WALNUT COCONUT CREAM CHEESE CAKE

Yesterday I baked a Walnut Coconut

 Cream Cheese Cake.  I had baked

a similar cake last week and decided to

 compare the two and found we liked this

one better.  The other had toasted pecans

which was wonderful too.  I don't see why

this cake couldn't be made substituting 

the toasted pecans for the walnuts.

   

We were glad to slice this cake and

enjoy it! I put quite a bit in the freezer

for another day.

I see I originally cut this recipe out of an

old Southern Living magazine back in the

1970's.

This recipe called for using 2 cake pans but I

 decided to use 3 -  8 1/2" cake pans which I think

make a prettier cake.  I also used 6 eggs

instead of 5 because eggs seem to be smaller

to me these days.

So here are the CAKE ingredients:

1/2 cup soft butter, 1/2 cup shortening, 2

cups sugar, 6 eggs separated, 1 cup buttermilk,

1 tsp baking soda, 2 cups cake flour, 1 tsp vanilla

extract, 1 1/2 cups chopped black or regular

walnuts, 2/3 cup shredded coconut

 1/2 tsp cream of tartar.

If I have a recipe that includes beaten egg whites I prefer to do that task first and then I just sat that aside.

Cream the soft butter with the shortening and add the sugar beating till fluffy.  Now add the 6 egg yolks beating well.  Combine buttermilk and soda, and vanilla and stir together.  Add the flour to creamed mix and also the buttermilk mix.  Fold in the egg whites now and and lastly when they are mixed through add the walnuts and coconut stirring well.

Pour the batter into 3 cake pans which you have greased with room temperature butter and floured.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. 

 I believe I went 25 minutes with my convection oven.

ICING INGREDIENTS:

 1/2 cup (1 stick) room temperature butter, 1 -  8 oz cream cheese 3 cups confectioners sugar and 1 1/2 tsp vanilla.  Blend until smooth and spreadable (can add tiny bit of milk to thin if needed)

Spread on bottom layer first, then others and when all done sprinkle with more chopped walnuts.

PURPLE COLLAGES

 

I love making collages.

These just happen to be purple.

Hope you have a wonderful evening!

MID AUGUST "Tea In The Garden"

 

Welcome to a middle of
 August
 "Tea In The Garden":

After a very hot July we are now enjoying
some cooler temperatures which is frankly
quite surprising since this is usually an
 even
hotter month.

I am sharing a new to me teapot that just came this week.

I adore Crown Dorset teapots.

Serena is a beloved pattern:

Right now the garden is a little boring but I was able to gather up enough flowers for
 a nice big bouquet.

Here's what's growing now:

I hope your summer has been free of
illness and you have enjoyed some
gardening, hobbies and 
 activities at home with family.

MY QUEEN VICTORIA INTEREST

 

I thought I'd share again my collection
of Queen Victoria wares which
I recently decided to move over to my kitchen
open armoire shelving.  The teapot on the
right on the stand above is a commemorative
jackfield type pottery one.  And then
another below with the sliding lid:

 Over the winter and early this year, I started collecting some Commemorative Queen Victoria spoons, a pair of sugar tongs and a couple commemorative pins which I love. The pin on the right shows 4 generations:  from Queen Victoria to the little girl,  Princess Mary:

A lady in Canada who I was communicating with told me about this book which is very interesting:

 

I found mine very inexpensively on ebay.

I was wanting just one cup and saucer for each Royal couple in the  succession of Kings and Queens that followed Queen Victoria.

After she died her son Edward VII became King and then his son George V (remember in the Downton Abbey movie)
then Edward VIII (abdicted) and followed by George VI  before Queen Elizabeth.

This week might be a wonderful time to experience

 an Afternoon Tea too!  Queen Victoria

certainly contributed to the advancement of 

teatime.  You will find many recipes on my site to

bake and prepare food items for an Afternoon Tea.

OUT AND ABOUT IN THE GARDEN

This week we have enjoyed some
shockingly cooler weather.

I especially love seeing the Strawberry

 Hydrangeas finally start to turn pink.

And around back:

I deadhead my butterfly

bushes constantly but it

only takes a few days to

see I need to do that done again.

Thanks for visiting me!

A LONELY UNUSED TEA ROOM

I imagine I am not alone in saying that

I am very sad that with the Pandemic I

have not been able to use my downstairs

personal tearoom.  This has been a big

disappointment as I am sure numerous

teas could have been history down here by now.

Up on top are some of

my collection of birdhouses:

Last year I divided this wall of shelving 

 into many little tea time vignettes

using various themes.

Then a shelf for Jane Austen with my Royal

Winton yellow chintz sold years ago by Victoria magazine.   I used one of the shelves for Downton Abbey with 

cookbooks and one of my decoupage clipboards along with a Spode

 Duberry coffee pot, cream and sugar.  

Then there are lots of other favorites

like Anne of Green Gables

and my collection of antique Bibles:

That is my Gideon Bible above given

to me in public elementary school in 1959.

Above of course - I made room for

 Tasha Tudor two shelves up above!

The Titanic below is always a theme that

interested me.  See the Titanic Salt and Pepper Shakers that split into?  

 My Chocolate pots are displayed to

 the top left below and of

course I love Beatrix Potter

one of my what not shelves in the room:

A few tins and hat boxes on top feature

the art of Edith Holden from the

Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady.

I certainly understand that this cottage

style isn't everyone's "Cup of Tea" as they say.

I personally do not like beads, feathers

 or what is commonly referred to as

 Frou Frou Victorian.

JUST BEFORE AN AUGUST RAIN STORM for "Tea In The Garden"

This will be one of those really quick posts

but I am glad to do one as I have missed out on blogging lately.  Today I baked some cookies for my Grand kids so I have some to share with you.  I made both Oatmeal Raisin and Peanut Butter Cookies for them. 

Right as I was setting up the sky began

to rumble so we will move right along.  This has sure been a challenging time

 with Corona Virus. Our city of 

Columbia has mandatory masks in public places.   I have kept busy in the garden and

sewing and baking.

I am sharing one of two fun Victorian spout tea strainers that I purchased 

earlier this year.  They are sterling

 silver and very interesting.

I am already missing the spring bulbs in the garden but for now we have lots of pretty hydrangeas.  

Here is the recipe for the cookies!  

We are ready for the flooding rain with

our little dry creek which really does help.

I made a bouquet with flowers from the

garden.

So we have had plenty of hot weather lately.  Camping out has really been popular here because of covid.  I never was much of a camper - sorry to say!

I enjoyed sharing this little tea time

with you and hope you have a 

healthy "rest of your summer"!