alcohol detox symptoms,Flourless Poppy Seed Cake

My oven and I are going through a rough patch and frankly, I don't think it can be fixed*.

You see, it has been behaving in the most erratic manner this fall, and if there's one thing a cook doesn't need, it's an unreliable oven, one that takes forrrreeeeevvver to preheat, turns itself off mid-baking, refuses to turn itself back on, or burns the food that's placed too far out in the back. Oh, and I almost forgot the best part: mine is also an oven that chooses to not demonstrate any of the above symptoms when the Oven Doctor comes to examine it. Mischievous, no?

Considering the tears of frustration that have been shed because of this -- about a fourth of a cup -- it seems heroic, or perhaps foolhardy, to attempt to bake anything for company. But Maxence's grandparents were coming for tea that Sunday, both had just had their birthdays, and I couldn't get my mind off Lilo's flourless poppy seed loaf cake**, so I decided to brave my oven's capricious temperament.

Maxence did, however, go out to buy an assortment of macarons so we wouldn't find ourselves unprepared, should disaster strike.

I scaled Lilo's recipe down to use the four eggs I had, and modified it to use part butter, part almond butter, and a little less sugar. I also flavored the cake with the zest of an orange (instead of vanilla), baked it in the heart-shaped pan my grandmother once gave to me, and because the tip of the heart got a little too dark (see what I have to put up with?), I whipped up a simple orange glaze to use as a concealer (it didn't quite set the way it should have because I didn't have time to let the cake cool properly).

To my relief, my oven behaved in a relatively cooperative way (only shutting down once or twice during the baking) and we were able to enjoy this marvelously aromatic cake, fine-crumbed and moist, its every bite sparking an explosion of poppy seeds beneath our teeth.

I feel compelled to add this one caveat, especially if you're considering this for an office party or some such awkward occasion: when you're done eating your slice, you may want to excuse yourself and check your smile in the nearest mirror. Poppy seeds are sneaky that way.

~~~

* Having just received an estimate of what it would cost to fix what needs fixing, and found out that it is -- surprise, surprise! -- almost the price of the oven, I think I'm going to have to redraft my letter to Santa.

** Note that the French use the English word un cake for a cake that's baked in a loaf pan; a regular round cake is un gâteau.

Last week's saffron roasted cauliflower was included in Bon Appétit's holiday slideshow, which features many more inspiring recipes by fellow bloggers. I myself have earmarked Sarah's rosemary nuts, Ilva's herb cannelloni and Nick and Blake's coffee cake.

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