Coffee Cloud Cake

Because our chickens have finally started laying again - molting is such a pain - we have a lot of excess eggs. I have, therefore, been in search of recipes that use a lot of eggs.

There is a yummy sounding recipe in the New Good Housekeeping Cookbook called Coffee Cloud Cake that uses 6 eggs, so I decided to give it a try.

It turned out pretty darned tasty, and because some friends on Facebook asked for the recipe, I'm sharing it here.

Coffee Cloud Cake

6 eggs, separated, at room temperature
1/2 t cream of tartar
Sugar
2 C AP flour
1 C strong cold coffee
1 T baking powder
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t salt
4 oz walnuts, finely chopped

1. In large bowl, at high speed, beat egg white and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Beating at high speed, sprinkle in 1/2 C sugar (I use about 1/3 C instead), 2 T at a time; beat until sugar is dissolved and whites stand in stiff peaks.

2. Preheat oven to 350F. In another bowl, on medium speed, beat 1 1/2 C sugar (I used a bit over 3/4 C only) and egg yolks with flour, coffee, baking powder, vanilla extract and salt until light and fluffy. With rubber spatula or wire whisk, gently fold flour mixture and nuts into beaten egg whites until just blended:

3. Pour batter into ungreased 10" tube pan. Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until cake springs back when lightly touched. Invert cake in pan on funnel or bottle; cool completely in pan. With metal spatula, carefully loosen cke from pan; place on cake plate. Because I can't be bothered washing too any things, I just left the cake in the pan.

I still prefer citrus chiffon cake (which I might make this coming week), but this did smell incredible when it was baking! I think it would taste even better with a bit of chocolate or coffee whipped cream.

Let me know if you try this!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Grand-nola!

Easy Granola

I don't like store-bought cereal. First of all, I feel like they're unnecessarily processed. Secondly, unless you get bulk cereal, it's a lot of packaging - bags inside boxes. Thirdly, many are either too dry or not substantial enough.

I prefer to make my own granola. It's easy and tastes so much better! You might have a recipe that you like, but if not, here's one you can try. It's my favorite.

3 C rolled oats

1 C sunflower seeds

½ C pumpkin seeds

½ C almonds (or your nut of choice)

½ C coconut flakes

1 T cinnamon

2 T vegetable oil

½ C blue agave syrup or maple syrup

¼ C honey

½ dried cranberries or raisins (optional; I never put any in)

Preheat oven to 350.

Lightly grease a baking sheet. Or, as I've discovered, see photo, using my long neglected Silpat baking sheet is even more perfect as I don't have to grease anything and it prevented the granola from sticking.

Combine all of the dry ingredients in a bowl, except the cranberries.

Combine all of the wet ingredients in a small measuring cup and add to the dry ingredients. (Rather than washing yet another cup, I eye-ball the wet ingredients and put them in one at a time before stirring it all up.)

Mix well and spread evenly over the baking sheet.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until the granola looks brown and crunchy. I often give it a stir half-way through as the coconut flakes tend to burn.

Add cranberries if desired after taking it out of the oven.

Enjoy! Let me know if you try it or if you have a good recipe you'd like to share. :)

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Lime Crescents

Because Dani Duck claims my blog is mouth-watering, and because I've not posted a recipe in a while, I thought y'all might want to see a recipe post for a change. :)

These beauties are Lime Crescents, or (sub)Lime Crescents as I like to call them because they really are sublime.  The flower sprinkles I put on them, maybe not so much, but in the depth of winter, I can either try to find my invincible summer or make my cookies spring-y. Guess which I opted for? Sorry, Camus.

I don't think I need to add that this is one of my favorite cookies. :)

Lime Crescents

cookie dough:
1 C butter, softened
1 egg yolk
1.5 T grated lime rind
1 T lime juice
3/4 C confectioners' sugar
2 C all-purpose flour
1/4 t salt

drizzle:
2/3 C confectioners' sugar
1 T lime juice
green decorator sugar (I used different sprinkles in the photo above)

Directions:
1. Beat butter, egg yolk, lime rind, and juice in large bowl until smooth. On low, beat in confectioners' sugar, flour, and salt until blended. Refrigerate dough 1 hour or until firm.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

3. Form 1 rounded teaspoon dough into 2.5 inch log; bend into crescent. Place on ungreased baking sheet (not too closely). Repeat with remaining dough.

4. Bake for 10 minutes or until edges are just golden and tops are slightly cracked. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Remove cookies to wire rack and let cool completely.

5. Drizzle: stir together confectioners' sugar and lime juice in small bowl until smooth. Place wire rack with cookies over waxed paper. Decorate cookies with drizzle. Sprinkle with decorator sugar.

Makes about 4 dozen crescents.

Enjoy!


"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Pecan Tassies

If you've been a frequent visitor, you're probably thinking "whatever happened to the recipes??", aren't you?

Well, you're in luck...finally! I made pecan tassies the other day. Yum, yum. And I know you want some!

Pecan Tassies

1/2 C butter
3 oz cream cheese, softened
1 C flour
3/4 C packed brown sugar
1 large egg
pinch of salt
1 T melted butter
1 t vanilla
3/4 to 1 C chopped pecans

Cream the butter and cream cheese and work in the flour until well-blended. Chill at least 1 hour.

Press small portions of the dough into miniature muffin pans to form shells. You should get 18-24 shells depending on the actual size of your pans.

Beat the brown sugar and egg together and blend in all of the remaining ingredients. Divide to fill each pastry shell 3/4 full. Optional: topping each with a pecan half.

pre-baking

Bake at 325F for 25 minutes.

baked

I doubled the recipe and filled up 24 of the small tins and 12 regular sized tins. The mini ones are super cute; try them!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Sweeet!

A few years ago, I bought one copy of Mary Jane magazine. Like the very popular Pioneer Woman blog/show, I understand the appeal for some people, but it was not my cup of tea.  Still, I found one thing worth keeping: I clipped out the Holiday Caramel recipe because it sounded amazing.

The recipe sat in my recipe binder for ages. Flash forward to April of this year, when I finally decided to make the dang recipe or toss it out.

It turned out soooo tasty! Here they are cut up:

Then I wrapped some up in wax paper per the directions:

You have to try this yourself, holiday or not, and regardless of the fact that it's technically a butterscotch, not a caramel.

Holiday Caramel - modified
makes 40 pieces

1 C cream
1 C sugar
3/4 C corn syrup*
1/2 C butter**
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 C chopped nuts (opt)

1. Line 8" square pan with 2 sheets of crisscrossed parchment paper.
2. Combine cream, sugar, corn syrup, and butter in a heavy 3-4 quart saucepan. Bring to a boil ove medium heat and cook, stirring, until the mixture reaches 245F on a candy thermometer.
3. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and optional nuts. Immediately pour into prepared pan, and allow to cool at least 2 hours or overnight.
4. After caramel has cooled, remove from pan and cut into 4 equal lengths; then cute each length into 10 equal pieces.
5. Wrap each piece in a 4" square piece of waxed paper, or store between pieces of waxed paper in an airtight container.

*I normally would not use corn syrup, but for this recipe, I got Nature's Flavors organic corn syrup.

**I found this amount to make a very greasy caramel and will play with cutting down the amount in the future.

Enjoy! This didn't last very long in our house. I think I ate more of it than the boys did.


"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Chicken and dumplings, East Coast style

When I started dating hubby, his folks used to get chicken and dumplings from a place called Bakers. I had never had chicken and dumplings before meeting hubby, but like most of the foods he introduced me to, it was love at first taste.

Oddly enough, some of them called it "chicken pot pie". It's nothing like any pot pie I know.

Chicken and dumplings can come in a couple of different forms. Some are like cobblers with large biscuits on top, and some are what are known as slippery noodle dumplings.

We even have an old recipe from hubby's maternal grandmother, though we don't use that one:

The recipes I like give amounts. :)

Dumplings for "Chicken and Dumplings"
2 C flour
2 T shortening
2/3 C water
1 t salt

Mix flour and salt. Add shortening and mix in with fingers until crumbly.
Add water a bit at a time until dough forms a ball.

Roll out into about 1/8" thickness and cut into 1" wide by 2" long strips.

Slip the strips into your simmering broth and cook until the noodles are to the chewiness/doneness of your liking.

Have you ever had chicken and dumplings like this?

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Creamy Apple Kuchen

In honor of apple season (even though our apple harvest this year is non-existent), I'm sharing this Apple Kuchen recipe that I originally got from Family Fun Magazine.

I'm having a total senior moment, and can't remember if this is the recipe I brought to a neighbor's Oktoberfest party. The apple dessert that I baked for the party got rave reviews, so I hope it's this one. :}

But before I give you the recipe, I just want to announce that since I now have over 100 followers, and also because November 26th is Small Business Saturday, I'm going to have a Giveaway on that day that will let you have a chance to win a terrific product from one of my favorite small biz! Be sure to come back and enter. :)

Creamy Apple Kuchen

3 C apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
1 T lemon juice
1 1/4 C sugar, divided
1 t cinnamon
1 C butter, melted
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 t vanilla extract
1/4 t salt
1 1/2 t baking powder
2 C all-purpose flour
1 C light sour cream
1 egg

Heat oven to 350F and coat a 9x13" pan with nonstick cooking spray. In a medium bowl, combine apple slices, lemon juice, 1/4 C sugar, and cinnamon, stirring to mix. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the melted butter and remaining cup of sugar. Add the 2 beaten eggs and vanilla. Stir in the salt and baking powder, then add the flour. Spread the better into the pan (it will be thick), then top it with the apples/lemon juice mixture.

Combine the sour cream and remaining egg in a small bowl, then pour the mixture over the apples (won't fully cover them).

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cake is lightly browned around the edges and the topping is set. If you like, you can sprinkle a little cinnamon and sugar on top.

Store leftovers covered in fridge. Serves 12.

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Numba one son turns 15!

I have a back-log of a couple of posts; I'd started writing them, but because I wasn't really blogging, or reading blogs, I never posted them. So in the spirit of "feast or famine", I will dump them on you in a matter of days. ;) Here's the first:

It's not possible because I haven't aged a day since he was born. I am still in my early 30s as far as I can tell.

Yeah, I lied. The kids have aged me beyond recognition. I'm just a shell of the vibrant person I once was.

I lied yet again. The truth lies somewhere in between: I'm not 32 years old - my age minus 3 months when ds#1 was born - but I'm not decrepit either. I hate the idea of staring at Five-Oh, but I look forward to my AARP membership for those fabulous discounts! What am I complaining about anyway? At least I'm not a grandmother. (The idea of being a grandparent in my 40s really makes me queasy.)

But this isn't about me, even though I do go on. Ds#1 turned 15 on the first of February. We got hit by an ice storm that day, so we never took him out for a special dinner, nor cooked him one, as is our tradition. In fact, our power went out for about 21 hours, and I didn't even make him a cake until the weekend.

He chose Mocha Chiffon, and it turned out pretty well. I got the recipe from the Company's Coming cookbook I got from my mom's stash of cookbooks after she died.

Mocha Chiffon Cake
2 1/3 C sifted cake flour
1 1/2 C granulated sugar
1 T baking powder
1 t salt
1 T instant coffee granules
3/4 C hot water
1/2 C cooking oil
5 egg yolks, room temp
1 t vanilla
1 C egg whites, room temp
1/2 t cream of tartar
3 oz semisweet baking chocolate, shaved thinly

Preheat oven to 325F. Wash angel food tube pan in hot soapy water to ensure it is totally grease-free. Sift first 4 ingredients into bowl. Make a well in the center.

Dissolve coffee in hot water. Cool.

Put cooking oil, egg yolks, vanilla and cooled coffee into well. Set aside. Don't beat yet.

Beat egg whites and cream of tartar until very stiff. Set aside.

Using same beater, beat egg yolk-flour mixture until smooth. Fold 1/4 at a time gently into egg whites. Add shaved chocolate. Fold in. Pour into ungreased 10" angel food pan. Bake in oven for 60-70 minutes. Invert pan until cake has cooled. Frost with frosting of choice.

And on a completely unrelated thought, here are the socks I finished knitting in January. I'm staying on track with my projects resolutions so far, but I don't know how much longer I can keep it up with more writing and critiquing on my schedule.

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Free stuff, good stuff, tasty stuff

I've been wanting to do a post on spring wildflowers (because I love them!), but it's not happening yet. Here's a teaser with Virginia bluebells to show you what you can expect:In the meantime, I've found other goodies to share with you!

The talented Elizabeth of Gassner Custom Soaps (and more! Her lipbalms are tops in my book) is offering a bar of free soap for the price of postage. How generous is that?! While you're there, check out her weddings and Mother's Day offerings.

Carrie, Under The Willow Gifts, has Earth Day and Mother's Day specials, and I encourage you to try her incomparable Natural Laundry Soap.

For those of you who make your own body and bath products, there are a couple of ladies who are offering some nice specials too. Joanna is having a Destash sale on some of her EOs and FOs...mmmm! For those of you in Europe, Gracefruit is having a 20% off sale...yes!

For others, still, who are more interested in gardening: if you're wondering what you should be planting now, Mother Earth News has a helpful guide.

And those of you who are wondering what to do with your bounty of radishes and asparagus (oh, was that only us??), Mother Earth News has a nice recipe to try.

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams

Butter Tart Squares

My apologies for not getting this out earlier, as I'd promised Allison. My satellite internet connection is acting up (again...gee, hard to believe).

Butter Tart Squares
from Treats to Remember - UBC cookbook – compiled by Christine Samson and Allen Leong

Base:
½ C butter (125 mL)
1 C all-purpose flour (250 mL)
2 T brown sugar (30 mL)

Filling:
2 large eggs, beaten
1 ½ C brown sugar (375 mL)
½ C quick-cooking oats (125 mL)
½ t baking powder (2 mL)
1/4 t salt (1 mL)
1 t vanilla (5 mL)
½ C chopped walnuts (125 mL)

Base:
1. Preheat oven to 350F (180C)
2. Mix together flour and brown sugar. Cut butter into the flour and brown sugar until crumbly.
3. Press mixture into a buttered 9 inch (22cm) square pan and bake for 15 minutes.

Filling:
1. Combine all ingredients well and pour this mixture over the baked base.
2. Return to the oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Cool before cutting into squares.

Enjoy!!

"I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be." ~ Douglas Adams