Sponge Cake Day August 23, 2017

DIANE'S CORNER ... Celebrate Sponge Cake Day

”Her sponge cakes had the aroma of crucifixion. Within them was the sap of slyness and the fragrant frenzy of the Vatican.”
~ Isaac Babel

Soft, fluffy, and utterly decadent, there’s something undeniably amazing about a well-made sponge-cake. What exactly constitutes a sponge cake varies depending on where in the world you find yourself, but their light and airy texture remains consistent. Sponge Cake Day celebrates this delicious cake and the people throughout the world that love them.

While it’s soft and delicate texture has often been attributed to the Victorians thanks to the Victorian Sponge Cake, in fact, the sponge cake finds its roots in Italy. Sometime in the early 18th century, a respected and wealthy member of the Pallavicini family in Genoa commissioned a cake that was as light and delicate as sea foam. The result was an airy and delectable confection that was known as the Pâte Génoise. This creation would soon come to be known as a ‘sponge cake’.

What set it apart was that it was created without any yeast or leavening agent, instead, taking advantage of the properties of whipped egg whites to add air to the texture of the cake. Its popularity exploded throughout the world, and endless varieties came to pass that were used for every purpose. It would accompany soups and savory dishes, filled with every kind of sweet imaginable.

Today the sponge cake has found itself a staple of English tea, and a welcome addition to any event. You can find sponge cake topped with rich chocolate icing, stuffed with fruit jam, and covered with light lemon icing dusted with confectioners sugar. Sponge Cake Day celebrates its endless variety and the delicious flavors the creative can impart to it.

The best way to celebrate Sponge Cake Day is to indulge in the dish that gave it its name, and in one of its most classic forms. Below you will find a recipe for a Victorian Sponge Cake, turn your hand to its preparation and add a light sweetness to your day!

Victorian Sponge Cake
1c Cake Flour
1 1/2t baking powder
1c butter
1c confectioners’ sugar
2 eggs
1t Pure Vanilla Extract
1/2c milk

Begin the preparation by preheating your oven to 400F, and then grease an 8-in springform pan. Run the flour through a sifter with the baking powder and place them into a medium bowl and set it to the side. Then mix the butter and egg to create a light and fluffy mixture and add each egg to the mixture one at a time, ensuring they’re at room temperature when you do. Follow this by beating in the vanilla, and slowly add in the flour and milk in alternating portions until it’s gently mixed.

Pour into the pan and bake it until a toothpick comes out clean when piercing the center, then remove it and let it cool for 10 minutes and turn it out onto a wire rack. Dust is with confectioners sugar and serve!

Word of the Day

suppliant
Definition:	(noun) One praying humbly for something.
Synonyms:	petitioner, requester, supplicant
Usage:	"Oh, God!" prayed the kneeling suppliant, "protect my husband, guard my son, and take my wretched life instead!"

Idiom of the Day

labor under the illusion of/that  — To live, operate, or function with the unyielding belief in something, especially that which is fanciful, unrealistic, or untrue. Primarily heard in US.

History

Ernst Krenek (1900)

Krenek was an Austrian-American composer born in Vienna to Czech parents. He studied in Berlin and Vienna and began composing in the 1920s. His 1926 jazz opera, Johnny Strikes Up, was extremely successful and has been translated into many languages. He explored atonal and 12-tone compositions, which lack a definable key. In 1937, Krenek moved to the US, where he became a citizen in 1945.

Vulcanalia

Vulcan was the ancient Roman god of volcanic or destructive fire. The Vulcanalia, or festival in honor of Vulcan, was held on August 23, right at the time of year when forest fires might be expected and when the stored grain was in danger of burning. For this reason Vulcan's cult was very prominent at Ostia, where Rome's grain was stored. At the Vulcanalia, which was observed in Egypt, in Athens, and in Rome, the priest or flamen Volcanis performed a sacrifice, and the heads of families burned small fish they had caught in the Tiber River.

Tiny Robot Vehicles Travel to Your Stomach to Drive Away Infection

The future of drug delivery may be placed in the hands of autonomous vehicles no wider than the width of a human hair. 
READ MORE:

Tiny robot vehicles travel to your stomach to drive away infection | ZDNet


1838 - The first class graduated from Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, MA. It was one of the first colleges for women. 


1892 - The printed streetcar transfer was patented by John H. Stedman. 


1902 - Fannie Merritt Farmer opened her cooking school, Miss Farmers School of Cookery, in Boston, MA. 


1904 - Hard D. Weed patented the grip-tread tire chain for cars. 


1947 - Margaret Truman, U.S. President Truman's daughter, gave her first public performance as a singer. The event was at the Hollywood Bowl and had an audience of 15,000. 


1959 - In the Peanuts comic strip, Sally debuted as an infant. 


1979 - Soviet dancer Alexander Godunov defected while the Bolshoi Ballet was on tour in New York City. 


1984 - South Fork Ranch, the home of the fictitious Ewing clan of the CBS-TV show, "Dallas," was sold. The ranch was to be transformed from a tourist site into a hotel. 


1999 - Robert Bogucki was rescued after getting lost in the Great Sandy Desert of Australia on July 11. During the 43 day ordeal Bogucki lost 44 pounds.


2000 - Richard Hatch was revealed as the winning castaway on CBS' "Survivor." Hatch won $1,000,000 for his stay on the island of Pulau Tida in the South China Sea. 

DAILY SQU-EEK

If You Were Born Today, August 23:

Your mind is sharp and you love to talk! You may grow into this quality–beginning life as a quiet child and, over the years, you discover your voice. An interesting conversationalist, you are appreciated for both your sense of humor and sense of fun. Your creativity is strong, although you are often more of an “idea person”. You believe in your dreams, and you are more than willing to put effort into materializing them. In love, you easily attract others to you, but you can experience your share of ups and downs in your relationships. Part of the reason for this is a strong idealistic streak. You are generous and warm-hearted with your lovers, and you are willing to bend over backwards for them. However, your expectations in love may be high. Famous people born today: Barbara Eden, Gene Kelly, River Phoenix, Shelley Long, Kobe Bryant, Ray Park, Scott Kaan, Rick Springfield.

READERS INFO

1.

Burning Man — Black Rock City, NV 

Aug. 27 - Sept. 4, 2017

Burning Man is where humans go to shed themselves of the conventions of society. If you want a break from the ordinary and can actually party 24/7, then head to the deserts of Nevada.

further information: Burning Man 2017 | Burning Man

2.

Marshfield Fair 2017

Aug 18-27, 2017 | Marshfield, MA

Marshfield Fairgrounds|140 Main St

Fresh produce is as pretty to look at as it is to eat. The Marshfield Fair is a local agricultural-lover’s dreamland with a great selection of fresh, colorful and tasty fruits and vegetables. Horticulture, handmade arts and crafts, family-friendly contests and soothing live music are other major components of the fair that you won’t want to miss.

further information: Marshfield Fairgrounds | Agriculture & Horticulture Educational Workshops

3.

My girlfriend told me about this site as she has been clicking it daily for a long time. She has also supported them by buying from their stores and said the quality was excellent. What I do is look along the top row which has a "G." That stands for Greater Good, the name of the site. 

Daily, I click each one of the concepts along that top row Hunger, Breast Cancer, Animals Shelters, etc. An area appears to click your support individually. Take a minute and make this part of your daily routine, too.

It feels good and does good .. win/win, eh? :-)

Thanks

Pictures of the day

The Gleaners is an oil painting by Jean-François Millet completed in 1857. It depicts three peasant women gleaning stray stalks of wheat from a field after the harvest. The painting, with its sympathetic depiction of what were then the lowest ranks of rural society, was received poorly by the French upper classes, but today is Millet's best known work.

WALLED CITY

The Kowloon Walled City was the densest place on Earth. Hundreds of houses stacked on top of each other enclosed in the center of the structure. Many didn’t have access to open space.This notorious city was finally demolished in 1990s. However, if you look hard enough, you will notice that the city is not dead. Part of it still exists in many of current high density housing apartments. I hope this photo can get people to think about claustrophobic living in Hong Kong from a new perspective.

knit

thanks, Marilyn

Cuddly Friends pattern by DROPS design

knit

thanks, Leah

Just A Little Fancy pattern by Robin Raver

knit

Coffee Cup Coasters

knit

Madras Cushion pattern by Kaffe Fassett

knit

Eye Sore pattern

crochet

thanks, Helen

Flirty Makeup Clutch

crochet

thanks, Clara

Flat Rat Bookmark

crochet

Rautenpullover

crochet

Wings pattern by Siew Clark

crochet

OFFSET BOBBLE STITCH

Pattern:
The pattern is formed from multiples of two stitches plus one extra. Start with an odd number of chains, plus two extra.

Foundation row: 1 dc into 2nd ch from the hook, 1 dc into each ch to the end, turn.

Row 1: 1 ch, * 1 dc into first dc of the previous row, 1 5tr cluster into next dc of the previous row, repeat from * to the end, 1 dc into last dc, turn.

Row 2: 1 ch, 1 dc into each stitch of the previous row to the end, turn.

Row 3: 1 ch, 1 dc into first dc of the previous row, * 1 dc into next dc, 1 5tr cluster into next dc, repeat from * to the end, 1 dc into each of next two dc, turn.

Row 4: 1 ch, 1 dc into each stitch of the previous row to the end, turn.

Repeat Rows 1-4 to form the pattern.

RECIPE

thanks, Shelley

When a season is at its peak, it’s tempting to make it last as long as possible. That’s where preserving comes in: It keeps fresh fruit relevant well beyond its time.

How to Make Jam

CROCKPOT RECIPE

thanks, Tina

Slow Cooker Pineapple-Pork Tacos

SWEETS

3-Ingredient Cinnamon Twists

 by Penolopy Bulnick 

Introduction: 3-Ingredient Cinnamon Twists

These cinnamon twists are super easy to put together and bake. And, you can top them any way you want!

I came up with the idea to make these after getting a dessert pizza at Pie-ology. It was just a regular pizza crust, brushed with butter, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and topped with an icing and chocolate chips. It was so tasty that I wanted to make it, but also make it really easy to eat. So, I decided to get some pizza crust and just see what would happen. I'm very happy with the tasty results!

How these turn out will probably depend mostly on your baking and the pan you use, but mine ended up soft and chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside.

Step 1: Ingredients and Supplies

As with many things I do, you can go really basic or go crazy with these. There are only a few things you really do need to make them, and then the rest is just icing on the cake (or twists)!

Ingredients:

• Pizza Dough - I'm using a thin crust from the store, I'm not sure how a thicker crust will turn out.
• Cinnamon Sugar
• Melted Butter - about 1 tablespoon, you won't need a lot

Topping options:

• Chocolate
• Icing - this seemed to be just about the right amount I needed, you can probably do a bit more than 1/2c powdered sugar and then just add milk until you like the consistency, it is easy to make it too liquid so at just some at a time.
  • 1/2c Powdered Sugar
  • 1/4tsp Vanilla
  • 1 3/4tsp Milk
• White Chocolate
• Peanut Butter Chips

Recommended Utensils:

• Light cookie sheet - So I baked the majority of mine on a light cookie sheet and then the overflow on a nonstick darker pan, the ones on the dark pan burned and the ones on the lighter pan didn't so I suggest this type of pan to get the results I did, but you can experiment with other pans, just be careful with the sugar, it can burn easily.
• Cooling Rack
• Microwaveable Containers
• Pastry Brush
• Wax Paper

To get started, mix up some cinnamon sugar. I never measure so I don't have specific proportions but it is always much more sugar than cinnamon. I start by taking sugar and adding a little cinnamon, then shake/mix it up and decide if you need to add more.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 2: Prepare Dough

Time to prepare your pizza dough! Whether it is homemade or store bought, roll it/lay it out so it is a big square.

Using a pizza cutter, cut your dough into even strips. You can then cut these strips in half or leave them long.

Melt your butter and get out a plate to go with your cinnamon sugar.

Coat the pizza dough with the melted butter. You can put butter on both sides if you'd like, but I just did one side.

Step 3: Cinnamon Sugar

Take a dough strip that has butter on it and coat it with cinnamon sugar. Start by pouring some cinnamon sugar on the plate. Then, put the strip on that plate, pour more cinnamon sugar on it, and move it around until it is covered.

If you cut the strips in half, take two and twist them together and put them on the sheet.

If you left them long, like me, fold it in half and then twist it around itself (as shown in the picture). Do this will all the strips and line them up on the baking sheet.

Step 4: Bake!

Keep an eye on them. You want them to get lightly brown without burning on the bottom. I baked mine for about 13 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Once they are done, carefully transfer them to a cooling rack. You can put wax paper down under the rack first if you want to prepare for putting on toppings.

Step 5: Topping!

You can eat these how they are if you want, or you can go that extra mile and add some tasty toppings.

I recommend that you lay down a piece of wax paper, put a cooling rack on top of it, and then put your twists on there to cool. Then you will also be already to drizzle your toppings on them without making a mess.

Let your twists cool and prepare your icing. I recommend adding vanilla to the powdered sugar and then adding the milk a little at a time until you get the consistency you want. You may use less than a recommended or more. You are looking for it to be thin enough so you can stir it, but thick enough that it won't just run off your twists.

You can add your icing right away, but to make sure the icing doesn't just melt off them, wait until the twists cool.

Drizzle your icing over the twists.

If you want to put chocolate, white chocolate, or peanut butter chips on top, melt them in a microwavable container on half power until melted. Then drizzle this on top as well.

Enjoy right away or store them in an air tight container until ready to eat. I have left the container out overnight, but I think it can be better to store it in the fridge. Just to be safe. When you take one out of the fridge to eat, you can eat it the way it is and it's fine, but I like to microwave it for about 15 seconds until it just gets warm.

Step 6: Finished Twists

For the second batch I made, I ended up with 12 twists and I decorated them all with icing and 6 with melted milk chocolate and the other 6 with melted white chocolate. They were all delicious.

ADULT COLORING

CRAFTS

thanks, Zoey

Alcohol Ink Washer Necklaces

CHILDREN'S CORNER ... back to school craft

thanks, Natalie

Fancy Feather Pen Craft

PUZZLE

Candy Scoop Jigsaw Puzzle

WORD SEARCH

accident affirmative bride chest compel crack derelict drift

enzyme fever grave health held hued ignore

level liver locket male math other pirate

relate service slack slight snout soar source spoon stomach

tease throat total trivial victim vision visit vixen

SUDOKU ... very hard

solution:

QUOTE

CLEVER

EYE OPENER

The 50 Greatest Concerts of the Last 50 Years