Challenge 33 - Sponge-worthy

A dear friend is having root canal work at lunchtime. I decide to bake her a Whisked Sponge with Blueberry Sauce and Double Cream. I have never made a sponge cake before.

Have no recipe for blueberry sauce so decide to make one up. Hey - I know sauce.

Place blueberries, water and sugar on to simmer. Now have to whisk eggs, sugar etc over pot of boiling water for ten minutes. Fussy! Start whisking. Wrist starts to ache. Change to gammy left hand. Change to right. Sweat dripping (it's hot - 8.30 in the morning and 86F for my US readers; a 'plain stinker' for the Aussies).

Take off heat. Whisk for another 5 minutes, advises cookbook. Arm falls off. Enlist Master Three, who stands on small red chair and whisks with glee.

Line 2 sandwich tins with greaseproof paper. Don't want a sandwich sponge - want traditional round sponge.

Attempt to place rectangular greaseproof paper into round tin. Un-uh. Run pen around base of tin on paper and cut out circle. Strike two - batter will seep underneath. Settle for brute force: multiple layers jammed in hard. Perfect!

Fire Master Three as whisker. He keeps stealing the merchandise. Master Three drops whisk on floor and mixture goes everywhere ... calm thoughts ... - it's 8.45.

Cooking constantly interrupted by Book Brain. Book Brain is an occasional condition I get when working on a manuscript (this an old one called 'Big Girls' Briefs' -going gangbusters lately). I'm in the groove and dialogue runs through my head like a telly on-full in the next room. Periodically I stop and jot in my little book. Tick tock.

Sift flour and salt and, using a metal spoon, gently fold flour into egg mixture, alternately with combined butter and hot water. How?? Grow an extra arm? Look at Master Three. Bad idea. Get Partner out of office and together we juggle ingredients into pan. Batter barely covers the bottom. Maybe sandwich pan better.

Tick tock, too bad. Into the pre-heated oven with you.

Blueberry sauce perfect - take off heat. Blueberry sauce cools and congeals into a tiny black puddle. Remnants up side of pot harden like glue. Stick finger in. Still tastes great, so chalk up as a Win.

Read recipe again and jot notes for Blog in different book. Yarg! Forgot to put hot water in! Damn you, Book Brain. No! I'm sorry ... Don't leave me! How bad can it be? It's only water.

Tick tock, two minutes to go.

Time! Look at cake. Has crust like pavlova. Poke to see if it springs back, as per recipe. It's hard. Poke again. Finger goes right through crust and sponge deflates. Close oven and slip quietly into denial's sweet embrace.

Partner looks at sauce. 'Look, Ma' I say, holding saucepan upsidedown. 'No gravity!' 'Want me to get a coal chisel out of the shed?' asks Partner. I reserve my decision.

Cake's been in oven way too long. Still looks mushy through Hole I Prepared Earlier. Leave cake in.

Take cake out and photograph. Partner looks on with furrowed brow. 'What am I supposed to do with it now?' I ask. 'Discus, anyone?' he says.