Yesterday I received the June edition of Martha Stewart magazine. I’ve mentioned before how I love to sit and flip through the pages. One recipe caught my eye. This Oat Cake. I love oats and I love cake, so that’s all there was to it.

If you don’t have quick cooking oats on hand, you better go get your jacket and keys, because you want to make this cake.

I like that this cake doesn’t contain a lot butter. Just a half stick will do.

Fresh blackberries and blueberries are gently folded into an oat dense batter.

Save some of those juicy berries for the top along with a few tablespoons of those lovely oats and sprinkle of sugar.

It is so pretty when it comes out of the oven. Perfect for a Mothers Day celebration. You could also try check out what I made for Mothers Day 2012.

Oat Cake with Black and Blueberries

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living magazine June 2013

• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup plus 3 Tbs. quick cooking oats, divided
• 2/3 cup water
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. granulated sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 cups mixed ripe or overripe blueberries and blackberries, divided

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8 inch square dish.

Combine 1 cup oats and water and let stand for about 5 minutes.

Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Cream together butter and sugars using a handheld mixer for about 2 minutes.  Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Add flour and oat mixtures and mix until combined. Fold in half the blueberries and blackberries.

Spread batter in dish and sprinkle with remaining 3 Tbs. oats and 1 Tbs. sugar. Scatter remaining berries evenly over top.

Bake 40-50 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

Do you know what these are? They may very well be the best cookie you’ve ever had. No joke.

Almonds, pecans and walnuts are ground using a coffee grinder. I substituted a cup of this nut flour for some of the all-purpose flour, adding protein and tons of flavor to the traditional chocolate chip cookie.

The usual characters are used here. The sugar, the butter, the chocolate chips, but the stars of the show are the nuts.

This idea of adding ground or mashed nuts in recipes is not new here people, but it’s still amazing. I’ve done it in pancakes, in macaroni and cheese and french toast.

Chocolate Chip Nut Cookies

Print Recipe for Chocolate Chip Nut Cookies

• 1 cup ground nuts
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 stick unsalted butter (I plan to use less next time as the dough was a bit wet)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 Tbs. granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F.

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.

Cream room temperature butter and sugars in a large bowl until it is light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined.

Add the nut and flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until fully incorporated.

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking sheet and bake for approximately 10
minutes

Enjoy :0)

My first attempt baking with rhubarb was successful.

I did improvise a little.

I used a large cake pan instead of baby cake pans.

I halved the cake portion but kept the butter, brown sugar and pecan ratio the same.

This was a relatively easy recipe compared to some of the other Baking with Julia recipes.

You can’t go wrong with butter and brown sugar. Add pecans and it’s just so right.

Top that with freshly cut rhubarb.

And you’ve got yourself a delicious accompaniment to morning coffee.

To get the recipe for this delicious cake, check out this week’s host blogger: Erin of When in Doubt…Leave it at 350.

You can also see what the other bakers thought about the recipe, here.

We are driving home from an all day hike. We stop at a gas station to fuel up. Thomas comes out of the store with his usual. A chocolate milk and an Orange Hostess Cupcake. He eats these after a day of hiking or after a triathlon or anytime he needs that sugar replenishment from overexertion.

Today, I have done it. I have not only replicated them but made them better.

Made with fresh oranges, they are very fragrant and pack a lot of flavor.

There is the cake to make, the filling and the glaze on top.

The secret to amazing texture is cake flour. Cake flour contains a lower protein content than all-purpose flour and it is also ground much more finer. The texture you will get from using cake flour is light and airy.

I am so proud of these cupcakes. I have never been so happy about a cupcake before.

Homemade Orange Cupcakes

Print Homemade Orange Cupcakes Recipe

• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick of unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 1/2 teaspoons orange zest (from 2 medium oranges)
• the juice from 1 medium orange
• 2 Tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with paper cups or grease.

Using a handheld mixer whip up butter.  Add sugar and zest and continue to beat. Add egg, orange juice and milk, beat 2 minutes.  In another bowl, combine cake flour, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Add to butter mixture and mix until fully incorporated. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake for approximately 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

Fluffy Vanilla and Marshmallow Filling

• 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/4 cup Crisco
• 1 Tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Using a handheld mixer, whip all ingredients until fluffy. Fill a piping bag with frosting and with a cupcake filling tip, fill cupcakes when they have cooled.

Orange Glaze

• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 Tablespoon meringue powder
• the juice of half an orange
• pinch of orange zest

Combine all ingredients adding more sugar until it reaches desired consistency. The meringue powder hardens the glaze slightly. Dip filled cupcake tops into the glaze.

Switch piping bag tip to make a squiggly line with remaining frosting (optional)

Enjoy!

Deliciousness. That is all.

Carrot Cupcakes are made tastier with a marshmallow frosting.

You can’t go wrong with carrots in a dessert.

This oven shot means a lot to me.  The ancient stove that came with our house when we bought it was finally laid to rest. It has been replaced with one that has a window in the door and a light that actually works!

Isn’t this sapling adorable? Ethan came home on Earth day with this gem.

Carrot Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

Print Recipe for Carrot Cupcakes with Marshmallow Frosting

Recipe slightly adapted from Williams-Sonoma Cooking Essentials

• 1 cup flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1 1/2 cups grated carrots
• 1/2 can crushed pineapple
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Marshmallow Frosting

• 1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
• 1 cup confectioners sugar
• 1/8 cup shortening
• 1/8 cup unsalted butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 Tbs. milk

Preheat oven to 350F. Line muffin tin with paper cups.

Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a small bowl. In a large bowl, mix eggs and sugars with a handheld mixer for 2 minutes. Add vanilla and oil and mix another minute. Add the flour mixture and mix until well combined. Add carrots, pineapple and walnuts. Mix until incorporated. Bake for 20 minutes.

While cupcakes are baking, make the frosting. Combine all the ingredients and mix until combined with the hand mixer.

Let cupcakes cool on wire rack. Once cooled, frost them and enjoy :)

1. Bring your own utensils to work instead of using plastic ones.
2. Use a refillable water bottle.
3. Bring reusable bags to the grocery shopping.
4. Buy things with less packaging and preferably no plastic.
5. Compost your food scraps.
6. Educate yourself about things like, The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Today, I reused bacon grease to create bird suet. Here’s how:

Easy 2 ingredient Bird Suet Cake

• 1/4 cup bacon grease
• 1 cup bird seed

Pour bird seed into a loaf pan. Cover with warmed grease. Mix, coating seed with grease. Pat down and place in the freezer until set.

When it has hardened, cut down the center and remove. Each half will fit perfectly into the standard size suet cake basket.

I have been given the opportunity to review a set of stainless steel containers from MiraBrands. (www.mirabrands.com). They are the parent company of Kassi, which specializes in eco products. They wanted an honest review of their product. In return they will giveaway a set to one of you! They are also selling them on Amazon.

I was given 2 snack sized 18/8 food grade stainless steel containers that I have used all week. They are BPA, phthalates, PVC and lead free. The covers are made of LDPE number 4 plastic, which is a recyclable plastic.

Ethan likes to have his snacks in them. The lids are well fitted and you can be sure they will not spill. This size would be great for carrots and dip or trail-mix. I would love to have a set of larger ones. I would definately replace any “tupperware” products with these. They are better for the environment and they are a breeze to clean.

There are two ways to enter this giveaway:

1. Leave a comment on this post about reusing something that others might throw away.
2. Like homemade and wholesome on facebook.

Giveaway ends on Earth Day at 6pm (ET).

The winner will be chosen using random.org.

Good luck!

During a short visit to NH last weekend, Ethan was excited to bring his very own Bible to church with him. On Good Friday, we took him to the local Christian book store and let him pick it out. He chose a black KJV with gold pages, giant text and those tabs that help you to navigate through each book.

It turned out to be a very special day for us. We stayed afterward for lunch and enjoyed quite an array of goodies. One such delight was tiramisu. I have always loved the idea of coffee in dessert, but never liked the cheese aspect of it.

After some research I decided to use vanilla pudding in place of the mascarpone cheese. I also wanted to make the ladyfingers from scratch. And it just so happened to be the recipe that the bakers from TWD were doing this week. Bonus!

The recipe can be found on page 41 of the Baking with Julia cookbook. The group is making Madeleine’s with the genoise batter. I can’t wait to see how they all come out. Check them out here.

My attempt using this batter was not all together successful. They didn’t rise as they should have, but hey, they still absorbed the coffee!

My guess is that I didn’t beat the egg mixture enough or maybe I over folded the batter. To get the recipe for Madeleines, check out Katie and Amy Thisdell of Counter Dog .

Once the ladyfingers were out of the oven and cooling on a wire rack, I started on the other elements of the tiramisu.

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home

• 1 package of vanilla pudding
• 2 cups cold milk
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 3 Tbs. confectioners sugar
• cocoa powder for dusting
• coffee

The pudding is whisked with the milk and set aside. Using a handmixer whip the cream with the sugar until stiff peaks form. Fold into the pudding.

Using an 8×8 square dish, lay five ladyfingers on bottom (however they will fit). Drizzle coffee over top. Layer 1/3 pudding mixture on top. Place five more ladyfingers, drizzle with coffee and repeat until there are three layers. Sprinkle with cocoa powder and chill overnight.

It was delicious. Ethan loved it. Thomas loved it. I’m sure Marcy would have. I know I did.

I know there are others out there like me. Others that hear the voice…the one that says “you need to create something”. Sometimes it’s a crocheted hat or blanket; other times it’s a painting or simply coloring with Ethan in his coloring books. Today, it’s Rocky Road Popcorn.

The other day at the grocery store, we came across bagged peanuts. There were two to choose from: Yankees and Red Sox. It seems that the lower half of Connecticut are straight up Yankees fans and in the northern part, Red Sox. We grabbed a bag of Red Sox peanuts. We wouldn’t have it any other way.

Do you pop your popcorn on the stove top? We have not used microwave popcorn since we heard this story. It takes the same amount of time to pop it in a pot without the chemicals that microwaving it emits.

Pop 1/4 cup popcorn on the stove top in a Tbs. of oil. Chop about 1/4 cup of peanuts. Grab some chocolate chips and mini marshmallows and you have yourself the making of a great snack.

Your hands will get all chocolately while eating this, but that’s a pretty good problem to have, right?

Rocky Road Popcorn

• 1/4 cup popping corn
• 1 Tbs. canola oil
• 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup mini marshmallows

Pop the corn. Let it cool. Add peanuts and marshmallows. Set aside.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler with 2 Tbs. butter and pour over the popcorn mixture. Mix thoroughly and pour onto a cookie sheet to cool. Let set for about an hour. Or speed it up by placing the pan in the refrigerator.

Enjoy while watching your favorite movie. I would suggest The Goonies, since every time I think “Rocky Road” I hear Sloth saying it.

These ones are Marcy approved.

Homemade Dog Treats

Recipe from dogmilk.com

• 2 (4oz.) jars of chicken or turkey baby food
• 2 cups whole wheat flour

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large bowl, mix flour and baby food until thoroughly combined. Roll out to 1/4″ thick. Create treats using cookie cutters. Bake for 10 minutes, flip and bake another 10 minutes.

Let cool. Store in a paper bag.

These are baked not fried, which makes them better for you. That means you can eat more of them.

How do they taste?, you ask. Well, I made a dozen last night and there is one left as of right now. They are freakishly good.

They start with an old-fashioned donut base. I used frozen Maine blueberries to add the maximum amount of blueberry flavor.

The icing is simply blueberries, lemon and powdered sugar. Perfection doesn’t have to be complicated.

Blueberry Cake Donuts

Print Recipe for Blueberry Cake Donuts

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 4 Tbs. unsalted butter, cold and cubed
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup frozen Maine blueberries

Icing

• 1/8 cup frozen Maine blueberries
• The juice and zest from half a lemon
• 6 Tbs. powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk together the first five ingredients in a large bowl. Blend in butter until it resembles coarse crumbs.

Place blueberries in a microwave safe bowl and heat for 30-40 seconds until soft and juicy. Whisk in the milk and egg.  Add this to the flour mixture and mix just until combined.

Place the batter in a ziplock bag and snip off the corner to use as a pastry bag. Pipe into a greased donut pan.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. While the donuts are baking, microwave 1/8 cup blueberries for 30-40 seconds. Smash them with the lemon juice and zest. Add the powdered sugar until it is the consistency desired. I like mine to be on the thicker side, more like frosting.

Cool donuts on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Dip into icing and enjoy.

Makes a dozen donuts.