Hi guys!!!
Welcome back. After a long weekend, I am back home in Honduras, planning the weekly desserts and cake orders. The gloomy sky today encourages me to keep my chin up. We all have slow days. The sky is having its own.
Although I woke up with sleepy eyes, a rush of energy filled me, but it seems to have been used up. My daily coffee has failed to do its job, and while I have no pressing matters to attend to, I find myself trying hard to keep myself up. On a happier note, I had an enlightened weekend in Nicaragua and my heart and head are happy. With much to bake for an upcoming bridal shower, my hands itch to reach those spatulas and begin my task. But not today.
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| San Juan del Sur...a paradise to be discovered |
Today I sit calmly and steadily type away, graciously thinking of my life up to this point. My partner in crime, although thousands of miles away, sitting on the tube at this point, I imagine, emailed me the following Girl's Guide To and after my empowering weekend, it adds up and calms away the queries and questions I have regarding my choices until now. We all wish to be somewhere else, be someone else, try out new things and never regret the things we did. I read it and made me miss her more. With an ocean in between, we still think alike. The same goes to my lovely Chefs, who are dispersed around the world, trying out new recipes, welcomed into new work places, each of us, leaving a footprint on the Earth, trying to figure out where we belong. Hahaha...what can I say? The philosopher in me has decided to come out.
Anyhow, back to baking. So last week was a short baking week. I had a German Chocolate cake to make, alongside a Strawberry-Lemon Cake and Red Velvet cupcakes. Yup, they were all an utter hit and I've scored new "regular" customers. Now, the red velvet recipe you already have. If not, refer to my June post. The only difference with the recipe is that I substituted the cake flour for all purpose flour and I added 4 cups of confectioner's sugar to the frosting for a sturdier consistency. They were devoured from what I heard and that's all I can ask for. Happy customers make a happy chef.
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| Fluffy Red Velvet Beauties |
Thursday morning, we left for Granada, Nicaragua for a two day vacation holiday. After a long day of driving, and a well deserved beer, I bid adieu to the world. The following day, after a hearty breakfast and morning prayers, we left for the beach, 2 hours away and spent the entire day, running around in teams, seeing which one was the quickest in building the highest sand mountain and digging the largest whole. Then we exercised our legs, seeing who was quickest in reaching a midpoint, grabbing the assigned token and returning to home base. The day at the beach came to an end and we headed back to the hotel, for dinner, beers and an intense UNO session. Turns out the card game makes good people do bad things hahahaha.
Friday morning, we spent making up costumes, a song, a dance and creating a flag to represent our teams. Then we spread out around the city, scouting for 8 different tasks to complete, followed by two simultaneous water games. One consisted of taking a bucket of water from one end to the next, without using your hands, with people blocking you, while each team had members around the runners, throwing water balloons at each other, with the same end: making sure they got to your team's bucket. The fun part was you could steal the other teams' water balloons using butterfly nets. All in all, a huge wet mess and lots of laughter. Sadly, the journey came to and end, and by 10 p.m. on Sunday, we were greeting our city.
For the first time in a long time, I was absolutely, stress free. Nothing to worry me, nothing to question. Just go with the flow and living in the moment. It makes me think, why it took a long and yet short trip for me to realize that the trivial problems that we face each day are simply that: trivial. With this, I am excited to see how the culinary adventures I've yet to live will challenge me. Knowing that the "problems" I face in my kitchen are merely hurdles, waiting for me to leap over, I am feel more at ease. So, this week I shall tackle mousses, macarons, cupcakes, lemon squares and others with a head held high a firm grasp on the spatula.
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| Beautiful shot from Iglesia San Francisco |
Returning a bit to Granada, I'd like to point out the beautiful hotel we stayed at: Hotel con Corazon, The Hotel with a Heart. Run by a lovely Dutch couple, the feeling of welcome and being at home does not fade away. It is a small, boutique hotel in the center of Granada, with a cordial staff and great service. Don't hesitate to check it out.
Hotel con Corazon
Calle Santa Lucia 141
Granada, NICARAGUA
+ (505) 2552-8852
So, like I said, it was a weekend of empowerment and enlightment and I can only hope this feeling of fulfillment does not abandon me soon. With new friends and clearer goals, I can say goodbye to July. I wish you all a fantastic week and pop in next week for mouthwatering recipes and my continued adventures in the kitchen.
Until next time.
xx
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