new on bbs
Raspberry Lemon Cake
Fluffy lemony cake layers, tart lemon curd and a raspberry swiss meringue buttercream. Raspberries can be added to the batter or layered between the cakes.
updated
Brown Butter Scones
Tall flaky scones (that aren’t dry!) and have the wonderful flavor of brown butter. Plus, chocolate chips. [Easy, can be made ahead of time]
speaking of chocolate & butter in the morning…
Chocolate Morning Buns
Flaky croissant like rolls made from a laminated brioche, wrapped around a chocolate filling. [Bit of a project, but seeing those many layers afterwards makes it all worth it.]
reader review (this one made me really happy, it’s an oddball so I was hoping ya’ll would take a chance on it - Sara did!)
“I made this for a fancy brunch with my mom (she loves lemon & poppy seeds). Do not be deterred by the amount of poppy seeds in this cake. The buttermilk soak they get softens them a bit and you still get the texture play between the tender crumb and the pop-crunch of the seeds. Delicious! Also it’s totally worth making your own curd for this one! (make the full recipe so you’ll have leftovers to spoon over slices of this cake)” - Sara
weekly notes & reads
I split the lemon raspberry layer cake into two posts because after I’d written everything up I was worried I’d go to google jail for a ridiculously long post (I had a lot to say about the cake, lol). The buttercream recipe is separate, you’ll find it here. P.S., the buttercream would totally work with freeze dried strawberries or blueberries.
“While there are options and certainly more sprinkles than there were in the early 1900s, today’s cookbooks are perhaps taking cues from Louisa Tate. There is a commitment to not cooking down to kids, assuming that all they want is plain grilled cheese and pancakes, or that they’re incapable of using a knife until they’re 18.” - Kid’s Cookbooks are Finally Growing Up, Eater. (the article links to two upcoming books which I am definitely getting for my girls: The Juneteenth Cookbook and Priya’s Kitchen Adventures).
I couldn’t bring myself to talk about this last week; I was still processing what I’d read and seen. I also prefer to wait until more verified reports come out about an incident before sharing. But, in case you hadn’t heard, last week “the flour massacre” occurred in Gaza. If you have five minutes, please read about it here. From the article: “This bag of flour turned out to cost the life of its bearer, it's the most expensive food ever made.”
Today is March 8, International Women’s Day. Before dessert blogging became my daily, I was a researcher and analyst (focus: gender & the Middle East) and this was an important date. A few times I marked the occasion by putting together talks that discussed the issues plaguing women in the region (one while I was doing my Fulbright, one during grad school at Georgetown, and another while working at a think tank in DC). My goal was to discuss not just the general state of women’s rights in law, but how one’s class, race, and nationality would intersect with gender to limit women’s abilities (in layman’s terms: we examine the obstacles that a poor, bipoc woman who does not have full citizenship rights faces, obstacles that are often different than what gets most media attention). I don’t work in that field anymore, but I wanted to share some readings on intersectional feminism that I think are insightful, especially on a day like today:
What Is Intersectionality? Why All Social Movements Are Racial Justice Movements - Mind Body Green.
Intersectional Feminism is Real and Alive - Michigan Daily.
How bell hooks paved the way for Intersectional Feminism - them.
A research area we are now starting to see grow examines how women are impacted by climate change: “Women are hit harder than men by the climate crisis in part because the impacts exacerbate existing inequalities, such as unequal rights to land tenure and a lack of economic opportunities for women. Women also tend to bear more of the burden of providing water, fuel and food.” - The Guardian.
However you choose to commemorate today, consider its origins, and as you observe how it’s being celebrated by others, I hope you’ll ask an important question: is this message inclusive? After all, we’re in this struggle together 💗
and for members
Mint Lemonade “Laymoon wa Naanaa” Cupcakes
Super soft cupcakes flavored with fresh mint, lemon and lime zest topped with a lemon, lime and cream cheese frosting. The flavor inspiration of these cupcakes comes from a popular drink in the arab world called laymoon (arabic for lemon) wa (and) naanaa (mint), it looks like this - and is refreshingly delicious. You’ll find it all around the region, from Kuwait to Morocco. And now, we have a cupcake version!