Jalapeño Manchego Corn Bread

Here we are half way through August, and already much of the food blog universe is be switching to fall and autumn-like recipes, but here at Liv Life it's still summer.  After living these chilly, gray months of July and early August, I'm relishing an afternoon with full sun.

San Diego's stats may show some 275+ "days of sun", but I'm here to profess that some of those days the sun doesn't reach the coast, and if it does it may only peek through the ever present marine layer for a mere minute before retreating back to the heavens.  I shouldn't really complain as the temps are in the lovely low 70's region, somewhere where you really don't notice the temp - its neither hot nor cold... it just is.

The gray though, is taking its toll and I find myself dreaming of fields of corn raising their stalks up to greet morning rays of light.  With the change of the calendar to August my heart sank as I read quite a number of food blog posts proclaim a season change to fall, to which I'm hereby proclaiming a fall boycott.  As such, with my local farmer's markets still providing tables filled with fresh ears of perfectly grown white and yellow corn, I'm still living summer.

Some 3 years ago (almost to the day) and one of our first posts after establishing Liv Life, this Jalapeño Cornbread laced with nutty Manchego cheese, has earned its top spot as a summer favorite.  Made with whole kernels of grilled corn in addition to the cornmeal, zesty pickled jalapeños (did you know you can make your own??) give the recipe a nice little kick without being too overpowering.  Slathered with sweet honey butter, this cornbread becomes somewhat irresistible.

So here's to summer!  Anyone joining me in the fall/autumn boycott??!!

Strawberry Corn Cakes with Brown Sugar Whipped Cream - Guest Post featuring Bellabits!

Spring is most definitely spreading her wings and bringing gorgeous, sunny skies to Southern California.  With spring, comes two of my favorite things... strawberries and spring break.

As we eased back into real life today, the kids reflected on our fairly inactive and much needed restful break, wishing themselves back into dreamland with no schedule.  Alas... the break is over and it's back to school and the regularly scheduled schedule.

Not everyone was spending their break kicking back and relaxing though.  I'd like to introduce you to my favorite almost-teen blogger, Bella, of Bellabits, who spent her spring break in the kitchen and at the computer writing a Guest Post for us.  A 2011 Young Writer's Program winner, Bella brings a fresh voice to her blog and shows off her talent in the kitchen.

Who can resist a girl who in 2010 wrote about a Christmas shopping spree proclaiming her favorite stop William's Sonoma?  Coming home with a Vanilla Bean Paste she was eager to get back into the kitchen, just like she did on Spring Break 2012.

I can't thank Bella enough for sharing her sweet Strawberry Corn Cakes with Brown Sugar Whipped Cream with all of us.  You can find her on Bellabits and the Bellabits Facebook page.  She's also on twitter at @IamBellabits.

While I've never actually met Bella in person, I've enjoyed watching her blog grow over the last few years and I'm eager to see where she takes us next.  But for now I give you Bella and her sweet Strawberry Cakes...

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Oh my goodneshhh!!  Hello everyone, its Bella!!!

OK so I was doodling what might become Bellabits' new logo, and looking for blogging inspiration, flipping through some of my favorite Food Network Magazines.  These are always packed with SCRUMDIDDLYUMPTIOUS recipes, and I happened to stumble upon a delicious looking one of them: Strawberry Corn Cakes! Yummy right?

I've got to tell you that I have been on a cornbread kick lately.  My Mom never made cornbread much, but this last winter, we started making it instead of rolls with dinner, as breakfast (cornbread pancakes) and dessert (buttered brown sugar cornbread).  So, right then and there, I decided that we absolutely needed to make them.

We followed the oh-so-easy recipe making a few tweaks here and there.  Instead of lemon zest, we added orange zest, instead of vanilla extract, we used (my favorite) vanilla bean paste, and for an extra special topper, we made a fresh brown sugar whipped cream instead of the plain whipped cream in the original recipe. Using a cornbread mix really made this quick and easy too.

  

Here I am spooning the corn cake mix into the muffin pan after preparing it using the directions.  I pop them into the oven and make my strawberry filling/topping.

With about 5 min left to bake, take out the corn cakes, make an indention in them with the back of a spoon, and put some of the strawberry filling into each one.  Stick the cakes back into the oven for the remaining time. They will be golden.

Once cool, add the remaining berry mixture and a giant dollop of the brown sugar whipped cream on the side. The end result: A delectable, fruity dessert!!!

When I first bit into one of the cakes, a sensational sweet-tart, warmness put a smile on my face. The cornbread muffin is substantial and quite filling. Make sure to add some of the whipped cream to your spoonful, to make it cool and sweet and moist. My mouth is watering just writing about it!!! This is a recipe that all of you guys NEED to try!!!