Almond Tea Bread Recipe

We were fortunate to receive a bag of cherries from the grandparents, but needed some assistance to finish them before they get gross.  After a minutes randomly Googling recipes on the internet, I came across this:

Almond Tea Bread by Taste of Home

Doesn't it look beautiful?

What I love about the recipe is the use of fresh cherries and almond paste instead of the usual almond extract.  Give it a bit of an extra oomph, I think.  My own attempt didn't photograph as well but was delicious nonetheless.

According to my 4 year old, it was the "best dessert ever"!  Nuff said!

I adapted the recipe as follows:

Ingredients

• 1 can (7 ounces) almond paste
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1-1/2 cups fresh pitted cherries 
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 cup wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk

Directions

1. In a large bowl, combine almond paste and butter; beat until well blended. Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a small bowl, gently toss cherries and 1 tablespoon flour. Set aside.
2. Combine the baking powder, salt, remaining flour; add to the creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition.
3. Spoon a sixth of the batter into each of two greased and floured 8-in. x 4-in. loaf pans; sprinkle layers with half of the fruit. Cover with another layer of batter and sprinkle with remaining fruit. Top with remaining batter; smooth with spatula.
4. Bake at 350° for 1-1/4 hours or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 2 loaves (16 slices each).

I only had 2 cups all purpose flour avail (but would have subbed 1 cup of wheat anyway) and with the addition of the wheat flour, more milk was required.

Just a note about pitting the cherries without a tool.  You can use a chopstick or a piping tip to push out the seed.  I found the number 5 piping tip to be perfect as you can just set it on the cutting board and push the cherry down on top.  Be-warned that if your cherries are on the juicier side, you may want to put on an apron and possibly some goggles.  Not that I had cherry juice spray on my face or anything. =)

Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Peel Pads

It has become clear to me that my current skincare regimen is a bit lacking as I approach my, gulp,  40's.  While relatively wrinkle free, I am now plagued with pregnancy induced sun/age spots that has increased in number with each birth.  As such, it was time to reexamine my repertoire.

1. Oil based cleanser - Hado Labo Cleansing Oil

2. Exfoliant (whenever I remember) - Dermatologica Daily Microfoliant or Olay Pro X brush

3. Moisturizing Toner - Hado Labo Gokujyun Clear Lotion

4. Face Mask (as necessary which is usually when it starts to feel dry) - any brand with Hyaluronaic Acid on sale

4. Moisturizer - Hado Labo Gokujyun Milk

This particular combo was great for summer - moisturizing and lightweight.  I don't particularly like the feeling of "wearing" something on my face and tend to gravitate towards Asian Beauty Products for that reason.  It certainly doesn't hurt that this particular Japanese drugstore brand is significantly cheaper than the department store stuff while being highly effective!

In addition the age spots, I also noticed the skin on my cheeks was drier than my pre-pregnancy days and the skin overall looks a bit lackluster.  My usual go-to's: Exfoliants and Face Masks weren't doing the same magic as they once were.  Hence, its time to dive into the world of Serums and Ampules. 

After a lot of late night researching, I decided to try a Serum with high concentration of Vitamin C (at least 15% for efficacy) and a chemical exfoliant with AHA, and BHA.  Vitamin C is suppose to brighten and the AHA/BHA to remove more dead skin. Also, given the nature of chemical exfoliants,  it also stimulates collagen production, reduce wrinkles, firm skin and brighten! 

Enter Peter Thomas Roth Un-Wrinkle Peel Pads.

It meets the criteria of having both AHA and BHA with Vitamin C to boot!  The pads are convenient when shower times are the length of an episode of a kids show.  

Use: Wash face with cleanser. Wipe pad on face and decollage. Wait 30 seconds - 3 minutes. Rinse off. Continue with rest of skincare regimen.

I kept it on for closer to 3 minutes before gently rinsing off.  Have to say - my skin looks brighter and smoother.  May be my imagination (as I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around the difference ONE application will make) but my cheeks are a lighter shade.  There was a slight tingle but I am VERY pleased with the results!

I also started using a Vitamin C serum today - will report on that in a few days.