For My Dad
It seems that the further I get into adulthood the more I understand my parents. I also seem to be turning into my parents, which is three things: frightening, seemingly inevitable, and a topic for another time.
Since we are approaching Father’s Day, let me tell you the thing I’ve come to understand about my Dad. All he wants for Father’s Day is time. Simple, right? He wants time with the family eating fish tacos at Island’s. Time in the kitchen helping make a sweet potato pie. Time going to an old Hollywood theater to see a re-released Alfred Hitchcock movie. A phone call. A text message. Just a thought that turns into time.
Maybe it’s because all of his kids are grown and out of the house, but my Dad doesn’t require a trip to the mall, a striped tie from JCrew or a new pair of slippers. He just wants his kids to call and say “Hey Dad, let’s go out to dinner next Friday. There’s a new Italian restaurant I want to try!” It’s such a small thing and his voice always betrays the lift in his heart.
Happy Father’s Day Dad. Thanks for teaching me how to bake in our tiny pea green kitchen.
Authors Note: My father was such a great Dad because he had the love, support and unconditional partnership of his lovely wife, my Mom. They’re a force. And I love them so.
Are you baking for you Dad this Father’s Day? I was thinking of re-releasing this Zucchini Sweet Potato Bread since my Dad devoured it last time he came to visit.
Bread, Holiday, Thoughts | Comments (6)
Ice Cream Cupcakes
I absolutely LOVE Memorial Day weekend. It’s like all the good things in the world come together in one weekend. I look forward to this three day weekend at the start of May. Not only is it my birthday weekend, but it’s also the unofficial start of summer, the start of outdoor grilling and parties with friends, and just all around good times.
If I had a lake anywhere near me, I’d be down at the lake all the time, just so I could say, “I’m going down to the lake!” That feels like an ultra summer thing to say. Lake or no lake, I feel a beautiful summer coming on.
And as if I couldn’t get more excited, I’ve discovered I can make ice cream cupcakes! These little gems are really easy to throw together and you can make them with any flavor combination you can imagine. The only slight downside is that they melt (as ice cream tends to do) when they’re not in the freezer. Melting won’t be too much of an issue because these don’t tend to stick around long. I’ve already eaten 5, and the party isn’t until Sunday.
Strawberry Ricotta Cupcakes
This morning I started the day thinking about Easter as a child. It was the holiday as exciting as Christmas. There were personalized Easter baskets filled with candies and chocolates on a bed of fake plastic grass. There was always some sort of delicious ham and potato meal And the Easter egg hunt. Oh… the hunt! The hunt is the sole reason I could sit through church is my Easter dress, itchy tights and Sunday shoes. It was my little sister and I tearing through the house and backyard trying to find as many plastic eggs as we could. It was brutal, and there was no mercy. Flower beds were trampled, the house cat was scared from its house, tears were shed… it was the hunt, and it was serious. The coveted Easter eggs to find of the hunt were the silent one. Silent? Yes! Without the rattle of little chocolate candies, we knew those particular eggs were filled with cash. Oh how my sister and I would fight for those eggs. Thinking about it now, I have to shake my head at what greedy little children we must have been. Continue reading »
Cupcakes, Holiday, Recipes | Comments (17)
