Tag: Mother’s Day

Chocolate Earl Grey Cakes

We are coming up on Mother’s Day again! Every year, I make my mom a little treat that almost always include citrus and/or bergamot, and this year is going to be no different! (Previous years treats: Lemon Tart with Raspberry Shortbread Crust, Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes, and Lemon Earl Grey Squares; I even made her a Grapefruit Bergamot body scrub!)

 

 

I thought I’d try something a bit different (and chocolatey) this year, while still including Bergamot in the recipe (bergamot is what gives Earl Grey it’s signature flavor). This adapted recipe from Real Simple is for Mini Chocolate Earl Grey Bundt Cakes. Aren’t they cute?

 

 

This year, I am taking it one step farther and pairing a dessert with actual brewed tea to highlight one of the many awesome options for Mother’s Day Gifts from UncommonGoods (which you can find here and here). Wouldn’t this make an awesome Mother’s Day basket — Mini Chocolate Earl Grey Bundt Cakes, Loose Tea Leaves, and this gorgeous Glass Teapot with Stand?

 

 

UncommonGoods is one of my go-to sites for cool gifts that can’t be found just anywhere. It’s an online marketplace offering creatively designed, high-quality merchandise at affordable prices.  Offerings include handmade goods  (half of what is sold on the site is made by hand) and personalized gifts.  All merchandise is produced without harm to animals or people, and about one-third of the collection incorporates recycled and/or upcycled materials. UncommonGoods also donates a portion of each order to a non-profit of your choosing including:  American Forests, Women for Women International, City Harvest, and the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN).

 

 

This beautiful Glass Teapot with Stand would make an amazing Mother’s Day Gift for any tea-loving mom, like mine.

 

 

The Teapot holds 30 oz of tea and comes with a removable glass tea infuser so you can make a perfectly brewed pot of tea using loose tea or tea bags with ease.

 

 

The bamboo stand includes room for a little tea light to keep your beverage warm as you enjoy it.

 

 

I used DavidsTea Glitter and Gold black tea, which is why you may notice a little shimmer to the tea. So pretty!

 

 

On to the recipe!

 

Ingredients:

  • 6 Earl Grey tea bags or 2 tablespoons loose Earl Grey
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

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Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes

Every Mother’s Day, I make my mom a citrus-themed dessert. She loves lemon desserts, so I’ve made Earl Grey Lemon Squares and a Lemon Tart with Raspberry Shortbread Crust in the past. This year, I decided to make cupcakes, specifically Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes!

I adapted a recipe from Martha Stewart into a cupcake recipe to make these Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes:

  • 1 cup sifted cake flour
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 12 large egg whites
  • 2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Lemon Whipped Cream Frosting:

  • 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cake flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, chilled
  • 1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest

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Lemon Tart with Raspberry Shortbread Crust

Almost every citrusy post I have on my blog is dedicated to my mom. She is obsessed with orange, lemon, bergamot, etc. So in honor of Mother’s Day, here’s another one!

As a Walkers Official Blogger Ambassador, Walkers Shortbread sent me an awesome assortment of treats my way to make a spring/Mother’s Day themed post. Walkers Rapsberry Thins was in the mix, my mom also loves raspberries, so I decided to use the rapsberry thins to make a shortbread crust for a lemon tart. To make it even more citrusy, I topped the tart with candied orange peel.

 

Ingredients:

Candied Orange Peel:
  • 2 oranges
  • Water
  • 1/2 cup sugar
Crust:
  • 1/2 cup finely ground Walkers raspberry shortbread thins cookies (about 6 cookies)
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup salted butter (cold cut into small chunks)

Lemon filling:

  • 3 meyer lemons
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 1/2 cup meyer lemon juice (about 3 lemons)
  • 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Mother’s Day Gift Idea: Homemade Body Scrubs

So this is kind of a random blog post for me, but I have been experimenting with homemade body scrubs as a Mother’s Day present for my mom and I thought I’d share them so that others can make them at home too! They are super simple, plus they are made mostly from ingredients you can find in your pantry!

To snazz them up for gift giving, use some ribbons or tissue paper. Be sure to add labels so that the recipient knows what’s inside!

I’d suggest using organic ingredients when you can, just to keep mind of potential adverse reactions. I found organic sugar, olive oil, and coconut oil at Essene in Queen Village (Philadelphia) but I’m sure Whole Foods has a selection as well.

These body scrubs are completely customizable. You just need an ingredient that works as an exfoliant (sugar, salt, coffee grounds, oatmeal, etc.) and then an oil to moisturize (olive, almond, coconut, walnut, etc. — these are sometimes referred to as “carrier oils”) To make them smell amazing, add a little bit of essential oils, which can be found at specialty shops or online. A favorite local store of mine is Herbiary. You can even add food coloring if you’d like the color to pop. Here are a few of the ones I made this week to give you some inspiration:

Continue reading Mother’s Day Gift Idea: Homemade Body Scrubs

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