What Francie Fancies: Vol. 1

It's on, my friends. Lessons have begun and Francie is cooking!

Baking for the annual church picnic to be more precise. No pressure for your first try, Francie.

She chose to make Ina Garten's Lemon Yogurt Cake because we happened to see it on the television and she took a shine to it.

Plus, it was easy and it required no mixer, so let's not underestimate the low level of difficulty.

I am happy to report that the first lesson went very well. I was able to contain my kitchen related Type A personality issues, and Francie was very enthusiastic and attentive.

She is already a pro at measuring, which shouldn't surprise me given her math grades. Egg cracking, on the other hand, took a few tries. She kept exerting too much force and ended up crushing the shells instead of cracking them open.

After a few rounds of Fish the Shell Out of the Bowl, she got the hang of it. She was much relieved, since I believe she mentioned once or twice, "I'll NEVER get this right."

I have no idea where she gets her dramatic, all-or-nothing personality traits. Must be some kind of recessive gene.

I was also delighted to find out that she is one very capable and thorough dish washer. On the other hand, she is not such a great dish drier, but we'll work on it.

I think this might be the start of something fun. Now on to some real food!

Mise en place

Measure twice, add to bowl once.

A whisk is a great sifter for the storage space impaired.



She's got the knack with the microplane.

Combining the wet and the dry

Into the pan

Two thumbs up for a job well done!

(And yes, next time I'll get a picture of the finished product.)