Oh Ina! (Cranberry and Apple Cake with Andrew, Tamara and Cassandra)

Over the holidays, we spent a lovely evening with Andrew and Tamara. They had a special out-of-town visitor: Cassandra!!! Yay!!

While Andrew was in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on a most amazing fish stew, the dogs were waiting for the cheese scraps to hit the floor....

And then there was the moment of realization in which the dogs knew that there'd be no cheese scraps in their future. Don't they look like the saddest pups in the world?

Mister Man wasn't sad though. No siree.

He knew that Andrew's delicious fish stew was close at hand.

And for dessert, I wanted to make something that was both seasonal and not too OTT. My brother and sister-in-law gave me the newest Ina Garten cookbook for Christmas, and inside the covers, I found the perfect recipe for a post Christmas meal: Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake.

And you know what? It WAS easy!! And it was delicious. Here's the lovely Cassandra now, modeling the first bite.

And here's the first bite before it found its way into the lovely Cassandra's mouth.

Yum. And so easy!! Here's what you need to make Ina Garten's Easy Cranberry and Apple Cake:

12 ounces fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems

1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and medium-diced

1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 tablespoon grated orange zest (2 oranges)

1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 1/8 teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 cup sour cream

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

And here's what you do with it:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Combine the cranberries, apple, brown sugar, orange zest, orange juice, and 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon in a medium bowl. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for 2 minutes. With the mixer on medium, add 1 cup of the granulated sugar, the butter, vanilla, and sour cream and beat just until combined. On low speed, slowly add the flour and salt.

Pour the fruit mixture evenly into a 10-inch glass pie plate. Pour the batter over the fruit, covering it completely. Combine the remaining 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of cinnamon and sprinkle it over the batter. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a tooth-pick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean and the fruit is bubbling around the edges. Serve warm or at room temperature. Or even better, serve it with vanilla ice cream!!! This really is ridiculously easy. And yummy to boot!

What Do They Prove on the Proving Grounds?

I love visiting the States. There's always lots to do, and sometimes, it really DOES feel like you're in another country. Take, for example, our drive around the outskirts of Yuma, which took us to the Yuma Proving Grounds. Now, I'd never heard the phrase "proving grounds", and I imagined that it might be a space in which you settle an argument with your brother.... kind of like seeing the Wizard of Oz! You know, a guy behind the curtain offers up pithy little lozenges of answers that end up settling that knock 'em down, drag 'em out fight. But no. The proving grounds are where the U.S. Army tests military weapons and tactics. It was both fascinating and completely terrifying.

There was an outdoor museum by the side of the road. Here's what we saw.

There were tanks:

The tanks were from all different eras in history and were deployed in various wars...

And there were nuclear warheads too.

And this missile is called "Honest John". (Not to be confused with the smaller "Little John")

I dunno. It was strange. Very strange....

Some Other Stuff We Did While in the U.S. of A.

Bob and Merilee were hosts extraordinaire. They didn't want us to think that they spent their retirement days doing nothing, so they made sure that we got to see all aspects of their life of leisure. Let me tell you that a life of leisure is a BUSY life!! There is much to do, and even more to see. So on Christmas morning, we leapt out of bed to discover that Santa HAD managed to find a way in (despite the lack of fireplaces).

The sun was beating down upon us, and it was pretty toasty in the sun. We had a moment of silence for our friends back home who were slogging away in the cold and rain....

And then, we got on with the task at hand (which was to make a Christmas breakfast already!!) I mean, we had to prepare for this:

(which occurs every day) (in case you can't see it, it's the sign that hangs in front of Bob 'n Merilee's trailer. And yes, it DOES say HAPPY HOUR.)

But, who WOULDN'T be happy knowing that breakfast would consist of this:

And this:

(The PBR or Pabst Blue Ribbon was Mister Man's idea)..... So Bob cooked the bacon and hash browns outside.

And then, we sat down and enjoyed our breakfast. Mister Man got this awesome t-shirt from Santa. His expression kind of matches the content of the shirt, but I guess that's what happens when you stand between a Mister Man and his breakfast..... (don't tell him, but this face always makes me giggle inside...)

And then we set out to see how people pass their time in the desert in winter. It turns out that some folks like to play on the sand dunes. And while it was a quiet day on the slopes, there were still a few folks who were vroom vrooming their way to the top.

It was kind of spectacular out there - all wide open and monochromatic.

And the glare from that big yellow glow-y thing in the sky made everyone pose like this:

Best of all, if Mister Man and Merilee ever decide to release an album, I've got the cover shot.

And then, we went exploring (after we paused to rest and worship that is!)

First we paused at a teeny-tiny chapel. In fact, it might be the smallest church in the world!

And then, we visited the bridge to nowhere. Seriously. Rumour has it that it was a model bridge that was built to test the construction for the Golden Gate Bridge.

Um. Yeah. I guess it's closed!! It doesn't even go to nowhere Alaska!! But it sure made for some great photo ops!

I couldn't quite figure out what this message meant....

And it was only a matter of time before Mister Man turned into Mountain Man.

But when you've got contrasting landscapes like this, who could blame him?

I'll tell you another thing. I could get used to this lack of white on the ground!! It was the most unique Christmas Day I'd ever experienced!!!!

Let There be Light!

I know that Christmas may seem all last week to you now, but, I still feel compelled to over share some more details about our Christmas vacation in Arizona. (I have mentioned that it's my favourite time of year, haven't I???) After dins on Christmas eve, we were hustled out the door and escorted to the 55th Street Christmas Light Show and Soup Supper. Okay. There wasn't actually a soup supper, but there's always next year!

[SIDEBAR STORY: When I was a kid, local churches in St. John's, Newfoundland would do "turkey teas" and "soup suppers" as fundraisers. I fondly recall my father arriving home from George Street United Church with a cardboard box full of "turkey tea suppers", in which cold cuts were piled up on a paper plate, along with an ice cream scoop of potato salad, and a frightening glob of green jello with bits of carrot floating in it.... etc. YOU get the picture.] In any event, there was no soup supper at the 55th Street Christmas Light Show, but there were a lot of lovely lights.

There were several clues that, no doubt about it, we were in America. First of all, who knew that Santa rode a quad?

Or that snowmen could be made from sagebrush?

And then, there were the sobering reminders of where we were.... (the sign on the left of the Christmas light display says "Support Our Troops")

But there were also whimsical reminders of December in other parts of the Northern Hemisphere, in which the weather outside can be frightful...

And there were even delightful little displays that involved mechanical components. This Santa snored and wiggled his toes.

But the REAL highlight of the night was getting to spend some time with Buddy the dog. Apparently, he LOVES this time of year in which he gets to be the centre of attention night after night, appearing in costume as a reindeer.

And you thought Rudolph was the star of the show!!