OlyveOyl

To both 1 and 2 yes. I use baking strips when I want to be sure the cake is level and they work quite well.The appropriate size is important as well as wringing out the excess water. I also use the strips when baking a cake with fruit. I find it slows down the heat penetration so the sides do not over brown. As for ermine frosting, it’s lovely, light frosting that is also delicate. The cake is best used soon after frosting as I don’t like to keep it at a warm room temperature.

Oatmeal pancakes and strawberries for a filling breakfast. I made these a little thinner this morning by using all milk rather than half yogurt. A little strawberry jam found it’s way in between the pancakes. The plate was warmed in the micro with the maple syrup which kept the pancakes warm while enjoying them.

@chromedome I often use sour cream in lieu of whipped cream as we like the slight tang it provides which frequently offsets the sweetness of desserts. I don’t add any sugar to mine but some might prefer it lightly sweetened.

Biscuits and berries, a mega biscuit that I split with DH . A swipe of butter, strawberry jam, sour cream and berries. Nearing the end of Farmers Mkt. berries in my neck of the woods, this was a delicious use for them and needs a repeat.

@Shelby I must confess to not peeling the Sungolds, but there were only two of them😌

Dumpling Tomato Salad with Chili Crisp Vinaigrette, a delicious recipe at the NYT., with thanks to @Senior Sea Kayaker for reminding me of it. This is a quick to put together recipe that only requires you to macerate the cut up tomatoes with s, p, minced garlic and torn up basil leaves for 20/30 minutes. In the meanwhile, the vinaigrette of soy, rice wine vinegar and chili crisp is prepared and set aside. Lastly, the dumplings are fried and then steamed. Alli are then mixed together and topped with some fried shallots. As I had used the last of my micro fried shallots, I fortunately had some TJ’s fried onions in the pantry which substituted admirably. The onions provided a nice crunch to the dish. This will be excellent when summer tomatoes are really good. I did peel the red tomatoes though 😁

Lunch today was Maryland style crab cakes, mini taters oven roasted in duck fat, and romaine salad and cherry tomatoes courtesy the Farmers Mkt.

@weinoo My reliable source is my daughter who lives on the easterm shore of Md. current price for Jumbo Lump there is $54 lb. Besides Hall brand, Epicure has also been very reliable. The freshness is impeccable.

Linguinette with jumbo lump crabmeat, a little sautéed garlic, peperoncini, capers, scallions white wine. Crushed mini oyster crackers zapped with butter, Old Bay and Worcestershire were scattered around the edge of the plate. Dessert was strawberry ice cream with macerated strawberries.

Luscious little strawberries won’t be around too much longer in my neck of the woods, so we are having them very frequently. This time it’s with little Mary Ann cakes, strawberry pastry cream in the center and a dollop of cream.

@rotuts memoriediangelina The frittata di pane is what I have based it on. But the directions in the recipe have you soak bread in milk and then squeeze out milk and discard. Instead, I soak and retain the liquid and add the eggs to it. Half of the milk/bread/egg mixture goes into the pan, followed by the filling and the the remaining frittata mixture. This was the 4 egg version. When I make the smaller version,I cook it stove top , lightly covered, then flip and return to pan.

Frittata for lunch today. Slightly overfilled with sautéed onion and chard, a few quartered small San Marzano tomatoes, Swiss chard and petit peas from the terrace pots. Diced ham and Parmesan/Gouda cheese were also added, then baked in the oven for about 20 minutes. I usually make a smaller version but was using up bits and bobs.

Fettuccine with a pork ragu , whipped ricotta, and herbs from the garden. I had a small piece of leftover pork roast that was looking for a home, so it got pulse chopped with some garlic and a small carrot. To that I added canned San Marzano tomatoes, peperoncini,white wine , a little squeeze of tomato paste and some evoo.That was simmered for about 45 minutes, added parsley, fresh marjoram and basil. The ricotta was whipped in the food processor until it was silky smooth, the sauce made enough for several meals. A green salad from the garden followed by a dish of sliced strawberries finished off lunch.

Beautiful artichokes this season, they have been fresh and very “ meaty “. My favorite presentation is with vinaigrette , the peeled stems were a bonus. A strawberry dessert with wonderful strawberries and a little lemon cakelet topped with sour cream was a pleasant ending.

Strawberry cakelets with freshly churned strawberry/raspberry gelato, lightly sweetened strawberries and a dollop of sour cream. I made six of these in a Mary Ann mold. and used the recipe from Nordic Ware’s 3 cup Vanilla Poundcake . The recessed molds required only half the recipe and bake in about 10 minutes. They are light and tender and make a good match for the ice cream and strawberries.

I’ll join you in a duet…he’s one of my favorites!

Fettuccine and zucchini, sautéed onion, garlic, peperoncini, mint and marjoram from the garden. Strawberries from the Farmers Market with a little gelato.

@MaryIsobel .https://lovefoodies.com/wp-json/mv-create/v1/creations/771/print Raspberry and almond cake , hope this link works for you, I took it off a print page. I recommend cake strips around the sides of the pan, after ten minutes, I slide a thin cookie sheet underneath to prevent over browning. I bake at 350* convection bake and drop the temperature to 335* after ten minutes. It is the same recipe as the fig and also the raspberry almond I posted in the Sweets thread.

@MaryIsobelThe strawberry cake is moist but not custardy. It has almond flour in it and stays fresh for several days. I use it as a basic cake recipe that I top with seasonal fruit.

Brats on the menu today, poached, then sautéed in a little duck fat. Sauerkraut cooked in white wine and a small dollop of duck fat, and, no surprise here, potatoes sautéed in duck fat with garlic and parsley.

Farro salad with preserved lemon vinaigrette on a bed of endive and sorrel. The farro salad included julienned pork tenderloin, tuna, radish, tomatoes, capers, black olives, mint, parsley and chervil. For dessert we had a strawberry cake , today with sour cream and strawberries, yesterday we had it with strawberry gelato.

Fig and almond cake, almond flour keeps this cake moist for several days. This was also made in the food processor, so quick into the oven. The cake was made in a deep eight inch tart pan. A raspberry coulis was a nice accompaniment to the cake, the tartness played well with the sweet figs.

Whipped ricotta crostini, tomatoes, radish, olive salad. Thinly sliced semolina seeded bread oven toasted until golden, spread with whipped ricotta and assorted toppings. The ricotta had lemon zest, preserved lemon, lemon thyme, mint, chives and chervil. Broccoli di rabe, garlic, peperoncini, black olives and a little pasta. I had a very large head of the broccoli from the Farmers Mkt. which was put to good use with the pasta. Blanched the broccoli in the pasta water and then sautéed in evoo with the aromatics.

Raspberry, flaked almonds and pistachio flour cake. This was made in the FP and as a result comes together very quickly. It has a delicious pistachio flavor due also to pistachio oil. This a tender, fine crumbed cake that is as good on the second day as the first, served with a compote of rhubarb and raspberries on the side.

Yesterday’s lunch was a bit of a mash up. Lentils cooked in chicken broth, onion, cumin, curry and lemon thyme. Swiss chard and parsley from the terrace pots plus some cherry tomatoes added near the end of cooking. Topped with thinly sliced pork tenderloin, now I’m wishing there was more left over.