Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Troop Beverly Hills Tailoring
Monday, June 28, 2010
ITunes Gift Card Drawing....
He is a Mama's Boy...And I am Okay With That...
HELLO LOVERS....
Jimmy Choo Studded....
Prada....
Dolce & Gabana Gold Sequined and Leather Tote
Botkier Purple Leather Bag
BE & D Studded Bag...
and Micheal Kors O Hoop Python....
NEW TOYS!!!
What is on your toy list?!
RED, WHITE, AND BLUE TRIFLE!!
Red, White and Blue Trifle
1 prepared recipe sour cream pound cake, sliced or cubed (recipe follows)
1 prepared recipe lemon curd, chilled (recipe follows)
8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream, cold
16 oz. fresh strawberries, sliced
2 pints fresh blueberries
To make the cream:
Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar. Add the heavy cream and continue beating until thick. Chill until ready to assemble trifle.
Assembly:
Layer in a trifle dish or large bowl–
Half the sliced pound cake–use smaller pieces to fill in the gaps
Half the lemon curd
One third of the blueberries and strawberries
Half the whipped cream mixture
Repeat with the remaining cake, lemon curd, another 1/3 of the berries, and whipped cream. Top with the remaining 1/3 strawberries and blueberries.
Let chill in the fridge until ready to serve.
Serves a bunch.
Sour Cream Pound Cake
adapted from The Joy of Cooking
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
6 eggs, separated and at room temperature
1 cup sour cream, at room temperature
2 tsp. vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 8″ square baking pans or a 9″ Bundt pan.
Whisk the dry ingredients together and set aside.
Using an electric mixer, beat butter until creamy. Add the sugar and continuing beating until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. (Don’t skimp on this step.)
Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating for at least 1 minute between additions. Add the vanilla extract.
Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients, beat just until it disappears into the creamed mixture. Add 1/2 of the sour cream. Beat to combine. Repeat with remaining flour and sour cream, making sure to end with the last 1/3 of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In a separate bowl beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks form. Add 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar a little at a time. Continue beating until stiff, glossy peaks form.
Carefully fold in 1/3 of the egg whites to the batter using a large rubber or silicone spatula. (It’s okay if there are some streaks of egg white. This is to lighten the batter before the remaining egg whites are added.)
Add the remaining egg whites by gently folding, being careful not to deflate the whites.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan. If using 8″ square pans, bake for about 35-40 minutes. (Don’t open the oven at all during the first 30 minutes or the cake will fall in the center.) If using the bundt pan, bake for 60-75 minutes. Tent the pans with foil if the top browns too quickly. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean.
Let cool for a few minutes in pan before removing the cake to a wire rack to finish cooling. Cake gets better the longer it sits. Be sure to wrap it well in foil or plastic wrap so it doesn’t dry out.
Lemon Curd
from my husband’s aunt
Juice of 3 lemons
Zest of 3 lemons
1 cup granulated sugar
3 whole eggs
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
In a bowl, rub the lemon zest with the sugar until wet and sandy. Whisk in the eggs. Add the juice. Add the melted butter.
Transfer the mixture to a stainless steel (or other non-reactive) pan. Cook over medium heat while whisking constantly until the curd thickens. (It will be about the consistency of thin yogurt.) Quickly remove from heat. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl. Press plastic wrap on the surface and chill until ready to use.
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Cakes you can use for trifle:
Angel Food Cake
Sponge Cake
Chiffon Cake
Butter Cakes (chocolate, yellow, white, coconut, spice, etc.)
Pound Cake (if you decide to purchase it, make sure it’s a good one)
Leftover cupcakes
Gingerbread (this is great with lemon curd and cream)
Brownies (I’ve seen this done, but haven’t tried it myself)
Lady Fingers
Crumbled hard cookies–shortbread, amaretti, etc.
For the creamy layer:
Cream Cheese mixed with whipped cream
Vanilla or flavored whipped cream
Chocolate Mousse (bittersweet, milk, or white)
Homemade or store-bought pudding
Pastry Cream (plain or flavored)
Ricotta mixed with a little sugar
Mascarpone
For the fruity layer(s):
Fruit curds–lemon, lime, passion fruit, pineapple, etc.
Fruit butters–apple, pumpkin, rhubarb
Sliced or whole fruit–apples, pears, peaches, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, gooseberries, currants, cherries, apricots, plums, papaya, pineapple, kiwi, banana, etc.
Other fun additions:
Chopped candy bars or cookies
Nuts–pistachios, macadamia nuts, pecans, walnuts, almonds
Caramel, chocolate sauce, marshmallow cream
miniature marshmallows
Maraschino cherries
DELICIOUS PASTA RECIPE!
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2-1/2 cups fresh coarse breadcrumbs
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
3/4 lb. dried whole wheat spaghetti
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1 pt. cherry tomatoes, halved
6 Tbs. chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
Set a large pot of salted water over high heat and bring to a boil. Heat 2 Tbs. of the oil and half the garlic in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat until the garlic is fragrant but not brown, about 30 seconds. Turn the heat to medium, toss in the breadcrumbs, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring often, until the crumbs brown and turn crisp, 6 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and stir in the pine nuts.
Put the pasta in the water.
Add 2 Tbs. of the oil to the skillet and cook the remaining garlic, the raisins, and the red pepper flakes until the garlic is fragrant but not browned, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, season generously with salt and pepper, and sauté for 5 minutes so they start to soften and lose their shape. Fold in all but 2 Tbs. of the parsley.
Finish cooking the pasta until it's just tender, about 10 minutes total. Drain the pasta, put it in a large serving bowl, and toss with the tomato mixture, half of the breadcrumbs, and 2 Tbs. of the olive oil. Taste for salt and pepper. Drizzle each serving with 1/2 Tbs. of the remaining oil and sprinkle with the remaining breadcrumbs and parsley. Serve immediately.
ENJOY!
XOXO-
KJ
Sunday, June 27, 2010
TOY STORY 3!
Saturday, June 26, 2010
SHE WORKS HARD FOR THE MONEY...
Friday, June 25, 2010
I HAVE NOT DIED...
Monday, June 21, 2010
Happy Father's Day!
On Sunday, Grammy and Pappy came over for Father's Day and me and the princess went on some errand runs. We went to Wal-Mart in Franklin (which is the only Wal-Mart I will go to because the rest are way too much for me) and also went to get a pedicure. Paisley chose Purple Schreck and I went back to OPI Siberian Nights...one of my 3 favs!!
Here is one of Griffin....Isn't he growing?! I love him SO much.
XOXO-
Friday, June 18, 2010
Random Friday Thoughts...
2. Remember how I told y'all that I love those M&M McFlurries from McDomalds? Well, the snack size has 430 calories. So no more of those!
3. I drove over 400 miles between Tuesday and Wednesday. Craziness.
5. Seeing my offices that I have missed so much for the last 3 months has been great!! I really do love my job, it is just tiring with two kids. But I am glad I am employed.
XOXO-
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Kim Kardashian Make Up Toturial Part1 {Perfect Your Foundation And Blush}
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
WHATS IN YOUR MAKE-UP BAG?
THINGS I AM LOVING!
Paisley has also been LOVING some Polly Pocket lately. My BFF Amy gave her one for her birthday and she loves it!
Bumble and Bumble hair spray. This stuff is the best! You can spray and brush right through it. It doesn't make your hair sticky and dirty.