Moving the Clunns

The weekend was cake-and-baby-juggling weekend.

My aunt and cousin were celebrating their birthdays together and asked me to bake a Gentlemen's Gateaux. I cheated. I can't get the cake base right, let alone cutting it into three layers. So I bought a cake base and instead of baking the cake, I built it.

( image heavy cake ramblings and a recipe )

I don't usually bake all that much aside from birthdays and Christmas. My mother has a 90-year-old friend, who really enjoyed the cheesecake and since my mum is bringing her some groceries today I thought I'd make her some more cake, too. Somehow I hope that there will be somebody who will bring the occassional cake when I am 90.

(Yes, little Red Riding Hood, do come in...)

Since you all seemed to like the cheesecake I bring you: Cherry Marzipan cake. With streusel.



( Image heavy recipe )

Today I met with a colleague of mine for Christmas baking.

We are actually a week late, since I like to start a week before the first Advent Sunday, but hey, we're only human.

She picked Tania and I up from the Market Square. So far so good.

Then there were road works and the highway was closed in the direction we needed to go.

That meant lots of country roads which meant lots of turns and a much longer journey than planned.

Tania proceeded to throw up all over herself and her seat approximately 30 seconds before we arrived at my colleague's house.

*sigh*

Not the best start.

But then we got some serious work done:

We made Hazelnut Macaroons and the traditional Plätzchen (cookies cut out of rolled out dough with cookie cutters) and Marzipantaler, which were an estetic catastrophe, because English Marzipan seems to be softer than German Marzipan and it melted all over the cookie sheet.

Because of the late start we didn't get to the black and white cookies, but she will bring me the dough and I'll do another baking session with Tani on Monday or Tuesday.

I also have to bake my Stollen.

And then I'm done! Just one more evening baking and I am all set for Advent!!

Tomorrow I will decorate the flat and set up my advent wreath.

My home smells of Christmas.

*content sigh*

So, it's the first Advent Sunday, I have no Christmas decoration and nobody here knows it's the first Advent. *Grumbles*

Anyhow, after I survived the mother of all migraines, we tried to make the best of it. We bought a plain wreath and arranged some candles around it to resemble an advent wreath - success is so-so. But I like my holly wreath on the living room door and Missy and I made Christmas Stollen today, so the entire house is smelling all Christamssy :)

Looky here:

My sort-of-kind-of Advent Wreath.

Mein irgendwie, mehr-oder-weniger Adventskranz.





This happens, when you try to squeeze four Stollen into a too-small cookie sheet. I hope they will come apart when cool...

Und so sehen vier Stollen in einem zu kleinen Backblech aus. Ich hoffe, die lassen sich voneinander trennen, wenn sie abgekuehlt sind...






Es ist also der Erste Advent, ich habe keine Weihnachtsdekoration und kein Mensch hier weiss, dass es der Erste Advent ist. Grummel.

Egal, nachdem ich die Mutter aller Migraenen ueberlebt hatte, haben wir versucht, das Beste daraus zu machen. Wir haben einen einfachen Kranz gekauft, etwas dekoriert und vier Kerzen drumrum gestellt. Es sieht so einigermassen wie ein Adventskarnz aus.

Aber ich mag meinen Stechpalmenzweig an der Wohnzimmertuer sehr und nachdem wir heute Stollen gebacken haben riecht das ganze Haus sehr Weihnachtlich. :) Schoen.