Melbourne has unfortunately returned to winter weather - icy winds, low temperatures, rain, grey skies. We received 43mm of rain on Wednesday alone, our wettest September day in decades. Despite all of this, when I walked into work yesterday morning, it felt great to be in Melbourne. The streets were quieter than usual (perhaps people took the day off to travel to the football finals tomorrow?), I had a coffee made by the handsome cheery bloke at a cafe in Degraves Street, for the first time in ages I admired the grand old buildings of the CBD, I enjoyed watching everyone walking in their winter coats, scarves and hats (like a street in Europe), and just as I arrived at work, the sun peeked out like a beacon of hope. My love for Melbourne was reaffirmed, and at that moment, I didn't want to be anywhere else.
The only connection between yesterday and the cake at the top of this post is that I brought it into work yesterday for my colleague Lee. It is Dan Lepard's Sour Cream Chocolate Cake from The Guardian. I worked with Lee in a former life, and now at my new job. Last time, I started first and left first. This time, the order is reversed - Lee started first and is leaving first. Lee will be sorely missed, not least of all for his encyclopedic knowledge of 1980s music for which he won the trivia award on our 2007 boat cruise (I haven't forgotten Lee!).
This cake was pretty tasty and moist - given that it contained 375g of chocolate and 200g of sour cream, I am not surprised! Diet food it ain't.
The decorations are silver cachous and Lindt balls - not elegant, but they are what I had around the house. One bite of this cake, and I am sure that no-one cared what it looked like.
Have a great weekend!
