friday links

Happy Friday all!


The traffic on the cape has been rough.
July 4th was really backed up--both ways on the bridges.
I was lucky enough to be stuck in it one day.  I think a lot of people came to the cape for the July 4th holiday.

If you plan on coming to the cape July 18-20, come to the Greek Festival. So much fun!
More info here at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Centerville

If any of you follow me on Instagram, you might recognize this nightmare photo.
I always keep a water bottle on my bedside table, and normally with the cap off since I'm
half asleep in the middle of the night to drink it.
Well leaving the cap off makes spiders feel more than welcome to come in and have a sip.
Always leave the cap on!

If you're in or on the water a lot, this is handy to know.
Marine Disentanglement Hotline

Summer has been beautiful hasn't it?
I always love to look up and wonder where is that plane going or that one?
Do you?

Rescued this little guy last week.  A baby morning dove.
Couldn't find his momma or nest, so I brought him to the Cape Wildlife Center
Happy to report he's doing fine, eating well and has zero injuries.
Thank you so much Cape Wildlife Center for taking him in.

Been to the beach a couple times; the water is perfect.
(bass river, cape cod)

Got to witness a couple friends jump out of a perfectly good airplane at the cape cod airfield in Marstons Mills, Cape Cod.
I am "almost" ready to do this myself.
Would you?
I'm dying to do the biplane rides.


my banana bread balls have been the most D/L recipe for the last two weeks.
have you made them?
are people craving banana bread balls?

around the web:

a good list of summer books of 2014
magic flan cake
14 brain exercises to help you get smarter
oxygenating your cells to reduce inflammation
back surgery for back pain: caution is in order
5 steps to meditate anywhere
fresh cherry cupcakes
a few thoughts on worry
'smart' luggage will text you when it gets lost
DIY nautical knot bracelets
flu vaccine contains 25,000 times more mercury than drinking water? (yikes)
health benefits of pumpkin seeds
lavender infused lemonade
pb & j popsicles
one of the best looking taco salads I've seen
vintage recipe: lazy daisy cake
flip flop cookies! (so cute)
new way to regrow human corneas
21 things you didn't know your i-phone could do
how to make bubble tea (aka boba) at home
mississippi mud cookies
are you deficient in magnesium?
floating over bora bora (LOVE this!)
pb-banana bonbons
rhubarb meringue bars
homemade hot pockets
why we stay in crappy situations & how to get out of them
homemade cherry filled chocolates!
strawberry shortcake muffins
10 causes of hair loss
timeless wisdom
chocolate-vanilla froyo pops
motion sensor that helps align new knee joints
bake-able, crunchy & edible cupcake wrappers!
blueberry-oat cheesecake bars
the many health benefits of ginger
grilled elote corn
the one emotion that really hurts your brain
natural compounds to improve thyroid function
are we aging faster?
hot fudge brownie sundae pie
nutella crepe cake
best ways to store tomatoes
how to write on a cake with sprinkles
dangers of plastic: 5 hidden places of BPA
sesame crisp bars
nutella ice cream is coming to Carvel?
5 ways to use up old bread
the implant that gives you back your hearing
why we stay in crappy situations
what is pantothenic acid?
raw/vegan ice cream bars (hard to believe they're raw)
dangerous chemicals found in food packaging
crayon lipstick?
want to go viral? 7 things to do now to be ready
13 most powerful superfoods
fluoridation and dementia
vasectomy may increase risk of aggressive prostate cancer
huge anchovy swarm invades san diego
food blogger fined for her negative restaurant review? (yikes)

Have a wonderful weekend!

walnut-cream cheese sandwich cookies

I just love exploring new recipes that actually incorporate a finely ground up nuts into the flour.
I mean flour on it's own is so tasteless, so adding in ground up nuts is perfect.
Toasted walnuts have such nice flavor on it's own, so you can imagine how good they are when ground up.

If you don't like walnuts, I bet pecans would work well; might be a little greasy, but reduce the butter by a couple tablespoons, you should be good?
These cookies are really good on their own, you don't have to make the sandwich filling.
Speaking of the filling, I've found an easier way to fill the cookies.
I wrap the filling in plastic wrap or parchment paper, chill, then slice and fill.  So much easier than
spreading the filling via a knife or piping bag.  So keep this in mind for future sandwich fillings.


The recipe doesn't call for it, but I added in a couple handfuls of chopped walnuts to the filling.
Of course you don't have to do this, but it was a great way to add in a little texture.



walnut cream cheese sandwich cookies
From The Sweet Life by Kate Zuckerman
print recipe

for the cookies
1 cup walnuts (make sure they are toasted walnuts)
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 ts salt
16 TB (two sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg, at room temperature

for the filling
4 ounces cream cheese, room temp
4 TB unsalted butter, room temp
1/2 cup powdered sugar
pinch of salt
(I added in a couple handfuls of chopped walnuts to filling, optional)

cook notes:
Please use toasted walnuts.  The flavor that a toasted walnut adds instead of a plain one is huge.  If you don’t like walnuts, you can try pecans?

Combine the walnuts and 1 tablespoon of the flour in a food processor and grind to a fine powder. Place in a bowl then add in the remaining flour, salt, and mix; set aside.
In a mixer or hand mixer, cream the butter and the sugar. You want to cream it till it’s nice and fluffy/lighter in color. Add the egg and continue to beat until it is fully incorporated and the batter looks nice and smooth (about 2 minutes).
Add the dry mixture, to the butter mixture and using a rubber spatula mix until combined.  You can do this with your mixer.  Take the dough and divide in half.  Place in plastic wrap or parchment paper; fold or roll into uniform logs, about
1 1/2 inches in diameter. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
While dough is chilling you can make the filling.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and using a hand mixer or stand mixer cream until all is mixed and has lightened in color and formed stiff peaks.  At the last mixing I added in a couple handfuls of chopped walnuts; this of course is optional but I wanted some texture in the filling.
When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350° F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Using a sharp knife, cut as many 1/8-1/4 inch slices from each log of dough as possible and place the cookies on prepared cookie sheets. Bake the cookies until golden brown about 12-15 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely before adding the filling.
To fill the cookies you can either place the filling in a piping bag, plastic bag with edge snipped off, or use a knife to spread.  I poured/formed the filling into plastic wrap, chilled it till firm, then sliced it. So much easier!  But do what you feel comfortable with.

chocolate chip cookie ice cream (no churn, no cook)

I remember watching an episode of Martha Stewart (years ago) and her 5-minute celebrity guest of the day was Andy Rooney.
Two very strong-minded people sharing the stage for 5 minutes to talk about food, this should be good. Curious to see "what food" Andy was all about; never imagined Andy Rooney liking anything out the norm or being a foodie--always imagined him as a "I'll have the same chicken salad for lunch every single day kind of guy".
Ice cream, he is an avid ice cream maker!  Makes his own batches, and he likes to do it the old fashioned way; they really old fashioned way: hand churn.
Ever see one of those machines?  A hand churn ice cream maker that sits over ice?
They are a lot of work; a lot of work when it's really hot outside.
If you watch the above video, his recipe is almost like this one, no eggs, no cook, just heavy creams
mixed with sweetened condensed milk.  Fairly easy.
To be honest, I never made a no churn ice cream, always thought they were going to taste horrible
because of the missing egg custard.  But in all honestly you cannot tell the difference.
I played around with the recipe a bit, by adding in high quality vanilla beans to make a nice vanilla
ice cream base.  The vanilla beans really give it a nice smooth vanilla taste, not too strong, not too sweet--just right.  Once you've made the base, the add's are literally endless.
This time I chose chocolate chip cookies since I've always wanted to make my own with extra cookies added in.
I hate getting ice cream from a local stand and there are just a couple pieces of cookies in there.
What's up with that?


This recipe should be filed under "ridiculously quick & easy" because it is.
It took me 2 minutes to chop up cookies, 2 minutes to gather ingredients, 2 minutes to stir, then 3 hours to freeze.  Crazy easy!  I am making this recipe my go to for easy, delicious vanilla ice cream.
As long as you use good quality vanilla bean paste or vanilla bean pods then you will have really good vanilla ice cream base in which to create other ice creams.



This vanilla bean custard is literally one of the best ice cream custards I've made next to an egg-based one.
I just love how easy this is to whip up together.  Perfect for those very hot summer days when you want to do as little work as possible when making anything food related.





chocolate chip cookie ice cream (no cook, no churn)
print recipe

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1 pint + ½ pint of heavy cream, cold
1 pint whipping cream, cold
1 ¼ ts of pure vanilla bean paste (I highly recommend Nielsen-Massey brand)
giant pinch of sea salt

about 1 to 1 ½ cups of chopped chocolate chip cookies

cook notes:
Using vanilla bean paste gave this a really good vanilla ice cream; it was so good just one its own. So if you’re looking for a good vanilla ice cream, this is it.
If you don’t have vanilla bean paste then use the seeds from a couple of vanilla bean pods. You can use vanilla extract, but it won’t give that nice, deep vanilla flavor.
I added a lot of chopped cookies to this; you don’t have to; add what you like.
The best time to add the cookies is when the ice cream is halfway frozen.  If you add the cookies to the unfrozen custard they will sink to the bottom.
In a medium bowl, mix all the ingredients except the cookies together.  Mix until all is dissolved. Pour into a freeze-safe glass or other bowl that has a tight fitting cover.  I used a large glass bowl that has a tight fitting lid.
About an hour to an hour and a half later, you can add in the cookies; as long as the ice cream is kind of set up.  I just put cookies on top of soft ice cream and pushed them down with a spatula.
If you add the cookies to the unfrozen custard they will sink to the bottom.
Let freeze another 2 hours.
Makes about 1 & ½ pints, roughly?

friday links

Happy Friday kids!

What's on tap for this wonderful summer weekend?


I shall try every flavor this summer.

When it's just too hot cook, I love to fix up a condiment salad with plenty of Catalina dressing.

It's blueberry pie season!

The buffalo chicken pizza at Whole Foods is so good!

Yummy hot dogs at the "walk up food bar" at Whole Foods Cape Cod.

I'm so glad winter is gone.

Ocean temp is about 65 degrees, feels much warmer when the sun is out though.

Tomato season is coming!
I've got a quick & easy recipe for tomato & cheddar hand pies.

One bowl caramel-pecan brownies!
Easy peasy for the weekend.

around the web:

brownie waffle cookies (I wish I had a waffle iron still)
this is your body without water
cauliflower rice (this looks so easy!)
waffle + falafel = wafalafel
why iron rich foods are important
20 mantras to help you feel more confident
what a literary agent wants to see when they google you
why eating a big breakfast helps you lose weight
DIY wind chimes--great for the kids this summer
man wears Mentos coated suit & jumps in vat of diet coke (I know, I know!)
peanut butter waffles (I'm on a waffles kick)
hummus salad dressing! (brilliant)
natural remedies for sunburns
20 cancer symptoms women are most likely to ignore
empathic people are natural targets for sociopaths
s'mores pop tart slab pie
four foods rich in magnesium
how to get rid of writers block
best superfood for detoxing
cat in the bag! (I wasn't sure if this was real, but it is)
how to use google analytics (very helpful!)
the many healing wonders of turmeric
exercise & protein may help good gut bacteria
peony care: tips to grow healthy plants
conch shell headphones
rainbow tie-dye surprise cake (excellent tutorial)
vietnamese coffee ice cream (no cook)
a list of the best hair conditioners (what do you use?)
chocolate chip cookie milk shooters
grains & your joints
rose-infused lemonade
5 "not so super foods"?
diet or exercise? 'energy balance' is real key to disease prevention
DIY treat & candy wrappers
DIY fortune teller (the ones you made as a kid)
how to make pancakes with your rice cooker
tips for growing your hair
are you a "word nerd"? follow these twitter accounts to improve your vocab
the genesis of genius
cut your cake & keep it fresh too
decaying mansion of antiques
the rotting rothschild mansion
mike tyson's deserted 1980's mansion
food ingredient fears
16 things that affect your gut bacteria
more great uses & health benefits of turmeric
overcoming stress by saying thanks
15 mind blowing ways your body heals after quitting smoking



Have a wonderful weekend!

oatmeal-coconut crisps (flourless & GF)

If I had my way, and gaining weight was never a factor, I'd eat cookies for breakfast every day.
They're portable, tasty, quick, no fuss, ready to eat, and require no assembly when you're waiting for the espresso to kick in and make you human.
I love breakfast, but I hate making food that early in the day.
I would love to have a private chef feed me in the morning rather than at night. I mean, if I had to choose between morning or night...you know.  LOL
Some nights, I'll take my laziness  efficiency to a new level by making my breakfast ahead of time, so it's ready to go in the morning.
Perhaps that's why I'll always be creating cookies that are "breakfast" suitable.
Not a lot of sugar, not a lot of starch, or gluten, and hopefully some protein, if that's possible?
Kashi made some cookies that were healthier and suitable for breakfast; they were good, pricey though, little too much starch and sugar for me though, and I'm just not sure about the list of "natural" ingredients, so I'd prefer to make my own.
In the past, I've made a couple of cookies that are semi suitable for breakfast consumption.

These are tasty!
Nice and crisp, lightweight, not starchy, very flavorful!
Almost one bowl easy.
You do have to pull out the food processor to grind up half the rolled oats.
You could try to skip that step; I am curious to see what happens if  you do.
Cookie might not hold together though.
The first batch I made I did NOT flatten them, Second batch I did and the cookies came out
much better; crispier. So basically, the thinner you flatten them the crispier they get--just watch the baking times if you go the really thin route.




oatmeal-coconut crisps (flourless & GF)
print recipe

2 cups rolled oats (aka old-fashioned oats), divided
¾ cup unsweetened shredded coconut
¾ ts sea salt
1 TB cornstarch
½ ts baking powder
1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
⅓ cup granulated sugar
⅓ cup packed light-brown sugar
1 large egg
1 ts pure vanilla extract

cook notes: 
use rolled aka old fashioned oats, not quick cooking.
Most oats are gluten free, make sure the oats you are using are 100% gluten free.
Make sure to flatten cookie dough balls before baking as they will not spread or flatten on their own.
You could add chocolate chips or raisins to the dough.  This is not a dough that you can cover and use the next day. The dough does dry out fairly quickly. With that said, I highly doubt it freezes well.
The flatter you make the cookies the crispier they get; but watch the baking times if you go really flat.
This dough makes about 24 small cookies or 15-20 bigger ones.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a food processor or other grinder, pulse 1 cup of the oats until finely ground.
In a medium bowl mix the grinded oats, shredded coconut, the remaining 1 cup of oats, cornstarch, baking powder and salt; mix well and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy; add in the egg, vanilla extract.
Next add in the dry ingredients and mix till just combined.
If your kitchen runs really hot, place in fridge for 10 minutes to firm up. No longer than 20 minutes as the dough will start to dry out.
On parchment lined baking sheets, drop cookie dough size into tablespoon or larger.  Gently flatten cookies. Cookies will not spread much during baking and will not flatten either, so it’s important to flatten before baking.
Bake until edges are deep golden brown, about 15-18 minutes.
Please let these cookies cool a bit before removing, they are super fragile when straight out of the oven.

friday links

Happy Happy Friday!

First day of summer this Saturday!

Do they have to park at the end of my driveway?

Are you coming to the Cape this weekend?
It's going to be beautiful weather.

Why can't we have summer year round?
Winter is so.....pointless.

I hope to do a little stand up paddle boarding this weekend.
What are your plans?

Did I tell you yet that Cape Cod has it's own Whole Foods now?
I might have mentioned it a couple times.  LOL
They have really good pizza.

White peaches are in season--let's make a tart!

Chubby wifey ice cream?

peanut butter-oreo ice cream

peanut butter-fudge puddle cookies are DANGEROUS!

around the web:

black coffee stops your teeth from rotting? hmm
scary symptoms of stress
strawberry shortcake ice cream bars
make your own electrolyte drink
cantaloupe-mint caipirinah cocktail
key lime cheesecake milkshakes!
warning signs you're dealing with a toxic person
will ferrell & chad smith drum off (I love this!)
5 ways to improve your day
banana & brown sugar popsicles
armpit cleanse: to reduce breast cancer risk
artsy craftsy sequin projects!
overcoming excuses & believing in what you can do!
yep spiders that eat fish exist!
America's happiest seaside towns (yay to p-town!)
how to freeze baked goods by alice medrich
sriracha crab salad rolls
watermelon painted donuts
healthy obesity?
NY style paleo pizza crust
can intermittent fasting help you?
your favorite carby foods made healthy & delicious
6 superfoods for a healthy prostate
common insecticides may be linked to child behavior problems
runaway juno: she's living the dream I want--traveling!
high levels of cancer-causing compounds found in hairdressers blood
breast cancer risk factors connected to 102 chemicals
bacon & avocado macaroni salad
anatomy of a starbucks beverage
fruits, foods & drinks that revitalize & restore
6 tips to get you motivated when you're feeling depressed
Globe Trekker fans!
people who overshare on Facebook just want to belong
the difference between rolled oats, steel-cut oats & quick oats
hair perfume?
DIY beehive cake
world cup themed cakes & cupcakes
22 tricks to avoid bloating
Oh Joy goes to London!
easy focaccia made in your skillet
sriacha bacon wrapped onions rings
quick & easy berry jam
grilled middle eastern lamb burgers w/ garlic sauce
chocolate swirl paleo banana bread

Have a wonderful weekend!

lemon crumb cake

Have any clue how many crumb cakes I've made over the years?

I've made a lot. Some people love cupcakes, I love crumb cakes.
I think it's the crumb I'm drawn to; I tend to make 'double' the crumb than the average crumb cake.
Why? It's the best part if done right.
I mean I could just make a crumb cake, made of crumb, and would be totally fine with that;
do we really need the cake part? Yes, no we don't.
About the mid 1980's I went to NYC a lot to visit friends, shop, and eat.
And that's when I discovered crumb cake; mile high crumb cake.
It was sold everywhere, a small company made the cake, can't remember the name, but their little see through packages filled with most cake and about three inches of cake were sold at almost every store, pizza joint, coffee shop, etc...
I was drawn to it because it wasn't the "norm" crumb cake that you'd see everywhere.
Normal crumb cake was a mile-high cake with tiny bits of crumb on top.  Yuck!  What's the point?
So that is what started my obsession creating crumb cakes at home with hints of flavor and texture.
How many have I made?  I didn't answer that yet did I?
Here's the list:

eggnog crumb cake (my fav)
banana cream crumb cake
cookie butter crumb cake
pumpkin crumb cake
NY style-pumpkin crumb cake
key lime crumb cake
blackberry-cream cheese crumb cake
NYC style crumb cake
banana-espresso crumb cake
raspberry-buttermilk crumb cake
pb & jelly crumb cake

Any guess on the next crumb cake creation?


This lemon crumb cake is based off my eggnog crumb cake, pretty much the same base recipe.
It's very moist, the crumb is just right, and the lemon glaze has the right amount of sourness to give it a little extra punch.
It's keeps well for about 4 days. I think the longer it sits wrapped the better it tastes.
You don't have to use a bundt pan, you can also use a 9x13 pan.







lemon crumb cake
print recipe

crumb topping
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
¾ ts salt
2-3 TB fresh lemon zest
10 TB unsalted butter, melted & cooled a bit

cake
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 ts baking soda
¾ ts baking powder
½ ts salt
2-3 TB fresh lemon zest
12 TB unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup sour cream
juice of 1 lemon (or more)

glaze
3/4 cup of powdered sugar
2TB (or more) of fresh lemon zest
juice of about 1-2 lemons, depending on how thick/thin you want your glaze

cook notes:  
grease up your bundt cake pan well!
You can also use a 9x13 cake pan, but cake might be a bit thinner, so watch the baking times.
The cake batter is very thick.
Do a taste test on the batter to see if it has enough lemon flavor for you; mine was weak on lemon, so I used a whole lemon. Just added more in at the last minute.
To avoid lumps in your icing, just run the powdered sugar through a sifter before using it.
The glaze is fairly strong/sour, which is great, so that said, you don’t need a lot.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Spray a bundt pan with non-stick spray or grease up with butter. Set aside.
For the crumb topping:
In a medium bowl, mix the sugars, lemon zest, salt, and flour.
Add the melted butter and stir with spatula until combined. Set aside.
For the Cake:
Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, lemon zest, and salt into medium bowl.
Using electric mixer, or mixer or by hand (me) beat the butter and sugar in large bowl until smooth.
Add in the eggs, beating until well blended after each addition.
Next add in the sour cream and lemon juice; mix until just blended. Lastly add in the flour mixture in batches—I did two batches, until all is just combined. Do not overmix once the flour is added; lumps are good!
Pour the batter into the greased pan, spread batter evenly.  Next add on the crumb topping by dropping clumps (2-3 inch clumps) of it on to the top. Do not push crumbs down!
Bake the cake for 30-40 minutes or until tester inserted into center comes out FAIRLY clean (mine was done at the 33-minute mark).
Please rotate the pan halfway through baking time.  You will know cake is done when there is no more jiggle in the middle of the cake.
Once cake is cooled, remove from pan carefully and place on a large plate or cake stand.
Mix up the icing ingredients in a small bowl and drizzle over cake
Keep cake covered.  Should only last 3-4 days at room temperature.