happy birthday, husband.

My husband celebrated his birthday on Wednesday. It was a very laid-back birthday (per his request). I didn't want his birthday to be boring and yet I wanted to respect his wishes. This year he bought his own present (something that he really wanted and only he could buy since I have no expertise in the world of hunting), so I knew gifts were going to be small and not *that* special. 

I decided to go all out and make yummy food and treats and surprise him with those. I made cinnamon rolls the day before, hiding them in the refrigerator the next morning. The morning of his birthday, I snuck down, popped the chilled dough in the oven and made some coffee, sneaking back upstairs to get the baby up. The smell of them baking+the smell of the coffee brewing was intoxicating and a wonderful smell to wake up to. He was able to enjoy a hot roll right out of the oven with a cup of coffee before heading off to work. They were a yummy birthday treat and I think they were one of his favorite things about the day. 

The other thing I put a lot of thought and work into was his birthday cake. He said he would be fine with something simple like a chocolate cake made in a baking pan. Whoa. Boring. I love my husband and respected most of his birthday wishes, but I wasn't going to make a boring birthday cake. I was going to make a Oreo Ganache Cake, goshdarnit! I decided not to go overboard on it though, taking the simple route. I researched different options and came up with a mixture of different ideas. It ended up being a very pretty cake and delicious too. It wasn't overly-sweet and it was surprisingly easy to make and assemble. I'm documenting my version on my blog so I can pin it and have it for future reference, as I'll definitely be making this again. 


 Oreo Ganache Cake 

Ingredients

• For the Cake:
• 3/4 cup (about 3 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup (about 3/4 ounce) cocoa powder
• 1/2 plus 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons (about 4 1/3 ounces) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•  
• Procedures

1. 1
   Make cake: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°. Line bottom of a 9-inch cake pan with parchment paper and lightly coat the inside with non-stick pan spray. Sift flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt into large bowl; set aside. In medium bowl, whisk sugar, sour cream, oil, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.
2. 2
   Whisk wet ingredients into dry ingredients until smooth. Pour batter into pan and bake until cake is just firm and toothpick inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cake cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove from pan to completely cool on wire rack, about 1 hour.
3. 3
   Set aside 2 Oreo cookies (for topping). Chop remaining cookies into 1/4-inch pieces; set aside.

   • For the Oreo whipped cream:
   • 12 Oreo cookies
   • 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
   • 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
   • 1/4 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4. 4
   To Assemble Cake: make the Oreo whipped cream in 2 batches. In a bowl, whip 1/2 cup cream on medium-high speed to soft peak, spoon into large bowl and refrigerate. In same bowl, whip remaining  3/4 cups cream, sugar, and vanilla to soft peak. Fold into already whipped cream.
5. 5
   Place about 1/4 cup whipped cream in bowl and refrigerate until ready to decorate cake. Fold chopped Oreos into remaining whipped cream.
6. 6
   Slice cake in half horizontally to create 2 layers. Place bottom layer on serving plate. Spread the Oreo whipped cream onto cake. Top with second cake layer.

   • For the Ganache:
   • 4 Squares Baker's Semi-Sweet Chocolate
   • 1/4 Cup Butter
   •    Microwave chocolate and butter in a small microwaveable bowl on high 2 minutes or until butter is melted. Stir until chocolate is completely melted. Cool 5 minutes.
7. 7
    Spread a thin layer of the cooled ganache over the top of the cake. I allowed it to run over the side. I also had a little left over. Chill in refrigerator for about 2 hours to allow cookies to soften and the ganche to harden. 

   BEFORE SERVING:

   Pipe or spoon the reserved whipped cream on the top middle of the cake. Chop up the remaining 2 oreo cookies and sprinkle on the top of the cream.

Thanks to Serious Eats & Kraft Foods for the inspiration. 

The weather. Baking. And Jesus.

It's a cool and breezy morning here in Saint Paul. It's amazing how much change can happen in just a few short days. 102 degrees was the high just last Tuesday. This past weekend we were in the 60's. Our house went from feeling like Grandma's attic to an igloo (okay, it's not that bad, but I'm wearing socks and a sweater today, so it's kinda on the cold side). I'm beginning to feel like our house will never feel just right. :p

When I opened the door this morning and breathed in the fresh cool air, I was taken back a couple of weeks ago to the North Shore. Such a beautiful spot on this great big world. It seems just like yesterday that we were all up there. I love the drive up through Duluth, to Grand Marais. The scenery when we make our yearly trip to Indiana is blah and the drive seems to take forever. Just the opposite when one heads north. To me, the drive passes by quickly (unless one is stuck in construction traffic for 2 hours).

These are just a few of my favorite pictures from our trip. When I look at them, all I see is God. He's the Artist of all artists. The sky that day was particularly beautiful (especially considering how stormy and dark the day before was).

On days like today, when one isn't oppressed with heat, I find myself wanting to bake. I have a whole list of goodies that I want to mix up and bake. As I type, I'm munching on a Soft Brown Sugar cookie with Browned Butter Frosting. If you like big fluffy "melt-in-your-mouth" cookies, you'll probably like these. They're certainly not a pretty cookie and I tend to like more texture to my cookie, but after a few bites, I kind of liked them. It's nice to have a soft cookie every now and then. And who doesn't like browned butter frosting?! Yum!

I made Empanadas the other day which called for pie dough. I decided to make a double-batch of dough so I could make an actual pie. I'm thinking Apple-Rhubarb, or the ever popular Strawberry-Rhubarb. I just need to find a recipe that looks appealing. Sometime next weekend I want to try my hand at making this Cinnamon Roll Cake. It looks intriguing. I'm on a cinnamon roll mash-up kick lately. Peter woke up yesterday morning after dreaming about my cinnamon roll pancakes. Too bad we slept in and were already rushing to get ready for church. Maybe we'll have breakfast for dinner some night this week. ;) I'm a little afraid to make the Cinnamon Roll Cake, because I know we can't eat all of it by ourselves (well, we could...but we shouldn't). :p We'll see, maybe I'll get brave and try to cut the recipe in half.

I woke up this morning with this Glorious Day song in my head. Such a beautiful song to wake up to. We sang it in church yesterday morning and right before we got home, we heard it again on the radio. I'm sure it's a popular song, but for some reason when we sang it yesterday morning, it was the first time I took notice of it. I found tears welling up in my eyes towards the end of the song. How beautiful the sound that trumpet will make! As I was youtubing it (is that even a word?), I realized that it's actually an old hymn. Growing up in a church where all we sang were hymns, my curiosity was peaked and so I looked it up. Sure enough, I recognized it and remembered singing it quite a bit as a child. I never felt any emotion while singing the old hymn. It's amazing how a different and more modern arrangement can make such a world of difference and stir precious emotions within me (I feel the same way towards the "new" arrangement of A Mighty Fortress is Our God).

I know it's kinda cheesy to post an insane amount of lyrics to one's blog, but this song is well worth it. The lyrics are powerful and full of truth and hope. Who doesn't need a dose of that every now and then? You may choose to read the lyrics to the tune of the old hymn (if you know it), or to the newer arrangement (my personal fave) with the youtube video found below. Whichever version makes Jesus more precious to you, I highly recommended that version.

Glorious Day (living He Loved Me)

One day when Heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men, my example is He
Word became flesh and the light shined among us
His glory revealed

Living He loved me!
Dying He saved me!
Buried He carried my sins far away!
Rising He justified!
Freely forever!
One day He’s coming!
Oh glorious day!
Oh glorious day

One day they led Him up Calvary’s mountain
One day they nailed Him to die on a tree
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He
Hands that healed nations, stretched out on a tree
He took the nails for me!

Living He loved me!
Dying He saved me!
Buried He carried my sins far away!
Rising He justified!
Freely forever!
One day He’s coming!
Oh glorious day!
Oh glorious day!

One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
One day the stone rolled away from the door
Then He arose, over death He had conquered
Now is ascended, my Lord evermore
Death could not hold Him, the grave could not keep Him
From rising again

Living He loved me!
Dying He saved me!
Buried He carried my sins far away!
Rising He justified!
Freely forever!
One day He’s coming!
Oh glorious day!
Oh glorious day!
Glorious day!

One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day, my Beloved One bringing
My Savior Jesus is mine

Living He loved me!
Dying He saved me!
Buried He carried my sins far away!
Rising He justified!
Freely forever!
One day He’s coming!
Oh glorious day!
Oh glorious day!
Glorious day!
Oh glorious day

Uncluttering my brain: cooking & baking

{puttering around in the kitchen}

I love cooking and baking. It's therapeutic for me. I've told Peter a few times that it's truly a blessing to have a love for cooking. I can't imagine what a chore it would be if I hated it.  It's sort of an escape from life when I have full freedom in the kitchen. Cooking is an artistic form of living. You create, enhance and indulge. Three of my favorite things to do. The one thing I don't enjoy is coming up with creative ideas of what to cook. I wish my pantry was always stocked full. I feel like I'm limited in what I can and can't cook because I don't have the right ingredients...or I don't have enough time...or my boys wouldn't like a particular dish. But other than the limitations of cooking/baking, my favorite place is in the kitchen. When I'm stressed, I pull out my mixer, pull up a new or tried-and-true recipe, and create. I've discovered the freezer is a wonderful place to store cookies (dough or already baked). It's easy to make a bunch of cookies, keep out an appropriate amount and freeze the rest - out of sight, out of mind (until you need them on th spot).  

{my newfound loves}

A couple of weeks ago, my friend Johanna posted a recipe on facebook for these amazing Lemon Meringue Cookies. I couldn't stop thinking about them, but seeing that I didn't have any lemons on hand, I put the recipe on the back burner of my mind. After picking up a couple of the luscious yellow fruits on Saturday, the recipe pushed its way back to the front of my mind. What drew me to it was the lemon curd recipe. I adore that yummy yellow stuff. The Tea Room where I used to work had this amazing curd that we would serve with devon cream alongside our scones. It was SO yummy...and expensive. I've always wanted to make my own, but was afraid it wouldn't come close to the good stuff. But when I saw how easy and simple this recipe was and how she was raving about it, I thought I'd give it a try. Oh my, was it ever easy and simply delicious. I'll be honest, it's not as good as the Tea Room's but it's dang close...and only a fraction of the cost! 

I probably shouldn't share this recipe with you, because once you try these you will become addicted. It's the kind of dessert that warrants a RUN, JOESPH, RUN!  For you will surely be tempted to eat the whole entire batch. Do what I did and only make a half batch, that way if you do indeed eat it all in one inhale, it won't be so bad for your butt.