The first time I saw Les Miserables was in London in 2009. I was 17 and loved history--especially the French Revolution! The second time was with my girl cousins and aunts a few months ago, and we all screamed when Jean Val Jean ripped his shirt open to reveal a chiseled six pack and to show he was also the prisoner 24601. The third time was this weekend, with my mom and brother and husband, and it was just as magical-if not more-as any other time. I teared up when the little boy got shot and when Eponine died, (again). Theatre is just so beautiful and real and raw and there's nothing like watching something being performed live. I like movies but don't really enjoy TV shows, but theatre is simply...breathtaking. I didn't want it to end, although I know the storyline by heart. I'm glad that in our modern day and age where everything is instant and prerecorded and digitally edited and enhanced, that we still preserve an art form that is thousands of years old. It still requires your imagination, and relies on believable characters rather than special effects.
It's finally cooled down around here, and with that a thousand hot soups and hot chocolates and hot teas will be made and all the pumpkin-y things will be devoured. But until then, I wanted to squeeze out another summer recipe with a favorite summer fruit--peach cake!!
I made this on a weekday night when I was craving something sweet and needed to do something creative. It was so easy to whip together-and even easier to eat in two sittings. Fresh peaches are a necessity--and this cake was so so good and so fresh we both devoured it! (It's a mini cake, so it is perfect for 2 or 3.) I doubled and slightly modified Molly Yeh's vanilla cake recipe and it was simply amaze <3
Peach Upside Down Loaf Cake (serves 2-3)
Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tbl. flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 tb butter, softened
- 1/2c sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 2 tb vegetable oil
- 4 tb whole milk
- 1-2 peaches, sliced
- 1 tbl. brown sugar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 and grease an 8" x 4" loaf pan and set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, vanilla, and oil. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients. Add the milk. Layer the peaches in the pan and sprinkle the brown sugar over them. Pour the batter into your prepared pan, and use a cake strip if you have one, (This helps tremendously in keeping the cake level. It is worth investing in, trust me!). Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool for 5-10 minutes in the pan before flipping on a cooling rack.