Wendy's Visit

Not only did I get a visit from my friend Julie, but I also got a visit from my sister Wendy. It was so fun to have her here for almost 2 weeks. I'm so happy David let her come while he took care of the 5 kids!

We did a lot of hanging out and eating. I also introduced Wendy to my favorite TV show, Psych. While I was at work, Wendy would visit her old roommates and mission companions. Wendy also spend time with Rynell and her kids.

One day we went to spend a morning at Temple Square.



It was neat to see all the changes that have been made. We took a tour of the new conference center. I've been in there a couple of times for some meetings, so it was nice to see some of the other things they had in the building. The grounds are very nice and peaceful.



I love my sister and am thankful for all the times we get to spend with each other.

Julie's Visit

At the end of July I had a surprise visit from one of my amazing friends, Julie. I've been able to visit her a couple of times in England and now I had the chance to have her at my place and spend a fun day together.

We had a lazy morning and laid out at the pool. Then we ate at Cafe Rio for lunch before heading to BYU campus to reminisce about the good old college days. There were lots of great memories!

Finally we went to Bridal Veil falls to enjoy the beautiful weather. We came back to my place afterward and I introduced Julie to my favorite TV show, Psych. Mike came by so I could introduce Julie to him and by the time we finished visiting, it was time to take Julie to her next destination and we said our goodbyes.

I hope to be in England again someday. It's always fun to be with Julie!

Mike

I started dating Mike earlier this year. He's very thoughtful. When I came home from my European cruise there was a bag at my door. In the bag was orange juice and cinnamon rolls with a note saying:

I thought the pantry might be a bit bare, so I though you could use some breakfast. :)
~Mike

How could I not love a guy as thoughtful as that?!

Hazelnut Cake

I am now trying to catch up on all the desserts I have made since my European cruise. This is a hazelnut cake. The cake is rich and dense, has a great flavor and the chocolate compliments this nut very well.

I served this cake at one of my book groups and it was loved by all.

Hazelnut Cake

Cake:
1/2 c butter
2 pkgs (2 1/2 oz each) hazelnuts (filberts)
3 eggs
1 1/2 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla
2 c flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Glaze:
1/2 c whipping cream
1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease bottom only of 10-inch spring form pan with shortening or cooking spray. In 1-quart saucepan, melt butter over low heat; set aside to cool.

Reserve 8 whole nuts for garnish. In food processor or blender, process remaining nuts until ground, making about 1/3 cups. Reserve 1 Tbsp for garnish.

In large bowl, beat eggs, sugar and 1 tsp vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed 2 to 3 minutes or until thick and lemon colored, scraping bowl occasionally. On low speed, beat in flour, baking powder, salt and ground nuts, scraping bowl occasionally. Continue beating, gradually adding cooled, melted butter until well blended, scraping bowl occasionally (mixture will be thick). Spread batter evenly in pan.

Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove side of pan; run long knife under cake to loosen from pan bottom. Place heatproof serving plate upside down over cake; turn plate and cake over. Remove pan bottom. Cover cake with cloth towel; cool completely, about 30 minutes.

In 2-quart saucepan, heat whipping cream just to boiling; remove from heat. Stir in chocolate chips until melted and smooth. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Spread glaze over top of cake, allowing some to run down side of cake. Sprinkle reserved ground nuts around top edge of cake; arrange reserved whole nuts over ground nuts.

I couldn't find whole hazelnuts, so I used a bag of nuts already chopped. I reserved the 1 tablespoon of chopped nuts for the garnish before blending the remaining amount. I blended the nuts till they were almost a peanut butter consistency. It wasn't as hard as I imagined getting it to that consistency and it was good to work with.

Europe Cruise - 1

I finally put the rest of my Europe Cruise pictures on a slide show. I spent an amazing 2 1/2 weeks in Europe with great friends. I hope you enjoy the pictures!