My Fancy New Kitchen & Plum Cake Dad, really?!

So as I mentioned, my family came to visit me recently right before my kitchen remodel was finished, and from the moment they got here, my Dad was going on about Plum Cake. That was the first time I had ever heard of such a thing, but he was insisting that my Mom used to make it all the time. This would probably be a good time to admit the fact that, my mother does not like to cook. Surprising, I know, but my parents own restaurants, so she has never really had to cook. Since I've never seen a boxed Plum Cake, I was skeptical that my Mom had ever actually made such a thing. My Dad explained that they used to make a boxed Plum Cake and she would bake that and Spice Cake. I definitely remember loving her Spice Cake, but the Plum Cake is still debatable. Anyhow, my Dad had found a Plum Cake recipe in the local newspaper along with a bag of black plums and we got to work. At first, it sounded weird to me, but after I thought about it, plums are similar to peaches which are in all kinds of delicious desserts. I was a little concerned that the tart skin might not be so appealing, but it actually turned out to be a super moist and flavorful cake without being overly sweet. The skin actually added a beautiful color to the cake as well, so needless to say, I was delighted with the final result. Good call Dad! :)

Now, about the kitchen...I love it!! My sweet husband worked so hard to get it done as soon as possible because he knew how much I would miss it, but I don't think he realized how much he would miss my cooking until we were eating out every night. As you can see, we upgraded the counter tops, added a back splash, got a new microwave, a new sink & faucet and repainted all of the kitchen cabinets. I'll admit it was kind of a pain in the ass even though Jimmy did most of the work, but just dealing with the mess was a hassle in itself. Thankfully, it turned out to be totally worth it because I think it looks absolutely beautiful. I may just have to make his favorite meal in heels and something cute to repay him! ;)

Plum Cake Recipe:

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon iodized salt
about 7 black plums, cut off the ends of each (like the piece in the pic) then pit, peel & chop the rest
2 tablespoons powdered sugar

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan, dust with flour and tap out the excess. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and almond extracts. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients with the butter mixture. Take the peeled & chopped plum flesh and fold it into the batter. Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Arrange plum butts cut side down on top of the batter. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the cake is lightly browned on top. Note that the plum butts will sink into the cake, that's supposed to happen. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Cool for 30 more minutes, then dust with the powdered sugar and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from San Antonio Express Newpaper

My favorite taste testers and biggest fans! 

Kitchen Purgatory Pot Roast

Aaaaahhhhhh!!! I'm having kitchen withdrawls! Look at my poor oven. 

How could I not have seen this coming? Of course a kitchen remodel sounds glamorous, but as you can see from this picture, the process is far from glamour of any sort! I hate to sound like such a whiney baby considering Jimmy has done most of the hard manual labor, but it has taken a toll on both of us and it's looking like we will need to endure it for another week or so. Thankfully, we really don't argue much in general, but this project really has me pushing his buttons just as effortlessly as I type this posting. I'm not trying to aggravate him, but sometimes I'm just so darn good at it! Plus, it's easy to get sassy when everything is covered in dust, it's over 100 degrees outside and you can't turn on the AC and especially when you can't access the fridge for a drink or snack. Hopefully this madness will get wrapped up soon because I'm looking forward to whipping up something scrumptious for my hard-working hubby in my upgraded kitchen!

The first night this whole remodel debacle started, we had committed to taking dinner over to a friends house as they had just moved into a new home and had their first baby. With so much to celebrate, I really wanted to take them something comforting and delicious, yet low maintenance considering the circumstances in the kitchen. So I opted for a pot roast. It has a pretty broad appeal and is easy to transport. Dessert was also a must, so I also baked up some of my Brownie Cookies to go along with dinner. Although it was a bit of a hassle running back and forth to the guest room to grab cookware & ingredients, it was definitely worth it to support our friends at such an exciting time in their lives. So if you get brave and decide to undergo a kitchen remodel...well, you're probably just gonna wanna go out to eat! ;) But if you have a good dutch oven (or Crock Pot), you can still turn out some delicious low hassle meals to share with people you love.

Beef, carrots & potatoes is a hard combination to beat, although I guess it coulda used something green. Ha! The plate! ;)

This is what was left of that delicious dinner all cooked right in my fun red dutch oven.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (about 3 lb) boneless chuck roast or shoulder roast
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 white or yellow onion, roughly sliced
3 garlic cloves, smashed

1 cup red wine (and the rest of the bottle to drink!)
1 1/2 cups low sodium beef stock
2 bay leaves
1 cup baby carrots
2 pounds (about 8-10) small red potatoes, quartered
Fresh thyme sprigs (optional)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 350º.
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Sprinkle chuck roast with salt and pepper. Add roast to pan; cook 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Add onion to pan; sauté 3-5 minutes or until tender. Add the red wine, thyme sprigs, smashed garlic cloves, beef stock and bay leaves to pan; bring to a simmer. Cover pot and bake at 350° for 1 1/2 hours or until the roast is almost tender.
Add carrots and potatoes to pan. Cover and bake an additional 1-2 hours or until vegetables are tender. If you're pressed for time, boil the potatoes & carrots in another pan for about 10 minutes so that they are partially cooked before tossing them in the dutch oven with the meat. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf from pan & discard before serving. Serve roast with vegetable mixture and cooking liquid. Cheers!