Grape Hyacinth and Blackberry Jam

Grape hyacinth.  That's what they are called.  Those little spiky flowers made up of numerous bell-shaped blooms.  A minuscule bunch of grapes the perfect size for a fairy.  I have to crouch down to inspect them.  Val has planted them in clumps so that when they appear it's as if there is a whole herd of purple flowers.  Tiny spikes, little elfin hats that always remind me not of big bunches of juicy grapes but instead of deep, dark blackberries.  And when I think about blackberries, or any kind of berry for that matter, I always begin to dream about jam.

Of course, most of the time, jam needs a vehicle.  (When I'm acting civilized instead of eating the jam out of the container by the spoonful with the refrigerator door wide open.)  And my favorite jam landing pad other than homemade toasted white bread baked by Val, herself, is a freshly baked biscuit, or it's free form cousin, the scone.  So, last Sunday morning, the day after mine and Ava's girls' night, I decided that we needed to eat scones for breakfast.Vanilla scented, fluffy, light and topped with crunchy sugar crystals. Hot out of the oven, crispy outer edge.  The soft inside ready to absorb the sweetened berry juice dotted with softened berries.  Celebratory blackberry jam I made to welcome the long awaited April arrival of the grape hyacinths running along the stone walkway that leads to Val's porch.

Quick Berry Jam

(makes about 1 1/2 cups jam)

12 oz (approximately 2 cups) berries 

1/4 cup water

1/3 cup sugar

juice from 1/2 lemon

2 1/2 teaspoons powdered pectin

Combine all ingredients except pectin in a medium size saucepan.  Heat on medium-high and stir occasionally until sugar melts and mixture begins to bubble. Add pectin and continue to stir until mixture thickens (about 5 minutes).  Skim off and discard any white bubbly film that forms over the top.  Lower heat and cook for an additional 5 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Cool completely.  Serve with scones, on toast or by the spoonful.  Refrigerate leftovers (if you have any) and use within one week. 

Vanilla Breakfast Scones

 (makes about 12)

2 cups flour

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces

1 cup cold buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Mix all dry ingredients.  Cut butter into dry ingredients using a pastry cutter or 2 forks until the mixture looks like coarse peas.  Make a well in the center of the mixture and mix in the buttermilk and vanilla until just incorporated.  The mixture should be sticky.  If it is not, add a little more buttermilk.  Scoop out 10-12 dollops of dough (a little smaller than a baseball) onto lined, rimmed* baking pans.  Brush tops of scones with heavy cream and sprinkle turbinado sugar on each one. Bake for 12-18 minutes until edges are golden brown.  Remove from oven and serve warm.

*Make sure your pan has a rim as the butter sometimes melts and leaks out and could end up on the floor of your oven.  This could cause a fire!!

 

Girls' Night

I remember well those Saturday nights when none of my friends were around to have a sleepover.  And then the middle school years when I was not cool enough to fit in with the rest.  Val always soothed my sadness with homemade cupcakes while we watched an episode of the "Love Boat", and allowed me to stay up later than usual.  Things always seemed better by the time Julie McCoy and Captain Stubing waived good-bye to all their weekly guests.
Once Declan headed off with his friend and Rob went to work for the evening, Ava and I were on our own. The first movie we picked out didn't work which is a shame because I love any story that takes place in the American south and Ava has read "Because of Winn- Dixie" about a million times.  But Ava found another one that was even better.  "Cinderella" was not scheduled to begin until 5:30pm which gave us plenty of time to mix up an old fashioned yellow layer cake (and lick the bowl, of course!) as well as concoct each our own plate of nachos, mine with salsa and pickled jalapenos, Ava kept hers clean with only cheddar cheese and sour cream.  We devoured our personalized snacks instead of eating dinner with our feet up while watching Cinderella's sad fate unfold. 
The oven timer for the cake sounded just as Cinderella finished dancing with the prince.  I had to keep Ava from sneaking a piece until it was cooled enough to frost and complete our masterpiece. This gave us plenty of time to watch all the maidens in the land try to wrestle a sweaty foot into the glass slipper.  Everyone loves a happy ending: ours was found on the back of the Hershey's Cocoa can.  During the closing credits, we whipped up the fudgiest of frostings and smeared it between the two layers of dense, homemade cake.
We cleaned up after licking another bowl of sweetness and threw our pajamas on. Armed with large wedges of layer cake, we settled in to watch yet another maiden determine her own future.  This time we only made it half way through "The Princess Diaries" and Julie Andrews' royal instruction to develop her American granddaughter into a regal swan.  Ava was tired and ready for bed. It surprised me that she didn't want to push the limits by staying up to all hours of the night.  She knows what she needs and what she wants because if you are a 12 year old girl in 2016, it's not only about being a beautiful princess but also about being strong and confident in yourself.  Maybe a princess' view of life is different now, but not everything has changed since I was her age.  There are still trials at school: algebra tests, annoying boys, catty girls and long bus rides home.  And no matter what is happening in life, the world is so much easier to bear when it is softened with a big slice of cake and a snuggle on the couch.

Yellow Cake

 adapted from "Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook", 1996 edition 

2 1/2 cups flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup  unsalted butter, softened

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease and lightly flour two 9x1 1/2 inch round baking pans and set aside.  Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter on medium high speed for 30 seconds.  Add sugar and vanilla.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating 1 minute after each.  Add dry mixture and buttermilk alternately, to beaten mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.  Pour batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a wooden pick comes out clean. Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and continue to completely cool on wire racks.  Frost with desired frosting.

"Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Frosting

 from hersheyskitchen.com

(enough for a 2 layer cake)

 

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 

2/3 cup Hershey's Cocoa

3 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup milk (room temperature)

1 teaspoon vanilla

Melt butter.  Stir in cocoa.  Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating on medium speed to spreading consistency.  Add more milk, if needed.  Stir in vanilla.  About 2 cups frosting.