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Russian Central Banker Slams Vast Criminal Cash Exports
Russia's central bank chief said nearly $50 billion, or 2.5 percent of the national income, had been sent abroad illegally in 2012, much of it controlled by a single group of people - whom he did not identify.
Wednesday's findings by the Bank of Russia, one of the country's most respected institutions, amounted to an indictment of lawlessness and corruption in the system of "Kremlin capitalism" that has taken hold under President Vladimir Putin.
They also sent a parting shot from the soft-spoken Sergei Ignatyev, who retires as chairman in June after 11 years largely free of controversy. A successor has yet to be named.
"You get the impression that they are all controlled by one well organized group of people," Ignatyev, 65, told Vedomosti newspaper in a front-page interview after the study found that more than half the flows involved firms linked to each other.
"With a serious concentration of efforts by law enforcement agencies, I think it is possible to find these people."
He called for urgent legislation what would allow banks to close down accounts being used for dubious purposes and also urged lawmakers to tighten rules for setting up companies.
Ignatyev was citing the findings of a study that the bank said it would publish later on Wednesday. By lunchtime in Moscow, only Ignatyev's interview had been posted on the central bank's web site (), not the study itself.
In a further indication of its sensitivity, Ignatyev did not touch on the subject of illegal capital flight in testimony on Wednesday morning to the Federation Council, the upper house of parliament. Nor was he asked about it by lawmakers.
Asked by a reporter before his testimony to identify the "well-organized group" he mentioned in the interview was making half the illegal transfers abroad, Ignatyev declined comment and left the upper house without speaking to journalists.
The Kremlin also did not comment, beyond saying that it thought the figures were exaggerated, and there was no word from the wealthy businessmen known as "oligarchs" who struck it rich after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.
Meanwhile, in the State Duma lower house, the former head of the chamber's ethics committee resigned his mandate after revelations that his family owned a number of apartments in the U.S. state of Florida.
The lawmaker, Vladimir Pekhtin, has denied wrongdoing two months after Putin announced a drive to "de-offshore" the economy by imposing restrictions by officials on investing abroad.
The central bank study found that $49 billion, or around 2.5 percent of gross domestic product, was spirited illegally out of Russia last year.
"It can be payment for narcotics ... 'grey' imports ... bribes and kickbacks to officials (and) managers making large-scale purchases," Ignatyev told Vedomosti. "It can be schemes to avoid tax."
Anti-corruption activists say that capital flight can take any number of forms, with some banks shifting money through complex paper trails, shell companies and so-called "encashment" schemes designed to evade regulators.
Big state enterprises in particular are involved in shifting large sums of money abroad, sources say, while Russia's super-rich oligarchs use offshore centres to safeguard their businesses.
Statistics show that Cyprus is the largest source of foreign investment into Russia. Most of that money coming from the island is itself Russian in origin, bankers say.
The amount of dirty money flowing in and out of Russia has more than doubled over the past eight years, robbing the country of productive capital and driving a huge underground economy, a recent study by a U.S. think tank found.
Global Financial Integrity, based in Washington, estimated that an average of $62 billion in money earned from corruption, human trafficking, arms smuggling and other illegal activities has entered or left Russia each year since the start of 2004.
That is a 228 percent increase from the $27.06 billion in illicit funds seen annually on average in the prior decade, the study found.
The most high-profile recent case of suspected illegal capital flight was investigated by investment fund lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died in a Russian prison in 2009.
Magnitsky's employer, Hermitage Capital, has accused law enforcement officials of stealing $230 million by seizing control of its companies and fraudulently securing a tax rebate.
Investigators in Switzerland and other countries are investigating the flows of the so-called "Magnitsky money", some of which, Hermitage says, ended up in real estate investments in the Gulf trading hub of Dubai.
Russian officials have denied any wrongdoing. They have instead pressed ahead with plans to try Magnitsky posthumously for tax evasion, and to prosecute Hermitage founder Bill Browder, a British citizen, in absentia.
Of the total illegal outflows in 2012, the central bank estimated that $14 billion was related to trade operations, with the remainder made up of $35.1 billion in "dubious" capital transfers.
The latter represents 60 percent of last year's officially reported total net capital outflow of $56.8 billion, according to the study.
The Kremlin "took note" of the findings, but made clear that it did not share the central bank's views, pointing to other officially backed research that concluded that illegal capital flight from Russia is far lower.
The research, by a state-backed investment fund, concludes that the figure for capital outflows is "highly exaggerated", Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on Wednesday.
"We take all points of view into account, but our position is that this is a natural process," Peskov said. "Illegal outflows, if we are talking about the laundering of dirty money, are a matter for law enforcement agencies."
Copyright 2013 by Reuters. All rights reserved.


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text:
I've led a life of a gypsy for a large part of my years. Together with my family, our wanderlust took us from Cairo to Bali, from Colombo to Kuwait from Houston to Zanzibar. These kilometers were covered before I even turned eleven. Just as I began unpacking my Enid Blyton and Roald Dahl books and found the perfect place for my posters, it was time to cram them into the aluminum and wooden chests again, which we had especially made for our travels.
I never grew up aggrieved about the situation though. On the contrary, it was the most normal thing for us. The people we circulated with were, just like us, never based anywhere long enough to actually call that place home. The friendships I made were mostly short lived but intensive and happy. My friends and I seemed to cherish the company for we knew it would not last too long. Then as the goodbyes were said and tears rolled down cheeks, promises to keep in touch were made, between the half packed boxes and bubble wrapped paintings, which seemed to symbolize our lives.
I still have a collection of yearbooks from several different schools and in each one, friends have written messages of well wishes, love, and being missed. Sometimes I do go upstairs and pull open the one or the other box that contain these books and giggle at the messages scrawled in the handwriting of 9-12 year olds. Hearts and stars adorn the pages reinstating what we felt at that time.
We knew keeping in touch would not be easy, but deep within each of us there was a yearning of belonging even if that notion meant belonging in each others memories. Postcards, letters and phone calls kept us busy and occasionally we would meet for reunions as we crossed continents on our way to our next destination. Inevitably however, over the years I lost touch with a few of these friends and I often wonder whatever became of them. Some I would love to meet and catch up again and some … well they are best left in the box up in the attic. With the rest I have managed to still keep in touch albeit not in regular intervals but every so often we will get together on Skype or on the phone and chat picking up from where we left.
I'll be turning 40 next June – a daunting thought because I swear I have not aged beyond 18 - and my thoughts have been turning towards the people I have met in my life, those that have made an impact on it, be it good or not so good and friendships made or lost. I'd love to have them all seated around a big table, chatter and laughter resonating throughout the room as we play catch up. I'd love to have all of these people, who have touched my life, in one room and be able to sit back and think to myself "For this I would not have changed a thing!"
Although I would probably cook up the biggest feast, we'd start with dessert first to make the moment sweet. Like this delightful crostata, the main ingredients of which were provided by … friends. The luscious apples, rosy red and aromatically sweet, were picked and packed by my girlfriend M, while the blackberries, juicy and ripe, were foraged by Soeren's girlfriend, C., and the honey, that coats and roasts the apples, came from our friend T. who's hobby is apiculture. I simply put all these gifts together giving it my twist of spiced cardamom and vanilla and present it in a divine crostata sprinkled with a delicious brown butter streusel topping.
Printable version of recipe here
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 2 hour 45 minutes
For the pastry
- 200g all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 170g butter, very cold and cut into cubes
- 175 ml water, ice cold
- 5 apples, peeled, cored and sliced
- 100g blackberries
- 150 ml clear honey
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 3-4 green cardamom pods, cracked
- 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
- 1 large egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
- 50g + 2 tablesppons all-purpose flour
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 30g pecan nuts, finely chopped
- 50g +2 tablespoon muscovado sugar
- Pinch of fleur de sel
- ½ teaspoon cardamom, ground
- To make the pastry, pulse the flour, sugar and salt in a food processor. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the mixture is resembles breadcrumbs. Add the water and pulse just until a dough forms then turn out onto a work surface and gather the crumbs together. Do not knead the dough but quickly shape into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- In the meantime preheat the oven to 190 degrees C. and make the filling by tossing the apple slices in the honey, cardamom pods vanilla bean and pod and the melted butter. Transfer to an ovenproof dish and roast till apples are tender about 15-20 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the apples to a platter and reserve the roasting liquid.
- Pour the roasting liquid into a small saucepan and reduce till the liquid is thick and syrupy. Set aside to cool.
- Make the streusel topping by mixing the flour with the pecans, and 50g sugar, fleur de sel and ground cardamom. In a small skillet, cook butter over moderately high heat until golden brown and aromatic. This should take about 2 minutes. Pour the butter over the streusel mixture and toss gently until crumbly. Refrigerate the streusel.
- Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the pastry to fit a small tart form or free-form to a 6 cm round. Transfer to a baking sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Brush the egg wash leaving about 2-cm around the edge of the dough. Spread the apples on the pastry and place the blackberries on top. Fold the edge up over the filling, leaving the center free. Sprinkle the cold streusel topping over the apples and brush the pastry with the egg wash. Bake the crostata for 40-50 minutes, or until it is golden brown.
- Let the crostata cool slightly, then serve still warm with a lightly beaten Chantilly cream drizzled with the reserved spiced honey syrup.
Mouthwatering to the very last crumb. While making the crostata I was thinking of how incredibly spirited that special ingredient of friendship is. I admit I sometimes am not the very best in keeping in touch and there are many who excel at this than I do, but many of my friends know that I carry their friendship in my hearts. Small gestures go a long way with me and in return I concoct sweet tokens of appreciation.
The making of the corstata was a delicious joint effort, taking all the cherished ingredients from friends and putting them in one place. The flakey shortcrust pastry was a buttery and crumbly, the perfect basis for the honey-kissed apples, tenderly roasted to allow their sublime flavor to unfold, speckled with vanilla and spiced with cardamom all the flavor nuances came together in perfect harmony. The highlight however is the streusel topping, the brown butter aromas add a brilliant note to the the entire crostata.
I hope you enjoy this crostata, created from one friend to another ;o)
Last week we revealed the venue for Plate to Page UK. A simply stunning seventeenth century Manor House in the lush landscape of Somerset. Since then we've been busy behind the scenes plotting and planning and I just wanted to give my readers a heads up: keep an eye on us on Twitter, Facebook or subscribe to the From Plate to Page website because soon we'll be opening registrations to From Plate to Page Somerset and you do not want to miss this!
You might like these sweet ideas from WFLH:
Sticky Toffee Apple Cake | Cinnamon Kissed Apple Goji Berry Strudel | Morello Cherry Chocolate and Cognac Teacakes |
All photographs and written content on What's For Lunch, Honey? © 2006-2011 Meeta Khurana Wolff unless otherwise indicated. | All rights reserved | Please Ask First


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I'm all about greens these days.
Since the New Year, I have been going without refined sugar, and skipping most dairy. As an always-hungry omnivore, I resist restrictions in my diet like a petulant child being told to put down the candy. But once in a while, I just get to the point where my body needs a break. When one glance at a butter cookie starts to make to make my belly ache, it's time to switch things up. Amazingly, my biggest craving right now is for greens, and I'm not gonna fight a desire that's this healthy.
Last post, I shared a Breakfast Salad (Greens for breakfast? Yes, please!). Now, I have another recipe for you that packs a healthy punch. Dandelion greens are high in antioxidants, as well as Vitamin A, Potassium, and Vitamin Κ.*
(Plus, I love an excuse to photograph Meyer lemons from the little tree in my backyard....)
INGREDIENTS adapted from Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Every Day
(printable recipe)
- 2 cups cooked garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
- 4 cups dandelion greens, washed and stems trimmed ( I think mustard greens would be good too)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- zest of one lemon
- juice of one small tangerine
- sea salt
Once all your ingredients are prepped, get out a large saute pan, and place it on the stove top. Pour in olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. Turn heat to medium. Once the garlic sizzles a bit without browning, add the greens. Toss everything a few times with tongs to coat the greens with the warm oil. Cover pan with a lid and cook for 2 minutes or until tender.
Add the wilted greens to your bowl of garbanzos. Stir. (I liked using my hands to mix everything together.) At this point I strayed from the original recipe and added the juice of a fresh tangerine: the sweetness of the citrus helps to temper the bitterness of the greens. Add sea salt to taste. Top with lemon zest.
Serve and enjoy. I ate this dish all on its own as a satisfying lunch. I also bet it would be delicious served over quinoa or other healthy grain.
*source on nutritional facts on mustard greens


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Have you considered the hidden hazards that lurk in your HVAC system, air ducts, and dryer vent? If you have not, perhaps you should.
The air ducts in your HVAC system get dirty over time. They collect pet hair, dust, food smells and pollution from cleaning products. Even if you are an excellent housekeeper, these ducts will gather pollution over time. Since the home's HVAC circulates air through the ducts and back into the home, you are breathing this pollution on a regular basis. We can clean your ducts and rid your home of these contaminants—allowing you to breathe easier.
HVAC cleaning is slightly different from air duct cleaning, but many people choose to have the services completed at the same time. The air ducts are part of the HVAC system. So, if you choose a full-service HVAC cleaning, you would have your ducts cleaned at the same time. HVAC cleaning involves cleaning all returns, vents, fans, heat exchangers, cooling coils, pans, housing units and other elements of your HVAC system. When this is clean, your system can run at its best and will send fresh air throughout your home.
Even if you clean your lint trap every time you do a load of laundry, your dryer's vent slowly gathers dust and debris. Over time, this adds up and can be a hazard. Let us clean your dryer vent and return it to a safe condition. Vent cleaning is a fast, affordable job that makes a big difference in your home's safety.
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We are proud to say that our technicians are all IICRC certified. Our technicians also undergo regular training to learn new techniques and develop new skills. Our focus on excellence means that you are always receiving the very best service when you choose Allure Carpet Cleaning.
As you can see, Allure Carpet Cleaning is an excellent choice for duct and vent cleaning, as well as other types of cleaning in and around Madison. If you would like more information about the services, we offer, feel free to call us at (732) 301-6555. We look forward to working with you!
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This course has been developed to provide students with the latest instruction on the best way for creators, consumers, and facilitators to navigate the resurgence of one of the world's most exciting industries: the music business. Three things are clear about today's music industry: The consumption of music is expanding at the greatest rate in history and from the most portals ever imagined, the cost of producing music is decreasing, and the number of artists creating and seeking to expose their work and develop careers through the Internet has increased dramatically. Whether you're a music creator, consumer, or facilitator of this process, you'll want to understand the history, underpinnings, and basics of the music business. Course author John Kellogg—administrator, educator, entertainment lawyer, performer, and radio and television personality—offers students the opportunity to learn the fundamental principles of the developing new music business, for now and into the future.
Created by Berklee College of Music, through this course you'll learn:
- The basic history of the music industry and today's business trends
- How recording agreements are formulated
- The basics of copyright law as it pertains to the music business
- The role of agents, managers, attorneys, and specific business entities


text:
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Oh macaron, how I love thee. Your crunchy outer shell with your chewy insides. The way you melt in the mouth and taste so dreamy with your various fillings. How cute you look in every color of the rainbow. ♥ swoon ♥
Will you be my valentine?
These macarons make me smile. Inspired by a seasonal offering from Williams-Sonoma, they were an experiment of mine to attempt a red velvet macaron flavor and I am more than pleased with the result. Red velvet is very much an elusive flavor to describe. Technically, it's a buttermilk cake with a hint of cocoa and of course, the excessive red food coloring. The frosting also adds to the red velvet experience and can range anywhere from cream cheese frosting to vanilla sour cream or even a more modern twist - cinnamon buttercream.
The latter is what I chose for these macarons, as I have used it previously on a red velvet cake for my mom's birthday that was met with rave reviews. The recipe comes from Baked, a well known bakery in Brooklyn that I had the pleasure of visiting last September. I tried a few of their cupcakes, including a red velvet, and while the cake was a bit on the dry side (perhaps it was due to my late in the day visit?) the frosting, oh the frosting! Every single one of them was divine. Not overly sweet at all and deliciously creamy. I'm usually the one to scrape off most frosting on baked goods piled high (as is usually the case with cupcakes) but theirs was so good I didn't dare. While a cinnamon buttercream may not be traditional for red velvet, I think it is an excellent modern twist on an old classic that has seen a resurgence.
To make a macaron red velvet, I simply modified a recipe I'd used before (employing the Italian meringue method) by adding a bit of cocoa powder. I was hoping to add a hint of cocoa flavor to the shells without turning them brown or chocolate flavored, however, there wasn't any hint of cocoa to be found. Had I added more I don't think the food coloring would have covered up the brown tint, though I may experiment more in the future with this.
All in all, I am still very pleased with the final result. I love the cinnamon buttercream with these but would think that a cream cheese frosting would go just as well with them.
**EDIT: I found a great new blog dedicated to these lovely little sweet treats called Mactweets and will be entering these in their Mac-a-Valentine round up. Check out!
A little note on this recipe - it makes A LOT. I easily filled 3 sheet pans worth. Also, please do yourself a favor and use two pastry bags for the batter. I made the mistake of only using one; I thought the 16-inch size I had would suffice but I ended up overflowing some batter while filling the pastry bag and then also had batter oozing out of the top and all over my hands. Lesson learned!
Red Velvet Valentine Macarons
adapted from Kitchen Musings
for the TPT (tant pour tant)
300 grams almond flour
300 grams confectioner's sugar
110 grams aged egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cocoa powder
red food coloring (I used a gel coloring)
Sift together the almond flour and confectioner's sugar. Mix in the egg whites to create the "mass" (mixture will be very thick). Add in your desired amount of red food coloring and mix well. Note: I didn't measure the amount I used, I just kept adding until I had a bright red color, keeping in mind that the color will be diffused a bit when the Italian meringue is added.
for the Italian meringue
300 grams granulated sugar
75 grams water
110 grams aged egg whites
Bring water and sugar to a boil until it reaches 239F on a candy thermometer. Start whipping your egg whites in a stand mixer to soft peaks once your sugar/water mixture reaches 239F. Continue boiling your sugar/water mixture while simultaneously whipping your egg whites.
Once the sugar/water mixture reaches 245F, remove from the stove and let bubbles settle. Turn your mixer to low-medium speed and slowly pour in your sugar syrup mixture while continuing to beat the whites. Beat until you get soft peaks that gently food over when you turn the whisk upside down.
Preheat your oven to 350F
Fold in 1/4 of your meringue mixture into the TPT "mass" to lighten the mixture. Gently fold in the remaining meringue until the mixture "flows like magma". Transfer to two pastry bags with a plain tip.
A note on how to pipe heart shaped shells: This takes some finesse. I started out with heart shapes drawn on parchment underneath my silpat which helped somewhat. This particular batter was more 'oozy' than the French meringue method I typically use, so it was a bit difficult to pipe them exactly into the shapes I traced. I ended up piping them freehand in a gentle 'V' shape that turned out well.
Allow for shells to dry at room temperature for at least 30 minutes (I almost always wait 1 hour) then bake at 350F for 12-20 minutes (depending on your oven).
Cinnamon Buttercream
adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
NOTE: I halved this recipe which made plenty for the amount of macarons I had. Double the amounts below if you want to make a full batch
3/4 cup sugar
1/8 cup flour
3/4 cup milk
1/8 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into small pieces
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
In a saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together. Add the milk and cream and cook, whisking occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil and thickens. (recipe states "about 20 minutes" but my mixture thickened in under 10)
Transfer the mixture to the bowl of stand mixer and beat on high, using the paddle attachment, until cool. Reduce mixer speed to low and add the butter, piece by piece, beating until thoroughly incorporated. Add the vanilla and cinnamon. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until frosting is light and fluffy. If frosting is too soft, chill in the refrigerator and then beat again until proper consistency.


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Friday, April 16, 2010
Getting a Bad Vibe Here...
Friday, April 16, 2010
Since I know you're curious about the behind-the-scenes workings here at Cake Wrecks, I thought I'd provide you with the actual dialogue between me and John while discussing a cake.
This cake:
Me: [calling to other room] "Hey, you don't know any vibrator puns, do you?"
John: [crossing the distance in approximately .7 seconds] "What are you working on?"
Me: "Oh, it's this one. I've got the 'bad vibe' thing going for the title, but now I'm at a loss. What else do you call these things? Do you know any euphemisms?"
John: [staring] "What's it supposed to be?"
Me: "Beats me. It just looks like a giant pink finger."
[both of us pause]
Me: "Hey, I bet that's one."
John: [unable to speak due to laughter]
John: [getting his breath back] "You HAVE to write this down."
Annnnd that's about it. By the way, I feel this is an excellent time to mention that, yes indeedy, we actually get paid now to do this. Living' the dream, people. We're livin' the dream.
Oh, and neither Lis B. nor I have any idea what that cake is supposed to be. However, since it was in the "kids cakes" gallery on the bakery's website I'm guessing it's probably some perfectly innocent character from a cartoon or something. No doubt many of you are preparing to point this out in the comments, too, so that the rest of us look like pervy malcontents. So, you know, I've got that to look forward to.
Livin' the dream, man. Livin'. The. Dream.
- Related Wreckage: Funny Business
276 comments | Post a Comment
«Oldest ‹Older 1 – 200 of 276 Newer› Newest»- Karate Mom said...
Well, I, for one, think that it's the perfect cake to accompany "The Talk" with your 10 to 13 year old daughter because it looks like a fancifully decorated maxi pad.
"Honey, we need to talk. But first, have some cake. You're going to be a woman soon, and...."
-Lisa - April 16, 2010 at 9:34 AM
- Trevor said...
It does, actually, look like a giant pink finger indeed. I don't the "vibe" that you got however. I have tried looking at this a variety of different ways, and I just don't get it. I can't figure it out.
Hmm I think it's a emousibe. that's what my wv was to post this. I think that's what I'll call it. - April 16, 2010 at 9:36 AM
- Just Jim said...
I believe that is the most cherished of all children's characters, Maxi the Pad.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:36 AM
I have a 4 year old and have NO idea what this is suppose to be. But in your warnings, you might want to say Put Your Coffee Down Prior to Reading!
Looks like a giant pink finger *giggle*
Now I must go wash off the keyboard. - April 16, 2010 at 9:36 AM
- Colette said...
See, & here I thought it was a happy pink tombstone =)
- April 16, 2010 at 9:38 AM
Erm.....maybe it's just me, but this reminds me of something that belongs in a commercial for a feminine hygiene product. Doesn't it just scream of "that fresh, clean feeling"?
wv: wooper. "That cake is a real wooper, alright."
Pam S. - April 16, 2010 at 9:38 AM
Georgette Baxter, the larval stage
(MTM reference, for you youngsters) - April 16, 2010 at 9:38 AM
I have two kids who love to watch cartoons, and I have NO idea what that might be from! I much prefer your interpretation because it's going to have me snickering at odd moments for the rest of the day.
You are, indeed, livin' the dream.
wv: pressot I'm not even going there. - April 16, 2010 at 9:40 AM
- Melissa said...
I have kids and I have never seen THAT character...
=) Thanks for the giggle this morning. - April 16, 2010 at 9:40 AM
Maybe it's supposed to be My Pretty Bacterium?
- April 16, 2010 at 9:45 AM
- Tigerwolf said...
Thomas the Tank Engine Meets Mardi Gras.
WV: sergent. "Sergent? Looks more like Lady Gent." - April 16, 2010 at 9:46 AM
Pervy Malcontents FTW! Instead of candles, this one should come with an industrial pack of double A batteries. Just sayin'. Posts like this are why my morning's not complete without a CW visit.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:46 AM
Given the flowers and butterflies I'm thinking maybe albino caterpillar or worm????
- April 16, 2010 at 9:47 AM
- Rustown Mom said...
Looks like a tombstone. Or Casper's girlfriend. Or a tampon. That would explain the happy expression on it's "face". - har har.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:48 AM
- Fignie said...
I'm really puzzled ... I am curious if actually is a cartoon character though ... (I will check back later to see if someone can enlighten us) ... I honestly thought "Mr Happy" was a missus .... but then again my mind isn't quite working at this hour :P
- April 16, 2010 at 9:50 AM
- Dr K said...
eautifully made, too. It looks like a flatworm.
wv: extaes: (female plural of extra) - April 16, 2010 at 9:50 AM
- D.S. Watson said...
I agree with several of your readers, this doesn't look like a vibrator. Don't ask me how I know, just trust me. It looks like a menstrual pad.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:50 AM
- Wolverine Girl said...
There used to be a cartoon character called Pinky but he was a mouse. Maybe this is Spongebob's somewhat disturbed sea cucumber friend, Pinkbob Nopants.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:51 AM
- Unknown said...
Pretty sure it's Barbapapa; used to watch those cartoons all the time growing up in Belgium. The Pez dispenser version actually has the little flowers too. He's supposed to be more teardrop shaped than this.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:52 AM
- Nobody said...
i think it looks like a decorative cloth sanitary napkin. or a coffin draped in a really creepy blanket. my experience with my 7 year old OR 2 year old is no good when it comes to this disaster....
- April 16, 2010 at 9:52 AM
- Melody said...
I have kids who watch WAY too much TV and I have no idea who that is.
I agree though it does look like a Pad or a Tampon. And LMAO at Karate Mom. I think I may have to order this cake in 8 to 11 years when I have the talk with my daughter.... - April 16, 2010 at 9:55 AM
- Cara said...
I dunno. To me, it looks like a big Twinkie covered in pink fondant. With a face. Freeeeeaky.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:57 AM
- Eleanor said...
Looks like a big pale tongue to me *shudder*
- April 16, 2010 at 9:58 AM
- Josin L. McQuein said...
I'm guessing a butterfly without its wings.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:58 AM
- femke said...
Is it British? Because it could be Numberjack One, of the Numberjacks.
http://www.recordstore.co.uk/images/covers08/08.2008/9781405241649-300.jpg - April 16, 2010 at 10:00 AM
I actually thought it was the top handle part of a pregnancy test, and kept scrolling for the rest of the cake. As for vibrator euphemisms, the only one I know is BOB, "battery operated boyfriend."
- April 16, 2010 at 10:00 AM
- Half Assed Kitchen said...
It's the dreaded pink microbe. It just needs some fringe.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:03 AM
- di said...
Geeze, I thought it was a pregnancy test - "It's a girl!"
Um, and I agree with Jonni - we need the "Put Your Coffee Down Prior to Reading!" WARNING.....or maybe, just "swallow"! - April 16, 2010 at 10:03 AM
- Susan Rogers said...
It's looks like [url=http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20051113174509/tardis/images/c/cb/Lady_Cassandra.jpg]Cassandra[/url] from Dr. Who. You know, the creepy stretched face thing. This time, she's just been stretched over a vibra...er...tombstone.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:03 AM
Darn those pharmaceutical companies and their marketting to kids! "My Pretty Prilosec"
http://www.pharmer.org/files/images/Prilosec.jpg - April 16, 2010 at 10:07 AM
Band-Aid? Maxi-pad without wings? @Karate Mom: if it's for "the talk" should it come with jelly filling? Ewww, I grossed myself out there. No worse than a vibrator cake though.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:08 AM
Is it the fridge from Pee Wee's playhouse? It looks similar but I couldn't google any images. Anyone remember?
-amber - April 16, 2010 at 10:11 AM
It kinda looks like the stick part of a Fun Dips pack. Only, you know, ALIVE
- April 16, 2010 at 10:14 AM
- Little Lovables said...
well, the butterflies sure seem to like it...
wv: prosac
the butterflies are ladies and not prosac, so they delighted in this cake instead - April 16, 2010 at 10:16 AM
- Mr.one-one-one said...
Like Femke, I thought perhaps it was number one in Numberjacks. Dressed up for a party.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:16 AM
- Chris Friend said...
My first thought upon seeing this cake?
"Wow. Apple took it up a notch and is selling a purple iPad? Who knew? And, more importantly, whod'a thunk CW would break the story first?" - April 16, 2010 at 10:17 AM
- Amanda said...
I'm with Jen. This definitely looks like a personal finger massager.
Vibrators & cake. Good times. - April 16, 2010 at 10:19 AM
You take the good, you take the bad,
you take them both and there you have
The Facts of Life, the Facts of Life.
There's a time you got to go and show
You're growin' now you know about
The Facts of Life, the Facts of Life.
When the world never seems
to be livin up to your dreams
And suddenly you're finding out
the Facts of Life are all about you, you.
It takes a lot to get 'em right
When you're learning the Facts of Life. (learning the Facts of Life)
Learning the Facts of Life (learning the Facts of Life)
Learning the Facts of Life.
ERRRMMMM... I thought of the Facts of Life theme sone when I saw this one. You know that special time in every girls' life when... well you know. I wonder if it has a diorama at the bottom as found in the tampon boxes?????
~Amanda - April 16, 2010 at 10:20 AM
- vampi said...
i think the face looks a bit too shocked, so y thought it was a latex gloved finger
- April 16, 2010 at 10:24 AM
- Sarah said...
I have a kid, and was a preschool teacher for many many years...I have never seen a cartoon character like that! I *think* it's supposed to be a caterpillar though...that's my opinion. At any rate, it's a cute cake and if you hadn't pointed out that it looked like a vibrator I probably wouldn't have gone there!
- April 16, 2010 at 10:24 AM
- Bibi said...
Colette's picture makes me think that maybe it's the cakey way to advertise your skills as a nail tech. "We can decorate your nails, cakes, pulsating friends, whatever! Give us a call!"
- April 16, 2010 at 10:27 AM
C'mon guys, Giant pink finger?
It's not the size that matters....
WV subpmen: this cake is a good sub4men - April 16, 2010 at 10:28 AM
I'm pretty sure it's meant for a "It's a girl" celebration and that it is a baby girl in a crib, badly simplified.
When I first saw it, I was also thinking of less innocent things than newborn babies though. - April 16, 2010 at 10:28 AM
- RachelD said...
I didn't mean to comment at all, for I have NO idea, nor any witty remark, but my WV is
cancom - April 16, 2010 at 10:32 AM
I think Areia up there is probably right about Barbapapa -- if you read the wiki article linked there this might be Barbabelle, Barbapapa's purple daughter who is a "lover of beauty".
But it still looks like a feminine hygiene product. Or a little cheapie vibe. - April 16, 2010 at 10:35 AM
It actually does remind me a vibrator one of my friends bought many years ago. And I think it was even the same color!
- April 16, 2010 at 10:38 AM
- Daggy said...
To me it looks like the "other" end of a pregnancy test... thanks for the laugh this morning!
- April 16, 2010 at 10:43 AM
- Lynnette said...
My real guess would be a very unhairy caterpillar. But my actual first impression was an anthropomorphic tampon.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:43 AM
I actually had a vibrator that looked similar (sans face)...
Whatever it is - I hope it's delicious. - April 16, 2010 at 10:45 AM
Now you could have put in something about it's name being "B.O.B" (for those of you not in the know, it stands for Battery Operated Boyfriend). A "spit or swallow" comment may have been a little low brow, but I would be willing to go there.
I personally think that the butterflies and flowers are there for "some added pleasure" :) I could go on, but I'm a little busy right now :) Pardon me while I enjoy my "cake" alone. - April 16, 2010 at 10:45 AM
It's GOTTA be Numberjack 1. Look! Here's another one: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4051/4263384026_45deb91908.jpg
Whatt'ya think? - April 16, 2010 at 10:46 AM
@Karate Mom....that is a great approach to "womanhood" - do you think it is a red velvet cake inside?
- April 16, 2010 at 10:46 AM
- Kristin said...
Bwahahahahaha...thank you for giving me a chance to totally gross out my 13 yr old.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:46 AM
My first thought was a decorated tongue depressor LOL but I love your "pink finger" brain!
- April 16, 2010 at 10:46 AM
- Knightridge Overlook said...
I hope it has raspberry filling.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:47 AM
- Cara Aston said...
Well, the person who made the cake obviously has some talent. They just failed miserably at making it look like a particular item...
- April 16, 2010 at 10:49 AM
- Sweet Baby Jaymes said...
It's either a Hattifattener (http://www.flickr.com/photos/hollyannsibley/3953532686/)
a smiling spring-fresh tampon, or a happy maggot. Yay!! dig in folks! - April 16, 2010 at 10:49 AM
My first thought was that it was Mailbox from Blue's Clues. But, this (http://www.amazon.com/blues-clues-talking-mailbox/dp/B001X9KE3K) looks nothing like that.
WV: kingfula - the king's fula thought he was buying the perfect celebration cake. - April 16, 2010 at 10:51 AM
- Gourmet Kelly said...
Thank you @ Wolvie Girl for the nice coffee au lait sinus rinse this morning..."Pinkbob Nopants"...I'll be laughing all day.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:51 AM
- Unknown said...
My hubby just said that this looks like something out of PeeWee Herman's worst LSD Hallucination. You know like what Charry the chair would have as a toy.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:55 AM
Perhaps it was supposed to be a glow worm?
- April 16, 2010 at 10:57 AM
- Trista said...
I thought it looked like the stick from the Lik-m-Ade stuff.
- April 16, 2010 at 10:57 AM
@Trevor - you mean you could've "finger" it out?
and just wanted to mention that I shouldn't be answering phones at work while reading your blog - but at least I have a smile on my face! - April 16, 2010 at 10:58 AM
looks like a happy "tampon applicator-shaped" cake. I never thought about getting a cake to celebrate a daughter's menses.
Because it's a well-intended, but bad idea. - April 16, 2010 at 10:58 AM
- JelliDonut said...
My initial reaction was, "WTF!" That is still my reaction. Seriously. WTF is it supposed to be?
My word verification, btw, is 'insight.' - April 16, 2010 at 10:58 AM
- Tiffany in Topeka said...
Whatever she is, she appears to be blushing.....
- April 16, 2010 at 10:59 AM
- kisha said...
My first thought was it's a very happy Tounge Depressor! Saw AAAHHHH!!!
- April 16, 2010 at 11:00 AM
- Unknown said...
That's it, Damn tampons coming with faces on them. Theres environmentally "friendly" and ....well there are just no words...
- April 16, 2010 at 11:00 AM
- M M said...
It looks like a menstrual pad, if lady gaga designed it.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:01 AM
- July19 said...
I have a 4 year old and I have no idea, either. Personally, I saw a pregnancy stick.
It may be a blersha. It's my wv today and I think it fits. - April 16, 2010 at 11:02 AM
- Amelia Antwiler said...
I just love you. You have to know that.... because now I'm singing "Good Vibrations" and wondering why my mom never had cake to talk about "life".
My WV is imniti. Which i read as "I'm naughty" - because I want a vibrator....because obviously - this one is happy. - April 16, 2010 at 11:02 AM
- Unknown said...
My Five year old = The girl
Me = Me
Me: Hey honey, what do you think this is?
The Girl: I don't know... what is it?
Me: I have no idea.
The girl: It looks like a Popsicle stick that is smiling and is decorated for spring.... Oh maybe its one of those spring sticks.
Me: Spring sticks?
The Girl: with the ribbons that you run in circles around?
Me: A may pole?
The Girl: Yeah! but it has no ribbons... I don't know.
So we are also ignorant in this home, But The Husband also agrees with the vibe idea, though it say its a "freaky" one. - April 16, 2010 at 11:02 AM
- Miss B. Haven said...
all I could think, when I saw the cake, was "Have a Happy Period".
- April 16, 2010 at 11:03 AM
Another commenter mentioned a latex gloved finger, and now I am thinking maybe it is Patty Prostate Checker, friend to all men over 50.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:03 AM
- Jen said...
Looks way more like the NumberJack 1 than a Barbapapas character.
I had totally forgotten about Barbapapas, though, until this post! I LOVED those books as a kid! - April 16, 2010 at 11:04 AM
Dee - After looking at this a looooonnnggg time, I finally asked my 4 yr. old her thoughts on this. She first told me she thought it was an angel (she still has that sweet innocence)then she said she thought it was a baby. Yes, I could see this in an odd demented way, a baby shower cake. Ok, so you would have to be really odd and demented to get that but I get it!
- April 16, 2010 at 11:05 AM
- a said...
I'm pretty sure that's Humpty Dumpty's (nude and floral decorated) wife.
~Abbey - April 16, 2010 at 11:05 AM
- Tricia said...
I think it is supposed to be Mrs. Puff from Spongebob OR a Thomas the Train character.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:06 AM
That is totally a finger cot cake for a proctologist convention.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:06 AM
I really, really, really need to see the bottom of the cake. Is it pointed, like the cardboard shape underneath or is it all rounded and oval-ly like the "head" of the thing.....
Soooo much to mull over! - April 16, 2010 at 11:07 AM
- Partain Family said...
I know!!! Kotex commissioned this cake, right? All it's missing is: "Have a happy period!" written on it to be complete.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:08 AM
- Unknown said...
I'd agree with the Barbapapa/Barbabelle guess. Especially once you see this pic
However, just to further complicate the issues there's also this Vibrator Barbabelle
which came up on the same image search. Hmmm. You're both right! - April 16, 2010 at 11:09 AM
- Rooh said...
It needs a plus sign on it (perhaps that's just not in the screen shot) to announce a happy pregnancy. It looks a bit like a home pregnancy test - albeit a happy one - to me.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:11 AM
- Jess R. said...
My first thought when you said it was in the kid's cakes section was "Tongue Depressor" for a kid who's getting over having their tonsils taken out.
It's uh...really weird, though. I think I'd rather go with a cake that looks like a bowl of ice cream...and some real ice cream, of course. - April 16, 2010 at 11:11 AM
- Unknown said...
This has GOT to be a maxi-pad. It looks distinctly the shape of one, might have slightly ruffled edges?, and appears to exude that lovely, fresh scented-feeling... LOL!
However, the "pink finger" had me rolling. Great find.
- Layla - April 16, 2010 at 11:13 AM
Underneath the icing, I bet it's one big spongy ladyfinger soaked in...espresso...uh, yeah.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:14 AM
Though it may seem boring after all the much more interesting and exciting responses, I looked up some images of Numberjacks 1 and am 99% sure that is what the cake is supposed to be. Good news though is that if you Google image 'numberjacks 1' you will get to see another cake someone made of the same character.
I still much prefer the idea of it being a giant vibrator though!) - April 16, 2010 at 11:17 AM
I think it's a pregnancy test stick. So, the kid's category is totally appropriate, LOL.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:17 AM
- kokonatsu said...
To correct..
Hattifatteners do not smile. They freaked me as kid, because all they did was hunted thunderstorms and got zapped. :P
If it is Barbabelle, it should be deeper purple: http://www.naughtykitty.org/barbapapa/barbameet.html (His father being roundy and looking nothing like stick.) - April 16, 2010 at 11:20 AM
- JustALittleBit_Me said...
Doesn't anyone else find this one a little creepy, in a VC Andrews/Stephen King way? Like something hidden for years in the lake is rising covered in purple ooze and is going to terrorize the unsuspecting family that recently moved in nearby without knowing the sinister events of that terrible spring day long ago when the cute birthday cake poisoned the whole party.
Oh wait. I haven't had my coffee yet.
WV: drogents -- Police officer: "What was the name of those people that lived here? They moved away after the investigation. Um, Drummond? No, Drogent! The Drogents! Nobody knows what happened to them..." - April 16, 2010 at 11:22 AM
Especially given the flowers and such, I thought it was one of the females from the "Changes" animation...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qf7gwPasYKQ - April 16, 2010 at 11:24 AM
- fancy spatula said...
That's the prototype for the iPad. Duh.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:24 AM
I really have no idea what it is. It looks like many things, but hey, at least it's smiling!!
- April 16, 2010 at 11:29 AM
I thought your own comments were funny enough, but many of the comments from your readers were just as funny today. Wolvie Girl's comment about "Pinkbob Nopants" made me laugh out loud.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:29 AM
- Sandy said...
Hmm..I also thought pregnancy test.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:29 AM
- Chrissy said...
At first I thought it may have been a cheerful pregnancy test. Hmmm. I can see it being an index finger for a one for a first birthday. *tilts head* at least I HOPE that's an INDEX finger.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:31 AM
- MJ said...
This worries me.
-MJ - April 16, 2010 at 11:34 AM
- Winter Moon Jewelry said...
Ooh! It's definitely Abby Stance, the new character on Sesame Street who teaches young girls ways to "last" while holding out til marriage.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:37 AM
I think it's Epcot.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:37 AM
- RNC said...
I had a friend who called hers BOB, short for "battery operated boyfriend".
- April 16, 2010 at 11:39 AM
- Rosemary Wessel said...
Yeah. Definitely getting the maxi-pad vibe from that one.
I think I just came up with a new invention! **flees to the Drawing Board** - April 16, 2010 at 11:39 AM
HEY! That's pervey with a capital P! ; )
- April 16, 2010 at 11:46 AM
- CMN said...
Is it Barba Papa's wife?
- April 16, 2010 at 11:46 AM
- Rochelle said...
HA HA HA Karate Mom that is awesome!
- April 16, 2010 at 11:48 AM
I don't know what the cake is, but "Pervy Malcontents" needs to be the name of an Alternative Rock band.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:48 AM
Loved the post, and I just scared my dad with my roar of laughter at Karate Mom's comment ... Poor Dad, he should be used to it by now, right ?
- Naomi
WV : rente > "Pay your rrrente, mademoiselle, orrr else ..." - April 16, 2010 at 11:53 AM
- Tamara Marnell said...
This is Barbabelle: http://www.barbapapa.fr/gb/presentation/barbabelle.html
Only a sorta-kinda resemblance. I don't think that was what the decorator was going for. Given the abundance of butterflies, I give a vote for generic girly caterpillar...
I actually didn't think of anything dirty until all the options were pointed out to me. Thanks, guys, thanks a lot. - April 16, 2010 at 11:56 AM
- Unknown said...
Following up on Karate Moms idea...
Better than a talk. Its a cake for her 'becoming a Woman' Surprise Party. "Surprise!" What young teen wouldn't love having all her friends share in this momentous occasion? The Wreckor Should have written on it, "Happy 1st Maxi Pad Day!" - April 16, 2010 at 11:56 AM
- Unknown said...
I think its a pregnancy test.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:59 AM
- Unknown said...
To follow up on Karate Mom's comment...
Better than a private talk. Have a party to celebrate this milestone. What young teen girl wouldn't love having all her friends around to celebrate? "Surprise!"
The Wreckor forgot to write, "Happy 1st Maxi Pad Day" - April 16, 2010 at 12:00 PM
I asked my 3 year old neice what it was. She said, "That girl thing is a... uh... uh...uh... I don't know what that thing is!" I'm with her!
- April 16, 2010 at 12:00 PM
- Jessica said...
Why the long face?
It looks like a neck-less head to me. - April 16, 2010 at 12:07 PM
- Meg said...
I must have a G rated brain... it looks like the face of a deco dame.
- April 16, 2010 at 12:08 PM
- JillyBiehn said...
Re: Barbepapa
Quit making me learn stuff, Ariea! I come here for a laugh, not smarts! LOL
WV: serche. The serche for intelligent life is going to be sadly disappointed by THIS planet. - April 16, 2010 at 12:12 PM
- Anneloes said...
I'm thinking it's a weirdly distorted Barbabelle, or even a very feminized Barbapapa? (or it's just the work of a baker who vaguely knew what Barbapapa is, and just made something up)
- April 16, 2010 at 12:17 PM
I think it looks like a huge birth control Pill, though with the flowers, I'm getting the bad '70's "walk on the beach in soft focus/not so fresh feeling" vibe.
-Pamlin - April 16, 2010 at 12:22 PM
- TheWantonSeedStitch said...
On the plus side, it appears to be a prettily decorated vibrator!
Now I want a tee-shirt that says "Pervy Malcontent" on it. :D - April 16, 2010 at 12:30 PM
- jengersnap said...
Jen, John, thanks for letting us in on what's "shaking" in your lives. Errr...yeah something like that.
- April 16, 2010 at 12:31 PM
My purely innocent comment is surely this is supposed to be a baby shower cake and that's supposed to be a sweet baby and the swaddling blanket got left off of it on accident? (But in all honesty, I totally agree with Karate Mom, too!) :D
- April 16, 2010 at 12:36 PM
- RosieLB said...
See, I thought that it might be a pink cell phone - flipped closed, of course.
Now, that's kind of a stretch, I know. Considering that the thing has eyes and stuff.
Still, you know how you can BeDazzle your cell phone. You know...if you wanna. - April 16, 2010 at 12:39 PM
A textured tongue depressor?
- April 16, 2010 at 12:43 PM
- Jaime said...
It looks like a cheapo vibrator that would come as the prize in a box of Cracker Jacks....if there were adult versions of Cracker Jacks, that is...lol ;)
~Jaime - April 16, 2010 at 12:47 PM
Okay, it doesn't really look like any of the things people have come up with (not your fault, people!), but here's my theory: The face, at least, looks kind of like Numberjack 1. So maybe it was a little girl's first birthday, and the customer said, "Like Numberjack 1. But pink. And with brown eyes, because our little girl has brown eyes. And more girly stuff like flowers and butterflies. Cool. Thanks!"
- April 16, 2010 at 12:50 PM
I thought it looked like a pregnancy test stick..
- April 16, 2010 at 12:50 PM
Jessie -
I thought it was a sock puppet ... until you turned it into a vibrator for me and now a vibrator it will always be. - April 16, 2010 at 12:51 PM
- hilaryarlene said...
I can't put my FINGER on it... but something about it makes me think of Dora the Explorer (I want to meet the writer who thought that rhymed). Perhaps in the original sketch for the show instead of Dora having a map, she had a pad, this being a way to ease girls into puberty. "I'm the pad, I'm the pad, I'm the pad, I'M THE PAD!!!"
Or, perhaps the little girl to whom this cake was given had just come from the doctor and this was the cake decorator's idea of a "cute" tongue suppressant.
-Hilary - April 16, 2010 at 12:58 PM
- PellaBoo said...
Well I have to completely disagree with it being a barbapapa unless the decorator had never seen one and had only had it poorly described for them.
My 3 year old actually said it was numberjack one before I had asked her so I'd go with that.
On another note, her name for my parents aren't grandma and grandpa, she calls them barbamama and barbapapa. - April 16, 2010 at 1:05 PM
- TychaBrahe said...
It reminds me of some old characters on Sesame Street. Does anyone remember the little bugs who lived in Ernie's window box and made a little sketch about how they were going to go to the zoo? "We'll take the car to the zoo!" and they go off pushing the car to the zoo.
- April 16, 2010 at 1:12 PM
My first thought: " Little Miss Happy Tongue"
My second thought: eeeeuuww!!
my wv: bewde; many interpretations
are both baudy and lewd, therefore
bewde - April 16, 2010 at 1:13 PM
- elzebrook said...
As someone who had a brief stint selling sex toys, this does in fact look like a vibrator. What's worse is that it's not the creepiest vibrator-with-a-face I've seen...
- April 16, 2010 at 1:29 PM
- Brea said...
Big Pink Happy Pill!?
- April 16, 2010 at 1:29 PM
- Jennifer said...
I too think it look far more like a Maxi Pad...without wings obviously! :)
- April 16, 2010 at 1:34 PM
- TableforTwo said...
Totally looks like a "personal massage device". Probably meant to be a catepillar, given the sheer number of butterflies.
- April 16, 2010 at 1:34 PM
I'm voting tampon, clearly to celebrate that most precious day in a young girls life when she realizes that her life is going to suck for one week out of every four for the next several decades.
- April 16, 2010 at 1:36 PM
I wanted to point out that if you put the flowers upright then the smiling pink finger is tilted sideways. Maybe it's a surfboard.
- April 16, 2010 at 1:36 PM
- Vanessa Martin said...
I think it's the first Numberjack from the BBC kids show---
Here are some other images of it portrayed in cake form---
(a really tacky one with frosting smears on the plate)
(a pretty little cake with all of the numbers-these things are cute!)
(a card/napkin with several numbers in foam)
Once you see it in this context, I can envision it on a bakery's website kid section. But once you have the mental image of the "pink finger" you've gone there and it's hard to get back. - April 16, 2010 at 1:46 PM
- Melina said...
I actually think it looks like it's from Miss Spider's Sunny Patch. It kinda has Spiderus' creepy marionettesque expression.
- April 16, 2010 at 1:57 PM
- Bee said...
Oh my. Oh my oh my oh my. And you two just keep me going during school.:D
- April 16, 2010 at 2:00 PM
- Funky Kim said...
If you really want to get that vibe from a children's show, you should watch Yo Gabba Gabba. Muno will give you that vibe with texture! Heh.
- April 16, 2010 at 2:02 PM
- Melissa (& Billy) said...
It's glittery. GLITTERY.
(it's too bad because that is a lovely shade of lilac and the butterflies are cute. why couldn't they have gone for a bear or a bunny or something?)
WV:Surliqu--the spit curl on the forehead of a sulky child (who was the recipient of this cake!) - April 16, 2010 at 2:15 PM
It looks like a maxi pad
- April 16, 2010 at 2:24 PM
- sendingtheclowns said...
Well, I don't think it's cute AT all!
It has that doll-/ mannequin-like, Stepford Wives-y, totally -glazed/stoned stare, for one (many) thing(s).
I've SEEN that look in museums... *shudder*... which has always creeped me out , be it on a person or on a food item. I don't want to eat something while it's STARING at me, for crying out loud. Okay--so it isn't really *staring* at anything. BESIDE the point!
Why is she/it bald??
Hey---say "she/it" really fast~~
=^~.-^= - April 16, 2010 at 2:30 PM
Weeeell, there's only one person that it could be...
Lady Cassandra O'Brien.Δ17 before her (or by then still his?) 530th surgery to prolong her life. - April 16, 2010 at 2:30 PM
Ask the bakery anonymously. Please? I have to know what they were thinking now!
- April 16, 2010 at 2:45 PM
- Unknown said...
It's Polly Pocket Rocket!
- April 16, 2010 at 2:51 PM
- ~Anne said...
No cartoon character I've ever seen.... Frankly those blank eyes are a little "Boys from Brazil", so I wasn't going in the vibe direction.
wv: expeci "We expeci more of these cakes!" - April 16, 2010 at 2:51 PM
- abi said...
Looks to me like it's that most cherished of children's characters, Buzzy the Pocket Rocket.
- April 16, 2010 at 2:51 PM
- Jessica B. said...
Susan is totally right! Cassandra, from Doctor Who, was the first thing that came to mind when I saw it too.
- April 16, 2010 at 2:52 PM
- Zephyr's Mom said...
Didn't read all the comments so don't know if anyone gave you this euphamism yet. BOB = Battery Operated Buddy!
- April 16, 2010 at 3:04 PM
- Sabrina said...
Suddenly I have the urge to check if we have any AA's in the house...
- April 16, 2010 at 3:11 PM
- OnTheSceneTV said...
I am laughing too hard :D
Jaime said...
It looks like a cheapo vibrator that would come as the prize in a box of Cracker Jacks....if there were adult versions of Cracker Jacks, that is...lol ;)
~Jaime - April 16, 2010 at 3:13 PM
- Kira Bronwen said...
Huh. And I thought it was a pantyliner.....without the wings of course. Maybe its a first period cake? Birds and Bees? Eeeerrr...butterflies? Oh, thats where the wings are!
Kira B. - April 16, 2010 at 3:14 PM
- Unknown said...
i think its ment 2 b number 1 from numberjacks
- April 16, 2010 at 3:16 PM
- Amanda said...
Does it have a pink cross or minus sign at one end? It looks an awful lot like a pregnancy test to me.
- April 16, 2010 at 3:17 PM
Maxi pad, pregnancy test, tongue depressor, take your pick. but why it has a female face and is in a garden of flowers is beyond me. feminine issues, I presume.
- April 16, 2010 at 3:22 PM
- Pilgrim said...
Duhh... its a dancing tampon.
Can't you TELL?
Every 11 year old girl wants one at her birthday party. Look how HAPPY she is. Have a happy period!
LOL..pervy malcontents. Y'all are funny - April 16, 2010 at 3:33 PM
- Gabby said...
Well, perhaps this reveals my macabre sense of humor... but I thought it was a pastel casket, at first. It does look like it's about to be lowered into the ground - as it should be.
I mean, really, someone bury this thing, quick. - April 16, 2010 at 3:45 PM
- sheep#100 said...
Looks like the cap end of a pregnancy pee-stick to me.
- April 16, 2010 at 3:47 PM
- Melissa said...
I think it's a cake given to a new gardener - meant to be representative of that phrase "green thumb" (hints the flowers and such)... aka. i think it's a thumb, but they didnt want to actually make it green because they were afraid you wouldnt know what the cake was supposed to be.
that's a joke. get it? because clearly, we dont know what it is regardless of the color! - April 16, 2010 at 4:16 PM
I got all shook up when I saw this thing. . . It seems to have crated quite a buzz!
(You wanted vibrator puns, right?!?)
As for the BOB reference: I used to work in a department where our boss' boss was Bob. It was so challenging to work for him he became a verb, as in: You're going to a co-worker's desk, and they're just getting off the phone with Bob. You ask if she can go to lunch. She replies, "No, I can't go to lunch today. I just got Bobbed and now I'm swamped."
This gives a whole new meaning to the term "I've just been Bobbed."
Thanks for the laughs! - April 16, 2010 at 4:19 PM
If it's a Numberjacks 1, then I have to say, they did a better job than this one:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bruceandjackie/4263384026/ - April 16, 2010 at 4:19 PM
I was completely innoccent and thought it was a female version of Thumb Man... :S
- April 16, 2010 at 4:24 PM
i think its a numberjack - tho the colour isn't quite right.
was it from a British site - as im British and guessed pretty much straight away !
lots of funny comments tho ! - April 16, 2010 at 4:33 PM
My 5 year old says it's a corn dog. I asked why and he said because of the shape. Then I asked him about the color and he said maybe it's part of a butterfly. That clears it up right?
- April 16, 2010 at 4:50 PM
WV: wainati--what your mind becomes when you look at too many of these perversions of cakes
WV: confl--I'm so confl, I just can't figure it out!
WV: actrali--I hope it isn't actrali supposed to be what everyone thinks it is... - April 16, 2010 at 5:01 PM
- Michelle said...
Now here's a thought.... If one *were* to actually order a cake for the purpose of "the talk", how badly do you think the bakery would mess that one up?
"umm what's this? It's supposed to look like a friendly maxi pad...."
"It doesn't look like that at all..."
LOL - April 16, 2010 at 5:07 PM
This seems like either a tampon or what my students call a BOB--Battery Operated Boyfriend. Either way it;s just odd.
- April 16, 2010 at 5:11 PM
- Pam said...
- April 16, 2010 at 5:31 PM
Ooo, maybe it's the mutant baby from the science fiction classic, "That Only a Mother"!...and as such, a poignant reminder of the dangers of radiation.
wv: eaton
Or maybe its arms and legs have simply already been eaton. - April 16, 2010 at 5:55 PM
- peewee said...
OMG! WOLVIE GIRL's comment..."pinkbob NoPants...HAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHHA!!"
- April 16, 2010 at 6:14 PM
- labibliotecaria said...
Is it Prince Charles?
- April 16, 2010 at 6:15 PM
- Terri Coop said...
I'm throwing my vote behind the number "1" from Numberjacks. A creepy, Stepfordy, dragqueen version of that character, but there is enough resemblance in the face for my vote. Rather popular for cakes, but usually in a recognizable version.
- April 16, 2010 at 6:24 PM
- firstname.lastname@example.com said...
I think it looks like a show here in the uk called the numberjacks. Its a show about numbers saving the day. Thats what i think.
- April 16, 2010 at 6:38 PM
- firstname.lastname@example.com said...
I think it might be a character from a uk show called the "NUMBERJACKS". Its a show about numbers saving the day. It could be no. 1
- April 16, 2010 at 6:42 PM
- Alysa said...
Karate Mom's idea was the most awesome! :) Since I have two girls; I'll have to remember that. First I have to get through the potty training stage...
"Well, I, for one, think that it's the perfect cake to accompany "The Talk" with your 10 to 13 year old daughter because it looks like a fancifully decorated maxi pad.
"Honey, we need to talk. But first, have some cake. You're going to be a woman soon, and...." - April 16, 2010 at 7:04 PM
- Bec said...
a poorly shaped humpty dumpty? or an extremely smooth tampon.
- April 16, 2010 at 7:14 PM
- Jen said...
My friends call them BOBs = battery operated boyfriends.
- April 16, 2010 at 8:15 PM
- Casey Becher said...
My vibrator Pun:
It's a Dil - Doh! - April 16, 2010 at 8:15 PM
Using it for "the talk" might not be so far-fetched--my school used to show the girls a film in which a mom explains things by making a pancake shaped like a uterus with fallopian tubes! Thanks for the memory.
- April 16, 2010 at 8:35 PM
Definitally a tampon applicator. lol
- April 16, 2010 at 8:39 PM
- BADKarma! said...
I dunno... To me it just looks like a huge, happy tampon...
- April 16, 2010 at 8:40 PM
You know, if you add a string to the bottom of it, it looks like not a maxi but something other that is used for the same pupose. Try giving a piece of this cake to your male relative..here honey, have a piece of tampon cake. Bet that gets them excited.
- April 16, 2010 at 8:55 PM
there's no cartoon character that looks like that. - April 16, 2010 at 9:21 PM
- kelley c said...
I wanted to say dil-dough so bad that I didn't have time to read the rest of the comments.
Dil-dough, dil-dough, dil-dough. - April 16, 2010 at 9:29 PM
- Hyena Overlord said...
Wolvie Girl said: There used to be a cartoon character called Pinky but he was a mouse. Maybe this is Spongebob's somewhat disturbed sea cucumber friend, Pinkbob Nopants.
I agree that it's a Bob.
Or the tongue B.O.B., we saw at a "toy" party once.
wv: unimate...yup...that's what it is...like a unicycle...one and you.*LOL* - April 16, 2010 at 9:37 PM
It is Thomas the Tank Engine's distant cousin, Tillie the Tombstone. Notice the family resemblance? Notice that she is pushing up daisies? No? I got nothing.
- April 16, 2010 at 9:38 PM
- Suzanne Dargie said...
Yeah....I'd have to say it's either that Numberjack thing or some sort of sanitary napkin/tampon. At first glance I thought, "A happy Maxi-pad?"
- April 16, 2010 at 9:59 PM
- EAnglin said...
I feel old.
Its obviously a pink trimline phone.
Here is a pink one for sale on Etsy (Not mine, no affiliation.)
http://www.etsy.com/listing/40541573/vintage-pink-trimline-phone - April 16, 2010 at 10:09 PM
If you look very closely you can just make out the lettering at the bottom:
Congratulations on your proctology degree!
-PKM - April 16, 2010 at 11:04 PM
It's the "Have a Happy Period Cake."
Because sometimes, when you're dealing with that crap for a week, you need a slice of cake. - April 16, 2010 at 11:21 PM
What a lovely color for a vibrat.. I mean cake. With pretty butterflies and flowers to go with it. Now if only the wreckerator gave a hint of what that thing is.. I wouldn't let any kid near that thing since it could be a demented finger disguised as a friendly.. whatever it is.. lol.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:39 PM
- Jaemi said...
Honestly?? My first thought was as Adipose, but it's not quite short enough or round enough, but it is what I thought.
- April 16, 2010 at 11:39 PM
- ShinyGreenApple said...
It's totally a pantyliner with a face.
Everyone's comments have me laughing till I cry! - April 17, 2010 at 12:13 AM
I'm pretty sure it is for a first birthday. I've seen similar napkins with plaid, daisies and butterflies. Sure is weird looking though!!
- April 17, 2010 at 1:05 AM
- Cosmoplastic " A World-Forming Event" said...
I think numberjack is a good option, Number 1 is also purple on this cake. - April 17, 2010 at 1:06 AM
Oh look. It's Margaret's birthday cake. (re: Are You There God? it's Me Margaret.)
- April 17, 2010 at 1:19 AM
On another note, I do want to take red frosting and scribble:
"Have a Happy Period!" - April 17, 2010 at 1:20 AM
When I saw this, the first thing that came to mind was "vibrator!" But I have a "feeling" that's not what it is.
It could be a tampon... - April 17, 2010 at 1:44 AM
- Brent said...
This is funny. It is. I am just pissed I missed the turd cake game yesterday. You mentioned Estonia and I was like, dude, I live in an Armenian village! And then I couldn't get my internet to work to enter. But you should know that someone in a tiny village in armenia is reading this regularly, laughing, and sharing it with my armenian friends.
- April 17, 2010 at 1:44 AM
Steely Dan.
Harry - April 17, 2010 at 2:18 AM
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text:
While I was mulling over the roasted pumpkin, pancetta and sage soup recipe I kept thinking about how well sweet roasted pumpkin goes with creamy and tangy blue cheese. The soup was already packed with flavour and certainly did not need any more but I still wanted to include some blue cheese in the meal. I often enjoy serving garlic bread with soups and you really cannot go wrong topping garlic bread with cheese so I was thinking that a blue cheese garlic bread would go perfectly with the pumpkin soup! For this garlic bread I went with a gorgonzola dolce which is a milder, young blue cheese that is soft and creamy. After leaving it out on the counter to come up to room temperature it was really easy to cream it into the garlic butter to spread all over some unsuspecting bread before popping it into the over to broil until nice and golden brown and bubbling and good! I have to say that this blue cheese garlic bread is pretty amazing stuff and it went so well with the roasted pumpkin, pancetta and sage soup ! I can easily see serving this version of garlic bread with a lot of different dishes.
Gorgonzola Garlic Bread
Cheesy garlic bread is taken to a whole new level when creamy and tangy gorgonzola dolce is used!
- 1/4 cup butter, room temperature
- 1/2 cup gorgonzola dolce, room temperature
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
- 1 loaf Italian bread, cut in half
- 1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
- Cream the butter and gorgonzola and then mix in the garlic and parsley.
- Spread the mixture over the bread, top with the parmigiano reggiano and broil until golden brown.


text:
The First Movie
Mark Cousins
This is an intriguing film, which offers a sweet and simple example of the power of film to alter a place. Filmmaker Mark Cousins travels to Iraq with a selection of classic films, a projector and three small video cameras. His intention is to allow the children to re-imagine their country, a place synonymous in the West with war and tragedy.
However, the film is less about Iraq than it is about film. This is first and foremost a love song to film. Cousins explains his own romance with the medium and tries to inspire the same passion in the children of Goptapa. It is incredibly poignant that many of the children have never seen a movie before and it is touching to see their loud and raucous delight when Cousins sets up a cinema in the hillside.
The First Movie shows how imagination can be used as a force against war, creating where it destroys. The children's stories are vivid and their village is beautiful, and through a series of breathtaking images, Cousins demonstrates a different, quieter aspect to this land.
Bryony Byrne


text:
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
(Almost) Irish Soda Bread
From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Ina Garten has develop a recipe for the best soda bread I've ever eaten. Unfortunately, it's inaptly named and bares only the slightest resemblance to a true Irish soda bread. The Irish began to use baking soda in the mid 1800's. Bread was made mostly in the summer months when potato stores had been exhausted and grains were needed to carry the poor through to the next harvest. They called the summer months "meal months" . Irish peasants lived, for the most part, on a diet of potatoes, grains and milk. Eggs, butter, zests, currants and nuts appeared only in the breads of English landholders or successful Irish emigres. True soda bread was a mix of flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk. It was cooked in a bastible, a lidded cast-iron pot that was put right into the coals or on a turf fire. In the Southern part of the country, the bread was shaped into a round loaf that was scored with a cross that was made to "let the devil out" as the bread cooked. In Northern Ireland, the bread was baked in a flat circle called a farl. What is, today, called Irish Soda bread should really be called "Spotted Dog". Now, please understand, I don't fault Ina for not calling her bread that. It lacks panache and would be hard to sell even the most devoted of her followers. I just wanted to set the record straight before giving you the recipe for the best soda bread you'll ever have.
(Almost) Irish Soda Bread...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite, courtesy of Ina Garten
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for currants
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1-3/4 cups cold buttermilk, shaken
1 extra-large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 cup dried currants
1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2) Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add butter and mix on low speed until butter is mixed into the flour.
3) Lightly beat buttermilk, egg, and orange zest together in a measuring cup. Set mixer to low speed and slowly add buttermilk mixture to flour. Toss currants with 1 tablespoon of flour and mix into dough.
4) Dump wet dough onto a well-floured board and knead it a few times into a round loaf. Place loaf on the prepared sheet pan and lightly cut an X into top of bread with a serrated knife. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean and loaf has a hollow sound when tapped. Serve warm or at room temperature.Yield: 1 loaf.
You might also like these recipes:
Barmbrack - One Perfect Bite
Boxty and Latkes - One Perfect Bite
Colcannon - One Perfect Bite
47 comments :
- Allie and Pattie said...
Mary, I have been playing with soda bread recipes since marrying into this very Irish family. My children simply wouldn't eat it. My recipe now bears little resemblance to my mother-in-law's but is almost identical to Ina's! What can you do? Some things just improve with a bit of "tweaking" :)
xoxo Pattie - March 10, 2010 at 5:03 AM
- Martha said...
I've not tried Ina's recipe yet but perhaps I will soon. My soda bread has nary a currant in it and is baked in a loaf pan and is almost cakelike.
I will have to try hers -- for St. Pat's -- probably not for it's the only time I make mine. But Ina's looks like a good bread for afternoon tea with the especially with the addition of the orange zest. - March 10, 2010 at 5:33 AM
- T.W. Barritt at Culinary Types said...
I was just reminding myself that it's time to make some Irish Soda Bread - it's so interesting how such a well-known recipe was originally linked to the rhythms of the seasons and basic diet.
- March 10, 2010 at 5:34 AM
- 3 hungry tummies said...
I just bought some baking utensils so I might start with this recipe :)
- March 10, 2010 at 5:41 AM
- Zurin said...
thats an interesting background story. i agree Irish soda bread sounds much better ^^ it looks good too.
- March 10, 2010 at 5:43 AM
- Inspired by eRecipeCards said...
Great stories (my favorite art of your blog)... But I prefer spotted dog... that has panache!
- March 10, 2010 at 6:47 AM
- Foley said...
Couldn't believe how many recipes are out there for Irish Soda Bread..it's nice to run across one that is tried and true!
- March 10, 2010 at 8:04 AM
- From the Kitchen said...
Top of the mornin' to you! I am going to "invite"you and Ina into my kitchen and make this bread. I've tried a lot of recipes for Irish soda bread and this one looks like a winner. Today, I'm making Ina's winter wheatberry salad. I'm beginning to think I should just cook my way through her cookbooks!!
I'm off to the market with just a light jacket on. The frozen tundra is beginning to melt.
Bonnie - March 10, 2010 at 8:10 AM
- Cathy said...
You are so right, Mary, this is a wonderful bread. This recipe will be part of my St. Patrick's Day blog crawl post at Cuisine Kathleen. The currants and orange zest add so much flavor.
I heartily recommend this to everyone. - March 10, 2010 at 9:15 AM
- Claudia said...
Yes, this looks to be an improvement - I do find true Irish soda bread a little dry - love the currants. Bookmarking this for St. Pat's Day.
- March 10, 2010 at 10:39 AM
- My Little Space said...
It looks exactly like soda bread! Are you making this for the St. Patrick's day? Nice!
- March 10, 2010 at 10:41 AM
- Mary Bergfeld said...
My Little Space...I probably won't make this again for St. Patrick's Day. Not because I don't like it but because I like it too much.
- March 10, 2010 at 10:48 AM
- ARUNA said...
Gosh that bread looks so heavenly. I'm sure it is one yumm recipe. Liked the click.
- March 10, 2010 at 10:53 AM
- Barbara said...
I copied Ina's recipe but ended up making one from Sarah Leah Chase's book. It turned out really well, although the dough was so wet that it was flatter than it should have been. She put whiskey in it which I thought was a good idea.
- March 10, 2010 at 11:22 AM
- Pam said...
Your bread looks gorgeous and sounds delicious! Just wish I had a yummy slice right now! Love Ina's recipes and will have to try this one! thanks!
- March 10, 2010 at 11:27 AM
- Hungry Dog said...
Thanks for the info about soda bread! Very interesting and new to me. I saw Ina make this recipe recently and have been thinking of it ever since. Now reading your post, I'm determined to make it this weekend!
- March 10, 2010 at 11:42 AM
- Marcela S. said...
Thank you for the visit Mary. I'm glad you like my recipes. If you ever need help with any of them let me know; I know that Google translation is not always very helpful. Cheers.
- March 10, 2010 at 12:16 PM
- La Bella Cooks said...
Very interesting to know the history. My grandfather who was Irish used to make this bread and it was incredible. Your photo is very inviting.
- March 10, 2010 at 12:18 PM
- Jamie said...
Mary, for as much as I love baking bread, I have never ever made Irish Soda Bread! Ina's actually looks more like stollen, or even a soft biscotto. Hmmm. Funny! How about making French Toast with it?
- March 10, 2010 at 12:33 PM
- Kim said...
I loved the reading about the history of the soda bread! I've been wanting to try a version and it's nice to know that Ina's version is the best! I'm afraid my husband won't eat it with the currants, maybe I'll leave them out.
- March 10, 2010 at 12:33 PM
- Jhonny walker said...
I loved this recipe...And tonight maybe one to try this. Simple and delish!
- March 10, 2010 at 12:55 PM
- noble pig said...
I have wanted to try a good recipe for this!! Yum!
- March 10, 2010 at 12:56 PM
- Mary Bergfeld said...
Jamie, I wouldn't advise it. This doesn't have the same texture of breads normally associated with French toast. This would act like a thirsty sponge and I doubt you'd get it to the pan in one piece.
- March 10, 2010 at 1:04 PM
- Big Dude said...
Thanks for the history info. If I've ever eaten soda bread, I don't recall, but will get my baker on this when she gets back form the beach :).
- March 10, 2010 at 1:34 PM
- Bob said...
Mmmm, soda bread. Love it. I didn't know all that about it either, good stuff.
- March 10, 2010 at 1:46 PM
- Andreas said...
Nice bread. Thanks for the background information.
I wasn't very fond of soda bread in Ireland, but home-made always tastes best, doesn't it. - March 10, 2010 at 2:14 PM
- Penny said...
I appreciate the information about soda bread. I have been wanting to make Ina's "spotted dog" for a long time. Now I think I will.
- March 10, 2010 at 2:36 PM
- hobby baker Kelly said...
LOL, love the history. I haven't made soda bread since college! That was... a while ago. This is the second soda bread I have seen posted this week. I guess it must be time to try out this recipe or find my old one that got me an A and compare them. Then bake them up! ;)
- March 10, 2010 at 3:34 PM
- Joie de vivre said...
So this is what spotted dog is! I've seen a can of spotted dog and wondered what it was!
- March 10, 2010 at 4:18 PM
- ♥ Kathy said...
I love Irish soda bread
- March 10, 2010 at 4:24 PM
- Holly said...
I love Ina's recipes:) I can almost smell how good this is;)
- March 10, 2010 at 5:11 PM
- The Blonde Duck said...
I really want to try that this year.
- March 10, 2010 at 6:38 PM
- Lele said...
My current favorite Irish soda bread (actually really my current favorite bread) is this one from Cooking Light:
My Irish great-great grandmother would I'm sure find the use of buttermilk, whole wheat flour, etc. totally ridiculous, but it is SO INSANELY DELICIOUS! And healthy! - March 10, 2010 at 6:47 PM
- Tina said...
I'll have to save this one for next week - St Pat's is just a week away, can you believe it?
- March 10, 2010 at 7:04 PM
- Joanne said...
Eh. Let's be honest. Traditional irish soda bread isn't that great. but I'll take this one. Best you've ever had you say? I'll take it as soon as possible.
- March 10, 2010 at 7:19 PM
- Kathleen said...
My bil came here in his teens. Yes, the raisins were for the rich..theirs was was very plain.
I worked on my recipe for years..it is not the fall apart dry stuff I remember as a kid. So many ISB's are plain awful! :)
I think I have made close to 1000 loaves over the years..One year I made 75 loaves for orders, and for all 4 gkids Christenings I made a loaf for each family to take home. It is a wonder I still eat the stuff.. - March 10, 2010 at 8:08 PM
- Laurie said...
Thank you for sharing the history of the Irish Soda Bread! That is one of my favorite things about good old cookbooks, the history they tell!
The bread sounds yummy and looks lovely with the black backdrop! - March 10, 2010 at 8:42 PM
- JG said...
It looks so good!
Irish Soda Bread is one of our family favs. The Buttermilk is in the fridge just waiting. This weekend it will be used. - March 10, 2010 at 8:43 PM
- Martha said...
Sounds delicious! How else does everyone expect the devil to get out of the bread if they don't put the cross in it? ;-)
- March 10, 2010 at 8:57 PM
- sophia said...
Ah, I didn't know there was a "proper" way to do Irish Soda bread...I just eat it! Haha! The first time I've had this bread was at Whole Foods...I would love to try making this at home!
- March 10, 2010 at 10:45 PM
- NKP said...
Wonderful! Love the history lesson, and Ina never disappoints. :)
- March 10, 2010 at 11:20 PM
- GratefulPrayerThankfulHeart said...
Well, I love Irish Soda Bread and I love Ina so this is going on my baking list. I have a recipe that I am quite fond of so it will be interesting to compare!
Thank you, Mary, for your great blog here. I enjoy visiting with you! - March 11, 2010 at 2:01 PM
- Lori said...
Oh my Mary- that looks like the best Irish soda bread ever. Not a surprise coming from you.
- March 11, 2010 at 2:48 PM
- Madam Chow said...
Love the story! I will have to give this a try, since most of Ina's recipes are winners.
- March 12, 2010 at 2:14 PM
- Katy ~ said...
I love the name "spotted dog"! I am sooo making this this weekend. Thank you!! So delighted to find a recipe from a trusted cook!!!
- March 13, 2010 at 6:06 AM
- Light and Voices said...
Happy St. Patrick's Day! Lovely recipes are always to be had at One Perfect Bit.
Joyce M - March 13, 2010 at 12:30 PM
- Unknown said...
Made it today and it was *delicious.* The whole thing is gone and everyone from the toddler on up loved it. I realized after I started that I didn't have 4 cups of AP flour in the house, so I substituted a cup of whole wheat flour and bumped up the buttermilk a bit to compensate...maybe an extra two or three tablespoons. It was perfect.
- March 16, 2014 at 10:37 PM


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I've had this gorgeous sand castle cake on my hard drive for ages, so I don't know who made it. Anyone know?
This is a wedding cake, so mad props to whoever thought up having the bride and groom figurines riding a dragon! Plus the castle itself is a great medieval style - check out the little crossbow windows and delicate stone shading. (Found by Evil M., made by Jane's Cakes )
And finally, here's the ultimate castle cake for us Disney Geeks:
Have a sweet to nominate, or a theme to suggest? Then send it to me at Sunday Sweets [at] Cake Wrecks [dot] com.
- Similar Sweets: Castles & Fairies
Hey, pro bakers! I still need volunteers to provide the cake for most of the stops on the coming book tour. Here are the cities still in need of the cakey goodness:
Orlando, San Francisco, Denver, Chicago, Dallas, Austin, Kansas City, & NYC
This is a great chance to show off your handiwork to hundreds of locals residents, and of course I'll be sharing the love here on CW and via Twitter. So if you're a professional baker (sorry, no home-baked goods) and are interested, please let me know!