CA Adventures

This weekend I went to CA for the California Open Dancesport competition in Irvine. Since the comp was so close to home I got to go stay with my family and spend some time there. It was so fun to relax at home and even go to church in my home ward. My little sis was able to come to the competition with my mom for her first time watching me compete.

 Here we are after the comp!

Caleb and I. We felt like we danced much better than our last time competing and our placing showed that luckily! Last time we got 6th, this time we got 3rd! We were very excited and hope to keep improving. Next stop, maybe Vegas!

I love being able to go home and spend quality time with my family. I love them so much and appreciate all they do for me.

You may have known that poor Jer bear had the flu again last week but he has finally recovered (we think) and hope he's better to stay, (for a long while, we hope!) But he has been staying very busy with the new company he is interning with called Innospan. We have actually decided to stay in Utah this summer rather than moving to Tennessee to sell because Jer has been offered a full time position with Innospan. We are making lots of fun, big decisions right now in our lives! :o)

When I got back into town on Monday we invited our friends the Patty's over for dinner and games. I tried a couple new recipes. Here are a couple we REALLY liked.

Coconut Banana Bread with Lime Glaze
adapted by Our Best Bites from Cooking Light
2 C flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 C sugar
1/4 C (4 Tbs) real butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 C mashed ripe bananas (about 4 large bananas)
1/4 C sour cream or plain yogurt
3 Tbs apple juice or milk*
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C coconut
Topping: 2 Tbs additional coconut
Glaze: 1/2 C powdered sugar whisked with 1 1/2 Tbs fresh lime juice
*as in: don’t go buy apple juice just for this recipe.  If you don’t already have some, just use milk!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar until blended.  Add eggs and beat to combine.  Add banana, sour cream or yogurt, apple juice (or milk), and vanilla.  Beat until blended.
Add flour mixture and beat at a low speed until just combined.  Stir in 1/2 C coconut.
Pour batter into a 9×5″ loaf pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.  Sprinkle additional 2 Tbs coconut on top.
Bake in the oven for about 1 hour or until a knife or skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Note: Check bread after about 40 minutes.  If the top has browned and the coconut pieces are looking toasty, cover top of bread lightly with a piece of foil.  Continue baking until done.
When done, remove pan from oven.  Let cool on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes and then carefully remove from pan.  Whisk powdered sugar and lime juice together for the glaze and then drizzle over top.    Cool for another 15 minutes before slicing.

 As a side note, I added a little coconut milk to my glaze and it was yummy.

The other recipe I loved was delicious but also appealing because it was a time-saver.

30 minute rolls

Let me start by saying that I am not good at making bread, I dream of making the most delicious dinner rolls.  These were easy and absolutely delicious, even for me, a bread making rookie.  I couldn't believe they only took 30 minutes and tasted as good as they did.  I was pretty proud of my self for making yummy dinner rolls, it rarely, if ever happens. 

30-Minute Roll (1 dozen) 

(printable version here)

1 1/8 cups plus 2 tsp. warm water
1/3 cup oil
2 T yeast
1/4 cup sugar or honey
½ tsp. Salt
1 egg 3 ½ cups flour Combine water, oil, yeast, and sugar, let rest for 15 minutes. Add salt and eggs then gradually add flour. Shape into rolls and let sit for 10 minutes. Bake 10 minutes @400 degrees ‘till golden brown.
From www.cjaneinthekitchen.blogspot.com 

And there you have it!! Try em', love em'!