sweet miscellany

Another Year Older + Cardamom Cocoa Mini Bundts with Coconut Butter Glaze

January 15, 2018 By Courtney West 2 Comments

When I started this blog nearly 7 years ago, I created the tradition of making my own birthday cake/dessert. There was always a lot of planning and note taking that went into the event in the early years as I wanted something really unique and delicious. But as I’ve aged, I’ve come to realize that I don’t need to make something super fussy or complicated. Last year, I didn’t make a cake but instead these pumpkin white chocolate cups from Renee’s blog. They accompanied me on a solo hike up in East Texas. It was unconventional but glorious.

This year as my birthday approached, I felt pushed to come up with something new. I felt like I should do something monumental and go on another hike. While I really love hiking (especially solo), I realized that it wasn’t going to work out on my actual birthday…and that was completely okay. I still had to work and take care of the usual Friday stuff because well, that’s what happens when you’re a 32 year old adult. Basically, I realized that I shouldn’t save fun events for my birthday. I can and should do them anytime throughout the year. Also, it’s okay to stay home and focus on self care and taking it easy. I’m trying to learn how to live without guilt and making myself feel bad for things I “should have” done. This was yet another learning opportunity.

So here we are, my birthday dessert for my 32nd year on this planet. It’s basically this exact cake recipe but with a different glaze and some crushed, dried rose petals sprinkled on top. These mini bundts are decadent without being overly sweet and have a particularly great crumb for being both gluten free and vegan. They’re actually one of my favorite recipes I’ve created for the blog. And if you’re like wait a minute, I have to use a mini bundt pan!!? No, of course not. I realize that not everyone has a plethora of baking implements like I do. You can bake this recipe in a standard cupcake pan filling the molds 2/3 full.

…

Winter Avocado Toast with Cheezy Toasted Pepita Sprinkle

January 10, 2018 By Courtney West Leave a Comment

As with my life and interests, this space here is always evolving , shifting, and changing. I used to have certain rules and constraints regarding what I could and couldn’t post. It seemed logical at the time but now when I look back at those arbitrary rules I set for myself, they seem rather silly. Ultimately they began to make blogging seem like a chore rather than something fun and fulfilling. All because I set a boundary I couldn’t develop past. Maybe you can relate?

So here we are, no more boundaries or imaginary lines. No more rules against what I can and cannot post. I want this space to be as authentic to my life as possible. Probably the least authentic part about the blog is the food styling. Trust me when I say that the only time my food tends to look “pretty” is when I have to take a photo of it. Although I guess pretty is a subjective word so maybe it would look as such to someone else. My point in all of this before it becomes a wordy rant is that I’m striving to keep this space as real as possible. It will reflect what I’m currently eating, doing, seeing, reading, etc. In a time where I can feel a huge shift coming and there is a lot of uncertainty about the future, this is my constant, my anchor.

So here we are, a “recipe” for a winter-inspired variation of one of my comfort foods. I could easily slap avocado on some toast, give it a sprinkle of salt, and be on my way. But, it’s nice to make something as seemingly mundane as toast a little special. I’ve been getting beautiful watermelon radishes in my CSA share recently so they’ve taken up residence on my avo toast. Not only do they provide a little brightness during these cloudy winter days, but they have a much sweeter flavor than any other radishes I’ve ever eaten. Cilantro (also in my CSA) made the cut for its brightness and wonderful blood cleansing properties. Everything is topped off by a cheezy toasted pepita sprinkle that is delicious on pretty much anything you add it to, except for maybe ice cream. I enjoyed this round of toast with an orange gifted to us from our neighbor’s tree. And it was sublime 🙂

…