Daily painting #603 NFS
Last week in painting class I used one of Carol Marine's painting exercises to force all the ladies out of their comfort zone (instill fear!!) and force them to re-evaluate how they approach their painting. I insisted on them using a limited palette of 3 primary colours and a white only. Overcoming the fear of doing something that removes you from your comfort zone is crucial in being creative. After lots of resistance, sweaty brows and palpitating hearts they all agreed that the blood, sweat and tears had all been worth it and that they really felt they had learnt a lot, not only about their painting, but also about themselves and overcoming the 'fear factor'! This little painting is a 7 minute demonstration that I did for the ladies to explain the activity. At this stage they were all ready to throw the apples at me, grab their bags and head for the studio door and the safety of their cars before I could hand them a paintbrush!
The problem with having enough apples for everyone to paint (above shows only half of them) is that by the end of the week I had a bounty of apples that had been handled (sometimes mishandled) and I didn't want them to go to waste. I have had quite a few messages asking why I haven't shared a recipe from my kitchen lately....as many of you know I love to cook and much of what I have in my kitchen ends up in my studio to paint first! I have even had one Paintings in the post friend comment that as much as she loves getting her 'painting in the post' (i.e. her email inbox), she is missing a recipe in the post too! So I thought I would share my glut of apples which ended up as a delicious Apple Cinnamon cake for family lunch....
The recipe is an old family favorite and I cannot credit where it comes from...other than Granny!
Apple Cinnamon Cake
- 2 eggs
- 1 3/4 cups sugar (sorry all the NO SUGAR followers...close your eyes now)
- 2 heaped teaspoons of cinnamon
- 1/2 cup of oil
- 2 cups of flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 6 apples peeled and chopped
In a large bowl mix together the eggs, sugar, cinnamon and oil. Peel chop and add the apples, coating them well with the mixture. Sieve the flour and baking powder together and add them to the mixture stirring gently to combine all the ingredients (I find it helps to fold the mixture over until all is combined so that the apples do not start to break). Pour into your cake tin and cook for approximately 50 min. Allow it to cool and then drizzle with a bit of lemon icing (icing sugar and lemon juice)...the lemon cuts through the sweetness of the cake.
It is delicious on its own or served warm with a dollop of ice-cream or homemade custard.
from my studio...and my kitchen!
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