I'm trying...

Last night we were watching a show about a famous naturalist in Oregon. He was mostly interested in birds of prey. Anyway, when the birds came on, Cleo perked right up and went right up to the TV. I put a chair near it and placed her on there thinking it would be easier for her to view it but she wasn't interested. I suppose she felt that she would be seen if she was right in front of the screen. If she was down on the floor there would be a better chance for capture!

After that show we watched a documentary about wolverines. It was extremely interesting, but when Cleo saw those big weasels on the screen her back went up and her tail, bushy. It seems that she can recognize the difference between predator and prey, even digitally. I love this about domestic cats, that they retain that wildness, that instinct. ( Sorry, no picture of that. The lighting was very poor. )

To the person/s who invented the internet and the microwave. Without them I may not have been able to make chocolate banana pudding in 6 minutes to satisfy that sweet craving that comes after a spicy meal. Thank you. Darko thanks you too.

The aftermath...


Ingredients

1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 bananas sliced


Directions

In a microwave-safe bowl, whisk together the sugar, cocoa and cornstarch. Whisk in milk a little at a time so the mixture does not have any dry lumps.
Place in the microwave, and cook for 3 minutes on high. Stir, then cook at 1 minute intervals, stirring between cooking times for 2 to 4 minutes, or until shiny and thick. Stir in vanilla.
Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding to prevent a skin from forming, and chill in the refrigerator. Serve cold. (only if you can wait that long)

We went to my sister's for Christmas dinner. And we thought it would be good to try to make something Serbian to go along with the feast. My sister made the cake part the day before and then I made the filling and glaze the next day. It was so much work. I had never made a cake like this before. Every 20 minutes or so Dare would come into the kitchen and watch me suspiciously make this torte that his Grandma had perfected over the years. I know he wasn't too sure it would work out. I wasn't convinced either, except that it was tasting pretty good so far. How far wrong can you go with something chocolate? Anyway, after the completion Dare came into the room and looked at the cake, stunned, he said, "WOW". It tasted Wow too.


Cake:
6 ounces (1 1/2 sticks) softened butter
2/3 cup sugar
9 large eggs, separated
5 ounces melted and slightly cooled semisweet chocolate
2 cups ground (not chopped) walnuts
1/3 cup fine dry bread crumbs
2 tablespoons milk
Filling:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
4 large beaten egg yolks
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons maraschino cherry liqueur (optional)
4 ounces (1 stick) softened butter
3 ounces melted and slightly cooled semisweet chocolate
Glaze:
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-4 tablespoons boiling water
Chopped walnuts for garnish

Preparation:

To Make the Cake: Coat 3 (8-inch) round baking pans with cooking spray. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In large bowl, cream butter and 2/3 cup sugar. Add egg yolks and beat until smooth. Add melted, cooled chocolate, again beating until smooth. Stir in nuts, bread crumbs and milk.

In a separate medium bowl, whip the egg whites until stiff. Stir 1/3 egg whites into chocolate batter to lighten the mixture. Then fold in remaining 2/3 egg whites trying not to deflate the volume. Divide equally among the 3 prepared pans and bake 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

To Make the Filling: Whisk together 1 cup confectioners' sugar with flour and combine it with 4 egg yolks and 1/4 cup milk in the top of a double boiler. Place over heat and stir constantly until mixture is thick. This can take some time. Add vanilla and liqueur, if using. Remove from heat and place in an ice-water bath to cool completely, stirring occasionally.

In a medium bowl, cream 4 ounces softened butter with 3 ounces melted, cooled chocolate. Add cooled egg mixture to chocolate and whip until smooth. To assemble, place a cooling rack over a sheet pan to catch any drips from the glaze. Place 1 cake layer on the rack and spread top with 1/2 the filling. Place a second cake layer over this and spread the top with remaining filling. Place last cake layer on top.

To Make the Glaze: In a microwave-safe bowl, melt unsweetened chocolate and 1 tablespoon butter. Mix in 1 cup confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla until crumbly. Add enough boiling water to form a pourable glaze. Immediately pour over the assembled torte, making sure the sides are covered. Press chopped walnuts into the sides of the torte. Let torte set completely before transferring with two metal spatulas to a serving plate.

sailors warning.

Most of the time it is not very pleasant to get up dark and early (5:10) and head down to the pool for training. And this year I usually go straight to work right after our workout. But it's holiday time now and I have the luxury to come home and have some breakfast and relax afterwards. The other day I was treated with a spectacular sunrises as I was driving home. Unfortunately, it signaled the return of our wet west coast winter weather. More about that later.