New love

I'm in love.  And not only with Spencer.  A new cupcake has come into my life!

A few weeks ago I picked up the Martha Stewart Cupcake Book at the library.  The whole book is full of yummy recipes and cute cupcake decorating ideas.  It's not only all about cupcakes either.  There are some recipes for cute individual cheesecakes in cupcake cups which I plan to try.  I made copies of a few favorites and one of them was the snickerdoodle cupcake.  I got a chance to try it last night, as today is a co-worker's birthday and I volunteered to bake rather than get a storebought sheet cake (gag).

These cupcakes were made completely from scratch, including the frosting, and doing that really isn't that much more difficult than using a box mix.  I was a little worried about them turning out right, since it was my first time with the recipe and I was making them for an audience other than Spencer or my family who still have to love me even if what I make comes out gross. As soon as I tasted them I knew this would be my new go-to cupcake for special occasions.  They are amazing!!  The sugar/butter/cinnamon flavor combo is so simple and wonderful.  Just like the easy-to-make cookies of the same name. Ahhhh...so good!

The frosting suggested in this recipe is Martha Stewart's 7 Minute Frosting, also found in her cupcake book.  That frosting is kind of meringue-y and hardens as it dries.  I pictured it as those airy meringue cookies that turn to powder in your mouth.  I didn't think that sounded very good on top of a cupcake, so instead I used my mom's tried and true homemade frosting recipe.  To be honest, I actually just had her make it.  This recipe is eyeballed amounts of butter, milik, powdered sugar and vanilla mixed until they are at the perfect consistency.  Sometime it's dense, but this time it was light and airy and fabulous!!

The party for my co-worker is today at 4:30pm.  Instead of doubling the recipe, which would have given me close to 60 cupcakes, I made 1 1/2 times the recipe, so I ended up with about about 35.  There was a bit of batter left over, but by that time I had enough cupcakes and just wanted to go to bed.  I probably have could gotten just over 40 if I kept going.  Of course I set 4 aside for Spencer, which he will be getting tonight, in addition to my Greek chicken and squash kabobs, lemon-almond orzo and yogurt sauce.  That's a whole other blog post!

Cookie time!

Have I mentioned what a lucky guy Spencer is? When we met, he didn't screen me by asking if I like to cook and bake, but he definitely lucked out in that department! I cook dinner for him frequently, but I haven't been baking as much as I would like to.  This week I decided to try making a new cookie, incorporating white chocolate chips along with semisweet.  I had some white chocolate chips lying around by accident.  Around Christmastime, I was at home baking with my mom, and we sent my dad to the store.  We handed him a sheet of paper with two recipes on it and he bought all the stuff for the wrong one.  Oops! I like using up ingredients I have and these cookies seemed like a good way to do it.

I asked Spencer about it first, so that I wouldn't waste time making something he wouldn't eat, and he said it sounded good!  They are good! And so was the dough.  I ate a ton of it!

 
Spencer gets them tomorrow.  He got cookies from my mom yesterday, but I'm sure those are all gone by now and he will be ready for a new batch!

DIY Birthday

This weekend we went to a BBQ to celebrate Spencer's sister's birthday.  In place of wine or any other hostess gift, she asked people to bring diapers for a shelter in her area that she has been donating to.  We brought a package of diapers, but I wanted to bring something festive as well.

I have seen flower cakes around for a long time and had never gotten the chance to make one. They look so great in pictures.  Doing a whole cake can take a lot of flowers and get really expensive, so I decided to just do a slice of cake.  Next time I do this I will use "flatter" flowers.  These carnations have a bulbous thing underneath the flower that make them stick up above the floral foam, exposing it.  Flowers like daisies would create a flatter, cleaner look.  Oh well, next time!

I also utililzed some stickers and scrapbooking embellishments to make this card.

Some homemaker idols

Today is Julia Child's 100th birthday! I know this because of Google's daily image, and it seemed like a relevant thing to post about.  Julia's cooking style is a little sophistocated and time consuming for me, but she was one of the first female cooks to bring cooking into people's homes with cooking shows.  So for that, happy birthday, Julia!

The other day I was wearing a cardigan, black pants cropped at the ankle and ballet flats.  My mom told me I looked just like Laura Petrie from the Dick Van Dyke Show.  I thought it was a great compliment! She's a more modern housewife than those of the Lucy and Ethel variety, and I love her style!



New recipes

I mentioned in my post yesterday that I found a bunch of new recipes online that I printed out to add to my recipe binder.  I was excited about them, and as it turns out I ended up using two of them yesterday! 

Spencer and I spoke in the afternoon about what he might want for dinner.  He felt like fish and suggested sole or tilapia.  I love fish, so that sounded good to me. I was still at work when I was planning my shopping list and I realized that one of the side dishes I came across earlier would go well with the fish and fried potatoes I was planning on making.  I also decided to try one of the dessert recipes I came across.  It felt good to have a plan rather than wander the grocery store after work when I'm tired, hungry and just want to get to my honey bunny!

Adtually, I love grocery shopping.  I find it relaxing.  Also, stocking up on food evokes that feeling in me that is probably instinctual in women - the desire to feed and take care of your family and those you love.  I feel like nothing bad can happen while I'm grocery shopping.  I enjoy comparing prices and finding the best deal, reading labels to find the best ingredients.  I just love it!

Anyway, the meal I put together was very easy and took about an hour. 

I ended up getting sole filets, because they seemed a little meatier than tilapia.  Tilapia is good, but can be thin and unsatisfying. I dipped the filets first in an egg and milk mixture and then in Italian seasoned breadcrumbs.  As I was frying them up, Spencer came in and added what I thought was wayyyyyyy too much olive oil, but they came out great.  Not partially burned like they usually do when I try to limit the oil.  It's the healthy kind, afterall, and a lot of the oil evaporates or is left over in the pan. 

The potatoes are just fried in a pan with red onions and some salt and pepper. I made the potatoes and corn first, as they could be warmed while I made the fish.  The fish should be eaten as soon as it's ready.

This is what I was most excited about. Confetti corn! I found this recipe earlier in the day from Ina Garten, aka The Barefoot Contessa.

Hers looked a lot more colorful, as my orange peppers turned yellow and blended in with the yellow of the corn.  But the idea is that the corn is peppered with "confetti" colors of other veggies.  It's always great to add color to your diet, and this is a quick and easy way to get some! Perfect for summer. The recipe is here:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/confetti-corn-recipe4/index.html 

We enjoyed our meal with a great pinot noir from Boekenoogen Winery which we picked up in Carmel a couple of weeks ago.

To end the meal, I made something that I expect to make a lot more in the future.  It is one of the easiest and cheapest desserts imaginable. It was one of the recipes I collected that morning, and I was excited to try it.

Lemon Graham Freeze

6 servings

Ingredients

• 1 can (5 ounces) evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 4 drops yellow food coloring, optional
• 6 whole graham crackers

  Directions

• Place milk in a small bowl; beat for a few seconds to get froth. Freeze for 25-30 minutes or until soft crystals form around edges of bowl.
• Beat milk until stiff peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, lemon juice and food coloring if desired.
• Place five graham crackers in an ungreased 11-in. x 7-in. dish; pour milk mixture over crackers. Crush remaining graham cracker and sprinkle over top. Cover and freeze until firm. Yield: 6 servings.

 Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (1 piece) equals 164 calories, 3 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 8 mg cholesterol, 120 mg sodium, 32 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 3 g protein.

Mine didn't look exactly like this.  We ate it right out of the dish rather than cutting it into squares.  It was really tasty.  It was especially good for such a warm day because it was cold and light.

It tastes kind of like a cheesecake.  And Spencer loves anything with a graham cracker crust, so it was a hit! We ate most of it, even though it says it serves 6 (servings are usually way off).  Since I had a lot of the evaporated milk left, and it's so easy to make, I quickly put together another one for Spencer to eat over the next few days.



Gettin' Scrappy

I had almost a full day to scrapbook this past weekend! Spencer was working in his yard, which is his main project these days, so I got to make some progress on my projects, too.  I felt like I got a lot done, even though I only planned on quickly putting my Sausalito page together.  I ended up finishing a total of 4 pages. That always happens.  Once I get started, it's hard to stop! There is still a bit to do before I get caught up, but I loved spending a Sunday doing one of my favorite things.

Today I love the..

Smell of: New conditioner

Sound of: This American Life podcast

Taste of: Trident layer gum

Sight of: Blue sky

Feel of: New white pants

Good Things about Today:
- I'm seeing Spencer tonight

- I'm feeling productive at work without being totally stressed out

- I found a lot of good recipes online today to add to my recipe binder

- It's warm outside!

Chilly day chili

Saturday it felt like winter, not the first weekend in August! Spencer spent the day outside working in the yard and he said chili sounded good for such a cold, wintery day. The chili recipe I follow is here:
http://lowfatcooking.about.com/od/beefrecipes/r/lfgmaedaychili.htm

It was the first time I used my new Dutch oven and I loved it! This chili is always a big hit, especially when you top it with yummy cheese, sour cream and cornbread.  Spencer likes to SMOTHER his with butter and honey.  It's almost like dessert!  I think he likes the cornbread even more than the chili.  There is just something about this combination of flavors. We also enjoyed a nice pinot noir that we picked up on our winetasting trip to Carmel last weekend.  This meal evokes warmth and comfort, perfect for a relaxing night keeping warm on the couch and watching the Olympics.

I also made an apple pie using my apple peeler.  I know I have already posted about that handy little gadget, but I can't say enough about how useful it is.  I have always loved making pies, but was starting to dread the idea of it because peeling the apples took so much time and effort.  Luckily for Spencer, and other recipients of my apple pies, I no longer feel that way!

These are pictures from our cozy, cold-weather dinner:)

Happy Birthday to an Icon

Martha Stewart turns 71 today!! I know she has gotten in trouble for insider trading and a lot of people don't like her.  Also, she can be arrogant on her TV and radio show.  Even so, she is the icon of the lifestyle I love and the home I hope to make. So happy birthday, Martha!