I don't think I have ever felt this energized for a fresh year.
College graduation is just four months and three stellar classes away, and all of those classes seem like they were planned just for me (literature courses on early American letter writing and Victorian domesticity, and a capstone editing class designed around creating a travel magazine from start to finish. Um...yeah).
Recent pen pal letters have me pumped to continue the envelope-and-stamp tradition.
The most fabulous reads have been coming my way lately. Chad and I have resolved to read for pleasure every evening before sleep.
My hubby continues to make me laugh harder every day. Everyone needs that.
And hello! We're in the home stretch! Our baby girl is due to come in less than three months! I am convinced she's going to have a full head of brown hair and big, laughing eyes. Just wait and see.
I couldn't have been any happier with the way we rang in the 2012 year. Chad spent New Year's Day watching bowl games on the big screen with my dad. I spent New Year's Day rifling through and copying down all my mother's best recipes (ohhh yes), drilling my patient mother for tips about each set of instructions. And, continuing the tradition, my cute dad spent New Year's Day cooking fancy treats for the whole family.
Have you ever taken a bite of something that made you giggle because it tasted so good? I admit this happens to me quite often, but it had been a while since the entire room was giggling along with me.
Enter: ebelskiver.
I've talked about these pancake-slash-popover treats before, but before New Year's Day 2012, I had never tasted them with such a remarkable cream filling. My dad filled them with whipped cream cheese and fresh orange zest, then recommended we dip the soft-yet-crispy confections in Nutella or raspberry jam.
The verdict? Well, a room full of giggling people.
Since you would need an ebelskiver pan to make the traditional Danish recipe (something I hope to obtain for myself someday), I'm going to recommend trying this creamy orange filling in crepes. Or with scones. Or on waffles. But first in crepes.
Whole Wheat Crepes
with help from stephmodo
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup all-purpose unbleached flour
3 eggs
1 pinch of good salt
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 ½ cups milk
Place a small non-stick frying pan on medium-high heat. Allow pan to get quite hot before pouring batter in.
Combine ingredients in a bowl with a spout and blend with a whisk until very few lumps remain.
Making sure the frying pan has become quite hot, spray it generously with cooking spray. Pour about half a cup of batter into the prepared pan. Cook for about one minute (until edges begin to bubble), then flip crepe over with a large spatula. Cook for another 30 seconds or so. Both sides should be lightly browned.
Serve crepes rolled up and filled with your choice of filling.
Orange Cream Filling
½ cup whipped cream cheese
Zest from one orange
1 teaspoon powdered sugar
Combine ingredients in a small bowl. Use in crepes, on waffles, or as a partner to fresh scones.
Goes exceptionally well with dark chocolate shavings or Nutella.
Other Filling Ideas
Sweet:
unsweetened shredded coconut + mango + pineapple
stewed fruit + freshly whipped cream
cream cheese + raspberry jam
orange zest + dark chocolate shavings
Savory:
spinach + tomatoes + bacon + garlic + onion + green peppers (all sautéed together and served warm)
scrambled egg whites + feta + tomatoes + spinach