Biscuits with berries

I'm sort of obsessed with a particular flavor combination at the moment. I'm not sure if it's my sweet-tooth kicking into overdrive, or the fact that berries are so cheap at the moment... but all I want to do is bake things with chocolate and raspberries! I'm pretty powerless against this desire, so the other day I succumbed by baking Raspberry Chocolate Chip Biscuits!

I poured whole-wheat flour...

Baking powder...

And salt into a mixing bowl.

Then I added ice-cold butter and used a pastry cutter to blend the mixture into something that resembled "course crumbs".

To that I added mini chocolate chips (I love these things)...

And fresh raspberries... delish!

Then, I poured in some half-and-half and used a spatula to stir the mixture until it came together in a ball.

And while I could have used a biscuit cutter to make traditional biscuits, I went with something a little more rustic. So I balled the dough into loosely formed spheres...

And placed them onto a baking sheet before brushing their tops with half-and-half and sprinkling on a healthy pinch of sugar.

After about 12 minutes in the oven (and a half-turn of the baking sheet midway through the baking time)...

I had a plate full of delicious, rustic, sweet and tart biscuits.

And boy, were they tasty!!

Here's the recipe if you'd like to make these biscuits someday:

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Biscuits

Recipe from: Hungry Girl Por Vida

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar, plus more for sprinkling
1 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup fresh raspberries
1 cup half and half, plus 1 tablespoon for brushing

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 F. Stir together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut butter into dry ingredients until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add chocolate and raspberries, and toss mixture with hands. Add half and half and stir until dough just comes together to form a ball. At this point place the whole bowl, covered with a towel, into the refrigerator to rest for about 20 minutes. Then, ball using your hands form dough into rough balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush tops with remaining half and half and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 10-14 minutes, until bottoms are golden brown and tops are beginning to brown around the edges.

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a great day!

Enjoying Erie

While we were visiting our family in Ohio...

We decided to hit the beach.

I hadn't visited Lake Erie in years. So when my Aunt suggested we visit the beach, I was pretty excited. And then she mentioned that there was a lighthouse... and I was sold!

Headlands Beach State Park is a beautiful stretch of sand, complete with the Fairport Lighthouse at one end.

And while I was having fun taking fun of the lighthouse, something else was even more fun to shoot...

My family!

"O-H-I-O"

My cousins lined up along the shore, and with some help with my Aunt, spelled out some words with their bodies... like "L-O-V-E"...

"P-E-T-E" (their grandpa's name)...

And "M-O-M".

As the sun continued to set, my cousins spread out along the sand to collect bit of beach-glass for me...

And the sky turned various shades of orange and blue...

While my Uncle skipping some stones into the water.

It was a beautiful night, and a great way to spend a summer evening!

Thanks for stopping by- I hope you have a great day!!

Hello Ohio!

I have a really fun family! So when we saw some cousins at a wedding a couple of weeks ago and they invited us to come visit them, I jumped at the chance. You see, these cousins live in Ohio and I haven't seen some of them in at least 4 years! We were really looking forward to catching up and checking out their town (which I hadn't been to since I was a toddler).

The first evening we were in town, we attended a very special softball game. We were there to cheer for the maroon team, as two of my cousins play on the team

It was a whole family affair, as several other aunts, uncles and cousins came out to support the team. Including this cutie, who served as out family's unofficial score keeper (this shot captured her prancing back from a visit to the "official" score keeper of the game who confirmed that she knew the correct score and my uncle was wrong).

But back to the game. While I don't know much about softball, I can tell you this:

My cousins are really good! I was so impressed at what they could do- and they haven't been playing that long!

I was having lots of fun taking "action shots" of the girls. And when they weren't on the field, I turned my lens to the rest of my family.

And as usual, they provided lots of photo opportunities!

See what I mean?

But eventually the girls were up to bat again...

So I whipped out my camera and took more photos... I love catching them just as they make contact with the softball!

Now, the fun wasn't just confined to the field.

There was lots of chatting...

And laughing going on along the sidelines.

As we watched the girls catch...

And field!

And in just over 90 minutes (gotta love those timed games)...

The maroon team had won the game!

And after the game, the whole family went out for ice cream- which made this little one pretty happy! (That was her response when she found out where we were headed after the game.)

And after tasting the delicious ice cream at the ice cream shop, I totally understood her excitement!

Thanks for joining me on our little trip to Ohio- I hope you have a great day!

Visiting the Thumb

I know I left you hanging over the weekend, so I'll end your suspense! The other day my mom and I traveled to the 'Thumb' of Michigan (and those pictures I shared last week were of Lake Huron). My grandfather was born and raised in that part of the state, and I'd always wanted to visit. So we met up with my great-aunt (my grandfather's sister) and my cousin (her daughter) to visit a few special locations. You see, while my grandpa moved away when he married my grandma, my great-aunt raised her family in the same town where she grew up, so I was excited to have her show us around and tell us stories about growing up with my grandpa.

Our first stop on the tour of Deckerville/Sanilac/etc. was the Greenwood Cemetery.

I hadn't been to see these particular graves before, so I was excited to visit some of my ancestors.

There were cousins...

My great-great grandma...

My great-great grandfather...

As well as my great-grandparents.

I never had a chance to meet my great-grandpa Omer, but from the stories I've heard he sounds like a great man.

He's here in the middle, with my grandpa on the right and my Uncle George on the left. We love this photo in our family- don't they all look so similar?

I also saw the marker for my Aunt Shirley.

My great-grandparents had 7 children total, but Shirley passed away far too young.

Here's my great-grandparents (on the right) with their children. My grandpa is the one on the left!

Another grave that we visited my my great-grandma.

I have a very fuzzy memory of my great-grandma (she passed when I was really young), but she was quite a lady. Not only was she an incredible cook, but she was also amazingly sweet!

My mom says you can tell how much she was adored based upon the number of people in our family who are named after her. I think there are 4 people who have the name Mary, while I'm honored to share her middle name of Hannah.

She was obviously well-loved!

Here's a picture of my great-grandma and I!

The next stop on our tour was the house my great-aunt and her family lived in. My mom has the funniest stories about visiting her cousins (my aunt's children) at this house in the country. From licking the cows' salt-licks in the pasture to running into the electric fence forehead first, I was excited to see the land where all those stories took place. Of course things are much different now (hello paved roads), but it was fun having everyone point out the various landmarks that still remain.

And finally, we also saw the Dairy Bar.

During the Depression, my grandmother's parents moved to the Thumb (from the Detroit-area) and ran a Dairy Bar.

My grandma

My grandpa used to visit the Dairy Bar to eat... and flirt with my grandma.

My grandpa

As you can imagine, the building is quite different than it was back then.

But just seeing a building where my grandparents used to spend time before they were married was really special!

My grandparents on their wedding day

We had a wonderful visit with our family members, sharing stories and memories. I'm so thankful that I had the opportunity to learn more about my grandpa's life and family. Thanks for joining me on this visit to the Thumb- I hope you had a great weekend!