New Zealand Fashion Week. I am so glad you are over now.
My Instagram feed can’t take it anymore. Zambesi this, Stolen Girlfriends Club that. I’m just sitting here in some old frayed Glassons shorts that are held together with a safety pin feeling like a hobo. Not even a cool hobo but like an actual poor person.
I love what is on show and splattered across social media this year. I really do. I just feel really left out. Fashion FOMO. Currently the things I want to buy are measured in fractions of a new passport and travel insurance (somewhat more essential to me right now). I can barely afford to buy the safety pins for my shorts let alone a beautiful $290 Karen Walker skirt.
This mystical cool kids club that all these fashion bloggers and models appear to be part of seems to require a uniform in order to gain entry. A uniform that can only be bought in boutiques. At this point in my life I am just going to have to make my own club. One where the members actually pay for their rent and have to scrimp and live off cup-a-soup in order to save for overseas adventuring.
I was having a wee sulk over my drab work closet on Wednesday morning when I wondered whether or not even these cool kids felt the same sort of pressures. Being as uncool as myself, there is zero expectation and social image to maintain. I don’t have to be seen at cool places and I feel no need to keep up with the latest trends. Being cool must be exhausting, on both the creative mind and the wallet. There has to be a trade of for living the dream life. Maybe the thought of checking their credit card bill or having to see their parents over the breakfast table causes them to wince. Man if I lived with my parents I would have a cool $800 per month extra to burn. Think of how many safety pins I could buy! I could afford to be outrageous, like actually buy a new pair of shorts.
Also how does everyone have the free time to attend the whole weeks worth of shows? Don’t they have real jobs to go to? Or do they get paid to just turn up and be awesome?
So while the models of fashion week are living off their 8 raw almonds a day and strutting around being fabulous, I am at home stuffing my face full of lemon cake. Except I made it in the shape of a loaf in a feeble attempt to justify consuming more of it (loaves are a breakfast food afterall).
So this sweet sweet lemon loaf was then drenched in a syrup and encrusted with more sugar. My head hurts just thinking about it but the pain was worth it. I made a couple of mini loaves to give to people at work as a surprise morning tea treat. The Little and Friday recipe lied when it said it would make two loaves. It didn’t. It made one normal sized loaf and four mini ones. They must just have really small loaf tins.
It is a perfect time of year to be making such a delight. Not only are lemons in season and falling off trees like lemons falling off trees in August, but so too is the common cold. Nurse your body and soul with vitamin c filled cake!
Lemon Maderia Syrup Loaf
Adapted from Treats from Little and Friday by Kim Evans
Makes 1 large loaf
Loaf
350g butter, softened
1 ¼ cups caster sugar
6 eggs
zest and juice of 6 lemons
1 ¼ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup ground almond
Lemon syrup glaze
Juice and zest of 2 lemons
1 cup sugar
¼ cup water
Preheat the oven to 170 degrees celsius and line a loaf tin with baking paper.
Cream the butter and once it has lightened in colour slowly add the sugar and the lemon zest. Beat until it has turned the lightest shade of yellow. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Add a couple of tablespoons of the flour if the mixture starts to split. Mix in the lemon juice. Sieve over the flour and baking powder, tip in the almond and gently fold together. Spoon into the prepared loaf tin so that the mixture is about 1.5cm from the edge of the tin. Bake for 50-55 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. You may want to cover it with tin foil towards the end to prevent overbrowning.
Just before the loaf comes out of the oven, boil together the glaze ingredients until it is thick and syrupy. Generously spoon this over the loaf as soon as it comes out of the oven. Leave to cool for half an hour before removing from the tin and slicing into nice thick pieces.
Enjoy!
