Blueberry Polenta Cake

Courtesy of the Oregon Blueberry Commission flyer I got at Blueberry Meadows

1 cup cake flour (or 1 cup minus 2 Tblsp all-purpose flour)

3/4 cup yellow cornmeal

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 large egg

1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon grated lemon rind, packed

4 1/2 ounces fresh blueberries (about 1 cup)

1 Tablespoon powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9-inch springform or cake pan (4-inches deep) with cooking spray; line bottom with parchment or wax paper and spray again.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together granulated sugar, oil, eggs, yogurt, lemon rind and juice until smooth. Fold in flour mixture until just combined, then fold in blueberries. Transfer to prepared pan.

Bake in the center of the oven until the cake springs back when gently pressed in the center, about 35 minutes. Cool pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. With a knife, loosen edges before inverting cake onto a cake plate to cool to room temperature. Just before serving, dust with powdered sugar, if you like.

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This turned out to be an easy, light, delicious dessert. Waxed paper in the oven just makes me nervous, so we stuck with parchment. I didn't have plain yogurt, so I used vanilla yogurt, instead, and it turned out fine. I was heavy-handed with the lemon rind and that worked out well--the lemon flavor was really bright. The next morning, we found it works well as a breakfast cake :)

Getting started

Here's what you'll need to get started with cloth diapers:

1. About 3 dozen Chinese Prefold Diapers--4x8x4 in the Infant size. We used both bleached and unbleached, but my heart belongs to the unbleached now. They're softer and more absorbent.

2. One dozen diaper inserts. We used the flannel version first and, even after trying others, we still like the flannel best. Again--it's softer and more absorbent. Make sure you check the size--you'll want to get the smallest available for a brand new teeny tiny.

3. About ten diaper covers. This is a tough one to pin down, because every baby is going to go through them in their own very exciting manner. If the baby simply goes peepers, you can reuse the diaper cover, as long as the diaper didn't totally soak through--use your own judgement here. If they load up their tiny pants with gooey poopers, you're going to need to bust out a new cover. Start with about ten--if you need more, you'll know pretty quickly. I like bumkins covers best, followed by ProRap.

4. Roughly three to four dozen cloth wipies. No sense in using disposable wipes with cloth diapers when cloth wipies are so easy (and save you a ton of money). Again, our preference is for the unbleached cotton.

5. Find a good diaper pail. We inherited the one my mother-in-law used with her kids and it's awesome. If you can't find one you like, check with the diaper services in your area--they might sell the ones they provide for their customers. If all else fails, a garbage can with a diaper pail liner will work just fine.

6. The bumGenius diaper sprayer. You need this. You do not want to do cloth diapers without it. Trust me.

7. A waterproof bag for diapers that get soiled while you're out and about. A plastic grocery bag will work just fine in a pinch, but, since we use cloth grocery bags, we don't have a lot of plastic bags hanging around. We only have one waterproof bag right now, but I'd really recommend getting two. That way, you have one to use while you wash the other--and they do need to be washed often.

When you get all your diapers stuff home, toss the diapers, inserts, and wipies in the washer. You'll need to wash and dry them three or four times to get all the natural oils out. If you bring your baby home and find the diapers aren't as absorbent as you'd like, run them through another wash/dry cycle. After you've washed and dried the diapers a couple times, fold them and stack them neatly in a basket or a drawer. Hook up the diaper sprayer and make sure it works. Put your diaper pail next the toilet that's got the diaper sprayer. Now, have a baby so you can use all your new stuff.

If this seems daunting, call in a professional. Waddle yourself down to your local cloth diaper retailer and start asking questions. Don't stop asking questions until you feel confident. If you can't find a shop you're happy with, call me. If you don't have my number (or you don't know me), call Wee Bunz (1-800-WEE-BUNZ). They're available Monday through Friday from 9am-6pm PST and they will make sure you have everything you need to get started.

...and it is daunting. On top of everything else--what with the having a baby and all--it's just one more thing you have to learn. There's a learning curve while you figure out the best methods of cleaning, washing, and folding, but it all comes together quite quickly. After thirteen months of cloth diapering, I can say with absolute certainty that I wouldn't have it any other way.

Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes with Orange Cream Cheese Frosting

Adapted from Cooking Light

Make about 24 cupcakes

1 1/4 cups sliced strawberries

2 1/4 cups flour

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

1 cup milk (minus 1 Tablespoon)

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put the tablespoon of lemon juice in a 1-cup measuring cup and then fill it the rest of the way with the milk. Stir ever-so-gently to mix and then set aside for at least ten minutes.

Puree sliced, fresh strawberries until smooth and set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, beat together the sugar and butter until well blended and then add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Beat in egg whites. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk mixture to the butter/sugar/egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Add pureed strawberries and stir until just blended.

Fill your greased muffin tins and bake for 13 minutes or so. To be perfectly honest, I started with ten minutes and then went to 1 1/2 minute increments until they were done, so I'm not positive on the baking time. Just keep an eye on them after ten minutes and pull them out of the oven when a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pans for ten minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

While they cool, make the Orange Cream Cheese Frosting:

1/3 cup cream cheese

1/3 butter, softened

2 Tablespoons fresh orange juice

3 cups powdered sugar

With a mixer, beat the first three ingredients until fluffy. Gradually add the powdered sugar and mix until blended. If the frosting seems a little stiff, just add another tiny dribble of orange juice. 

When the cupcakes are cooled, frost those puppies up and start snacking. If you have any leftovers, store them in the fridge. 

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So, these might be the greatest way to work through a flat of local berries. In anticipation of another cupcake binge, I pureed some of the berries we got and froze them in pre-measured containers. Now, when the cupcake urge strikes, I just have to thaw the berry puree and we're good to go. 

If you like, you can use buttermilk in place of the lemon and milk mixture. We didn't have any buttermilk, though, and, since I didn't feel like loading the baby in the car to go to the store for one thing, I got inventive, instead, and relied on the art of substitution to get by. It worked like a strawberry-laced dream. 

I did a batch of regular-size cupcakes and a batch of mini-cupcakes. I like the minis because they're small enough I don't feel like a piggy, but big enough to satisfy a sweets jones. And with the berries, cream cheese, and orange juice, these are delicious as breakfast cupcakes.