(no subject)

[featherynscale]

Went over to saffronhare's for a bit last night to do some ritual planning and watch some figure skating. It works out that way, sometimes. First, we talk about how we're going to break people, then, you know, some classical music and artistic jumps and spins.

Somehow, during the ritual planning, we managed to invent a new god. KD, who doesn't have a terribly strong background in Irish myth, was trying to come up with the name of Manannan mac Lir, but didn't quite make it. What she did come up with was Mac mac Laren. We figure he's the god of soccer. Not so much a gatekeeper, but maybe a goalkeeper.

And then, skating. I haven't seen much of the Olympics this time, owing to the fact that the EHQ television set is not hooked up to the outside world (and that the games are not being shown on the BBC America, which we somehow miraculously get). So it was lovely to get to catch some of the competition at Saff's house. And men's long program, even. Now, I don't know a damned thing about figure skating. I can't even really figure out how anybody tells how many times they spin in the air, or what the difference is between a triple toe and a triple loop, or any of that. The announcers last night were all over everybody's lack of choreography and such, and had there not been discussion of that, I'd never have noticed. To me, it more or less looks like everybody just wings about the ice, and then sort of randomly jumps or spins, sometimes accompanying the action with some dramatic gesturing. I couldn't tell a good program from a bad to save my life, and how they score the damned thing is utterly beyond me.

That being said, I enjoyed the program very much. Because hey, I may not know the sport, but I know what I like. And one of the things I like is slender, well-built men in clingy androgynous costuming. Particularly the American fellow, Weir, and the Japanese fellow, Takahashi. They apparently didn't do all that well. Couldn't have proved it by me. Of course, they're all like 19. I guess that makes me a dirty old man. Ah, well.

In other news,
King Cake!
(recipe courtesy of nutrias.org)
Dough Ingredients:

4 packages active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water (110-115 degrees F)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 cup cold milk
1 cup plain or vanilla yoghurt
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 egg yolks, lightly beaten
1 stick butter or margarine
5-6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Filling Ingredients:

1 stick butter or margarine, melted
2 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 dried bean, shelled pecans, or naked plastic babies

Icing Ingredients:

3 tablespoons soft butter or margarine
4 cups confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
4-6 tablespoons milk

Directions:
Combine the yeast, 1/2 of the sugar, and the lukewarm water in a very large bowl, stir well and set aside for a few minutes until the mixture swells slightly and small bubbles appear on the surface. Stir in the remaining sugar, milk, yoghurt, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Mix well. Add egg yolks and mix again.

In another bowl, work the butter/margarine into 5 cups of the flour.

Add the flour-butter/margarine mixture to the yeast mixture a cup at a time, mixing well after each cup is added. Begin to knead in the bowl, adding more flour if necessary to make a smooth, elastic dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 5 minutes, adding more flour if the dough is still sticky.

Shape the dough into a ball and place in a bowl which has been buttered or sprayed with a no-stick spray. Cover and let stand in a warm place until dough doubles in size.

Punch dough down and divide in half. Roll each half on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 8 x 14 inches. Brush each rectangle with 1/2 stick of melted butter or margarine. Combine the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle 1/2 of the mixture over each rectangle. Roll up from the wide end, as you would a jelly roll, inserting one of the dried beans, pecans, or naked babies along the way. Press the ends of the dough together and stretch the roll into an oval about 14 inches long. Place on a greased/sprayed cookie sheet and allow to rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 350F oven for about 35-45 minutes until the cakes are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped with the fingers. Remove from the oven and cool for 30 minutes.

Beat the butter or margarine until softened. Add confectioner's sugar and vanilla and continue to beat, gradually adding milk until a glaze consistency is achieved. Use half of the icing on each cake.

Spread the icing evenly over each cake and decorate immediately with granulated sugar that has been rendered purple, green and gold with food coloring, making alternating bands of color.

Comments

[matchgirl42.livejournal.com]

*blink blink blink*

Um...uh.




Okay then. I think I'll wander back over to my corner and continue to mind my own business, then.