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Plum Almond Cake

Plum Almond Cake

Simple, Seasonal, Scrumptious

“There were three kinds, yellow, red, and green. Oh, yes, I remember.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

Not all summer fruit has the best flavor. The most beautiful peaches can be dull and mushy. I’ve had cherries that didn’t taste like much of anything at all. Plums and pluots can taste like they don’t understand that without the tang they aren’t worth the bother. Such a disappointment. The first time I made the Plum Almond Cake I had stellar plums. The plum tang was nuanced and came in a cascading rainbow of bright, bold flavors. The second time I made the recipe the plums were lackluster, boring. I’d let them get a little soft, hoping for a sweet ending since I couldn’t find that pop of flavor I crave. What a surprise, both times the cake was excellent. Baking the plums in the Plum Almond Cake changed everything. As the cake bakes the plums sink into the batter, melting into sweet, jammy pockets of summer delight. A hint of almond and lemon intrigue lingers, making for nuanced layers of taste and textures. This is definitely the cake to make with any kind of plums and pluots, yellow, red or green all will be simple, seasonal and scrumptious. READ MORE . . .

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Nectarine Buttermilk Popsicles

Nectarine Buttermilk Popsicles

Summer Things

“It was a part of his policy always to be busy and occupied. He had supper alone in the Abbot House. After a considered time he walked around the corner on Central Avenue and rang the bell of Adam Trask’s house.

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

They patiently waited for me. I was amazed. I’d think of them and quickly move on. Now and again, I’d check in. Setting a date and picking a spot to rendezvous was more of a commitment than I was ready to make. I get so distracted with summer things. I want outside. When the coastal fog melts into sunshine I want to be there, floating on the rays, devouring every single day. Hopeful, like an old friend left waiting, they grew older. Beautiful, in a way that youth can not understand. Sweet, when flavor leads the dance and sugar follows along. The fiery red nectarines waited. READ MORE . . .

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Plum Blackberry Galette

Plum Blackberry Galette

Further, five years of blogging

“You’re either on the bus, or off the bus.”

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, Tom Wolfe

Inspiration

There once was a bus named Further (or Furthur). Further’s trip across country is famously chronicled in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe. I read The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test the summer after I graduated from high school. It was required reading for English composition at the local JC. To say I was stunned at the selection of book choice was an understatement. In high school English we read the classics, not books about the roots of hippie culture written in the style of New Journalism. By the time we finished the book and its’ related assignments most of the class had dropped out. It was summer and the book was a long, meandering, crazy read. Sure the book is about LSD laced Kool-Aid (LSD was legal then) and all the crazy things that happened. For me, the book was all about the metaphor of Further. Going further, further than before, to keep going, exploring and learning, living with passion and vigor, being in the moment. READ MORE . . .

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Creme Fraiche Cake with Plums and Pistachios in Olive Oil

Creme Fraiche Cake with Plums and Pistachios in Olive Oil

The excess of late summer

“And the books that came into the house, some of them secretly— well, Samuel rode lightly on top of a book and he balanced happily among ideas the way a man rides white rapids in a canoe. But Tom got into a book, crawled and groveled between the covers, tunneled like a mole among the thoughts, and came up with the book all over his face and hands.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

When the recipe for Creme Fraiche Cake with Plum Caramel landed in my in-box I went to my bookshelf and found my copy of the A.O.C. Cookbook by Suzanne Goin to discover what the fuss was all about. I realized the original recipe had two more components, whipped cream and pistachios in olive oil. Raves about the plum cake made with plum caramel had me wondering, what if the cake was smothered in caramel, pistachios AND whipped cream? I just had to make this cake and everything else. READ MORE . . .

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Brioche Plum Tart

Brioche Plum Tart

Crusts and Perfection

“Adam asked, How is your mother holding up? Will leaned back in his chair and an affectionate smile came on his face. She’s a remarkable woman, he said. She’s like a rock.”

East of Eden, John Steinbeck

Inspiration

My mom is now in a local rest home. The journey from her home, the hospital and now the nursing home has devoured my time and energy. A failing heart valve leaves her often breathless and afraid. She is still mentally capable of making all her own decisions. Only last year, did she consider a heart valve replacement. In her weakened state it was too late. We ask so much of our parents. When we were children our expectations were defined by love, food, haven from a stormy world and if we were lucky a visit from Santa Claus. As adults we demand even more than when we were children. We expect perfection when we know we live in an imperfect world and our parents likely did the best they could with what they had. We hold our parents to a higher standard than we have for ourselves and refuse to consider the dreams and demons that propelled them through their lives. READ MORE . . .