Blog Surfing - Easter 2011

From: I Am Baker - A beautiful Hydrangea Cake. You should check out her Red Velvet Strawberry Shortcake too!

From: Mennonite Girls Can Cook - Deviled Eggs

From: Eat at Home - Easter Story Cookies

From: Around My Family Table - Fun Easter Basket Cupcakes

From: Tasty Kitchen - Healthy Easter Sides

From: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day - Hot Cross Buns

From: Beauty and Bedlam - Resurrection Rolls

From: A Recipe A Day - Here Comes Peter Cottontail Side Dishes

From: Brown Eyed Baker - Scalloped Potatoes

From: 

And from Easter 2010: More Ideas for Easter

Easy Butterscotch Drop Scones

Here is a quick recipe for drop scones that you can whip up in less than 15 minutes. I used cinnamon, cardamom and Valencia orange peel as the background flavor, just to spice them up a little. 

All the flavors melded together and made a very tasty scone. Don't limit yourself to these flavors. It is fun to experiment with spice flavors and see what you like. As I have said before, I usually add vanilla extract to all my scones, but this time, I forgot. It wasn't missed.

Enjoy!

Macaroons

I was paging through my People magazine this week and I came across a recipe for macaroons. I remember making macaroons once years ago and considered them too sweet and never made them again. I don't remember eating one since that experience. Even so, I decided that I was going to give this recipe a try, especially with Easter days away. 

Wiley came over to spend the afternoon with me and he loves to "cook" and was very eager to help me make them after he saw the picture. We had fun making them and, of course, Wiley really wanted to eat one right then, but this gramma likes to let mommy decide when/if they get treats, especially when it is close to dinner time. We packed half of them up and headed back to Wiley's house.

We arrived at Christy's house with our special package around dinner time. I'm not sure how it happens, but when my daughter and I are together with the boys, it is almost impossible to carry on a conversation because the boys want gramma's attention. Undivided attention! They always have something to show me or want me to do with them. That leaves us with half-finished sentences and thoughts most of the time. As I was ready to leave, I realized we were actually carrying on an adult conversation. That was unusual and the boys were very quiet and someplace else. One guess! Ivan had climbed up onto the counter and was covered in melted chocolate and coconut! Wiley was also in the kitchen working on a project that needed mommy's help. That is the price we pay for an adult conversation!

These macaroons really are amazing and not what I was expecting at all. I finally broke down and tried one a day later and understood why everyone had said they were so amazing! I'm thinking that the addition of sour cream cuts down the super sweet taste that I was expecting. If you have found macaroons too sweet like me, you should try this recipe.

Jill Zarin's Macaroons from People magazine, April 18, 2011 issue.



As I was cleaning up our mess, I happened to notice that Wiley had scrawled all across the recipe page. I asked him about it and he said, "I wrote you a note, gramma!"

  It says, "I love you, gramma"!

Enjoy!

A Double Take

It looked like one of the letters was missing... but it really looked like it said...

Ralph's "Pretty Good" Grocery

...so we drove around the block to verify that the missing letter was really a P, and yes, we saw it right. Unfortunately, it is this small town's only grocery store. I guess this is as good as it gets in Gaston, Oregon. I'm afraid I would have a hard time settling for "pretty good" food.

Where Have All The Bloggers Gone?

I place the blogs I enjoy into categories that make sense to me; East coast, SoCal, Southern, Foreign, Baking, etc. I also have another category I call "Inactive Blogs." I put inactive blogs that I really enjoyed a lot, and have hopes that they are just taking a little break and will be back soon, into that file. I check it out about twice a year. I love it when they are back and I can reactivate their blogs and start enjoying them again. If there hasn't been any activity since I last checked on it, my plan is to delete it permanently.

Only problem, I can't seem to delete all of them, actually most of them. When I have enjoyed a specific blog regularly for several years, watched their kids growing up and all of a sudden, without any explanation, they are gone, I have a hard time letting go. On the last day they blogged, everything sounded great with no indication that there was a change coming. I have several (over 20) that have been "Inactive" for over 4 years! I want them back. I want the kids to be 4 years older and cuter, they are still married to their Mr. Wonderful husband, still living in their cute house with the white picket fence, happy as can be, baking muffins on Tuesday.

Maybe I'm just too sentimental. I know that in the real world we all live in, things happen and life changes in the blink of an eye. Life can do a 360 in the space of a second. I find my attachment to these blogs to be an interesting thing. I don't know the writers personally, but my head and heart don't know that. They are actually "cyber-head" friends, not real friends.

So I will keep checking in on them every now and then, hoping. Hoping that everything is back to normal. Until then, I will say a prayer for them and hope that wherever they are, that they are healthy and happy.

Coconut Scones with Cherry Rhubarb Jam

I had some leftover coconut that I wanted to use up, so I decided to make Coconut Scones. I found a recipe that called for self-rising flour that caught my interest. I don't usually keep self-rising flour in my pantry, but I happened to have some and I wanted to use while it was still fresh.

To make these scones, you use two identical pieces of dough with the jam of your choice spread between the layers. Very easy. I had some cherry rhubarb jam in the fridge so I got started.

The finished product

After they cooled completely, I wrapped them and placed them in freezer bags to bring out when needed. After defrosting, it takes just a couple minutes in the oven and they crisp up and are ready to enjoy!



Enjoy!