Must Stop Baking!

I've actually gained about seven pounds since losing my job. I have been walking the dog more and cleaning the house but I've also had open and unfettered access to the oven.
This week alone I have made cinnamon rolls, lime pie, apple pie, ras malai (a milky Indian or Pakistani desert), blueberry muffins, a carrot cake and a red velvet cake. Out of principle, I sample everything I make. Such was the case this week, except for the carrot cake. The carrot cake was a present for a neighbour's birthday. It is probably bad manners to give somebody a birthday cake with a slice taken out of it. I did however make graham cracker treats with the left over cream cheese frosting using some treasured graham crackers. Graham crackers aren't widely available in the UK . A life without s'mores - think of it! I have a dwindling supply due to a very generous gift from cousin Carey. I broke into the last box this week after I found I had too much left over frosting to throw away after icing the cake. There is something so comforting about frosting sammiched between the two halves of a snapped graham cracker and a glass of milk.

I tried my hand at a red velvet cake this week with white fluffy seven minute icing. The cake was much redder while it was still in batter form. Once baked the cake didn't have that scary red hue that one associates with good southern cooking. The cake was red enough for domestic consumption. The whiteness of the seven minute frosting looked pretty next to the red brown cake. I was intimidated with the frosting recipe as it called for the use of a double boiler (which I don't own). I found that two of my sauce pans when stacked will work beautifully as a double boiler. The icing turned out well. It was as white and as sticky as I remembered from my childhood. Seven minute frosting was the covering of choice for angel food cakes when I was a kid. There was enough frosting to cover two or three cakes, but by then I had enough of being economical and I rinsed the remainder down the sink.

I knocked the Valentine theme up a notch with some Barbie brand pink and white sprinkles that have been languishing in the cupboard.

As I write this there are three slices of apple pie, about four ras malai balls floating in their milky sauce, and three quarters of a red velvet cake left in the house. I need more eaters as I for one am not having another bite. It's back to plain broth and skimmed milk for me until this weight goes.