California

I always thought I wasn't the California type.  Somewhere along the line, I'd somehow decided you were either an east coast type or a west coast type.  I've been to LA a couple of times and didn't immediately fall in love.  Seattle's pretty phenomenal, but everyone tells me I'd tire of the rain in no time, though I doubt it.  The east coast however...L..O..V...E.  Sometimes I miss living in NY.  If it really is an either/or decision, I'd already staked my line in the sand. And while the beaches on the east coast aren't like those sandy white beaches of California, I'd take the sand dunes of Cape Cod or the rocky beaches of Maine any day. 

When California is only a short drive away, you have to go right? That 2-3 hour proximity to other cities is one of the things I miss most about NY. 

You'd think that taking a dog somewhere would be easy.  It probably is for those people who understand that dogs are just dogs.  In this house, the dog's bag size and weight exceeded the human's bag weight and size.  Even I know there is something wrong with that.

Reason number one for going to CA....

If you are thinking I'm kidding, you'd be wrong.  I just moved to a town that doesn't have a Crate & Barrel and it was a little rough at first.  I thought my sister was joking when I asked her where the closest Crate & Barrel was and she said "California"--my narrow little mind really thought no town could survive without this completely "essential" store.  (You can btw, you just have to be resourceful and use UPS....)

As it turns out, I think I kind of am a California type of person.  You can like both coasts right?  It could be that living in the desert has pushed my sanity at times so I truly appreciate the green lushness that was CA.  I know I am so blessed with the career opportunity that I have and I am so thankful.  The real estate market here is out of control spectacular if you are a buyer.  I also know that Vegas has outstanding access to entertainment and phenomenal restaurants--much better than Denver. I know how awesome that is.  I really do and I appreciate it.   But sometimes when I'm driving home, or shopping homes and neighborhoods, I'm looking at these desert landscapes wondering if a person can actually die from tree and grass withdrawal. 

California on the other hand...it was like magic just being there and we were nowhere near the beach.  Just one night in California and I was outside every moment I could be.  Walks in the rain, walks under tree lined sidewalks and paths and sitting in the grass, just because it was there...yes, I could definitely love California.  Our hotel even felt California with it's Jamba Juice smelling lobby and music going even at 5:30  in the morning. 

Brooklyn wasn't complaining.  It took her all of 2 minutes to decide she loved it.

And of course, waxing nostalgic for grass, greenery and scenery is really just a way to hide the less nature-inspired reason we needed to go to California (aside from C&B)..

Teaching Chipmunk the importance of french fries in a well balanced diet.  Turns out it's in her blood and she already had it down like a pro.  Crate and Barrel + Ikea + California = perfect weekend indeed.  Increased Chipmunk photo opportunities during road trip is the icing on the cake. 

Red and Aqua

You know how color combinations have a spike in popularity before fading?  Remember peach and green?  Peach and grey?  Burgandy and hunter green?  Brown and pink?  Orange and Blue?  Okay, maybe only the Denver fans love that combo but I say it's one of the best out there.  That is a forever kind of color combo love though.  My favorite color combo of the moment is aqua and red.  A little trendy, a little chic and a little Dr. Seuss all rolled into one.  It's probably the type of color combo you tire of quickly, but I have to say,  I'm a little obsessed right now. 

Instead of a long verbose post, I leave a little color inspiration that has been accumulating in my Picasa folders for quite awhile now.  I'm still procrastinating on reading the 7D book now you see.

I had red yarn.  I had this almost aqua yarn.  Last year I wouldn't have dreamed of combining them. Now I can't think of separating them.

I tried a wispy flower pattern.  I tried a ripple pattern, and in the end, I settled on the african flower pattern.

Will I really finish it?  Yep, right after my quilt I'm sure....sometime around 2021.  Maybe a pillow would be more reasonable.

One of my favorite Tanya Whelan fabrics.  I love it with the gingham. I do believe everything goes perfectly with gingham though.

When I don't know what to sew but I want a finished product in an hour, I sew an apron.  It's perfectly reasonable to have 9 aprons hanging in your kitchen.  I'm sure.

Ladybug Cake Pops

One little Peanut I know turned 4 this week. Four. For real and she asked for a ladybug birthday cake. This auntie was so sad to be celebrating it from so far away and not making her cake this year. But my sweet little Peanut is heading this way in a couple of weeks and so sister came over for a cake pop fest and I practiced my ladybugs.

Sister made these ultra cute watermelon pops.

I've found that my favorite cake pops to make are the molded ones.  They make take a little longer if you have a limited number of molds, but they require less precision, and looks so smooth and glassy when you all is finished. 

Take these little cupcakes.  You just use the little candy cup molds they sell at Hobby Lobby or Michaels, paint the candy melts into the mold, let harden in the fridge for about five minutes, and then press some cake pop mix into it. You round up the tops and then just dip the entire top half in another color candy melt.  There's no shaping and little room for error.  I like when something has minimal room for error.

And turns out lady bugs are just as easy.  I used a round mold, and ended up with an entire ladybug family because of the different sizes.

BLT Wedge with Yogurt Dressing

Bacon...yum.  Tomatoes...yum.  Fresh sourdough...oh my.   I probably don't have to convince you though...it's difficult to find someone that doesn't love BLTs, because bacon is the best.  I've heard quite a few vegetarians claim that bacon is the only smell that tempts them to become carnivorous.  And as staunchly anti-pork as I say I am...I love bacon.  Super crispy, well done, salty bacon.  Yum. 

BLTs are perfect and simple as a meal, but as a salad, you can have it before or with any meal.  I made a yogurt based dressing only because I don't really like mayo (yes, I've been told it's weird) but you could substitute mayo for some of the yogurt in the dressing for a more traditional BLT flavor. 

And since I think that toasty bread is an essential flavor in the BLT, I've topped my salad with some toasted breadcrumbs.  Not a lot, but just enough to remind you that the salad is inspired by the sandwich.

BLT Wedges

1 head iceberg lettuce

1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes

1 lb bacon

yogurt dressing

garlic toasted breadcrumbs

Yogurt Dressing

• 1/2 cup greek yogurt
• drizzle of olive oil
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar 
• 1 pinch of salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together dressing ingredients

Garlic Toasted Breadcrumbs

• 2-3 slices fresh sourdough
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, minced

1. Pulse bread in food processor until fine crumb
2. Heat olive oil over med heat.  Cook garlic in oil for 1-2 minutes taking care not to burn
3. Add bread crumbs and cook for 2-4 minutes or until crumbs are toasted.

Directions:

1. Cook bacon until crisp.  Drain on paper towels and let cool.  Crumble into small pieces.
2. Cut lettuce into wedges
3. Cut tomatoes in half
4. Prepare dressing and breadcrumbs
5. To serve, place lettuce, tomatoes and crumbled bacon on plate.  Drizzle with dressing and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Pineapple Upside Down Panckes

Bloggers--do you have that one post that people keep seeming to find even as it recesses further and further into your archives?  Even as you add new upon new posts? 

I have other posts that have a surge of hits on occasion (like when Bakerella posted my sis's ultra cute Boston Terrier pops--yay Monica!), but there's one post that people keep finding just on searches....Pineapple Upside Down Pancakes.  Sometimes the search criteria even contains the word "Snooze" which is perfect, because that's where the recipe started.  

I did a search recently on the Snooze pancake recipe and was a bit surprised to see how much mine have evolved from the original newspaper article in which Snooze shared their recipe--the origninal recipe didn't call for cooking the pineapple at all.  Even my original post didn't call for adding cinnamon to the pineapple mixture but somewhere along the way, I've started doing that as well. 

So as recipes and process evolve, I thought it might be nice to share some lessons learned along the way.

• If you like the idea of making these for breakfast but it seems like a lot for so early in the morning, you can make the pineapple mixture the night before and refrigerate.  Just pull it out while you let the pancake batter hydrate and heat the griddle.
• If you are really not a morning person, you can also prepare the dry ingredients the night before and cover with a plate.  Then all you have to do in the morning is add the wet ingredients, let sit for 15 mins and go for it.
• Hydrating the batter by letting it sit for the 15 mins does actually make a difference in the pancake
• Though many recipes say that you can substitute regular milk with lemon juice squeezed in for buttermilk, I think real buttermilk makes or breaks the pancakes.  Just sayin is all.
• Pancakes have never been an exact science in this house.  One person said her batter was a little thin, another mentioned his was a little thick.  It will depend on where you live and what kind of flour you used.  I happened to use whole wheat pastry flour and had to add the whole 2 1/2 cups of buttermilk to get the batter consistency I like.  I also like a thinner batter, while others prefer a thicker one. I've yet to see a pancake ruined because someone added 1/4 cup too much or too little buttermilk.
• You can absolutely top with maple syrup instead of cream. Or even a whipped cream because what is the vanilla cream but whipped cream that hasn't been whipped. :)  But just know that vanilla cream is just so tasty.
• And finally, truth be told, I've always used fresh pineapple because the original Snooze article called for it.  But they also throw the fresh pineapple right onto the pancake.  Since I cook it first, you might not really need it to be fresh pineapple.  Fresh pineapple is so lovely to behold though...

 

Between the butter and sugar in the pineapple and the cream and butter in the topping, these are obviously not for the faint at heart.  But they are without a doubt my favorite pancake ever.  And they make a pretty phenomenal dinner...because in the end, pancakes are really dinner food right?

Pineapple Upside Down Pancakes

Cinnamon Butter

5 tbsp softened butter

2 tbsp sugar

2 tsp cinnamon.

Mix ingredients, roll into log in wax paper and refrigerate to harden.  Slice before serving

Vanilla Cream
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine ingredients in small saucepan over med heat. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until sugar is completely dissolved and cream thickens slightly

Carmelized Pineapple
1 1/2 cup diced fresh pineapple
3 tbsp butter
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
Melt butter over med-high heat.  Add brown sugar and cinnamon and stir until mixture bubbles.  Add pineapple and cook additional 3-5 minutes or until mixture thickens slightly

Basic Buttermilk Pancakes
2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2-2 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
4 tbsp melted butter

1. Whisk together dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately.
2. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix gently to combine taking care not to overmix. Set aside to allow batter to hydrate for 15 mins. Add additional buttermilk for thinner batter
3. Heat griddle to 350 degrees (or pan over med/med high heat)
4. Ladle about 1/3-1/2 cup batter onto hot griddle topping each pancake with generous tbsp or so of pineapple mixture
5. Flip when bubble rise and pop and edges appear firm. 
6. Serve with cinnamon butter and  vanilla cream
7. Makes approximately 12-14 pancakes

Rosemary Potato Pizza

I can almost hear my father's voice now..."potato pizza?  Do you ever eat normal food?"  Think of it more as a rosemary potato focaccia if it helps.   The combination of the crispy crust, tender potato, rosemary and salty cheese makes for a pretty fabu appetizer I think.  Serve it up with a side of olive tapenade and you can almost smell the European air outside...heck, you might as well pour some sangria and take a siesta.

In my new found pledge to avoid making pizza dough after using storebought dough on the Thai Chicken Pizza, I bought the rosemary dough at Fresh and Easy. How cool is that they have rosemary dough?

They key to this is ensuring that the potatoes are sliced pretty thin as you'll need them to cook through in the 15 mins that the pizza is baking in the oven.  Food processor can be your good friend here.

I'm a huge fan of Trader Joes shaved cheese. 

Rosemary Potato Pizza

1 storebought dough--I used rosemary, but alternately, you can just sprinkle some rosemary over the dough and olive oil.

3 small red potatoes scrubbed well (or peeled) and sliced thin

olive oil

parmesan--as much or as little as you want 

rosemary for sprinkling

coarse sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

1. Rinse potatoes in water to remove excess starches.  Dry.
2. Lightly oil baking sheet
3. Stretch dough to approx 1/4 inch thickness and place in pan
4. Drizzle with olive oil
5. Lay potatoes across dough, slightly overlapping
6. Drizzle with additional oil and sprinkle with rosemary
7. Top with cheese and sprinkle with coarse sea salt and pepper
8. Bake at 400 until crust is golden brown, about 15 minutes