Bon Appetit!

Oh the things I stumble upon on stumble.net: 

Since we are on the subject of cooking (lol), I recently watched Julie & Julia, a super cute movie based on two true stories: one of Julia Child, a famous American chef of the 1960s, who made french cooking a whole lot easier for domesticated, American women, and Julie Powell, a woman who blogged her way through over 500 recipes in Julia Child's first cookbook called "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" within a year. Not only was Meryl Streep in the movie playing Julia Child, but the best thing about it was that the movie was inspirational.

While I was studying for my organic chemistry final and watching the movie on repeat for about three times, something caught my eye/ appetite every single time, it was a chocolate almond cake (lol). After realizing that I couldn't get that cake out of my mind, it was my mission to find the recipe and make that damn cake.


After taking my O-CHEM final, I had to bake!( That final stressed me out like no other.) I had no trouble finding the recipe; thanks to good old Oprah for having the recipe on her site. I still adore that woman although my godly perception of her was jaded after she told people on national television to tip servers only 10%. I'm a server, and a 10% tip is not cool, but let's not get into that.


The recipe can be found here: http://www.oprah.com/food/Chocolate-and-Almond-Cake


And look how my version of the cake turned out:

The verdict? Absolutely delicious! The cake came out a lot shorter than I expected it to be; I thought it would be at least 4 inches tall. Instead, it was around 2.5 inches. I used imitation rum instead of regular rum (Remember when using imitation rum that you should put in less than the recommended amount of rum. I put in 1 tablespoon of imitation rum rather than 2 tablespoons.) Also, I suggest putting in more almond extract because you can barely taste it in the cake; I would say 1.5 teaspoons. I absolutely adore the taste of almond extract in any kind of desert, so the more the merrier! The cake, itself, is very rich so you must have a slice with a large glass of milk :).


Also, upon watching Julie & Julia, it has inspired me to regulate my blog. Okay so I've been really bad at updating my blog, but I promise (especially to myself) that after I'm done applying to dental school within the next month that I will be updating it on a regular basis. On a good note, summer school is finally over for me, and now I can give my full undivided attention to studying for the DAT which is coming up on August 18th (Yikes!). The good thing is that since I took organic chemistry lab over the summer, I only need to brush upon some the reactions that we haven't fully covered for the organic chemistry portion of the DAT.


Oh and one more thing for you baking fanatics out there. I found this amazing website with a bunch of amazing recipes not too long ago. They have desert treats for practically every holiday imaginable. When I initially encountered it, I though I've died and gone to heaven. So when you get a chance, please check this site out: www.bakerella.com


As for now, ciao, and as Julia Child would say, "BON APPETIT!" (Yes..I am a big corn-ball)