Genre de millefeuille facile

 

Parfois, je fais des recettes pour finir quelque chose dans le congélateur (comme ce sorbet à la rhubarbe et au babeurre). D’autres fois, je fais quelque chose strictement parce que je pense que ça va plaire à ma famille. C’était le cas de ce dessert de Ricardo : un genre de millefeuille facile, qui est en fait un pouding étagé à la vanille avec des biscuits graham. Donc, comme un millefeuille, mais… sans les feuilles. 

Alors, le défaut, selon moi, c’est que les biscuits graham ramollissent un peu trop, même seulement après les 24 heures recommandées (et ça ramollit encore davantage à la longue, on s’entend). C’était donc difficile de démouler les morceaux, et ceux-ci s’affaissaient complètement dans l’assiette, alors que j’aurais voulu qu’ils se tiennent droits. D’autant plus que cette fois-ci, ma crème à fouetter végétalienne avait bien pris, alors ma crème chantilly avait la consistance parfaite! Donc même si c’était plus facile à couper qu’un vrai millefeuille, j’aimais un peu moins ça. Je pense que je le laisserais moins longtemps dans le frigo si c’était possible. De plus, je n’ai pas eu assez de glaçage pour recouvrir toute la surface du genre de millefeuille, alors j’en ferai un peu plus la prochaine fois. J’ai aussi eu de la difficulté sur le coup à faire de belles lignes avec le glaçage au chocolat, mais en fin de compte, ça ne paraissait plus au moment de servir. 

Par contre, l’Ingénieur a vraiment trippé! Il trouve que c’est mieux qu’un millefeuille, justement parce qu’on peut le couper facilement avec une fourchette. Le Petit Prince a déclaré que c’était maintenant son dessert préféré et que non seulement il voulait que j’en refasse, mais il pensait même que ce serait meilleur qu’un gâteau à sa fête! Le Renard, quant à lui, a aimé le glaçage sur le dessus. 

J’ai obtenu 8 portions, mais la forme allongée des morceaux a compliqué le démoulage. La prochaine fois, je pense que je couperais 9 rectangles (donc légèrement plus larges, mais moins longs, que les parts sur les photos). 

Pour le pouding à la vanille 

80 g (6 c. à soupe) de sucre 

35 g (¼ tasse) de fécule de maïs 

2 jaunes d’œufs 

2 tasses de lait sans lactose 

1 c. à thé d’extrait de vanille 

2 c. à soupe de beurre sans lactose, coupé en dés 

Pour la crème chantilly 

1 ½ tasse de crème sans lactose (la mienne était végétalienne) 

1 c. à soupe de sucre 

½ c. à thé d’extrait de vanille 

Pour le glaçage (voir plus haut) 

295 g (2 ¼ tasses) de sucre à glacer 

¼ tasse de lait 

1 c. à thé de cacao, tamisé 

36 biscuits graham carrés (j’en avais 18 rectangulaires) 

Pour le pouding à la vanille 

Dans une petite casserole hors du feu, mélanger le sucre et la fécule au fouet. Ajouter les jaunes d’œufs et ¼ tasse du lait, et bien mélanger. Incorporer le reste du lait, la vanille et le beurre. Porter à ébullition à feu moyen en remuant continuellement et en raclant le fond et la paroi de la casserole jusqu’à ce que le mélange épaississe. Retirer du feu. 

Passer le pouding au tamis si, nécessaire. Verser dans un bol et couvrir directement la surface du pouding de pellicule plastique. Laisser tiédir, puis réfrigérer de 2 à 3 heures ou jusqu’à ce que le pouding soit raffermi et refroidi. 

Au moment d’utiliser le pouding, le mélanger avec une spatule pour lui redonner de la souplesse. 

Pour la crème chantilly 

Dans un bol, fouetter la crème, le sucre et la vanille au batteur électrique jusqu’à l’obtention de pics fermes. Réserver au réfrigérateur. 

Pour le glaçage 

Dans un bol, mélanger le sucre à glacer avec le lait. Prélever 3 c. à soupe du glaçage et déposer dans un autre bol. 

Dans le bol avec la petite quantité de glaçage, incorporer le cacao en remuant vigoureusement. Ajouter quelques gouttes de lait, au besoin, pour que le glaçage au chocolat soit coulant. Réserver. 

Pour le montage 

Dans un plat en verre de 28 x 20 cm (11 x 8 po), répartir le tiers des biscuits afin de bien couvrir le fond, en les taillant au besoin (surtout les coins). Étaler le pouding à la vanille sur les biscuits. Couvrir avec un autre tiers des biscuits, puis y étaler la crème chantilly. Couvrir du reste des biscuits, puis y étaler le glaçage blanc. 

À même le bol, laisser couler le glaçage au chocolat en filet en formant des lignes dans le sens de la largeur du plat. Passer un cure-dents dans un sens puis dans l’autre en traversant les lignes de chocolat pour créer un effet marbré. Ne pas couvrir. Réfrigérer 24 heures (voir note plus haut).

Heartbeet Chocolate Cake

 

I saw this chocolate beet cake on Bon Appétit and decided to make it. I was really glad to read the comments in the original recipe, because they made my life much easier. First, instead of roasting or boiling my own beets for this, I used a 15-oz. can of sliced beets, drained them, then puréed them with an immersion blender – boom, just the right amount. Second, I used a 9” springform pan instead of an 8” pan, which would have been too small – that’s what I’m writing below. Everyone liked this cake! (The Fox doesn’t like the glaze because the chocolate is too soft, but he does like the cake itself.) 

For the cake 

4 medium beets, scrubbed (see note above) 

2 Tbsp. virgin coconut oil, plus more for pan 

½ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus more for pan 

1 ½ cups almond flour 

½ tsp. baking soda 

½ tsp. ground cinnamon 

2 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 

1 tsp. apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar 

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

4 large eggs 

1 ¼ cups (packed) light brown sugar 

1 tsp. kosher salt (I used ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt) 

For the glaze 

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped 

1 Tbsp. virgin coconut oil 

¼ tp. vanilla extract 

1 pinch kosher salt 

For the cake 

Cook beets in a medium pot of boiling unsalted water until tender, 30–40 minutes, depending on size. Drain and rinse under cold water until cool enough to handle. Cut off stem end, then peel and cut beets into large pieces. Transfer to a blender and add 2 Tbsp. water. Blend, adding water 1 Tbsp. at a time as needed, until a smooth purée forms—it should be the consistency of applesauce. Measure out 1 cup purée (reserve remaining purée for another use, such as blending into a smoothie). 

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Line bottom of a 9" round cake pan with parchment. Grease with oil, then dust with cocoa powder, tapping out excess. 

Whisk almond flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and remaining ½ cup cocoa powder in a medium bowl; set aside. 

Heat chocolate and remaining 2 Tbsp. oil in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring often, until melted. Remove bowl from heat. Stir in vinegar, vanilla, and reserved 1 cup beet purée until smooth. 

Beat eggs, brown sugar, and salt in the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium-high speed (or use an electric mixer and large bowl) until more than tripled in volume and mixture holds a ribbon for several seconds when beater is lifted above batter, 5–7 minutes. Thoroughly beating the eggs is key to creating an aerated, light crumb and is a critical step when using gluten-free ingredients. 

Pour chocolate-beet mixture into egg mixture and beat on medium-low speed until combined. Turn mixer off and gently tip in reserved dry ingredients. Beat on lowest speed, scraping down bowl as needed, until combined. 

Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake cake until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean and the top springs back when gently pressed, 45–50 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edges of pan, then invert cake onto a wire rack and let cool. 

For the glaze 

Heat chocolate, oil, vanilla, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, stirring often, until chocolate is melted. Let cool, stirring occasionally, until mixture is thickened and cool enough to touch, 10–15 minutes. Place rack with cake on a rimmed baking sheet. 

Pour glaze over center of cake to cover top, tilting baking sheet slightly to encourage a few drips to run over sides of cake. Let sit at room temperature until glaze is set, 2–3 hours. The cake can be kept at room temperature for a few days.

Spring 2022 outings

In January, I went downtown to meet up IRL with a friend who is a flight attendant and was in town for half a day. I showed her around the River Walk and the Alamo, and while those locations were not new-to-me, the area has been changed lately to be more pedestrian-friendly, so it was nice to take a look around. Visits to the Alamo are still free, but you now have to obtain a ticket with a specific entry time, so that should help alleviate the long lineups on peak days! 

In March, we went strawberry-picking at Sweet Berry Farm up in Marble Falls. We were there the first weekend it opened, and based on the farm’s communications after that time, it was the best weekend to go. Berries were $3.25 a pound (the ones you see here cost us $12.48). 

So, my frame of reference here is Quebec strawberries. Texas strawberries are a spring fruit, whereas the Quebec ones are more of a summer fruit, and I assume that’s just because of the different climates. That being said, it gets hot faster in Texas than in Quebec, and I wonder if that makes the strawberries grow “too fast” in that they get big but without much flavor. This could also be because of the variety, of course. And while I’ve eaten berries straight from the plant in Quebec too many times to count, I don’t remember them ever being covered in dust like these! So even though there was soil added to the field to grow strawberries here, I think the quality of the soil in general might be more conducive to growing strawberries in Quebec. All this to say that while these Texas strawberries were better than the ones at the store, they were still nowhere near the ones I love in Quebec, and I will now just accept that it’s a regional thing, not a freshness or variety thing. 

The farm also sells some food like strawberry popsicles, and there are pony rides as well as various activities for little ones. This helped round out the day and make the drive worthwhile. 

In April, we visited the Texas Transportation Museum. I heard about it after reading this article. They have several old cars, train wagons you can visit (including a steam engine and an old Pullman car), and model trains (both indoors and outdoors), but the big draw for our kids was the train ride! You see, the boys saw a public transit train in Montreal over the holidays and were absolutely fascinated. While we would like to take a family trip on a train someday, this was something doable right now: a life-size train (much more impressive to them than the little train in Brackenridge Park). Honestly, this was a very fast visit – you can tour the whole museum in an hour – but the kids were more entertained than we thought they would be, so it was a good outing. 

Since we had skipped February, I convinced the Engineer to go on a date with me to the San Antonio Museum of Art once his classes ended in May. (To his credit, he didn’t need that much convincing!) I had wanted to visit it for a long (long) time, but with the kids, it just didn’t seem feasible. That being said, I was delighted to see various pamphlets at the entrance, depending on whether you were visiting the museum on a date, with kids, just to see the essentials, etc. They didn’t have a map, though; we had to scan a QR code to download one. The Museum has a very diverse collection: ancient Egyptian artefacts, ancient Roman artefacts, art from the Americas, from Oceania, from Asia, and modern art too! Pictures are allowed without flash, and I just snapped away the whole time. 

Our visit came at a particularly good time because shortly before, I found out that a Roman bust that had been bought for $34.99 at an Austin Goodwill is exhibited at SAMA until it is returned to Germany in 2023 (it was probably looted by an American soldier after WWII). 

We had lunch at Tre Trattoria, the museum’s restaurant. It’s an excellent restaurant by any standards! (In the spirit of full disclosure, I feel like I should point out that the ceiling was very dirty near the HVAC exhausts in the dining room, and I can’t imagine that’s sanitary, but it did look only cosmetic.) The executive chef is Jason Dady I highly recommend the cacio e pepe deviled eggs to start – they came covered in a flurry of grated parmesan and were fantastic! The pasta was good, but it’s those eggs I’m still thinking of. 

Finally, our actual May outing was a visit to Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo. We loved it! The focus is obviously on reptiles (including Athena the albino reticulated python), but there are also white lions (for which they are building a better enclosure), a jaguar and a black panther, bisons, dromedaries, zebras, lemurs, and lots more, plus a whole bunch of goats to pet. There are also hands-on educational demonstrations throughout the day, which we enjoyed. One of the main differences with many zoos is how close we can get to the animals, even those we cannot touch, and it’s really satisfying. I recommend a visit if you’re in the area!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake from Zoë Bakes Cakes

 

This recipe is from Zoë François’s cookbook Zoë Bakes Cakes, which looks mouthwatering! So, this isn’t even remotely low-carb or “healthy” or anything, but it had been living in my head rent-free ever since I saw it on Instagram, and I just had to make it. I finished my Lakanto sugar (all 125 grams of it) in here and just topped it off with regular cane sugar. The only problem I had was that I used vegan whipping cream, and it can be hit-or-miss: I’ve used it with great success some of the time, and other times, it just wouldn’t whip up properly – this was one of those times. Also, I didn’t have enough cream after that, so the ganache was a bit thicker than it should have been. Therefore, please pardon the appearance of the cake, and just know that a) if you use lactose-free cream it’ll work, and b) it was absolutely delicious anyway. As in, this was insanely good! The cake itself was rich and dense and moist, and would have been wonderful even without any topping, but of course the topping tasted wonderful too. I really recommend this! 

Note that I have seen some comments saying that you could reduce the amounts of peanut butter whipped cream and chocolate ganache from the original recipe and still have enough, so that’s what I did, and the changes are reflected below. 

For the cake 

2 ½ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour 

2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar 

2/3 cup (50 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder, sifted 

1 tsp. baking soda 

1 tsp. kosher salt (I used ½ tsp. of Morton-brand kosher salt) 

1 ¼ cups hot strong coffee 

2 Tbsp. rum or brandy 

2 eggs 

1 cup lactose-free buttermilk substitute 

½ cup mild-flavored oil (such as vegetable oil) 

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

For the peanut butter whipped cream 

1 cup lactose-free cream, divided 

65 g smooth peanut butter 

1 Tbsp. icing sugar 

For the chocolate ganache and garnish 

1 cup lactose-free cream 

250 g (almost 9 oz.) quality dark chocolate, chopped

chopped salted peanuts, to decorate 

For the cake 

Preheat the oven to 350 °F. Generously grease a 9 by 4-inch (or two 8-inch round cake pans), then line it with greased parchment paper. Set aside. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined. 

In a small bowl, stir together the coffee and rum. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla until well combined. Add the egg mixture and half the coffee-rum to the dry ingredients and mix with a spoon until smooth. Slowly add the remaining coffee-rum and whisk until totally blended and smooth. The batter will be quite thin. 

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Gently tap the pan on the counter several times to release excess air bubbles. 

Bake until a tester comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes (30 minutes for 8-inch rounds). Let the cake cool completely before removing from the pan and inverting onto a serving plate. 

For the peanut butter whipped cream 

Meanwhile, gently melt the peanut butter and half the cream in a small saucepan. Stir until combined, remove from the heat, and add the remaining cream. Cool completely in the fridge until ready to use. 

When you are ready to assemble the cake, whip the mixture with the icing sugar until the cream forms stiff peaks. (The whipped cream can stay in the fridge for a bit if there’s a delay.) 

For the chocolate ganache and garnish 

Bring the cream to a simmer in a small saucepan, then pour over the chocolate in a heatproof bowl, making sure the chocolate is completely covered. Let sit for a few minutes, then stir until the chocolate is completely melted and the ganache is smooth and glossy. Leave to cool and stiffen a bit. 

To assemble, pile the peanut butter whipped cream on top of the cake. (Try keeping it on the top rather than letting spread to the sides.) The cake can be chilled at this point to make the next step easier. 

Finally, pour the ganache gently down the middle of the cake, allowing it to flow over the sides. While the ganache is still soft, top with the chopped salted peanuts.

Zuddha Bowl

 

This Zuddha bowl intrigued me. The name is a combination of “Buddha bowl” and “zoodles” (zucchini noodles). It looked delicious to me, and I figured it was a good use of zoodles, which I dislike *if* they are masquerading as pasta. Strictly speaking, it’s not really a Buddha bowl because it’s not vegetarian, but chicken is a good source of lean protein. And this was delicious! I changed the amounts a bit (the ones below are mine) and I got 4 generous servings. (I still had leftover vegetables, which I ate with poppy seed tahini dressing later on.) 

I ended up buying a spiralizer because it is small, inexpensive, and easy to use. That being said, you could buy prepared zoodles from the produce section – just keep in mind that they don’t stay fresh for long. 

For the bowl 

1 ½ bell peppers, thinly sliced 

1 large red onion, diced 

4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided 

kosher salt 

freshly ground black pepper 

2 zucchinis, ends trimmed 

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast 

½ tsp. ground ginger 

½ tsp. garlic powder 

For the sauce 

¼ cup lime juice 

2 Tbsp. peanut butter 

1 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce or tamari sauce

1 tsp. honey 

1 clove garlic, minced 

1 Tbsp. sesame oil 

1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil 

1 avocado, sliced (I think I had 2 total) 

2 cups baby spinach 

1 tsp. toasted sesame seeds 

Preheat oven to 425 °F and spread bell peppers and red onions onto a large baking sheet. Drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Bake until tender, 15 minutes. 

Using a julienne peeler (or spiralizer), peel zucchini to make long noodles. Set in colander to drain excess moisture. 

Season chicken all over with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and ground ginger. In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Add chicken and cook until cooked through and no longer pink, 8 minutes per side or until internal temperature reached 165°. Let rest for 10 minutes, then slice each breast. 

In the same skillet, add another tablespoon oil and cook zoodles until soft, 3 minutes. 

Whisk together lime juice, peanut butter, soy sauce, honey, and garlic until evenly combined (I like doing this in a jar). Whisk in oils until smooth. 

Divide zucchini noodles between bowls, then top with bell peppers and red onion, chicken, avocado and baby spinach. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and drizzle dressing on top.

Batch of links

- Here are 10 things a restaurant critic learned the hard way when she opened her own restaurant. 

- The Your Last Meal podcast recently had an episode with Taylor Hanson, in which he discusses realizing at age 15 (while on tour in Italy) that a tomato can taste really good. I must have been in my twenties when I found out! I love food awakenings. You can listen here. 

- Great Bon Appétit article on the future of sushi. 

- The same issue talked about this sustainable kelp burger that I actually want to try! 

- I enjoyed this short TED-Ed video: Myths and misconceptions about evolution. It clears up some concepts that aren’t always well relayed to laypeople. 

- While we’re at it: public schools that teach creationism. I mean, even Pope Francis got with the program, so why is this still a thing?

Hulk Muffins

 

These banana spinach muffins, which we called Hulk muffins because of their color, were really good. Mine didn’t come out as plump as the ones at the original link, but they were well-received nonetheless! I got 16 muffins in all. 

2 cups old-fashioned oats 

¼ cup ground flaxseed 

2 tsp. baking powder 

½ tsp. baking soda 

½ tsp. salt 

1 tsp. ground cinnamon 

½ cup coconut sugar (or sugar of your choice) 

½ cup almond milk (or another milk of your choice) 

2 cups packed spinach leaves 

¼ cup coconut oil 

2 extra-ripe large bananas 

2 eggs 

1 tsp. vanilla 

Preheat oven to 375 °F. Grease or line a muffin tin. 

Put 2 cups of old-fashioned oats in your blender (I used my Vitamix) and blend until the oats achieve the texture of flour. Transfer to a medium mixing bowl. 

Add the rest of the dry ingredients (ground flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and sugar) to the oat flour. Set aside. 

Add almond milk to the blender followed by 2 cups of spinach. Blend together until completely smooth and homogenous. 

Add bananas and coconut oil and blend until smooth. 

Add vanilla and eggs and blend until just combined. 

Pour wet ingredients into the dry mixture and stir to combine (making sure there are no lumps)! 

Fill each well in your prepared muffin tin. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the top springs back when touched.

Layered Crêpe Torte

 

This crêpe cake from Scharffen Berger is based on sachertorte, with chocolate and apricot jam. Luckily, I was making this ahead of time, which allowed me to course-correct. 

The original ratio of milk-to-flour was too high; it took me 3 crêpes in 2 different pans to confirm, but indeed, once I added more flour, I had no more problems. The amounts below are mine. 

The Engineer would have liked it better without any nuts, but I am not sure that the filling would have had enough substance at that point. The kids were okay with the whole thing, but it wasn’t their favorite. I think that this summer, I will try a version of a crêpe cake with a mixture of whipped cream and Nutella as filling. If they don’t like it, I’ll stop making it, because right now, it feels a bit like casting pearls before swine! 

For the crêpes 

3 large eggs 

1 ½ cup all-purpose flour 

1 Tbsp. granulated sugar 

½ tsp. salt 

3 cups lactose-free whole milk 

1 Tbsp. lactose-free butter, melted, plus more for the pans and foil 

1 18-oz.-jar of apricot jam (I used two-thirds of a 13-oz. jar) 

4 oz. finely grated bittersweet (62%) chocolate 

½ cup ground pecans 

¼ cup granulated sugar 

For the chocolate sauce 

6 Tbsp. brown sugar 

2 Tbsp. granulated sugar 

½ cup cocoa 

1 pinch salt 

½ cup water 

½ tsp. vanilla 

For the crêpes 

Place the eggs in a large bowl, add about one-third of the flour, and whisk to combine. Whisk in the remaining flour, the sugar, and salt. Carefully whisk in about one-quarter of the milk (it will tend to splatter), then gradually whisk in the remaining milk. Whisk in 1 tablespoon butter. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day. 

Heat the skillet over medium-high heat. Brush on a coating of butter and let it sizzle. Lift the pan from the heat and ladle in 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of the batter (I used more). Shake and rotate the pan to spread the batter in an even layer. Return the skillet to the heat. Fill in any holes in the crêpe with a bit more batter. Cook the crêpe for about 1 minute, or until the bottom is set and golden brown. Lift an edge of the crêpe with a heatproof spatula and quickly flip the crêpe. Cook the second side for about 5 seconds to set and lightly brown. Slide the crepe onto a plate, and cook the remaining crepes, stacking them on the plate. Use immediately or, to freeze the crepes, place a piece of waxed paper between each crepe, then wrap the stack tightly in plastic wrap. 

For the chocolate sauce 

In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugars, cocoa, and salt. Add the water and gently whisk everything together. Turn on the heat to medium-high. Bring to a boil while stirring; then lower the heat to a simmer and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the sugars have dissolved and the mixture has thickened. Let cool, then transfer to a glass jar. 

For assembly 

Remove the lid from the jar of jam, place the jar in the microwave, and microwave for 1 minute. Stir and continue to heat until the jam is melted or heat the jam in a saucepan over medium heat until softened. Strain the jam into a small bowl. 

Preheat the oven to 325 °F. Lightly butter a 9- or l0-inch pie plate or deep ovenproof serving dish (I used an 8” springform pan and lined the outside with aluminum foil). Tear off a piece of aluminum foil large enough to cover the dish and butter it on one side. 

In a small bowl, mix together the chocolate, pecans and sugar. Place a crêpe in the center of the pie plate. Spread a scant tablespoon of jam over the crepe and sprinkle with about 1 tablespoon of the chocolate mixture. Top with another crêpe and continue to stack and fill the crêpes until all of them are used, leaving the top one plain. (At this point, the torte can be wrapped tightly and refrigerated for 1 day or frozen for up to 1 month. Defrost before baking.) 

Cover the torte with the aluminum foil (buttered side down) and place in the oven. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until heated throughout. The filling will bubble around the edges. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. 

Cut into wedges and serve with the chocolate sauce.

Another batch of small knitting projects

I knit a bunch of small projects in the past 6 months. Right before the holidays, I made this Yngrid Cardigan with, I believe, leftover Malabrigo Rios Yarn in Teal Feather. The cardigan pattern is free; it’s worked seamlessly from the bottom up, with a pretty eyelet detail and ribbed edges. I would have preferred a top-down pattern, but I’m still really happy with how it turned out. The buttons were from Etsy. 

To round out the kit, I made another Simply Fair Isle Hat with scrap yarn (I think it was from the robot sweater). 

Over the holidays, I promised the Fox to make him his own scarf. So as soon as we were back home, I had him choose colors from my stash; he picked blue and red yarn, so I knit him a small striped scarf until I ran out of red. 

Then I went back to my pink-purple-blue yarn from my adventure in dyeing and decided to make the Staghorn Mitts by Madelinetosh. I actually liked the pattern very much, and I think the mitts would have been great with a solid or slightly variegated yarn, but given the way I had dyed my yarn, it effectively became self-striping, which is not what I was going for. Then of course once the stitch count changed a bit, with increases for the thumb gusset that was eventually left on a stitch holder, the color pattern changed, and the overall look did not please me. 

So I frogged the mitt and used doubled-up yarn to make another headband, which is now in my Etsy shop. The color pattern is much more pleasing to me this way! 

My friends the Actor and his Leading Lady had a third child, so I made them a Boy Sweater with Malabrigo Rios Yarn in Reflecting Pool. Despite the name, the sweater pattern is definitely unisex! It comes in sizes ranging from 3mo to 8yo – this looks great on older kids, too! It has a shawl collar with buttons, and a twisted rib detail that I loved making. Plus, it’s knit seamlessly from the top down – what’s not to love? I used buttons from Etsy. 

Finally, another set of friends had their first baby. (I think there is literally one more couple in my social circle that may or may not have kids, maybe two couples, so it’s probable that the baby knitting is coming to an end soon!) For their little girl, I decided to make the Magnolia Mini sweater with HiKoo Sueno Yarn in Bashful. This yarn is soft a blend of superwash merino and bamboo viscose and it was great to work with! I made a few modifications to the sweater pattern: as you can see from the first photo, following directions was going to give me what looked more like a dress than a sweater! I frogged it up to the armpits and just started the flower design much sooner. I also switched to smaller needles on row 16 of the detailed stitches, roughly halfway down the design, and I liked the look of it a lot more. My sleeves are not as I expected, because on the pattern photos, the sleeves look like they are a bit puffy above the cuff – not only are mine not like that, but the pattern actually calls for another of those flower designs on them. I mean, they look perfectly fine, just not what I expected. At least it’s a cute sweater!