About a week ago, I came across a submission on the front page of Digg for a raspberry buttermilk cake.  Even the name sounds quite delicious, doesn’t it?  The author said the recipe was quick and easy, yielding an everyday cake that was divine, especially for berry lovers like myself.  With raspberries on sale this week at Ralphs and almost all the other ingredients on-hand, I just had to make it.

Consider this a word of warning: the recipe probably is quick and easy—if you have an electric mixer. I, unfortunately, do not . Do you have any idea had much work it is to whisk together butter and sugar until pale and fluffy? Plus this was only the beginning of the whisking and beating (and in my case, cursing)! Was it worth it though?

Yes.

Here’s my raspberry buttermilk cake as it was baking and then fresh out of the oven.  I did not use as many raspberries as they did:

It looked so fluffy as it was baking.

The top became sweet and crusty from the sprinkling of sugar.

During baking, the cake swallowed up the berries and they became barely visible in the finished product.  It doesn’t quite look like a cake, does it?  In fact, I would say it reminds me more of a muffin than a cake, especially when Tim asked, “Where’s the frosting?”

Well, I love muffins, especially those with a crusted sugar top, and this was just like that! I often yearn for a crusted top New England blueberry muffin but haven’t been able to find any out here.  Now I’m happy to say that I can make my own! Woo!

Another sweet treat for me today was the blooming of my Spider Lily (aka Ismene aka Peruvian Daffodil) plant.  My last gardening update detailed the aphid attack on my ranunculus and the hearty growth of my Ismene.  I’m sad to report that my ranunculus lost the battle; there were just way too many aphids for us to fend off.

On the bright side, this morning I remarked to Tim that my Ismene plant had a bud on it and that I was wondering when it would bloom.  Well this evening, as I was lounging on the sofa watching TV, I just happened to glance outside and something white caught my eye - a flower!! Where did that come from?? It happened so fast and I’m a bit disappointed that I missed the different stages of blooming.  All I know is that it was a closed bud this morning and now it’s in full bloom!

That flower was not there this morning. Looks a bit like a white daffodil, doesn't it?

Yeah, a spider has 8 legs, but who's counting?

So in essence, I made two things today. :-D   Yeah, it’s a bit more work than going to the store and buying a muffin, er, cake or a bouquet of flowers, but it’s a lot more rewarding reaping the fruits of your labor.  Sometimes, the simple pleasures in life is all you need.

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