You know what I aspire to accomplish in life? Ok...those of you who know me well would say not a damn thing. You may have a point. Mostly I enjoy naps. The other thing that really cranks my wee mental facilities into overdrive is...sewing.
Really. I used to sew a lot. I want to sew like Givenchy and those wonks in Runway Model or whatever the heck that show is called. No matter how I try though, almost everything I make looks horrible. Seams are crooked. Zippers fall out. Carry on, you might say. Keep trying! Really? I've been sewing since the age of eleven. That is like....thirty years of sewing. Ahem. As a child I sat and worked on clothes for my Barbie dolls, and threw myself into tantrums that left my dad and neighbors shocked and confused. Tiny misplaced dolly sleeve? Tears and rage. Now that I think about it, it's kinda sick and weird isn't it? Where was Oprah when back when my parents had to deal with a psychopathic Barbie clothier? But I continued to sew. I now have machines that cost a mini-fortune and all the accessories a hobbyist could desire. In Maine that is.
I don't even know where to buy a decent pair of scissors here. Or buttons. Or thread. Fabric I can find, though a lot of it is just boom chakalaka dreadful. Patterns are not availabe at all, much less cutting tables, rotary blades (that I know of) and all that stuff that makes sewing so much fun. It's easier to just take your cloth to a tailor with a picture and let him do it.
And oh the bevy of tailors here in Salalah. They are everywhere. On every street you can find little niche shops that either sew dishdashas and other "gents tailoring" or abaya shops, where hopefully the pint size Bangladeshi manning the machines can make magic with that photo you brought him.
On a cake note: though the blog was neglected the last ten days (not my fault..my husband is the cake photographer...nuff said) the cake baking rolls on. I tried making a date cake with sticky toffee and the first one was outstanding. No pic. I did it again for our Friday trip to Faziya and it wasn't quite as good. If I ever get the picture, I will write about it.
Today's cake is a lemon cake with cream cheese frosting. It was really, really good. The recipe is my own, modified from the Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cake. I don't often follow recipes exactly anymore. I think many of them use far too much sugar and so on.
1 cup unsalted butter, softened but still a bit cool
2 cups sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
2 1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup evaporated milk mixed with 1/2 cup lemon blossom water
*lemon blossom water may be available in Middle Eastern markets. Mine was made by hand from my mother in laws lemon tree in Tunis. tralala. You can use a teaspoon of lemon extract and water for the balance if lemon blossom water is impossible.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
grated zest of one lemon
Preheat oven to 350F/180C
Grease and flour two 8 inch pans.
Cream butter in mixer on medium until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and mix for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and continue creaming. The original recipe called for 4 eggs, which would give your cake more loft. I wanted a denser cake to go with tea. Cream in the vanilla and lemon zest.
Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda together. Add alternately with the milk mixture and mix about 2 minutes.
Divide between the two pans and bake about 35 minutes or until toothpick clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes and transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Frost with cream cheese icing.
Really. I used to sew a lot. I want to sew like Givenchy and those wonks in Runway Model or whatever the heck that show is called. No matter how I try though, almost everything I make looks horrible. Seams are crooked. Zippers fall out. Carry on, you might say. Keep trying! Really? I've been sewing since the age of eleven. That is like....thirty years of sewing. Ahem. As a child I sat and worked on clothes for my Barbie dolls, and threw myself into tantrums that left my dad and neighbors shocked and confused. Tiny misplaced dolly sleeve? Tears and rage. Now that I think about it, it's kinda sick and weird isn't it? Where was Oprah when back when my parents had to deal with a psychopathic Barbie clothier? But I continued to sew. I now have machines that cost a mini-fortune and all the accessories a hobbyist could desire. In Maine that is.
I don't even know where to buy a decent pair of scissors here. Or buttons. Or thread. Fabric I can find, though a lot of it is just boom chakalaka dreadful. Patterns are not availabe at all, much less cutting tables, rotary blades (that I know of) and all that stuff that makes sewing so much fun. It's easier to just take your cloth to a tailor with a picture and let him do it.
And oh the bevy of tailors here in Salalah. They are everywhere. On every street you can find little niche shops that either sew dishdashas and other "gents tailoring" or abaya shops, where hopefully the pint size Bangladeshi manning the machines can make magic with that photo you brought him.
I would totally look like this in a vintage swimsuit. Totally.
Wanna wear a green linen Liz Taylor cocktail dress to the Oasis? Can do!
Honestly to me a man who can look at a picture and produce a garment, and do it well, is like a mini god. No disrespect to the real G intended. I want that skill. Neeevvver gonna happen. I do think it is time to buy a machine here, look for scissors, find a shop with sewing supplies, and spend some time in our spare bedroom sewing and having tantrums. I told my aunt to expect a bag of my failures this summer, ready for her to fix. She said, "No problem Flea."
I want to be that aunt someday. Really I do. That wonderful lady of a certain age who can fix anything with a smile and a pat on the cheek. Inshallah.
On a cake note: though the blog was neglected the last ten days (not my fault..my husband is the cake photographer...nuff said) the cake baking rolls on. I tried making a date cake with sticky toffee and the first one was outstanding. No pic. I did it again for our Friday trip to Faziya and it wasn't quite as good. If I ever get the picture, I will write about it.
Today's cake is a lemon cake with cream cheese frosting. It was really, really good. The recipe is my own, modified from the Magnolia Bakery's Vanilla Cake. I don't often follow recipes exactly anymore. I think many of them use far too much sugar and so on.
Felicia's Lemon Cake
2 cups sugar
2 eggs, room temperature
2 1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup evaporated milk mixed with 1/2 cup lemon blossom water
*lemon blossom water may be available in Middle Eastern markets. Mine was made by hand from my mother in laws lemon tree in Tunis. tralala. You can use a teaspoon of lemon extract and water for the balance if lemon blossom water is impossible.
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
grated zest of one lemon
Preheat oven to 350F/180C
Grease and flour two 8 inch pans.
Cream butter in mixer on medium until light and fluffy. Add the sugar and mix for about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and continue creaming. The original recipe called for 4 eggs, which would give your cake more loft. I wanted a denser cake to go with tea. Cream in the vanilla and lemon zest.
Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda together. Add alternately with the milk mixture and mix about 2 minutes.
Divide between the two pans and bake about 35 minutes or until toothpick clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes and transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Frost with cream cheese icing.
Felicia's Cream Cheese Icing
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese or that family size tub at Carrefour here (350 grams?)
4 oz marscapone cheese (also in a small tub at Carrefour)
Allow to come to room temperature.
1/2 cup butter, softened but cool
6 cups confectioners sugar
2 t vanilla
This makes a huge amount of frosting...enough for two cakes. The whole mix was a mistake actually, but somehow it works. The resulting cake must be refrigerated as this frosting is very soft and will run otherwise.
Spread a bit of orange marmalade on the bottom layer and about 1 cup of the cream cheese frosting. Do a crumb coat and refrigerate 30 minutes. Finish by frosting the top and sides. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
It really is very dang good. My hot hubby even sent me this one!
I hope to get back to writing my riveting news from Salalah more often. I am taking orders for cakes, but I especially like it when people offer me money to make whatever cake I damn well please. You'd be surprised how much better those are. ha!
Love,
Felicia El Aid
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