Typical

I had a good day at work today, but I've had a splitting sinus headache since the moment I woke up 16+ hours ago. I came home looking forward to 2 things: a leftover brownie and a day off tomorrow to sleep in, work out, and catch up on paperwork.

Well, Ross ate the last 3 brownies and didn't save any for me.

And since I just realized tomorrow is March 1 (thankGodFebruaryisover) it's not a day off, it's a farm day. My internship seemed like a good idea a month ago when playing outside in the summer sun 2 days a week sounded like fun. Now I realize I've signed up for a soggy spring and a 55-hour work week EVERY WEEK from now through the end of October. GULP.

In typical Therese fashion, I now regret this decision. But it's too late to back out now.

Stupid Groundhog

I knew it was too good to be true, but I was still celebrating the warm weather last week. As of a few days ago, everything was covered in ice again.

Then the next morning I got to deal with this before work:

Someday we will have a garage, and it will be a beautiful thing. At least (and I hope I'm not jinxing myself here) the temperatures have stayed above 20 degrees this time!

It's supposed to warm up again this week but it's currently foggy, the sky is green, a 'wintry mix' of precipitation has been falling from the sky all day, and there's a bit of lighting and thunder. What season is it?!

Madeleines for Matilyn

When I heard that my cousin was naming her baby Matilyn, I instantly knew I had to help throw the baby shower and serve these amazing cookies. (Really, any excuse to try a new cookie recipe). I've never been to France and, prior to this weekend, I'd never had a madeleine so I can't vouch for authenticity here. But I do know that I followed this recipe from 101 Cookbooks and everyone loved the lemony, buttery cookies dipped in chocolate. These cookies do require a special pan for the scalloped effect, and people who know these things say metal pans are better than silicone.

Madelines

Ingredients:

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (6 ounces)

2 Tbs. softened unsalted butter (for greasing pan)
3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
a pinch of fine-grain sea salt
2/3 cups sugar
zest of one large lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the butter in a small pot over medium heat until it browns and gives off a nutty aroma, approximately 10-20 minutes. Strain the melted butter using a paper towel over a mesh strainer- you want to leave the solids behind. Allow the butter to cool to room temperature.
While the melted butter is cooling, use the remaining 2 Tbs. of butter to grease the madeleine molds- make sure you get it in all the ridges. Dust with flour and invert the pan tapping out any excess flour. (You could also use cooking spray made "with flour" instead).

Put the eggs with the salt in the bowl of an electric mixer with a whisk attachment. Whip on high speed until thick- you are looking for the eggs to roughly double or triple in volume (approximately 3 minutes- 5 for my mom and I since we used a hand mixer.) Continuing to mix on high speed, slowly add the sugar in a steady stream. Whip for 2 minutes (again, about 5 with a hand mixer) or until mixture is thick and ribbony. Now with a spatula fold in the lemon zest and vanilla, just until mixed.

Sprinkle the flour on top of the egg batter, and gently fold in. Now fold in the butter mixture, only stirring enough to bring everything together.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each mold 2/3 - 3/4 full. (Pouring the batter from a small measuring cup ended up being less messy).

Bake the madeleines for 10 - 12 minutes (7-10 minutes for smaller cookies), or until the edges of the madeleines are golden brown. Remove from oven and unmold immediately. Cool on racks and, if desired, dip in melted almond bark and allow chocolate to harden on waxed paper.

Makes 2 dozen.
 

Phil Doesn't Lie

My attempts at "Winter Wonderland Wednesday" fell apart after the holidays. I guess I grew disenchanted by the sudden ferocity of a late winter. Last week started with sub-zero windchills and I couldn't feel my face, hands, or legs after walking into work in the morning. But this weekend brought glorious sunlight and a taste of spring. It made me think of my favorite thing about winter: IT ENDS!

On February 2, Puxatawney Phil promised we had less than 6 weeks of winter left. I know this week finds us back to 30s and 40s (thankfully above zero, though) and we have a good month or more before consistent spring weather sticks around, but this weekend I was so thankful for the warms spell and spring winds bringing in fresh air and the promise that it's never too late to start anew.

Spring Showers

I have a lot of baby showers to attend in the next few months (5 from February through April) but I'm going to state prematurely that the first was already the best because it was family. My cousin's wife is having a baby soon and my family loves to celebrate!


Homemade madeleines and Cupcake Island cupcakes.

Fruit buggy from Hy-Vee

Yumminess



Spring is in the air



Decorations + gifts

Loving these shoes from the Pitter Patter shop on Etsy



The spread. I come from a family full of good hostesses!



Barefoot Contessa's Shrimp Salad was a hit. For those who asked, click here for the recipe.



Grandma's Fancy Coffee Set



I want to steal this puppy from the baby!



She looks too young to have 1 great-granddaughter and another on the way!



My mom got flowers as gifts for the game winners. Such a good idea!



More Official...

Ross is still an intern on contract, but he does have a biography on his workplace's website now!

Click here to check it out.

Sweets for my Sweet

Ross hates my cooking. Seriously, he has gotten to the point where before he tries anything, he asks, "what's in this?" As if I'm trying to poison him with healthy ingredients! So for Valentine's Day I figured the least I could do was make a 100% Ross-approved dinner.  I made enchiladas with extra cheese and no canned tomatoes. Now that's love (and a stomachache).

But what was even better was dessert. We saw an article in the local paper about the popularity of red velvet cake-themed desserts around this time of year and I asked if a) he liked red velvet cake, and b) he wanted me to get something from the nearby bakery.  He said it'd mean more if I made it myself. Well, you ask, I deliver! I used the recipe printed in Tastebud Magazine, a local foodie publication.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tsp. red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk, shaken

1. Preheat oven to 350* Fahrenheit.
2. Sit together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy and smooth (about 5 minutes).
4. Add eggs to the mixer bowl one at a time. Add vanilla and red food coloring and mix until combined.
5. Alternating, add flour mixture and buttermilk to mixer bowl, starting and ending with flour mixture. Scrape down bowl as you go to ensure the mixture is well combined.
6. Drop tablespoons of batter onto parchment paper (or aluminum foil) lined sheet pans, at least 2 inches apart.
7. Bake 7-10 minutes, or until cakes spring back when pressed gently.


Beauty is in the eye of the beholder...

Classic Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 to 1 Tbs. vanilla extract

Cream butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar slowly and beat for about 10 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla at the end and mix well.

Ross' favorite color. How appropriate!

I intended to follow the recipe exactly, but 1 Tbs. of dough made mini-whoopie pies so I added a bit more on the second pan to make bigger cookies! Also, turns out I had red "writing frosting" in the pantry and not red food coloring. So they're more like brown velvet whoopie pies. But that's okay. They are still delicious.

Speaking of sweets, check out the cutest Valentine that ever entered my mailbox:

Obviously, I checked "yes" and texted a picture to their mom.

These boys are definitely one of the top 3 things I miss most about Texas.  But I digress.

Here's my big-kid Valentine:

I guess my husband is the type to buy overpriced flowers on Valentine's Day. He also got me a more personal gift of Christopher Elbow local artisan chocolates. But the dog ate them out of Ross' bag at work. No, seriously. There's a beagle at work who's been known to eat Ross' lunch when he's not looking, so I think I believe the story.

Hope your week continues to be filled with love!