Toasted Coconut Scones and Lemon Curd

It's citrus season here in the valley. Almost every house seems to have some sort of tree, overloaded with delicious ripening fruit. 

I, being an apartment dweller, realized I had few options: 1) steal fruit under the cover of night, 2) knock boldly on a stranger's door and ask for permission, or 3) find a friend that had a tree or two and didn't mind sharing. 

So I turned to my friends, and asked the obvious question: "Do you like lemon curd?" Boy, was I glad I did.

I brought scones, she had the curd. It was a match made in heaven!

There was toasted coconut, coconut cream, and butter involved. Of course, things turned out well. 

She made the lemon curd. And added a bit of orange, just in case.

We ate our scones with cucumber sandwiches and tea.

They went rather quickly. It seemed like there was only one unhappy party in all of this...

We didn't drop enough crumbs!

Toasted Coconut Scones

Adapted from How to Cook Everything

2 c. flour

4 tbsp cornstarch

4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp sugar

1 1/2 c. sweetened flaked coconut, toasted and cooled

3/4 c. coconut cream

2 eggs

5 tbsp butter, cold and cubed

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together flour, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, sugar and 1 c. toasted coconut. Work the butter in with your fingers, so that the mixture resembles pebbles or clumpy sand. In a medium bowl, whisk together the coconut cream and eggs. Add the wet mixture to the dry. Mix them together in 10 strokes or so. Be careful not to over mix! Knead the dough a few times to form a large sticky ball.

Line a baking sheet with a silpat mat or parchment paper. Pour the reserved 1/2 c. coconut in a large circle on the sheet. Dump out the dough on the circle of coconut. Pat out the dough, creating a 1 1/2 inch tall circle. Using a butter knife, score the circle into 12 sections. Bake for 9-12 minutes, or until golden brown.

Lemon Curd

Adapted from Crepes of Wrath

1 whole egg

3 egg yolks

1 c. sugar

2/3 c. lemon juice

scant 1/4 c. orange juice

Zest of 2 lemons

Zest of 1 orange

4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened and cubed

Leave eggs on the counter until they reach room temperature. In a medium saucepan, whisk egg and yolks. Add in sugar, lemon juice, orange juice, and zests. Whisk to incorporate. Set the stove to medium heat and cook the egg mixture for 8-10 minutes or until thickened, whisking constantly.

Pull the pot off the stove, and whisk in the butter. If you want a pure, smooth curd, you can strain the mixture through a mesh sieve. If you don't mind the zest and prefer a more rustic curd, don't strain it. 

Pour the curd in a bowl or jar and cool. You can chill it in the refrigerator for an hour or eat it warm. Totally up to you. It will keep, in a sealed container in the frig, for a week.

If it lasts that long.

Crafty Friday - Thread Holder

It seems like I've seen a lot of creative ways to store thread on Pinterest lately. Canvases, dowels, chopsticks, all sorts! My mom uses a tackle box. Not the most attractive, but definitely functional. 

I opted for a more open-concept storage model. And one that I can re-purpose should I ever get too many spools.

The basics:

Plywood scrap, which I picked up for cheap at a hardware store. Screws and wire, should I need to hang it.

Covered with corks, which Mr. S and I collected for a year or two.... or a few months. Whatever you want to believe.

I used an epoxy to stick them on. That's what my dad said would hold best! (Yes, I call my daddy with "construction" questions. And it usually results with over-engineering. But it will live forever!)

Once it dried, I stuck nails in at an angle - using the ones with small heads so all the spools will slide over them easily.

And then I grouped thread colors together. Because they need to be. 

The board lives in my craft room, next to my yarn. 

And yes, the yarn is living in the styrofoam container that wine comes in when shipped. I painted it. And upholstered it. 

We're not alcoholics. I swear. 

Bacon Candy Chipotle Deviled Eggs

Like any good Southern Lady, I love deviled eggs. I'm pretty sure that I could eat a whole plate, if left alone in a room with no one watching. Cause I'm a lady, and if anyone was watching, I couldn't possibly eat a whole plate. Oh no, not little old me!

I didn't own a deviled egg plate until a few days ago. Sacrilege, I know. If my mother's friend Miss Carol had known that I left the state without one, I bet I'd have been in trouble. Or would have received one in the mail shortly. Thankfully, the HomeGoods store had one left.

Now, about the bacon. It's candied. I'm not kidding. 

Thick cut, brown sugary goodness. With a bit of spice of course. Oven roasted to crispy perfection.

Then there are the eggs.

Boiled, cooled, halved, and scooped.

Add what's needed, and dump into a zip-top bag. Squeeze and mix away, getting out all the lumps. Rest it overnight.

Set up your station - whites on the plate, piping bag of yolk mixture, chopped bacon, chives

Using a piggy chopping board makes it taste better.

Pipe! Top! Add paprika!

And say nothing of the shameful, shameful thing you did with the leftovers.

No, that is not delicious deviled goodness piped onto a leftover piece of bacon. It's a - a mirage. Yeah. A mirage.

Bacon Candy Chipotle Deviled Eggs

Adapted from Pinch My Salt

Serves 6-8

For eggs:

12 eggs, hard boiled

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
salt, to taste (optional)

For bacon:
6 slices thick-cut bacon

1/2 c brown sugar

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

smoked paprika and chives for garnish

The day before - hard boil eggs. Cool them. Halve them. Put the whites in a container and place in the fridge. Remove the yolks and place in a plastic zip-top freezer bag. Add to the bag: mayo, mustard, vinegar, chipotle chili powder, and garlic powder (and salt, if desired). Squish the bag to mix thoroughly. Try to get all the lumps out. Remove as much air as possible from the bag and store in the refrigerator over night.

The day of - Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place your 6 slices of bacon on a cooling rack. Place the rack on a foil-lined jellyroll pan or sheet tray (a pan with short sides). Mix the brown sugar and spices together. Sprinkle mixture on one side of bacon slices and pat down. Put bacon in the oven for 20 minutes. Flip over each piece. Put back in the oven of another 10-15 minutes. Take out of the oven. Flip bacon so that sugared side is up. Let cool. Chop.

Remove all components from the refrigerator. Place whites on a pretty plate, hole side up. Snip the tip of the freezer bag and pipe the yolks into the holes in the whites. Top with candied bacon pieces (I did 5 pieces per white). Sprinkle with chopped chives and paprika as you like. Serve! You can also cover the finished eggs with plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for several hours.

Holy Guacamole!

Yesterday, two teams met in a ferocious battle. Yes, technically the Super Bowl was on, but the two teams I'm referring to are Team Spicy and Team Please-don't-burn-my-mouth-off. 

Mr. S is captain of Team Spicy. He adds chilies to everything, including chocolate cake. I am not on his team. 

This is man's guacamole. It will be spicy, manly, and delicious.

However, I was allowed to scoop out the avocados!

I wasn't allowed to cut the avocados - even after this (below) was needed. Not by me. By a very stubborn man, who wanted to make the guacamole by himself. With a large knife.

Then came the jalapenos. Two of them. Seeds and all!

You notice how far back I am. The peppers were vicious! They were trying to attack me already!

Mr. S has a secret when it comes to tomatoes - don't put the seeds & their goo in. Scoop them out with your finger and get rid of them!

Ewww, tomato innards. Gross.

The good stuff gets chopped and put in, along with red onion and cilantro. Yum!

Then there is mixing, and some spices.

These spices to be exact -

The last thing is lime juice. To taste. It's all very scientific, you know.

Then - the real secret - you cover it in plastic wrap and refrigerate over night. To let the flavors mingle. 

They must do an awful lot of mingling - cause dang, this stuff is good! (and not too spicy, might I add!)

Arturo's Guacamole

Serves - a party

8 ripe avocados

1/2 large red onion, chopped

2 roma tomatoes, de-seeded and chopped

1/4 - 1/2 c. cilantro (to your taste) chopped

1-2 jalapenos (to your taste) chopped

1/4 c lime juice or 4 mini limes, juiced (to your taste)

Cumin, Salt, Pepper (to your taste)

Guacamole is a very personal thing. Just make it a bunch of times till you get it the way you like it.

Mix together. Cover in plastic wrap, and by that I mean smoosh the plastic so it's touching the guac - avocados and air are not friends. Refrigerate over night. Serve with chips.

Crafty Friday: T-shirt Braided Rug

A while back, I found a tutorial for a braided t-shirt rug done by the lovely Cathy Steiner. It's a great tutorial, and has pictures all the way through. 

When I was much younger, my family would all pile in the car and drive from Houston,TX to Milroy, IN, where my grandmother lives. She has the most picturesque farmhouse.

See? I wasn't kidding. She's the most amazing lady. Besides raising FOUR kids in a house with ONE bathroom, she can cook and craft almost anything. She even made the large braided wool rugs that cover the floors in the dining room and living room. 

Saint of a woman, she tried to teach me once. But I was far too impatient. I believe I probably completed two turns of the rug before heading outside.

But now - it's on! I know the concept, and heck! I was taught by a master. I should be able to do this!

There was cutting.

Lots of cutting. (and don't worry about the screenprinted parts, you use them too!)

Then a bit of stretching and pulling. Now, there's rope!

And the braiding can begin. 

I decided to make an oblong rug to go in the kitchen area.

After a great deal of braiding, untangling, sewing, and general patience - I finished!!

And I've even thrown it in the washing machine a few times - it lived!! A testament to my stitchery, no doubt.

Have a good weekend y'all!

Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake

If you've spent any time in the foodie channels of the internet in the last few weeks, you've no doubt seen recipes for blood oranges. These cute little guys, with a reddish hue to the rind and dark red juice, have found themselves in margaritas, scones, and salads. When I finally got my hands on some, the options were endless!

So, instead of going the healthy route - I made cake.

And not just any cake! Olive oil cake. So it's sorta healthy, right? 

First, you need to zest your oranges. 

Toss in a cup of sugar and rub it into the zest with your fingers.

Next, supreme 3 of those oranges. Beautiful! (don't eat too many of them)

And by supreme, I mean cut out the little segments by cutting off the skin and running your blade along the membranes on either side. Like this:

Don't forget to pull out the seeds! Or that cake might be a little crunchier than expected.

For the other 2 oranges, slice and juice. My hands were only slightly stained after all the orange work. And I managed to get to the juice squirts that hit the walls quickly enough that they didn't stain at all. Yay!

Toss the sugar into the juice, add the eggs, and a bit of vanilla. Whisk!

Such a pretty pink.

Sift in the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Then add the olive oil, in small doses.

I know it looks scary. Remember, there's no butter or other oil. It's all this. Just keep stirring, it mixes in eventually!

Finally, toss in the orange segments and dump into the greased pan.

Golden brown and beautiful. Round cakes just look classy to me. I think if I was a baked good, I'd be a round cake. A lot like this one. 

I wanted to wait for Mr. S to come home to cut into it. You have no idea how hard that was!

Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake

Adapted from Leite's Culinaria 

5 small blood oranges (and maybe 5 more for topping at the end)

1 cup sugar 

Around 1/3 c sour cream 

3 eggs 

1 tsp vanilla

2 scant cups flour 

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/4 teaspoon baking soda 

1/4 teaspoon salt 

2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9" round cake pan.

Zest all the oranges. In a large bowl, combine the sugar to the zest. Rub it together with your fingers until incorporated. 

Supreme 3 oranges, set aside.

Juice 2 oranges. You should get just over 1/4 c of juice. Add sour cream until there's 3/4 c of liquid. Pour into large bowl and whisk together. Add sugar, eggs, and vanilla, mixing after each addition.

Load a sifter with the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Sift the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Whisk to incorporate. Fold in the olive oil, a little at a time. Break up the orange segments into little pieces, add to the batter and gently mix in. 

Pour batter into the greased pan. Bake for 55 minutes. When removed from oven, let cool 5 minutes. Then pop it out of the pan. 

While the cake is delicious by itself (and could possibly be considered a breakfast food), I topped mine with a mixture of yogurt and clementine simple syrup. You could do yogurt and honey, or whipped cream. Then add more supremes of oranges, and it's delightful!

I sent Mr. S to work with it today. I bet it doesn't last long.