Saturday, June 25, 2011

VANESSA ALEXANDER ~ DESIGN IN MALIBU

Interior designer Vanessa Alexander and architect Michael Kovac designed this modern home that Vanessa shares with husband Steve and their children. Her goal was to lift the barrier between the inside and the landscaped surroundings.

The home is actually two boxes connected by a glass hallway.  The two story structure has  a pool just outside of the family room, and a Zen garden off of the master bedroom.

Alexander used modern furnishings to bring the textures of the glass, stone, metal and stucco home together.  She used sheepskin rugs and ceiling-to-floor cascading curtains to soften things up.  The color palette is white, gray, flax and blue, giving the home a more relaxed feel. ENJOY!

See you soon,
Teresa
xoxo

Veranda July 2011
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LEMON-ROSEMARY CAKE

LEMON ROSEMARY CAKE
 

Cake

2 c. of all purpose flour

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

1 3/4 c. sugar

2 sticks (16 T.) of margarine or unsalted butter (@ room temp)

6 eggs (@ room temp)

1 T. lemon zest

1 1/2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 c. fresh lemon juice (takes about 5 lemons)

1 t. fresh chopped rosemary, very finely chopped

1 large whole sprig of rosemary

3 T. milk

Glaze

1 c. confectioners’ sugar

3+ T. lemon juice

Begin by zesting and then squeezing your lemons for the juice. Set both the zest and juice aside.  Place the milk in a small sauce pan along with the sprig of whole rosemary.  Heat over very low heat just until the milk begins to steam.  Remove from heat and allow to steep while you prepare the rest of the batter.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a cake pan (9 inch or bundt pan work well) that you will be using. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
Cream together butter and sugar until well combined, pale and creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla and lemon zest to the mixture and combine well before adding the lemon juice and mixing it until it’s just incorporated. The lemon juice will react with the baking powder to add air into the batter so be gentle from here on out so as to keep from deflating the batter too much.
Slowly add the flour, salt and baking powder and mix carefully just until combined. Going back to the rosemary milk, remove the rosemary sprig and measure out 2 tablespoons of the milk. Add it and the chopped rosemary to the batter and gently fold in until distributed evenly. Pour into prepared cake pan and bake in the middle of oven till cake is done, about 35-45 minutes, or when a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool completely before glazing.  To make the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar with enough lemon juice to make a smooth, but not runny, liquid.  Pour glaze over top of cake and allow it to run down the sides of the cake.  Leave glaze to set up for several minutes before serving.




via Let Them Eat Cake 2007
Adapted from My Feasts
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