cake fail and tea-party report

I was making Carrot cake from scratch, which is usually a guaranteed win, but I found I was out of vegetable oil.  We have lots of olive oil.  That works just the same, doesn't it?

NO!  Olive oli is not an acceptable substitute for vegetable oil in a cake.  It baked up beautifully.  It looked soo pretty!  It tasted like olive oil and then like more olive oil and finished with a heavy flavor of olive oil.  So, quick as a bunny, I dug out a butter cake recipe and added coconut and crushed pineapple and the last of the grated carrot, and stuck it in the oven.  That should work, shouldn't it?

 Nope.  Maybe if I had made cupcakes. But as twas, the cake separated as it came out of the pan.  The flavor is wonderful,but the presentation is seriously ratty. Everyone was very kind and polite and tried some  and ate everything they took, but no one felt obliged to say  it looked nice.

I fixed tea and Kona coffee and, since it's the warmest day of the year so far, I served cucumber water which went over very well.

 On the top plate are passionfruit macarons.  Second plate is gingersnaps, and on the bottom plate are DH's own recipe for Hawaiian  Chicken Waldorf salad - He used the meat from two roasted chicken thighs, 6 oz of chopped macadamia nuts, a small can of pineapple tidbits (we already had a can of chunks and a can of crushed.  I didn't see why he had to get the tidbits, but he was right.  Texturally, it was perfect) and 1/4 C Best Foods mayonnaise.  I put it on King's Hawaiian Sweet Bread rolls, and everyone just ate them up!

I put down a white table cloth, then spread a sarong over it.  Lots of tropical color.  Glass plates to let the color show through, and bright, solid-colored teacups to co-ordinate.  And a few Walmart leis scattered about because they were festive.

And for the fruit, I made honeydew melon balls with mint.  Sweet, refreshing, and no cal.  DH lost four pounds on the trip.  I found them, and they brought friends with them.  Back on Weight Watchers.