Cranberry Time

Cranberries, love them or hate them.  With Thanksgiving right around the corner the cranberries are coming into their own. This time of year you can find cranberry bread, cranberry muffins, cranberry sauce, Cranberry jam, cranberry juice, Cranberry Christmas Cake and now I have a new keeper. Cranberry Breakfast Cake.

Blueberries and cranberries are close cousins and every fall the bogs of southeastern Ma and Cape Cod blossom as cranberries are harvested and fall festivals abound. 

I’ve always loved cranberries from cranberry sauce to cranberry cocktails like the Madras Cocktail. But its only been in recent years that I’ve started baking with the little red berries. I love the Cranberry Christmas cake (follow link above for the recipe) but I only make it once a year. Its too sweet to eat large portions and there is too much for just me but now I’ve added a new recipe- Cranberry Breakfast Cake. 

Cranberry Breakfast Cake

 

Ingredients

• 1 Cup Plain Flour
• 1 Cup white sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Cups fresh or frozen Cranberries
• 1/2 Chopped toasted walnuts
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 Tsp almond extract
• Confectioners sugar to dust

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 350° . Butter a 9 inch round cake tin well. Set aside

Whisk: flour, sugar and salt together. Stir in cranberries and walnuts. 

In a separate bowl mix together the melted butter, eggs and almond extract. Stir into dry ingredients. Batter will be very stiff if you are using frozen berries.

Spread into prepared pan.

Bake 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and top is golden brown.

Serve warm, dusted with confectioners sugar.

Notes

*Although called a breakfast cake this is great as a dessert. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

*Be sure to mix the cranberries and walnuts into the dry flour before adding the liquids. This will keep the berries and nuts more evenly distributed 

* The recipe calls for almond extract but I’m not a fan. Next batch I’m going to try the old standard of vanilla extract. 

 

 

Happy Birthday Balboa

 

3 years old today. How time flies

We support adopting rescue pets  The Greater Good Site- Click to give 

Did you know me then!

A poem to the those that gave all on December 7, 1941

50 State Challenge

I’m not sure when I first thought of trying to visit all 50 states. Once I started doing some traveling I thought it might be nice to set a goal. I was returning to the same places year after year and the US is such a big country. I wanted to be able to say I’d seen it from Sea to Shining Sea! If I’ve learned anything so far it’s that one vacation in most states isn’t enough to even scratch the surface.

The other thing I’ve learned is that every destination can surprise you. When my sister and I went to South Dakota everyone asked me what was there besides Mount Rushmore. I didn’t know but once we arrived we found plenty to do from exploring the Bad Lands National Park to visiting a Dinosaur Dig! We did so many amazing things. It is still one of my favorite vacation memories.

Update on my Quest

As of this moment, September 2022, I’ve visited 30 of the 50 states. More than halfway through. I still need to visit

• Alabama
• Arkansas
• Delaware
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Michigan
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• Nebraska
• New Mexico
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Utah
• West Virginia

Not Alone

While researching locations for my next trip I ran across a blog called Smart Mouse Travel. The blog is about family travel and the 50 sate challenge they are trying to meet. They set a time limit. The goal is by 2027 and they are slightly ahead of me. They’ve visited 32 states to my 30. I blame Covid for that as I didn’t do any traveling in the 2 years we were locked down. 

Can you believe that the average American only visits 12 states in their lifetime? That’s according to a 2016 poll. Even before I caught the travel bug I would have expected more from my fellow Americans but I am getting off track.

What Makes a Visit to A state Count?

Their only rule for recording a visit to a state is they must do something noteworthy in the state. That means flying into an airport and driving without a tourist stop or having a layover in a new state does not count toward the goal. My self imposed rule was similar and I’ve met that requirement on every state I’ve counted on my list. I’ve stayed long enough to try to find something interesting to do and then done it. 

So where to next?

You can see the list and I’m researching the remaining states. Would love suggestions! I need to get that map filled in. Too much white space!

Sunday, Day 3

What do I want to do on a Sunday in Breckenridge? That was the question. As I headed out, I stepped into a warm sunny day that was crystal clear with a sky so blue it hurt the eyes! My first stop was to get a picture of the gondolas. I plan to take them to the top of the mountain before I leave but I like the way they look as the cross above the road, so I stopped for a few pictures. 

Gondola photos done I headed for East Route 70 to find the wildlife viewing area I’d seen a sign for on Friday.

Wildlife Viewing Area

I remembered seeing a road sign for wildlife viewing, specifically big horn sheep. Since my accidental Moose sighting yesterday, I thought maybe my luck would hold. 

The Exit number was 228 and took me off the highway at Georgetown. I tried the visitor center first, but it was so packed I couldn’t even find parking, so I poked along toward the center of town watching for more signs. I spotted two of interest. One was for the Georgetown Loop railroad, and another was for Guanella Pass. I figured the wildlife viewing was probably along the pass.

Guanella Pass- A Scenic Byway

A former burro trail, the now-paved Guanella Pass scenic byway is 22 miles and climbs to timberline, taking in spectacular views of Mount Bierstadt, Mount Evans and the alpine tundra before descending into cool groves of aspen and pine. 

The road twists and turns through a series of hairpin and U-turns with minimal shoulders. Posted speed limits of 10 mph on these curves is common as is rounding a corner to a magnificent vista spread out before you. Of course, finding anyplace to pull over to enjoy the view is a challenge!

This is not the most difficult road I have ever driven but it does present challenges and can get the heart pumping and adrenaline surging.  Thankfully no Big Horn Sheep, elk or deer decided to cross the road in front of me. 

The Scenic Look out

Early on at the start of the pass there was one scenic turn out. I had the good luck to be there when the Georgetown Loop train went by, black smoke billowing out of the engine’s stack. I think I may have to see about taking that train ride now that I’ve seen the train.

The Summit

The summit was packed, cars campers, motorcycles and bicyclists. There were lots of trails leading in all directions and hikers and walkers roamed everywhere.  I managed to snag a spot to park and indulged in a few landscape photos. After all, I was on top of the world here. Before I pulled out to start my downward trip, I debated if I should go back down the way I came and return to Georgetown or continue down the other side of the mountain.

Although I had no idea where I would come out when I reached the other side, I decided I didn’t have any place I needed to be, so I’d just continue to explore.  Going down was easier than the climb had been. There were fewer of those incredibly sharp turns, but the views were no less amazing.

No wildlife this time but the week is only getting started.