"Cheater Cake" and Stitching

Most stitching lately has been for surprises or exchange, but I have managed some that I can show. Here's a progress pic for PS "When Witches Go Riding":




I like it so much with this open circle 'cause it looks like an old "book illumination" (Imagine the circle being filled with an illuminated letter). If I didn't like the top, also, I'd just leave it. I was so tempted that I already put in the black part of the moon, before stopping due to agonizing over where to put my signature/year.

Now, for Cake! This is my favorite "Cheater Cake" so named because you're cheating not only on your diet but also by using a box cake.



Mix up a yellow box cake (I use Duncan Hines and add a few sloshes of vanilla extract) according to box spec. Then, break up the pieces of a Hershey's semisweet bar and arrange them thus. I poured 25-30% of the batter into the bundt before tiling them down today.



I love how the squares are printed with the company logotype and "1/2" oz. I feel so baker-ish.

Pour in the rest of the batter gently and "drop" the pan a couple of times to level the batter.



35 minutes later (I did over-bake slightly, darnit!)



Let rest for 20 minutes and turn out onto plate. Slice 'n Serve on your favorite mint-green "cat-plate" with total disregard of plate's intended pre-k audience.



Mmnn, Melty-chocolate! This is so good that a friend who Hates Yellow Cake (Who hates a yellow cake? He must be a commie. It's "America's Favorite Cake". That violator on the box can't be wrong, right?) Praised it in the same sentence that he abused yellow cake. I leveled my best "You just sprouted a second head" gaze at him and informed him that it was in fact a yellow cake.

Point: This cake is the perfect "carrier" for delicious chocolate. You could serve it with some whipped cream (add rum when you make it!) or pudding or custard, but that really is gilding the proverbial lily. It was a great way to celebrate Marc's recovery and the advent of a new 'Fridge at Chez Bunny-Bear.

I'd like to add my apology that these photos aren't more appetizing--our little nest's kitchen lacks any window.

In other news, SailBoat Biscornu is ready for finishing!



Photo from last night; not the best lighting.



The light colour of the waves is a Dinky Dye silk on this, the "front". I used the recommended DMC for the back, however. I think I like the slightly greener DMC better, but after ripping out the front's dark wave silk (Belle Soie Peacock) for being too green, I decided to let the slight varigation of the silk stay.



Just now, with plenty of sun. The true colours are somehwhere in-between. I love those bottles from Ikea, and so I wedge them into the photo whenever possible. (You should have seen our Christmas pics--Marc's face got obscured by one of them--but only partially so we could still use it for our cards. lol.) As for the desk-clutter, I must love that, too, 'cause it's always there no matter how many times I clear the desk.

I still haven't heard from the House Biscornu winner, but I'm going to wait it a bit more before re-drawing. I really hope I don't have to--I can't say how disappointed I'd be if I somehow won something and then wasn't able to claim it/didn't realize I needed to do something and it was whisked out from under me! I hope things are okay with her generally, and no major disaster has occurred!

For now, it's back to finishing my Sailboat Biscornu, packaging up some things (between exchanges, a pattern return, RAKS, and my little giveaway I've got quite a pile of things to haul to the post. Ugh--I wish the humidity would give me a break!), stitching on My New Start (Whee!!), and of course Wednesday is Bathroom Cleaning Day.

Happy Midweek, Everyone!

Yours Cheerfully,
Berit

EDIT: After so many requests, I'm adding the link to buy the Sailboat Biscornu from The Floss Box.com here. The only change I made was subbing 5200 for Blanc DMC.