Category: Daily Thoughts

appetizers · Daily Thoughts · Dips · Uncategorized

Trudicita Makes Salsa

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

Going to the local farmer’s market on Monday got me in the mood to be daring and make my own salsa. For some reason, that is one of those things that I always meant to do,but never did. I guess because there was always a plethora of Tex-Mex restaurants close by, I opted for spending time baking. But Monday afternoon, I looked up different recipes and ended up doing a version of a recipe the Pioneer Woman posted.

We fried up some homemake flour tortillas and ate our weight in salsa. So today, I used up the remaining cilantro, jalapeño and tomillo and made more. Am thinking of giving up my Hey Ya’ll Paula Deen apron for a “Salsa Lot of Garlic” one. Had such fun making it and got Randy outside exploring how to use his new smoker he got for Christmas. We had ribs and salsa for dinner.

Ingredients

1 Tomatillo, cut in chunks

3 cloves of garlic

1 small yellow onion

1 bunch of cilantro

1/2 small jalapeño, cut and seeded

1 regular can of Rotel Tomatoes with green chiles, juice and all

2 fresh tomatoes

Salt and Pepper to Taste

1/8 cup of lime juice

1 teas of sugar

Cut all veggies into chunks. Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until mixture is the consistency you want. I pulsed mine about 4-5 times. Season to your liking according to how hot you want it and how salty you want it.

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Bus Rides, Bucket Lists & Bougainvilleas

Chocolate Castles

Well, we ate our way through Puerta Vallarta and discovered that if we lived there we would loose weight. (I know, I say that about every place I visit). Because the shrimp and lobster were so delicious and it was easier to walk than try to run to catch a taxi, we actually lost a couple of pounds on vacation. The bus rides were so rough, due to the cobblestone streets, it seemed that it shook some cellulite off my rear end. Not enough to wear a bathing suit in daylight, but enough to allow me to not come home and need to buy elastic waisted pants. So it truly was a win-win vacation. Randy loved it because the bus ride cost 15 pesos for both of us to ride which translates to less than a dollar per couple. I loved it because I bought cute little capris for $15/pair and painted blouses and silver jewelry.

It has always been on my bucket list to travel to foreign countries and get immersed in the community around me. To experience life as a local.  We discovered that there was nothing like riding the buses in Mexico to help you feel like a local. Sometimes we were the only Americans on the bus. Sometimes, we rode an hour longer than needed because we couldn’t read where the bus was headed and yet, it was delightful to sit and watch the people of the community as they got on and off the bus. I could sit there on the rusted metal seat of the bus and try to imagine what their lives were like. Were they headed home from work or school? Were they going home to a family or to an apartment alone? We encountered several locals who had moved there from the states and for various reasons decided to stay in Mexico and never left. We met Americans who had gone down to visit and decided that they liked it so much, they now lived there part of each year. As we would arrive back at our hotel, the bright color of pink bougainvillea welcomed us into a world which still separated us from the majority of folks  who worked and lived there. As we shopped in the markets, or ate in restaurants, the mood was always the same. The precious people we talked with were happy and content. They laughed with us about a wall being built and told us we had better hurry and get home or we might not be able to get over the newly built wall. One waiter/owner of a small little eatery, kidded us and told us that he had moved from Southern California because there were too many Mexicans there. (He himself was a Mexican) By the time the week was over, we felt that we had changed some of our perspectives. Yes, we are such a blessed Nation of freedoms and choices. Most of us have wonderful places to live and plenty of food on the table. We have cars to drive and too many clothes in our closets. Yet, there was a feeling around us as we walked the streets of PV that taught me that there are millions out there who are truly content with what they have. The people we encountered had a smile for us as we boarded the bus. Some of the men would get up, if there were no seats left and give them to Randy and I.  One of the young men on the bus actually helped Randy off the bus and then got back on himself. It was a joy to eat at restaurants off the beaten path. The food was truly amazing and we experienced the best flour tortillas (bar none) we had ever had. The shrimp and guacamole became a daily “must”. If you are ever in PV, you have to go to El Patron. When we talked to the owner, we were asking why his prices were so reasonable. He told us that he likes to keep it that way so the locals can afford to eat there. It was that type of attitude which seemed to flow throughout the city.

The young were waiting tables and working hard. They were so thankful to have a job. We came away feeling like they were the ones who blessed us. Their attitudes were gracious, yet gentle. They didn’t ask anything in return. Both of our hearts were warmed by not only the Tropical Sun, but by the outpouring of friendliness and gratitude of a listening ear or smile which they received most graciously!

The trip was so wonderful and we are so excited we were able to experience one of our bucket list wishes.

 

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Words & Wonder

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Saturday morning I went to a brunch where friends from our Bible Study gathered together around the dining table to share some great food and to share the word that the Lord had given to us for 2017.

About 4 years ago a dear friend use to tell us about having a “word” that she had ask the Lord. This “word” would seem to show up in devotions, in sermons, scripture or songs and she always told us that it was a word which the Lord would use to teach her, more of Him. So those of us who took Bible study from her began to ask the Lord if He would give us a word. I remember the first year that I began to ask for a “word.”  I wish I could tell you that I prayed with a believing heart that He would lay something upon my heart but as I prayed I felt myself wondering if truly, I would hear from Him. Each year, always in different ways, He would reveal a word to me that helped me focus on a certain aspect of Bible study which invariably  led me into a deeper knowledge of God and what He desired from me. The first year my word was serve, I began to write down scriptures which I would come across that centered on “serving”. As that year progressed, I found myself serving in ways which I had never thought about.

The following year, being thrown into a year of disruption of our lives and circumstances, the Lord clearly gave me the word, “restore” as I struggled with finding a new purpose, all the while knowing that He still loved me and wanted me to know that just because my circumstances had changed, His will for me had not ,and that was to continue serving Him, just maybe in different ways.

Well, in November of 2016, I began to pray, asking God to reveal to me what word He wanted me to have for 2017. As weeks passed, I wondered if He was ever going to give me the “word”.  On December 20th, I woke up at 5:30 a.m and the word, “tenacity” was just what I woke up saying. I wondered what in the world it meant. It was a word which I do not ever remember saying, much less using it in a sentence. I fell back asleep and woke up at 7 a.m and there it was again, “tenacity”. I thought about it all day and told Randy that “I think the Lord has shown me what my word for 2017 is going to be.” A couple of days later, there in my daily devotion, the word “tenacity” jumped off the page at me. It was then that I realized that yes, the Lord had truly spoken what word my focus would be for the year.  Looking up the definition, i realized that it means to “persevere” and to remain faithful through any circumstance.

As the ladies gathered around the table, last Saturday,we began to share just how God had revealed their words. This was new to each of them, but as we began to share the words which the Lord had given to us, we begin to realize how intimately God wants to be involved with our lives. Most of us were in circumstances which we would not have chosen, but God, in His infinite love and mercy had given each of us a word which shows His love and faithfulness to us. As we listened to the stories that morning,  some of the words which we revealed the Lord had given to us were; hope, steadfast, trust, rest, and calm. It was such a blessed morning to hear how God had been working in each of their lives and how they had been given their word for 2017. As I came home, I began to think about what had just transpired. Women who had never before ask the Lord for a word, had just shared how God had spoken to them, all in a different way, but each one, feeling so blessed by God that He loved them and answered their prayers of receiving what they had ask, a word that would be encouraging and cause them to remember how much He loves each one.

Why do we continue to wonder if God still speaks, when it tells us in His Word, that He has given us His Holy Spirit to speak truth to us.

John 15:7 “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.”

Psalm 91:15 “He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver hi and honor him.”

Jeremiah 33:3 “Call to me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things, which you do to know.”

 

 

 

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Thanks For The Memories

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Happy New Year! Randy and I are in California for a few days celebrating the blessings from 2016, but also looking forward to what 2017 has in store. As most of you know, leaving California in 2014 was one of the hardest things we had done, after living here for almost 4 years. Those four years turned out to be one of the biggest and best blessings of our 20 years together. Our hearts felt at home here as God placed so many wonderful folks in our lives. We struggled so much as we drove out of town back in Feb of 2014, knowing that God had revealed to us that our time here was done, but still fighting with Him about putting our wants before His will. Each time we came back here to visit, the old desires of wanting to live here would surface and it made it hard to leave the place which we had come to love so much. As we both fought what we knew was God’s plan, we began to converse with each other thinking, “God would want us to be happy wouldn’t He?” Why would He ask us to live someplace other than where we want to? But as we both know, our hearts were not in a surrendered position to hear and obey His will. We did move back to Dallas for two years and discovered that just like the old tv show, Father Knows Best, truly our Heavenly Father does know best. We had two years to spend with our kids who lived there and was blessed to be there for our granddaughter to be born. It was great to be around old friends who had mentored both Randy and I and who we loved dearly. We both had lots of resentment in our hearts because of Randy having to retire and needed some healing to take place. We both learned that until we gave God our surrender and forgave some of the circumstances, we would never find the peace which God has promised. After two years of filling up on Tex-Mex, and finally surrendering our will to His, we knew that our time in Texas was behind us and moved forward (not only phisically but emotionally) to Arizona to live near our daughter who drew the short stick of being the one who would help us as we grew older (well, he might grow older, but I have decided that I am going to stay 66, just not in any shape to get older. I think I probably should have taken better care of myself and done more exercise and eaten healthier foods had I planned to really grow old).

We have now been in our new home in Arizona and love not only our new home, but our community and new friends. We are only 6 hours away from people here in California so it is so handy to drive out here to visit and some have driven to Phoenix and visited us.

As we have been back in town here in Pasadena for 4 days the old struggles have surfaced, as they always did. Yes, I got teary eyed after going back to the nail salon that I always went to. Of course I had to wipe my eyes at church yesterday as we sat there and remembered all the wonderful Sundays of getting to come and worship with people we adored. We have eaten our way through the places we loved to go and stayed with friends that always treat us like family. I havent’ got to the point yet that I can drive by our house here. So fortunately, since our street gets roped off for the floats to line up, it is impossible to drive by today (just when I think I’m truly strong enough to see our house without crying), but Randy knowing I needed some extra comfort, drove me to Dots’Cupcakes and bought me a dozen mini cupcakes. Ok, life is good again. What I have learned this past year are seveal things.

Knowing God’s will isn’t what brings about peace and comfort, but knowing and OBEYING God’s will. It has been hard some days to actually do that. All along when I knew what HE was asking, I fought with His will or listening to what I thought was best. When I surrender, it makes even the new places good.

I John 2:17 “The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”

It is really not the location that makes us comfortable and full of purpose, it is the people that God plants in our lives which give us so much pleasure and purpose.

Proverbs 21:30-31 “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed againt the Lord. The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.”

That each new place (or season) which God takes us through is for our benefit and for His Glory. That faith grows when we confess our weaknesses and realize that only in Him will I feel complete and fulfill my purpose.

Isaiah 40:29″ The Lord gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”

Because of His great love for me, I can trust Him to complete His perfect will in me and know that He will give me the desires of my heart as long as I am praying His will be done.

Isa 26:3-4″ You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock eternal.”

Will I ever get to move back to California? Only the Lord knows the answer to that. What I want to learn more of in 2017 is to truly lean on Him and trust that His way is perfect, whether I live in California or New York. What I need to do is to lean into Him and trust that He knows what is best for me and to know that He loves me;  that walking in His will takes us into adventures which we never dreamed would end up some of our best blessings.

Isa 43:19 “Behold, I will do something new. Now it will spring forth; Do you not see it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

May 2017 be a year of Jubilee as we all remember to “let go and let God” be our guide!

Happy New Years! My prayer is to learn to say “yes” to Him before I know the question!

 

appetizers · Breads · Breakfast · Daily Thoughts · Holiday Fare · Meats · Uncategorized

Sister Schubert Roll Sandwiches

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This week I hosted a Gingerbread Open House for ladies which live here in our community.  Trying to serve foods which were a little different from all the regular dishes which are served at open houses, at the last minute decided to try this. Because we are Sister Schubert roll addicts, I decided to serve ham sandwiches using these amazing rolls. These rolls are so easy to find all over the south, but are harder to find in California and Arizona,…but wouldn’t you know that Walmart actually stocks them here in and around Phoenix. Because we love Funeral sandwiches (yes, that recipe is on the blog), but didn’t have any more room to bake a huge jelly roll pan full of them, I opted for Sister Schubert sandwiches, which turned out awesome. So here is what I did and they ladies loved them.

*There are SS rolls which come in a package called Dinner Rolls, but the type I am using here are the rolls which come in the 9″ round aluminum pan found in the freezer aisle of the grocery store.

Melt 2 sticks of butter. Add a heaping tablespoon of mustard and 3 tablespoons of honey. Stir until mixture is completely blended. This mixture will make 2 pans of the Sister Schubert roll sandwiches.

Cut rolls in half after you have thawed them. Brush the inside of roll with butter mixture and then place a slice of ham (you will need to cut ham slices into small pieces to fit the rolls). Place top on roll and place back in baking pan they came in. After you have prepared each roll, brush the tops of the rolls with some of the butter mixture and bake according to directions. Serve warm. (You can add cheese slices to the ham rolls if desired.

Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Pies · Uncategorized

Southern Pecan Pie

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Before you pass this up thinking that you have hundreds of pecan pie recipes, let me assure you that this one is absolutely awesome and different. Last Fall I had mentioned that I had bought a little Holiday Celebrations cookbook for $1 on a clearance table. It has such great recipes which have become some of my favorite. Two weeks ago while looking for a pecan pie recipe for Thanksgiving, I remembered this little book and started looking through it and there on page 106 was a recipe for Southern Pecan Pie. As I read it, I noticed that it used light brown sugar instead of granulated sugar. Well, folks, both Frosty and I agree that this pecan pie is the best we have ever had. I just put a mini one in the oven as we were already craving it again and didn’t want to wait for Christmas. At this age, we figure that even if having way too much pecan pie shortens our life span by a year or two, it was worth it and we will go with a smile on our faces, knowing that we went out having the best pecan pie EVER!.  So push away the old traditional recipe and venture out of your comfort zone. Whether you pronounce it PEE Can or PeCAN, your in for a treat!

1 unbaked pie crust (if you want points in your Heavenly Crown, make it homemade)

1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed

1 cup light corn syrup

4 eggs

2 tables melted butter

1/8 teas salt ( I don’t even bother with this as it just doesn’t make a difference)

1/2 teas vanilla

1 cup pecans

Mix all filling ingredients together and whisk until well combined. Pour into unbaked pie shell and place in preheated oven. Bake at 375 for about 40-45 minutes.

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Lessons from November

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They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but this ole lady learned some things this past month. Having some of our kids come for The Thanksgiving week was such a treat, but I did learn that I am certainly not as young as I once was. No longer can I cook until midnight and then wake up at 6 to cook breakfast for 8 people without thinking that I deserve a 2 hour massage. I also learned that things do not have to be perfect to have a memorable Thanksgiving. In fact, it seems the less perfect, the more fun and the best memories are made. The night the kids all came together, they requested King Ranch Casserole for dinner. Well, I was so proud of myself that I had made the casserole ahead of time so I could spend more time out of the kitchen and look “oh so Ina Gardner’ by having things well prepared and ready for the oven. We sat down to a lovely decorated table that Martha Stewart would be so proud of, only to dish up a most liquid King Ranch casserole. The tortillas had totally dissolved and it was just almost like chicken soup. But since we had their favorite dessert of chocolate sheet cake, they quickly forgot that dinner had to be eaten with a spoon.

On Thanksgiving morning,  we learned that the sanitation department here does not take Thanksgiving off and because our collection day is Thursday, Randy rolled out our garbage can and we continued to get everything ready to put on the table. All at once, I heard the truck approach our street and at the last minute I thought “wouldn’t it be so nice to take some cake and candy out to the worker collecting the trash, since he is having to work today.” So I hurriedly packaged up a plate of goodies to run them out, only to find that he had already passed our house and was a couple of doors down. I decided to run and catch hm. So here I am, running in my house slippers with a plate of desserts and just as I would catch up with him, he would take off for the next house stop (which in our community they stop every couple of houses instead of each house because two garbage cans are side by side to avoid them stopping every house). So catching my breath and finding enough strength to run to the next stop, I would frantically wave at him, hoping he would see me in the side mirror and stop…well, after about 8 houses down and one heart attack, he finally saw me and stopped the truck. By now, I could hardly catch my breath and was trying to tell him thank you for working on a holiday and I hoped that he enjoyed the desserts I was trying to reach up inside his window to hand to him .  Even if he didn’t want it, he took it out of pity for the old lady that had run down the block screaming for him to stop.

Maybe our family didn’t have the funniest of memories this year, but I bet that all the other families which were sitting down and glancing out the window,about the time I was running down the street, had some great laughs at my expense. Of course, Jodi, with her sweet loving heart, was laughing so hard when i told her, all she could say, was “oh how I wish Randy would have video taped that”.  She is just the most caring daughter EVER!

So I did learn that…1. Have a plate ready to give to anyone driving by, instead of having to chase them. 2. Do not make King Ranch Casserole too far ahead of time, unless you want King Ranch Soup. 3. Enjoy your family and friends without having to have the house, the meals, the decorations perfect. They are there to see you, not the house…ok, maybe they might be there a little for the meals, but remember that meals are best remembered when there is laughter and fun around the table.

ALLS WELL THAT ENDS WITH A GOOD MEAL….even if it isn’t perfect!

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Dumpster Diving Days Delayed

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Im so thankful for computers, chocolate and Castle reruns as I won’t be sticking my head out the door for a few days. After yesterday, it will be awhile before I show my face out in our neighborhood. Let me start at the beginning. Our community has a garage sale every year. It was so exciting to think that we could get rid of all the “treasures” that we don’t have room for since moving here in May. I had already begun to imagine the new chairs, lamps and Christmas decor which I would be able to buy after making a fortune on Saturday from selling all the goodies. On Friday morning, I ran to a store here to look and pick out new chairs that I just knew would be in my future after closing up the garage sale yesterday. That way, all I would have to do yesterday afternoon is walk in the store and point and say, “I’ll take that and that and oh yes, I have to have that cute little table decoration. And please box up all those wonderful lamps which I just cannot live without”. Because I get a little (ok, maybe more than a little) impulsive sometimes, I did come home Friday with the back end of our crossover  loaded with a new chest of draw4rs and a small buffet because what if,”there had been a huge crowd showing up at the store and bought them out of these two precious chests, (at least that was my reasoning when unloading them out of the back with Randy standing there just shaking his head.) and I would have had to settle for something that was just not “perfect” for our new house. Heaven  forbid! ok, back to Friday night preparing for Saturday morning garage sale…I unloaded the new “just had  to have pieces” and Randy says that he will take the big boxes to the dumpster which is located in the back of our neighborhood. He takes off on the golf cart and I proceed to bring in the newfound treasures. When he comes back a few minutes later, he walks in the house and says, “well, I am officially my dad now, I just picked up something that was sitting beside the dumpster because I thought you might like them; come outside.”. So I did. There sitting beside the golf cart were 3 lanterns which hold candles that add charm and sophistication to the American home. I said, “you mean to tell me that someone just left these at the dumpster? I’m so proud of you for bringing them home. I will just paint them black and set them up on the porch and buy new candles for them.”

To celebrate our new obtained Dumpster Decor, we decided to celebrate and go get a. Pizza so my energy would be spent on taking the rest of our stuff outside for the sale, which would start at 7 a.m.

When we were pulling back into the driveway with pizza in hand, I had had time to think that maybe  painting the lanterns would be a lot of trouble. So I told Randy that instead of painting them, I would just sell them in the garage sale. After all, If I could get $5/ea that would allow me to run to Hobby Lobby and get one gigantic black lantern. So, I marked them with little yellow stickers and set them out to be oohed and Ahhed over, just knowing that they would be the first thing to go. Sure enough, a neighbor stopped by at 7:30 and said, “oh that would look great on my porch, I will buy one. So after taking her money, I turned to Randy and smiled, being ever so confident that I had made the right decision.  About an hour later, a sweet new friend and her husband stopped by to see if we had anything they could not live without. Teresa lives the next street over and we have already become quite good friends. For those of you who know Carol Loper, Teresa is the Carol of Arizona.

Teresa looks over at the lanterns and says, I just saw one that looks just like those on Judy’s front porch. I said, yes, she stopped by earlier and bought one. She then looks at her husband and says, “those look just like the ones you took to the dumpster yesterday” at which time, she looks at me and says, “I had better go home to check and see if anything is missing from my house since you were at my house the other day.”.  By this time, we were laughing so hard we were both crying.  Randy looked at me and said, “I told you that out of 800 houses here, expect the person that threw these away to see them here at our house being sold.”.  Well, between the laughing and the embarrassment, it was just too much. She texted me and told me that she was not going to hang this sin over my head forever but she was certainly going to get some mileage out of it. I had to promise her that I will support her grandson’s first 2 years of college if she would keep quiet. Apparently that wasn’t enough, because she texted me this morning and said that they told everyone at the patio party last night. AND encouraged all our new friends to not ever let me house sit for them, as they might come home and find an empty house with me selling all their worldly possessions in a garage sale.

My dumpster diving days are now behind me and the new adventure of not stooping lower than garage sale finds is ahead.  I assured Teresa that I would at least tithe from the money I profited from the sale of her lantern. Maybe I need to give a little more than 10% to get me out of this one.

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Shooting Stars

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Last night Randy and I went outside about 10:30 to walk Oliver before calling it a night. As we were walking, I was glancing at my phone to look up something on Google to get information about something we had been talking about. As I finished reading the article, I stopped walking and turned to look at Randy to be sure he had just heard what I had said, when he didn’t respond to me answering his question. As I stood there in the middle of the street (trust me, where we live, you never have to worry about having a car come down the street after 10 as everyone here is tucked away in their little houses as we live in an over 55 community) all of a sudden I was shocked to see a shooting star past right over us. It thrilled me to see this rare sight, as I had not seen one in probably over 30 years. All of a sudden it dawned on me that had I been still looking at my phone, which is a constant habit, I would have missed this beautiful sight. It made me think of how many other “shooting stars” had I missed when I had my eyes glued to my phone or a TV.

A dear BFF of mine had given me a book a few years ago called One Thousand Gifts. This new season of my life has allowed me to sit and begin reading it. It is so easy to sit and read a action packed book, but a book which is full of words which makes you stop and think and sometimes convicts you, well, I tend to not pick those types of books up so fast. But as this new journey of ours has slowed us down a bit, I knew that this was a book which I should be reading and taking to heart. The author made a list of 1000 things she is thankful for. After reading her story, I began to think about how many times a day do I truly stop and thank God for blessings, both large and small. Two weeks ago, Randy and I stopped to talk to a new friend at our church. How we began to talk about saying thanks for blessings, I truly do not know, but Rick ended up telling us that years ago a friend of his told him something that had stayed with him all these years and it was this:

“What if we woke up and only had the things around us which we had remembered to give thanks to God for? What would we have around us?”

BAM! It made me really stop and think about what had I been remembering to give thanks for? After remembering the story in the Bible about the 10 lepers which Jesus healed and only one of them coming back to thank Jesus, I began to pray that I would be like the one leper which came back. That I wouldn’t get caught up in the routine of each day, just going through the motions but would recognize that each day God gives me is an opportunity for Him to use me. The shooting star last night made me also think about how much I must miss having my eyes glued to a phone or a TV.

In this season when we are constantly being reminded that we are entering a season of “giving thanks”, it is my prayer that my eyes will be open to other “shooting stars” that pass by me and then to remember to give God thanks for all the times and ways He has blessed me. That this will not just be another year of bowing my head on Thanksgiving day to thank Him for “all the great things He hath done”!

Heavenly Father, thank you for all the “shooting stars” which you allow to pass over my life. May I ever be mindful of your faithfulness and your mercy. Bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me, bless Your Holy Name.

Psa 57:9-11″I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your stedfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth.”

Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Uncategorized

Bonnie Butter Cake

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Cannot tell you why this is called Bonnie Butter Cake, but leafing through my spiral notebook from the early 70’s that I copied different recipes into, I came across this one today.  Since Randy loves white (or yellow) cake with chocolate frosting, I told him I would make this for him. This sound crazy, but I love all the stains from grease and little fingerprints that had cocoa or butter on them, that are all over this precious memory spiral book. It just always takes me back to days of having 3 little kids pulling up chairs to the cabinet begging to “help” mix or stir. Isn’t it odd that when you are in those days, sometimes we think, “oh how nice it would be to just come in the kitchen and be able to bake a batch of cookies without all “mother’s little helpers”…it would go so much faster and smoother and easier. Then years down the road we see things like I am looking at right now and wish we could go back and have “mother’s little helpers” still pulling up to the cabinets. Moms and dads, don’t wish your years away. Enjoy them and savor each moment that they want to “help”…trust me, it goes much quicker than you will realize. Memories are so wonderful, so don’t wish away the years in which you are making them.

Ingredients

2/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 3/4 cup sugar

2  large eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 teas vanilla

3 cups cake flour or 2 3/4 cup all purpose flour

2 1/2 teas baking powder

1 teas salt (if you used salted butter I would only use 1/2 teas salt)

1 1/4 cups milk

Grease and flour 2 9” cake pans (or one 9×13)

In a large bowl, mix butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy. Beat for 5 minutes on high speed.

In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and stir until well combined. Add to butter mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

Pour into prepared pans and bake until cake tests done. Cool completely before frosting.

Quick Fudge Frosting

1 cup sugar

4 tables cocoa

4 tables butter

1/2 cup milk

2tables corn syrup

Dash salt

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teas vanilla

Mix sugar with cocoa in a small saucepan. Add butter, milk, corn syrup and salt. Heat to boiling, stirring frequently. Boil for 3 minutes stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool about 5 minutes. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until no lumps appear. If mixture is too thick to spread over cake layers, add milk about 1 tables at a time and continue beating until mixture is smooth and right texture to frost cake.