use real butter

Recipe: candied lemon slices

*************

Despite being insanely busy and turning down a lot of fun, exciting opportunities and events this month (only because I’m doing a ton of other fun, exciting things already!), I promised myself that I would participate in Barbara‘s annual LiveSTRONG: With a Taste of Yellow event. This is important to me, not because I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007, but because I know a lot of people who had or have cancer. I have lost beautiful friends and family to cancer. And just last night, I learned that someone who saved my life is fighting for his own right now – fighting cancer. Barbara holds this food and wine blogging event each year in support of The Lance Armstrong Foundation to raise cancer awareness around the world. Last year was the first time I participated.



So if you want to participate there is still time (Barbara has extended the submission date to September 18th). Whip up something yellow – be it savory or sweet, and hop over to Barbara’s page for instructions on how to be a part of LiveSTRONG: With a Taste of Yellow. My submission is past the jump.

*************

I’m in the middle of the “getting to know you” period with my new camera. I haven’t taken it out for serious shooting yet, but I have managed to screw around a bit. Of course, the inaugural photo had to be Kaweah.

our sleep olympian hard at work on her exhausting training regimen

But you didn’t see the first few captures because I always shoot in RAW and my software was not compatible (i.e. it’s OLD) with the latest Adobe RAW version. After yet another upgrade (phase 4 now complete), we are now cooking with gas! I jumped from CS2 to CS4 (sorry CS3, never knew ya) and I like it so far… as long as it doesn’t require a desktop upgrade because we have all of $.52 to our names now.

the last of the harebells

the local stands are still predominantly green

Our nights are flirting with frosts again and it is starting to smell like autumn. I have apples on the brain too! Okay, but we have just under two weeks left of summer, so let’s not shortchange anyone.

organic lemon

**Jump for more butter**

There are times when I’m wrong. I know this shocks you as much as it shocks me. A year ago you could find me railing against Twitter and FaceBook declaring I would never join either one. Today, you will find me railing against Twitter and FaceBook ON Twitter and FaceBook. Twitter is for the egomaniacs, minutiae-obsessed, and people who never shut up. FaceBook is for those who don’t know how to blog. Okay, I’m making fun (sort of). I drank the punch for a variety of reasons, but one of the benefits of Twitter that I never foresaw was how it connected me to Boulder. I don’t live in Boulder. When people ask where I live, I usually tell them Boulder, Colorado because few people have heard of my little mountain town. So one evening the tweet activity was hopping and I’m tweeting away with Andrew (follow @andrewhyde on Twitter), the man who knows EVERYONE, and a fellow tweets that he likes the name of my blog and if I drop by his shop, I’ll get free chocolate. Andrew too, if he comes with me.

Yeah. Sure you will, Mr. Axe Murderer.

There is much spamming on Twitter (I had 67 hot babes ask me to check out their profiles the other day… uh huh) and you get your fair share of freaks. I checked his profile and read that Rick is an organic chocolatier in Boulder. REALLY? I did some quick research and saw he is the real deal. I asked if it would be okay for me to come by and take pictures. Sure, but just try the chocolate first, no obligations. Great! I’ll get in touch when I find some time in my schedule. Over a month later, I’m donning crocs and a hair net as I pass through the glass doors into the inner workings of Seth Ellis Chocolatier headquarters. This is why I love Twitter – it has brought me closer to the fooding community in Boulder and it’s a GREAT community. I still hate FaceBook.

chocolate truffle to nibble on while i waited for rick

**Jump for more butter**

Recipe: mallows

I feel as if every two weeks I’m doing something Daring. Oh wait, it’s because I AM! Daring Cooks, then Daring Bakers, then Daring Cooks then…

the daring bakers knead to bake

I’m not sure if I can keep this up before I start to lose my shit, kids. At least I made it through July.

The official line: The July Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network.

Awesome founders: Lis of La Mia Cucina and Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice.

We were given the option of one or both of the cookie recipes this month, so I chose the mallows because I have been wanting to make marshmallows for over a year. First, we start with a graham cracker base. The dough was simple enough to slap together, chill, roll, and cut out. For some reason, the recipe claims the yield is about 2 dozen cookies for 1/8 inch thickness when in fact, I used a larger cutter and wound up making about 4 dozen cookies. No idea what was up with that…

2-inch cutter

set cutouts on parchment to bake

Next up was to make the marshmallow which essentially involved boiling sugar to soft-ball stage (I boiled to 218°F instead of 235°F because of my altitude, subtract 1° for every 500 ft. above sea level), mixing it with softened gelatin, and beating it into whipped egg whites.

heating the sugar

stir in the gelatin

**Jump for more butter**