The school where I work is a rather unique place.  It's a school - a full academic school.  It's an all boys school.  The school goes from grades 3 through 12 and there is only 1 class per grade.  Therefor, it's also a pretty small school.  Every single boy who attends our school has been auditioned and academically tested.  The reason for the screening is that each and every boy sings each and every weekend at the Cathedral that lives right next door to our school.  It's a boys Choir School.
Each year the Cathedral thanks the boys for the dedicated work by providing them with an ice cream day.  A local company comes to the Cathedral grounds and serves ice cream to all of the boys - not the teachers (this is important to note as it seems to have been a sore point over the last two or three years and because one teacher managed to score ice cream this year... only one teacher).  As you can imagine, this ice cream day is a highlight for most of the boys.
How it works is a big scoop of ice cream gets plopped onto a cold slab of granite (I guess) which is kept cold from some kind of refrigeration contraption under the stone.  The eater then chooses additions like gummy bears, marshmallows or sprinkles (god forbid fruit) and it gets all mixed together on the cold slab.  Then it gets scooped up and plopped into a waiting cup.  The boys grab a spoon (totally optional apparently) and go to it.  I happened to be on camera duty this year and here's what it looked like.

Sprinkles - waiting to be scooped into ice cream or poured straight into some boys waiting mouth.

This is what the slab looks like after abut 30 kids come through.

This is what all of that leftover everything looks like when it gets scooped into a cup and then given to an eagerly waiting teacher... the only teacher to get ice cream.

I was going to make a nice salad of chickpeas, feta and parsley with god knows what else.  That would have been nice.  I didn't make it.  I haven't made it.  Yet.  Maybe I will - I don't know - maybe the window has closed and the moment is gone.
I did make an orzo thing with fiddleheads and asparagus.  There was so much of it that I shared... and it didn't suck.  So that's nice too.  I didn't tell my sharee that I threw some dandelion leaves in there.  Plus it's always super nice to share a dish with asparagus in it because whoever eats it will get smelly pee and think of you every time they... well, every time they pee.  It's always nice to be remembered.  I feel like body smells - you know, the real ones and not the fake ones that involve perfume - remind you that you are alive.  Smelly pee falls into that category for me.

The Smelly Pee Givers in all of their Glory.

Let's take a moment to talk about what I did make.  Banana Bread.  Yup - I baked (not to be confused with 'I am baked' which means something completely different).  First time in two months and let me tell you, I was a bit scared.  It was like I hadn't ridden a bike for a while and I was a little shaky at first.  Best thing to do is just start at that point which is exactly what I did.  Then I had some anxiety about whether or not it was going to turn out.  Subsequently, had to have a discussion with myself about why it didn't even matter if it turned out or not - not like I'm selling it or anything. Next thing I knew it was in the oven and my waiting began.  I still have absolutely no interest in eating this bread but I'm pretty that my kids and co-workers will... so long as it doesn't suck.  I'm pretty sure that I've never experienced smelly pee after eating banana bread.

Over ripe bananas looked jacked.

It looks like Banana Bread...

I'm not sure if you've noticed my frenetic brain activity... if you've ever tried to write, read, listen to music or do anything requiring any focus at all with a 6 3/4 yr old beside you then you will understand completely.  I'm doing my damnedest to zone him out completely resulting in what is probably something utterly incoherent... it's not working though - he just told me that he punched his own junk and it hurt.  So nope, it's not working.  Also in my 'real life', it turns out that the bump on my shin which hurts a lot when I run is probably this thing called a stress fracture.  This will mean that my running needs to scale back and I need to ice the crap out of my shin multiple times a day because I totally have time for that.  Since I've just started to feel like my foot is fully back in shape I've just started to up my kilometre count.  I want to aim for another half marathon in the fall.  I'm going to drink some beer to prevent myself from getting too depressed and then I'll start booking biking dates with anyone I can.  If you're up for it just let me know.


Banana Bread with Buckwheat flour (but just a little bit) adapted from 'Mélanger: To Mix'
makes 1 medium sized loaf
serves 6 - 8

1 1/2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup (about 3) overripe bananas, mashed
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup sour cream or plain yogurt

Preheat oven to 350°F
Butter and flour a loaf pan (you know - butter it first and then put a tbsp or so of flour in their, toss it around to coat the butter and then dump out the leftover flour) and set aside.
Combine the all purpose flour, buckwheat flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg together.  Mix well and set aside.
Combine the mashed banana, sugar, egg, melted butter and sour cream/yogurt together.  Mix well - until the ingredients are incorporated and the sugar has dissolved.
Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture.  Mix just until all of the flour has been combined and the mixture is wet.
Pour into the prepared baking pan.
Bake for about 50 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
Cool completely before slicing (so at least 4 minutes, give or take)

Things that are currently bugging the hell out of me:

Drink Recipes

Salad Recipes that involve mixing greens with other stuff and adding a dressing at the end.  I'm sorry... recipe????

Asking a direct question and getting a response that is not an answer.
Ex.  Question: 'I'm at the cafe, you want me to get you anything?'
Response:  'Where was my invite?'
Response to Response: 'Oh! Answer question please'
(P.S. I am guilty of this one even though I can't stand it)
This conversation really happened BTW.

Having to look busy when you really are not.

When it's supposed to be 24°C because it's JUNE and it's really only 11°.... and raining.


Trying to pry angel food cake out of the tube pan.

Coffee that's flavoured with anything other than coffee... I might concede to trying a little bit of cinnamon but I would only be trying it.

Not eating the egg yolk part of the egg which is (we all know) the best part.  What's the point?  Isn't this a holdover from the nineties?


Now I'm not only being 'bugged' these days.  There are poppies blooming and that going to make just about anybody smile.  There is also the small matter of the back and front yards that I've managed to clear to an almost acceptable level.  The fact that my foot doesn't hurt every single solitary time that I run is also giving me pause.  I think that on about three occasions kid #2 ate vegetables without complaining and/or asking for cereal... Win.  Kid #1 is officially old enough to do any number of things on her own.  Last and certainly not least, there are exactly 14 school days left until summer break.
Eat cake once and a while, would 'ya.



Angel Food Cake with Chocolate Shavings adapted from Martha Stewart
makes 1 cake

10 - 12 egg whites
1 1/4 cups cake and pastry flour, sifted
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups superfine sugar (or regular sugar put into a blender and blitzed a couple of times)
1 tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp vanilla
2/3 cup dark chocolate, coarsely shredded

Preheat oven to 350°F
Have a tube or bundt pan ready but do not grease or butter.
Sieve together the flour and the salt and set aside.
Using a mixer, beat the egg whites until foamy.  Add in the cream of tartar and continue to beat until soft peaks form.
Continue to beat and add in the sugar.  Beat until stiff peaks form.
Whisk in the flour mixture little by little, folding gently.  Continue until all of the flour mixture is incorporated.
Gently fold in the shredded chocolate until it's well mixed.
Pour into the tube pan and bake for about 35 - 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool the cake upside down in the pan.  Cool for about an hour.
Gently cut around the edges of the cake, eventually loosening the cake from the pan.