The Perfect Antidote to a Grey and Dreary Day

It's been raining for two days straight here and the forecast calls for more of the same tomorrow.

After working on the farmhouse this morning, I came home, started a roaring fire in the woodstove,  and ate a bowl of homemade cheese tortellini minestrone soup.

Though the house gradually warmed and the chilliness departed my bones, I still needed something to cut the dreariness of the day.

Lately, my antidote to this sort of thing is lemon.

The fragrance is well-known in aromatherapy circles to be an uplifting mood enhancer. To me, it's like a ray of much-needed sunshine on an otherwise cloudy day.

Therefore, in this house, dishes are washed with lemon-scented dish soap.  Lemon Cookie candles--which are back in the Harmony Farm Candles Etsy shop!--are burned for a very happy pick-me-up.  Eggs are kept in this lemon-colored ceramic egg crate on the kitchen counter.

And today, the chosen grey-weather-antidote-in-the-form-of-lemon was Lemon Meltaway cookies.

Very minorly adapted from a recipe found on Pinterest, these cookies are a new favorite!

If you're familiar with meltaway cookies, or melting moments as I'd previously known them, they are pure magic in the mouth.

The ingredient list is short:  butter, flour, sugar and cornstarch.

And that last ingredient is what gives the cookies their delicious melting property.

Topped with a smear of lemon curd, I almost don't notice the pelting rain as it hammers the roof.

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Lemon Meltaway Cookies
adapted from Landee See, Landee Do's recipe
makes approximately 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients
1 cup of softened butter
3/4 cup of cornstarch
3/4 cup of powdered sugar
1 cup of all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon of lemon extract

Directions
Turn on oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  While the oven warms, cream butter until light and fluffy with a mixer. Next, beat in cornstarch and powdered sugar until smooth.  Add flour and mix until thoroughly combined.  Lastly, pour in lemon extract and mix until incorporated.

Drop teaspoon-sized balls of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Using the bottom of a small glass dipped in powdered sugar, gently press the cookies until flattened into discs.

Bake for 10 minutes and remove from oven. Let sit on cookie sheet for 1 minute to begin cooling, then transfer cookies to a wire rack.

Top cookies with lemon curd and enjoy!

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Hope you're staying warm and dry this winter day,

Easy Blackberry Cherry Cobbler

Hello, friends! 

Looking for a quick and supremely easy summertime dessert?

Thanks to my Aunt Sherry, who made this cobbler and shared it with me when I was visiting her and my Uncle Gerry back in the spring, here's a most excellent one!

Her delicious version used home-canned peaches, but I used fresh blackberries and store-bought canned dark cherries for equally tasty results.  And, honestly, most any fruit filling will do, as that's the versatile nature of cobblers.

Easy Blackberry Cherry Cobbler

Very slightly adapted from a recipe courtesy of Sherry Hils

 1 cup of water

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of flour
1 stick of butter, melted
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)

15 oz. can of pitted dark sweet cherries with juices - I used Oregon Fruit Products brand

6 oz. container of fresh blackberries

Whisk together all ingredients except fruit(s) and pour into an 
ungreased 8"x8," 9"x9," or 7"x11" dish. 

Top batter with the cherries and blackberries. 
Bake at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes until top is golden.

May be served warm or at room temperature. 
Serve with ice cream or whipped cream, if desired.  

This recipe is the epitome of "dump-ingredients-together-stir-throw-in-the-oven-and-eat" baking. 

Enjoy!

Sweet Temptations

My husband is the cook in this family, while I am the baker.  I do cook sometimes, but he truly enjoys cooking and experimenting with dishes in the kitchen, so who am I to stand in his way? :)   I, on the other hand, love baking breads, and whipping up cakes, cookies, pies, etc. We make for a balanced kitchen partnership and that ensures we always have great meals, followed by tasty desserts.

Lately, I've found myself baking two particular treats over and over again, so I wanted to share them with you.

First up is a Fudgy Brownie recipe from Gluten-Free Fix. Michelle has a whole slew of gluten-free recipes on her site, but I'll admit that I'm so hung up on this brownie recipe--I've fixed it twice a week for the past several weeks--that I haven't tried any of the others. Based on how delicious these brownies are, I should try some of her recipes soon!

I don't have gluten-intolerance issues, but I do like finding alternatives to using wheat flour in my baking. Whether or not you can eat gluten, these brownies will be a favorite. They are decadent, made with wholesome, simple ingredients, and are so quick and easy to assemble.

BOOM.

Here's how I make them:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease an 8x8 baking dish.
• Melt 10 tablespoons of butter in a small-to-medium sized bowl in the microwave.
• Whisk 6 tablespoons of cocoa powder into melted butter. I prefer dark cocoa powder, but they taste great with regular cocoa powder, too.
• Add 1/2 c. of honey, sucanat or brown sugar and stir into chocolate mixture to bring down the temp of the liquids.
• Whisk in one egg.
• Stir in 1 teaspoon of vanilla, a dash of salt and a 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda.
• Whisk in 2 tablespoons of packed coconut flour.
• Fold in a 1/2 c. chocolate chips and 3/4 c. chopped pecans or walnuts.
• Pour into prepared dish and bake 20-21 minutes--don't overbake!
• Let cool completely before cutting. These are best if stored in the refrigerator and served cold.  A caveat to this is that they're delicious hot out of the oven with ice cream. :)

The other treat I've enjoyed baking and eating is a tweaked version of Oh She Glow's Rustic Chocolate Chip Banana Oat Cake. Angela's an innovative baker and a vegan, so the original recipe is vegan friendly. However, I have no problem eating animal products, so I made a few changes.  This cake is dense and moist, with just the right amount of sweetness that I don't feel guilty if I decide to eat some for breakfast. Angela's version has a peanut butter glaze that I haven't tried since I enjoy the cake so much on its own.

MMMMMMMM.

This is another recipe that comes together quickly, features only real food ingredients, and can be made gluten free if GF oats are used. Here's my version:

Banana Chocolate Chip Oatcake

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of rolled oats processed into flour (you can use a blender or food processor to do this)
• 1/2 c. rolled oats
• 1/2 c. honey, sucanat or brown sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. melted coconut oil or butter
• 2 black/very overripe bananas, mashed
• 1/4 c. milk
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. chocolate chips
• 1/4 c. chopped walnuts
• 1 ripe banana, cut into chunks

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8" round cake pan or baking dish.
• Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
• In a small bow, mix fat, milk, vanilla and mashed bananas together, then stir into dry ingredients.
• Fold in chocolate chips, nuts and chopped banana.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 35 minutes.
• Remove from oven and cool about 30 minutes before attempting to slice, otherwise it will be too crumbly. 

When strawberries are in season in May, I already have grand plans to make a strawberry-banana version of this cake.  Can't wait!

So, there you have it. Two delicious treats that I can recommend whole-heartedly. Let me know if you try them and tell me what you think!

Erin

Linking to:
Whatever Wednesday at Momma Hen's Coop
Real Food Wednesday at Kelly the Kitchen Kop
Saturday Nite Special at Funky Junk Interiors