Sunrise, Sunset

There was a pretty sunrise this morning. I love the sunrises and sunsets in Nevada. There are pretty sun events everywhere, I guess, but it seems the ones in Nevada are more predictably pretty. I watched this morning's for quite a while and took a bunch of pictures. I was hoping to capture just the moment when it peeked over the mountains, but I got bored after a while. This was the best of the pictures I took this morning.

The kitties have had their morning treats, and now we're all in our places with sunshiney faces. The kitties...not so much on the sunshiney faces.

Their morning chore of getting us out of bed is complete, and now they're ready for their morning naps.

When I left you yesterday, I was getting ready for lunch. My lunch most days these days consists of an apple and a slice of deli ham. I couldn't find my favorite Envy apples at the grocery store yesterday. Nor could I find the one I tried recently called Sugar Bee, and so I decided to try this one called "Cosmic Crisp." It's okay, but I don't like it as much as either of the others. 

And just so you know...I'm not shilling for the apple industry, but my blog is my brain. I keep track of things here that I know I won't remember. As an example, I just backtracked through several blog posts trying to find the name of the Sugar Bee apple. Mind like a steel trap, I'm telling you.

Later in the afternoon, I filled the hoop of my latest Blackwork Basket. This one will probably stitch up pretty fast.

And then, Mike and I got out for a walk around the RV park. I'm happy to say the weather is warmer here, and we were able to be out without jackets for the first time in a long time. There isn't much blooming in the park at this time of year, but I amused myself with some of the funny signs we saw.

and some of the RV yard art. I'm estimating about half the people here are living here full time.

And this kitty...don't tell Smitty, okay?

There is a winery associated with this RV park. On the far side of the restaurant (yes, a restaurant too) is a small vineyard. It's looking pretty barren this time of the year.

I don't know if you can see this very well, but they had a water feature set up made up of wine barrels. The water falls from the upper-most barrel on the upper left side of the image, and then travels down from barrel to barrel until it reaches the pool below. I'll try to get a video of this, and it'll make more sense.

It was there I found this one blooming geranium.

Walking on, we found one bedraggled rose bush.

Every time we visit, I take a picture of these pincushion cacti...that's not their formal name, but it's what I call them. They're so cute...about the size of a volleyball.

It was close to sunset by the time we returned to the RV. We watched as the hills behind us turned bright red.

Okay, so here's the worst part of dieting. Not only can I not eat dessert, I can't bake it either. And I had a serious yen to bake something, not to mention my serious craving for something sweet. I had in mind to turn the Orange Upside-Down Cake I made recently into a cake for two. First, I had to order a 6-inch cake pan off Amazon. It arrived yesterday, and we picked it up at the park office during our walk. I went straight to work baking the cake. This one was pretty easy. I just cut the recipe in half to bake it in the smaller vessel, and it baked up in 30 minutes. It needed to cool 10 minutes, and then I took it out of the pan. Pretty, huh?

It used just one orange. After it cooled for an hour, I added the orange marmalade glaze. And let me just tell you, this was delicious.

Here's my scaled down recipe. 

Orange Upside-Down Cake for Two

adapted from America's Test Kitchens

serves 2 generously, or 4 more skimpily

Ingredients:

1-2 oranges, blood oranges, Cara Cara oranges, or a combination (1-2 oranges)

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, divided

3/4 cups (5-1/4 ounces) sugar, divided

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon plus a pinch of table salt, divided

1/2 cup (2-1/2 ounces) all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup sour cream

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoons orange marmalade

Whipped cream for finishing

Directions:

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 6-inch round cake pan, line with parchment paper, then grease parchment. Grate 3/4 teaspoons zest from 1 orange; set aside. Using hands, peel oranges. Trim ends and slice oranges crosswise into ¼-inch-thick slices, removing any seeds.

2. Pour 2 tablespoons melted butter over bottom of prepared pan and swirl to evenly coat. Whisk 1/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, and a pinch of salt together in bowl, then sprinkle evenly over melted butter. Arrange orange slices in single layer over sugar mixture, nestling slices snugly together and pressing them flat (you may have fruit leftover).

 

3. Whisk flour, baking powder, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt together in bowl. Whisk sour cream, eggs, vanilla, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and orange zest in large bowl until smooth, about 1 minute. Whisk remaining 3 tablespoons melted butter into sour cream mixture until combined. Add flour mixture and whisk until just combined.

4. Pour batter over oranges and smooth top with rubber spatula. Bake until golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 30 minutes.

5. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Run knife around edge of pan to loosen cake, then invert onto serving platter. Let cake cool at least 1 hour. 

6. Microwave marmalade in bowl until fluid, about 20 seconds. Using pastry brush, brush marmalade over top of cake. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream.

* * * * *

Smitty was able to get out for a walk last night. Unfortunately, our next-door neighbor is staying here for a month, and they let their kitty out off-leash. I don't know how people find a way to get comfortable with that, but I guess nobody consulted me. Anyway, it means we have to make sure their kitty isn't around before we can let "Fang" outside. He didn't stay out long, and when he came in, he was pretty excited. Treats of valor were dispensed, of course.

Okay, so today a crew is coming to wash and wax the RV. I kind of have a sewing day planned, but it will depend on what else is going on. For now, it's time for breakfast. My stomach is growling.