Quick And Dirty Cake Post

There's been quite a bit of upheaval going on here at Casa De Panda (yes, Panda is my nickname, or Miss Panda if you're feelin' all curtsy-ish and formal).  The Supreme Overlord Of All He Surveys aka Manic The Cat got ill and died quite suddenly, and frankly I've been quite exhausted and unwell too.
All my food intolerance seem to have acted up and I am currently surviving on rice, natto, scrambled eggs and black tea.  I could kid myself and say I'm on a detox regime, but the truth is far more depressingly monastic.  Tea is wonderful, but what would be even more wonderful would be a creamy hot chocolate laced with Baileys and cream.

So this post is just mainly photos of cakes I baked last month.  While I've provided links for the recipe and icing for the tres leches cake, I absolutely promise I'll provide the recipe for the Alladin Sane-iced gâteau aux noisettes in my next post.  As for the black forest cake - it tasted delicious, but the recipe for it is quite temperamental and needs quite a bit of tweaking.
May I suggest we just enjoy it with our eyes?

Tres leches cake for Miss Izbit's 1st Birthday.

Aunt Adele's Hot Milk Toddy

Even in the 24th century, it seems a glass of warm milk is still the prescribed remedy for sleepless nights.

Not just any glass of milk, mind you, but Aunt Adele's hot milk toddy.

Made in a replicator.  

In space.  

In your funky space quarters (where the towels and pillows are made from an uncomfortable looking shiny material).  

As prescribed by your starship's doctor, Dr. Beverley Crusher.  

Who got the recipe from her good friend bald man whom she flirts with, the Enterprises' Captain Jean-Luc Picard - Adele was his aunt.

Aunt Adele's Hot Milk Toddy (Serves 1 insomnia-riddled Startfleet officer of any rank)*

Ingredients:

• 250ml milk
• A pinch of nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 tablespoon brandy (optional)**

Heat the milk in a small saucepan until hot, but not boiling.  Add the honey and stir.  Once the honey has been incorporated, add the brandy if using.   Bring it all up to a gentle simmer.  

Turn off the heat, add the nutmeg and stir.  Pour into a sturdy glass or mug.  Drink and try to avoid all distortions in the space-time continuum, as well as bodgy inter-dimensional aliens that kidnap you in your sleep.

Image by psiwaves

You know you watch too much of a certain show if you end up rifling through your pantry trying to figure out how they make the food.  

I'll pass on the gagh, however.

* Not suitable for androids.

** A 'toddy' is a traditional warm drink with an alcoholic element incorporated.  Nutmeg is mentioned as one of the toddy's ingredients on the show (Star Trek: The Next Generation) so it's in the recipe above.
Alas, from here things start to come undone.  Alcohol as we know it is not replicated on the Starship Enterprise NCC 1701-D (although some of the real stuff is in Guinan's secret stash).
'Synthehol' is a commonly used substitute on the ship, however it barely gets you drunk.  So I've added the brandy as a suggestion, as an ode to proper boozy toddies.  Unfortunately it would seem that a 24th century toddy is not a toddy at all!