Ten years. It was ten years ago today that I took a leap of the unknown and jumped into the blog abyss. My very first post to this little online diary affectionately titled Front Range Fork and Cork...Cooking It Up and Corking Life's Moments.
It goes without saying that ten years has seen so much in my life...moving to Colorado started it all. We have experienced making new friends and neighbors, births, passing of loved ones and pets, marriages, graduations, sickness, surgeries, and miracles, traveling and adventures, house moves, new careers, a few bouts of unplanned blog hiatus, and of course many, many projects...and recipes.
Trying new recipes and getting out of your comfort zone builds invaluable character (as my twenty-something year old twin daughters are experiencing). Sometimes we fail at them and sometimes we have beautiful victories with the perfect dish. No matter what the outcome, it teaches us to keep trying, keep thriving, and never give up on your passions and dreams.
I pray that I am still here writing in another ten years, all while "corking life's precious moments", and keeping this tradition going for my children and their future families.
I enjoy going back once a year to see what the most all-time posts and recipes have been viewed and what inspires you.
Here are the top 10 for the past ten years...
Volleyball Cookies and Lessons in Icing
24 Hour Salad (And To Departure)
Roy's Braised Beef Short Ribs, Purple Potatoes and New Plates
Potatoes au Gratin aka Julia Child's Dauphinoise Potatoes and Red Chicken
The Hobbit's Famous French Sandwich
Aurora's Chicken Pepperoni
Lemon-Blueberry Buckle and The Masters Champions Dinner
Watermelon Bruschetta
Champagne Margaritas
Cherry-Apple Pie Pull Apart
For most celebrations (it goes without saying) always calls for cake...always!
This Orange Olive Oil Cake is luscious and silky. The rosemary in our garden is in full bloom and my bounty is plentiful, so adding it to the Mascarpone Cream, in my opinion took a simple cake to a whole new level. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Cheers!
Orange Olive Oil Cake with Whipped Rosemary Mascarpone CreamAdapted from For The Perfect Bite
Orange Olive Oil Cake
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour*
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1-1/3 cups extra-virgin olive oil
1-1/4 cups whole milk
3 large eggs
2 Tbl orange zest, freshly grated
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Whipped Rosemary Mascarpone Cream
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup mascarpone cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbl fresh rosemary, finely chopped
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In one bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder. Whisk to thoroughly combine.
In another bowl, combine the extra-virgin olive oil, milk, eggs, orange zest and juice, and vanilla extract. Whisk to combine.
Stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, about 1/2 cup at a time. Stir until combined before adding more dry ingredients.
Prepare a 9-inch springform cake pan. Grease the bottom and sides and line with parchment paper.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. (If the cake starts to brown too much before baking completely in the middle, set a 12" x 12" piece of parchment paper lightly over the cake, to prevent burning.
This cake will stay very moist, so check for doneness with a toothpick or cake tester in the center.
Cool the cake for at least 30 minutes before removing from the pan, then cool completely before topping with the rosemary mascarpone cream.
For the Whipped Rosemary Mascarpone Cream:
(Prepare this whipped cream just before topping and serving)
Place your mixing bowl in freezer at least one hour before making the whipped cream.
In a stand mixer or using a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until slightly thickened. Stir in the powdered sugar, then continue whipping until stiff peaks from.
Beat the mascarpone into the whipped cream until just combined. Stir in the vanilla extract and chopped rosemary.
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