Let Me Eat Cake!

Susan's b-day, ca. 1970 -- how about those ringlets?


Okay, let THEM eat cake too.
In fact, all of you can have some.



If I were having an actual birthday party, I would want to invite all of you and Maira Kalman. If Marie Antoinette were having a birthday party, she would want to invite this lady.

And I'm sure there would definitely be CAKE.

Luckily, you can have cake without an actual party. But if your favorite resident cake-baker extraordinaire relocates to rural Vermont, you may be called upon to bake it yourself.

Of course I'm not above baking my own birthday cake. For one thing, it guarantees I'll get exactly what I want.

And this year I want:



Grandma
Myrl's
Strawberry
Cream
Cake!




Since I can't offer you an actual piece, I'll instead offer you the recipe (get a pencil -- anytime Grandma Myrl is sharing a recipe, you'll want to write it down).

Grandma Myrl's Strawberry Cream Cake

Bake a white cake mix according to package directions (Grandma used whole eggs) in a 13x9" pan. When cool, top with:

4 oz. cream cheese
1/2 cup powdered sugar (generous)
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup whipping cream

Cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Whip cream stiff and fold in a little at a time. Spread over cooled cake. Cover entire surface of cake with fresh glazed strawberries (Grandma used Danish Dessert, which I don't believe has been around for awhile. If you find any in your pantry, probably best to throw it out and buy [or make] some new-fangled glaze -- any glaze you like will work.) Chill until ready to serve.

*Grandma's sister Irene used blueberry pie filling, which if I liked blueberry pie filling, would undoubtedly have been delish.



This picture looks a lot like an actual Grandma Myrle Birthday Cake -- fluffy 7-minute icing, plastic flower candle holders. She also made a spectacular Chocolate Vinegar cake -- sounds icky but it was a depression era (no eggs) recipe, with just a hint of cinnamon. Luckily Russ will be having a birthday soon, so it will be a two cake month.

Grandma Myrl's husband Grandpa Kenneth used to say:

"Myrl, this third piece doesn't taste as good as the first two did. What did you do to it?"

While I'm enjoying my third piece, I'm going to need something to keep my mind off the fact that I'm feeling a little full. I think it will be just the time to enjoy a good book.

So on to stop #2 on the needlework book tour:



Embroidered Pictures by Dorothy Tucker.

I found this little gem on the shelf at Half-Price Books, but it would definitely have been worth full price.


The Magic Garden, Rebecca Crompton, 1934


Within its pages I first encountered the incomparable Rebecca Crompton, whom I introduced to you in a previous T.G.I.F.F.T. But there are plenty of other delights as well.



L'Heure Bleue, Lucienne Lanski, 1983



It's Alright, Primmy Chorley, 1991



Salley Mavor puts in a welcome appearance:


Feeding Chickens, Salley Mavor, 1986


And one of the things that I love most about this book is that with every work featured, there are detailed diagrams and drawings explaining stitching/construction techniques.






Eugenia's Lemon Tree, Audrey Walker, 1990


Some of the pieces still blow my mind every time I see them.



Detail, Eugenia's Lemon Tree


Audrey Walker, for instance, virtually "paints" with a needle and thread.




I use stab stitching in the background of my pieces as well, but imagine what I could do with layer upon layer of them! Perhaps that will be the next phase of my pieces . . .
when the prices go way WAY up.



The Spencers Gardening, Ann V. Sutton, 1984







But one of the things that really sets this book apart is that historical pieces are interspersed throughout. Those are going to require their own stop on the book tour.

Anyway, I hope I get a present half as good as that book for my birthday!

At least I know I'm going to get a piece of my favorite cake.

And Russ is home from a week in Korea,
laden with mysterious-looking packages . . .
which bodes well . . .

Happy Weekend, one and all!