The Cake Stands Alone

This 4th of July weekend, my parents and brother came to visit. We ate local, played board games, watched "Dorm Life" on Hulu (which you should also do), and had a nice dinner for my parents' anniversary. The city had a really nice fireworks display, which we could watch right outside their hotel.

I had another big celebration to prepare for, and my mom brought me cake pans along with the mold for a checkerboard cake. We decided to make strawberry and lemon cake with vanilla frosting. Filling the mold was a bit tricky and interesting. After filling it with alternating colors, the mold is removed before baking. I decided to make a two-layer cake, since no more layers would fit in my tiny oven.


In the end, I got two layers and 12 cupcakes. It was a delicious birthday cake, but as you can see, the checkerboard kind of blobbed out. (Click to enlarge.)


So delicious, in fact, that there is only one piece left...


Just kidding. We only ate 1/6 of the cake, or two of the twelve pieces. I put the rest, along with the cupcakes, in the freezer. Although, ten frozen pieces of cake are still ten pieces of cake.

-吴碧芙

Wedding and Rainbows

We spent the weekend in Minneapolis at a wedding, where 文大猊 was the Best man in a wedding. I decided to pick up River Town again, and I read it while he performed his duties. I also hung out with his friends, esp. those weren't in the wedding party. 文大猊, being in the wedding party, was supposed to ride in the stretch Hummer to a park to take pictures after the ceremony. We took a cab to the wedding, and then I rode with them in the Hummer. There was a "gathering" of sorts at the park, with pimped rides, hip-hop music, and guys who looked like they might beat us up. It all turned out ok, though.

From the wedding and pictures, we arrived at the reception. Highlights included 文大猊's speech, little cakes for centerpieces, and amusing ourselves and other guests by trying to learn the Electric Slide on the spot.

While driving from the rehearsal to the hotel on Friday, we saw a full double rainbow.



On Sunday, we headed back, after some stops at Trader Joe's and IKEA, which are luxuries we can't enjoy in SD.

-吴碧芙

We moved

I moved on Friday and Saturday. 文大猊 came over and helped clean like a maniac. The old apartment is completely clean and beautiful, which leaves me wishing I had cleaned more often when I lived there, so I could've enjoyed it myself. The new apartment is cute, but tiny. I took a picture of the kitchen. There is a 2-ft. cupboard to the left and the fridge to the right, but this is basically what I've got. I put in some helpful labels. It was while we were trying to make some breakfast.


The bathroom is equally miniaturized, so, for now, I have my toothbrush in the kitchen. We were making bagel sandwiches and veggie bacon.

The birds are doing well in the new place. I think they are a little weirded out because I arranged it like the old place, but it's a little smaller and the kitchen and bathroom are in different places.

-吴碧芙

A Well-Stocked Cupboard

This weekend was the first time in a long time that we have been homework-free, and the weather was beautiful. So we had a classy picnic. We took the Wildflower Sweet Potato sandwiches and magazines and books. It was a really beautiful day in the park by a small stream.

We had a great time on Saturday night making apple pie. I asked MK in DM to send the recipe, since he makes the best apple pie, which isn't too sweet. We had a bit of overflow with the filling, so we also made some pretty intense apple crisp too.


It was pretty delicious.


Tonight I decided to use up some pumpkin from the freezer to make muffins. I let Kavi sit on top of the refrigerator, and he was pretty happy there. Then when I opened the cupboard, he flew straight up to the top shelf. It was the first time he'd ever considered going into the cupboard. I don't keep anything on the top shelf because I'm normal-person-sized. He whistled a lot up there, probably checking out the awesome acoustic properties. This is my "bare ingredients" cupboard.


-吴碧芙

Memory

Long before I thought of going to China, I heard a story about our family friend Herb. (Of course, Herb had many stories.) He had been a missionary in China. After returning to the States, a few years later, he was cleaning out his garage, when he stopped and said, "I smell China." It was as if the scent had traveled from China and landed in Minnesota.

That moment where a scent meets a deep memory or an emotion is wonderful. In Anatomy I learned that olfactory experiences are processed in the same place in the brain as memory, and differently from other senses. But scent sometimes transports me to a place I can't explain, something from childhood, something from which I only remember a feeling, and not a place or person.

I often wonder what will trigger that reaction of "smelling China" for me. Many things come to mind, like burning garbage and exhaust fumes. The good and more subtle come to mind too, like the Bread Diary, the deep, cool, wood and incense of a temple, or the stinging oil used during a leg massage.

Pineapples remind me of China too. The vendors would have it cut and ready in plastic bags with toothpicks to make it easy to take and eat. I cut up a pineapple tonight and immediately took out the garbage.

I was overcome with the scent of lilacs. The hedge between our apartment property and a large, barren field, the hedge I've seen many times before, is actually a long row of lilac bushes, more than 40 feet long, in white, lavender, and dark purple.



I haven't lived in a place with lilacs in 4 years.

-吴碧芙

Sandwich Cred

Cred is something people can respect you for. If your beard makes people at a food co-op look at you a little differently, a nod of respect, you've got Hippie Cred. If your nose ring helps make the scary, skinning, all-dressed-in-black-stuff-that-laces-up woman feel like talking to you on the plane to Omaha, you might have some Goth Cred. If you can make a wonderful sandwich two weeks in a row, you might be well on your way to Sandwich Cred.

As I was sitting studying on the couch, there was some banging around in the kitchen. Then, the most delicious aroma began to circulate. It was a mixture of sweetness and the tang of boiled wine. It was the first step in my favorite sandwich. 文大男 had looked up the ingredient list and the recipes for the ingredients that couldn't be bought. This is the fig confit with rosemary.


The confit reduced and was pureed in the food processor. Fennel, an ingredient I had forgotten about, was marinated in a lemon juice sauce. The sweet potatoes were roasted in the oven. Then we were ready to start building the sandwich, starting with spreading confit on the bottom bread. (文大男 agreed to be the hand model for these pics.)


Potatoes, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, arugula, and spring greens were added in order.


The last bit of love was the balsalmic vinaigrette.


It was the absolute recreation of the sandwich I thought I would never taste again! Oozing with goodness, the depth of the flavors tingling through every bite. Sweet, savory, a little sour...the true test of a good palate.


-吴碧芙

大男-wich

Last weekend was filled with excitement as I embarked on the fabulous world of my Aural Rehabilitation case study. In reality, it was a project that I dreaded and had to drag myself kicking and screaming to complete. I did work on it over the weekend...kind of...when I wasn't feeling sorry for myself and napping. It was another study date, with study snacks and study food, albeit a bit more upscale than our old dorm room fare.

文大男 made walnut pesto and bought the fancy ciabatta loaf. He got coop-fresh unpasteurized cheddar cheese, fresh spring greens, and tomatoes. Artichoke hearts. Need I say more? (click photo for super detail)


It was deliculous! (delicious + ridiculous) It reminded me of my favorite sandwich, served by the Wildflower in Phoenix and Sedona. The Roasted Sweet Potato Sandwich includes roasted sweet potatoes, fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, arugula, fig confit, and balsamic vinaigrette.

-吴碧芙