When Life Hands You Lemons

Dave and I aren't big Valentine's Day people.  I just don't understand the point of devoting a day to love when every day should be filled with love.  It's not even love; it's buying things out of obligation.  I much rather receive presents "just because."  Receiving red roses at the same moment everyone else receives red roses just feels less than genuine to me.

But enough with the bah humbuging.  We still celebrate VDay, just in our own way.  Our tradition is to buy a nice piece of meat, find a fancy new recipe, and bake up a storm.  I love the quality time in the kitchen, and the big night in is always perfectly our pace.  There's no pressure, no hype, no room for drama

This year, drama ensued.

We decided to make Martha Stewart's Blueberry-Lemon Bundt Cake for our special Valentine's Day dessert.  I was mixing the batter while Dave was zesting a lemon.  All of a sudden, I heard all kinds of expletives.  I looked up to find that my kitchen had been instantly transformed into a scene from Dexter.  I'd like to illustrate that moment, but I don't want to make anyone queasy.  So, instead, I'll show you the kind of Dexter scene that I would have preferred.

{It would have been so much better}

Dave had a pretty deep cut in his right index finger.  We debated whether we needed to go to the Emergency Room or not.  We called our nurse friends, our former-paramedic friends, our moms, and finally deemed the laceration stitch-worthy.  We drove to our nearest hospital, and sure enough, the physician agreed.  A few stitches later, we headed home.

{Not that kind of Stitch!  Again, would have been so much better.}

Dave didn't let it get him down.  He milked it, briefly, and requested to stop for milkshakes on the way home.  Then, he moved on.  When life hands you lemons (and a very dull, very old zester), you just have to reattempt your project the next day!

{Recipe cards designed by my sister, Amanda}

Blueberry-Lemon Bundt Cake (adapted from Martha Stewart)

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus 1 teaspoon for blueberries and zest
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 2 cups blueberries
• 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
• Nonstick cooking spray, for pan
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Whisk 2 1/2 cups flour with baking powder and salt.
• In a separate bowl, cream butter and sugars on high speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Beat in vanilla.
• Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions of sour cream.
• In another bowl, toss blueberries with remaining flour; gently fold into batter.
• Coat a 12-cup nonstick Bundt pan with cooking spray. Spread batter in prepared pan.
• Bake cake for approximately 60-70 minutes. Cool in pan 20 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely.
• Make sure the cake is completely cooled before adding the confectioners' sugar.  Otherwise, it'll just absorb into the cake!

We ended up having a really nice meal, and the cake was awesome!  Oh, and Dave's finger has since made a full recovery.  Have you ever had a tradition or a kitchen adventure go awry?