sweets, history and true love (almost)

I can't tell you how much fun I had making these orange blossom cupcakes for Market Day this week.  The cake is the recipe I featured here but this time I topped it with my favorite fluffy icing flavored with vanilla and lemon.  The garnish is coconut flakes colored with food coloring.  I wish I could say it were real orange zest but the fruit here is so ugly the zest would be pretty pitiful looking.

The cupcakes were a hit.  I personally think a really nice little individual portion of cake topped with luscious frosting is rare to come by.  So many cupcakes come from a box or only look edible.  Taste for me has to be spot on.  If I'm going to eat a piece of cake it has to be made from scratch with ingredients I can pronounce. Once you make your own cake, you can't go back to the box. Ever.

I was super excited to feature my Mother's oatmeal cookie recipe at Market Day this week.  The recipe originates from a 1975 copy of "Favorite Recipes From Extension Homemakers" of Multnomah County Oregon.  My Aunt Mary K was a member of the Extension and my mother bought a copy for a fundraiser way back then. She's been using the recipe titled "World's Best Oatmeal Cookies" ever since. May Aunt Mary K still has a copy of the original cookbook which she scanned for me.  I absolutely love tracing recipes back to their origins.  Especially ones that were featured in my childhood.  These cookies are amazing.  I made a few with just raisins for the purists, but the rest had butterscotch chips, cranberries and pecans in them!

Speaking of recipes; last weekend we hosted an Egyptian family for brunch and had waffles.  Our friends loved them so much they asked for the recipe.  Sharing my Great Grandmother's waffle recipe with our new friends has to be the best form of diplomacy I've ever been apart of!

Market Day went well again.  I went home with empty baskets and trays.  Everything was sold.  I loved getting customers who greeted me with "I've heard about you".  I have three special orders to work on this week.  Things are getting busy which is great.

Ashlynn Olivia is absolutely exhausted from walking everywhere all day long.  She is mastering her new skill and last night woke only once the 12 hour night.  This is a record for her. I was very grateful for the extra uninterrupted rest.  I hope all her walking keeps her nice and tired for tonight too.

Kindergarten is going well.  Addie and I had a lovely conversation the other day about the handsome boys in her class and how a few of them make eye contact with her and stare in her eyes so they MUST "like" her.  She also explained to me that she knew she had met her current "one true love" (thank you Disney's Enchanted) because she liked his lunchbox.  I stifled a few giggles and then breathed a sigh of relief when she confided in me later that "little kids like me don't really love each other yet, Mom".  I don't think Adelaide is going to have any troubles fitting in socially.  She's a very friendly child and as an older sister she's kind and considerate of others.  She's also pretty thrilled with her new reading, stretching, singing, and computer skills she is learning.  She had to run around the big track during PE the other day without stopping and she was the fastest one in her class!  I'm so proud of my girl.