Shortly after I graduated from college I got a secretarial job that paid more in “low self-esteem” than in actual currency. But every day at 12:30, brown lunch sack in hand, I would walk upstairs to the empty break room, sit on a hard blue futon and tune into Food Network on a television that sat on the ground. I would then dream that I wasn’t in that cold office but was cooking in my own kitchen for a living instead. Even before Food Network was a thing, I dreamt about being Martha, thinking, “what a life it would be – to do what you love as your job.” My grandma can remember times when I was talking to myself in the kitchen, playing around with dried lentils and all-purpose flour. What she didn’t know (or maybe she did) was that I was talking to my viewers and telling them the exact technique to stir a pot of food.
This blog was a long time coming and I can’t remember anything in my life that I’ve ever been more passionate about. So what stopped me all those years when I could have started a food blog but didn’t?
Well, I didn’t own a camera or at least not a very good one. I also didn’t have a computer of any sort. Remind me to tell you about the time in our life when we didn’t have two dimes to rub together. But no, it wasn’t the lack of equipment that stopped me. It was that ever-persistent voice in my head that told me I wasn’t good enough. Anyone else hear that voice too?
The internet swarmed with such beautiful blogs that boasted amazing photography, props, and illusory hand models. They told stories about idealistic lives without troubles. These women had all the money and time in the world, or so it seemed. Through their pictures, I saw sun-soaked kitchens, marble countertops, sleeping babies, and perfectly filled in eyebrows. Did I mention their tiny waist lines?
Somehow, I made it here though. I eventually said, “screw it. I’m going to do what I want and saturate people with my extremely boring, laminate countertop, uneven eyebrow life.” And I haven’t looked back.
But this weekend I paused. Looking at how my photography has evolved, along with my passion for it, I saw a sun-soaked kitchen and what looked like marble countertops and pictures that represented a hand model life. I love how far my photography has come. However, I don’t want to give any illusion that I have it all.
I want my pictures to inspire, but I want my words to bring truth. So, if you are like me and you follow all these beautiful blogs with gorgeous, clean kitchens and waist lines that even Angelina Jolie would envy, then I have some perspective for you.
Some truths about my photos:
- It takes me an hour on average for a photo shoot.
- I self-loathe for a hot minute before every single one of my posts go up.
- Photoshop touches most of the pictures I post.
- Every picture I take has a messy kitchen around it. Ev—–e—–ry.
- I can take up to 200 pictures and from there, I dwindle them down to the best 10 or so.
- My husband assists for some of my photo shoots by holding up a reflector or taking the picture of my model hands and is almost always being bossed around by me.
Additional reads:
12 ways to stop feeling internet jealous By Lindsay Ostrom of Pinch of Yum
How to stop comparing yourself to other creatives By Adam J Kurtz on Design Sponge
Now, what you have been waiting for, here’s Bacon Maple Coffee Cake everyone. It’s salty-sweet, which you should all know by now is my favorite. It’s basically a breakfast combo plate in cake form. Unlike most of the coffee cakes I’ve had, this one is decadent and creamy, not crumbly. If you are looking for a nice weekend-morning breakfast that can accompany the slow drip of pour-over coffee and pajamas till noon, this one’s for you. Let these pictures inspire you to get baking, to make memories and to eat extremely well. But know that with these photos, there is more than meets the eye.
Bacon Maple Coffee Cake
Bacon Maple coffee cake is the best weekend breakfast recipe. Savory and sweet deliciousness.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Ingredients
|| Coffee Cake ||
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk
|| Crumble ||
1/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3-5 slices of bacon, thick and sliced
|| Maple Drizzle ||
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon coffee, strongly brewed
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 teaspoon maple extract
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
|| Coffee Cake || Cream together butter, sugar, vanilla and eggs with an electric mixer. In a separate bowl sift flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Put half of the flour mixture into the butter and stir. Pour the buttermilk into the batter and mix together for about one minute then add the rest of the flour mixture. Mix until well incorporated, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
Pour into a well oiled 9 inch cake round.
|| Crumble || Melt the butter and add flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Mix with your hands until it forms a crumble. Sprinkle on top of the cake and place in the oven. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean in the center.
Cut the slices of bacon and cook in a small pan over medium heat until the slices are cooked evenly and place on a paper towel on top of a plate to soak up the excess oil.
|| Maple Drizzle || Mix all of the drizzle ingredients together and set aside.
Once the cake has cooled place a plate over the cake pan and flip the cake removing the cake pan. Then take another plate and flip the cake back to its upright position with the crumble on top. Place the bacon pieces on top of the cake and generously drizzle the maple icing on top.
Keywords: bacon, breakfast, coffee cake, maple
