"When in Doubt...Bake Something Ina."

Just a crazy idea, but do you think I could develop, market, and distribute cute little plastic wristbands with the mantra "WID...BSI"? No? How about a t-shirt that says "Ina Garten is my Homegirl"? Or! An "I Go Barefoot for Contessa" bumper sticker? (That last one is meant to be ambiguous. The mystery is what makes it alluring.)

Point of the story...Ina is my goddess. Everything about is her is classy and soothing and she radiates fabulous-ness (fabulousity? faboliscious-ness? No?...I think I'm losing everyone here today.)  I made her Honey Vanilla Pound Cake last weekend from her Back to Basics cookbook (my favorite cookbook to date). And, my oh my, was it ever a delight. It's dense, but still soft. It quite literally melts in your mouth. And the combination of the honey and vanilla with the hint of lemon is divine.  Perfect with coffee for a light breakfast, or after a meal for that something sweet.

Round Two: Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

My younger brother and his girlfriend are for lack of a better word, um, AMAZING, (does this make me bland? uninspired? unoriginal? I'm sure there are better words out there, but I just might be bland, uninspired, unoriginal, etc.) and spent their entire spring break schlepping across the great U-S of A to come visit me. On the agenda: blend in with the hipsters in Portland (success? debatable.), watch our alma mater embarass Duke and carry home the outright ACC championship (we won't discuss the ACC tournament bloodbath that ensued), "shred the pow" on Mount Bachelor, and personally taste test far too many local microbrews. After this week-o-fun, all I can say is: MY waistline is furious. (Name that movie and, Congratulations!, you officially recognize my new favorite movie.)

In the midst of all this Oregonian hipster, outdoorsy, boozy, hippy fun, I didn't even have time to make my brother's favorite treat. I know. The nerve. And it's such a shame, because I whipped these up promptly after he left, and they are so easy and equally delicious. This one's for you, George and Ashley. I'll be sure these get "taken care of" in your absence.