Makin' Whoopie

Yes, today we went retro and finally made the NY Times whoopie pie recipe from a couple of weeks back. In truth, these can hardly be placed in the pie category, but hey that's the name, so I'm sticking with it and making it the pie of the month for crying out loud. These suckers are tasty let me tell you and easy breezy too.

The kids had fun. Finn was much more interested in the raw batter as you can see. Mom and Dad both like to eat raw cookie dough and cake batter so no surprise there. Both their faces were covered with chocolate by the end of our baking lesson - that's the way it should be, right?

Hopefully, ya'll can read this. The only change I made is that I added chopped semisweet chocolate to the batter because it just didn't seem chocolaty enough for me, which turned out great I think. Oh, and I didn't have a full cup of buttermilk so I added a little plain yogurt and heavy cream to top it off and that seemed to be a suitable substitute.

Basically, the cake part tastes like a chocolate muffin top - but once you add the buttercream frosting it rises to a whole other level of goodness. You just kinda sink into it's soft cloud-like texture. I don't know, maybe I'm swayed by the cooky, inexplicable name, but I loved it.

Also, these babies turned out "ginormous" as Finn would say. It makes much more than six and I would actually make the scoops of batter smaller next time. I also wanted to use a piping bag and a star tip to make the frosting a little more attractive, but I oddly don't have any piping bags at home.

The preparation time says 1 hour, but I don't think it even took us that long so this is a great last minute treat if you already have all the ingredients. You can always make time for whoopie I suppose.

Big Chill

Well, stash those flip flops back in the closet because Winter has returned to Santa Fe and is laughing ha ha ha. Yes, what a fool I was to think I could store away the coats, hat, and mittens. But however much I hate the cold, it was a beautiful sight to wake up to yesterday morning and the kids loved to be out playing in it.

I think all the plants must be confused.

We desperately need the moisture so I'll keep my mouth shut from here on out and just be grateful . . . mmmmm . . . grrrrrr . . . mmmmmm.

It's been a busy week, working and kid stuff and me trying to fit in my sewing whenever possible. Cousin Steph came over to stay with the boys the other night so I could skip over to the quilting classroom fro a quick tutorial in spray basting and straight line "stitch in the ditch" machine quilting. I've made major progress on Gram's quilt and it actually looks like a quilt now minus the binding and some more quilting on the border that I'm waiting until my class tomorrow to learn some free motion quilting. I know, it's all a blur to me too. I can't seem to get enough! I'll show some photos when it's actually complete.

I've also made some headway on Finn's quilt and just purchased some border and backing material for it. I'm still using up Aunt Ginny's scraps - and lo and behold another huge box of fabric landed on my porch yesterday! Thank you Ginny!!!These triangles Ginny had already cut - so really this was a quick one to put together. It has a few more rows now and a couple of borders . . . to be continued.

And speaking of scraps, the boys and I had some fun the other day with some pie scraps I brought home from work. It's a great way to use up the leftovers that are too overworked to be anything else. They just rolled them out, cut the pie circles, poked them all over with a fork and brushed them with egg wash (they liked this part alot), and finally sprinkled them with cinnamon sugar. They were pretty darned tough after being abused by my chefs in training, but hey they didn't give a hoot.


Only a few more days to make a pie for March so momma better get her bootay back in the kitchen!

Red berries, Red blocks, and my dreams

I'm lovin' the flip flop weather lately, although I'm in sore need of a pedicure. But, ah, those little luxuries are off the list of priorities for now. If the same goes for you head out to the store to buy a Ped Egg - it's like a microplane for your feet; awesome!

And to celebrate Spring I think everyone needs to try out this strawberry shortcake. We've been serving it at The Compound for like 5 years now - first brought to us by chef Nancy Oakes from Boulevard in San Francisco. It's a fabulous biscuit. All you need is some macerated strawberries, sweetened whipped cream, and a front porch swing.

3 cups self rising flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
melted butter and sugar to coat

Preheat oven to 350 (if you have a convection option use it at
325). Mix together flour, salt and sugar. Pour in cold heavy cream
and thoroughly combine until you have a smooth dough. Against your better
instincts, knead the dough on the counter for a couple of minutes (they rise
higher when you put some muscle into it - huge departure from regular
butter biscuits which require a very light hand). Roll or pat out to about
an inch thickness. Cut with a biscuit cutter into rounds or just a
knife into squares. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and brush with
butter and sprinkle with sugar to your taste. Bake for approx. 15 minutes
or until golden brown on the edges. Best eaten the same day, but okay for
the next day too.

These are also wonderful biscuits for breakfast or dinner - just decrease the sugar in the recipe to 2 Tbs and leave it off the tops.

I serve the shortcake and strawberries with a Red Wine Strawberry Sauce which makes it a little more grown up and really brightens the fruit:

Reduce 2 cups red wine with a few black peppercorns, a cinnamon stick, and a vanilla bean, and 1 cup sugar until you get a nice syrup. Combine that with some pureed strawberries ( I use frozen ) - adjust the thickness by adding some water if necessary.

I hit a fever pitch last week, trying to finish this quilt top. It was intended for Finn, but of course he said he didn't like it and that he wanted a more red one.Okay Graham - here's the beginning of your life's first quilt! I really love how it turned out. All the fabric (minus the borders) was given to me by my Aunt Ginny. I think the scrappy log cabin design looks very old fashioned, which I thought would be great for the boys. Typically I'm not real fond of busy little prints, but cut into strips like this and put all together, I think it works. Thanks Ginny!!

I started Finn's new "red" quilt last night, which was inspired by a woman's photo of her quilt on Flickr for a virtual quilting bee.I'm kind of making it up as I go along so hopefully it will work out in the end. Monday is my last piecing class and then I get to learn how to actually quilt!

To ease my fabric addiction, I now save every nickle and dime at the bottom of my purse so I can purchase what's called a charm pack of some fabric of one of my favorite designers. Luckily, there's lots to choose from on Etsy and I like to support the Etsy cause. I like to support my local quilting store as well, but apparently they're doing fine. The owner says they must have a recession proof business - more people staying home, making things themselves. How great is that . . . perhaps my paper store idea can metamorphosize into a fabric store idea. Me, surrounded by bolts and bolts of fabric that I get to pick out - what could be better than that?!!

"live your bliss"

It's so nice to see color in our yard again like this bright yellow Forsythia bush just below our front window. That yellow is just so sunny and happy. And all of a sudden there's some green here and there too. In Santa Fe, sometimes it feels like winter will never end - at least for me - Andy would say I have nothing to complain about; the weather here is unbeatable - and I must admit he's pretty much right (yes honey, it's here in black and white.)

So back to Finn's birthday cake. Everyone should have this recipe for chocolate cake. It is fast, easy, stays moist for days and needs nothing other than a tall, cold glass of milk.

To me, it is the quintessential chocolate layer cake - nothing too fancy or showy, just chocolate simple and direct.

Frosting:

1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 cup heavy cream
9 oz chopped dark chocolate (at least 60% cacao and the best quality you
can find)
6 oz unsalted butter, diced
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 TBS corn syrup

Cake:

2 cups granulated sugar
1 3/4 cup All purpose flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened and also the best you can find
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking powder (high altitude = 3/4 tsp)
1 1/2 tsp baking soda (high altitude = 3/4 tsp)
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup whole milk
1 cup boiling water

Start the frosting first so it can have time to cool and thicken.
Combine the cream and sugar in a medium saucepan, stir, and bring to a boil.
Turn down to a simmer and cook for 6 minutes. Add the chocolate and butter and
stir until melted. Stir in vanilla and corn syrup. Let cool in fridge, whisking
occasionally, until it is thick enough to frost with.

Preheat oven to 350. Spray cake pans and line with parchment paper,
spray again (either two 9" or three 8" or one half sheet pan). Ina mixing bowl
combine eggs, oil, and milk and whisk to combine, In another bowl, mix together
flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Combine the wet and
dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Slowly add the boiling water - the mixture
will be somewhat thin.

Pour into pans and bake for 30 - 40 minutes until cake pulls away from
the sides of the pan and toothpick in center comes out clean (a sheetpan takes
about 15-20 minutes). Cool in pans about 10 minutes then turn out and cool
completely. Use a long thin blade to level if you feel like it then layer the
cake with the frosting, swirling it around with spatula to decorate.

Let me know if you try this out. Also, let me know if I'm not descriptive enough in my instructions - it's difficult for me to be objective about it.

On an entirely different note . . . I finished the Rail Fence quilt top. And honestly, I'm not too crazy about it. Several issues for me - partly it's my choice of fabric. My instincts were against the combo but I was really struggling to fulfill the class requirements which were to choose three fabrics - light, medium, and dark. For the life of me I seemed to only be able to pick out medium fabrics - I just didn't like the contrast so much. I think I like a more blended look. But I went for it ( and actually teacher Mary said I still chose three medium fabrics. Say whah?)

But the bigger issue is I don't like the pattern - that big zig zag just bugs me. So not my style - way too organized or something. I knew about half way through I didn't like it but decided to complete it for the class and then cut it up and change it all around later; add some other fabrics, curvy quilting - free it up somehow. I will say this - it was very fast. I came home from class last Monday and finished that night save about nine inches because I ran out of thread.

I am now in what I consider serious obsession mode with the quilting thing. And I tell ya it's great to be here. "Get obsessed. Stay obsessed" I think that's from Hotel New Hampshire, not Garp - ask my brother Mike, he'd know. The only problem is that it's become difficult for me to want to do much of anything else. Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. Balance, Helen . . . breathe.

Finn turns 4 Years Old today

I took this photo of our already blooming apricot tree two days ago, basking in the glow of perhaps an early Spring. But, alas, it always seems to turn bitter cold right around Finn's birthday. As a matter of fact, I remember driving to the hospital in labor wearing a parka in Houston - no wonder Finn loves the cold weather so much. I marvel that he came from my heat loving body.

We celebrated today without much fanfare - but by far the biggest event was Finn getting his first bike.But, you see, nothing is ever easy with our boy Finn. The first bike he flat out refused to ride after being on it about three minutes. Luckily, we decided to return it and get a smaller one and that worked out great. He rode and rode around our little cul de sac, every now and again busting out with an "awesome" and a thumb's up. We were oh so proud.

Then it was inside for cake and candles before Dad had to set off to work. I made my now standard chocolate cake recipe - "old reliable" is what it should be called. Because despite having been forced to use the only chocolate available (not good) at our neighborhood Smith's grocery store since I was extremely unwilling to drag the kids to another store while snow was dumping outside and they were already running loose like crazed hyenas - it turned out pretty darned good. Made with best quality chocolate and cocoa, however, and this cake will rock your world. But more on that later.



Yummy.

Hard to believe we've had our Finn for four years now. He's truly an incredible kid . . . smart, sensitive, imaginative. He's not the most easy going kid for sure, but he keeps us on our toes and keeps things interesting around here. I could just stare at him all day, watching his funny little moves and quirky routines. And, wow, what comes out of this kids mouth. The other day at the park, he stood up on a huge rock and delivered a speech to the rest of the children and parents there. Something or other about Barack Obama; couldn't really get the gist. And although no one else was paying him any attention (thank goodness), I stood back and listened to my little man exercise his rights. It was pretty cool - a bit strange - but that's what I love about him. Yes, he exhausts me but I love him tirelessly - ain't that the power of love.

My First Quilt Top

I finally finished my quilt squares a couple of days ago and it looks like if I add some borders I can make it big enough for the queen size bed in our guest room. I'll be bringing it to class on Monday - can't wait to hear what our teacher Mary has to say about my intersections. Let's just say I never realized how much 1/16" matters when piecing it all together. Luckily, I don't think anyone else would even bother to notice that they are a bit off and I want it to have a home grown look anyway.I'm really happy with how the fabrics turned out together. I started with the center fabric in the photo - an "oriental" fabric with abstract tulips and went from there, bringing on four other fabrics (two of which are Amy Butler, one of those young, fabric designer moms that I envy.)


I think to some it may seem like a bit much - my friend Julie who works at the quilting shop thinks I have an aversion to solids - but I just love it and can't wait to wrap up in it - I adore the exquisite functionality of the fabric arts. It definately takes on a very different tone than my grandmothers quilts, especially with the bolder, more contemporary patterns in the fabric.


But my hope is that once it is actually quilted it will attain that timeless quality that her quilts seem to have. Since I've begun this new endeavor I often go to my old quilt that she made for me when I graduated highschool. It is extremely weathered now and barely hanging on - in some places there are just stitch holes where the quilting thread used to be. But you can still see the intricate, hand stitched design, especially on the back. It truley blows my mind that she once pumped several of these out on a regular basis.


Our next project in class is a Rail Fence (or Fence Rail) quilt. I've already bought the fabrics with the very last of my grant money and I think it will be amazing - check back for the finished results.


On a completely separate note, Rodeo de Santa Fe starts up soon and Finn decided to get decked out in my cowboy boots and hat the other day. Yee haw!

spring green

Wow, it's really been a long time since I posted and I bet you've been wondering what I could possibly be doing. Well, I think I mentioned that my sewing machine has been calling my name, missing me . . . so we have spent the last couple of weeks getting thoroughly reacquainted. Suddenly I've taken on some huge projects; the first being recovering our really awful looking, but very functional sofa. I wish I had taken some "before" shots so you could appreciate the transformation. It once had a really nice white, professionally made slip cover that I ended up having to throw out after a few years of dog and babies and bleaching it so many times that it disintegrated. The original cover is covered in various stains and such and a few large tears. So here is our new and improved couch!

The cushions I actually did sew; and the arms - the bottom and back I covered using my new handy dandy staple gun ( that was really fun; I highly recommend it). It is very very far from perfect but I think it looks pretty decent if I may say so myself. But man what a work out. I used a heavy duty duck cloth in hopes that it would stand up to our family's wear and tear and it was a real beast on the sewing machine.

It has been great practice, however, and has made my next project seem comparatively simple. I'm now in the midst of piecing together my first quilt!! I finally started a quilting class last week and our first assignment is a patchwork quilt top with at least 64 six inch squares of at least 5 different fabrics. So far I've done 80 - which I thought would be it, but I decided today to add another row all the way around to try to make it close to a double bed size quilt.

Honestly, I'm in heaven. The quilting thing is great because I get to play around with fabric and color, my most favorite thing right now. Funny, I used to spend all my free time reading cookbooks and cooking magazines and trying out recipes - now I'm only interested in quilt patterns, fabric designers, and embroidery videos on YouTube. At some point I'll try to tie it all together. It just feels good to be learning and doing something entirely new.

Other than that, we've just kinda been horsin' around, enjoying the unseasonably warm weather (despite the allergies that come along with that.)

I'm glad I could document some proof that these boys can actually be sweet to one another every once in a while. Sharing apples on the the playground . . . I relish these moments.