You Can't Fool Mother Nature...or Can you?

We've had some crazy cold snowy and rainy weather lately. So when we had a couple of sunny days I was feeling a little cooped up watching it from my office window, so I decided to use my lunch break to maximize the sunshine. It was still pretty chilly and as you can see from the trees still very much winter.


So I decided to go somewhere I knew it would feel and look just like summer. The Seymour Botanical Conservatory at Wright Park in Tacoma is a beautiful Victorian structure built in 1908 and luckily its not very far from downtown where I work


It's really an oasis in winter. Even the palm tree gives an illusion of semi tropicalness


As you step in the front door you are hit with a wonderful smell from the many orchids and a floral scene that currently screams spring.


Potted azaleas


And spring bulbs give me hope for whats to come in the next couple of months.

Aren't you ready for daffodils?


I loved this bulb too...not sure what kind it is. Maybe some kind of crinum?


The foliage in the conservatory is so lush and a perfect backdrop to all of the gorgeous orchids


There are many different varieties..I love this one


And this beauty


This begonia is pretty happy in the warm humid air


And this clivia is so pretty. I have one like this in my house, but it hasn't bloomed for us.


There are so really unique things in the conservatory including spanish moss..reminds me of home in Louisiana


Or how about these cool pitcher plants


At the end of the "path"


is a bench to rest a bit and take it all in


From this spot I admired this enormous fiddly fig


And these pretty yellow orchids...check out the scary tiger lurking in the background


After a little rest I headed back up the path into the main domed room


to see the fishies and waterfall


And to admire the cute little mushrooms


Amazingly in all of this lushness they have also created a little mini arid zone


Check out this papyrus



There is a great gift shop to visit before you leave. I love those tiny little Adirondack chairs right in front of the counter. I bought a cute plant for my desk at work and a pretty little enamel heart box.


Loved these drawings on the door to the shop


The kids are as inspired as I am! This spot in particular makes me wish I was an artist


With my lunch time coming to a close I figured it was time to head out but took the time to be jealous of the gorgeous Ponderosa lemons


Back out into the sunny but 40ish temps


Love the outside of the building too though especially up against that blue sky.


Some day I'll take you on a walk around the park itself. There are some great old trees - its great in fall. Today the Monkey Puzzle tree caught my eye...do you know it?


I think its supposed to look like a bunch of monkey tails


So......if maybe you can fool mother nature at least part of the time I wonder if you can fool a cinnamon roll lover ? This is my quickie version of cinnamon rolls. They are really cinnamon biscuits and super quick, but fun to make. I used to make these with my sister on Saturday mornings. And by the way...my cinnamon roll lover may not have been fooled but he went back for seconds :-)



Cinnamon Biscuits

1 can biscuits - the cheapest brand you can find work just fine, but something like Grands works even better
1/2 stick margarine or butter, melted
1 cup Sugar
cinnamon ( a couple of teaspoons or more depending on how cinnamony you like it)

Coat each biscuit with melted butter. Dip and roll each biscuit in cinnamon sugar. Place in a round cake pan. Drizzle tops with extra butter and cinnamon. Cook at 350° for about 15 mins or until cinnamon begins to get browner and forms a little crust. You just want to make sure the biscuits are cooked through.

Now give it a try and see if you can fool them too!


Joining in for Mosaic Monday at Little Red House & Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads.

Flashback Friday ~School Days

I'm planning on attending my 25th High School reunion in a few weeks so thought I might show you some random school pics my niece found in a photo album at my parents house recently. My how time has flown!


And a few shots from my spring flowers


My roses (that survived) are far away from blooming. This is a bloom on a little mini I bought at the grocery store.


I love these little fuzzy pasque flowers.


My little mini path all freshened up with new dirt. Thanks honey!


Snowflake and red primrose


The bleeding hearts are starting to bloom


Daffodils enjoying a minute of sunshine


For my Foodie Friday contribution I'm showing Chocolate Milk French Toast. It was as yummy as it sounds.



Chocolate Milk French Toast

3 eggs, beaten
1 cup chocolate milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp almond extract
8-10 pieces bread - french or brioche would work best.
butter for pan

Combine beaten eggs, milk, sugar, and extracts in a shallow pan (like a pie plate). Lay bread in pan to soak up liquid. Flip to get both sides. You can poke your bread with a fork to make sure it soaks in. Transfer bread to butter pan and cook on stove over medium high heat until done on each side. Repeat until bread is used up.

I served with strawberries sliced and mixed with 1/4 cup sugar & 2 Tablespoons maple syrup plus a sprinkle of powdered sugar. The chocolate flavor is not overwhelming in this but gives it a great taste. For a stronger chocolate flavor you could add cocoa to the milk/egg mixture.

If you have a flashback of your own that you'd like to share please add your link here and LINK back to this blog.


I have thrown out the Great Cooking Magazine Challenge again. The date is May 8th. I'll have Mr. Linky up on the 7th since the 8th is Mother's Day. The idea is to try something new out of a cooking magazine. But rules are made to be broken so if you don't have a magazine any new to you recipe will do. Can't wait to see what you will try!

Flashback Friday ~Sweet Potato Pancakes

Every Friday I try to Flashback to a favorite photo, memory or recipe. I call it Flashback Friday..clever huh? :-) HERE are some older Flashback Friday posts to check out. Huh...Flashbacks to Flashbacks. That's getting too deep for me!!!

This Friday I'm sharing a recipe for a favorite food from my past. Sometimes I get a little "foodsick" for my home state cooking and I have to try my best to whip up something myself to get over it. There's a restaurant in Lafayette, La called Dwyer's Cafe that serves great plate lunches and the best sweet potato pancakes in the world. And I have been craving them for a while.


They don't have a web page that I can find but they do have a Facebook page that you gotta love. They post the specials of the day. Here's a list of what they had going on today.

ROAST BEEF, PORK SAUSAGE, STUFFED BELL PEPPER W/ beef
CATFISH COURTBOULLION, FRIED CHICKEN,
COMBINATION SALAD, MACARONI SALAD, FRUIT SALAD
BAKED BEANS, STRING BEANS, SQUASH, EGGPLANT
WHITE OR BROWN RICE, AUGRATIN POTATOES, JAMBALAYA,
...BLACKBERRY COBBLER

Is your mouth watering???? I know mine is!!

I found a great recipe recently on Closet Cooking (one of my favorite food blogs) for sweet potato pancakes, so I thought I would give them a try and see if they satisfied my envie (Cajun for craving) for Dwyer's version. It came pretty close! And my stash of Steen's Cane Syrup that I brought home from my list trip to La helped to make it even closer since that is what they serve with it. Cane syrup is similar to molasses but not as dark or strong. It has a distinct flavor all its own.



They would be great with regular syrup too...so don't let your lack of Steen's throw you off. I made enough to have some for breakfasts on the go during the work week. They were yummy spread with a little peanut butter/Steen's mix too.

Sweet Potato Pie Pancakes
from Kevin at Closet Cooking (if my picture doesn't make you want some his WILL)
8 pancakes


Ingredients:
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (I cut back to 1/4 tsp)
1 cup buttermilk (or milk)
1 egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted)
1/2 cup mashed sweet potato (cooked) (I used canned and a more like 1 cup)
1 handful pecans (chopped)

Directions:
1. Mix the flour, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a large bowl.
2. Mix the buttermilk, egg, butter and mashed sweet potato in another bowl.
3. Mix the wet and dry ingredients making sure to not over mix.
4. Heat a pan and melt a touch of butter in it.
5. Pour 1/4 cup of the mixture into the pan and heat until the surface starts to bubble and the bottom is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes.
6. Flip the pancake and cook the other side until the bottom is golden brown, about 1-2 minutes.


I just have to add this picture of my cousin Danny enjoying a cup of coffee in the little outdoor dining area at Dwyers. I think he'd had a late night and the sun was wayyyyy to bright :-) Love ya Little Danny!


If you have a Flashback of any kind that you'd like to share please add your link here and link back to me on your blog - or share a favorite flashback in the comments section if you don't have a blog.


I'm joining in over at Designs by Gollum for Foodie Friday this week. Check it out HERE.
And I'm joining in for Sweet Tooth Friday for the first time. Visit it HERE.