emily dickinson

Emily Dickinson's Black Cake Recipe Adapted by Margery K. Eagan

This is a good "do-ahead" cake, since the brandy syrup needs time to soak in...ahhh. Have a bottle of brandy on hand—you'll need 1/2 c. to pour over fruit plus approx. 1 cup more for cake-soaking syrup. Two large cardboard cake boards will be helpful if you are making a large cake. The day before baking the cake, if possible, prepare brandy syrup: In a 2 qt. saucepan over medium heat, mix 3 c. sugar with 2 c. water until sugar dissolves. Let cool and add brandy (approx. 1 cup) or to taste. The brandy can be a Cognac-type by itself, or a combination of flavors including amaretto or hazelnut liqueur. Your taste buds can guide you here. (See notes about storing any leftover syrup.) 1 3/4 lbs. raisins 8 oz. currants 8 oz. dried apricots, cut in 1/2" pieces (size of raisins) 8 oz. pitted prunes, cut in 1/2" pieces 2 oz. dried pears, cut in 1/2" pieces 4 oz. pitted dates cut in 1/2" pieces In a large bowl, toss fruit with 1/2 c. brandy. Let stand overnight, preferably, or an hour, or just while you get the other ingredients together. Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a 13" X 18" X 2 1/2" pan and line with wax paper or parchment: butter paper or parchment. (See notes about using different pans--you don't have to make just one cake.) 1 1/2  lbs. soft butter (salted or un: if salted, don't add salt to dry ingredients) 1 1/2  lbs. granulated sugar 13 eggs at room temperature 3/4 c. molasses 1 1/2  tsp. vanilla Sift together: 1 1/2  lbs. unbleached flour 4 1/2  tsp. baking powder 1 1/2  tsp. soda 1 1/2  tsp. salt (or none if using salted butter) 1 1/4  tsp. each cinnamon, cloves & mace 1 1/2  tsp. nutmeg 1/4  tsp. cardamom 1/4  tsp. ginger In a very large bowl, cream the butter and gradually add the sugar, keeping mixture light. Add eggs 3 at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping sides of bowl several times to keep mixture uniform. Add vanilla. With mixer going, pour in molasses. Mixture might look broken, but that's ok. On low speed, gradually add sifted dry ingredients, mixing just until flour is incorporated. Place fruit on top of batter, leaving any liquid at the bottom of fruit in the bowl. (Save the liquid and add to the brandy syrup.) Fold fruit into batter, taking care not to overmix. (Note: with this much batter, make sure your spatula is sturdy; otherwise, your hands are your best folding tools.) Turn batter into pan, smooth the top, and bake for at least one hour, or until the middle top of cake is firm to the touch. The cake will be very dark on top and slightly sunken. Let cake cool in pan. (Note: if you want to present the cake with a smooth top, level the top of the cake with a serrated knife. It will be inverted later, making the bottom the top.) Invert cake onto large wax paper-covered board and back again onto another board. The paper should prevent the top of the cake from sticking to the board. With a skewer, poke several holes through the cake at 1" intervals. Begin brushing/tapping the brandy-sugar syrup evenly over the cake, allowing a few minutes for the syrup to soak in before brushing on more. If the cake seems moist enough, it may not be necessary to use all the syrup. Wrap cake well in plastic wrap (or slide it into a large clean plastic bag) and allow to stand for at least 1 hour—or, preferably, a day or two, in a cool place. Slide cake carefully onto a large serving platter. (Or, for a smooth top: invert onto platter.) Keep the cake covered until presentation time. Fresh greens and flowers around the cake add a festive touch. Notes This recipe makes about 20 cups of batter. Since an average loaf pan uses between 4 and 5 cups of batter, this recipe would make about 4 large loaf cakes. In 9" round pans:  probably 5 or 6 layers. Or, in a 12 x 2" round, perhaps 2 layers. You get the idea, though: you can bake the batter in any size and shape. Butter and paper the pans, and fill them about 2/3 full for proper baking. If freezing cakes: Remove cooled cakes from pans and wrap well. After thawing, and at least 1 hour before serving, brush/soak with brandy syrup. Leftover syrup: Tightly-covered, the syrup will keep, refrigerated, for several weeks. If you've made small cakes and have frozen them, use the syrup as you need it.

___________

 

σε θελω....

 

sad angel by nikolas

My angel is the one who looks over me
My angel is the one who cares about me
My angel who has beautiful blue eyes
My angel has brown hair
My angel will be there to hold me
My angel keeps me warm
My aggel is the one who is always on my mind
My angel is the love of my life
My angel is the one in my dreams
My angel has soft kissable lips
My angel will catch me when i fall
My angel will make me smile when no one else can
My angel will love me for who i am
My angel will be there untill the end of time
He is the angel god gave me

Nikki Addleton

Πραγματοποίησε τα

Ένας μικρότερος κόσμος

 

Νικηφόρος Βρεττάκος

 

Ένας μικρότερος κόσμος

Αναζητώ μιαν ακτή να μπορέσω να φράξω
με δέντρα ή καλάμια ένα μέρος
του ορίζοντα. Συμμαζεύοντας το άπειρο, νάχω
την αίσθηση: ή πως δεν υπάρχουνε μηχανές
ή πως υπάρχουνε πολύ λίγες. ή πως δεν υπάρχουν στρατιώτες
ή πως υπάρχουνε πολύ λίγοι. ή πως δεν υπάρχουνε όπλα
ή πως υπάρχουνε πολύ λίγα, στραμμένα κι αυτά προς την έξοδο
των δασών με τους λύκους. ή πως δεν υπάρχουνε έμποροι
η πως υπάρχουνε πολύ λίγοι σε απόκεντρα
σημεία της γης όπου ακόμη δεν έγιναν άμαξωτοί δρόμοι.
Το ελπίζει ο Θεός
πως τουλάχιστο μές στούς λυγμούς των ποιητών
δεν θα πάψει να υπάρχει ποτές ο παράδεισος. 

 

Nikiforos Vrettakos

A smaller world

Ι seek a shore where Ι can fence in
a patch of the horizon with
trees or reeds. Where, gathering infinity,
Ι can have the sense that: there are nο machines
or very few; there are nο soldiers
or very few; there are nο weapons
or very few, and those few aimed at the exit
of the forests with wolves; or that there are nο merchants
or very few at remote
points οn the earth where
paved roads have not yet been laid.
God hopes that
at least in the poets' sobs paradise will never cease to exist.

(Diary, translated by Rick Μ. Newton ) 

Pablo Neruda - Sonnet XVII

 

Pablo Neruda - Sonnet XVII

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
so I love you because I know no other way

than this: where I does not exist, nor you,
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep.