clouds in my coffee

Adamo Photography

It's coming up on the end of my weekend, and I am sitting at the kitchen table with a glass of cold coffee, pleasantly drained. As I write, the sky darkens, more clouds blanket the sky, and the cute girl-next-door to the Sears Tower puts on her brilliant party hat for the night.

Yesterday, the inspiring Kate (whose blog Steadfast and Yearning is a daily celebration of life), my friend and supervisor, helped me pick up this beautiful, special cat from Evanston:

Her Tree House name is "Nimbus," which originally I dismissed as too masculine and also, kind of expected for a big white cat. Nimbus is a fluffy cloud about to erupt in rain, hail, snow, or sleet (but still won't deter your friendly United States Postal Service). 

When we were headed north into the gorgeous Evanston, Kate and I were headed right into the enormous gray clouds about to break into a torrent. We were caught in the storm as we ran for cover. How appropriate, we agreed, for it to be raining on the day we pick up a cat called Nimbus. 

Last week, Howard picked Coffee Cloud Cake for us to bake today. He is a coffee fiend, so it's not a big surprise he chose a cake that called for a cup of cold coffee. It didn't hit me until Kate and I were driving down Lake Shore Drive yesterday that I was making a cake with the word "cloud" in it. Elise says coincidences tell you that you are on the right path. Apart from being as fluffy as a big ol cottony cloud, the cat's growl is like the ominous roll of thunder, and her strike is a fast as lightning. 

 Howard, Elise, and I made the cake together this afternoon. Elise said it was nice, because I just told them what to do. It was so fast, with me reading the recipe, Elise whipping the ingredients, and Howard measuring them into the bowls. 

I went to Target to buy a tube pan, and I picked up measuring spoons as well. When Howard came over, they were the first thing he saw, and he deflated a little. He had hunted around until he found measuring spoons that matched our measuring cups. I am so touched! 

I believe the coffee cake is called a cloud cake because of the whipped egg whites which make it very light. It has chopped walnuts in it, which give it a nice raw crunch. It bakes for an hour, and when the top springs back when touched, you turn the pan over on a bottle, like so:

a rice vinegar bottle in full bloom

Howard at all times was sure it was going to fall and break every single thing in the kitchen, so to break the horrible anticipation we all went out for tacos and margaritas. When we got back and slid a knife between the cake and the tin, we shared it at the kitchen table. It came out of the tin a little rough looking, but I wasn't concerned. 

Elise left tonight for Poland, where she is giving a talk at a conference on puppets. They say she pulled some strings to get there, and is going to have a ton of fun, no strings attached (har har har).

The cats were really curious about this cake. Noreen lifted her face and sniffed delicately, while Twinkle Toes just went for it. 

Elise kept an eye on him, but he was seriously interested in her slice. 

naughty twink!

It was good, and I look forward to having it tomorrow with my morning coffee. I think it's a little sweet, and would probably cut down on the sugar if I made it again. 

maybe if i reach for it with my lucky paw she won't notice

It was a beautiful weekend. I spent time with people I really care about, in a city I love the more I spend time in it.