Tomorrow, Tomorrow

Well, I guess by now it's "today, today" - anyway. . .

I should be in bed by now (I had Bible Study at a friend's house tonight and got home late and then "had" to catch up with the online world). . .but I just wanted to share my excitement with you all. . .

I get to see Josh Turner in concert in about 20 hours. That's right. At 8pm I am planning to go to my first-ever country music concert in Spokane (pretty much my first-ever "real" concert at all, really, with the exception of Mannheim Steamroller). I'm quite excited. I'll try to share more (hopefully some pictures??) after the concert.

Ahhhh.......I can't wait.

Ahh. . .Music!

Recently I  have stumbled upon two very wonderful songs. The cool thing is, they are both combinations of other songs, and they are instrumental versions. I thought I would share them both with you.

The first one is my favorite. It combines two current popular songs (both of which I like), Love Story by Taylor Swift, and Viva la Vida by Coldplay, and combines them into the prettiest arrangement. Check it out!

The second one is by the same pianist, and is one my friend brought to my attention. It is called Pachelbel Meets U2 and although I haven't the faintest idea what the U2 song is that it mashes the Pachelbel Canon with, it's a beautiful arrangement.

What do you think?

12 in 12 Challenge: January - Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

I am not making a lot of resolutions this year. I find that I rarely keep them even when I do, so it is not worth it. However, one thing I would like to do this year is to make one new recipe each month. Now, I do know how to cook - and I enjoy doing it! But the purpose of this challenge/resolution would be to make 12 different NEW recipes! This would give me more experience cooking and more of a repertoire. . .plus it is always fun to cook new recipes! And then, of course, I can share them with all of you, along with my comments and, of course, pictures.

So, to start things off, here is January's contribution to my 12 in 12 Challenge:

Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
From Cook's Illustrated

Lemon Sugar Topping:
1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp. finely grated zest from one lemon
1/2 cup sliced almonds


Cake:
2-1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1-1/8 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/8 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 cup + 7 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon finely grated zest plus 4 teaspoons juice from 1-2 lemons
4 large eggs
5 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-1/4 cup sour cream
8 oz. cream cheese, softened

Instructions:
1. For the Topping: Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350-degrees. Stir together sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl until combined and sugar is moistened. Stir in almonds. Set aside.

2. For the Cake: Spray 10-inch tube pan with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in medium bowl; set aside. In stand mixer fitted with padle attachment, beat butter, 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, and lemon zest at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, about 20 seconds, and scraping down beater and sides of bowl as necessary. Add 4 teaspoons vanilla and mix to combine. Reduce speed to low and add one-third flour mixture, followed by half of sour cream, mixing until incorporated after each addition, 5 to 10 seconds. Repeat, using half of remaining flour mixture and all of remaining sour cream. Scrape bowl and add remaining flour mixture; mix at low speed until batter is thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds. Remove bowl from mixer and fold batter once or twice with rubber spatula to incorporate any remaining flour.

3. Reserve 1-1/4 cups batter and set aside. Spoon remaining batter into prepared pan and smooth top. Return now-empty bowl to mixer and beat cream cheese, remaining 5 tablespoons of sugar, lemon juice and remaining teaspoon vanilla on medium speed until smooth and slightly lightened, about  minute. Add 1/4 cup reserved batter and mix until incorporated. Spoon cheese filling mixture evenly over batter, keeping filling about 1 inch from edges of pan; smooth top. Spread remaining cup reserved batter over filling and smooth top. With butter knife, gently swirl filling into batter using figure-8 motion, being careful not to drag filling to bottom or edges of pan [easier said than done!]  Firmly tap pan on counter 2 or 3 times to dislodge any bubbles. Sprinkle lemon sugar-almond topping evenly over batter and gently press into batter to adhere.

4. Bake until top is golden and just firm, and long skewer inserted into cake comes out clean (skewer will be wet if inserted into cheese filling), 45-50 minutes. Remove pan from oven and firmly tap on counter 2 or 3 times (top of cake may sink slightly). Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 1 hour. Gently invert cake onto rimmed baking sheet (cake will be topping-side down); remove tube pan, place wire rack on top of cake and invert cake sugar-side up. Cool to room temperature, about 1-1/2 hours. Cut into slices and serve.

Makes 1 10-inch cake, serving 12-16. Leftovers should be stored in the refrigerator, covered tightly with plastic wrap. For optimal texture, allow the cake to return to room temperature before serving.

My Comments: 

I thought this coffee cake was delicious. The lemon flavor was perfect - not overpowering, but not so faint it was unnoticeable, either. The cream cheese filling was also excellent. I had some trouble keeping the filling 1" from the edge of the pan, but it turned out delicious anyway, so I wouldn't worry too much about that next time.

You can see from the picture that it makes a pretty presentation even when cut. We put half of it in the freezer for another day, and the rest is in the refrigerator ready for us to eat some more.

It was delicious and I recommend it.

Temporary Home

"Temporary Home" by Carrie Underwood from her Play On album. Just listen to it. Once again Carrie Underwood has an album full of amazing songs. This is one of them. :) (Man, I hope it works out to go to her concert in the spring!)


Little boy, 6 years old
A little too used to bein' alone
Another new mom and dad,another school
Another house that'll never be home
When people ask him how he likes this place
He looks up and says with a smile upon his face

"This is my temporary home
It's not where I belong
Windows and rooms that I'm passin' through
This is just a stop, on the way to where I'm going
I'm not afraid because I know this is my
Temporary Home."

Young mom on her own
She needs a little help got nowhere to go
She's lookin' for a job, lookin' for a way out
Because a half-way house will never be a home
At night she whispers to her baby girl
Someday we'll find a place here in this world

"This is our temporary home
It's not where we belong
Windows and rooms that we're passin' through
This is just a stop, on the way to where we're going
I'm not afraid because I know this is our
Temporary Home."

Old man, hospital bed
The room is filled with people he loves
And he whispers don't cry for me
I'll see you all someday
He looks up and says "I can see God's face"

"This is my temporary Home
It's not where I belong
Windows and rooms that I'm passin' through
This was just a stop,on the way To where I'm going
I'm not afraid because I know this was
My temporary home."

This is our temporary home 

Christmastime Has Come & Gone. . .

Greetings, Blog Visitors!

Did you forget about me?

I certainly did not forget about you, although it has been Christmastime, which means that it has been a busy time of year! But I am back, and I am going to *try* to be more consistent in my blog postings.
I had a greatly fun, but of course, busy, Christmastime this year. Thanksgiving came and went faster than I can say. On the day after Thanksgiving I went to the annual Coeur d'Alene Holiday Light Show, Parade & Fireworks. It was warmer this year than it has been during the past few years, so my toes and nose did not quite freeze off. I went with a group of friends this year and we had a blast watching the parade and then running to find the best spot for the fireworks. We ended up standing right behind the speakers so the amazing blend of Mannheim Steamroller and Trans-Siberian Orchestra that plays during the fireworks sounded (and felt!) particularly awesome.
This year some friends and I had a gingerbread house party and I hope this is something we can continue as an annual tradition. We decided to hot glue our houses together so we didn't have to wait so long before decorating them, and then we spent a few hours decorating them. Each house was unique and definitely fit the personality of the person making it.

I didn't have a lot of Christmas parties to go to this year, but I had other things to keep me busy. . .baking, decorating my room, wrapping presents, and all of the other activities that accompany this time of year. It was a fun, successful month. I made Springerles with my mom and learned how to make Stollen. On Thanksgiving I helped with the majority of our cooking and now that Christmas is over I can now say that I have made/majorly assisted with every aspect of a Turkey dinner.

Christmas day was yesterday. Only 364 days to go before it is Christmastime again. We had a nice relaxing Christmas day. Today I was feeling really exhausted so I relaxed and watched Sound of Music (one of my Christmas gifts) with my mom, including a lot of the special features. That was a nice way to spend the day.

Like I said, I will try to be more consistent with blog postings, and have a few more ideas for posts in my head that I will try to get up soon.

Have a great New Years!

-Me

P.S. The picture at the top of this post was taken at the bakery. I went to their Christmas party this year. We turned off all the lights and played hide & seek in the dark and decided at one point to see if I could actually fit to hide in a mixing bowl. Needless to say, I can. :) (Yes, we washed the bowl out afterwards!!!!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

"Thankful"

(Josh Groban)

Somedays we forget
To look around us
Somedays we can't see
The joy that surrounds us
So caught up inside ourselves
We take when we should give.

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be.
And on this day we hope for
What we still can't see.
It's up to us to be the change
And even though we all can still do more
There's so much to be thankful for.

Look beyond ourselves
There's so much sorrow
It's way too late to say
I'll cry tomorrow
Each of us must find our truth
It's so long overdue

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be
And every day we hope for
What we still can't see
It's up to us to be the change
And even though we all can still do more
There's so much to be thankful for.

Even with our differences
There is a place we're all connected
Each of us can find each other's light

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be
And on this day we hope for
What we still can't see
It's up to us to be the change
And even though this world needs so much more

There's so much to be thankful for

Ode to Facebook

Oh Facebook, how I love you so.

Thanks to you I spend many a free moment perusing your pages.

Thanks to you I not only have a virtual farm, but now I, myself am a virtual person, leading a life of glam and adventure thanks to Sorority Life, and now I have not one, but two virtual aquariums, both of which require cleaning and maintenance, and cause me to feel guilty if I don't feed my virtual fish in time and they die a virtual death. :)

However, dear Facebook, you have also helped me to connect with old friends, and get better acquainted with new ones. So you see, Facebook, all of my time spent with you is not in vain.

Oh Facebook, whatever am I going to do with you?