I start grad school this week. Yikes! I'm excited, don't get me wrong. But it's been a while since I've been a student and even longer since I've been in college. I know it's going to be a good experience and I'm going to learn a ton, but right now I just feel incredibly stressed.
Happily my friend Katy (who's getting a very science-y PhD) and her family invited me and my mom to their lovely house in St. Albans for lunch today. Her father is an excellent cook and a delicious meal with friends is the best distraction from the imminent doom--I mean exciting opportunity--of starting classes tomorrow.
Her dad made an amazing salmon dish with a zingy, but not spicy, sauce that was just perfect with the tender perfectly baked salmon. He served it with fluffy white rice and green beans. Delicious! He also made a family recipe pie. Well actually a family recipe from another family, but regardless, it was pie. Basically it was a very thick graham cracker like crust smothered with ginger jam and topped with toasted meringue. I'm not usually a huge fan of ginger but there was something about it with the crust and meringue that just worked. It was excellent. And the ginger was a nice complement to the spices in the cake I brought.
The cake itself was just a plain not overly chocolaty, chocolate cake. It was the basic Magnolia Bakery chocolate cake which has a slightly dry, cocoa-y crumb. It's the perfect base for a rich filling. In this case I had some pumpkin puree left over from some pumpkin loaf cakes so I decided to make a pumpkin filling. I threw together a white chocolate ganache which I flavored with the pumpkin and--taking inspiration from an autumnal favorite--some instant espresso powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. For the frosting I whipped up a quick sour cream frosting with a touch of cinnamon. It was quite simple and not too sweet so as not to distract from the delicious filling. I have to say, it was good! And, because the cake is relatively simple to make and the filling and frosting were both my own recipes (well my own throwing-things-in-a-bowl-and-hoping-they-taste-good) it was remarkably relaxing to make--perfect for the weekend before school starts.
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