Melissa Orquiza
- Sep 1, 2021
- 4 min read

Old Fashioned Coffee Cake, How We Return & Why It Matters, Indifferent Cats & The Aristocats

Old Fashioned Coffee Cake. Perfect for when we all need a break!

Old- Fashioned Coffee Cake Slideshow

Old Fashioned Coffee Cake and some Zen.

Old Fashioned Coffee Cake, How We Return & Why It Matters, Indifferent Cats & The Aristocats

I'd like think that we all have our own personal boundaries -moral positions and stances that are non-negotiable that are usually painfully earned, sometimes with irreparable scars. As a dog person married to a cat person, I'm constantly confused as to how cats can just do their own thing, with no rhyme or reason... except possibly, for their own self-interest. I was baffled when I came across this article.

Cats Are More Indifferent Than Dogs to People Who Harm Their Owners

My husband laughed when he read the article. While discussing it, he said, "What's a cat going to do? It's not like a 50 pound dog who can defend himself. Of course he's going to be indifferent." I still find the behavior somewhat disturbing... which leads to our current state of affairs.

Everyone I know has been forced to navigate the last year and half on their own terms. Now, as schools and businesses are reopening, the social choices and behaviors we've learned to grow accustomed to are now once again, being thrown into chaos. Those most affected who have been working from home include women and parents (unfortunately). Once businesses reopen, what new hierarchy will emerge between those who choose to go into the office and those that are working from home? If certain industries do claim to value equity or social parity, how will they navigate those who are forced to work from home due to health conditions? How will social anxiety play out now that we are supposed to return to a "new normal". To negate it exists, only reinforces more interpersonal dysfunction, which in the longterm, affects a company's bottom line. If as a staunch businessman, you don't believe in caring for mental fortitude, you might be surprised at how happy employees improve productivity and your bottom line. (Shocking!)

So, maybe the cats have the right idea. If personal boundaries are essential to happiness, security, and comfort, their "indifference" might be an act of genius. It's not that their indifferent or self-serving, maybe they just know their limits and what works for them. Hmmm.. interesting.

Please check out Priya Parker and Brene Brown on How We Return and Why It Matters, Part 1 of 2. Priya, a master facilitator and strategic advisor, has some in interesting insights on the evolution of workspace and how to work and come together better, in this strange time. With so many of us working from home (and into the foreseeable future), listen to how it may change what constitutes equitable labor.

And finally, The Aristocats - Everybody Wants To Be A Cat. Maybe they do have it right?

The Aristocats - Everybody Wants To Be A Cat

I hope this makes you smile, think, and reinvent what works for your life (hopefully, streamlining it as well to make it happier). Have a great week! Thanks for reading! Xo, Melissa

Old- Fashioned Coffee Cake. Here's to celebrating what's happy and good in your life!

Old- Fashioned Coffee Cake

by Zoe Nathan with Josh Loeb and Laurel Almerinda, “Huckleberry: Stories, Secrets, and Recipes from Our Kitchen”

Makes One 10 in./25 cm. cake

Ingredients

5 1/2 tbsp/ 80 g unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup/ 65 g all-purpose flour

1/2 cup/ 45 g almond meal

4 1/2 tbsp/ 55 g sugar

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Streusel

1 cup/ 130 g walnuts, toasted (I used pecans because that’s what we had.)

3 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Cake

1 1/2 cups/ 340 g unsalted butter, cubed, at room temperature

1 3/4 cups + 2 tbsp/ 380 g sugar

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 tbsp +1 tsp vanilla extract

3 eggs

2 1/2 cups/ 310 g all-purpose flour

1/2 cup/ 45 g almond flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups/ 350 ml sour cream

Directions

To make the crumble: In a bowl, combine the butter, all-purpose flour, almond meal, sugar and salt and rub together between your fingertips until everything is moistened but a few little bits of butter remain. Refrigerate as needed.
To make the streusel: In a food processor, combine the walnuts (or pecans), sugar, and cinnamon and pulse until the walnuts are ground but not becoming a paste. Set aside.
To make the cake: Position a rack in the middle of your oven and preheat to 350 degrees F/ 180 degrees Celsius. Line and grease a 10-in/ 25-cm round cake pan or springform pan.
In a stand mixer fitter with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar, and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Incorporate the vanilla and eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Be sure to scrape the sides of the bowl well. Pause mixing and add the all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, and sour cream. Mix cautiously, just until incorporated. Do not overmix!
Scoop half the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it with damp fingertips or a small offset spatula. Sprinkle evenly with the streusel. Top with the rest of the batter, coaxing it into covering the streusel layer. Top with the crumble. (At this point, the assembled cake can be refrigerated for up to 2 days). Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean (a little longer if coming from the refrigerator). Allow to cool for about 15 minutes in the pan.
Place a flat plate on top of the cake and pan. Carefully invert the cake onto the plate by flipping both upside down. Then, lift the pan off the cake. Gently pull the parchment from every nook and cranny of the cake, being careful not to break the cake. Rest your serving plate on the bottom of the cake and turn the cake right-side up onto the plate.