Fit For A Queen

Confession: I aspire to become a queen. Yes, you read that right - a throne-sitting, crown-wearing, ruling-over-a-country, queen.

However, since that hasn't happened for me yet, I will settle for the next best thing: eating like one.

A couple of months ago I bought a cookbook, which I highly recommend, by Sara Perry titled Holiday Baking. It is full of beautiful, seasonal recipes, one of which is called Buckingham Palace Shortbread.

Supposedly this shortbread is baked every day for the Queen of England’s afternoon tea. I finally got around to baking some this afternoon and was not disappointed with the result.

Buckingham Palace Shortbread

2 cups cake flour
¾ cup plus tbsp cornstarch
¼ tsp salt
1 cup softened butter
1/3 cup sugar
up to ¼ cup superfine sugar

Whisk together flour, cornstarch, and salt. Set aside. Beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Add the flour and mix until a soft dough forms. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes. Roll the dough into a 5x8 inch square. It should be about ¾” thick. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes or until lightly golden and firm to the touch. Remove from oven and sprinkle with the superfine sugar. Cut into squares while still warm.  Makes 2-3 dozen 1-1 ½” squares.

Thursday Evening Inspiration

I've been listening to this arrangement of My Jesus I Love Thee by The City Harmonic on a loop tonight. It's simple but beautiful. If you want, listen along with me.

Happy birthday to me...and a tiny hedgehog!

Today is my birthday. Yay for cake and another year being 26! In honor of the day, I present to you a video of a hedgehog also celebrating his birthday. Get ready for cuteness overload.

Field Trip: Denver Botanic Gardens

I took a little trip to the Denver Botanic Gardens yesterday morning. It was a beautiful morning to explore the gardens and to take in the new Dale Chihuly exhibit. Here are some of my pictures from the day. 

I really like the color of these. They remind me of snakes. 

If I ever have a big garden, I want one of these in it somewhere.

I would eat my breakfast there every morning. 

Lucky lily pads. 

This is some kind of swamp oak. I think it is a beautiful tree. 

These three birds, actually there were four but the other is on a different branch, were making the biggest racket. I don't think they liked people being in their garden.  

This little ladybug was kind enough to pose for me. 

I really like this flower, but I don't know what it is. 

Purple glass stakes in the middle of the rock garden. Strange but also kind of neat at the same time. 

I really like this flower too. Its name has something to do with a bear, but I don't remember the rest. I guess I should pay more attention to all those little placards telling what each plant is. 

This is my favorite of the Chihuly pieces. 

A Chihuly tree. This is the kind of sculpture that first comes to mind when I hear the name Chihuly. 

Chihuly lily pads. They're so delicate. 

This exhibit will be up through the end of November. If you are in the Denver area, I highly recommend going to see it.