I've been trying to put into words just what Kit said..confession. Thank you for getting it out there. Here's a confession... I'm a bible study-a-holic. I've got 3 going right now. I know it's a good thing to read God's word, but it also stops me from getting out and interacting with other women of faith. My bbfs right now, besides Kit, are Beth Moore, Donna Otto and Lysa TerKeurst. Another confession, I'm also in search of a home like a desert wandering Israelite. Really, I finally cancelled my Listingbook membership (a mls search) and I don't allow myself to go on Realtor.com. I've looked at every house in our school district with 4 or more bedrooms. I'm driving Tommy and our realtor crazy. I know that now is not the right time for us to buy a house and I need to focus on my jobs at hand (wife, mother, daughter,friend, parishioner, homemaker). So yes, I've been thinking about confession and when all 3 bible studies hit upon that theme at the same time... well I guess I
got the message. l've confessed it to God and now to you all and I pray that with repentence comes some answers. Why am I so kooky? - C
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Confessions
Everyday that goes by is busy. I feel as though the world never stops spinning; Monday, shopping and swimming, Tuesday, sewing and swimming, Wednesday, swimming and swimming. You get the picture. In addition to all the swimming and shopping and sewing there is the little matter of my family and being all that they need me to be: cook, dietitian, psychiatrist, friend, cheerleader and so on. I really think that all moms must balance this multi-tasking existence and we must do it in such a way that keeps us moving forward. With all this being said, however, when is there time for ME?
Candice has asked me and all our bible study to go through the cathartic process of confession (on a small scale) to each other. What is it that takes up our thought processes and how can we better focus them in on where they should be? At what point does our multi-tasking minutiae overtake our good sense? When she asked me to think about this, I realized what I need to confess. Of course my family is already well-aware of what takes my brain away from them. Of what makes me tell them to "give me 5 more minutes and I'll come kiss you goodnight." I confess, I am a Twi-Hard.
For those of you who have NO idea of what I speak, I am completely obsessed with Bella and Edward of Twilight. I love them, I love the books, I love the romance, I love the drama. I can escape to Forks, Washington in my head whenever I want, and I do, at least once every waking hour. My top 5 searches on Google are Twilight Source, Twilight Moms, Bella and Edward and 2 Robert Pattinson websites. Yes, it is a sickness. But I cannot seem to rid myself of knowing what is going on with the making of the next movie, what Stephenie Meyer is up to now, or re-reading the entire series for the 5th time just in case it turns out differently or I find something that I missed the first 4 times I read them.
It should be noted that I resisted this entire world for a long time. My oldest daughter begged me to read the series and for 8 months I brushed it off as "weird" and "not worthy of my time." But then, being stuck in the hospital for 3 days having my 7th child, she sagely left the first volume with me knowing full well that between reading or watching the "judge" shows on in the daytime, I would read anything. After all, isn't this the woman who spent her entire beach vacation week reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince when it came out a few years ago? Ignoring her family's pleas to join them and engage with them. Ahh, Harry, that's another story. I digress.
I remember finishing the first book the day after I got home with new baby and absolutely ravenous for the next one. Thankfully, the last book had already been published, so I was at my leisure to read them and didn't have to attend any midnight parties to pick one up. The first movie had come out - Lucy had already seen it - a few months before, but it was still in the theaters, so we went to see it together. Since then, I have become such a nerd it is hard to even admit it to myself. My daughter is amazed that I am so obsessed and finds it hilarious that Bella and Edward are part of our lives in such a way. "Geez mom, they aren't really real, you know."
I try very hard not to let this obsession get in the way of things that really need to be done - the swimming, the sewing, the shopping. But it isn't easy. I have discovered that I can compartmentalize and change my focus. Right, and when that doesn't work, my IPOD can hold all the podcasts and audio books there are. Sigh, like I said, a sickness. ...K
Candice has asked me and all our bible study to go through the cathartic process of confession (on a small scale) to each other. What is it that takes up our thought processes and how can we better focus them in on where they should be? At what point does our multi-tasking minutiae overtake our good sense? When she asked me to think about this, I realized what I need to confess. Of course my family is already well-aware of what takes my brain away from them. Of what makes me tell them to "give me 5 more minutes and I'll come kiss you goodnight." I confess, I am a Twi-Hard.
For those of you who have NO idea of what I speak, I am completely obsessed with Bella and Edward of Twilight. I love them, I love the books, I love the romance, I love the drama. I can escape to Forks, Washington in my head whenever I want, and I do, at least once every waking hour. My top 5 searches on Google are Twilight Source, Twilight Moms, Bella and Edward and 2 Robert Pattinson websites. Yes, it is a sickness. But I cannot seem to rid myself of knowing what is going on with the making of the next movie, what Stephenie Meyer is up to now, or re-reading the entire series for the 5th time just in case it turns out differently or I find something that I missed the first 4 times I read them.
It should be noted that I resisted this entire world for a long time. My oldest daughter begged me to read the series and for 8 months I brushed it off as "weird" and "not worthy of my time." But then, being stuck in the hospital for 3 days having my 7th child, she sagely left the first volume with me knowing full well that between reading or watching the "judge" shows on in the daytime, I would read anything. After all, isn't this the woman who spent her entire beach vacation week reading Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince when it came out a few years ago? Ignoring her family's pleas to join them and engage with them. Ahh, Harry, that's another story. I digress.
I remember finishing the first book the day after I got home with new baby and absolutely ravenous for the next one. Thankfully, the last book had already been published, so I was at my leisure to read them and didn't have to attend any midnight parties to pick one up. The first movie had come out - Lucy had already seen it - a few months before, but it was still in the theaters, so we went to see it together. Since then, I have become such a nerd it is hard to even admit it to myself. My daughter is amazed that I am so obsessed and finds it hilarious that Bella and Edward are part of our lives in such a way. "Geez mom, they aren't really real, you know."
I try very hard not to let this obsession get in the way of things that really need to be done - the swimming, the sewing, the shopping. But it isn't easy. I have discovered that I can compartmentalize and change my focus. Right, and when that doesn't work, my IPOD can hold all the podcasts and audio books there are. Sigh, like I said, a sickness. ...K
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Mt. Tide
I love laundry. Before the snorting begins, let me re-phrase. Of all the household chores there are, laundry is the least of all evils for me. I hold it up against, say, unloading the dishwasher, a chore I hate beyond all chores. Why is this you ask? I really have no idea, but it must be rooted in childhood somewhere. Laundry and dishes (clean ones) are essentially similar in nature, and actually, the dishwasher only takes about 5 minutes. I've timed it. Many may disagree, but there is something very satisfying in clean clothes, and something very tedious and tiresome in unloading a dishwasher.
Despite the fact that I have enough laundry to do at least 3-4 loads per day (which I don't do, so it piles up, hence the title of this blog), laundry isn't such a stretch for me. I love the peacefulness of sitting on the couch during naptime, watching my dvr'ed Vampire Diaries on TV and folding basket after basket of clean, soft, fresh-smelling laundry. I love looking at each article of clothing and thinking about the child (or husband) it belongs to, and how much they love it. It is also a very effective way of promoting hand-me-downs. When I see one of my kids wearing something that doesn't fit anymore, I make a mental note that next time it comes through, it goes in the younger kid's pile.
I admit that I am very "type A" about folding laundry. I don't care so much if it wrinkles, as it often does because it has sat in a basket for two days, but I like the towels to be just so, the shirts to be even and the jeans to be smoothed out. When my kids fold it for me, I have to resist doing it over, or at least do it over when they can't see. I may not have control over very much, but I do have control over whether the towels are folded in thirds (they stack better that way). If my neighborhood didn't have covenants forbidding it, I truly would have an outdoor line because there is something very therapeutic and calming in going through the motions of pinning out clean clothes and taking down clothes that have been dried in the sun. I have lived this way before, so I know of what I speak.
This has been discussed before with my bible study friends many, many times. I consider us very lucky as women and moms to have this absolute normalcy that we can depend on. There may be world wars going on, the financial system of our country might be going down the tubes, but our kids will always need clean clothes and we will be the ones to provide. In places where we have had devastation, Louisiana after Katrina, the recent floods here in Georgia where people lost everything, I have seen stories about what makes people the most happy. Clean clothes are right at the top of their lists. There is something about being able to get into a freshly made bed at night or laying out your clean clothes for the next day that lifts the spirits, calms the anxieties and makes you feel in control of something for once. We as moms get to always rely on the basics and the necessities in our lives to keep us sane. There isn't one thing we can do about some things in life; many, many things we have no control over. But we can have clean laundry. - K
Despite the fact that I have enough laundry to do at least 3-4 loads per day (which I don't do, so it piles up, hence the title of this blog), laundry isn't such a stretch for me. I love the peacefulness of sitting on the couch during naptime, watching my dvr'ed Vampire Diaries on TV and folding basket after basket of clean, soft, fresh-smelling laundry. I love looking at each article of clothing and thinking about the child (or husband) it belongs to, and how much they love it. It is also a very effective way of promoting hand-me-downs. When I see one of my kids wearing something that doesn't fit anymore, I make a mental note that next time it comes through, it goes in the younger kid's pile.
I admit that I am very "type A" about folding laundry. I don't care so much if it wrinkles, as it often does because it has sat in a basket for two days, but I like the towels to be just so, the shirts to be even and the jeans to be smoothed out. When my kids fold it for me, I have to resist doing it over, or at least do it over when they can't see. I may not have control over very much, but I do have control over whether the towels are folded in thirds (they stack better that way). If my neighborhood didn't have covenants forbidding it, I truly would have an outdoor line because there is something very therapeutic and calming in going through the motions of pinning out clean clothes and taking down clothes that have been dried in the sun. I have lived this way before, so I know of what I speak.
This has been discussed before with my bible study friends many, many times. I consider us very lucky as women and moms to have this absolute normalcy that we can depend on. There may be world wars going on, the financial system of our country might be going down the tubes, but our kids will always need clean clothes and we will be the ones to provide. In places where we have had devastation, Louisiana after Katrina, the recent floods here in Georgia where people lost everything, I have seen stories about what makes people the most happy. Clean clothes are right at the top of their lists. There is something about being able to get into a freshly made bed at night or laying out your clean clothes for the next day that lifts the spirits, calms the anxieties and makes you feel in control of something for once. We as moms get to always rely on the basics and the necessities in our lives to keep us sane. There isn't one thing we can do about some things in life; many, many things we have no control over. But we can have clean laundry. - K
Monday, October 19, 2009
Double Chocolate Mousse Cake
I found this clipping from the AJC last week and made the cake - YUM!
The date is Thursday, Sept. 9, 2004
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
16 oz. semisweet chocolate (chips or 1-oz squares)
1 cup granulated sugar
1cup half and half
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon instant coffee granules (this is MY addition, the original recipe doesn't call for it)
8 eggs
Chocolate glaze (recipe below)
Whipped cream and raspberries for garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 or 10 - inch springform pan. In a 3 quart saucepan over low heat, heat butter, chocolate, sugar, half and half, coffee and salt until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth, stirring constantly. Do not let mixture come to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool.
In a large bowl, eat eggs until foamy. Stir cooled chocolate mixture into eggs; pour into springform pan. (I wrapped my pan with foil and placed it on a cookie sheet so my oven would for sure stay clean.)
Bake 45-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from edge comes out clan. Cool cake completely on wire rack. When cake is cool, remove side of pan; wrap cake in in plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 6 hours.
Prepare Glaze and spread warm over top and down sides of cake. Serve with raspberries and whipped cream if desired.
NB - I didn't make the glaze, I just used Hershey's syrup instead.
Chocolate Glaze
6 oz. semisweet choc. chips
2 T. unsalted butter
3 T. milk
2 T. light corn syrup
In a small saucepan over low heat, or in microwave safe glass dish in microwave, heat chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally, until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and stir in milk and corn syrup.
The date is Thursday, Sept. 9, 2004
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter
16 oz. semisweet chocolate (chips or 1-oz squares)
1 cup granulated sugar
1cup half and half
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon instant coffee granules (this is MY addition, the original recipe doesn't call for it)
8 eggs
Chocolate glaze (recipe below)
Whipped cream and raspberries for garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 9 or 10 - inch springform pan. In a 3 quart saucepan over low heat, heat butter, chocolate, sugar, half and half, coffee and salt until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth, stirring constantly. Do not let mixture come to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool.
In a large bowl, eat eggs until foamy. Stir cooled chocolate mixture into eggs; pour into springform pan. (I wrapped my pan with foil and placed it on a cookie sheet so my oven would for sure stay clean.)
Bake 45-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from edge comes out clan. Cool cake completely on wire rack. When cake is cool, remove side of pan; wrap cake in in plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 6 hours.
Prepare Glaze and spread warm over top and down sides of cake. Serve with raspberries and whipped cream if desired.
NB - I didn't make the glaze, I just used Hershey's syrup instead.
Chocolate Glaze
6 oz. semisweet choc. chips
2 T. unsalted butter
3 T. milk
2 T. light corn syrup
In a small saucepan over low heat, or in microwave safe glass dish in microwave, heat chocolate and butter, stirring occasionally, until chocolate melts and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat and stir in milk and corn syrup.
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Birthday Season
Fall has finally decided to descend on Georgia. Every year we anticipate the brisk, cold air and every year we are visited by an Indian summer. Humid, thick, close air that stays with us and forces us to use the AC just to stay comfortable in the house. Despite having lived in Georgia most of my life, I have never been able to really enjoy the summertime temperatures for longer than it takes to vacation at the beach and run the swim team. When those two activities are done, I am ready for fall and all that it promises. The movie You've Got Mail described it best: anticipating fall is like looking at a container full of newly sharpened pencils (or something to that effect) - it is full of promise, creativity and activity. I love that thought.
Of my seven children, four of them (the four middle ones) were born almost exactly two years apart - within two weeks of each other and all during the fall. We always joked that if I could make it through March without a positive pregnancy test, all was well. The end result of this really is that I am in "cupcake overload" from mid-October through the first week in November, with Halloween right smack in the middle. There are cupcakes/cookies to make for the school classes for lunch, there are cookies to make for the different swim groups, the softball team, and of course the required birthday cake on the actual day of her birthday! Heaven forbid we don't stretch out this celebration as long as possible! I am cupcaked out come November 6th.
Years ago we adopted a policy of the "friend birthday vs. the family birthday" just to cut down on the cost of parties and more importantly, try to reduce the "entitlement factor" that our kids tend to suffer from. The kids alternate every year and after the 10th year, we reduce it to the BIG years (13, 16, etc.) But despite our best efforts the celebrations continue into the school lunches, after swim practices and after the softball games. The result is that I have found I need to sit down with each birthday girl in turn, ask her what she wants to bring to her various activity, ask her what she wants to have on her actual day and get a head count from the coach/teacher so that I don't leave anybody out. For most people, this isn't such a big deal and if my kids' birthdays were just a little more spread out, it wouldn't be a big deal for me either. It is only because they are so back to back that it gets stressful at all. I have to wonder though, is it better to do it all at once and go through three weeks of constant baking, decorating and transporting of sweet treats or would it be better to spread it out so that 8 out of 12 months I am doing something (including the Huz in that count)? I'm still not sure about that. Because each month (almost) comes with its own set of priorities and activities anyway, maybe it is better to take a deep breath, put my head down and sprint for the end zone protecting the ball and hoping I don't get tackled! (how do you like THAT football reference? clever, huh? :)) But it really does feel like that sometimes. I can get through it as long as I keep my eye on the end result; I can score my own touchdown.
This coming week I will need to produce cupcakes for the 4th grade class, cookies for the Rookie Blue swim group, cookies for the Age Group swim group, cookies for the softball team and 2 birthday cakes. Then we will have Halloween and the neighborhood party, treats for my Stingers (the kids I coach). Directly after that, I will have cupcakes for the Kindergarten class, cookies for the Rookie White swim group, cupcakes for the 2nd grade class and 2 more birthday cakes! YIKES! Sometimes I like to break up the monotony and make Rice Crispy treats instead, or have a doughnut cake (stacked up doughnuts with candles stuck in them), but there is no escaping the sugar overload.
No wonder I feel like a hamster on a wheel! I recently questioned this in a blog to my dearest friends that literally get me through each day. We have a bible study that we are doing "online" this semester because everyone is so busy. Over the past 3-4 years we have always met at different houses to do our study, but with changing work schedules, demands from the kids as they get older, we decided to go techie this year with an online blog. We are studying David this semester and all that he went through being God's chosen leader. My (very wise) friend said something profound. "David has an amazing story..can you just imagine what it feels like to know you have been picked by God to lead a nation...well, we have been picked by God to lead a family....just as amazing!" As I make it through the next few weeks I will endeavor to remember that I have been hand-picked by God to lead this family and all that it entails. ...K
Of my seven children, four of them (the four middle ones) were born almost exactly two years apart - within two weeks of each other and all during the fall. We always joked that if I could make it through March without a positive pregnancy test, all was well. The end result of this really is that I am in "cupcake overload" from mid-October through the first week in November, with Halloween right smack in the middle. There are cupcakes/cookies to make for the school classes for lunch, there are cookies to make for the different swim groups, the softball team, and of course the required birthday cake on the actual day of her birthday! Heaven forbid we don't stretch out this celebration as long as possible! I am cupcaked out come November 6th.
Years ago we adopted a policy of the "friend birthday vs. the family birthday" just to cut down on the cost of parties and more importantly, try to reduce the "entitlement factor" that our kids tend to suffer from. The kids alternate every year and after the 10th year, we reduce it to the BIG years (13, 16, etc.) But despite our best efforts the celebrations continue into the school lunches, after swim practices and after the softball games. The result is that I have found I need to sit down with each birthday girl in turn, ask her what she wants to bring to her various activity, ask her what she wants to have on her actual day and get a head count from the coach/teacher so that I don't leave anybody out. For most people, this isn't such a big deal and if my kids' birthdays were just a little more spread out, it wouldn't be a big deal for me either. It is only because they are so back to back that it gets stressful at all. I have to wonder though, is it better to do it all at once and go through three weeks of constant baking, decorating and transporting of sweet treats or would it be better to spread it out so that 8 out of 12 months I am doing something (including the Huz in that count)? I'm still not sure about that. Because each month (almost) comes with its own set of priorities and activities anyway, maybe it is better to take a deep breath, put my head down and sprint for the end zone protecting the ball and hoping I don't get tackled! (how do you like THAT football reference? clever, huh? :)) But it really does feel like that sometimes. I can get through it as long as I keep my eye on the end result; I can score my own touchdown.
This coming week I will need to produce cupcakes for the 4th grade class, cookies for the Rookie Blue swim group, cookies for the Age Group swim group, cookies for the softball team and 2 birthday cakes. Then we will have Halloween and the neighborhood party, treats for my Stingers (the kids I coach). Directly after that, I will have cupcakes for the Kindergarten class, cookies for the Rookie White swim group, cupcakes for the 2nd grade class and 2 more birthday cakes! YIKES! Sometimes I like to break up the monotony and make Rice Crispy treats instead, or have a doughnut cake (stacked up doughnuts with candles stuck in them), but there is no escaping the sugar overload.
No wonder I feel like a hamster on a wheel! I recently questioned this in a blog to my dearest friends that literally get me through each day. We have a bible study that we are doing "online" this semester because everyone is so busy. Over the past 3-4 years we have always met at different houses to do our study, but with changing work schedules, demands from the kids as they get older, we decided to go techie this year with an online blog. We are studying David this semester and all that he went through being God's chosen leader. My (very wise) friend said something profound. "David has an amazing story..can you just imagine what it feels like to know you have been picked by God to lead a nation...well, we have been picked by God to lead a family....just as amazing!" As I make it through the next few weeks I will endeavor to remember that I have been hand-picked by God to lead this family and all that it entails. ...K
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
P.S. the Chocolate Cake
I promised in my Twitter that I would blog about the cake. WOW! If you like flourless, dense, intense chocolate flavor - this cake is for you. It came from an Atlanta Journal Constitution article from years ago - I found it in one of my cookbooks and had all the ingredients on hand.
I can post the recipe (I guess I can?) if anyone wants it. Crazy stuff. - K
I can post the recipe (I guess I can?) if anyone wants it. Crazy stuff. - K
Frozen vs. Freestyle
I was speaking with a dear friend of mine yesterday, another swim mom incidentally, when I mentioned the fact that because all the kids had dryland (aerobic exercises and running) in addition to their pool workouts, our dinner schedule was all screwed up. I would have people coming and going at all different times and mealtime would be on a "three-shift schedule". To solve this issue, I abandoned my original dinner plans (veggie night, see a previous post) and opted for Plan B which was a store-bought frozen casserole with different veggies on the side. I could put all of this in the lower oven on 200 and let it just sit there until the dinner shifts were done.
When my friend and I were discussing this plan, she was thrilled that I was serving a frozen, store-bought meal because her daughter gives her flack about doing the same thing. Horror of horrors! I told her that I do this occasionally knowing full well 1/3 of my kids won't eat it, 1/3 will try to eat it and the last third will eat it and enjoy it. I am, frankly, ambivalent about it as sometimes meal preparation is so difficult with our evening schedule that I am just interested in "filling the hole" so to speak; I'm not as interested in what we are eating as I am in the fact that we EAT.
The jury in my head is still out as to whether or not the frozen casseroles actually taste good. Some are better than others, and ones that I think would be awesome just aren't. But, they DO fill the hole, and that's one less meal I need to really cook. With this being said however, I cannot help but compare what I could make vs. what the red box offers. The quality of what I can buy, on sale, is great and there is no beating the price; there is no way I could produce the same amount of food for under $4 (again, on sale), but I know that what I make would taste tons better. Herein lies the conundrum.
If I knew I could get my kids to eat it, I would make and freeze casseroles myself. One casserole could feed us twice - especially because they just pick at it, only 2-3 of them will actually eat the whole thing. So what to do? Maybe next time we have leftover chicken, I will turn it into the traditional chicken and rice or chicken and pasta casserole and freeze it. This way, I will have the option of an "on the fly" dinner when I need it. Every budget-friendly, time-saver, organizational article ever written mentions this strategy, but I have yet to do it simply because my family is "casserole-challenged," but maybe it's better than the red box? I'll let you all know...K
When my friend and I were discussing this plan, she was thrilled that I was serving a frozen, store-bought meal because her daughter gives her flack about doing the same thing. Horror of horrors! I told her that I do this occasionally knowing full well 1/3 of my kids won't eat it, 1/3 will try to eat it and the last third will eat it and enjoy it. I am, frankly, ambivalent about it as sometimes meal preparation is so difficult with our evening schedule that I am just interested in "filling the hole" so to speak; I'm not as interested in what we are eating as I am in the fact that we EAT.
The jury in my head is still out as to whether or not the frozen casseroles actually taste good. Some are better than others, and ones that I think would be awesome just aren't. But, they DO fill the hole, and that's one less meal I need to really cook. With this being said however, I cannot help but compare what I could make vs. what the red box offers. The quality of what I can buy, on sale, is great and there is no beating the price; there is no way I could produce the same amount of food for under $4 (again, on sale), but I know that what I make would taste tons better. Herein lies the conundrum.
If I knew I could get my kids to eat it, I would make and freeze casseroles myself. One casserole could feed us twice - especially because they just pick at it, only 2-3 of them will actually eat the whole thing. So what to do? Maybe next time we have leftover chicken, I will turn it into the traditional chicken and rice or chicken and pasta casserole and freeze it. This way, I will have the option of an "on the fly" dinner when I need it. Every budget-friendly, time-saver, organizational article ever written mentions this strategy, but I have yet to do it simply because my family is "casserole-challenged," but maybe it's better than the red box? I'll let you all know...K
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Therapy
I love the fall. I love the trees, I love the weather, I love the serenity of it all. I also love the activities and the schedule, structured and "full" as it is. After a relatively unscheduled summer, it is always nice to get back into the swing of things and have a list of things to accomplish and feel good about.
We had our first swim meet of the season yesterday. It was a particularly long day, because my oldest had practice before the meet and then we had a clinic for the little ones, the team picture, and lunch (which I helped organize) - all before the actual meet even started. Then there was the 4 hour meet keeping 4 (sometimes 6) swimmers in their events, heats and lanes, making sure I saw them all swim and cheering them on when they dropped time. Plus the baby was with me, on my hip, going everywhere I went. We were all exhausted by the time we got home at 6pm.
Waking up this morning, splitting church into two shifts - husband took the little ones early, I am taking the older ones tonight, enabled me to have some blessed minutes to myself. So I indulged in one of my favorite therapies - baking a cake. Do we need a cake sitting around here all tasty and yummy asking to be eaten? Of course not, but there is something very calming and therapeutic about making a cake from scratch. I relied on a tried and true recipe from an older Southern Living Christmas cookbook - Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze. The thought of being able to use up the last of the apples we picked last month (they've lasted this long!) and making something that fit into the "fall" feeling was particularly satisfying.
So I put on my Jim Brickman cd, got out my Kitchen Aid and got to work chopping apples, mixing oil and sugar and planning when I was going to run to the store to get the brown sugar for the glaze, because of course we didn't have any. Am I the only person this happens to? Luckily it worked out. I have made this cake many times with and without the nuts. It can be made in the small, mini-loaf pans and given away as teacher gifts or neighbor gifts and is better than any store bought cake I've found. This time though, I selfishly made it in it's original vessel - the Bundt pan - all the better for the glaze to drip down - and we are going to eat the whole thing ourselves. ...K
Hopefully, I won't get in trouble posting the recipe. It comes out of Southern Living's Our Best Christmas Recipes copyright 1994.
Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 cups peeled, finely chopped cooking apple
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Brown Sugar Glaze
Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed of an electric mixer until creamy. Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; add to sugar mixture, beating well. Stir in apple and pecans.
Pour batter into a greased and floured 12-cup Bundt pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan, and let cool completely on wire rack. Drizzle Brown Sugar Glaze over cake.
Brown Sugar Glaze
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons evaporated milk or heavy cream
Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan; cook over high heat, stirring constantly, 2 minutes or until butter melts. Cool to lukewarm.
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