Author’s Note: So sorry about the delay!! I should write the chapters more frequently I guess. I’ll make sure this won’t happen again..
The Kiwi Cake and The Story Of How Mama Spoiled My Date
“Baby doll! Wake up Sweety…” Wow Mama is also giving me nightmares these days. I open my eyes, only to find her sitting right next to me.
“What are you doing here???” I scream.
“I came down for Mother’s Day, ” she exclaims with the greatest joy. Shouldn’t it be the other way around. I should have surprised her.
“Oh God Mama! I had sent you a gift to Chennai. Why did you take the trouble to come all this way……wait..unless..?”
“Honey I missed you all terribly…” After a minute’s thought, I realize the root cause of her presence.
“Oh no..no…no …Noooo! You have come here cause of my date with Ray! Seriously mama?” The look on her face is surely giving her away. Why is she so desperate to get me married? Trust my family to spoil everything in my life. With mama at home, calling Ray over is the last thing I’ll ever do.
“Obviously not! Is it my fault Mother’s Day falls on the same day?” Wow does she really expect me to buy that?
Hey Ray! Listen can v change the plans for today a lil. I’m sorta really busy cause my mom has come..so can we go out to some nice restaurant or something instead??
Now how is she going to do whatever she planned! I get an instant reply..
No probs dude..shall I book a table at Barbeque Nation?? Do you like that place??
Ya I’m cool with anything……
This is so not how I wanted things to turn out today. It was supposed to be the best day of my life. All this Doesn’t mean I hate my mom. I love her a lot, except when she tries to live my life for me…which is…. mostly 24/7.
“Papa!!! Why did you agree to let her come here??” He is the only person who can understand my plight.
“Sometimes even your Papa needs a break from her. Why would I want to miss the chance?” His laughter should have been mine today! I cribbed for another half an hour over the phone to my lovely Papa who is having an awesome time and then decided to make a cake for Mother’s Day to divert my mind.
Ingredients:
- Flour- 250g
- Unsalted soft Butter- 250g
- Sugar- 250g- powdered
- Baking powder- 1 1/2tsp
- Vanilla extract- 1 1/2 tbsp
- Eggs- 4 large eggs or 5 small eggs
- Milk- 1/2 cup
Method:
1. In a bowl mix the butter and sugar with your hands in a clock-wise direction for about 15 minutes.
2. In another bowl sift the flour with the baking powder.
3. Separate the egg whites and yolks and keep the yolks aside. Take a bowl and beat the egg whites using an electric mixer until thick and fluffy such that it sticks to the bowl when tilted. It may take over 20-30 minutes approx. Now add the extract and yolks and beat for 2 minutes.
4. To the bowl which contains the beaten butter and sugar add the egg mixture and milk. Mix well. Then slowly add the flour little by little and beat using an electric mixer until all the flour has been added.
5. Preheat the oven for 10 min at 180 degree Celsius and bake the batter in a greased pan at 180 deg Celsius until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. The timing may vary for different ovens. For me it takes 20-25 mins. So do check every 10mins.
For the icing:
- 100g of whipped cream+ 1/2 cup icing sugar+ 1 tsp almond essence(I whipped up fresh cream. You can always buy the ready-made whipped cream)
- 1 sliced kiwi and another chopped
- star fruit for decortion
- green colour- a pinch
Method:
Let the cake cool down completely. Slice the cake into two equal halves with a thread. On the base of the lower half, spread a scoop of the fresh cream and the chopped kiwi. To the rest of the cream add the colour. Place the other half of the cake over the base. Now cover the entire cake with the whipped cream and decorate it as per your wish.
Just as my thoughts start running wild about the horrible possibilities of my mom turning up at Barbeque Nation in disguise, she enters the kitchen.
“Honey what are you making today for Ray?”
“No mama, I’m too tired because of office and yesterday’s breakdown, so we are going out.” Her face shrinks. She certainly had something in her mind then for sure. Thank God I escaped. But that doesn’t mean she can’t come up with anything new.
“Oh right.. Well that’s certainly a better plan. Where is he taking you?”
“Hmm..he didn’t tell me yet.” If she thinks she is smart, I am certainly smarter. Vicky comes in just then. I can surely tell Mama is more interested with Vicky than me currently.
“Oh okay baby! Vicky love..you know we have to pick out a silk saree for you for one of the wedding functions, don’t you?” Poor Vicky love. I give her an evil smile and smoothly sneak out of the kitchen. I have hardly made it when Mama decides to make her presence all the more harder for me.
“Cassie, wait in your bedroom for me. We have to go through your outfit for the night.” You know the best thing to do is, to stop fighting back and accept the pressurising reality, no matter what. I decide to keep this as my life’s goal for the next few days, as Mama resumes lecturing Vicky.
After my mom had framed my clothes, the crappiest she has ever seen, she moved on to my sister’s wardrobe. All I had wanted was for her to not choose Vick’s Orange maxi. Believe me or not, she chose it and right now I’m wearing it, as I wait for Ray. Vicky and Mama decided to do my makeup too. I detest makeup. More than gloss and a liner, I don’t have anything more.
The door bell rings to finally stop my sis and mom from obsessing over how beautiful I looked.
“Omg..look who is here. It’s been 8 years since I last saw you kid. I never knew then that you would grow up to be so handsome. Please come in, ” says mama. Wow! I thought he was here to take me and not for some tea party.
“Vicky love, go get some cake that Cass made for me for Raymond.” I should have never made that cake. Control Cass…CONTROL!!
“Oh thank you so much aunty. I would love to taste it.” He could have rather stabbed me instead.
“Ray don’t you think we are running late. I mean it’s already 8:00,” I say with the tiniest hope left in me.
“I don’t think a piece of cake is going to hurt,” says he. It surely won’t hurt him, but me instead. Will he die if doesn’t eat the cake, I mean there is gonna be loads of dessert at the buffet.
An hour later, Ray decides to make a move after updating Mama with his family histories and dreams.
All through the drive I just listen to some music to calm my mind, while simultaneously answering Ray’s questions. I’m pretty sure he sensed I wasn’t in the best of my moods. It’s almost nine, when we reach BN. The receptionist at the counter surely had some more awesome news in store for me.
“Sorry sir, we hold reservations only for 1/2 an hour from the scheduled time. Looks like you have to wait for another half an hour or more,” says that girl,with horrible makeup. Speaking of makeup, I can’t stand it. I don’t like the way I feel. It’s all so irritating. I know I crib too much, but this time I have a reason.
“Oops . I am so sorry Cass. Do you want to wait or find some other place.”
“I am very hungry Ray, we better look for some place else.”
“Hey are you fine. You are looking very irritable.”
“No I am not fine!” I yell back to my horrible surprise. He looks at me a bit stunned. “I am sorry Ray.. PLease ignore me. I am just very hungry and Mama is sitting on top of head.”
“Okay so that’s your problem, is it?”
“No it’s not her, it’s the fact that she is desperate to get me married. She either wants me to move to Chennai or get married. She is afraid I’ll be left alone here in Bangalore.”
“Have you spoken to her about it?”
“Only if she gives me the chance..”
“Parents will be parents Cass. You are lucky to have a mother who cares for you. Never take anyone’s love for granted. I would give anything to have a mother. That’s why I loved talking to Aunty today.” Ray lost his mother when he was three. Never has he spoken about her to me earlier. “So Cass just sit down and tell her she is over doing it. That’s all. You don’t have to get so worked up.”
“I am sorry..” I get a little too emotional.
“We came out on a date, didn’t we?” I nod.
“So let’s have fun, shall we..” I nod again. “….. Oh..there is Smoke House Deli, just round the corner..We can go there. BTW you are looking so pretty today. I can bet you didn’t get ready by yourself.” he laughs.
Did he just insult my style? Woah..he has guts!! But I smiled though. Ray always lightens up the mood, where ever he goes and that’s what I love about him.
Let’s just say it wasn’t the perfect date I had planned, but so what..it’s all the more memorable and Mama is more than impressed with Ray..and most importantly I am happy and even Ray. I realized something today, although all of us complain about our families, it’s they who make us, ‘us’. They define who we are. So no matter what, we have to respect everyone who care about us.
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