Snacking Cakes, Paper Planes, Painting Cans

Good morning, Troops. Yesterday I got to interview the legendary Deborah Madison about her upcoming memoir and the history of the vegetarian movement. One thing that surprised me: She is obviously a vegetable lover, but she's not actually a vegetarian. (Her reply "That's why I wrote the book!") In other exciting news, I also scored more than one four-pack of toilet paper at our local grocery store (for anyone else fascinated by the TP shortage, this podcast helps explain it); I started Jane Smiley's Age of Grief (never read it); and pretended to love Emma Chamberlain's latest video, but really just wanted an excuse to sit on the couch in between my two girls. Here's today's PPP...

Project: Snacking Cakes

I was planning to make that insane looking carrot snack cake I wrote about on Cup of Jo yesterday. It was an Adeena Sussman recipe from Family Meal, the digital instant cookbook published to support restaurant relief, and called for coconut (had it), labneh (or Greek yogurt, had it) and tahini (yup.) Only thing missing? A single stinkin' carrot. But I couldn't get the idea of a snack cake out of my head, so instead baked a favorite recipe from Odette Williams's Simple Cake. It's an almond gató made with only six ingredients, including almond flour, a little lemon zest -- but no leavening agent, so the final product tastes like heavenly marzipan. That recipe is not online, but I wrote about her (also easy) chocolatey chocolate cake last year. Between that one and Adeena's, you should be covered in the snack cake department.

Pantry: Paper Planes

Is it Friday yet? No? Ok good, you have another day to collect the ingredients for Andy's new cocktail of choice: A Paper Plane. His old coworker Sally turned him on to them and I for one I'm grateful. It feels just right for this time of year, a little bourbon for New York nights that are still a little chilly, and a hit of Aperol for some color that hints of warm weather just around the corner. Cheers!

Purpose: Food Container Art

I am a longtime Gina Triplett fan -- she designed the cool floral spine for my second book and, a long time ago, painted recipes inside my cabinet door for part of a magazine story I worked on. These days, I'm loving her quarantine project: Making art out of used food containers like kombucha bottles (above), coffee cans, and mustard jars. Even if you're not artistically inclined enough to try this yourself, it's a nice reminder: beauty is everywhere, people are amazing. Follow Gina's instagram to keep up with her work.

Stay safe. Stay home.

The goal of the Project, Pantry, Purpose series to keep us sane, distracted, and connected. Please continue to comment below with suggestions for recipes, projects (for kids and adults), good deeds, donation ideas, stories, movies, games, puzzles. Or just tell me how you’re doing, what your daily routine is, and especially how DALS can help you or people in your community. You can also email me directly at jenny@dinneralovestory.com.