Bells for the Belle!

Subtitled: From Nascar to Nasturtium


Sub-Subtitled: In which Margaret makes a multitude of excuses…


Okay, first of all my oven’s broken and has been for several weeks now. Do you remember my shiny new gas range? Sigh. We ran the self-cleaning feature and it just went poof.

Fortunately—most fortunately—the stove still works.

But as for, oh, baking cupcakes and whatnot…?

Not an option.



I had to buy these guys at the store.



And scrape the screaming NASCAR frosting off.

Second excuse: I left my good camera at the church on the last day of Vacation Bible School.

Yes, that’s right. You heard me correctly.

Left my Nikon D80 in the pew.

Abandoned, as it were.

Up for grabs.

I remembered this fact on the way down to Rochester for yet another baseball tournament—remembered with a gasp as I shamefully admitted what I’d done. My husband didn’t say much in response to my gaffe, though I noticed his knuckles whiten slightly on the wheel.

Enter Michael Z. to the rescue. He’s a guy who lives by the church and who takes my holy hour when I can’t make it. So the conversation went something like this: “Hi, Mike? It’s Margaret. Fine, thanks! Um…I left my camera in the church. Yes. In the front by the statue of Mary. You will? Hey, thanks! Also, could you do my holy hour from 4:00 to 5:00 on Sunday morning because we’re headed down to Rochester...”



Enfin. Here are the new & improved cupcakes, dear Charlotte—better than the NASCAR version but still, not as splendidly photographed as I would have liked.



No, I did not mean to evoke a nuptial theme.

Those are “bells for a belle”—your sweet Southern belle.



Do I get an extra point for trying?

I love ya, Charlotte, and I love that sweet baby girl already. I do not wish to win this contest—could not possibly beat those adorable baby rattles, the yummy little watermelons, the baby birds (oh, those sweet baby birds!), the cutest owls ever, the most darling chicks, the most endearing little binky faces, a nilla vanilla baby buggy, and those stunningly beautiful cupcake-themed treats.

Couldn’t possibly.

Wouldn’t want to.

My presence here, rather, is an act of humility love. I hope you’ve enjoyed your baby shower! We cannot wait to meet her.

Smooches!



PS. Oh, and did I mention I had oral surgery this week?...

Black Russian Cake

I made this cake on Sunday in honor of our Good Shepherd’s Garden Party (Week II) celebration.



This is not to say that anything remotely resembling a booze cake was on the original menu but rather, that those bottles of Kahlua and vodka were calling out my name (loudly) from the cupboard.



“Maggie? Oh, Maaaagieeeee....”

“We taste really good together.”

It was then I recalled seeing a recipe in one of my favorite church lady cookbooks--a recipe that called for both vodka and kahlua (gosh, I love those church ladies) and that is so easy-peasy, rice-n-cheesy that you will be lovin’ me for posting it.

Plus it tastes really, really good.

Here you go. Forgive me for naming it after me.

Maggie’s Black Russian Cake

1 box white or yellow cake mix
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
4 eggs
¾ C. water
1 C. oil
¼ C. Kahlua
¼ C. vodka
(not the el cheapo kind, please)
Nuts, optional

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spray your bundt pan with nonstick cooking oil (you do have a bundt pan, right?) and line it with nuts if you’d like. I used coarsely chopped pecans and strew them around the bottom of the pan.

Isn’t “strew” a lovely word?

Mix all your ingredients together and beat at low for 30 seconds, then at medium for 2 minutes. Pour into your prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a swizzle stick comes out clean. Remove from oven and let sit for 10 minutes, then invert and cool completely.

(You don’t have to let it cool completely, by the way. You do, however, have to serve it with fresh whipping cream or ice cream.)

Enjoy!
(in moderation)

PS. The liquor in this recipe bakes out, not to worry. Don’t believe me? My husband was a chemistry major and he says so.

Kiss me! I’m (pretending to be) Irish!

We managed to sneak in a full-fledged Irish dinner on Tuesday before Momma had to dash out the door to her quilting class. Hubby wasn’t there for our familial celebration, alas, but the babysitter seemed to enjoy it.

(To John’s credit, he pulled in the driveway as I was leaving. Babysitter Megan was just covering for him until he arrived. This is our “quilting night arrangement.”)

Corned beef and cabbage is very easy to make. Have you tried it? No? You must. All I did was boil the corned beef for 30 minutes (to reduce its saltiness) with half the contents of the little spice pack that comes with it.

Then I popped it in my new Dutch oven (which I love) and drizzled it with olive oil. I added a handful of carrots, (peeled and chopped) and a handful of onions (also peeled and chopped in large sections so the kids can avoid them). A little salt and pepper, a couple pats of butter, and into the oven it went.

I cooked mine for about 3 ½ hours at 325 degrees and it was so very good—crispy on the outside and very tender on the inside.

Oh, and I added the cabbage about an hour and 1/2 into the baking. You don’t want mushy cabbage.

You know.

* * * * * * *

The second recipe I got from my sister that very afternoon. I phoned her up to see how she was preparing her corned beef & cabbage, (because I just knew she’d be making corned beef & cabbage), and she told me about this funky Irish side dish they were having.

“It’s in the new Centennial Cookbook that I’m editing for our parish,” she said. It’s called ‘Thumblededore’ or ‘Dumblededoop’ or something like that.”

She was close. : )

Rumbledethumps is actually its Scottish name. In England, this dish is known as Bubble and Squeak; in Ireland, colcannon.

The names didn’t much matter to my kids, although they did like saying “Bubble and Squeak.” Even more than that, they liked eating it.

Here’s the recipe:

Rumbledethumps

1 pound potatoes
1 pound cabbage (about 1/2 head)
4 tablespoons butter
1 onion chopped
3/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1 teaspoon chopped chives or parsley
Salt and pepper

Directions:

Peel, boil and mash your potatoes. Set aside.

Chop or shred your cabbage. (You choose! It’s a free country.)
Melt the butter in large skillet or frying pan and
sauté your cabbage and chopped onion
until they are soft.

Add the cabbage to your bowl of mashed potatoes.
Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Turn into a buttered ovenproof dish, sprinkle with grated cheese,
and brown under broiler or bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes.

Garnish with chives or parsley and serve!

For a printable version of this recipe, click here.