The other day the clouds were just wild. I know it’s not safe to snap photos while driving, but sometimes it’s just imperative. I was blown away by the huge, towering forms in the deep blue sky. It looks like it was raining under them, but all was sunny and gorgeous where I was.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more interesting skies from around the planet, and Scenic Sunday for amazing sights of all kinds. Remember, you can always see today’s post by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

This iris growing against my house is actually a lovely shade of lavendar when open, almost an orchid color. The stems are very tall, almost five feet (!) and they are the old fashioned kind with a sweet scent,  almost a bubblegum kind of smell. I took a number of photos of the open blossoms but liked this one best.

Does anyone know of a meme dedicated to the color purple? I thought I saw one once but now can’t find it. This would be a great post for it, if it exists.

We had lovely weather in Seattle today. I hope you got to go outdoors, wherever you are.

Check out Macro Flowers Saturday for more ravishing floral close ups. And click on Sara’s Fave Photos above to return to the latest post here.

A shady creek on a sunny day yields some lovely ripples and reflections.

Visit Watery Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday after you’re done here. And remember, you can always return to the most current photo here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above. Browse around!

Today I’m posting a fabulous recipe with notes. It’s long, but not that hard (I included all the details so it will come out right if you make it), so scroll down a bit to see the photos that go with it. My daughter and I made this on Saturday just for the heck of it and it was SO GOOD! To read the story about the history of this cake in my family, read the What Cake story.

By the way, the strawberries on top were HUGE and make the cake look small. It’s not.

You can always return to the most recent post here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

Hot Milk Sponge Cake (Sylvia Messer’s recipe), serves approx. 16

325 degrees preheated, (check at 40 min. if using 9″ pans, 45-50 min. for 8″ pans)

Use (2) 8″ or 9″ round spring-form cake pans, UNGREASED

7 large eggs, separated (room temp.)
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 c. sugar (can be half turbinado or raw, mixed with half regular white), divided
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. cake flour (substitute w.w. pastry flour OK)
2 tsp. baking powder
pinch salt
2 oz. butter
6 oz. milk

3 cups heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
dash vanilla

4+ pints strawberries

Separate eggs. Essential that NO yolk specks end up in whites. Put yolks into small mixer bowl, whites into large mixer bowl. Recommend using small dish per egg separated before dumping whites in large bowl to check for egg yolk contamination!

Beat whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar, mix until almost stiff, then slowly add 1/2 cup of sugar. Mix until stiff peaks but do not overbeat. Set aside.

Sift flour onto waxed paper and measure 2 cups without packing flour in any way. Use large spoon to scoop carefully into measuring cup. Resift. Resift again adding baking pdr. and salt. Check measurement. If using whole wheat pastry flour, use scant 2 cups flour. Set aside.

In small pan, heat milk and butter, DO NOT BOIL, until butter melts. Keep warm.

Beat yolks for 2 minutes. Add remaining sugar and vanilla slowly; beat one more minute.

Add flour mix and hot milk mix alternately, very slowly, into egg yolk mix while beating slowly.

Fold yolk mix SUPER GENTLY by hand into stiff whites. Be patient but do not collapse whites.

Pour equally into two ungreased spring-form pans. Stagger pans in oven so they are not directly over each other. Bake until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean or until surface springs back when pressed gently with finger. 325 degrees preheated oven, (check at 40 min. if using 9″ pans, 45-50 min. for 8″ pans)

While cake is baking and cooling, wash big mixer bowl and beaters. Place in refrigerator to chill for best whipped cream.

Cool cakes upside down on racks ONE HOUR only. Then use table knife to cut cake away from sides of spring-form pan. Remove sides. Use long knife to cut from bottom of pans. Carefully place one cake layer, top side down, on cake plate. (Note: if freezing cakes, freeze while still on bottoms of pans.)

Whipped cream: Beat cold cream in cold bowl with cold beaters at high speed. As cream starts to thicken, add 3 T powdered sugar (or to taste) and dash vanilla. Continue beating until cream begins to firm. Reduce speed and carefully mix cream until very firm, but not gloppy or too firm (i.e., butter)!

Prepare strawberries: Wash, hull, trim and dry strawberries, separating into 2 groups of large, perfect berries and the others. Save imperfect and/or small berries for center layer of whipped cream. You may cut these if still too large.

Assembling cake: Put layer of whipped cream on top of bottom layer, about 1/2 inch. Spread evenly with rubber spatula or frosting knife. Place imperfect, cut or small berries evenly. Cut berries no thicker than half an inch or so for this layer. Press gently into whipped cream. Add more whipped cream to even layer out; spread evenly with spatula. Leave cake sides alone for now.

Carefully place second layer on top of first, top side up. Spread top with whipped cream. Now use remaining whipped cream for sides. Make it pretty with spatula or frosting knife.

Place largest, most beautiful strawberry in the center of the top of the cake. Add remaining strawberries evenly around. Sing Happy Birthday! (optional)

Take a picture; it is so pretty! (required)

Refrigerate after serving. When serving, cut straight down with very sharp knife, using sawing motion.

My mom used to grow a big hedge of these croton plants in Southern Florida. I’ve tried to grow them as houseplants, without too much success. But this healthy specimen in the Volunteer Park Conservatory was just waiting to show off for the camera. Almost looks like a flower, doesn’t it?

Visit Macro Monday, Color Carnival and Mellow Yellow Monday after browsing around here. Click on a new tag or category! And you can always find the latest post by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

The district garden club quarterly meeting with flower show is one of my fave events. People bring what grows well for them, and everyone oohs and ahs. Here’s a sprig of pink dogwood (mine earlier really was more coral) and what could be more graceful?

Visit Pink Saturday for all kinds of pinkness, SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots, and Flowers for Today for heavenly blooms. Macro Flowers Saturday has more great closeups. After browsing around here, of course.

I like this photo the best of this weeks’s posts. The detail on the petals just does it for me.

Finally a break in the gray weather. Had a moment to stop at the overlook near my house in Normandy Park with its vista of Puget Sound at dusk, my favorite time of day.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies seen round the world.

This fountain near McCaw Hall, home of Pacific Northwest Ballet, is unlike any I have ever seen. The water seeps flatly over smooth pavers into the drain across a very wide expanse. Perhaps people walk barefoot in it during the summer. I’ll have to check back on a warm day!

Visit Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, SOOC (straight-out-of-the-camera shots), Weekend Reflections, Thursday Challenge and Window Views after your visit here. Be sure to browse around, if you have time, and click on Sara’s Fave Photos to return to the main page.

A recent visit to the Volunteer Park Conservatory yielded many, many photos of perfectly blooming flowers and plants. This cactus flower was a few inches across, almost as wide as my hand.

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Color Carnival and Window Wednesday after you browse around here. Hope you enjoy your stay! To return to the main blog, just click on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

These lilacs were growing in a neighbor’s front yard on a recent walk. The sky was quite gray and overcast but the magic of a digital camera gave me an exposure that’s almost sunshiny. On the same walk, another neighbor’s Blushing Lady tulips really made me envious. Last year I had some Blushing Lady tulips that were the stars of my spring garden, with huge, almost 6″ blossoms on stems almost a yard (meter) tall. This year they totally failed to come back, where other tulips happily multiplied. But at least my neighbor has had success with them. Aren’t they pretty?

Visit Macro Monday , Color Carnival and Mellow Yellow Monday after wandering around here. Click on Sara’s Fave Photos above to get back to the starting point again.