Lovely-love

Since having babies, I have found myself marking celebrations and events that used to previously have little relevance for me. Valentines day is just such an event. Sure, Before Children (BC) it was a fun excuse to go out for dinner, spoil each other a bit. But celebrating all things love, not just romantic love, seemed quite appropriate this year; I have never loved so much as I do now.

My son and I started the day with some valentines day craft- he painted the paper we would later use as a table runner, and helped me stick cardboard love hearts to string that turned into decorations. And, we cooked. Of course, we cooked. We had a love-heart shaped loaf of spelt bread with truffle oil and balsamic vinegar, followed by Peking duck pancakes (my husband's favourite). The kids were then despatched to bed and we tucked into surf & turf with crispy kipfler potatoes. What excited me most though was our dessert. We made my nephew's signature cake (he is five, and quite the gourmet). It's gluten free, with ricotta, raspberries, almond meal and vanilla seeds, and it is just the perfect mix of sweet, tart, and moist. My entire family loves it.

In four quick months, Emme will turn one, and there is a small part of my brain already planning how we will mark the first of her birthdays. Particularly, how I can make pretty cakes without using too much colouring, preferably none. Well, I made the icing for this cake by simply whipping cream with raspberries. It was a lovely pale pink, though I'm planning to experiment with boiling the raspberries and mashing out the colour and adding this to the cream, and I think blueberries, and kiwi fruit would be worth trying as well. Any other ideas for colour-giving fruits and vegetables gratefully received.