Especially to my middle little (the blonde with the sunglasses, below.) Carsey, we are SO PROUD of you. You had to work very hard this year to pull off what seemed almost impossible last Fall. You are awesome. You ARE amazing.
I haven't posted any design work for awhile, being completely infatuated with baking yummy treats and then trying to make photos that do them justice. It's a work in progress but something I am really enjoying. But that doesn't mean I haven't been busy on the art and design front as well. If I could say one universal truth for me it is that there are too many ideas and too little time. Below are a few recent items.
- Making donuts multi-media piece available as canvas, prints and skins
- Global Scotties multi-media piece available as canvas, prints, apparel and skins
- Places we love series. I have about 35 places currently available, with more coming. If you have a special place request, just let me know, I'll be happy to create a custom listing. (Also available in my storefront as photo prints.) Multi-media piece available as canvas, prints, apparel and skins.
This is super easy! 5 ingredients and you have 2 loaves of Apple Pecan Pumpkin Bread. Obviously it isn't entirely "from scratch," but when you need something homebaked and quick, maybe for the office or a bake sale, this fits the bill. Recipe below image.
Apple Pecan Pumpkin Bread
1 box Spice cake mix
15 oz. pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup chopped, toasted pecans
2 apples, shredded
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 loaf pans with non-stick spray.
- Mix together cake mix, pumpkin puree and oil. Batter will be thick.
- Fold in nuts and shredded apples.
- Spread into loaf pans and smooth out top.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes, using toothpick to test if done. If you use mini loaf pans (I did one of each) bake them for 18-22 minutes. Let set in pan for 10 minutes then remove to wire rack to cool. Store wrapped in foil.
Always in search of a way to use the last few bananas, I was happy to stumble upon a twist on the old classic banana bread. This Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze from Cooking Light was just the ticket. It goes together pretty simply, like good quickbreads do, and the lime glaze is super easy and super tasty. Sweet and tangy, these two ingredients make a tremendous difference to this kitchen staple. Recipe below with my modifications noted.
Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
1/4 cup plain yogurt (I used sour cream)
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon flaked sweetened coconut, divided
1/2 cup chopped, pecans (I toasted mine first)
Glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lime
Preheat oven to 350°.
- In large bowl, beat together sugar and butter until well blended.
- Add eggs, banana, yogurt, milk and vanilla; beat until blended.
- Add flour mixture and beat just until moist. Stir in 1/2 cup coconut and pecans.
- Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon coconut.
- Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan to serving plate.
- Combine powdered sugar and lime juice, stirring with a whisk; drizzle over warm bread.
My notes: I made this into 2 smaller loaves and doubled the glaze recipe so I could add glaze to both loaves. Because of my smaller loaf size, my total cooking time was 50 minutes. I checked it at 40 and the top and coconut was getting brown, so I covered the top with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning.
I made a classic rookie mistake. I started a recipe without making sure I had everything I needed. But I also felt I've baked enough I could probably work around it so I bravely soldiered on. I added this spice and that one, a dash of something else and a big shake of yet one more thing, stirred and made a silent wish for...well, a not-sucky cake. I gave the beaters a lick and the batter tasted delicious. Now drunk on my crazy cake-saving-skill, I added more. More fruit, more nuts, MORE. I spooned the yummy batter into an angel food cake pan. Why angel food cake pan? Because no matter what I do, when I turn my Bundt pans upside down to gently coax out a cake, a substantial portion of the top, or just one side, sticks and I end up with a decidedly un-cake like pile o' cake pieces. My angel food pan has straight sides and a flat top and a removable bottom. I greased and floured like the recipe said. There was no way I was ending up with anything short of a stellar, state-fair-winning cake. I was going to take it to work. I would get recipe requests and pats on the back and be office queen for the day! The timer went off, I pulled out my bee-you-ti-ful golden cake. The house smelled like sunshine and warm quilts and apple orchards and smiling babies. I think I heard a chorus somewhere in the background. I let it cool, I put a rack on top of the pan, flipped it upside down and gingerly lifted off the pan. Once again, a substantial part of the top AND one side were missing. Still stuck in the pan. And then, as if to say "oh, I'm not through yet," the remaining intact portion of cake started to fall apart, right through the bars of the rack until I had a giant pile of warm (delicious!) cake...nuggets? Chunks? Pieces? I am guessing in my glee to add more fruit and nuts that I sabotaged my cake. Being heavy, they sunk to the bottom, (the top of the cake when flipped,) and didn't leave much actual cake batter to keep everything together. If I had cooked this in a regular 13" x 9" pan, all would have been well. This cake tasted so good that I couldn't let it go to waste, so I started thinking of every cake-like treat I had seen...cake pops, triffles, jar cakes...jar cakes, cakes in a jar! Cupcakes in a jar are often regular cupcakes broken in half and placed in a jar, separated by layers of frosting. Well, I had cake and a fantastic caramel brown sugar glaze still warm in the pan, so I pulled out a dozen half-pint canning jars and begin spooning in and packing down. I topped each jar with a healthy dose of caramel glaze and sealed them up. Today, with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and a sprinkle of toasted pecans, these little conglomeration cakes sang. They sang so sweetly you would have thought I meant to do this.
