Soon, the phone brain jack will afford direct download. Until then, commands of call, email or search demand that the user first find the phone. No easy task.
Mom has a solution: the phone lanyard. She specced it out in pen-on-napkin and handed the plans to the fabrication department: me. Which is why I and my knitting needles have been spending our evenings wrapped in raspberry-colored yarn, trying to garter-stitch a prototype.
First, I checked back with Design: “What phone do U have?”
It was the small one. I cast on, knit a few rows, ripped out and started again — several times.
“It’s probably out of date,” mom texted.
I settled on a stitch count and built up a raspberry-pink rectangle.
“Everyone is going for larger screens,” she texted.
I knit the reverse side, a gusset, then stitched it all together into a snug pocket.
Most friends, Mom’s text went on, swear by the other brand.
I was starting the shoulder strap when the text bubble binged again. She’s upgrading.
Me too. Dropping the needles and grabbing a spoon, I baked a creamy raspberry rectangle that’s a delight to download. I’ll text Mom a picture, if I can find my phone.
Raspberry Cheesecake Bars
Prep: 1 hour plus time to cool
Bake: 25 minutes
Makes: 12 bars
Swirl:
6 oz. fresh raspberries
2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. finely grated lemon zest
Crust:
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 stick (4 Tbsp.) unsalted butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sliced almonds, toasted
Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
6 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
Boil: For swirl, heap berries, sugar and zest in a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Cook until berries collapse, about 5 minutes. Press through a medium-mesh sieve; discard seeds. Chill.
Bake: For crust, measure flour, sugar, butter and salt into the food processor. Pulse to damp clumps. Slide in toasted almonds and pulse a few times. Dump this crumble into an 8-inch square baking pan lined with parchment paper (leave some overhang) and pat firmly into the bottom. Bake at 350 degrees until tan and fragrant, about 18 minutes. Cool.
Smooth: For filling, measure all ingredients into the food processor and swirl smooth. Spread over crust.
Swirl: Pour raspberry puree into stripes over the cheesecake batter. Use a fork to swirl pink into white.
Bake: Bake at 350 until wiggly in the center, about 25 minutes. Cool. Chill. Grasp parchment and pull cheesecake out of pan. Cut into 12 bars.
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