Who needs lemonade when you can make lemon pound cake!

I've been trying to catch up with my blogging lately.  It's super hard when you have all these pictures to filter through, and some I haven't touched in so long I forgot where I put the recipe and what I changed in them =(.  If you ever plan on blogging - about anything - I would definitely suggest to have a designated place for your recipes and pictures...bookmarks, print outs, voice recordings.  Anything that will help you out if you have a busy and dynamic schedule.  Cause sometimes you just need to bake/cook and relax immediately after (with a glass of wine of course ;P)  Take it from someone who knows...I have tons of recipes (pictures actually) from last year that i just can't remember the ingredients for.  OK, I'm done venting!  Back to business..

If you're anything like me, you'll understand when I say that some days I love to get out of the house and relax somewhere else with a cup of tea or coffee and a great book.  At times like these, I often find myself at the local coffee shop sipping on my latte and munching on a pastry.  One time in particular, I remember eating an iced lemon pound cake and thought, "dang...if this becomes a habit, I'll be in debt before I know it."  Then, it hit me...why don't I just make my own!  Duh, right...seems to be a no-brainer.  So I scoured the internet looking at other blogger's renditions of their coffee shop favorites.  It's pretty ridiculous how easy these items we pay $3+ for are to make yourself.  Since my addiction at the time was Starbucks' Lemon Loaf, I found a great recipe online, and added a few modifications.

INGREDIENTS

POUND CAKE

1/2 Cup  Unsalted Butter, softened

1 Cup  Sugar

2  Eggs

1 tsp  Grated Lemon Peel

1 Tablespoon  Fresh Lemon Juice

1 1/2 Cups  All-purpose Flour

1 tsp  Baking Powder

1/2 Cup  Non-fat Milk (you may use any type of milk)

ICING

1/4 Cup  Lemon Curd

1/4 Cup  Powdered Sugar

1-2 Tablespoons  Lemon Juice

DIRECTIONS

1. In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt and lemon peel).  In a mixing bowl, beat together butter and sugar till smooth.

2. Add eggs and 1 Tablespoon lemon juice and mix till incorporated.

3. Add dry ingredients and milk alternately (starting and ending with dry ingredients) till incorporated.

4. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Spray your loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and pour batter in.

5. Bake for 1 hour or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean.  Cool for 5 minutes then cool completely on a rack.

6. Once cooled, spread lemon curd over the top of the loaf.  Mix powdered sugar and remaining lemon juice and ice away =).

Now slice and be happy eating this knowing that you're saving tons of money =).

Orange Fiasco

My number one rule that I tend to break constantly is, "never go grocery shopping when I'm hungry".  The end result varies, but I usually always end up with things that are not on my list.  This time it was a 4 lb bag of oranges, among other things.  They were on sale!! I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have 10+ oranges for just $3!
Then, there I was at home, contemplating what I would do with these gorgeous fruits.  Juicing them would just be a waste...but then I remembered having these amazing Cranberry Orange Scones from a local bakery, and I decided that that is what these oranges would become.  Pastries! =)  I found a few different recipes online and made some modifications to them based on what I had at home (no more grocery shopping for me..today).  I know scones are supposed to be on the drier side because you typically pair it with your cup of tea or coffee, but I honestly love a moist scone that speaks for itself.  So, what I did was fold in chunks of cream cheese and I also mixed orange segments into the batter to give the end product a burst of juiciness when you bite into it.
Oh, and it turned out fantastic!  Here, take a look.

Oops, I forgot to mention the icing, which makes it look gourmet =9.  So simple to make, just take 1 - 2 tablespoons of orange juice and mix it into a 1/4 cup of powdered sugar.  You may add more juice or sugar to get the right consistency.

I seriously want to eat one right now!

Cranberry Orange Cream Cheese Scones

INGREDIENTS

2 Cups All Purpose Flour
7 tsp Sugar
1 Tbsp Orange Zest
2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Salt
1/3 Cup Unsalted Butter, cold and cubed
3 oz. Cream Cheese, cold and cubed
1 Cup Dried Cranberries
1/3 Cup Orange Juice
1/2 Cup Orange Sections
1/4 Cup Lowfat Buttermilk
1 Egg
1 Tbsp Milk

DIRECTIONS - preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. In a small bowl combine orange juice and cranberries. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, orange zest, salt, baking powder and soda. Cut butter into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter until it resembles coarse crumbs.

3. Add buttermilk and egg to cranberries, then pour all into the flour mixture. Mix until soft dough forms.

4. Knead dough 8 - 10 times on a floured surface.  Form a circle and cut into 12 - 14 wedges (you may cut them smaller since they grow in the oven).

5. Fold a few cubes of cream cheese into each wedge, and place on baking sheet lines with parchment paper.

6. Brush with milk and bake for 13 - 15 minutes of until light golden brown.

Transfer to a cooling rack, and once thoroughly cooled, drizzle on the icing.

Sooooo delicious! Enjoy :D