The Space Shuttle, Endeavor, is scheduled (again) to launch tonight at 6:03pm EST. I'm hoping the "three's a charm" thing works in the favor of geeks like me who synchronize their watches by NASA's official launch clock. I don't think I can stand another delay...
I tried to brainstorm a cool dinner that I could serve in honor of Endeavor's planned launch and tomorrow's celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Mission, but I was stumped... I mean, I could have gone with the "sun charred chicken wings" or "arroz con A-pollo", with "Moon"-shine on the rocks (bu-dum, ching), but none of those ideas really "got off the ground". (bu-dum, ching)... OK, OK, no more lame attempts at humor.
So I happened to find an "inspiring" recipe for a "Space Cake"on the Family Fun magazine website. (I confess, I just read it to get ideas so I can out-brag other moms at the playground on how many cool crafts I'm gonna do with my kids... I guess like the Temptations say, "It was just my imagination, running away with me...")
Anyway back to the cake... It is actually a semi-homemade recipe (read: buy the stuff and put it together in your kitchen) which calls for a pre-made sheet cake, vanilla frosting and red & blue M&M's. I decided to update it a bit for my "mature" taste. (read: if I eat anymore sweets, in my vocabulary, NASA will stand for Need Another Size ASAP!)
OK, less about my desire to be a size "I don't need to hold my belly in anymore," and more on the cake...
I figured I'd start with the store bakery-bought plain sheet cake and cut it in a rocket shape as the directed. But then, instead of the sinfully sweet frosting that I would surely get on my fingers "by accident", I'd use a light dusting of powdered sugar, sprinkled through a sifter, to blanket the cake in white. Instead of the M&M's, although very "melt-in-your-mouth-not-in-your-hands" yummy, raspberries and blueberries would provide the colorful outline of the cake. Tasty right? Well, sure it is... and your skinny jeans will still love you in the morning!
So, how do we top this off? For me, this is when I pull out the vintage, original Life magazine from 1969 featuring the Apollo 11 Mission that I found at a rummage sale on Perry Street in the Village.... present it to my space travel-loving hubby... and start thinking of ways for him to show his appreciation. Mission complete!
(photo courtesy NASA: www.nasa.gov)
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