Fillings

Lemon Curd

June 3, 2010

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What’s in a name? Lemon Curd may not sound very delicious, but let me tell you. It is. It is it is it is! I made this curd in preparation for this weekends baking adventure! And It is lick-the-bowl good.

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I have put off baking all this week because of my big project tomorrow and Saturday. And also because of my trip to Vegas coming up. One delicious million calorie treat a week will do. And, because it just happens to be my Birthday on Saturday! And of course, like any other baker I will be making my own cake, with the help of a friend. When you’re the one who likes to bake you usually find yourself baking for, well yourself, most of the time. And I think I consider myself a pretty picky baker. I like to do things just so, and my own way. I work tomorrow and half a day Saturday so I had to begin the baking adventure tonight. The cake will be a surprise, but this is just a sneak peek!

Lemon Curd is delicious in a sponge roll cake, angel foodcake or added to a cheesecake.

Lemon Curd

Recipe from Joy Of Cooking 75 Anniversary Edition

Ingredients:

  • 3 large eggs
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • Grated zest of 1 (one) lemon
  • 1/2 cup fresh strained lemon juice
  • 6 tablespoons butter cut into small pieces (3/4 stick)
  • 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

  1. Whisk together eggs, sugar and lemon zest in medium saucepan until light in colour.
  2. Add lemon juice and butter
  3. Cook, whisking over medium heat until the butter is melted. Then whisk constantly until the mixture is thickened and simmers gently for a few seconds.
  4. Place a medium mesh-sieve over a bowl and scrape the filling using a spatula into it. Strain the filling into the bowl.
  5. Stir in vanilla. Let cool, cover and refrigerate to thicken.

This keeps refrigerated for about 1 week.

Berries, Cakes

Strawberry Buttermilk Cake

May 22, 2010

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I saw this post on Tasty Kitchen today as I was browsing the site. My Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins were also in the feautured section on the site! If you’ve never been to Tasty Kitchen, although I’m not sure who hasn’t heard of The Pioneer Woman, Ree, by now. I am a regular pioneer woman junkie. I think it’s one of the many websites I visit when I first turn my computer on. I’m addicted. I found her site about a year or two ago when I first developed my addiction to food blogs, and I read her entire story Black Heels to Tractor Wheels in probably two sittings. I was hooked. I love her site, and her new cookbook. Which, I really hope she makes a tour up into Canada so I can meet her! Tasty Kitchen is a website launch of hers that is a community cooking and baking network. It’s free to join and you can meet lots of different bakers on it.

Now, back to this cake. My mom came home from work yesterday with a big container of strawberries. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to make with them, which of course was my first thought when I saw them. So, I plopped a few into some yogurt and went on my way. And then to work. You remember, my high-heel wearing 7 hour shift. Yesterday it was only five high-heel-wearing hours. And that was enough. So this morning when I woke up at 8:30 on a saturday morning, with Lainey next to me and my mom off to Osoyoos for the weekend, and another night of high heel wearing work ahead of me, I decided to bake something. I think I’ve officialy substituted baked goods for lunch, cereal for breakfast of course and something for dinner. This recipe comes from The Caramel Cookie with a few adaptions. It’s a very fluffy light tasting cake studded with delicious strawberries. I love summer and all it’s fruit and veggie goodness.

Tomorrow I’m making a Louis Vuitton Suitcase cake as requested for a friend, with a Louis Vuitton Shoe of course. Stay tooned!

In the meantime, please if you have strawberries around and a cup or two of flour, try this delicious cake, it’s perfect to whip up if someone stops by for a visit.

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Continue Reading…

Muffins

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

May 16, 2010

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I had this craving for poppy seeds. Can you even really have a craving for poppy seeds?? I don’t think it’s something someone usually craves, seeing as how it doesn’t really have a taste to it unless it’s a part of something else of course. At first I had thought about making a lemon poppy seed bundt cake, but seeing as how I’ve started working at the restaurant this week I now know that working in a restaurant = no breaks. Literally. I worked for 7 hours on my feet, in high heels, and a skirt for 7 hours straight without sitting, eating or checking my cell phone. It was hard. Very hard. Considering I’m used to working in an office from 9-5 with a nice cushy hour long lunch break, for which I usually would have gone home to eat and let the dog out. But, this job is in a couple towns over and through a tunnel so I can’t exactly come home for a bite to eat, and I couldn’t even if I wanted to.

I had never really thought about it before but of course waitresses and servers don’t have a scheduled lunch break because you constantly have tables to wait on, and no one can cover your section because they have their own section to work. Most of the girls show up to work early to order something to eat, or stick around after their shift to chow down. I actually feel bad because I haven’t actually eaten anything from the restaurant before, except a few cocktails. But that being said, I realized that I needed to sneak in a snack like a granola bar that I could take a 5 minute break to quickly eat it. Of course, I wouldn’t think of going out to buy a snack, I would make one. Also, a certain somebody has just gotten home this morning from a trip to Vegas for his friends stag and is quite tired. I’m sure he could use a little snack later and maybe bring a couple to work tomorrow. Currently, he is sleeping. Maybe the aroma of lemon poppy seed muffins could wake him from his spell. Continue Reading…