While out running today, I caught a glimpse of the perfect wisp of a cloud. It trailed like the fabric of a dress and hung in the sky, glowing with the orange of a setting sun. I can’t adequately express the emotions I felt when I saw this cloud, but it made me think that one day I would like to create a dessert that could elicit a similar reaction.

In the meantime, I have this strawberry dessert that seems to be missing a certain something, though I can’t decide what it is. It has strawberries, marinated in a little sugar, rhubarb strips lightly cooked in gingerbeer, gingerbeer jelly, some frosted pistachios, coconut snow and a scoop of lychee sorbet. It is light and refreshing with a faint hint of ginger from the jelly, which ties all the elements together. Yet, something in the back of my mind tells me that it’s incomplete.

Maybe it’s just a symptom of this general disatisfaction I’m feeling at the moment. There are currently aspects of my life that concern me but thankfully there are also certain people around I can talk to or have a laugh with, which enables me to stand back for a moment and think (with a little humour), How on earth did I get myself into this situation?

I was reminded of it when I read Helen’s recent post, and while my concerns pale in comparison to hers, I feel as though I can relate. So, I’m dedicating this post to her with hope that it will brighten up her day a little.

My adorable five year old niece was once spotted demolishing the icing off a cupcake, leaving most of the cake behind. When it was pointed out to her by her disapproving mother, she exclaimed, “But I love cream!”. Uttered in her small, high-pitched voice, we found this quote so priceless, that B and I have since adopted it as our catchphrase. So now when I admonish B about his butter : toast ratio, he replies in a mock squeaky tone, “But I love butter!”

As for the dessert above, it started out as a slab of Guinness stout ginger cake. The recipe is by Claudia Fleming and is an absolute stunner. Assisted by the Guinness and molasses, this cake is unbelievably moist and has great depth of flavour with the perfect amount of spice.

In the mood for something a little different, I dried slices of the cake in the oven until crisp and sandwiched them between vanilla ice-cream (because I love ice-cream sandwiches). The sandwich was paired with accents of dry caramel and chocolate, dollops of espresso pudding (a recipe from the Alinea cookbook) and a frothy leatherwood honey milk which tasted malty and earthy : just like the gingerbread. There was also a small amount of smoked orange syrup drizzled on the plate, though not quite visible from the pictures.

Guinness stout ginger cake? I love it, and think you will too!

Guinness Stout Ginger Cake :
(serves 8; recipe from The Last Course by Claudia Fleming)

1 cup Guinness stout
1 cup molasses
1/2 tablespoon baking soda
3 large eggs
1/2 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup grapeseed or vegetable oil
2 cups plain flour
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 tablespoon grated, peeled fresh gingerroot

Preheat the oven to 175’C. Butter a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan, line the bottom and sides with parchment, and grease the parchment. Alternatively, butter and flour a 6-cup Bundt pan.

In a large saucepan over high heat, combine the stout and molasses and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and add the baking soda. Allow to sit until the foam dissipates.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, whisk together the eggs and both sugars. Whisk in the oil.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, ground ginger, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and cardamom.

Combine the stout mixture with the egg mixture, then whisk this liquid into the flour mixture, half at a time. Add the fresh ginger and stir to combine.

Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 1 hour, or until the top springs back when gently pressed. Do not open the oven until the gingerbread is almost done or the center may fall slightly. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

This here is a quick sub-post, to show a few more pictures relevant to the previous post. I normally don’t replate and retake pictures, but it’s been bugging me that I didn’t quite get a proper picture the first time round, and this dessert has been on my mind all week. It’s twisty nature reminds me of how conflicted I currently feel about work. I mean, I love work, but I also don’t love work. But I love work more than I don’t love it, y’know. If that makes sense to anyone at all.

I also realised I forgot to mention a couple of things. Firstly, Sneh of Gel’s Kitchen featured me in her ten questions series (thanks Sneh). If you’re new to Gel’s Kitchen, you might want to read her post on her ten fondest food memories and check out a very yummy looking recipe for potato proscuitto matzo balls.

Less recently, I wrote a review of one of my all-time favourite baking books for The Gastronomer’s Bookshelf, run by Mark (No Special Effects) and Duncan (Syrup & Tang). Look to this site for news on the latest cookbook releases and for reviews for all those cookbooks you’ve been eyeing but have been unsure about buying (we all have a list of those, don’t we?).

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend!