But in the midst of all these changes, I have also seen individuals rise up to help address the needs of others — less fortunate people that are just simply trying to survive.
 
One person I know in particular is trying to make a difference: Susan Stern, founder of “My Very Own Dreams.” www.myveryowndreams.com  Susan’s non-profit corporation makes pillowcases for foster and at-risk children and teens. In 2010 she produced more than 2,300 pillowcases and distributed them throughout the United States. When I was speaking to Susan about what she does, it was easy to see what it means to her to provide some modicum of comfort to children in need.  And her particular philanthropy efforts are truly a labor of love.
 
My kids recently had a contest at school – it was called “Pennies for Patients” – during which they collected loose change over a three week period.  They took the money into school each day and added it to the jar. It was a collection program that benefited www.schoolandyouth.org – an organization that raises money for The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society® (LLS), the world’s largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. The LLS mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds life-saving blood cancer research around the world and provides free information and support services.
 
My daughter’s 5th Grade Class won the contest by collecting over $400 in spare change! The total for the entire school was considerably higher.  Both of my kids were not only excited to participate in this fun and worthy challenge but they also learned what it means to care about others.
 
Susan Stern’s enthusiasm to help others is very infectious.  I plan to do more to help my community wherever I can.  In fact, let’s all start paying it forward!  And please remember: no act of kindness is ever too small. 
 
Do any of you have similar stories you’d like to share?  I’d love to hear from you!

 Let the holiday baking begin!  We will make three different types of cookie this year – gingersnaps, pressed sugar cookies, and my Grandma Kane’s famous iced cookie, the “Jumble Jubilee.”  I will be posting recipes and pictures within the next two weeks so watch this space.

Christmas Tree @ Fashion Island, Newport Beach CA

 What else is going on…

 I attended Quilt Market in Houston last month and the spring lines are now just beginning to trickle in.  So many cute new fabrics!  I have lots of new designs planned – quilts, table cloths and wall hangings – and I’m very excited about all of the possibilities.  I will of course post pictures of any new offerings in the weeks ahead.  

 My kids gave me a wonderful book for my birthday: “The Art & Soul of Baking“,  I especially like its textbook-style format and that each new chapter begins with a “how to” section, explaining in detail some great techniques as well as providing guidance on refining your baking skills.  I highly recommend this book to all you bakers out there.  Definitely one to put on your Christmas list. 

  Our daughter, Rachel, has her latest piano recital next week!  She dedicates time to practice every day and her hard work really shows.  We are naturally very proud of her and can’t wait for next week’s performance.  I know she’ll do great!

Thunder, lightning and lots of rain this evening.  I’m off to warm by the fireplace with my new baking book!

Well, I took a long-awaited and much-needed vacation with my two best friends, Dena & Laurie! We went to Italy and visited Rome, Tuscany, Florence, Milan & Venice. We saw all of the sights — many of them familiar from books and television and lots more that were new to us — staying in some beautiful, old-world hotels along the way. We were also fortunate enough to have access to a stunning 15th-Century Tuscan villa owned by the friend of a friend. We met lots of nice people, ate amazing food, and truly had a wonderful time shopping and sight-seeing.

We had been planning and fine-tuning this trip for over two years — plotting out which sights of historical and archaeological significance to see, the museums and churches we most wanted to visit — and we couldn’t have been happier with our choices or the entire experience. I was so inspired by what I saw everywhere — and in particular, by the exquisite woodwork inlay on doors and intricate marble flooring — that a design or two might well make it into an upcoming quilting project!

When I arrived home in early September, it was time for the kids to start back to school. Meanwhile, I have since attended three quilt shows back to back! I finally get to stay home this coming weekend and will bake pumpkin cupcakes with my daughter for the cupcakery section of the blog. A trip to Disneyland with friends visiting from Arizona on Sunday, then it’s off again next week — this time to Pacific International Quilt Festival in Santa Clara, CA – Booth 313.

I’ve started a new personal quilting journey – I’m making a Dear Jane Quilt! One block a day with catch-up days on weekends – at least, that’s my plan so we’ll see! As you might expect, I intend to make mine in brights with a white-on-white background fabric. My goal is to complete this quilt in time for my guild show in June 2012 — Beach Cities Quilters Guild. I’m still considering various books and patterns so if you have any suggestions on how to make this an easier project, please send your thoughts and ideas my way!

The exhibit was smaller than I had expected but was nevertheless a nice sampling of quilts representative of a bygone era. We met the Docent of this exhibit who answered all of our questions and was very knowledgeable about quilting; even though she admitted to only being an admirer and not a quilter herself.

The Bower Museum - Exhibit Entrance

Mariners Compass

 After we were done looking at the quilts, we wandered through the rest of the museum – permanent collections depicting California history, along with paintings, sculpture, jewelry and myriad artifacts from Asia and Meso-America. Borneo and the Pacific Islands were also prominently represented at the Bower.

I was struck by something the docent said to me during our visit: she referred to quilting as an artform — and having given this a lot of thought, I believe she is most definitely right. As a quilt designer, I often downplay samples and quilts that I give away as gifts to family and friends. But when you consider all of the steps involved in making a quilt, it is by no means a small undertaking. From the selection of a pattern and the fabric, to the cutting and piecing. Often times we are working on many different projects simultaneously and typically have a pile of unfinished quilt tops at any given time. But when we get the quilt top completed and have finished sewing on the binding, we let out a sigh of satisfaction — behold the art we have created!

I know from my own personal experience and from that of my quilting pals that we are always excited to share our finished work with others. We will often take a quilt to a guild meeting for Show and Tell. The time and effort that has gone into producing this piece of art is validated in the positive feedback from our peers; and the epithany that we have truly created something to be proud of quickly follows.

It doesn’t matter if your seams don’t match exactly or if you have some other minor imperfection! What you have created can be considered a unique piece of art that will be cherished for many generations to come.

As I witnessed at the Bower Museum, color preference or style and the degree of expertise can vary from person to person; but whatever your skill level, each of us has something unique to contribute to the art of quilting; along with an obligation that ensures the great quilting tradition lives on for future generations.

Have a great week!

After comparing about two dozen recipes, we decided upon the one that appears below to make our Lemon Zester cupcake.  If you prefer to make vanilla cupcakes, just omit all of the lemon ingredients from the recipe and you’re good to go.

Lemon Zester Cupcake Ingredients½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
1 tsp lemon extract (1 tsp vanilla extract for vanilla cupcakes)
¼ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (no seeds)
3 large eggs
Zest of 1 large lemon, finely grated/chopped
1 ½ cups of cake flour sifted
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup milk

Lemon Curd Filling Ingredients

3 large egg yolks
1/3 fresh squeezed lemon juice (no seeds)
1 tbsp Lemon zest, finely grated/chopped
¾ cup granulated white sugar
4 tbsp Unsalted butter, room temperature

(You can also use a store-bought Lemon Filling if you are running short on time).

Lemon Frosting Ingredients

¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 box powdered confectioners’ sugar
2 tbsp Heavy cream
2 tsp fresh squeezed lemon juice or lemon extract
¼ tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp finely grated/chopped lemon zest

Lemon Cupcakes Directions

Preheat over to 350 degrees and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

Beat together butter & sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Be sure to scrape the bowl sides often.  Beat in lemon zest, lemon extract and lemon juice.

In a separate bowl – sift together flour, baking power and salt.

Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture; alternately add the flour mixture and milk.  Mix between each addition.  Also scrape the bowl sides often.

Fill the cupcake cups with the batter 2/3 full, I use an ice cream scoop – it works perfect.  Bake for 18 – 20 minutes.  Cool completely on a wire rack before filling and frosting.

Lemon Curd Filling Directions

Combine all ingredients in a small stainless steel bowl over a simmering pan of water.  Stir non-stop until mixture thickens a little and coats the back of a wooden spoon.  Remove from heat and cover immediately to prevent a “skin” forming on the curd – place the bowl in the refrigerator.  It takes about 10 minutes of non-stop stirring to make this curd which will continue to thicken as it cools.  

*You may want to pour the mixture through a fine strainer to remove any lumps before covering and putting it in the refrigerator.

Lemon Frosting Directions

Beat the butter until creamy; gradually beat in the powdered confectioner’s sugar on low speed.  Add the cream, lemon juice, vanilla extract and lemon zest.  Beat on medium-high for about 3 minutes until the frosting is light & fluffy.

Cupcake Assembly

Using a straight, round apple corer, take the center out of the cupcakes leaving about ¼ inch in at the bottom – fill with the lemon curd using a pastry bag.  Next frost with Lemon Frosting.

Enjoy the flavor of the month – Lemon Zester – look next month for my take on the classic Black & White cupcake!

Lemon Zester Cupcake