Cake and Nutella too

"Beli announced it was her birthday today," I told my older sister.

 "Wait, wasn't her birthday last week and the week before that?" she asked.

yeah, what can I say. Beli LOVES celebrating her birthday.

I think we should all be celebrating our birthdays don't you agree?

She insisted on making the cake herself 

I supervised and we followed my

ever popular recipe:

French Croatian Lemon cake

You remember that recipe?

Well the name

has gotten longer,

 I may have to rename it to French Croatian Yogurt Lemon Coconut  cake, 

you can say I have added a few extra ingredients:

coconut flour

flax seed flour

soy milk

and a few other changes.. (giggling)

and yes I finally bought an electric mixer,

but since Beli was

preparing it she insisted on 

mixing it herself

with a spoon!

Yummy!

.

What have you baked lately?

do share recipes!

Been thinking of traveling again

two years ago we were in Florence, Italy for our wedding anniversary

but since traveling to Italy this year  is out of the question

I learned of a tiny town in Oregon called Florence

so that may be our next destination.

shhhh don't tell hubby.

 via

if you have any suggestions for traveling to Oregon 

I would love to hear your ideas.

Went to see the movie, the descendants. Have you watched it? 

It takes place in Hawaii.

  Never been there and you?

flowers from Valentines still blooming

Happy Monday!

It's white

The color of my new phone.

Who knew savings of 10 dollars would motivate me to purchase a new phone!
Let me explain: I went to a new spa last week and the receptionist informed me that new customers had the opportunity for a discount if they had a smart phone, well I didn't.
I still owned a good old flip-phone!
So after the massage, I went and purchased a smart phone.
And if you are wondering whether I will be returning to that new spa..
nope.

 Since I'm used to only talking and texting, I'm having fun with all the new apps.
What I won't enjoy is my phone bill doubling in price!
Oh well, must keep up with technology or
else you will be left behind! right?

Adriatic Sea~photo taken by me- summer 2010

Gotta relax today because another hectic weeks awaits us!

How are you keeping up with an ever changing world?

Today's meditation

..learn to get your values right and put first things first..-Eileen caddy

This beautiful smile reminds me of what's important in life.

Children are the anchors that hold a mother to life-Sophocles

Glimpses of the week ~here and from around the world!

 Look who is feeling better!

And whether you are busy shoveling snow or baking

or enjoying sunshine, have a wonderful weekend!

oh and a Happy San Valentin!

I found this picture but can't remember the source, Beli would love  it, if only I knew how to build it!

and a few more pictures my friends sent me from Croatia. You can find more pictures on the blog, 

View from the Riva.

 these photos are from my friend Pim more photos on his blog Svinisce

from Finland


this photo also  from Finland,

stay cozy!

Snow~ not only in Colorado but also in Croatia

 "Last time it snowed this much was in 1929," stated hubby when he saw the photos our friends posted today online of snow in Split, Croatia.

this is the view from my friend's apartment in Split, Croatia

and this is the  view from my home in Colorado

what's the view like from your home today?

Almond cake with fresh strawberries

The aroma is magnificent.

The texture is so delicate it melts in your mouth.

Have you ever baked with almond flour?

I made my first almond cake from a recipe I found on the back of  Bob's Red Mill almond flour package. 

 I made a few modifications: the original recipe called for 4 eggs, but I substituted two eggs with flax-seed meal and I added 1 teaspoon of rum (I felt like experimenting!)

Here is the recipe for the Magically Moist Almond Cake

adapted from:  Bob's Red Mill package

3/4 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

*4 eggs ( I only used 2 eggs)

*to substitute 1 egg, mix 1 Tbsp of flax seed meal with 3 Tbsp of water in a small bowl and let sit for 1-2 minutes.

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cup of almond flour

1/2 organic coconut flour

1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

*1 tsp rum

Cream butter and sugar until smooth

Add in eggs, one at a time, then add flax-seed mixture and mix well 

Add milk, vanilla and rum and mix together.

In a separate bowl:

combine flours, salt and baking powder

Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until well mixed ( I don't have an electric mixer so I used a hand mixer)

Spread into a greased 9" x 13" cake pan and bake at 350F for 30 minutes.

 The cake was crumbly, maybe because I substituted 2 eggs with flax-seed meal, regardless it was yummy! 

P.s. (Took Beli to the pediatrician again, she has an ear infection so we are on our first round of antibiotics for the year, the last time she had antibiotics was back in 2009 before we moved overseas!)

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Have a wonderful day!