Sunday was a birthday, so I made a cake. Three layers of sponge filled with lemon curd and raspberries, frosted with an Italian meringue buttercream flavored with vanilla and lemon curd. Decorated the top with a little pool of lemon curd surrounded by fresh raspberries, and some piping work on the sides and bottom edge.
It was a frustrating bake. We are in the middle of moving, so my copy of the Cake Bible is packed, and the birthday person had found a specific cake recipe they wanted. From the Wilton website. I made it work, and the cake was loved by all. My piping work is really bad right now - I haven't practiced in years, and all I had to work with was an awkward plastic bag and tip that was lurking in the cookie decor box left over from the gingerbread kit we do in December.
I am excited about the move though, because we will have two kitchens! I will no longer have to share, and will have room to build to my needs. And I get the ground floor kitchen with door to the back porch so I'll have direct access to the garden and room for a brick oven, and and and... And I'll be closer to Cleveland, and some decent shops for more specialty shopping. And a proper butcher - the last one in my community went out of business a few years ago and it's been really frustrating. And hopefully a fishmonger, and cheese monger, and and and.
