Desperately Seeking Gina

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Dear Friends,

I like to start my notes to you as if we’re already in the middle of a conversation.  Have you seen this movie?  Silly me, of course you have.  Is it not the cutest movie ever made about finding love on the internet? 
Despite the title, this post is not about love, the internet, or how ShopGirl and NY152 fall in love over the WWW.
I’ve been thinking for a long while about this little thread of the web that is mine.  I started this blog five years ago, desperately searching for someone I knew a long time ago and it served it’s purpose well-  I found myself stating a new life in Arkansas, an adventure that never ceases to end.  And, although I am still searching for the person I want to be {because that search should never really end should it?  We each should continue on the journey of finding ourselves, growing, evolving, bettering, no?} the search is not so desperate.
There-in lies the problem.  I hate the title of my blog.  And so I am desperately searching for a new name.  But everything I come up with is taken.  Auughhh…the internet.  It’s so hard to be original when there are so many other “me’s” out there!  There are also other issues to deal with like:  why don’t I just start a new blog and let this one go silent {so that the hits I am getting on this post, for example} still generate interest and opportunities}?  It may sound silly…but I’m awfully attached to my little place on the web and moving is daunting.  Yet, if I’d like to take advantage of certain opportunities that bloggers are often afforded, my blog title offers no indication of any one definitive category.  I love to cook, so there are tons of recipe posts.  I love taking pictures, so I try to include a bunch.  So on, and so on.  Maybe this is the desperate part.
And so I just want to send this cosmic question out into the void– What are your thoughts, internet?  Have a blog title suggestion?  Should I just cut thread an move on?

Pin It & Spin It- Cranberry Orange Muffins

I’ve come to realize something about myself and my relationship with Pinterest.  I’m very impressionable.  I see the picture and immediately, I must have, do, see, eat, create whatever has been pinned.  Such is the case with these Cranberry Orange muffins.  I didn’t even know I was craving both cranberries and oranges until I came across this pin.  I’ve also come to realize that I tend to need immediate gratification.  Unfortunately, these had to wait a bit, as I was out of oranges {we had been keeping a bag around the house lately, ironically}.

The details:

You can find the recipe here at Bakingdom

The taste:

A-mazing.  These muffins were very moist and tender. The orange flavor was very mild.  I would have liked to see a more pronounced orange flavor…which leads me to..

The Spin:

Instead of reducing the orange juice and sugar as stated in the recipe, I made a sugar/orange juice glaze.  Remove muffins from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes.  Dip tops in glaze and place on cooling rack to cool completely.

Glaze:
1 cup of powdered sugar
3-4 tbsp fresh orange juice or more as needed for desired consistency.
1 tsp finely zested orange peel
1 tsp vanilla

Mix and thin with more orange juice as needed.

After glazing the muffins definitely had a kicked-up orange flavor and the  glaze sealed in the moisture and made these muffins even better the following day.  Love, love, love this pin and recipe!

Nectarine Shortcakes

Remember this post when I talked about my hoard of Martha Stewart Living magazines?  I’ve found that if I organize the magazines into stacks according to months instead of years, that it is much easier to reference articles pertaining to seasonal topics…ie:  August issues are generally filled with peach and nectarine recipes because this is the time of year that they are ripe.  Thus, it is handy when one is heading out the door and the destination is a peach/nectarine/apple orchard. Nifty, eh?

So, in  my ongoing effort to put my collection to good use, I had this issue in mind as Thom and I strolled through the orchard sampling the fruit, picking, and enjoying a hot Arkansas Saturday afternoon.

And the recipe?

Nectarine Shortcakes

1/2 pound nectarines (about 4) cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup plus 2 tsp sugar
2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp coarse salt
6 tbsp cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing
Fine sanding sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350.  Combine nectarines, lemon juice, and 2 teaspoons sugar.  Let stand 15 minutes.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a large bowl.  Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture forms small pieces.  Stir in cream.  Fold in nectarine mixture.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface.  Pat into an 8 1/2 inch round.  Using a 2 1/2-inch cutter, cut out 8 rounds, and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Brush with cream; sprinkle with sanding sugar.  Bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes.  Let cool on a wire rack.  Remaining shortcakes can be stored in an airtight container up to 1 day.

Recipe from Martha Stewart Living issue 153, August 2006

My Notes:  This dough is pretty wet.  Expect to get sticky as you pat it out.  Cutting out rounds wasn’t as bad as I expected because of the wetness.  It helped to make the cut, and pull the cutter off the board to transfer.

My finished shortcakes didn’t get golden.  I’m thinking it’s because the temp was supposed to be 400 and the bottoms cooked much faster than the top.  If I made these again, I’d turn it down to 350.
These were super moist shortcakes.  They were more biscuit-like and less sweet, but the sweetness of the nectarines made up for that.  I don’t think I would serve this as a dessert, as the magazine suggests.  They seemed more like a breakfast biscuit…and that’s when we ate them.  These had a soft, buttery crumb and tasted good with jam.
I thought these would make a lovely little thank you gift baked in a mason jar.  I baked some in quarter pint jars, added some fabric and craft paper {stamped} toppers, and the worked perfectly.  These should be baked immediately as they have fresh fruit and freezing may not be good.
To do:
Wash and dry mason jars.  
Grease jars.
Fill with batter to just under the bottom of rim.
Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.
Remove and cool completely before adding lids, fabric, and rings.  

Weekend Update

Poor neglected blog…only gets attention on the weekends lately.  Unfortunately, it’s the only time anything interesting has been happening.  It’s also the only time I’ve been up for any sort of baking and/or crafting-must find some motivation Monday through Friday!

Thom and I ventured out on Saturday afternoon to Guy, Arkansas to visit an Cadron Crest Orchard.  I’ve passed the sign five days a week for the last four years and this is the first time I’ve stopped.  After visiting, though, I can see how tempting {and easy} it will be to stop by after work, pick a few apples {will be ripe in just a few short weeks!} and be on my way in only a matter of minutes.  Must start pinning apple desserts ASAP!

This guy is a saint for putting up with my often repeated phrase “just one more minute” as I wandered through the orchard, camera in hand and melting away from the heat.
Check back tomorrow to see what I did with these lovelies!

Pin It & Spin It: Homemade Cheez-it Edition

I seriously have to thank Pinterest for introducing me to some really awesome blogs and recipes.  I still can’t explain how this site has inspired and motivated me to get off the old computer and into the kitchen to start enjoying great recipes that have lingered too long in the bookmark folder.  Now that they’re pinned instead I’m much more into doing rather than looking.  So, Pinterest, my taste buds thank you and my waistline begrudgingly acknowledges your helpfulness.


And to celebrate said inspiration, I am introducing a new feature here on the blog:  Pin It & Spin It.  I’ll take a pin from one of my boards and put my spin on it. Pinterest Challenges are starting to pop up across the web and I’m excited to start participating.


My first Pin It & Spin It feature is this lovely pin  from the blog A Cozy Kitchen  for Homemade Black Pepper Cheeze-Its.


Now, it used to be that I didn’t have a lot patience for recipes that included rolling out doughs…mostly because I’m just daunted by doughs in general.  I still haven’t mastered pie dough, but that’s a story for another day.  This recipe looked easy enough so I decided to go with the recipe and directions as written and,  hoping for the best, Spin It later with my own version.


                                                                             Source: acozykitchen.com via Gina on Pinterest

Homemade Black Pepper Cheez-Its
{via A Cozy Kitchen}


1 1/2 cups grated (about 6 ounces) extra sharp cheddar cheese
4 tbsp butter, softened and cut into 4 pieces
3/4 cup flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, divided
1 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1 tbsp half & half {I used half cream, half milk}


Preheat oven to 350 degrees


In a food processor, combine the cheese, butter, flour, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and pepper in five 5-second pulses until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the half-and-half and process until the dough forms a ball, about 10 seconds.


On a lightly floured surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough roughly into a 13 by 7-inch rectangle that is 1/16-inch thick. With a pastry wheel, trim off the sides into a 12 by 6-inch rectangle.  



Next, cut the dough into 1  by 1-inch squares.  Using the blunt end of a skewer make a hole in each cracker.  Gently transfer the crackers (I needed to use a sharp knife to get them off the table) to a parchment lined baking sheet.  The dough may sag or may break occasionally in the transfer, but don’t be concerned — just do your best.  


Sprinkle the remaining teaspoon of kosher salt all over the pre-baked crackers.
Bake the crackers on the middle rack for 15 minutes, or until the ends are barely browned. Remove from the oven and set the baking sheet on a rack to cool.
Serve at room temperature.

And here’s mine:



The dough was an absolute dream.  It came together in five minutes, was easy to roll out, and transferred easily to the baking sheet. 


So…it was time to Spin It. Feeling confident, and open to suggestions, I took my cousin Mary’s suggestion {via Facebook} of Parmesan & Garlic.  The results?  Better than I had imagined.




Parmesan Garlic Oregano Cheez-Its

1 cup flour, plus more for dusting
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
4 tbsp butter, softened and cut into 4 pieces
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup half & half
dried Oregano for sprinkling

Follow original directions finishing with with a sprinkle of dried Oregano just before baking.




And…because I was on a roll…I decided to Spin It again with a spicy kick.  I simply replaced the black pepper with ground red pepper and sprinkled with red pepper flakes.  These were giving the ParmGarlics a run for my fave.  



So much better than store bought and a lot less daunting than I thought!  Enjoy!