Lemon Blueberry Muffin Bread - for Angela!

One of the most brilliant things about summer is the varieties of fruits and vegetables that are bursting all over. I am pretty sure I could eat blueberries all day long, every day, and still not be sick of them (although my body may disagree!). And I know I'll never fall ill with scurvy due to my love of all things citrus, especially lemons and limes. 

A fabulous combination of tastes is blueberry and lemon, and I love making this bread because it's wickedly easy. Honestly, it's more like a cake, because it is extraordinarily moist, but bread-like enough that you can toast it (in a toaster oven anyway) if you like. 

Photo from the PBS Food website, as I didn't take any. Oops.

I found this recipe in an email from PBS Food, as I am a huge PBS nerd (mainly thanks to my dad), and it is really easy to make!

Lemon Blueberry Muffin Bread

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour (I've used gluten free flour before and it turns out well too)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar (I've used refined and demerara sugar - the refined makes for a smoother batter, but the demerara makes for a tastier break in my opinion)
2 eggs, room temperature
2 cups (12 oz.) blueberries, organic is best - rinsed and de-stemmed
2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 cups plain yogurt, room temperature

Directions
1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, and spray a loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the blueberries and zest, and toss to combine together.
3. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. 
5. Add the yogurt, then the dry ingredients, mixing only until incorporated, and being careful not to crush the blueberries.
6. Scoop the batter into your prepared loaf pan, and bake for 1 hour 10 minutes, until golden brown.
7. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting gently onto a plate.

Photo from the PBS Food website.

Tips
- Wrap the bread tightly in plastic wrap, so it stays as moist as possible.
- I usually add more than 2 tsp of lemon zest, because I love a palate forward lemon flavor with the blueberry.
- Room temperature really is best for the butter, eggs, and yogurt - makes for an even creamier bread.
- I use my homemade yogurt, of course. 

I've made this as a breakfast accompaniment, as a dessert, and just had it as a snack (toasted with real butter). It's just the right amount of sweetness, without going overboard. 

Had already planned to post this, as I made it for a Fourth of July picnic, and received a special request from my friend, Angela, who is learning the joys of Oregon farmer's markets of late. I can't wait to visit her in Oregon!!! Happy Baking, my friend!

Do you have a go-to bread that you like to make? 

Or a quick bread? Share the recipe!

Lunches This Week - #10

Man, we had a fast weekend. Good thing I've been cooking ahead, otherwise, lunches this week would cause me much sorrow - and potentially coin. 

Monday - today was a defrosted section of my recent casserole hack, 1 cup of homemade whole milk yogurt with 1 cup organic raspberries, and a Slim Cake, which really hits a sweet spot for me. 

Tuesday - serious splurge, as I'm taking myself either to Chipotle or a local joint called Yabo's Tacos. It'll be a game day decision. 

Wednesday - repeat of Monday, except that I'll use defrosted peaches instead of raspberries in my yogurt.

Thursday - Monday's menu but with strawberries, instead of peaches or raspberries.

Friday - unless I get cooking this week, as in a week night, Monday's menu, but with strawberries again. 

Short post but never forget that:

Have a fabulous week!!!

Lá Fhéile Pádraig and Sláinte.

Oh, St. Patrick's Day. What a split personality you have! I'm old enough now that I do not remember it being such a drunk fest, keg & eggs, kind of culture when I was younger. It was a day to wear all the green you had, go to Mass, eat funny foods, and be thankful that there are no snakes in Ireland. 

Green stone and Trinity knot earrings - present from Bratty Sister;
Crochet flower pin, by Edel MacBride, purchased in Oct, 2013 at Mourne Antiques in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal;
Celtic Cross necklace, a confirmation present (I only wear it on St. Patrick's Day for my Grandma Nash).

My family has a strange relationship with the day as well, which is that my dad's parents passed away on days very close to (or in the case of my grandma, ON) St. Patrick's Day. So for me, it's a bit melancholy. More so this year, than in recent years past.

Holy Hosting, Batman.

In the last two weeks of the year, the Chez will have hosted 4 gatherings. The smallest a group of 7, the largest a group of <approximately> 36. We love to host gatherings and house guests, and are really lucky to have a home large enough to accommodate both with relative ease. But wuf. 

To date, three gatherings have happened: two were potluck, which was super fun, and by virtue, fairly stress free. The one for my family's holiday gathering was the simplest of them all though. I have a smallish nuclear family, and with Mi Madre living out of state, it was the 5 Nashes + my brother-in-law (Spouse's lil bro), who was visiting from out West, and his sweetie, who arrived on Christmas Eve.

This year, keeping in mind food preferences, and my family, I went with a menu of two soups, a delicious artisan made bread loaf, and butter. 

For the meat eaters, our friend's fantastic Green Chile Chicken Noodle soup and for the vegetarians, a very easy Red Lentil soup, recommended by a friend at work. 

Spouse and his brother hit up the North Market on Christmas Eve Eve Day and bought a fabulous light sourdough loaf from Omega Artisan Baking that turned out to be perfect. Crusty (but not hard) on the outside, and wonderfully chewy and dense (but not too dense) on the inside. Held up super well to the soups, a great companion to the Kerrygold (unsalted) butter we had decided on, and poof, by the end of the dinner, was gone, baby, gone. 

I had previously made the Green Chile Chicken Noodle soup, as Reverend Al swears by it for when one feels icky, but had never made the Red Lentil. Both are simple and really flavorful, esp with hacks. And I have to say, quick to make. 

Here's some little brownies for your soul.

Bratty Sister was the first of us to get hitched, and due to hilarious connections with her hubby's family <back story to come>, and the fact that our family was also small, we have spent many a holiday co-celebrating with them. 

While every single one of their respective members are super lovely and delightful people, my sister's father-in-law is/was one of my favorite people. He was in a rock band with his buddies, called NOS (Not Otherwise Specified), loved The Big Lebowski so much his grand-kids call(ed) him Grandpa Dude, and was one of the most loving, authentic, alive people I've ever met. 

Unfortunately, cancer got him. Effin' cancer. 

Where I discover I am a baking genius.

Last week, in my workplace, something like 26 people moved to new cubes/office - including me. In the last six months, most of the building has moved, basically - at least three whole departments + one department moving to a different building and one department being blown up <ugh>. 

Today, we're having a little event called "The People in Your Neighborhood" so we can roam about, and figure out where everyone is living now. We were asked to bring in a dessert or dip to share. 

This weekend also happens to be the official 40th birthday party for Bratty Sister and I am making the desserts. Her brother-in-law (her Spouse's brother) is vegan + I know a number of people attending are gluten-free + I had some canned pumpkin that I thought would make a tasty dessert. Enter my gluten-free, vegan punkin' cookies. And where I discover I am a baking genius. <not really>

Side note: how in the heel <deliberate typo> am I old enough for Bratty Baby Sister to be 40? Egads. 

Us, circa 1977-ish

Never Allow My Sister To Be Unsupervised Near A Label Maker.

My sister, her spouse and some friends crashed at Chez Nash Humphrey one night while we were on The Very Special Adventure. All was completely well, but there was a small carton of whipping cream left in the frig upon our return (which is no big deal). I noticed though that she had added this small label to the carton, since I'd left my label maker on the end of the island counter, i.e. completely accessible. I am wondering where else in my house I may come upon labels on things......she's a mite predictable, that one.

Her friend, Amber, is not, in fact, a goober.

There was just enough whipping cream for me to put it to good use with further experimentation with Toffee Saltines. So thanks to our houseguests for the whipping cream - it was used!

An Ode to My Muse(s). And Toffee Saltines.

For a lazy person, this is already the fourth try to start this post. What the what? I guess it's because the recipe I'm about to lay on you came from my dear friend & soul twin, Sydney. And I miss her something terrible. Especially right now, as it is the year anniversary of Leaving The 'Shire <sad face>.

Sydney was my neighbor in The 'Shire and became my confidante, my purveyor of fine food and beverage, my guru & reference to all things Upper Valley (including a vast number of its' residents, as she knows at least 85% of the people that live there) - and my inspiration to start this blog. 

Summertime crack.

Summertime crack, thy name is The Barefoot Contessa's Fresh Corn Salad.

Being from the middle west, I have an obsession affinity for fresh corn-on-the-cob. Growing up, every summer, we had it at least twice a week and if we were at my Granny & Gramps' house, I think we had it for every freaking meal. Seemed like it anyway.

The best part, of course, is shucking it. Second best was driving to the local farm market my grandparents frequented, Fulton Fruit Farm,  and helping pick it out. At the peak of the summer, they would just load up the trailer to the tractor and you would literally pick cobs out of the back of it. I cannot explain what it was about the whole endeavor but I just loved going to the barn on the farm to get fruit and veggies.  

My favorite is the bi-color corn, which are just a wonderful patchwork of goldrenrod and fresh butter colored kernels. Just in from the field, the corn is still cool from picking and the shuck itself an amazing emerald green color. Also fresh from the field, the silk is still free-flowing and not all gunked up into a brown clump (or at least not as much). You just cannot beat it.