An Amateur Cake Lady's Puzzlements.

In a certain (very small) circle, I have moved beyond my recognition as the 'bread girl' to the 'cake lady.' I am no Ace of Cakes Baker and if I ever tried to charge for my creations they would probably end up on this website. But these friends have come to rely on my homemade concoctions to celebrate birthdays and I am happy to oblige.

Making bread is a skill--to artisans (which I do not lay claim I am) a talent--that I am grateful I have learned. Over my tribulations during the year that might otherwise be blank of accomplishments, satisfaction sits with the fact that I taught myself (with the help of two very good books by Daniel Leader) how to bake bread (without a breadmaker!). Feeling as though you can provide for yourself and those you love one of the most basic needs (who doesn't know the most basic elements of food survival are bread and water?) is hard to surpass, especially when the process can result in something so tasty. I'm proud that I have learned this basic skill, one that my great grandparents probably used daily, and it certainly makes me feel more connected to the food I eat when I know exactly what is in the loaf and how it was made. Welcoming friends home to the smell of fresh bread in the oven or providing a fresh warm loaf to a dinner party provided the details that my ego required for every question that followed after.

Making a cake is something completely different. I often consider myself a puzzlement, and cake is just another example. It's no secret that I crave, need, love all things sweet... except cake. Unlike others who inhabit the dessert category, cake does not talk to me; it can sit in front of me for days. Sometimes I nibble on it (I wouldn't want to see it go to waste), but I do not crave it. Rarely before that year with too much time on my hands did I ever engage in making that sort of dessert.

Cake is still not my thing... and it will never be my favorite desert... but I find joy in the process (and secret tastes) of creating it. By making and caking for others, I can now bake a double layer chocolate cake with raspberry filling and homemade chocolate frosting with chocolate covered strawberries on top (the above picture). Or a super flavorful, not *super* sweet, lemonade cake. Or red velvet cupcakes with rich, yummy cream cheese frosting. Or a key lime pie topped with fresh meringue (wait a minute! that is not a cake! but I have made that successfully, too).

And yet, while I have made a couple of better batches lately, brownies--which I actually adore--still give me trouble. A total puzzlement.