Cranberry - Orange Coffeecake Breakfast - Memorial Day 2011

Even though today was the actual holiday, my family just took it easy...  It was a day off for my son, so he and his lady love took that opportunity to go on a date to Columbia...  Earlier, however, we managed to display a little American pride right in our own front yard. My son and his friend worked on our flag pole.  After the windstorms from last summer, we had a problem!  The flag dipped at a peculiar angle, and it looked terrible.  So, a few bags of concrete did the trick...  and we raised a new flag today... in honor of my Dad, a WW2 veteran.

 Any kind of an event seems to call for a celebration, and my family loves to have something baked in case we have unannounced visitors, which I love!...  I have a great little cookbook by Shelley Reeves Smith and Roxie Kelley.  This one had an orange-cranberry coffeecake in it that seemed to call my name today...

Cranberry-Orange Coffeecake

1 Yellow cake mix
1 orange
Enough oil, eggs,water to make mix according to directions
1 12 oz. pkg frozen cranberries/  I used half frozen and half dried.  I think blueberries would work also
1 c. chopped pecans
1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 t. ground  cinnamon
1 c. powdered sugar
2 T. water


Preheat oven to 350 degrees/  Spray a 9 x 13 pan with shortening.  zest orange.  Should have 1 T zest
squeeze juice and remove seeds/  Reserve 2 T juice for glaze/  Add remaining juice to water or liquid called for in cake mix.  Add  zest and stir up cake by directions.  Add half sack cranberries  Pour in pan and top with other half sack of cranberries.

Mix brown sugar, nuts, and cinnamon and crumble over top.  Bake 35-45 minutes.  Don't overbake. 

Mix powdered sugar, orange juice, and 2 T water to make glaze.  Drizzle over warm cake.


This is a very moist cake with great textures from the nuts and sugary topping.  It is moist and tart from the cranberries...  and sweet, too...  I think it's a "keeper."

Summer salad

Here is a recipe for a yummy alternative to Three Bean Salad.  I love it!  We made it this morning.

Summer Vegetable  Salad

1 family-size pkg frozen mixed vegetables (microwave 12 minutes)
1 12 oz. pkg cooked bow-tie pasta
1 chopped green pepper
1 c. chopped celery
1 can rinsed, drained red beans

dressing  --cook over low heat until thick

1 1/2 c sugar
1 1/2 c/ vinegar ( I prefer apple cider vinegar)
1 t. salt
3 T. flour
1 T. yellow mustard

whisk while cooking.

Combine and cool!  Enjoy!

Cinco De Mayo... (a bit early!)

Our family gets together on Sundays, so I decided to have enchiladas and Latin-American food in honor of Cinco de Mayo...  These little dolls are very old.  A friend from my mother's elementary school days sent them to her from Albuquerque, New Mexico...

The tablecloth was more green than blue, but the light made it photograph this vivid blue color...

Fiesta salad...  from Gina Neely
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Ingredients

Buttermilk Lime Dressing:

• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/3 cup well shaken buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped

Salad:

• 2 romaine hearts finely chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, sliced
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in 1/2
• 1 cup corn kernels, defrosted if frozen
• 4 red radishes, sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

Directions

Whisk together the apple cider vinegar, honey, lime juice, buttermilk, cilantro, garlic and salt and pepper, to taste, together in a small bowl.

Add the romaine, green onions, black beans, tomatoes, corn, radishes, and bell peppers to a large salad bowl. Add the dressing, toss and serve immediately.

Confetti cupcakes with a topper of Reese's...  In my dreams it was to have looked like a sombrero...  It did not...  Perhaps a bowler???

Enchiladas in progress....

We had a lot of fun, played Spinner, and then the kids all went to see Fast and Furious Five....  one of my son's favorite series of movies due to the fast cars....  When Fast and Furious Two (whatever the name is)came out, he got enough friends together including me...  and we rented the theater at midnight the day it premiered...

Today is day one of testing at school...  Gotta fly...  Have a great week...