Ideal : Get up in the morning, looking fresh and beautiful, like they do in the movies.
- Real : The first thing you hear at dawn, is your terrorized kiddo screaming – cause he got scared just by looking at your morning face.
Ideal : Happy family getting inside the AC car, going for long drives, smiling at each other all the times- like they show in the ads.
- Real : Car broken down in the middle of the road at 12 noon. All of us in a pool of sweat, bickering at each other and cursing the sun for the burning heat.
Ideal : New apartment at a relative’s place. The lift door opens and you see the aesthetically designed swimming pool. The view is design to have a calm, soothing effect as you enter the apartment.
- Real : The lift door opens, you see a fat, hairy man with a belly in swimming trunks, trying to float in the water. It does make me laugh out aloud when I think of the way its meant to be, and the way things work out.
Ideal : Bake a beautiful sponge cake, with cherries in it. Have a piece of it with your loved ones, making small talk and enjoying the time spent together.
- Real : Bake the cake, give it as a gift. And worry endlessly whether it turned out to be good or not. Blame the host for not cutting a piece and giving it to you, never mind that they had a hundred other things to do.
The ‘real’ picture is not so glossy at times. But you got to agree that it keeps life interesting :).
Recipe Source : The Book of Baking, by Thangam Philip
Ingredients:
- Flour : 230 gm
- Baking Powder : 1 tsp
- Salt : a pinch
- Butter : 170 gm
- Sugar : 170 gm
- Eggs : 4
- Glazed Cherries : 100 gm
- Milk : 1-2 tbsp
- Vanilla Essence : 1/2 tsp
Method:
- Preheat oven to 175 C/350 F. Grease a 9″ round cake pan.
- Wash the cherries clean and pat them dry in a kitchen towel. Quarter them.
- Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs,one by one, and beat well after each addition.
- Sift the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate pan.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet to get a batter of dropping consistency. Add a tablespoon or two of milk if the batter is too thick.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes free of crumbs.
Linked to:
- Blogging Marathon #15, Cook by Alphabets – Under ‘S’
- I Love Baking @ Tickling Palates
- Bake Fest, hosted by Sumee’s Culinary
My Kitchen Trials 
Lovely write up. Enjoyed the real and ideal. Yummy cake.
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Loved reading the real and ideal and I find myself smiling even now :). Lovely cake too…
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Looking at the way the cake has turned out, I don;t think you really needed the feedback from your friend. :))
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I was enjoying while reading post. there was a smile on my face through out. and you made lovely cake
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Lovely write up and nice cake too
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It’s a lip smacking platter
chennaiflowerplaza.com
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superb write up.. i just couldn’t stop smiling!! I do that too.. keep waiting for people to comment once they taste..it seems forever.. cake looks super yum.. sad u had to give it off!
Ongoing Event : WTML
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Beautiful write up Rajani.. and like someone mentioned, you should have separate blog for musings :-) Distracts us from the recipe. Its sad that you did not get to taste this amazing cake. You should have done like one of the ppl in the comments – why don’t you try it thing.. anyways, I was just wondering what will happen if the person you gave the cake reads this post. Atleast then you will get ur well deserved feedback
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Oh you poor thing….didn’t they offer you even a piece of that cake? If it is any consolation, I must tell you that it looks perfect.
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hahah..now tell us if you actually gave away that pretty looking cake and never knew how it tasted!..next time you want to make something like this, pls remember me I will surely call you can let you know how it tasted..seriously I will ok..:)
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the reality and ideal situations are too good! The cake looks very good too!
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Lovely write up..seriously enjoyed reading..cake looks extremely addictive..
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Totally agree with Pradnya there.. I visit your blogs (even on non-BM days) to see how your mind unfurls through words… gal – you have it in you to be a prolific writer (even with or without a blog)… lovely post, and a superb recipe.. I enjoyed the scenario of the swimming trunks a lot !! LoL !!! Keep them coming :) :)
Kalyani
Sizzling Tastebuds
Event : Pickles & Preserves Fest + Giveaway
Event : CWS – Oats
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OMG Rajani good one 1 and 2 the real things happens to me also but that is life no. any way enjoyed very much reading and cake looks realy soft and I love that color superb…
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Lol rajani, thinking abt the last ideal & reality, Big hairy man in his Swimming shorts!!!! :)
Cake looks super good!! I too get frustrated when they dont give any feedback, but my hubby dear will immediately say it out, why dont you open the box and taste how is it? Coz, he want to be saved from my later laments @ home!!!!!
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Rajani your writeup distracts me from looking at the recipes…you should ideally have 2 blogs..one for musings and other for recipes…I am LoL like a nut….I am also an eternal dreamer who likes to fantasize the ideal world and get rude shocks of reality,,,but like the idea..you have to treat life as it comes…One thing about the cake…I think whether the host told u or not..but this cake looks super soft and spongy and I am sure it was made beautifully…since your measurements are in numbers like 230 gms etc…I assume you have taken pains to jot down perfect numbers…I want a fool proof no fail , no second attempt recipe for an upcoming event.. Can I trust this recipe to live up?
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Indeed, it does keep life interesting.. Perfectly baked caked..
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:) liked the write ups..Dont worry,cake luks fabuluous…
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super write up as usual…would love to munch on this lovely cake ….
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Got really carried away with the writing that I forgot to mention…the cake looks absolutely fantastic.
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Amazing writing Rajani….I was laughing throughout….it happens all the time that I often forget how it should have been ideally. You learn from reality so much that without anything interesting to remember it becomes boring and artificial if it happens ideally.
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The ideal is often way too far from the real but yes, that’s what makes life interesting and worth living!!! Your cake sounds really good!!
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I too hate when I give food as gifts and don’t even get to try a piece and they don’t even call you to tell you..then weeks later you casually ask oh how was it..”Oh I’ve been meaning to call you..it was fabulous..my husband now want me to make it..can I have the recipe” – well, that would’ve been nice to know weeks ago – instead of me thinking they didn’t like it :)
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