It can be difficult to halve a cake recipe and get ideal results–especially when it calls for an odd number of eggs. This year, when I made Aron’s banana cake for his birthday, I made half of the recipe in a round cake pan and used the other half of the batter to fill cupcake molds. Cupcakes are much easier to save. You can freeze them for a cold day and re-heat them one at a time, or keep them in a ziplock bag for some slightly spongier cakes throughout the week. But then you’ll need to know how to make frosting for one.
Place a softened Tbsp of butter in a cup (leave the cup out for a while or you can cheat and warm it for 10 seconds in the microwave) and smash it up with a fork. Whisk it to break it up and get some air into it. (The first time I did this I used my hand-mixer whisk attachment. That was ideal, but an old-fashioned whisk is fine, too–even if most of the butter at first ends up stuck in the wires.) Add a 1/2-cup of powdered sugar and a dash of whole milk or cream. Whisk until smooth. Add more powdered sugar to get to ideal consistency, 1/4 to 1/2-cup is probably right. Add a pinch of salt and a dash of vanilla extract. Whisk until smooth (or switch back to the fork if it’s easier at this point). Et Voila! A single serving of classic vanilla buttercream (the fairly sweet, Magnolia Bakery style stuff).
You can add food coloring and make lettering for a store bought cake or fix a flaw in your layer cake this way. Or you can turn it into flavored frosting: add lemon zest and some lemon juice instead of milk. Or maple extract instead of vanilla. To make chocolate frosting, melt about a 1/2-ounce of baker’s chocolate and add it after the first 1/2-cup of powdered sugar (you can use a dark chocolate bar in a pinch, but it could make the frosting too sweet). Or, if you plan ahead, put a little of your morning espresso shot or a bit of coffee (like a teaspoon) in with the chocolate and make it mocha!
You may or may not want to thank me for this.
P.S. Another reason for single servings: look what happens when you have to–the horror!–split a dessert.
And if you’re in New York, check out this bake saleJoanna organized to raise money for the hurricane relief efforts.
We were back at the Alameda flea this past weekend and I spotted this girl wearing the simplest combination of t-shirt, rolled jeans, and clogs with socks but it just looked so cool. When we were living in New York, I was always eyeing the Swedish Hasbeens ankle boots with sartorial envy; my head would turn to watch someone walking by and Aron would ask “whose shoes are you looking at?” I still would love a pair one day, but it seems more practical for the California weather (and less expensive) to go the old-school slip-in route. (And bonus: one who hangs out with young kids a lot might also note how often one needs to remove her shoes!)
The thing is, Davis shoe stores sell practically nothing but clogs–and not in a trendy sort of way. There are two shoe stores and both specialize in comfort shoes–which is a reminder that clogs can sometimes look a little too practical. Don’t get me wrong: I don’t wear shoes that aren’t comfortable–but I don’t need to broadcast it. Anyway, I think there might be a fine line when it comes to not looking like you’re leaving a shift at the hospital, so I’ve been digging around for some favorite options. What’s the trick?
We had a wonderful babysitting arrangement our last few months in Manhattan: every week–I think it was Tuesdays–we had our babysitter Courtney come over around 5 or 6 and free us up for a date night, and then–on Friday or Saturday night–we’d do an exchange with friends in our building after the little ones were asleep. We’d sit in their apartment while their baby slept or vice versa.
Knowing we had a date every week took some of the pressure off. We went on some pretty amazing outings (sailing on the Hudson, scaling the Empire State building, catching sunset from Riverside park) but we could also just go on a walk around the West Village with a bag of Swedish candy and fall into a candlelit bar. Spontaneity was often the best part of it.
To be honest, I used to be sort of oddly opposed to the concept of “date nights.” When it was just Aron and I, every night was sort of a special date, right? It felt that way, at least. Why the need to name it? But while we do get a few hours every night for adult conversation after Hudson goes to bed, it’s so much nicer when we can plan to spend an entire evening together–to be, well, spontaneous. It has to be, quite literally, a “date night.”
We now have some babysitters we’re comfortable with here in Davis, so we’ve scheduled one to come every Friday night.
It’s a little harder to “fall into” a cool bar here, but we’ve been having fun. Aron planned our first (to Ella and the K-Street Cabaret to see this super-charming show that was one of the longest running off-Broadway musicals in history), I took us on a walk downtown for dinner and a movie (The Perks of Being a Wallflower was so evocative of being a teenager), and this past Friday we tried a delicious, seasonal restaurant based in an old bread factory in downtown Sacramento–Magpie. (Isn’t that a cute name? Hudson made bird sounds when he saw my photo of the ever-changing menu on my phone.) This Friday we’re heading to dinner at a new friend’s house!
We imagine that some nights might even take us into Napa or into the Bay, but even just a few hours at a nearby cafe make such a difference.
