Lime Cake With A Cream Cheese and Lime Glaze

Hey there!

Do you hate limes? This recipe is not for you. (Also, what is wrong with you?) Do you LOVE limes? Then this is DEFINITELY the dessert for you! 

Between the batter and the glaze, there is the zest of TWO WHOLE limes in this thing!! You're welcome. I brought the zzziiing! It has just the right amount of tartness, it's not overly sweet, and there are little lime zest pieces everywhere to delight you! I have been playing with this recipe for a couple months now, and can honestly say it's "my own", so I hope you enjoy it!

What you'll need:

- a standing mixer

- a 7 inch pan, or a bundt pan. This would probably work well in a loaf pan, too!

Ingredients:

Cake:

1 1/2 (195 gr) cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup (200 gr) sugar

2 eggs

zest of one lime

2-3 tbsp lime juice 

10 tbsp sunflower oil (canola would work, too)

10 tbsp milk

Cream Cheese and Lime Glaze:

3 oz/85 gr room temperature cream cheese

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp lime juice

zest of one lime

splash of milk

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 F / 180 C. Prep your baking dish with non-stick spray and flour.

2. Whisk together the flour and baking powder in a bowl and set aside.

3. Using the paddle attachment on your mixer, mix together the sugar and eggs on a low-medium setting for 5 minutes.

4. With the mixer still going on low, add zest, lime juice, oil and milk. Mix until smooth.

5. Spoon in flour/baking powder mixture in about 4 increments, making sure it is fully combined each time.

6. Pour into your prepped pan, and place in the oven.

7. Bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick insterted in the middle comes out clean. (The bake time will vary, depending on what shape your pan is. I initially planned on 40 minutes, then added 5 minutes at a time. The top was getting brown though, and I was worried that it would get too brown and dry, so I put a sheet of aluminum foil over it, and it did the trick - the middle baked, while the top stayed golden.)

8. While your cake is baking, using the whisk attachment on your mixer, combine the ingredients for your glaze. (You can adjust the thickness to your liking by playing with the powdered sugar/lime juice or zest ratios - powdered sugar will thicken it but also sweeten it, so if you want it thicker but lime-y add more zest. Lime juice will thin it out.)

9. Wait for your cake to cool a bit, flip it into a cooling rack or plate. We decided to eat it pretty soon after I baked it, but you could let it come to room temperature, too.

10. Pour or spoon glaze on top to get desired effect - you could do just a little, for a rustic look, or you can completely cover the top, and even garnish with a slice of lime - like I did. :)

11. Serve, and enjoy!

Yummm! The perfect puckery lime dessert, with the comfort of being a cake!

Please let me know if you decide to try this, I would be thrilled to know how it goes!

Happy baking!

Grilled Apple Fritter Bread

Hey there! Happy “Another Day in Quarantine”! Our oven is still out of commission, so I have been doing all of my quarantine baking on our grill. Today’s attempt was apple fritter bread, and honestly, it was a huge hit! 

I loved that I had all the ingredients already on hand – and you probably do, too! It bakes in a loaf pan, which is easier for grilling, as all of it stays on indirect heat.

So, without further gilding the lily and with no more ado, I give to you – grilled apple fritter bread.

Ingredients:

Batter:

2/3 cup white sugar

½ cup room temperature butter

2 eggs (beaten)

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

1 ½ cup all purpose flour

1 ¾ tsp baking powder

½ cup milk 

Apple Filling:

2 apples – peeled and chopped into small chunks

2 tbs white sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Cinnamon Sugar Filling:

1/3 cup light brown sugar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

Crème glaze:

2/3 cup powdered sugar

2 tbs milk

Directions:

1.    Preheat grill to 350 F / 175 C. You will be baking this on indirect heat.

2.    Combine chopped apples, sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Set aside.

3.    Combine ingredients for cinnamon sugar filling. Set aside.

4.    Using your mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together white sugar and butter.

5.    Add eggs, one at a time. Mix until well combined. Add vanilla extract.

6.    In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add to mixture in about 3-4 portions, waiting for it to become well-combined each time before adding the next portion.

7.    Add in milk, and fully incorporate.

8.    Grease and flour a loaf pan (usually 9x5 inch).

9.    Pour half the batter into the pan. Top with half the apple mixture, and half the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Pour the second half of the batter in the pan, top with remaining apples and cinnamon-sugar. Take a toothpick, and swirl the batter around a bit.

10. Bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. While the bread is baking, make crème glaze.

11. Once the bread is baked, wait 10-15 minutes and drizzle the glaze on top.

12. Slice and serve warm.

Yummmmmmm…

This is the perfect rainy day pick-me-up. It tastes like a country grandma is giving you a hug.

I originally found this recipe on diyways.com, but their ingredients list wasn’t complete where it was written out, only in their video.

Please let me know if you give this recipe a try! I would love to see how it turns out! (Of course, you can bake this in a conventional oven just as easily - if not more. But this is a great dessert for on the grill!)

Happy baking!

6 Children's Books to Read For Boys With Sensitive Hearts

Our son is as a wonderful mixture of characteristics - he is brave, he is thoughtful, he is gentle, he has lots of empathy, he is silly, and he has a very sensitive heart.

Even as a young toddler, when we were reading his Bible together, and we were reading the Easter story, he would always kiss Jesus' boo-boos.

I love that culture is portraying a sensitive heart as a strength more and more - especially in boys. Having empathy and caring for others IS a strength! It's what makes a superhero a real superhero, and not just a person in a cape.

So, here are some of my top books to read for your boy who happens to have a sensitive heart.

1. Snipp, Snapp, Snurr and the Red Shoes by Lindman Maj

You can't go wrong with any of the Snipp, Snapp and Snurr books. They are a set of triplets from Sweden. In this particular one, they work very hard to earn a pair of lovely red shoes for their mother. In another, they save up enough to buy a brand new sled - only to then see a young boy outside the store who cannot afford one, but would like a sled more than anything... These stories help teach generosity and hard work.

2. Dear Boy, by Paris Rosenthal and Jason B. Rosenthal

My mom got our son this book, and I love it! It has lots of inspirational and solid advice for young boys; things like, "feeling cloudy? It's okay to let the rain fall.", "when you're alone with your thoughts, you are never alone", "be kind", "yes means yes, anything else means no" and "play your favorite sport - and be a good sport, while you're at it." It's a great one to pull out to help your kiddo if they're having a difficult time working through something.

3. The Hole in the Dike by Norma Green, illustrated by Eric Carle

I am a sucker for Eric Carle illustrations! I love this story, as it has a face value lesson to teach, as well as a deeper one. I love that it encourages kids to take action when they see something wrong, even if they are young. I love that the actions of one boy saved his whole country. What bravery!

4. The Circle Maker for Kids by Mark Patterson

This is a great, and very timely story to read with any kid, but especially a young boy with a tender heart. It is about a drought Israel, and a man, the circle maker draws a circle in the sand, kneels in it, and begins praying for rain. Our son loved it so much that he started drawing circles to pray in. It is great to instill a desire for a prayer life in kids, especially at a young age!


5. Across the Alley by Richard Michelson

This is a more serious story, but one that is important for kids to hear. It is about a young African American boy, and a young Jewish boy whose windows open to each other. They form a friendship, play baseball, and the violin... but will they be able to be friends outside of their ally?




6. The Boy and the Ocean by Max Lucado

I don't know what I love better about this book - the beautiful way it describes God's love, or the vast and dream-like illustrations. Boys with sensitive hearts will be comforted by the love expressed through the pages, and will find their imaginations wandering. I love this book so much, that I have it on a shelf in our son's room.

Those are my top 6, but there are so so many more. 

Please drop your favorite in the comments below! 

Strawberry Lemon Crumble - Cooked On the Grill

Okay folks, it's quarantine time. Ain't nobody got patience for a long, drawn out intro. So, I'll get straight to what you came for - the recipe for this delicious strawberry lemon crumble!

Ingredients:

Strawberry filling:

6 cups strawberries (I sliced mine into fourths)

1/2 cup sugar

2-3 tbs lemon juice

zest of 1 lemon

2 tbs cornstarch

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1 pinch of nutmeg

1/2 tsp vanilla 

Streusel topping:

1 cup flour

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes

Directions:

1. Preheat your grill to 375 F / 190 C. You'll be grilling this on an indirect heat.

2. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the filling. (This is the perfect recipe to use for smushed or slightly bruised strawberries. They don't have to be perfect-looking, because they're going to get cooked down.)

3. Using the whisk attachment on your mixer (or whisking by hand), combine all of the dry ingredients for the streusel topping.

4. Cut in the butter.

5. Pour the strawberry mixture into a skillet, then spoon the streusel topping onto it the strawberry yumminess covering as much of it as possible.

6. Quickly place the crumble in the grill. and cook for 35 minutes.

7. Carefully (using a pot holder) remove the crumble from the grill. Allow to sit for 5 minutes, and serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Yummmmm

Ps: this recipe can easily be baked in a traditional oven, too. <3 
Pss: Keep it covered for 2-3 days on your counter. Also, it heats up deliciously. I'm eating it right now. Like I said, yummm...

The Apartment With The Gorgeous Light

*Edit: unplanned by anyone, COVID-19 has hit the world, and caused us to have to move significantly sooner than we had planned. I am so thankful, in retrospect that I took the time to take these photos and write this post, as it's the only closure I am getting at this time.

We are moving. This is an exciting time, but I'm sad to say goodbye to the place we've called home for the past 2 1/2 years. This apartment has been good to us. The light is just phenomenal, which makes every picture I take just that much better. One whole wall is windows, and even though we are in the city, our view is of a church and cemetery (I love cemeteries!).

Dan and I have very similar taste in style and design, which makes life a lot easier in that regard. We have a few "tricks" that we use to make our style affordable and yet unique. Today, I'm going to share some pictures of our space, and then share them with you.

Okay, now for the tips!

1. Inexpensive furniture - Okay, so most of our furniture is from IKEA. The table and benches are an exception, as well as the "coffee table" between the two mint colored chairs. Especially with kids, there is no reason to shell out a bunch of money on things that are more than likely going to get ruined.

2. Unique details - We get our furniture from IKEA, but then complement it all with more unique pieces. We find these pieces at antique markets, flea markets, boutiques, from local artists, online, on Etsy, Zara Home, Magnolia, etc. This makes it so that our home doesn't look like a page from an IKEA catalogue, that it doesn't look like everyone else's home, or so "sterile".

3. Neutral base palette - by keeping the color scheme in a neutral palette, this means that we can switch out pops of color with the seasons. Add some light-colored or floral throw pillows in the spring, those yellow billy ball flowers in summer, beautiful autumnal oranges and dark greens for Thanksgiving, and sparkly metallics and red and green for Christmas. I really love light teal, which lucky for me is actually in the neutrals, so that's great! Those chairs by the window are some of my favorite!

4. Consistent, running elements - another one of my favorites is lavender. I love the look of it, the color and especially the smell of it. So, I use it in our bathrooms, and in vases in the living room. I also love (specifically the Slovenian) mountains, so I have those sprinkled around the place. Same with driftwood. The reason these are great, is because I can move things around and rearrange them in different ways throughout the apartment.