Heart to Heart.

It's not that I don't have motivation, it's just that sometimes I have a hard time finding it (and the hours in the day to use it).

As I patiently await for my strawberry rhubarb pie to be complete, I am reflecting on all the creative projects that pm and I wanted to accomplish as of late. We had a heart-to-heart talk last night as the ampm crew. Creating this blog and deciding to actively post was one of our New Year's resolutions. So far, so good. However, I just don't know that it is enough. I want for this blog to be what pushes us to use our creativity on a daily basis. This may not always constitute a post (perhaps a tweet on our ideas instead), but it should at least motivate us to always be thinking about the next project, the next post.

We've been working really hard lately on making our place feel like home. I have noticed that by removing the clutter, donating items we no longer use, and switching up our wall art I already have a lot more energy to do things when I am at home. No longer will I be victim to just the couch and TV. (That said: pm got some amazing deal on cable. We now have the design channels. This has been proven to be a great way to encourage our creativity. It has also really made us want a house. :)).

Timer is going off. Time to take out my pie! (I'll post a picture soon of my delectable delight).

We're going to take a creative Jump! in the days, weeks and months to come. Hope that you'll be along for the ride. Step on board with us. Forward, ho!

Baking on the mind.

This photo (which I took about two months ago in Grantsburg during a bread making class) is how I am feeling today. I want to bake, but just can't get past looking at the empty bowls and supplies I have in the kitchen. I know my baking results will be fruitful (pun fully intended).

I've got baking on the brain. I know it is because we bought a crate of strawberries (8-1 pint packages) over the weekend and I am thinking about pie, jam, bread...etc. One of my tasks for the evening is to prioritize that baking list. I refuse to let them go to waste.

On the top of my list is a strawberry rhubarb pie. I can use all market bought fruits! (Well, I don't know that rhubarb is technically a fruit; we got it recently at the Minneapolis Farmers' Market. Need to find a market here that is equally as awesome!)

Tonight we're making a strawberry almond salad. It's a simple, yet delicious salad.

Here's my recipe:

- Bag of spinach or spring greens (no iceberg lettuce allowed)

- 1.5 cups (~1 package) of fresh strawberries, halved

- Caramelized almonds

- 1/2 red onion, chopped

- Gorgonzola cheese

- Balsamic dressing (olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper)

Apple cobbler

An overcast day is always a good day to brush off the apron, roll up the sleeves, and get to baking. It also helps to have a full bag of apples and overripe strawberries in the fridge.

I thumbed through various apple recipes, knowing that a twist to any recipe would be necessary. I opted to make an apple cobbler, partly out of my laziness to not want to make a pie crust. I have been unsuccessful lately with my pie crusts. The recipe never seems to be quite enough dough to cover the entire pie, thus causing the filling to ooze and drip out the sides. Some day I'll master the art - Hopefully it is by Thanksgiving!

While I will admit baking does not yield the same amount of creative liberty that cooking does, it does still allow for some "outside of the recipe-thinking". Naturally, it is never a wise decision to mess with the amount of baking soda, baking powder and flour. I do think though that substituting oil for butter, yogurt for milk, and orange extract for vanilla are all perfectly acceptable options. I have personally done each and all have been successful.

So today (and mostly likely the rest of the weekend) I will have my cobbler and eat it too.

red on red

We've got a birthday coming up here, which means my apron, rolling stick, and whisker are out and feverishly working. This year I'll be making one the classics ... strawberry rhubard pie. Lucky for me this happens to be one of my favorite desserts.

This was one of the pies my mom made a lot. (She, like me, got her recipe from the Joy of Cooking.) I remember as a kid going into my grandfather's garden (sometimes with my mom and most often with my brothers) to pick rhubarb during the summer. My grandfather tended to let his rhubarb plants go wild, so in many cases the plant was as tall as me. It always amazed me that such a tart taste could make such a delicious pie when coupled with strawberries.



I thought I'd capture the wonderful, and very red colors of the strawberries and rhubard. I'll be sure to post another photo of the finished product - that is, if it merits one. :)

I find it extremely appropriate that Julie and Julia is on its way to our apartment as we speak. Nothing like watching a movie about good home cooking when enjoying your own delights, especially when it's all being done to celebrate another year. Yum!