This substack has gone to the cats
Plus, a collection of strawberry treats for humans
Many of the world’s great literary figures were also cat lovers. The web is full of lists and photos of well-known authors and their furry familiars. Jennifer Egan attributed part of her Pulitzer Prize win in 2011 to her cat, Orlando. Charles Dickens proclaimed “What greater gift than the love of a cat?” Margaret Atwood looks more like a cat than her actual cat.
That last part may not be wholly relevant, but it’s true.
Along with Bosco, the Fabulously Fluffy Dog and co-host of my Secret Life of Cookies podcast, I have two cats. Clyde and Calvin appear on occasion in this here substack. The cats are always nearby when I am working on a recipe, appreciate when I drop them bits of butter, and Clyde is head-buttingly aggressive that any ice cream consumed by me is to be shared with him.
But are they supportive when I try to write? Au catraire! When Calvin heard my laptop open this AM, he did run to my side. Did he stare into my eyes and convey the secrets of good non-fiction narrative? Was I overcome by cat clairvoyance that pushed my creativity to new realms? Did Clyde offer to proofread?
Nope. Instead, Calvin roosted on the lower half of my legs where he is currently snoring, loudly.
All this makes me want to do is join him in napping. Did I get the wrong kind of cats? Is there a specific breed of cat that might be more inspiring and, say, less enervating? Please let me know.
Enough cats, FOOD
A new recipe that I am especially pleased with, for double ginger chocolate chip cookies, will be sent to your inboxes this weekend, but in the meantime, with berry season getting into full swing…here are a few tasty bakes from past substacks:
A "No-Fail" Strawberry Tart
“No-Fail, High-Class Stripper” is certainly a recipe title to make a reader look twice when paging through Mildred Knopf’s 1959 The Perfect Hostess Cookbook. In the case of this recipe, it’s the well-stained pages that make me pause and remember how much my mother loved this recipe.
Frosted Strawberry Shortbread
The only thing that could make these cookies taste any more like spring is if I topped them with chopped asparagus and ate them in an April shower. But that would be gross and unnecessary. These cookies embody spring with their rich, real strawberry flavor. I tweaked a basic shortbread recipe, adding powdered freeze-dried strawberries that turn the doug…
Raspberry Bakewell Cake
Today’s my birthday, which, of course means cake. Oddly tho, the recipe for cake today has no chocolate anywhere near it, which will have those who know me wondering if I’ve been replaced by an alien lizard-person. I reassure you I have not. Marissa Rothkopf-Bakes: The Secret Life of Cookies is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and s…
Housekeeping:
Secret Life of Cookies Podcast Fans! The podcast has been on a mini-hiatus and will return in full force early next week with a brilliant and hilarious guest who will shed light on the writer’s strike for us. Watch this space.
Happy belated birthday!
You have become the victim of Sleeping Small Things Vibrations. The breed of cat, even the species, makes no difference. If you are in the same room with sleeping cats, dogs, or babies, you will be overwhelmed. Sorry.
But Marissa! You did not include the beautiful portrait created by your daughter, Catie, of the splendid Vagina T. Fireball..........................................P.S. IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY????!!!!