Dear Dorie,
Hi, it's me. I know, I haven't posted in several weeks. I'm sorry. I actually made the Lemon Tart from a few weeks ag0 - the pictures are still here on my computer - just haven't gotten around to putting that post together.
But really, I've got a good excuse. Not sure if you've been checking in here lately (that's okay if you haven't - I'm sure you've got plenty of other things going on in your life), but we've been kind of immersed in converting the master bedroom into two smaller bedrooms for the kids. Most of the stuff from the master bedroom (except for 2 bureaus and a bookcase) are crammed into the kids' current (shared) bedroom, with the exception of a mattress. That's on the floor in the basement - my husbands' and my temporary bedroom.
We've been (under the invaluable tutelage of our nephew, Joe) re-wiring the electricity, tearing down walls and putting up new ones, and - most recently - applying, sanding, and reapplying (endlessly, it seems) joint compound to the cracks and crevices in the newly built sheetrock walls. I didn't have anything to do with the electricity or the building of walls, but I'm definitely involved in the smearing and sanding of the joint compound.
The application of it is kind of like applying frosting to a cake. Except that usually I don't need to sand down my cakes after the frosting dries and add another layer to cover the corner tape a little better. I am proud, however, to say that I'm pretty good at creating nice, sharp edges where needed.
Anyway, with all this going on, I haven't done a whole lot of anything newsworthy in the kitchen. Or, if I have, I haven't been taking pictures.
But I yesterday, fearing expulsion from the club, I made it a priority to bake this week's recipe.
Fortunately, Tracey, ofTracey's Culinary Adventures, picked a quick, easy-to-put-together goodie. Cinnamon Squares sounded great to me - I love cinnamon. And I had everything the recipe called for except the espresso powder, but I figured I'd get that at the grocery store. It was on my list - and guess what. I forgot to get it anyway. I substituted in a little strong coffee for some of the milk and figured even if the coffee flavor didn't come through, that was okay. I was in it for the cinnamon anyway.
Anyway, as you know, Dorie, the ingredients come together quickly. It's just a matter of mixing dry ingredients together, mixing most of the wet ingredients together, combining the two, and then gently folding in the melted butter. Pun intended - this was a piece of cake.
So, like I was saying...first you've got your dry ingredients...
(oops - spilled some!)
And then your wet ingredients...
And you just combine them and fold in the butter.
Mmmm! You can almost smell the cinnamon, can't you?
Then you just pour it in the pan, add the cinnamon-sugar layer and the chocolate chips, then the rest of the batter, pop it in the oven, and in about 40 minutes, you have this:
Oops. That's not a great shot. Here's a better one:
I made this last night, and had promised Alex and Julia they could have some if they cleaned up their toys quickly. They have never worked so fast, Dorie!
Alex liked his with the chocolate frosting...
But Julia and I actually prefer ours plain. (I haven't had my husband's opinion yet - he had to work late last night and won't have a sample until he opens his lunch today.)
Anyway, Dorie, I hope you understand why I've missed a few weeks of participation. I'll try to do a better job of keeping up now - the bulk of the work (the disruptive, dusty work) is done, so that should free me up.
Thanks for creating this yummy recipe, and thanks again to Tracey for making it this week's pick. I know she's posted the directions on her site, and people can also find the how-to in your book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. I'm sure all the other members of the Tuesdays with Dorie gang have their posts up, too. They're not the slackers I am.
I guess that's it! Thanks for understanding, Dorie!
Humbly,
Jayne
