Strong coffee, wild wildflowers, and a view of the sunrise playing a morning game of peekaboo through the wispy clouds and mist.
Welcome to the first Saturday of June 2018, my friends.
It’s good to be here!
#saturdaymorning #coffee #snowcampscenes #kellyskeyboard
It’s been a while since I actually broke out my cake decorating kit. Sure, we’ve had a series of birthdays, parties, mother’s days, and all kinds of reasons to bake, but I kept putting it off until now. Today is our 25th wedding anniversary. This milestone year seemed like the perfect time to play around in the kitchen.
There is no shortage of traditional recipes in this house handed down through the generations, but I decided to try something new and found this delicious Walnut Cake recipe by lovefoodies.com.
Y’all, this cake was so simple. I actually had concerns, thinking something must have been missing. A few simple ingredients into the mixing bowl and away we go! Simple and smooth!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cake batter so fluffy as this! The photos don’t do it justice, this batter was like air. The recipe specifies the times to whip the ingredients, hand mix the walnuts in at the end and don’t rush it. Good things take time. 
Personally I like buttercream icing, and I especially like buttercream icing made with Kerry Gold Irish Butter. Really, this is not a commercial – it just tastes better to me. My husband is of Irish descent, so he really likes Kerry Gold as well, and since it’s technically his anniversary cake too, I used the good butter.
The kitchen smelled so good! Somehow the scent of cake and icing just seems to belong in this house. This is the same house where 25 years ago my mother and aunt made and decorated our wedding cake. I’m not even going to pretend I’m as good as they were, but I like to think they would be pleased with my attempts, or at least get a little giggle out of the effort.
At some point in icing the cake I decided I wanted as much of an Irish them as I could get into a 25th anniversary cake with what I had on hand. It would be blue instead of silver, with ivory, and a deep green. Sure, it could represent any number of places in the world, even this little patch of ground on some days. But for this occasion, it’s all about the colors of Ireland. Ok, the colors of Ireland and LOVE! (Happy Anniversary to my husband).
The blue became a marble-like streak for some roses, and a blend of Kelly Green and cocoa for the leaves. The white cake stand below belonged to my grandmother. Generations of wonderful and talented women have all had a hand in my choices today.
The end result is what I call Connemara Marbled Roses on Black Walnut Cake. Clever, eh?
Here’s to 25 years of marriage, and far beyond. To the moments that lifted us high enough in love and faith and joy to hold on when other moments knocked us breathless and spinning. To the laughter, tears, silences and more laughter. To me knowing he likes black walnuts and Irish butter, and him knowing I like evening cappuccino in a fine china cup. Now, let us eat cake.
Sometimes, the heat and humidity of summer makes it hard to breathe outdoors. There’s a heaviness in the air, and nothing stays dry more than a few minutes. Nothing.
But sometimes, everywhere you look are deep greens of healthy leaves and grass providing a living canvas for vibrant pops of colors that show up to drink in the moisture from the air. And when that happens, it doesn’t matter how hot it is, or how humid it is, for me, the views are worth the sweat ~
So, this afternoon between hot sprinkles and thunderstorms I grabbed my camera to take a few pictures. Tango Rose is beautiful on it’s own, but against a stormy sky to the east and sun rays from the west, it’s absolutely stunning.
I couldn’t help but notice the butterfly lingering in the garden. With tattered and ragged wings he’s probably had quite an adventurous few weeks, but seems quite at home and fits right in with the fading wildflowers. I like snapshots like these. Simple reminders that even in turmoil, there is lovely tranquility. Peace.
