  Oh, and onions and garlic sauteeing in butter.  Forget fancy perfumes, just give me the basics!

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Folding in egg whites is kind of a pain.  Would it be any easier with a fancy-schmancy Kitchenaid mixer?  Probably not.

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Ta-da!  Cherry Cornmeal Upside-Down Cake!  Very quick, very easy, and other than the break-your-budget cherries, I had everything already in my cupboard.  And it tastes good, too!  Not terribly sweet, just right with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I know what you’re thinking.  No, this isn’t turning into a food blog.  I also made yarn -

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Can you believe, that after a year and a half of spinning, I’ve never spun white yarn?  I’ve dyed all the white fiber I’ve ever had, but the project I’m working on now (pics soon) requires white yarn for balance.  This is a new-to-me breed – Gulf Coast Native from Ran-Mar Alpacas, purchased at SAFF last year.  I wasn’t too impressed with it while spinning, but plying and a good bath have completely changed my mind.  It is so soft, so perfect in its non-colorness, I may have to get more.  Simplicity can be beautiful.

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Sorry Maryse.  I couldn’t resist.

Category: Recipes, spinning

Comments

23 Responses to “simple things”

  1. Shannon
    May 19th, 2008 @ 12:36 pm

    Yum! That cake looks great. you know,. I’ve never spun white either – it looks nice.

  2. Jessi
    May 19th, 2008 @ 1:10 pm

    Wow, that looks good! :-)

  3. Carole
    May 19th, 2008 @ 1:17 pm

    Everything here looks yummy!

  4. Cassie
    May 19th, 2008 @ 1:27 pm

    You’re having way too much fun with that new camera, girl. ;-)

    Can you save me a slice? Or send me one? Mmmmm….

  5. rebecca
    May 19th, 2008 @ 2:19 pm

    wow. i love bing cherries. your cake looks awesome. and, it’s okay if this turns into a food blog. i’m sure that whomever loves yarn, can also appreciate yummy food photos.

  6. Laura
    May 19th, 2008 @ 2:24 pm

    Beautiful! Delicious! The dessert And the yarn!! :)

  7. Meg
    May 19th, 2008 @ 6:53 pm

    If I get in the car right now, will there be any cake left when I get there? That looks marvelous! Glad to hear about your experience with the Gulf Coast wool, I’ve been itching to try some.

  8. Monika
    May 19th, 2008 @ 9:14 pm

    Oh sure, on the day I finally decide to go on a diet, I’m finding this link with mouth watering recipes! The yarn looks lovely. :o)

  9. angelarae
    May 20th, 2008 @ 6:50 am

    That looks yummy…thanks, I’m on a diet:P
    Ang

  10. Becky
    May 20th, 2008 @ 7:06 am

    Oh, for the love… now I have to go out and buy some bing cherries! Does it taste as good as it looks? I may be going to a friend’s place for a spin day on Memorial Day and it’ll be the perfect time to try out a new recipe. I’ve found some really good recipes on Epicurious and I suspect this one will be added to that list.

  11. kv
    May 20th, 2008 @ 7:20 am

    beautiful cake. now to make yourself totally insane (fat?), start reading smittenkitchen.com.

  12. Emily
    May 20th, 2008 @ 7:53 am

    *swoon*

    smittenkitchen.com – if you aren’t already reading

  13. Mandy
    May 20th, 2008 @ 7:56 am

    Cherries are scandalous, but worth it. Yum-o!

  14. cyndy
    May 20th, 2008 @ 8:10 am

    yummie cake, yummie yarn….

    Vanilla and black Sharpies!….you crack me up.

  15. Jen
    May 20th, 2008 @ 7:41 am

    OMG that looks SOOOOOOOOOOO good. I love cherries. And butter. And brown sugar. And basically everything bad for me. I’m going to go have cottage cheese and fruit cocktail and pretend it’s your cherry cornmeal cake thing. Mmmm..

  16. Carrie
    May 20th, 2008 @ 10:46 am

    I almost bought cherries just yesterday, too.

  17. maryse
    May 20th, 2008 @ 12:50 pm

    tell that yarn cake that i have yarn cakes that can beat it’s ass ;)

  18. Maia
    May 21st, 2008 @ 1:39 am

    I can see that website is dangerous! The cherry cake looks yummy! I have used vanilla as a perfume too. Love sauting onions and garlic, I’ll pass on huffing sharpies though.

    Gulf Coast Native is a breed I’ve never heard of before. Is the staple length on the short side? Is it crimpy?

  19. Crazy For Yarn In Alabama
    May 21st, 2008 @ 8:56 am

    OH….I am going to have to get some Cherries…..your pics are GREAT and MOUTH WATERING!!!!!

  20. grace
    May 21st, 2008 @ 1:31 pm

    Yum. Cherries!

  21. Miss Scarlett
    May 21st, 2008 @ 11:25 pm

    Oh my goodness — that looks so good!!
    I am going to go check that place out.

    I looove upside down cakes – I was actually thinking of making one for the last few weeks and just keep getting lazy about it.

    And pure vanilla from Mexico is sublime. Rats – my brother was just there too. This is what I get for being behind on blog reading. :-(

    Love the white yarn too.

  22. Beth
    May 25th, 2008 @ 11:54 am

    You know you’ve been on Ravelry too long when you want to ‘favorite’ the picture of the cake…

  23. Snowbird
    May 26th, 2008 @ 5:15 pm

    The cherry cornmeal upside down cake looks fabulous! A big helping of that with a large cup of coffee. Will have to try this recipe!