Nov 2022 to Leslie - cake & kitchen chores

I had a *note to self* to do more of these initials - but, I'm going to have to pull out some nibs and ink to do them beautifully. The lettering pleased me. I'm fine with the style of the lettering with the stamp. Even the card is fairly OK. It needs one more thing - but, I have no idea what -- maybe some embossed leaves ----

This might be a short blurb today. Or maybe something will come up to rant about. I tend to get a bit *ranty* during the holidays.

***

My BigHelpfulBrother ran across this photo and thinks I should share it on the blog. It was a birthday cake that we made for our dad - maybe his 65th - we would have been in our 40s. My brother was always the very best a person one could wish for in a sou chef. Someday I will share the stories of MrWilson's attempts to *be helpful.* My kids were so-so. Clearly, my brother and I were mentored by the same person, our mom, which probably explains our synchronicity in the kitchen. We'll get back to this.

There is one round layer of chocolate cake under the spaghetti - which is buttercream icing. The meatballs are homemade fudge with ground up nuts - and rolled in a few more nuts. The sauce is some kind of strawberry concoction. And the parmesan cheese is ground up almonds. If you Google spaghetti cake - there are many examples with more detailed instructions - if you need to make one. 

Back to kitchen synchronicity - and my inability to impart enough kitchen wisdom to my offspring. My local son who learned the ropes in commercial kitchens and spends way too much time cooking delicious meals had invited me to enjoy one of his Philly cheesesteaks at his house. He mentioned that he needed to deep clean his fridge. I suggested that I return the following day because one of my fond memories of my mom was that she was always happy to help me with the cleaning of the fridge and it goes so much faster with 2 people. I noted that he had quite a bit of stuff in his fridge but figured there was a fair amount to be discarded. Can anyone guess where this is going?

Yup. When I showed up the next day and opened the fridge - I discovered that he had stocked up on all the things he keeps on hand to pack his lunches. What kind of person stocks the fridge the day before they are going to clean the fridge. I didn't say a word. We got it done -- but I did mention it to my daughter who let out one of those empathetic groans. I'm just grateful that I have a kid who will clean his fridge once in a while. He even apologized for the state of it -- and I assured him I had seen lots worse.