baby....

little buddy was snuggling with me on the couch - pimped out like a small child. never noticed he looked so pink...must be those summer allergies?

can't fight the family genes....

this wedding day photo of me was recently uploaded on facebook from one of my wonderful bridesmaids. (i cropped out my mom because i knew she'd make a comment if she found out i was "blogging" pictures of her...).

so then my sister sent me this photo of ellie at the state fair last week.

my husband's response? "wow, you have an incredibly expressive family...."

i'm not sure if it is the parent or child initiating the expressions, but either way...it runs in the family!

made from scratch

you know how in every movie there comes a point where the movie title is oh-so-casually inserted into the script? i'm sure this is no news to you, i mean, there is nothing casual about it. for instance, a classic college favorite: "how to lose a guy in 10 days". hello?! it took about 8 minutes for that one to pop out of kate hudson's mouth. in fact, if for some odd reason a movie makes it the entire way through without a reference, i actually find myself a little sad and disspointed...wondering if i somehow missed the reference, thus failing as a self proclaimed movie junkie like that of dawson leery (okay, so i've never really made that claim nor desired to be that into movies, but thought no blog would ever be complete with a reference to dawson's creek which did indeed influence all of our lives in some way, shape or form...)

so finally - it has come to fruition.here it is...my muffins made 100% from scratch. peanut butter muffins with chocolate chips at that. and really good - no lie!

well, now that i think about it so was the vegan cake and a few others...but i feel like this one was that one shining moment of success for me as a "maker" (rember not cook or bake, but make!) or well, maybe it is because the vegan cake made everyone question me as a person...

find your happy place

sometimes I can't sleep at night just knowing my pup may feel neglected from the family blog. After his big, and may I add popular, debut on the blog with his nightly bone routine, I thought a "post frisbee" photo would warm everyone's heart today. If you look closely, you can see he is smiling through this crazed face...as he had just had some rounds in the backyard with his second favorite person in the world...his deep tissue massage therapist. Aka, my husband. Notice he is actually in his lap when this photo was taken-waiting for papa's magic to begin. This, my dear friends, is milo's happy place...where's yours?

happy [late] birthday to me!

Just in case you weren't aware, my birthday has already come and gone. Sad, I know...no one wanted it to come to an end. Seriously. I mean...even though it was in May...

And for this year's monumental celebration (which I will add this was during the beginning stages of the blog), my in-laws came up to celebrate and also gave me some money to use on anything my heart desired. Nothing leftover from the wedding or not to go into savings...but something fun for me to splurge on.

I pondered for a while on what my funds should support...a new cozy rug for my feet this winter, greeting me each day as I arise from bed? Or what about a mantle above our fireplace to display that perfect wedding photo? And after thinking, and milling over the perfect addition to the Voight home, I stumbled upon an item I had seen before- but never really considered buying for myself.

And with this, I proudly introduce you to my new ledges from pottery barn. Yes, a little more cream than the perfecly painted trim done by my mother, but perfect nontheless! I even shopped around for a variety of awesome frames to sweetly greet our house guests. I hope to spray paint the ledges to match before fall...and of course get some photos in the frames!

ain't no donut bank...

Okay-so if you know me at all, you must be at least slightly aware for my love of the Evansville Donut Bank. If you want to assess your knowledge of me even more, then you should question whether you know about my life dream to open my own pastry shop. So you can only imagine my joy when I woke up Saturday morning to a food nerwork special on the best donuts in the country. Despite it being before 9am, I decided I should join in on the fun and make my own...and my sleeping husband of course!

So down memory lane I went to my middle and high school memories of jill hickey's mom making homemade donuts for us in the morning after a sleepover full of swimming and papa johns. The recipe is pretty simple--a package of pilsbury biscuits, chocolate icing, sprinkles and of course a pan of oil....

Just make sure to keep the pan and oil in low to medium heat--or you'll end up with a disguised ball of dough covered in icing and sprinkles...not that I would know!

come on over!

Well friends...it finally happened. We up and got domesticated and purchased our dining room table!! Though it is taking some time to get used to eating at a table..you know with napkins and silverware and all...but is has already come to good use entertaining family and friends

You may notice that right now we have only four chairs, but the husband has insisted he search for two MATCHING chairs with arms - I told him he has 'till Christmas until we complete our set. Afterall, I was insistent during the whole process the table could grow with is by having a leaf and more than a few chairs.

All in all, it is a perfect arts and crafts addition to our wonderful home - but as with all things house oriented, the completion of one item opens the door to just one more...so hello saving for a fancypants rug to go underneath!

a twist on chocolate cake

since i'm no professional baker, i literally took this recipe word for word and attempted a masterpiece. it comes from one of the new blogs i follow: joy the baker - all in all i was pretty pleased with my work of edible art - though the avocado icing was an interesting twist to my chocolate lovers heart.

so as promised, here is my sunday "making" results. below is my process for a vegan chocolate cake with avocado icing (be oh so proud sonja!) the cake was pretty tasty - though it wasn't as chocolaty as the boxed rendition betty offers. and instead of eggs and butter you use a whole, mashed avocado to supply the fats - and you really can't taste it...i promise. for those of you loyal readers, this time was a greater success with confronting the fruit - so thanks for your tips!

here are all the items i had to buy, that most people probably already have in their house. i told b it was an investment though - so hopefully i'll start using this stuff more often!

below is the batter post avocado - it was pretty yummy!

Vegan Chocolate Cake with Avocado

what you'll need:
3 cups all-purpose flour
6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2
teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups
granulated sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil (I used almond oil)
1/2 cup soft
avocado, well mashed, about 1 medium avocado
2 cups water
2 Tablespoons
white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

what to do:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch rounds. Set aside.
Sift together all of the dry ingredients except the sugar. Set that aside too.
Mix all the wet ingredients together in a bowl, including the super
mashed avocado.
Add sugar into the wet mix and stir.
Mix the wet with the dry all at once, and beat with a whisk (by hand) until smooth.
Pour batter into a greased cake tins.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick
inserted comes out clean.
Let cakes cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto cooling racks to cool completely before frosting with avocado buttercream.

Avocado Buttercream Frosting
8 ounces of avocado meat, about 2 small to medium, very ripe
avocados
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 pound powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Peel and pit the soft avocados. It’s important to use the ripest avocados you can get your hands on. If the avocados have brown spots in the meat, avoid those spots when you scoop the meat into the bowl.
Place the avocado meat into the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the whisk attachment. Add lemon juice and whisk the avocado on medium speed, until slightly lightened in color and smooth, about 2-3 minutes.
Add the powdered sugar a little at a time and beat.
Add vanilla extract until combined.
If not using right away, store in the refrigerator. Don’t worry. It won’t turn brown!

here is Joy's official blog post about it and don't judge on how awesome her photo is compared to mine!


here is my work of art! my rendition looks a little more like a shrek cake - anyone want me to bake this for their kid?!
and in the end, of course, you get one happy, full husband!

berry baking

so recently, i have been getting into the world of food. not in the sense that i am just now beginning my love affair with great tasting foods, i mean, ive always known i have been blessed with amazingly alert taste buds, but more in the "life application of food".

in doing this, i have been battling between cooking and baking. because, yes, virginia, there is a difference. to start, i have to state that i am not yet going to claim a love for one over the other, but have instead been struggling with my inner self on which i have a better calling for.

cooking, you see, is more of the fresh, on the stove variety. this seems to fall more along the lines of, you know, a greek style zucchini salad or spanikopida. these are obviously all wonderfully delicious options, but seem to take a lot of care and attention throughout the entire cooking experience.

on the other hand, you have baking. and to me, (and please remember this is no professional opinion) the world of baking includes more “dry” ingredients and more time is spent in the oven than actually monitoring the process via grill, stove, skillet, etc. these also tend to make sweeter foods when i "bake"...

my mother has always been more of the baker. and im starting to think i fall more in her footsteps. but im keeping my options open. i like the idea of cooking and am still working on those skills – but things you bake tend to turn out better for me. or at least capture my attention a little better.

a few weeks ago we discussed flexitarianism and the world of trying new foods to “make” (see how i intentionally did not use “cooking” or “baking” here to put myself in a box?) since then, i have been following my taste buds to a variety of food blogs (thanks, sonja!) this has thus inspired me to attempt a new “phase” for the blog – which entails attempting a new recipe each sunday, with of course a monday photo and recipe post.

and with that, i post this past weekend’s project: baking a mixed berry buckle. what i learned?

• i like to bake.
• i had most of the ingredients already in my kitchen, surprisingly enough.
• i like berries.
• i like desserts.
• i still prefer desserts with chocolate incorporated.
• my husband did not yet try what i baked.
• this next week i want to try something to put in my yet-to-be-used cake stand.

mixed berry buckle

what you will need:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for baking dish
1 cup granulated sugar3 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla1 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups mixed berries, such as raspberries, strawberries (halved or quartered) and raspberries
vanilla ice cream, for serving (optional)

directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-quart oval or square baking dish. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition to combine. Add vanilla and beat to combine. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder; with mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture until incorporated.
Spread batter in baking dish. Scatter raspberries on top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean and top is golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes. With a large spoon, scoop out onto serving plates; serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, if desired.

here are more details: http://www.blogger.com/thekitchensinkrecipes.com/2009/06/29/bust-wide-open/#more-5703

i get it from my momma

yesterday i celebrated the second of three birthday celebrations (count it three) for my sister at my mom's. i mean, honestly, who makes that big of a production out of their birthday? ;)

so my mom has always been #1 when it comes to heartfelt birthday cake creations. for my 14th birthday, she even made a phone cake - decked out with sweet tart candies and licorice for phone numbers and the cord! over the years she has worked on an assortment of cakes - i'm sure there was even a phenomenal horse cake effort at one point! needless to say, i have had a plethora of wonderful cakes in my lifetime - so i thought i would post a photo of her latest creation for my big sister - half s'more and half reese cup! it looked great with homemade peanut butter and marshmallow frosting and tasted even better.

what have we learned, readers? that i get it from my momma. my desire to learn to bake, create and of course devour my achievements!