I enjoy getting the right answer on math equations on the first try.
Homework is sometimes a little bit too exciting.
My favourite aisle in every store is the one with the school supplies in it.

And, I celebrate Pi day.
Yes folks, Pi day.
A day when math enthusiasts everywhere greet each other with “Happy Pi day!” instead of the customary, “Good morning!”.
A day when, 134 years ago, Albert Einstein was born. (Coincidence? I think not!)
A day when there are 3.14% discounts on computers, free slices of pizza are given out at 3:14 pm, you can take a 3.14 mile bicycle ride, and people attempt to recite as many digits of Pi as possible.

And how do I celebrate, you ask?
Well, to be honest, Pi day makes me crave pie.

And not just any pie. But a homemade pie, baked until golden brown with a flaky crust, filled with some sort of goodness that would make your mouth water.

So today, after polling my parents on their preferred pie, I whipped up a filling with saskatoons picked from my Aunty Helen’s garden, rolled out a crust from my favourite Betty Crocker cookbook, gleefully carved the symbol for Pi in the top crust (I did say I am a bit of a nerd…) and popped it in the oven.
35 minutes later, pie perfection. And a bit of Pi perfection, as well.

Ladies and gentlemen, no pie tastes as sweet as one eaten on Pi day.
Fact.
And, just for fun, I’m giving you the recipe, so you can create your own pie creation, whether on Pi day or any other day of the year.

Jenn’s Scrumptious Saskatoon Pie (Best eaten on Pi Day)

Filling:

3 cups fresh or frozen saskatoons
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter
¾ cup water, split into ½ cup and ¼ cup portions
2 ½ tablespoons cornstarch

In a large saucepan, combine saskatoons, sugar, lemon juice, butter, and ½ cup water.
Over medium low heat, bring to a boil, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring gently.
In a small cup, mix ¼ cup water and cornstarch. Stir into berry mixture. Continue to stir as the sauce thickens. When sauce has reached desired thickness, remove from heat and set aside, letting it cool while you make your crust.

Crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter, margarine, shortening, or lard
4-6 tablespoons cold water

In a medium bowl, combine flour and salt. With a fork or pastry blender, cut in shortening, lard, butter, or margarine until particles are the size of small peas. Sprinkle with cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with fork until all flour is moistened and pastry almost leaves the side of the bowl.
Lightly sprinkle flour over countertop. Split dough into two halves, and roll out each half into a circle 2 inches larger than an upside-down 9” pie plate.
Gently ease one circle of dough into the pie plate, and then poke holes in the bottom of the crust with a fork and sprinkle the base of the pie crust with about ½ to 1 teaspoon bread crumbs (this helps to create air flow and soaks up excess moisture).

Spoon filling into pie plate.
Cover with second circle of dough. Seal edges where the two crusts meet with a bit of water on the tip of your finger. Trim edges and flute.
With a paring knife, slash small air vents in the top of the pie in small slits or other desired pattern.
Bake in 350˚F oven for 30-45 minutes until crust is golden brown and filling begins to bubble through slits in crust. Cool on a cooling rack for at least 2 hours.

Enjoy!

I have wanted to do more blogging in the last week and a half, but I’ve been absolutely exhausted. Twelve hour days for two weeks straight is tough. We work 84 hours in one week, while the average person works it in 2 weeks. But it means we get 2 weeks off each month (so basically we only work 6 months of the year). I haven’t even opened my books for homework or even attempted going to the gym. We get off work, eat dinner, shower, relax, and then suddenly it’s bedtime and the cycle starts over. Josh started doing night shift last night, and I switch over tonight. I forced myself to stay up all night so I could sleep during the day. I’m not going to lie, I did catch myself dozing off a few times.

I try and read a few of my favourite blogs in the morning before work. I have a whole list of delicious food I want to make when I get home. I don’t think I will be able to get that much of it done in the 7 days I have off, but at least I’ll be able to check some off the list.

Michael Buble Christmas was on TV the other night and it made me a little sad. I love the Holidays – it’s such a great way to bring people together and celebrate. I just kept wishing I was at home getting everything ready to go, but instead we will be quite rushed to get everything done. That’s okay though, we can do it! I wish we would have brought a mini tree for our room – and maybe some other Christmas decorations.

Josh shoveled off my truck yesterday after it had been sitting in the parking lot for 14 days. This is what it looked like:

The snow just wouldn’t stop when we first got here. I was very happy that my truck actually started since we had some pretty cold days! All this snow also makes me want to go snowboarding!

Oh, remember a few posts ago when I promised you that Pad Thai recipe? Well, being in a rush like I was in the last few days I was home (niece being born and getting organized), I forgot the recipe. However, this is what it looked like  (it was as delicious as it looked):

Can’t I just be at home making magic in the kitchen? Soon, and I promise you there will be as much cooking as I can possibly fit into 7 days!

Well that’s all for today as I better get some sleep. My next post in a couple days will be on some of the natural beauty products I use. With spending most of my time in a dryer climate in the mountains, I definitely need some quality skin care products. Have a great day!!

this cake was made for someone i work with, well actually it was made for their twins first birthday Madeline and Michael, affectionately referred to as ‘m&m’ how cute

the cake was fun to make because i hadn’t made a cake like this before and its always good to do new things.

the yellow one was made from a gluten free white chocolate and raspberry mud cake layered with white chocolate ganache. the red was made from a gluten free darkchocolate mud cake layered with dark chocolate ganache. both delicious and being gluten and nut free they were perfect to take to a kids birthday party without any worries

as a bonus as i was finishing the cakes with fondant we had a film crew in our kitchen! filming for an advertisement for the business i work for… no pressure at all to do a good job!

but they came out really well so i guess i just need to hope i wasn’t looking to bad while i was working, they came at 10am so no bags under my eyes yet to let me down.

Fall is here! South Carolina is still warm, in the 30s but soon the temperature will drop and it will be nice and cool, just the way I like it.

Both Kevy and I are pretty excited about fall because it means pumpkins, cranberries and all the yummy amazing things I can make with them.

Kevy once tried to coax me to have some pumpkin ice cream. It was quite yum, but I felt a lil strange having it, kind of like tapioca ice cream. Its good, but confusing to me!

Since we started dating and I found out how much he loves pumpkins , I’ve always tried to make and bake pumpkin-based dishes for him. I’ve made pumpkin cupcakes and pies for him before. We always try making different pies like apple-cranberry, apple-raisins etc (because we love them pies) but I always use the same sort of base since this one recipe I found always produces the best base!

For the pumpkin pie, I have a pie recipe which always turns out perfectly just the way I want them. Even my brother-and-sister-in-law love them, so I know Kevy wasn’t just being nice when he says the pies were yum. Being complimented on a job well done is always a motivation for me to try and bake even more dishes so it’s no wonder I love baking!

Being a bit of a food-snob, my pies have always been made from scratch (and also maybe because I usually have the time to indulge in that sort of stuff!). There’s nothing wrong with ready-made ones — I’ve bought the ready-made ones myself but find I’d rather make them myself. Maybe because I enjoy the steps in preparing them plus it really is easy once you get the hang of it. While it might seem intimidating, if one could read and follow instructions properly then one can try baking. It really is not a big deal since all you need is the ability to read/follow a recipe, the necessary utensils and lastly, the time and willingness to try it out!

I do like to bake because I enjoy that more than cooking — there’s a different feeling to it that I can’t quite describe — so I’m glad my husband is always more than ready to be my guinea pig and sample my dishes!

Preparing for a pumpkin pie has become a sort of ritual, something I really enjoy since I learned how much he loves wolfing the pies down. So when fall comes and I know pumpkins are in abundance, I always try to make as many pumpkin-based dishes as I can.

Knowing him, I know I’m going to come home to a house smelling like pumpkin pie (since he loves getting the “Pumpkin Pie” scented candles) with pumpkin ice cream in the freezer and that we’ll go shopping for more pumpkins so we can start baking his favorite dishes! Just thinking about that makes me really excited since we are apart at the moment, but once I’m home, you know I’m going to go all out.

I love Thanksgiving — it gives us the perfect excuse to cook and bake up a storm in the kitchen so you can be assured we’re going to do the same this time around! Can’t wait to be home — it’s going to be such an amazing feeling, I know that much

thanks to everyone who helped me raise some much needed funds for a good cause!

it is always great to help out, and even more so when there are cupcakes involved!

for the event i was a busy girl cooking up batches of the following;

Cupcakes: Vanilla bean, Red velvet, Lemon curd meringue, chocolate, chocolate rocky road, gluten free moroccan orange, chai latte, and raspberry swirl

cake pops: Gluten free chocolate hazelnut, Gluten free Caramel mud, and raspberry & vanilla.

Not many left overs either, which is always a good sign of tasty cakes

When I get stressed out, or frustrated, or hungry, I whip out my mixing bowl and one of my many cookbooks, and mix up some goodness.

I’ve had the occasional bad baking day, but usually I end up with something delicious and delightful to eat a little of and encourage my roommates to eat before I gain 50 pounds. Haha.

Tonight, I wrote 2 hours worth of a Political Science final… and decided it was time for some baking therapy to finish off my night and relax a bit.

So this is what I came up with! And I’m sharing the recipe so that you, too, can create some muffin masterpieces. Enjoy!

Jenn’s Chocobana Chip Muffins

(This recipe is adapted from the “Banana Muffins” recipe by Britney Wall in the B.C. 4-H Cookbook from 2002)

Ingredients:
3 bananas (1 1/2 cups mashed)
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Mash bananas. Whisk in sugar and slightly beaten egg. Add melted butter. Add dry ingredients, and mix until blended. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon into lined or greased muffin tin and bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes. Cool and enjoy!

Note: If you have lots of overripe bananas, I like to peel them and stick them in groups of 2 or 3 in freezer bags and freeze them. Then, when I want to make a batch of muffins, all I have to do is take out one bag, defrost it, mash the bananas while still in the bag, and voila! Perfect mashed banana. Works every time.
Also, I’ve adapted this recipe using applesauce, berries in place of chocolate chips, or whatever else I’ve got kicking around the kitchen. As someone once told me, “You’ve gotta live a little!”

Happy baking! :)

yum!

I discovered a few days ago these cute tags I made a few years back with my Creative Memories tag maker. So cute and easy. Great way to use up scraps and leftover stickers. I need to set aside a day to make some more

 

Ready to go to the sale. The oatmeal tags were made with older CM papers, but this has the black and white decorative kits. These went well. Maybe do even better next time.

Next came filling and topping.  My fillings bubbled over quite a bit as I guess I had too much in them.  Oh, and I used the flat topping for two and lattice toppings for two.  After trying to assemble the lattice on top of the jar, I gave up on that and assembled on the flip side of a lid.  Use a bit of water to secure the strips together.  Then gently lower on top of the filling.

Baked as directed… They are cooling now.  I put some melted butter on top of them, then sprinkled with a bit of sugar in the raw for added delectability.  They are fun. I got gingham ribbon and tying plastic spoons to each.

I had enough for an extra so I made one for my freezer .  Perfect for when I need an extra treat after a long day.

What are YOU up to today??

Jan

see ya later

This Sunday is the monthly bake sale at church.  Can’t wait!  I’ve been pouring through sites at pinterest and have some great things to try.  I want to do them all but think I’ll just try 2 or 3.  I’ve already planned to make the garden cupcakes from Hello, Cupcake book.  I think the pies and cakes in jars is a really cute idea, as are the cute mini cinnmon roll pops.  I also saw some baked oatmeal things… which would be great for gluten sensitive people, and for those not wanting something overly sweet.  I’m thinking that might be cute in a jar too… So I’ll be busy Saturday with getting some things ready for it.  I will post what I get done later…

As for my scrapbooking stuff I have to post this… it’s really pretty new scrapping papers and ideas.

To make them you make regular cupcakes, mini cupcakes and cut marshmallows for the snout and ears and attach with canned frosting… Then frosting goes in a zip top baggie and tape the corner with 6 layers of scotch tape, cut an M in the corner and frost the fur… The book said to use chocolate covered sunflower seeds.  Like we have gourmet candy shops out here and no time for mail order.  I used mini chocolate chips for the eyes and nose.  Mini m and ms would work too. 

Aren’t they cute?  I used Gluten free mix and icing so her daughter could eat one.  Brightened her day.

I got the book at Half Price Books – with such cute ideas pick one up, perfect for bake sales, kids birthdays or brightening up someone’s day.  My next project will be the garden cupcakes or the “tv dinner” April fools cakes for the bake sale as well as some mushroom meringues. 

Cheers!

Jan

Cheesecake Cake

Cheesecake Cake

For the cake:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

For the topping:

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup milk

2 large eggs

1/3 cup sugar

Topping II:

Sour cream

Pan:

8 – 9 inch square pan, greased and floured ( I used 8 inch round, and sprayed with Pam baking spray)

Make the cake:

1. Combine the flour, baking  powder, and salt. Stir to combine and set aside.

2. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light.

3. Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, half at a time, beating well after each addition.

4. Spread the batter in the prepared pan.

Make the topping:

1. Cream the cheese until smooth and blend in the milk. Add the eggs one at a time, then sugar. Mix to blend thoroughly, then pour over top of the cake batter.

2. Bake at *350 for 35-40 minutes.

(I let it come to room temperature, then chilled for a half hour or so, then topped the cake with sour cream that I stirred to make spreadable)

3. Garnish any way you like. Fruit, sprinkle of nutmeg, candied fruit, etc.

* I forgot to put the cheesecake topping on until about 20 minutes into baking, and it turned out just fine. I don’t recommend that, but I think a sign of a great recipe is one that takes to my mistakes. This was so delicious, and less costly than a cheesecake, but you miss none of the cheesecake-y goodness. Plus a wonderful buttery shortbread crust. I chilled it for a bit. The crust gets a little harder from being cold, so chill and then let sit at room temperature for a bit. Sounds counterproductive, but it works. I also only had 4 oz of cream cheese, so I halved the recipe and it was still great.

from Little Cakes by Susan Waggoner

I regret that I cannot share all of the following recipes, because I make dough on these doughs, so for now they must remain a secret, but I thought I’d let you see that I am not a lazy bones.  I am always cooking or baking, but hate typing recipes. I can write a novel on here, but copying my own notes is mind-numbing. I would love to type recipes in one-syllable words, but I don’t want to sound like Sesame Street. Not that there is anything wrong with Sesame Street. Shout out to Grover. I am making it a goal to get better at it. Maybe the more I do it the more it will be a breeze. A few of the following are recipes from my Foodbuzz friends that I have made and loved.  Check out their sites!

Blueberry Crumb Bars

Strawberry Thumbprint Pecan Scones

Strawberry Thumbprint Pecan Scones

This recipe is adapted from Tanantha at I Love My Apron *Foodbuzz friend- for original recipe visit her blog at:

http://ijustlovemyapron.blogspot.com/2010/04/raspberry-thumbprint-wholewheat-scones.html

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oats (toasted)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
5 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup sour cream (a little over 3/4 cup is fine too)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
1/3 cup chopped dried cranberries
1/3 cup coarsely chopped pecans (toasted)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
4 teaspoons  milk
3 tablespoons strawberry jam

• Preheat oven to 400 F
• Place oats in a food processor. Process until finely ground
• Add flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice to a food processor. Pulse 3 times
• Add butter; pulse 5 times until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Be very careful – Don’t over beat.
• Add 1 tsp vanilla and sour cream; pulse 3 times or just until combined ( DO NOT over-mix). If you’re afraid you might over-mix, you can transfer the mixture into a big bowl and add sour cream and vanilla. Use spatula to mix. If you over-mix, the mixture will be too runny.
• Add cranberries, and nuts. Use spatula to mix well.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead lightly 3 times. Roll dough to a 1/2 inch thickness; cut with a 2 1/2 inch biscuit cutter
• Place cut dough on a baking sheet. Use a watermelon scoop or small round spoon to press in a middle of each cut though to make a half hole for raspberry jam
• Mix together jam and the remaining vanilla extract.
• Add 1/2 teaspoon of jam into a hole. Don’t over put it otherwise it will run all over a scone.
• Bake for 14 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheet; transfer to a wire rack
• While they’re cooling, combine powdered sugar and milk. Stir with a whisk until smooth. Drizzle the glaze evenly over scones.

* This recipe made 18 for me using 3-inch cutter. I left one out unwrapped overnight and it was still good the next day.

Quiche Lorraine Scones

Quiche Lorraine Scone

from Michelle at Brown Eyed Baker * Foodbuzz friend-http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2010/01/26/quiche-lorraine-scones/ from goodLife {eats}

Yield: 6 large scones

2 cups + 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
Pinch cayenne pepper
Dash nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold butter, diced
½ cup half-and-half (I used heavy cream L.R.)
2 eggs
4 ounces Swiss cheese, diced (I used Gruyère L.R.)
3 green onions, thinly sliced
7 strips bacon, cooked and crumbled
Egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 teaspoon water)

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. Prepare the bacon, onion and cheese. Toss these ingredients together with 1 teaspoon flour; set aside.

3. In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cayenne, nutmeg and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the butter is pea-size. With a fork, lightly beat the eggs and half-and-half and add to the flour mixture. Add the bacon, onion and cheese mixture. Using a wooden spoon, fold mixture until it begins to come together.

4. Turn out the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead gently for less than one minute. Pat dough to ¾ to 1-inch thick and cut using 3-inch biscuit cutter (for large scones) or cut into squares or triangles. Place the scones on the prepared baking sheet. Brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash.

5. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

(Recipe courtesy of goodLife {eats})

Strawberry Cream Cheese Danish

Onion Poppyseed Cheese Monkey Bread

When I was young, it didn’t matter if the cake was from scratch or from a box so long as I got to mix a bunch of frosting colors and get to it. Sometimes in my Art School painting class, I thought longingly of days when painting was delicious instead of insanely hard and tedious. I am a horrible painter. Brittany and I frosted the infamous fetus cake for Jill’s baby shower,

an excellent cake of a hobo frolicking in a magical hobo garden for my 16th birthday,

and a super awesome Invader Zim that I somehow failed to take a picture of. Frosting cakes was something I enjoyed immensely and everyone loves eating cakes. I kind of fell out of the habit until recently though. I’m like that. I do something for a while, get bored with it, move on, and eventually rediscover how awesome it was. My attention span is very low. I did have some sporadic fun with my boyfriend Ernie’s 26th birthday,

a sweet pineapple cake,

and a birthday cake for my little Corolla’s first oil change.

I’ve been exploding with baked goods lately! And no more boxed cakes for me. I love baking things from scratch. It makes me feel like even when I’m eating junkfood, I’m still eating for reals food.

I’ve been considering opening a mail order bakery. A certain amount of money would guarantee a certain amount of baked goods per month. I haven’t worked out all the details though because I’m not sure if anyone would actually be interested in such an awesome thing. If you ARE imterested, by all means leave me a comment or shoot me an e-mail. Judging by the amount of spam I’ve been getting since I opened this account, I’m pretty sure my e-mail address is somewhere on this site. If you need anymore proof of my baking skillz, I will leave you with my resume.

Baby carrot cakes

Heart-shaped almond poppyseed loaf, anyone?

How about some swirly sugar cookies? I also make a mean chocolate chunk cookie but those aren’t cute so I generally don’t take pictures of them