Almond and raisin cake

I love movies with strong female characters – you know I like them complex – and last week, besides Saoirse Ronan’s amazing Hanna, I got to know Jennifer Lawrence’s brave Ree. The fantastic “Winter’s Bone” is another example of the theory I wrote about a couple of posts ago: the story is perfectly told and directed, and the performances are excellent. Jennifer Lawrence, talented as hell, is the

Frangipane ripple chocolate pound cake

I love almonds – they’re my favorite nut. But for far too long I avoided recipes that called for almond paste because I’ve never seen the ingredient around here. Then it suddenly hit me: if I made eggnog from scratch for a pound cake recipe, why not almond paste? I do not know why it took my brain so long to come to that conclusion. :)

The homemade almond paste – recipe from this gorgeous book