Cake thirty-four

Black Sand Castle

Ever made a sand castle on the beach? I’m sure we all have, both when we were little children and  later in our life when we had children. I find it simply intriguing the way you can combine water and sand and set your imagination free. I love it! It didn’t matter whether my castle wasn’t that big or if the castle next to mine looked perfect even after a few hours, while mine had been soon destroyed by a sudden wave....  it was my attempt to give shape to the so many castles I had imagined when listening to or reading fairy tales. Maybe ‘cause I live in a region full of Medieval castles, or maybe ‘cause I’m still a child myself inside. I’ve always been fascinated by castles, secret passages and high surrounding walls which hid huge parks although I’ve never seen a castle as a dark and macabre place as in the gothic tradition, but more like a happy place. I know this sounds quite anachronistic and it’s only what we read in fairy tales....! But I like to see it like that! 

Song: Yellow Submarine

Leave the real world behind you...

see recipe: http://time-for-cake-making.blogspot.it/2014/03/cake-thirty-four-black-sand-castle.html

Cake thirty - one

The Duchess Cake

Like many girls of my generation, when I was a child, I loved to listen to stories set in a fairy tale world full of happy kings and princesses living in white castles surrounded by huge parks, or built on top of high mountain peaks. If I close my eyes I can still recall their life at court: the king was busy with his ministers; the queen and her daughters, there was always more than one, spent their time brushing their hair, choosing the best dress for the next ball and in some cases singing or doing some embroidery work; the prince was riding a white horse or crossing his future 

kingdom on a horse drawn coach. Life was timeless, a stroll in the park or a ball could last for days in my imagination. My mum’s voice sounded kind of remote and I got lost in the book pictures illustrating the ball room or the ride on a coach until a pitch of her voice announced an impeding tragedy. I startled and, holding my breath, I waited for the fairies to appear and magically restore serenity. Those were the years of the first Disney films on Tv and there were no monsters or robots in the stories! I had my happy imaginary hideaway far from the adults’ world... a secret place in my mind. 

Song: Do you want to know a secret

We all have a secret to tell, don't we?

see recipe: 

http://time-for-cake-making.blogspot.it/2013/12/thirty-one-duchess-cake.html