Posts Tagged ‘cooking’
Baking Blueberry, Cranberry, any-berry Scones
I was craving scones the other day, and usually, Ollie and I take a little trip to our favorite tea shop to have delicious raisin scones and tea. But we didn’t make time. (Sorry, Sheila.) After mentioning this to Eastman, he said, “Your scones are the best.” Aww, thanks, honey. Then I realized, I haven’t made scones at home in a long time. This recipe has been a staple in our home since we’ve been married. It’s easy to double, which you might want to do… easy to make with preparation time of 15 minutes (give or take some if you do or do not have everything on hand), and easy to wait for (15-20 minute bake time).
The lime and coconut flavors are so subtle, and really accompany the blueberries well. I have a friend who claims he hates coconut, and then proceeds to consume my coconutty-baked goods. Making this with dried cranberries works too, but I would suggest rehydrating the cranberries in warm water while you’re preparing the batter. Once in the oven, it’s magical to watch the scones puff up and get golden brown if you’re not doing anything else. Unfortunately, I wasn’t watching them closely and this batch browned a bit more than I would have wanted.
Julie’s Scones (Yield: 8 scones)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tbsp. butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1/2 cup skim milk (I bet it would taste great with whole milk)
- 1/4 tsp. grated lime peel (lemon works too)
- 1 cup fresh blueberries (if using frozen, thaw and drain)
- Garnish: 2 tsp. granulated sugar
Preheat oven to 425 deg. F. Grease baking sheet or prep with a silicone mat or parchment paper. Mix flour, baking powder, salt and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Using a pastry blender (or 2 knives), cut butter into dry mixture until coarse crumbs form. Make well in center. In another bowl, mix egg, coconut, milk and lime peel. Pour egg mixture into flour mixture. Stir with fork until dry ingredients are just moistened. Gently fold in the berries. Spoon scones about 2 inches apart. Sprinkle tops with sugar. Bake until golden brown, approximately 15-20 min. Cool completely.
Better Homes and Gardens Entertaining Tips from 1960s
Look at this book I found at my mom’s house. First published in 1963, then again in 1972… The ideas and recipes may be sort of timeless, but the pictures, oh, the pictures are outstanding.
And just in time for getting birthday party ideas… my daughter turns 8 in just over a month. Will she cringe when she sees some of these? (Love her haircut.)
Could the frosting on these cakes look any more “nuclear”?
These kids are decorating their own cupcakes. Love the chef hat and aprons which are all paper.
What is she wearing on her head?
Doesn’t this look mint-a-licious?
I don’t know if there are any teenagers out there who would even THINK of having a “wingding” like this. Maybe if there was a “Nancy Drew” sort of person out there in a town-that-time-forgot.
This picture below for Christmas is a little spooky to me. Dolls creep me out sometimes.
I think my parents have an indoor grill just like the one in the picture below.
Clearly, I missed the boat on having a 60s themed New Year’s party this past year. Maybe next year! I can’t get over their clothes.
But, there is Valentine’s Day coming up. I’m really tempted to try some of these throwback recipes (looks like some kind of mousse)… too bad I can’t bring “homemade” goods to my daughter’s school!
Tags: books, cooking, party, party planning
Celebrating with Fruit Cocktail Cake
A few ornaments to put away
“And now let us welcome the New Year
Full of things that have never been.” – Rainer Maria Rilke
What better way to start the new year than with family and friends? It’s a Filipino tradition to celebrate the life of a loved one on the 40th day after his or her passing. So, my dad’s youngest sister and her family hosted a memorial service and reception in honor of my aunt and uncle who recently passed away (They were my dad’s siblings. Big family, gets confusing, I know: my dad is 1 of 14). It was so heartwarming to have so many friends and extended family come out the day after the New Year; so many I haven’t seen in a long while, so many new babies. My Auntie Tess and Uncle Fred would’ve loved the party so much.
Auntie Con and Uncle Wilmer are fantastic hosts who had more than enough food to feed the 50-60 people who attended, but I like help out, so from our home we brought my husband’s signature crab dip and my fruit cocktail cake. Normally, I’d bake it in a 13×9 pan, but for Christmas, I got the “Big Top Cupcake” in our cousin gift exchange. Yeah, “As Seen on TV” bakeware!
We could not stop laughing, and yet, it’s proved to be useful. I’ve never baked with silicone molds before. It was so easy to get the cake out, and washing was a breeze. The only thing that didn’t work as well was the “insert mold”, that little bowl shape piece on the right in the picture. I placed it on the bottom mold, just like a lid and it snapped on just fine. Seemed secure, but in the middle of baking it came off as the cake rose. It wasn’t a big deal though. I just kept pushing it down when I checked on the cake. Baking time increased just a little bit, too. I was surprised when the “cupcake top” wasn’t done when the bottom part was – I just had to add a few more minutes. I didn’t get all crazy with decorating the cake. There was no time, and I had no butter left in my house. But, all is good with a little dusting of powdered sugar and a gumdrop.
Fruit Cocktail Cake with Vanilla Pudding
Cake
1 pkg. yellow or lemon cake mix (with pudding)
16 oz. can fruit cocktail including syrup
1 cup flaked coconut
4 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
Whipped topping (optional)
Butter Glaze:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1-1/3 c. flaked coconut
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Blend cake mix, fruit cocktail, coconut, eggs and oil in large bowl. Beat at medium speed until smooth. Pour into 13×9 pan. Sprinkle brown sugar (and nuts). Bake for 45 min. or until toothpick comes clean from center. Spoon glaze over warm cake, approx. 15 min. after removing from oven. Serve warm or cold with whipped topping.
Butter glaze: Heat butter, sugar and evaporated milk in a saucepan until it reaches a low boil. Cook for 2 min. Remove from heat and stir in coconut.
Cookie Exchange: sneak peek
Prepping our cookies for the party.
“Ode to Molly Ringwald” Pink Cookies – oh, how I love gold dragees.
Eastman’s “Abe Froman Pancetta Shortbread with Maple Glaze”
Holiday Party Planning for a Cookie Exchange
I honestly try to enjoy Fall for what it is – the transitioning into winter, the falling leaves, late gardening, the colors, pumpkins, costumes, giving thanks. I LOVE Fall, which is probably also why I make myself feel guilty for even slightly thinking about Christmas and winter. This is the time of year I get myself mentally, physically and emotionally charged up for the barrage of Christmas and holiday events including the ones we host here at the Tiu homestead.
Cream Cheese Mango pinwheels
For the last nine years (minus the one when we were building the house) we’ve invited close friends mainly from high school and college to a cookie exchange. It started out innocently, as most things do: Six households probably no more than 12 people. Last year we hosted about 60 people including children, 20 households. It marks the Christmas season for us as we open our home to friends, and it’s the most incredible display of cookie baking, not to mention cameraderie and even a little friendly competition. Each home brought 6 dozen cookies to share and went home with just about the same amount. This Facebook album link is a doorway to our cookie madness that we love so dearly.
One more thing I’d like to share as a free download. It’s my trusty party planning spreadsheet. You type in the date of your party and the spreadsheet fills with start and end dates for different tasks. There’s also a worksheet that will calculate food quantities. It’s in MSExcel for Windows, and you can use it for other types of parties. I’ve used it for bridal showers, dinner parties, brunches, simple gatherings. But, this one is written with our holiday cookie exchange in mind.
Tags: cooking, free download, Friends and Family, holiday, party, party planning
Country Style Pork Ribs with Asian style marinade
I think I got this marinade down, finally. It made delicious gravy for the kids to spoon all over their short grain white rice. We served sauteed spinach with garlic on the side. Sorry, no pictures. We ate just about everything, and the leftover wasn’t worth taking a picture. I would think this might work well in a slow cooker, too, but haven’t tried that yet.
Prep time: 15-20 min. / Cook time: 2 hours / Serves 4-6
Marinade
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup hoisin sauce
- 3 tbsp. Chinese cooking wine or sherry
- 2 tsp. sesame oil
- 2 tsp. minced garlic (I went heavy on the garlic)
- 2 tsp. minced ginger (or 1 tsp. ground ginger)
- 1 tsp. five-spice powder
- 1 tsp. ground white pepper
- 1 tsp. sugar
- 2 lbs. country style pork ribs (boneless or with bone)
Mix all the marinade ingredients and pour over ribs in the baking dish or pan you will cook it in. May need to flip over once. Keep in the refrigerator for at least 4 hrs. I made it in the morning and let it sit all day.
Take meat out of refrigerator 30 min. before cooking. Preheat oven to 300 deg. F. Cover pan tightly with aluminum foil and place in oven for two hours. No peeking. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 min before serving.
Tags: Asian cuisine, cooking, ribs
