Sunday, Sunday

Can you smell it, cooling on the rack in the breakfast nook, by the kitchen window? I placed the hot layer cake pan there so the scent of orange rind and freshly squeezed lemon juice and brown butter in the Almond Polenta Cake* would waft out through the screen and comfort the neighborhood, please the children as they drift off to sleep.

Our child isn't home yet. H. drove with four vintage typewriters to a repair shop down the Turnpike and then he was going to scoop Punchy, who had an overnight visit w her Mom last night. It's late, nearly 9:30; maybe Sunday night shore traffic. I hope they get back soon. Punch needs her rest. We all do.

Time to release the cake from the pan. I hope to have Punchy write DAN or DAD'S DAY on top in melted chocolate, so she feels like she was in on it.

I enjoyed the beater whirring, blending the soft butter and sugar; cupping and squeezing the orange and lemon halves to release the juice; and scraping the batter into the buttered and floured pan. I worked hard today in the garden, pruning and weeding and raking; I left the cake for last, as a surprise for H. and Punchy and a pleasant task for me.

Good night to you.

TCOY

1. We were able to sleep late!

2. Took a bath w Lavender Bubble Bear soap and bergamot essential oil**.I just learned that bergamot, per dictionary, is: a pear-shaped orange of a Mediterranean tree (Citrus aurantium bergamia) having a rind that yields an essential oil used especially in perfume.

3. Watched some vintage TV: "I Love Lucy" and "Columbo."

4. H. and I went to Plum on Park Street for delicious brunch and iced coffee. They gave him plum jam for his rye toast.

5. Short but lovely nap.

I bought this at the Belfast Co-op but here is an internet LINK.

*I'm like a dog with a bone when I get a new cookbook I like. Yesterday I made the Summer Squash Casserole from Julia Reed's South and tonight I made her cake. The recipe makes 2 layers, but I halved it to make one. Forgot to halve the 1/2 cup of corn flour and 1/2 cup of cornmeal, though. Used those full amounts but came out great. The almond meal flour makes an impossibly tender cake. It truly is delicious. Also, I didn't have corn flour, so substituted garbanzo bean flour for that. And I had cornmeal on hand from a farm!
**A press contact sent me samples of Puritan's Pride essential oils a while back along with the pitch about their secret uses for household cleaning chores. Here's what Staci said, below. I stuck to using the oil in the bath, but these are worth considering, and I think I will. It's nice to be natural.

Washing Machine: Add your favorite essential oil (about 10-20 drops) into your washing machine to make each load smell springy fresh. [It seems counter-intutive to me to add oil to a wash load, because wouldn't it get greasy? But a friend of mine mentioned this also.]

Freshen up the Refrigerator: To freshen the fridge or freezer when cleaning, add a few drops of grapefruit or bergamot essential oil to the rinsing water.

Get Rid of Old Shoe Smell:  Add a couple drops of tea tree oil or lemon oil to freshen shoes up.

Eliminate Mold:  Add a few drops of tea tree oil to diffuser to get rid of mold in the air.

Kill Nasty Pests:  Mix orange essential oil and clove oil together and spray on pests to kill on contact.