Mud House Year

Oh Joy! Baking Again!

So I've been doing  lot of thinking about a lot of things.   Joy is important.  Fun is important.  Baking is important.  My life has been missing all of these things lately, so I decided to turn to one of my favorite bloggers, Joy the Baker, for some inspiration.

I adapted her recipe for Vanilla Almond Orange Cloud Cookies.  Well actually, I followed her recipe exactly, right down to the last sprinkle of powdered sugar.   And then, like lightening striking from a vanilla cloud, I suddenly remembered the Hershey's Kisses nestled away in the cupboard.  That's the very moment the adaption occurred.  The last two cookies got kisses instead of pokes making them all the more joyful, in my opinion.Here is what you will need:

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoon orange zest

1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped

10 ounces almond paste

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large egg whites, lightly beaten

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

powdered sugar

Hershey's Kisses

Here is what you will do:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Line baking sheet with parchment paper.  

Zest an orange.  I've been using this new KitchenAid medium grater and actually like it much better than my zester.  In a small bowl,  combine the orange zest, scraped vanilla seeds, and sugar.  If you look closely you can see the little dark specks of vanilla.  Use your fingers to works the zest and vanilla into the sugar, creating a fragrant, moist sugar.Place sugar in the bowl of an electric stand mixer and add the almond paste and salt.  Beat on medium speed creating a crumbly sugar and almond mixture.

While almond mixture is combining in the mixer, place two egg whites in a small bowl.  Whisk  with a fork until loose and frothy.  This will help in pouring the egg whites into the mixer.  If the eggs are unbeaten, they’ll just plop into the mixing bowl and not pour in.

With the mixer on medium speed, gradually pour the egg whites in to the crumbly almond and sugar mixture.  Beat until a smooth paste is formed.  Add the almond extract and beat to combine.Spoon by the heaping tablespoonful and roll into little balls.  If your hands get sticky, rinse them with water.  Place onto the prepared baking sheet.  Sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.  Using fingertips, poke three holes into each cookie.OR...(Now pay attention.  This is where I got really creative.) Refrigerate the little balls of dough for about 10  minutes then press a Hershey's Kiss into each one.

Bake cookies for 18- 20  minutes or until cookies are lightly browned on top.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the pan.  Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.So, pokes or kisses?  You decide.  They are delicious either way. 

 

A Rose is a Rose

Ok, so apparently, the Bowl and Parade aside, Pasadena is not the official "Rose City."  The official title of "The City of Roses"  goes to Portland, Oregon where conditions are supposedly perfect for growing them.  However, Pasadena is unofficially known as Rose City and after a week of living here, I know why.  They are everywhere and appear to thrive in this climate.   I feel very fortunate that I was able to bring three of my old potted roses with me from the Mud House.  I wasn't sure I would be able to bring them, as California has very strict regulations regarding bringing plants and plant products across the border.  I contacted the California Department of Food and Agriculture and had several email exchanges with a plant quarantine inspector named Louis.  It seems that  you can bring roses to California from Arizona if they are grown in commercial potting soil, indoors, and if the inspector at the border determines they do not have root rot.   We packed the three old potted roses at the back of the U-Haul, sadly prepared to give them up if they did not pass inspection.  Armed with Louis' emails, we rolled to a stop at the border and unrolled the window. The only question the inspector asked was where we were coming from.  That's it.  No questions about plants, rotting or otherwise.  So we high-fived, on we went, and now my roses are at home on my second story tree house deck in the unofficial city of roses. I'll take pictures as they continue to recover from the intense dry heat of the Mud House summer and begin to thrive in their new home.

Forrest Gump Said It Best

You may have noticed. I haven't been blogging.  My last post was in March and since then...not a word. Sometime around March it became apparent that we would not be staying at the Mud House.  Sadly, the little Mud House will be auctioned to the highest bidder on September 18.  If you read my blog, you know that we sold our family home and leased the little mud adobe house.  We loved living there and were very sad we wouldn't be staying . We had planned to live in the little Mud House for as long as we could, but the owners were no longer able to keep it, so sad news for all.

We had no choice but to move.  We considered buying, but decided we really like the freedom of renting. We considered staying in Tucson, or moving to Nashville, Boston, or Kentucky. It took several months but we have landed somewhere unexpected but wonderful.  I will now be blogging from the top floor of a historic mansion in Pasadena, CA, just down the street from my 20 month old grandbaby boy.   

So, if life is like a box of chocolates, this one is a dark chocolate sea salt caramel.  Semi-sweet with a touch of savory, a bit complicated, but oh, so delicious.   I look forward to sharing the next year of our life in Rose City.  

As a little goodbye to the Mud House I will publish the last post I wrote last spring.   I didn't  finish it at the time, but it includes some pictures of the pretty things that bloomed before the summer heat set it.