Category Archives: lemon

Doing The Can Can :-P

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Yes, yet another bad pun from me. This one is based on the fact that I did a little bit of canning yesterday. What did I make you ask? You DID ask didn’t you? Please tell me you asked. Otherwise I’ll cry and believe you me, I do NOT look pretty when I cry. Middle aged fat women lacking good teeth rarely do.

On topic… I’m a jam, jelly, preserve, marmalade fanatic. Also chutneys, relishes, etc etc. If it can be spooned up out of a jar, chances are that I’ll like it. So it was natural that at some point I would teach myself to do home canning. I started about ten years or so ago and haven’t stopped since. I absolutely ADORE canning my own jams and such. I like coming up with new flavors and I like knowing what is going into them.

So yesterday, I wanted to find a way to preserve some of the precious Meyer Lemons I had on hand. As much as I loved the pound cake I made, I wanted something that would keep the flavor going for a few months. So what else would I do other than can some?

My family isn’t as big on marmalade’s as I am, but I could eat it straight out of the jar. The chewy peel, the sweet tart jelly…yum! This one was particularly good being made with the Meyer lemons. There isn’t as much pith in Meyer lemons (the bitter white part) so this didn’t have that slightly bitter edge to it that some marmalades can have and while I don’t really MIND that, I like it better if it isn’t bitter. This was slightly chewy from the peels, nicely tart but not overwhelmingly so as it could be from regular lemons. I swear, I could just stand there with a spoon and the jar.

Give this a try. If the idea of canning scares you, you could also refrigerate this. Just put it into plastic or glass containers with lids. It will last a few months stored cold. This recipe comes from Gourmet.com

Now excuse me while I go  eat this straight from the jar.

Meyer Lemon Marmalade

  1. 6 Meyer Lemons
  2. 4 cups water
  3. 4 cups sugar
  • Halve lemons crosswise and remove seeds. Tie seeds in a cheesecloth bag. I used a coffee filter tied shut with a bread tie lol. Hey, whatever works right?
  •  Quarter each lemon half and thinly slice. Combine with the bag of seeds and water in a large pot (non aluminum) and let mixture stand, covered, at room temperature 24 hours.
  • Bring the lemon mixture to a boil over moderate heat.
  • Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until reduced to 4 cups, about 45 minutes. Stir in sugar and boil over moderate heat, stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam, until a teaspoon of mixture dropped on a cold plate gels, about 15 minutes. This part took 35 minutes for me. Just don’t let it cook TOO much or you will end up with impossible to chew lemon goop.
  • Ladle hot marmalade into jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of top. Wipe rims with dampened cloth and seal jars with lids.
  • Put jars in a water-bath canner or on a rack set in a deep pot. Add enough hot water to cover jars by 1 inch and bring to a boil. Boil jars, covered, 5 minutes and transfer with tongs to a rack. Cool jars completely
  • Alternately, store this in tightly covered containers in the fridge. I got a little over 4 half pints from this recipe. I canned the 4 half pints and used the extra 3/4 cup or so in a chicken dish last night.

 

Lemon Love

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I love lemonssssss,♪♪♪ cause lemons can make you mmmmineeeeee,♪♪♪ I love lemonssss, cause lemons have yummy yummy rindddddddd ♪♪♪

 

I know; don’t give up my day job right?

 

I’ve always loved that song and have a bad habit of fitting anything but the word dreaming into the lyrics. Today it was Lemons. And I do like lemons. Though I don’t know if they could make you mine. Truth is, I’m not sure I WANT to know if it could or not. I mean, you’re cute and all and I’m sure you and I and lemons (and chocolate…and wine…and fluffy towels… and books) could all be very happy together but I’m married.

I mentioned on Twitter a while back that I had found a few pounds of Meyer lemons at of all places, Wal Mart. I have always wanted to try them but they aren’t exactly available in rural Kentucky usually. That same Wal mart no longer has any so my foray into the wonders of Meyer Lemons (and posting recipes for them for you) is over for now. *Sobs* Today and tomorrow and that’s it. So enjoy this darn it! Enjoy it!

I wanted to make something fairly easy but yet tasty and useable in more than it’s basic form. And I wasn’t in the mood to cook all day. What can I say? I have my lazy moments. So I opted for pound cake. A nice lemony pound cake. But wait! In my world you get TWO citrus fruits! Two! Two for the price of one! Just pay shipping and handling. Or something. As I was saying, two citrus fruits. I used another seasonal fruit in this by using Tangerines. I also love tangerines…and also don’t want to know if they could make you mine.

This is a nice tender pound cake. Crispy crust. soft crumb and a mild citrus flavor. I thought about putting a lemon glaze on it but 1) I didn’t want to use up any more of the precious Meyer lemons I had left on a glaze and 2) hubby isn’t a big tart fan so I just left it unglazed. This is still delicious though. This would be perfect as a shortcake substitute, in a trifle, toasted and served with custard and berries… so many ways.

So here you go… recipe one of my wonderful…short lived…time using Meyer Lemons. *Sobs again*

Meyer Lemon And Tangerine Pound Cake

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup butter flavored shortening
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 6 large eggs
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 3 Meyer Lemons, zested and juiced
  • 2 Tangerines, zested and jucied
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon orange extract
  • 1 teaspoon lemon extract
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan or 2 8 inch loaf pans.
  2. In a large bowl, beat the butter& shortening until creamy.
  3. Add in the sugar a little at a time, beating until fluffy.
  4. Add the eggs, one at time. Only beat until they are mixed in. You don’t want to add a ton of air to this batter or your cake will sink as it cools.
  5. When beating in the last egg, add your extracts also.
  6. In another bowl, mix together the flour and baking powder.
  7. Combine the juices from the lemons & tangerines, the zest and the milk.
  8.  Alternately add the flour mixture then the milk/juice mixture to the butter., starting and ending with the flour. Only mix until blended. Again; don’t overbeat.
  9. Bake at 325 until the top is golden brown and a skewer stuck into the center comes out clean or with crumbs on it, no loose batter, about an hour and fifteen minutes. The loaf pans will cook quicker than the bundt pan so watch carefully.
  10. Let cool in pan for a minute then turn out onto a wire rack to finish cooling. Like all pound cakes, this will both slice and taste better if you wait 24 hours or so to cut it.

When Life Gives You Lemons….

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Heck with just making lemonade. Find someone who has vodka and have a party. 😛 I believe it was Ron White who said that. Don’t care much for the man but I like the sentiment. Though being the weirdo that I am, I’d probably forgo the party and add the lemons to the vodka with some sugar, let it steep for months and make Limoncello. Then sit back with a good book and have a drink. THAT’S a party!

Wow… I’m old. And boring.

Oh well… youth and excitement wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. 🙂 My teen years, my twenties, even my early thirties, I was so unsure of myself or my importance in the scheme of things and so sure that “omg, I’m nothing! I haven’t discovered a cure for cancer… I can’t even get my son potty trained! I’m a failure!” was the way life would always be. I was fat, not very pretty, insecure and convinced that the world hated me. Now I’m middle aged, fat, not very pretty, still insecure at times (though it’s amazing what age does to that too) and not too worried about whether or not the world hates me hehehe. So long as I have my family, friends and all the people who actually seem to like to read my ramblings (hmmm, same thing as the friends really isn’t it? :-)  )  I think I’m doing pretty good, even on the bad days. They happen… we muddle through them and move on, hopefully a little wiser. So remember that all you young pups. The best years really ARE yet to come.

Damn. This post proves it. I really AM old and boring. *grins*. Love me anyway? 😛

Yesterday, I told you that today’s pie would be a lemon one. Bet you’re expecting lemon meringue or something like that. Nahhhhhhh. Much as I love it, that one is everywhere. So how about a Lemon Souffle Pie? Yep… Lemon Souffle Pie. I have been making this for years (again.. you have GOT to get yourself a copy of The Fanny Farmer Baking Book) and this is one I have not changed a bit. It is fantastic just the way Miss Farmer created it. This tastes just like what the name suggests. Basically because it IS just what the name suggests; just in a pie shell. It is light and fluffy and lemony and so darn easy it’s embarrassing. It has enough sweetness to be very satisfying but is light enough to be good served after a heavy meal (like Thanksgiving or Christmas…or even Easter) for those who want something but don’t want too much or maybe prefer something not chocolate (I know… weird people everywhere huh?). So give this a try. C’monnnnn …. don’t let the word souffle scare you off.

Lemon Souffle Pie

  • 1 unbaked nine inch pie crust
  • 3 large eggs, separated
  • 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (takes about 2 lemons for that much)
  • zest from one lemon
  • 3 tablespoons hot water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  1. Preheat the oven to 425.
  2. Prick pie shell over with a fork. Line it with foil and bake at 425 for 6 minutes. Remove the foil and then bake again until it is just lightly browned; about ten minutes.
  3. Reduce your heat to 325.
  4. Put your egg yolks in the top part of a double boiler (I have also done this part in the microwave on 60% power, stirring after every minute. But be careful to keep an eye on it and stir often if you do it that way.). Add the lemon juice, zest, salt, hot water and 3/4 cup of the sugar. Beat the mixture over boiling water until thickened. Remove from heat and let it cool.
  5. In a medium bowl, beat your egg whites & the remaining sugar until stiff moist peaks form.
  6. Pour the cooled lemon mixture into the egg whites until no streaks of white remain. Remember; FOLD… don’t stir. You don’t want to deflate your whites.
  7. Pour the mixture into the pie shell. Write mildly obscene words in the filling with a knife.  Make pretty swirls on top of the filling.
  8. Bake at 325 until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
  9. Let cool on a rack. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream. Or just hold the pie pan really close to you with a spoon and growl at anyone who gets too near.

Eating My Curds And…This Is WHEY Too Good!

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Don't worry about those drips on the edge. I...erhmmm... cleaned them up.

Yes, I know. that was really really bad. But admit it, you smiled a little as you groaned. And that is really all that’s important to me with this blog. If I can get just ONE person to maybe smile a little as they read my nonsensical posts, especially if they have had a bad day, then all the eye rolling and groaning is worth it. Because believe it or not, you only see the silly side of me in this blog. Well, usually. I guess I’m not being particularly silly right now. Other than the post title hehehe.

I think sometimes that people can a certain idea of what another is like and if that perception is challenged, they don’t like it. It’s rather a “stay in the box I put you in because it makes me nervous if you try and get out” sort of thing. And I’m not very good at being boxed. I tend to try to claw at the cardboard and make a mess or I bring really bad snacks into the box and it ends up smelling like old Cheetos.

I lost a handful of fans from my facebook page today. I can only guess it is because I brought up personal things on the page… i.e., left the box. I wasn’t silly Janet. I wasn’t cutting one liners or just talking about recipes. I was opening the box and letting you see the person inside of it; letting you see that I have worries and flaws and sometimes gets scared. Guess what? I’m human. I know the vast majority of you realize this. You’re the ones who have grown to care for me, silly jokes and all; sometimes serious and all, the same way I have grown to care for you and your lives.

But, contrary to urban myth and legend, I am a real person here on this side of the computer screen. I have bad days too. Mind you, I still tend to get through them with one liners and bad puns *glances at the post title* because that is simply my personality; laugh at things and you get through them… but every once in a while, the bad day wins.  Today, it’s winning. Tomorrow, I’ll be fine and probably follow this post with one chock full of idiocy because I’ll be embarrassed at my openness. But, while I know there are many bloggers and readers that are going through worse than anything I have experienced, I’m still human. Today anyway.

Thanks for listening. Now, on to the recipe! I made home made Lemon Curd. It had been a while since I had and I was craving it. I like the jarred stuff but it just can’t measure up to home made. I used a different recipe. This one is from Ina Garten and I love it. BUT… and this is a big but (no, not a big BUTT; that would be MY butt.) I made a double batch and I’m not sure if that is what caused the following issue, but OMG, my back STILL hurts. The recipe says that this will take about ten minutes of cooking with constant stirring before it thickens. Logic dictates that double the volume would mean double the cooking time, especially if you use a large enough pot so that there is more surface area and less depth. Right? HA! My back is still killing me today because I stood over that stove for an hour and ten minutes before this got to temp and thickened lol. AN HOUR AND TEN MINUTES!! I wanted a back transplant when I was done :-P. That or a taller stove. But… I’m full of buts today… it was worth it. I added some vanilla to this and the end result is a lemon curd that is sweet and tart and delicate and has a slight almost floral essence from the vanilla. Doing a double batch, I ended up with two pints of the most delicious lemon curd to put in my fridge… and take back out and eat with a spoon cook with. THAT btw, will be happening later this week. I have a pie idea in mind that involves this curd, mascarpone cheese and all sorts of yummies. But for now; here’s the curd recipe. The regular recipe; not doubled.

Ina Gartens Lemon Curd

  • 3 lemons
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temp
  • 4 extra large eggs
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  1. Use a veggie peeler and cut the peel off of the lemons, making sure not to get any of the white pith. Put the zest and the sugar into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the zest is very finely minced and mixed with the sugar.
  2. Cream the butter in a large bowl and then add the sugar mixture. Add the eggs, one at a time and then add the lemon juice, vanilla and salt.
  3. Pour into a large saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, which will happen at about 170 degrees. In theory this will take about ten minutes. In reality, who knows lol. The double batch took me over an hour and I even upped the heat to medium at one point. Make sure you have a hot beverage near you and the radio on for company 😛
  4. One thing the recipe didn’t mention is straining this but if you don’t, you will have a LOT of teenie tiny bits of lemon zest in it and the mixture, while it still tastes fantastic, won’t be smooth and creamy. So I strongly suggest straining this through a fine mesh strainer ( I LOVE my strainer) by pouring about a cup or two in it (depends on the size of your strainer) and pushing it through with the back of a rubber spatula. Clean it after every time you finish with a cup or two or it will get clogged and take forever. But straining it like this is worth the little bit of extra effort it takes.
  5. When strained, pour this into a covered container (I use canning jars) and store in the fridge.
  6. Use on scones, biscuits, in recipes or just off the spoon hehe.

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Muffin Overload Part Drei (Cause I don’t know how to spell three in French)

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But I’m letting you know here and now. I kinda like citrus flavors. I know; shocking huh? You never would have figured that out if I hadn’t offered the info, would you? I hide it so well. Did you know about the Twinkie and Cheeto addiction? Ok, I’m pushing it now huh?

I seriously do have a thing for citrus though. Especially Lemon. No wait… limes. But then again the orange family is kinda cool. Ooo, ooo, oooo, I forgot grapefruit. Sigh. I can’t choose. This is why you all get subjected to so many citrus recipes. Somehow I doubt too many people mind though. I have noticed that after chocolate (before in some cases but I figure they need massive therapy) citrus recipes, especially lemon seem to be among the most popular. Be it sweet or savory, they seem to rule the foodie roost. Why do I suddenly have a mental image of a big lemon chicken crowing?

I wanted to make something lemony for the last part of the muffin overload series. But plain old boring lemon muffins are…well… boring. Not that these have had any drastic changes made to them. I just played enough with a basic muffin recipe to give them some oomph (add that one to the list of  “where the heck did that word come from” words. I mean… seriously? Oomph?) I added a dollop of lemon curd to the center and used Greek yogurt to the batter for richness, moisture and even a modicum of nutrition (scary huh?) Then I coated then with a very sunnyish (yes, that is now a word. Love me, love my quirks 😛 ) honey lemon glaze (there’s that honey lemon thing peeking it’s head up again huh? What can I say? I enjoy the combo.) If you don’t want the lemon honey glaze you could go with a lemon and powdered sugar glaze or just leave them naked. But if you do, they will be very embarrassed. Lemon muffins are timid creatures. Did I mention that love me, love my quirks thing? Just checking. But try these timid muffins. The muffin is a sweet lemony flavor with a tiny bit of tang yet the curd and the glaze add a yummy lemony tartness. This can be cut in half if 24 muffins is too much for you.

Triple Lemon Muffins

  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • zest of two large lemons
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice
  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon extract
  • 2 teaspoons almond extract (yes, almond extract. It adds an indefinable something to so many fruit recipes. Trust me.)
  • 1 jar store bought lemon curd (the home made version is too soft to work well)
  • 4 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 4 tablespoons honey
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 24 muffin cups with paper or foil liners.
  2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, extracts and lemon juice. Beat in the yogurt.
  3. In another bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest.
  4. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet mixture all at once, Stir until just combined.
  5.  Spoon batter into lined muffin cups, filling about 2/3 full. Add a small spoonful of the lemon curd to the top of each cup of muffin batter.
  6. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until a light golden brown. Remove from pan and let sit on a wire rack.
  7. Mix the honey and remaining lemon juice. Drizzle or spoon glaze over the tops of the warm muffins. Let finish cooling on the rack. Store in your belly. 😀

When Life Gives You Lemons…

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…make cheesecake. Yep; cheesecake. I’m not a huge lemonade fan so I made cheesecake with my lemons. When I want lemonade I grab the container of country time and pour out some highly processed sugar and real lemon flavor.  What the heck IS that anyway? I mean, it’s either real lemon or it’s lemon flavor. How can you have real lemon flavor? Wouldn’t that make it real lemon? Or fake flavor? I’m so confused! Yet… I drink it. Go figure. Speaking of which, have any of you ever tried it hot? It’s quite yummy that way. I’m sure it would work fine with that *gasp* real lemonade stuff too. 😛 As for me, I’ll save my “Whoa; have these gotten expensive or WHAT?!” lemons for cooking with and keep chugging the fake stuff… hot or cold. 😀

Moving on (I really can’t type that anymore without giggling), I love lemon, I love cheesecake, I love honey. I also love Bath and Body Works Lemon Vanilla Body Spray (which those meanie heads discontinued. I still haven’t forgiven them for that even if I DID buy enough to make a small country of people with bad B.O. smell yummy) and it was the inspiration for this recipe. When I wear it, I smell like a sexy lemon cupcake. But I didn’t want cupcakes. I have done the lemon cupcake thing in here recently. Not that that will stop me from making variations here in the future but still…

So I made cheesecake. But not just your typical lemon cheesecake. I love the combo of lemon and honey (I will also be doing a home made lemon honey marmalade soon) and decided to try it in cheesecake. But I also wanted to find a way to use up some blueberries that were shouting from the fridge that they were getting old and some apricots that were doing the same thing on the counter. So I made a blueberry/apricot compote to go with this as well as some candied lemon slices.  Can we say “Oh.My.God.?” *wait for all of you to say oh my God”. You done now? Ok. This cheesecake is fantastic. It’s bright and sunny and refreshing with a nice lemon tang and a subtle hit of honey flavor. The compote spooned over it just adds this final fruity pizzazz and the candied lemon slices are sweet and tart and chewy and I wanted to hug them. But they’re sticky so I didn’t. I have long hair; no lemon slices stuck in hair please. So try this; I am pretty sure you won’t be disappointed. Unless you don’t like lemon or honey in which case why the heck would you make it anyway? 😀

Decadent Lemon Honey Cheesecake

With A

Blueberry/Apricot Compote And

Candied Lemon Slices

  • Candied lemon Slices (optional)-
  • 2 large lemons, sliced about 1/4 inch thick (a mandolin set on thick slice works great)
  • 2 cups water plus more for initial cooking
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar plus more for coating slices
  • Cheesecake-
  • 2 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
  • 5 tablespoons melted butter
  • 2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 24 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups honey
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon lemon extract
  • zest from 2 large lemons
  • 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (if the 2 lemons don’t have that much, feel free to round it out with bottled)
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • Cheesecake Topping-
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • Blueberry Apricot Compote-
  • 1 pint fresh blueberries
  • 6 apricots, quartered
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lime zest
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice
  1. For candied lemons-Add lemon slices to a large pot. Cover with water. Bring to a boil and let boil for about five minutes. Drain and rinse well. Do this procedure one more time. This helps leech out the bitterness of the peel.
  2. After the second time, put peels back in the pot with the 2 cups water and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Stir to combine. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until lemon slices are tender and translucent, about 90 minutes. Lay lemons slices in a single layer on a wire rack. Let them dry for 24 hours (this is why I say the lemon slices are optional. Up to you whether or not you want to commit to this amount of time for the full cheesecake idea). They will still be tacky. Drop them into a bowl or baggie) of sugar and toss to coat. Set aside.  Also, don’t throw out the syrup left in the pot from the lemons. Pour it into a bowl or a canning jar and put it into the fridge. Due to the naturally high amounts of pectin, after a couple of hours, it will set up into a yummy sort of a lemon jelly which is great on toast or mixed with other ingredients to make a glaze for roast or grilled chicken.
  3. For cheesecake-Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray 9 inch spring form pan with cooking spray. Wrap pan well in heavy duty foil.
  4. Mix together the cookie crumbs, melted butter, 2 teaspoons sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in large bowl or food processor. Press mixture on to bottom and 1 inch up sides of prepared pan. Cook at 350 for five minutes. take out and set aside. Lower oven heat to 325.
  5. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with flour until smooth. Don’t over beat. Over beating is one of the main reasons cheesecakes crack. It adds to much air to them.
  6. Add the eggs, honey, sugar,  extracts, lemon zest and juice. On low speed, beat until smooth and creamy. Gently fold in the sour cream. Bang the bowl (carefully lol) a few times on the counter to help release some of the air bubbles.
  7. Put pan in a large high sided baking pan. Pour cheesecake batter into pan. Put the pan into the oven and carefully pour two cups of water around the pan. Bake at 325 until center is just barely set but still has a touch of jiggle to it. It will finish setting as it cools. When done, set spring-form pan on a wire rack and leave for 30 minutes then refrigerate for at least 4 hours. at least four hours to cool.
  8. When it has cooled, carefully loosen and remove the side of the spring-form pan. Scrape off all the goop that stuck to the sides and eat it. 😀
  9. For compote- while cheesecake is cooking- in a medium sauce pot, combine all the compote ingredients. Stir well to coat apricots with lime juice to prevent discoloring (you can see in my photo that not all of mine got coated well. Learn from me grasshopper! )  Over low heat, cook, stirring constantly, just until sugar is dissolved. Spoon into a bowl; cover and refrigerate.
  10. Mix topping ingredients and spoon onto the top of the cheesecake. Smooth to make it look purty. 😛
  11. To serve- put slices of cheesecake onto serving dishes and spoon a little of the compote over or around it. Add a candied lemon slice to the top and eat. 🙂

Just An Old Fashioned Girl At Heart

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Until you surround it with juicy fruits and some pillowy whipped cream it can seem....

Although I’m sure if my kids had their way, they would delete the fashioned part and just say that I am old. But what do they know? What’s the old saying? Youth is wasted on the young. 😛 Let us old farts be young…or something like that. If I think of a way to put that logically, I’ll get back to you. Until then, I guess I’ll just stay old and feeble minded .

Seriously though, I really am an old fashioned girl. It took me forever to join the 20th century and get a cell phone because I thought they were silly. For the longest time, I only had a 20 pound Tracfone. You know the kind. You had to pull up the antennae to get it to work and even then it only worked on alternating Tuesdays in months with J in them. I still haven’t joined the 21st century when it comes to phones. My phone may be smaller now but it doesn’t have any bells or whistles. I can’t use it to go onliine, I can’t play games on it, I can barely make calls on it half the time. But hey, it’s not 20 pounds! I’m getting there!

I’m old fashioned in other ways too. Ways that make my teen boys still at home roll their eyes and give me the “but the other kids get to!” routine way more than is probably good for my eardrums. I limit TV watching, they aren’t allowed to watch anything over PG unless I’ve seen it myself or know from a reputable source that it’s ok. They are only allowed on the computer one hour one day a week and then an hour and a half each weekend day or vacation day. I’m so cruel. It makes me happy. 😀

I’m pretty old fashioned in many ways when it comes to food too. I absolutely love the recipes I find online from fellow bloggers or cooking sites or what have you and am constantly needing a bib to sop up the drool over so many of the desserts posted. But when it comes to cake, I’ve never been a big cake eater. My vice has always been more along the lines of ice cream. So unless I am craving gooey frosting like I was the other day with the Caramel Cupcakes I made and posted here, I prefer a simpler cake. One that always works for me is pound cake. You can do so much with it. It’s good warm, it’s good cold. It tastes great plain and it can be fancied up and made oh so fattening by adding creamy sauces and sugared fruits. You can change the flavoring in it and get an entirely different cake from the same recipe. Bottom line, pound cake is, in my opinion, the best all around cake when you want a cake but don’t want either a whole lot of trouble making it or something over the top rich and goopy. The one I am posting here has been my go to pound cake for about 15 years now. It has a fine tender crumb and a nice crispy crust; the quintessential pound cake assets. With the lemon flavor I post here, it is a mild sweet NOT tart lemon flavor. If you want more flavor just make a glaze of lemon juice and powdered sugar. So get to cooking!  I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. 🙂 This is also excellent with the almond extract variation. In some ways, I almost prefer that one; depends on my mood. 🙂

SOUR CREAM POUND CAKE

  • 2 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 4 teaspoons lemon extract or 1 tablespoon Almond extract if you prefer an almond flavored cake (yes, you read that right. Four. If you’re not wanting lemon, just omit it and the zest and juice.)
  • 6 eggs
  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • zest of one lemon
  • juice of half a lemon (again, omit the zest and juice if you’re not wanting lemon)
  1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease and flour a 12 cup bundt pan. Or spray with cooking spray that has both oil and flour.
  2. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
  3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract, lemon juice and other extracts, if using.
  4. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and lemon zest in a small bowl.
  5. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating it with the sour cream. Beat well after each addition.
  6. Bake at 350 for 55 to 70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. A few teenie tiny baby crumbs are ok, but no loose batter and if’s it’s dripping, you may want to make sure you turned the oven on. 😀
  7. Let cool in the pan for ten minutes then invert onto a serving plate. Serve cold, serve warm, bury your face in the plate, smear it on your toes… whatever works. I won’t judge. 😀

...pretty unassuming can't it? But don't be fooled.

Memories Are Made Of….Candy

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Back when I was a kid when the dinosaurs still roamed the earth and we all wore Saber Tooth Tiger skins for clothing I used to love to go to the store and buy candy. Lots and lots of candy. It was fairly inexpensive then (we are so NOT getting into the “it’s all relative because people made less money” theory) and there were varieties that are either extinct (like those Saber Tooth Tigers) now or very difficult to find unless one wants to spend 3k online for a 5 ounce box of candy. One of the ones that I loved then and still adore that has made a comeback in recent years is Lemonheads. Little yellow balls of sugar that had a wonderful sweet tart flavor. Not like what they call sour candy today where if you eat it, you literally burn off your taste buds. I prefer to save my taste bud burning for curry thank you very much.

There was a method for eating Lemonheads. You had to nibble off the sour waxy outside coating and then suck on the little sugar ball inside until it was gone. My husband of course, who also has fond memories of Lemonheads, didn’t do this. He needs to be flogged. With a Fifth Avenue bar (which was my dads favorite and which he would eat 6 in a row of even after being diagnosed with Diabetes lol) or a Nerd Rope. I’m pretty sure he broke multiple laws when he just tossed them in his mouth and chewed. But then this is the same man who is shameful enough to eat a Ho-Ho by… *GASP*… biting into it, not eating off all of the outside coating, unrolling it, licking off the filling then eating the cake. I have said before, I love him in spite of his obvious flaws, but he makes it hard at times like that.

That sweet tart flavor of Lemonheads is always something I am trying to recreate but not in candy form because I am old (see Saber Tooth Tiger reference above) and my poor aged teeth can’t handle it. I will get into a “take care of your teeth” lecture at a later date. I originally got this recipe from a Yahoo group back in 2003. I’ve seen it many places since then claiming to be theirs, but rest assured, it isn’t. This has been around for quite awhile.  But being me, I had to change it. I said once that I think there is a chromosome that lets one follow recipes (or rules in general) and I am missing it.  I think it turned out awesome and the taste is reminiscent of those much loved candies. So here you go. Enjoy. But promise me that you’ll go floss after you eat half a pan of these.

Creamy Lemon Crumb Squares

  1. 1 1/3 cup all purpose flour
  2. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  3. 1 teaspoon baking powder
  4. 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
  5. 1 cup brown sugar
  6. 1 cup oats
  7. 2 cans sweetened condensed milk
  8. 1/2 cup lemon juice
  9. 1/2 cup lime juice
  10. zest of one lemon
  11. zest of one lime
  12. 1 teaspoon of lemon extract
  • Preheat oven to 350
  • Mix butter and sugar until well combined.
  • Mix together flour, salt and baking powder
  • Add oats and flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture.
  • Press half of the crumbs (it actually took me a bit more because I used a 13×9 inch pan) onto the bottom of a 13×9 inch pan.
  • Mix together the sweetened condensed milk, lemon and lime juices, lemon and lime zest and lemon extract. Spread onto the oatmeal crust. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs evenly over the lemon filling.
  • Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for about 30 minutes then cut into squares but don’t take them out of the pan yet. They will dissolve into a pile of goo. Trust me. 😛 Put them in the fridge overnight THEN take them out of the pan. They will come out very easily if you do that.
  • Eat half a dozen. Floss. Eat more. Get out the Anbesol.

*Gives you the “mom look”* Have you flossed yet?