A Truth to Test...

"Judge not, and you will not be judged;

Condemn not, and you will not be condemned;

forgive, and you will be forgiven;

give, and it will be given to you.

GOOD measure,

PRESSED down,

SHAKEN together,

RUNNING over,

will be put into your lap.

For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you."

Luke 6:37-38

Upside-Down Deliciousness

So I neglected to take pictures while making this cake. I was in hurry-mode instead of bloggy-mode.

But THIS cake is blog-worthy.

Pictures or no!

And it not only gets plenty of comments...it's really really fun! And makes your house smell like Thanksgiving. Wish there was a scratch-and-sniff feature on here.
Think moist, spice-infused cake with succulent apples in a caramel-like sauce baked into the top (well, bottom, I guess), the extra gooey-ness dripping down the sides after you flip it out onto your serving plate. 

Best served warm, with a scoop of ice cream on the side. But aren't most things best that way?

Upside-Down Apple Skillet Cake

Topping:

6 T. butter

1 c. packed brown sugar

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

4 medium apples, peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4-in. thick (3 c. sliced)

Cake:

1 pkg. plain spice cake mix (or white/yellow, with extra cinnamon added)

8 T. butter, melted

1 c. buttermilk

1/4 c. dark corn syrup

2 lg. eggs

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350*F. Place butter in a 10-in. cast iron skillet and heat the skillet over low heat to melt the butter. Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar and cinnamon. Arrange apple slices over bottom of skillet.

Place cake mix, butter, buttermilk, corn syrup, eggs, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer at low speed for 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl, and beat at medium for 2 minutes more. Pour batter on top of apples in skillet, smoothing top. Will be a full skillet...but no fear, mine hasn't overflowed yet, even though I put foil on the rack underneath every time...just in case.

Bake cake 43-47 minutes, or until it tests done. Run a knife around edges of cake. Carefully invert the skillet into a heatproof serving plate.

Serve as suggested...with ice cream!

Orchard update

Another year at the Orchard is drawing to a close!

It's really hard to believe this has been my 3rd year there. But...here we are in November, after the biggest year ever. The trees are picked out. The crowds and school tours have vanished. The corn maze is demolished. The preserves are running out. And I'm DONE making fudge!!!

Speaking of which...

So last year (see post here), you will see I made 675 lbs of fudge during the month of October.

This year, I rounded out the month with

1020 lbs.

That number is half the amount I made during the entire 2009 season, smashed into one month.

Let's just say that...if anyone wants fudge this Christmas, they're making it themselves!!!! :)



Pottery and Hedges

"These were the potters, and those that dwelt among plants and hedges: there they dwelt with the king for his work."

(1 Chronicles 4:23)

"Anywhere and everywhere we may dwell 'with the King for His work.' We may be in a very unlikely and unfavorable place for this; it may be in a literal country life, with little enough to be seen of the 'goings' of the King around us; it may be among the hedges of all sorts, hindrances in all directions; it may be furthermore, with our hands full of all manner of pottery for our daily task.

No matter!

The King who placed us 'there' will come and dwell there with us; the hedges are right, or He would soon do away with them. And it does not follow that what seems to hinder our way may not be for its very protection; and as for the pottery, why, that is just exactly what He has seen fit to put into our hands, and therefore it is, for the present, 'His work.'"

--Francis Ridley Havergal

Light of Life

Something occurred to me during my reading this morning of Luke 23-24.

God created man on the 6th day of Creation.

---

Jesus died in the place of man, by the hands of men, on a Friday.

"For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ."

(Romans 5:17)

God created light on the 1st day of Creation.

---

Jesus rose to life again on a Sunday.

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 

(John 8:12)

“For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of."

(Deuteronomy 4:32)

In the Oven:

Streusel:
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. granulated white sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 c. cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Cake Batter:
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c. granulated white sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/3 c. milk
2 c. fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 x 8 inch square pan or an 8 inch round cake pan.

For streusel topping: In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and ground cinnamon. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or fork until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside while you make the cake batter.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

With an electric beater, beat the butter until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Add the flour mixture, alternately with the milk, and beat only until combined. Spread the batter onto the bottom of the prepared pan, smoothing the top.
Evenly arrange the blueberries on top of the cake batter and then sprinkle with the streusel topping.

Bake for about 40 - 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool slightly.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 9 servings.

Note: I doubled and put in a 9x13...it's in the oven now, so we'll see how that goes! But it looked like it would fit and be fine. :)