Wednesday, July 22, 2020

HEATWAVE!







Just really too hot to do much of anything requiring energy. Sitting in a cool
room with a good book is perfect.
Yesterday's official temperature, recorded at Raleigh/Durham International
 Airport, was 107F!

However the cottage is cool thanks to our wonderful a/c, so I did end up baking
 a cake late afternoon as I had apples and blackberries to use up.  
I made the bon appétit magazine, Blackberry-Yogurt-Tahini Cake. . . . 
with a couple of changes.  Chopped a large Granny Smith apple and added
to the fresh blackberries, and as I was out of tahini, I used French acacia honey
instead, and again added a few sesame seeds - both worked well and made a
 lovely dense cake. We enjoyed a slice for dessert topped with dollop of fresh
 whipped cream. . . . . and this morning I had a tiny slice for breakfast and 
found it even more moist and yummy - no wonder my linen pants are tight!



Above is a photo taken back in 2017 when I first made this cake - and a link 
to that post which has a link to the original bon appétit recipe . . . . .  and also to the
 really easy and tasty Tomato-Lemon tart you can see in the background. 
This simple tart is a great way to use up some of the fresh picked tomatoes
 we all seem to have available right now.

What's cooking in your kitchen?
Hope you have cooler weather than here.

P.S. I see Blogger is messing with photo uploading 
again today!



18 comments:

  1. Fresh fruit, yogurt and tahini sounds a perfect combination - I have made a note of the recipe and will definitely give it a try.
    It is hot here, but nothing like your heat, but thank goodness that you have a/c in your home to keep yourselves cool.

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    1. . . . . . you're so right Rosemary, and the addition of cardamon is also interesting - I like it!
      Staying in and keeping cool - thank the Lord we put in the new HVAC system last year, despite the cost - I just couldn't survive without it when it gets this hot and humid!

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  2. Phew! That's too hot.
    I don't think I'd be cooking anything in those temperatures.

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    1. Thankfully we have a great a/c system John - couldn't live here in the southeast without that, so really have no excuse NOT to cook!
      Mary -

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  3. hi Mary...Am writing from Spain where the temp. climed 42 (mask wearing included). Therefore a lot of different salads on our plate (with wine of course).

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    1. Phew - you must be feeling the heat too! I've visited Spain in summer and found keeping a well-chilled rosé close by is a must!!!!

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  4. Your cake looks delicious, Mary.
    I guess you already know that it's no cooler over here. Seems like the A/C is running continuously.

    I am currently unable to sign into my blog. I can see it, but can't make posts anymore. It makes me feel a bit sick as I have tried everything I know to do. I am hoping my comment to you goes through and you are able to tell who is commenting :).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kim - are you using New Blogger or Legacy (Old) Blogger? Legacy is still available until late Aug. now so you should be able to use that. If you are using the new version, to open a new post you must click on the orange circle with a plus sign in it down at the righthand corner, and if you click on the white circle with a ? in it at the top right, you will get a drop down with HELP or SEND FEEDBACK. I suggest you check out HELP and maybe you will be able to find some assistance there - I hope so! If you do get back in and have questions regarding New Blogger please ask me - I will help if I can. I use it all the time now and am managing despite Blogger still trying new things daily - they haven't figured it out for themselves yet!!!

      Stay well, and let's get through this heatwave, it's far too hot and dry here in Raleigh!

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    2. Thanks, Mary. I had used the new Blogger once or twice. I don't think that has anything to do with the problem I currently have. Since the beginning of my blog (2009) I have signed in with a yahoo account. I rarely sign into it, just leave the window open. A few days ago I did need to sign in again and it is telling me that it doesn't recognize the user name. Won't even allow me to try and enter my password. It automatically fills in a gmail account I have. Problem is this isn't associated with my blog. I have tried every way I can think of to find the answer in the Blogger help area. I submitted my problem hoping for someone to suggest something. Nope! Nothing. So frustrating!

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    3. Oh that's awful and I have no idea how to fix it! Don't give up or, if you can't find any help, perhaps you can start a fresh blog - would hate to see you leave the blogging world Kim. Anyway, my fingers are crossed that someone will be able to help.

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  5. It looks yummy...

    107°?! Lord have mercy! Hope those temps moderate asap.

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    Replies
    1. Oh me too Vee! It's so hard to keep the plants going. . . . . especially the potted ones!

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  6. Your dining room is so very pretty. The cake looks delicious! Haven't baked anything this week, but thinking about it. If you are on Instagram visit 3_sources. I am taken by her page and recipes for vegetarian things and think you might enjoy. Tonight I made her almond nut sauce which will go on soba noodles with a side of grilled tuna and sliced veggies. She recently made a delicious melon gazpacho.Stay cool, dear friend. That is waaaay too hot!

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    1. No dear, not on Instagram, blogging takes enough time so haven't succumbed to Instagram yet!
      Your dinner sounds excellent though, and gazpacho of any description (I've become fond of cucumber) is what we need to be eating in this intense heat! I'll make some soon.

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  7. Dear Mary,
    Heat or no heat, you are a whirling Derbish in your kitchen. Adding this, adding that and it always turns out well. I baked a loaf of NO Knead Bread yesterday. Didn't want to go to the store.
    It's been unusually hot here. The house is cool because the floors are all marble. The stone stays cool the entire day and then absorbs the coolness of the night.

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    1. Haha, I do feel like one sometimes - especially when I'm trying to whirl about doing too many things in that small space at once! I recall your beautiful cool floors - reminiscent of French and Italian places I've stayed in.
      So stay cool - hope you and Sadie are well.

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  8. To answer your question: Nothing is cooking in my kitchen during the week when I am on my own :-) I make do with sandwiches for lunch and a big bowl of salad for dinner. Yesterday, for a change, I went to have lunch at my parents'; my Mum had cooked a nice stew, something you'd rather expect on a colder day but it was still delicious.
    Come the weekend, I am sure O.K. and I will put everything on the grill we can lay our hands on; merguez, pollo fino, zucchini...

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  9. Your cake looks delicious! I can see why you had a piece for breakfast, too.

    Your weather is much too hot. We have been pleasant here now, in the 80's. Hope it cools down for you soon so you get some relief. Thank goodness for AC, right?

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