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Lemon Walnut-Sour Cream Pound Cake

Back from the Bahamas and with a tan. Yes, while half the country was snowed in, I spent Christmas and New Years in the Bahamas. Dancing from midnight until the next day at Junkanoo. Unfortunately at the moment I don't have any pictures to share because I moved this weekend and my sister stuck my camera in a random box. I have yet to find and unpack the box containing pictures from my trip. This leads me to apologize for not having a picture to go with my post for Sweet Melissa Sunday. However, I may have something better to look at for some of you.....

Lenny Kravitz celebrating New Year, 2010 at Junkanoo!

A little taste of the colorful, festive Junkanoo Festival.


Guess what! This Sunday's recipe for SMS was chosen by me....yeah! I chose this recipe for the simplicity, use of common ingredients, and the availability of lemons since they are currently in season. Not only was this pound cake a cinch to make, it taste wonderful. In my opinion, nothing beats an old fashioned sour cream pound cake with a lemon glaze. Strawberries and freshly whipped cream would be a delicious accompaniment to top slices of this pound cake. I'm adding this to my list of items to make for my nephew's upcoming baby shower. Sorry for not having a picture of the cake, but I hope take a couple of pictures before it's all gone. If it's gone before I find my camera, I'll bake another one...trust me, no one will protest to another pound cake. I hope that you not only bake this cake, but love it as much as I & the other bakers from SMS do. Enjoy!


Lemon Walnut-Sour Cream Pound Cake
The Sweet Melissa Baking Book by Melissa Murphy
Page 28-29


FOR THE CAKE

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup vegetable shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 cup sour cream

1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped


FOR THE GLAZE

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice


BEFORE YOU START

Position a rack in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 1 1/2-quart loaf pan.

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, shortening, sugar and zest, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice, almond extract, and vanilla and mix to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the batter in two batches, alternating with the sour cream. Do not over mix. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Gently fold in the walnuts, saving some to sprinkle on top.

3. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove to a wire rack to cool for 20 minutes before inverting onto a rack for glazing.

4. For the glaze: In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and lemon juice and heat to a high simmer. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, or until reduced by half.

5. Using a pastry brush, brush the hot glaze on the still-warm unmolded cake. Brush again, if desired, after 10 minutes. Let cool before slicing.

The pound cake keeps well wrapped in plastic wrap for 3 to 4 days at room temperature. For longer storage, freeze well wrapped in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil for up to 1 month. Defrost still wrapped at room temperature.

Sweet Almond Bread Pudding w/ out Raspberry Sauce {SMS}

This week's recipe of Sweet Almond Bread Pudding with Raspberry Sauce was chosen by Candace of Candy Girl. The recipe calls for brioche, but she couldn't find it, so she substituted that ingredient for challah bread. And boy does her bread pudding look delicious! Since I no longer live in a diverse area of Southern California, it's difficult for me to find great ethnic ingredients that are local. Normally I would have to drive to Pasadena, or Los Angeles to find special ingredients, but this time I forgot to pick up a loaf while dining at the BREADBAR in Century City. Yeah, that's right, I was at the BREADBAR and didn't even pick up a loaf of brioche, or challah. I could kick myself. Well, I substituted brioche for good ol' croissants. I used a dozen croissants, reduced the custard mixture in half and added Frangelico. I also skipped making the raspberry sauce. The results? A delicious, moist custardy pudding, with a flaky, buttery top. I may try making either a chocolate sauce, or hazelnut cream sauce to top the rest of this bread pudding, but honestly, it's fine without sauce. This recipe was super easy to make and one that I will try again. Always playing with the ingredients to try new taste.

Conde Nast to Close Gourmet

Condé Nast to Close Gourmet, Cookie and Modern Bride
By Stephanie Clifford
Condé Nast will close Gourmet magazine, a magazine of almost biblical status in the food world, it was announced on Monday. Gourmet has been published since January 1941. Also being shut down are the Condé Nast magazines Cookie, Modern Bride and Elegant Bride, according to an internal company memo that also was sent to reporters on Monday.

NY Times Article

Carmelized Onion, Sage, and Cheddar Savory Muffins {SMS}

This week's SMS recipe was chosen by Hanaa of Hanaa's Kitchen. She's a splendid baker who has even won blue ribbons from the state fair for some of her yummy, baked creations. She's even added a tasty twist to this recipe. For this recipe, please check out her blog.

I enjoyed the ease and versatility of this muffin recipe. Instead of onions, sage and cheddar, you can mix and match your own ingredients, however this weeks combination was absolutely delicious. Although the rest of the SMS bakers altered their recipes with some interesting ingredients, I'm glad that I stuck to the original recipe. Next time I'll be more creative and bold. And BOLD with flavor these little babies were, with a kick of cayenne pepper to boot. These hearty muffins are the perfect accompaniment to a hot bowl of your favorite soup, or a cool, fresh garden salad, depending on the weather of course. They taste best when warm, with a pat of butter, and can be frozen for up to 3 weeks. They are very similar to drop biscuits, only cooked in a muffin tin. They remind me a little of those awsome biscuits from The Red Lobster. OMG! Have you had those? That's the only reason why I go there. Anyway, I hope that you try this recipe and enjoy them as much as I did.

Raindrops and Sunshine {SMS}

Who says that it never rains in Southern California?

I woke up early this morning with the intention to bake Sweet Melissa Sunday's weekly recipe before my upstairs apartment turned into an inferno. Today's forecast is 104 deg. F, partly cloudy with humidity of 27%. Should I be baking in this humidity?

When I arose from bed, I opened my bedroom balcony blinds to find that it just finished raining. This kind of weather reminds me of Hawaii. Aaahh...Hawaii.

Raindrops and Sunshine - This morning's breakfast.

Okay, enough day dreaming while eating tropical fruit this morning. Time to get back to reality and baking before the dreaded heat hits me.

Orange trees growing right outside my apartment.

Brief history of the Orange Empire - Where I live.

Although less than 150 years-old, the Orange Empire is surprisingly awash in historical significance. Thanks in part to clever marketing of a unique navel orange, the region played a vital role in luring frigid easterners to Southern California during the past century. But of course, the area's historical roots go back even further, primarily consisting of Native American and Hispanic ancestry.

This Sunday's recipe, Whole Orange-Poppy Seed Cake was chosen by Melissa of Lulu Baker. She has the cutest food blog.

Well, the clouds have cleared. I chose to omit the raindrops (poppy seeds) from my cake & make it all sunshine - California Oranges!

This cake was super easy to make. It turned out moist, fragrant and somewhat dense. The perfect accompaniment to tea, or coffee. I've decided to add this recipe to my Brunch Box of recipes. I look forward to sharing this beautiful cake with family and friends in the future.

Sunday Supper - Short & Delicious!

These short ribs were a cinch to make and well worth the wait.


Lornalee - Tu Es le Seul

French Martini

Recipe by Tyler Florence, Food Network 2007

Bistro-Style Short Ribs

Ingredients
Short ribs:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 pounds short ribs, in 1 long piece or at least in pairs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 large tomato, quartered
3 ribs celery
1/2 head garlic, peeled
1/4 bunch fresh thyme
1 1/2 cups dry red wine
2 cups low-sodium, organic beef stock
4 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Directions
Preheat a cast iron grill or outdoor grill.

Season the short ribs with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little extra-virgin olive oil, and brown on all sides.

Place the onion, garlic, celery, carrot, and tomato into a food processor and blend until you reach a consistent, smooth pulp.

Take a large Dutch oven and place over medium-high heat. Add a 3-count of extra-virgin olive oil and add the thyme to infuse the oil. Next add the vegetable pulp, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and cook for about 10 minutes. Pour in the red wine and stock and bring it to a boil. Using tongs take the ribs and nestle them into the braising mix; the liquid should just about cover the meat. Place the lid loosely on top, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the meat is very tender, approximately 2 1/2 to 3 hours.

When the ribs are about finished, remove about 1 to 2 cups of liquid and strain into a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat the sauce until slightly reduced and thickened, about 5 minutes.