Sara’s Fave Photos

Here’s a misty sunset from that bluff trail in the Dungeness Recreation Area near Sequim, WA. I haven’t seen the sun set over the water in a long, long time—not since I was in Venice, California many years ago. I love the opalescent look the water gets reflecting the late day sky. I’ve posted this entry my Best Post of the Week.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies seen round the world. Also, Scenic Sunday is well worth a visit.

While you’re here, you might try a category like Waterscape, just for grins. And if you’ve arrived via the permalink, the way to the latest post is right here, Sara’s Fave Photos.

Woodland Park Rose Garden in Seattle is a delightful place. I’ve got to go back there for another visit soon. So many roses, such charming vistas. A delightful way to spend a couple of hours, and it’s free!

Visit Watery Wednesday for more water photos of all kinds, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera shots) and Weekend Reflections for the most intriguing reflections. Try clicking on one of those tags here for more of the same, if you have time. Return to the latest post by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos.

This photo holds up very well for me. I’ve tagged it Best Post of the Week.

My ‘Oklahoma’ rosebush has the deepest red roses, which try as I might, I cannot photograph, or even Photoshop, into a closer approximation of reality. The actual color of the flowers is the deepest, darkest, richest, burgundy red, and almost black in the shadows. You’ll just have to imagine.

Visit Ruby Tuesday for more ruby redness around the world. And this is also a post for Macro Monday and Blue Monday. Is that sky blue enough? And I like this photo so much I’ve called it my Best Post of the Week.

If you’ve found this post from the permalink, getting to the latest photo post is easy. Just click on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

I love having my little Canon S90 camera with me always. I was in the parking lot at the local Trader Joe’s and we were finally having a sunset worth of the name. So here it is, for you to enjoy.

Visit Skywatch Friday for other amazing skies seen round the world, and Scenic Sunday for more visions of the outer world. And how about Color Carnival for more brilliant color?

Maybe it’s just me but I like this sunset very much. It seems like a fitting end to a fairy tale or old movie or something. I’m going to call it my Best Post of the Week.

Try exploring a new tag while you’re here, but you can always find your way back to the latest post by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos.

The sun is finally here. This cosmos flower is just basking in it! Another perfect day tomorrow is predicted, and then showers again. Actually, it’s amazing how quickly the flower beds dry out. Our water bill will be way higher in July than up til now, that’s for sure.

Visit Thursday Challenge and view the entries for the theme Weather. Mine is sunny!

You might want to check out a tag or category here first, easily returning to the main page here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos.

I like this photo very much and am putting it in the Best Post of the Week category.

In California, it is illegal to pick the orange poppies growing by the side of the road, as they are the beloved state flower. I heard you can’t even pick them in your garden, but that can’t be true. Here in Seattle, they grow very well also, maybe too well sometimes. They actually are great in bouquets. Clipping the long seedpods will extend the bloom quite a bit and help prevent way too many plants from appearing everywhere.

So, which view do you prefer? Leave a comment and let me know.

Visit Color Carnival for more brilliant color and Shadow Shot Sunday for more intriguing shadows. Both shots were straight out of the camera, or SOOC. And I like this post so much I’ve called it my Best Post of the Week.

The rain never ceases to fascinate me in the garden. I love the almost spherical drops, just poised like that. I once saw a hummingbird take a bath in droplets like this on rose leaves, but of course had no camera with me. Every time I see perfect droplets like this on rose leaves I do think of that tiny bird, in the world’s smallest bathtub.

Visit Outdoor Wednesday and Watery Wednesday after looking around here. Return to the full blog by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos on top.

I like this post very much and have categorized it as Best Post of the Week.

A view of Puget Sound from Port Townsend. Wasn’t that a nice sky reflecting in the water? I like this one so much I’ve tagged it Best Post of the Week.

Visit Watery Wednesday, Outdoor Wednesday, Scenic Sunday and Weekend Reflections for more of the same idea.

Something new is the Google Followers gadget on the left. Please tell me if it works OK. I’ve wanted one for awhile but just figured out how to make it happen. Followers rock! Thank you, Marsha Perry of Perry Internet Consulting.

After clicking here and there on this site, return to the full blog by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

Can you see the tiny sailboat? And the reflection of the cloud on the water? This big cloud over the inlet at Fort Worden in Port Townsend really “floated my boat,” you might say. Love those puffy huge things that look like you could bounce on them.

Visit Skywatch Friday for more skies from around the world, Weekend Reflections, and Scenic Sunday as well, after trying a new tag or two around here. How about Best Posts of the Week? Return to the full blog at Sara’s Fave Photos.

A recent trip to Ft. Worden in Port Townsend yielded lots of fun photos and magnificent scenery. How’s this for a view?

Visit Watery Wednesday and Outdoor Wednesday to see more on the theme, or meme. Click here and there around this blog first to see some neat photos you might have missed. Sara’s Fave Photos above will take you back to the latest post and all the photos.

I like this one very much, even a week later (how quickly we move on!) and I’m tagging it Best Post of the Week.

Taken almost the same time as the photo below, this rainbow really “floated my boat.” I have seen a few rainbows in my life, but I think this one was in the most scenic setting ever. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Visit Skywatch Friday, SOOC, Weekend Reflections and Scenic Sunday after clicking here and there on a new tag or category. And the full blog with all the posts always lives at Sara’s Fave Photos, above.

I like this photo very much (although it was hard deciding between this one and the one of the reflections on the ship’s hull below) and I am tagging it Best Post of the Week.

I’m posting two recent photos of my garden of the back border. The top one with the rhodies was taken earlier in the month, and the lower one was taken in mid-month (the geum is the red round flowers). They have a very different feel, don’t they? Which do you prefer?

Visit Ruby Tuesday for more visions of red seen everywhere. And click on Sara’s Fave Photos above if you ever want to find your way back to the latest post.

I like this post a LOT, especially the bottom photo, so I am tagging this Best Post of the Week.

These tulips at Pike Place Market are all ready to present as a gift, wrapped and ready. I love how the clear wrapping softens the light on them.

Visit Macro Flowers Saturday, Flowers for Today, and SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera photos. Be sure to wander around the tags and archives here first, and click on Sara’s Fave Photos above any time you’d like to return to today’s post.

I like this photo very much. I’m tagging it Best Post of the Week.

Today I’m posting a fabulous recipe with notes. It’s long, but not that hard (I included all the details so it will come out right if you make it), so scroll down a bit to see the photos that go with it. My daughter and I made this on Saturday just for the heck of it and it was SO GOOD! To read the story about the history of this cake in my family, read the What Cake story. Visit Ruby Tuesday for more photos with red in them, and Color Carnival for more brilliant color. Take a look at Best Posts of the Week, too. Fascinating, I promise!

By the way, the strawberries on top were HUGE and make the cake look small. It’s not.

You can always return to the most recent post here by clicking on Sara’s Fave Photos above.

Hot Milk Sponge Cake (Sylvia Messer’s recipe), serves approx. 16

325 degrees preheated, (check at 40 min. if using 9″ pans, 45-50 min. for 8″ pans)

Use (2) 8″ or 9″ round spring-form cake pans, UNGREASED

7 large eggs, separated (room temp.)
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 c. sugar (can be half turbinado or raw, mixed with half regular white), divided
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. cake flour (substitute w.w. pastry flour OK)
2 tsp. baking powder
pinch salt
2 oz. butter
6 oz. milk

3 cups heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
dash vanilla

4+ pints strawberries

Separate eggs. Essential that NO yolk specks end up in whites. Put yolks into small mixer bowl, whites into large mixer bowl. Recommend using small dish per egg separated before dumping whites in large bowl to check for egg yolk contamination!

Beat whites until frothy. Add cream of tartar, mix until almost stiff, then slowly add 1/2 cup of sugar. Mix until stiff peaks but do not overbeat. Set aside.

Sift flour onto waxed paper and measure 2 cups without packing flour in any way. Use large spoon to scoop carefully into measuring cup. Resift. Resift again adding baking pdr. and salt. Check measurement. If using whole wheat pastry flour, use scant 2 cups flour. Set aside.

In small pan, heat milk and butter, DO NOT BOIL, until butter melts. Keep warm.

Beat yolks for 2 minutes. Add remaining sugar and vanilla slowly; beat one more minute.

Add flour mix and hot milk mix alternately, very slowly, into egg yolk mix while beating slowly.

Fold yolk mix SUPER GENTLY into stiff whites. Be patient but do not collapse whites.

Pour equally into two ungreased spring-form pans. Stagger pans in oven so they are not directly over each other. Bake until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. 325 degrees preheated oven, (check at 40 min. if using 9″ pans, 45-50 min. for 8″ pans)

While cake is baking and cooling, wash big mixer bowl and beaters. Place in refrigerator to chill for best whipped cream.

Cool cakes upside down on racks ONE HOUR only. Then use table knife to cut cake away from sides of spring-form pan. Remove sides. Use long knife to cut from bottom of pans. Carefully place one cake layer, top side down, on cake plate. (Note: if freezing cakes, freeze while still on bottoms of pans.)

Whipped cream: Beat cold cream in cold bowl with cold beaters at high speed. As cream starts to thicken, add 3 T powdered sugar (or to taste) and dash vanilla. Continue beating until cream begins to firm. Reduce speed and carefully mix cream until very firm, but not gloppy or too firm (i.e., butter)!

Prepare strawberries: Wash, hull, trim and dry strawberries, separating into 2 groups of large, perfect berries and the others. Save imperfect and/or small berries for center layer of whipped cream.

Assembling cake: Put layer of whipped cream on top of bottom layer, about 1/2 inch. Spread evenly with rubber spatula or frosting knife. Place imperfect or small berries evenly. Cut berries no thicker than half an inch or so for this layer. Press gently into whipped cream. Add more whipped cream to even layer out; spread evenly with spatula. Leave cake sides alone for now.

Carefully place second layer on top of first, top side up. Spread top with whipped cream. Now use remaining whipped cream for sides. Make it pretty with spatula or frosting knife.

Place largest, most beautiful strawberry in the center of the top of the cake. Add remaining strawberries evenly around. Sing Happy Birthday! (optional)

Take a picture; it is so pretty! (required)

Refrigerate after serving. When serving, cut straight down with very sharp knife, using sawing motion.

The district garden club quarterly meeting with flower show is one of my fave events. People bring what grows well for them, and everyone oohs and ahs. Here’s a sprig of pink dogwood (mine earlier really was more coral) and what could be more graceful?

Visit Pink Saturday for all kinds of pinkness, SOOC for more straight-out-of-the-camera shots, and Flowers for Today for heavenly blooms. Macro Flowers Saturday has more great closeups. After browsing around here, of course.

I like this photo the best of this weeks’s posts. The detail on the petals just does it for me.