Joy the Baker

I have downright baffled myself.  

I may have mentioned that I’m moving this week.  Moving is… horrifying.  Yes, I’m being dramatic.  Please indulge me. 

Among the things that I found under my bed and in the dark recesses of my closet as I’ve been cleaning and packing are:

eight kitten stuffed animals. 

one medium sized bunny stuffed animal. 

three puppy stuffed animals.

….. WWWHHHHHYYYY?

one baby sock….  A. Baby.  Sock.  I have no baby.  Seriously… What the heck is going on here!?

a tiny rhinestone turtle toe ring.  Really?  

one sweater that gives my arms a rash.  I found out the hard way.  

one wooden bobble head turtle toy.  Why so many turtles hiding in my house?

and… a rock.  Because… yea.  A rock.

Take these Little Lemon Hazelnut Cakes as a token of my love, affection, and dwindling sanity.  

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Can I let you in on a little something?

I don’t live in the cool Los Angeles neighborhood that all my friends live in…

I have more matching spatulas than I do matching bath towels.  

I still can’t seem to commit to buying myself a couch.  

My bedroom bookcase seems to be made up of one part books and three parts dust.  

I tell you all of this to let you in on the fact that I’ve been feeling domestically restless these days.  The kind of restless that has had me daydreaming about moving into a downtown loft that I can’t afford.  The kind of restless that has had me daydreaming about decorating a downtown loft that I can’t afford with expensive furniture that I also can’t afford.  

Not being able to afford your daydreams?  Torture and motivation.  Together.   

This weekend I decided… get this… that it’s all ok! 

I took to my kitchen with my rubber gloves, bleach spray and a few rags and I scrubbed and organized like I’ve never done before.  Yes, it’s just the kitchen.  No, I couldn’t get to my whole apartment.  But the scrubbing and organizing helped me remember that my humble little apartment, in the uncool part of town, is pretty darn sweet.  I don’t need the fancy loft and the expensive furniture.  I just need to make my little spot in the world a little brighter… with bleach.  

And the pancakes this weekend helped too.  Tremendous.

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I sometimes daydream about spending a day holding a sign, perched on some sort of stoop at the base of a freeway off ramp.  Totally random daydream, right?  My daydream sign holding isn’t about begging for money or protesting a cause.  No.  My signs are much more silly and benign.  

In my daydream I hold a variety of signs (might as well rotate them, right!?) that say things like:

Honk if you like my bangs.  

Peace is awesome.  Bombs are stupid and ugly.

My thighs and skinny jeans are not friends.  

Will work for Spice Cake.  

… you know… signs like that… signs that are open and honest and for strangers to smile at.  

Wait…. is this a weird daydream?  This is totally a weird daydream.  Forget I mentioned anything.  

Let’s just talk about cake.  

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In the event of some sort of big fat natural disaster in California, I may be up a creek without a paddle.  Sure, I’ve got the canned tuna, the emergency gallons of water and a few flashlights with dying batteries.  I’ve got the walking shoes, a space blanket and pepper spray… you need those things, right?   It’s just that I’m not sure the internets or my cellphone are going to do me much good in the event of a meltdown.  Won’t all the cell towers be jammed?  How am I going to reach out to my family?  I don’t think Twitter will quite do the trick.  Clearly my only option is to jog to them… in a space blanket.  That seems to make the most sense.

My parents?  I think they’re just ahead of me in the emergency game.  They’ve got cell phones from 1993 and a telephone land line.  At least the land line will come in handy.  

My grandfather!?  He’ll fare better than all of us in an emergency.  He’s got Ham Radio.  Ham Radio is a sort of amateur radio system that allows people to talk to one another all over the world.  Don’t be fooled by the name.  Ham Radio is actually pretty badass.   Sort of like… trucker radio meets old school technology meets grandfather hobby.  In emergencies, Ham Radio is booming.  You better believe that in an emergency, my grandfather will be all over that radio.  Who he’ll be talking to?  I’m not exactly sure.  He’ll probably be saving the world.  I’ll be jogging my way to safety.  My parents will still be screening their phone calls with their answering machine.  Who is the hero?  Grandpa. 

I tell you all of this because Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins (specifically the giant ((seriously giant)) kind from Costco) are my grandfather’s favorite.  He no doubt has a 48 pack of those giant muffins in his emergency kit.  You think I’m kidding.  I’m not.

Note:  my descriptions of Ham Radio here may hinge on trite and are most certainly superficial and inadequate.  

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Let’s play a game called What’s on Your Nightstand?.  What?  Too personal?  Oooh come on!  We’re all friends here.  Let’s try to figure out what our night stands say about the state of our lives.

On my night stand is:

1 Ikea lamp.

A water color painting made by my aunt in the 80’s.

A cup of what once was hot lemon water with honey, now just a mass of lemon seeds at the bottom of a mug.

A glass bowl with a ring and a business card for a French bed and breakfast.

Two books:  Unaccustomed Earth and Seize the Day.

My credit card, and a small bowl with cookie crumbs in it… Lemon Rosemary Palmier cookie crumbs.

What might my night stand contents say about me?  I love a home furnishing bargain.  When I run out of tea I make do with lemons.  I can’t sleep in jewelry and I like to daydream about vacationing in the French countryside. I either read a book or go internet shopping before I fall asleep, and I eat cookies in bed.  All things considered, it seems like a pretty cushy and self indulgent life…. plus, cookies!

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Please allow me this bright and promising Monday morning to keep it one hundred percent real with you.  While this gluten free cake was buttery, nutty, bright with the flavor of lemon and perfectly sweet, the truth is, it ended up all over my floor.  Well… ok, bits on the floor, chunks on the counter, and pieces in my dirty sink.  Basically, this cake landed everywhere except the cake plate where I wanted it.

I salvaged a few if the larger pieces to mock up a pretty picture for you.  For a few moments I thought I might not even tell you about my cake accident.  But… see, my cake didn’t just land on the floor because I’m clumsy, but because I was taking baking liberties that I shouldn’t have.  Fact.

This cake taught me a small lesson about baking pan choices and cooking times.  It also helped me get my cake dropping out of the way for the next several months.  I only drop a cake every three months or so.  I feels good to be free and clear for a few months to come.

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I’m going to need a day to digest the Fancy Food Show.

In the meantime, I thought I’d present you with this Lemon Souffle Pudding.

I often think of myself as a mash up of the time I’ve spent in the world so far. In essence I feel like a messy concoction of parents, siblings, friends from kindergarten, mean girls from high school, various low paying jobs, and different cities. I am all of those things. Whether or not I acknowledge it every day, I am who I am as a direct result of all of many people, many places and many experiences. So far it feels like a pretty sweet gig.

I got to thinking about the sum of my life’s parts yesterday on a plane from Oakland back to Los Angeles. Plane rides, no matter how short, force me to quickly assess my life situation.

My quick flash assessment went a little something like this in my brain:

Lindsey, Michelle and Beth were the best girlfriends I could have had in elementary school. I’m glad I became best friends with the smart girls.

I kinda feel bad about treating my prom date the way I did. Maybe I should Facebook him.

I’m really glad I got to see my parents renew their vows. That brought a lot of good to my world.

Simon. I’m so glad Simon and I stumbled upon each other.

If this plane crashes… God, please don’t let this plane crash… I’d feel like I’ve had a pretty good run. Thanks. Seriously.

If this plane crashes… God please don’t let this plane crash… I wonder if the lady sitting next to me would hold my hand … but only if the plane were crashing… otherwise, I don’t really need to hold her hand.

Should I order ginger ale or cranberry juice when they come around for drink orders?

Jill gave me the most gorgeous lemons and they’re waiting for me at home.

Lara made the most amazing lemon pudding the other night. I want more.

Oh God… the plane is taking off! I hope we’re nowhere near a flock of geese. Seriously. I don’t think I like river landings.

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Lemon-Drenched Lemon Cake.

For this cake, simple loaf pans just don’t measure up. After one slice of the perfect, absolutely perfect cake, it became clear that when I next bake this cake (tomorrow morning), I’ll need to devise some sort of pillow shaped cake pan.

This cake is going to be my new pillow. Forget goose feathers, cotton fluff, memory foam… I want, I need, I’m not sure how I’m going to live without a Lemon-Drenched Lemon Cake Pillow.

For serious.

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Let’s turn the clocks back to the beginning of Joy the Baker. This extra dreamy lemon pound cake was one of my very first Joy the Baker posts. I nabbed a friend’s fancy camera and after a 15 minute crash course, started baking and shooting my favorite pound cake recipe. Those were the humble beginnings of Joy the Baker. Let’s face it, this is still a humble sight, but I’m dreaming big. Hopefully some of those dreams will bring some fun changes to this sight in the coming months.

I’m bringing you a repeat today because I’m still in the weeds with Joy the Baker life. Want to know what’s going on? Let’s just say it involves learning (and tasting) about 90 international cheeses and memorizing their flavor profiles. Don’t even get me started on the insane wine… that’s a whole other beast.

Sourdough starters? Have I let you down on the starters?

Here’s what I did with my starter- After 7 days of dumping and feeding at room temperature, I fed my starter one last time and put it in the fridge. I plan on using my starter for pancakes on Sunday morning, so I’m going to take my starter out of the fridge Saturday morning, feed it and leave it ajar at room temperature until Sunday morning when I’m ready for my pancakes. I sure hope you’re still playing along!

Want to know more about this incredible pound cake!? Lemon Pound Cake with Warm Blueberry Sauce.

I’ll admit, I think olive oil is sexy.  Extra Virgin Olive Oil especially, sends me over the moon.  The rich, full and nutty smell, the beautiful translucent green color, and the way the taste coats my mouth.  It’s just gorgeous.  I’ve been known to buy a fresh baguette on the way home from work and simply eat warm bread with plates full of olive oil.  I think I’ve also put the stuff in my hair as a conditioner, and on my hands as a lotion.  But that’s sounding like a whole other blog, so let’s not get into that.

Lemon Scented Olive Oil Cookies with Almond Glaze.   Sounds like there’s a lot going on in one humble cookie, right?   It’s amazing how the flavors and sweetness meld together to create a unique, yet strangely familiar taste treat.  These essentially taste like a darling lemon sugar cookie, but with a slight (sexy) hint of olive oil.  I tested these on unsuspecting, but die hard cookie fans, and they couldn’t put their finger on the olive oil without me pointing it out.  The verdict-  two thumbs up.

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Forget about saving room for dessert.  One of these lemon whoopie pies is a whole meal in itself!  These beauties are not the delicate, petite, wallflower cookie.  They bake up into a beast of a cookie.  They’re doubley soft, cakey cookie goodness filled with a lemony cream cheese filling.

These are not a snacking cookie.  They’re a “sit down and shut up and eat your freakin cookie” cookie. That’s not too hard to do, right?

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Lemon and blueberry are my go-to ( by ‘go-to’ I actually mean lazy) combination.  I’ve never had a bad day if lemon and blueberry joined forces at breakfast.  It’s true, they never fail me.

Too bad I can’t say the same thing for the fail dogs.   Have you seen the creatures?   They are dogs (that have little to do with baking, blueberries or lemon) who have tried and failed in one way or another.  They make me laugh.  They make me cry.  I was a cat person until the fail dogs changed my life.

Now back to the Lemon Poppyseed Bread with wild blueberries…

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