Smells have always been special to me. They evoke feelings, bring up memories, and call us into the kitchen with a sniff and “Hey, that smells good! What’s for dinner?”
Sometimes smells bring up specific memories. Freshly mown grass—elementary school recess. Tomato soup—rainy evenings. Lemon Pledge—Friday nights at my Mother’s house. Polo cologne—my college boyfriend.
This weekend we got a whiff of normal. It smells like golf shoes, gardening gloves, tortilla chips and salsa, oranges freshly plucked from the trees, and hamburgers.
We got a surprise visit from family, made a sojourn to some friends who picked oranges with us and then gave a tour of their very large country property, and ended the day with curbside pickup from a local restaurant and a socially distanced dinner on the backyard patio.
Social interaction, sorely lacking for the past 7 weeks, can be done while abiding by recent health guidelines, and I think we can all agree that “Zooming” exclusively with friends and family is a pale substitute for laughing and bonding over a hamburger. Social media and chat services are like Diet Cola—better than nothing, but no where near the real thing.
Our virtual Sunday Dinners have evolved during the past month. We’re all worn out from the latest statistics, updates and data regarding Covid-19, so the discussions have become more practical. “I’ve got extra lemons, if anyone needs some.” “Does anyone have flour? Yeast? Fishing line?” “I made dessert and have carry out tins for anyone who wants a delivery!” We’ve become our own DoorDash service. Trading puzzles to entertain, sharing information about the best times to find toilet paper in the store, and even picking up some supplies, or including an item or two in the delivery box to accommodate a friend.
These are the things we do. It’s what friends do.
The weather is warming and gathering safely will become more and more possible. In the coming weeks we are going to look at ways to begin entertaining again. That’s why I hope you’ll enjoy the Blueberry Lemon Bread recipe attached to this blog. It’s light and lovely and versatile. Just like we’re going to have to be as we ease back into a more “normal” social life.
Backyard BBQs, picnics in the parks, whatever it is for you, look for ways to actually gather, safely, and at 6 feet distances with the actual people in your life. We’ll have to get creative, but that’s good for your brain. Being with people, sharing a common space, brings out the true essence of life. It’s good for your soul.
And it smells like the New Normal.
Be well, keep calm, and wash your hands.
Blueberry Lemon Bread with Lemon Glaze
Equipment
- Lemon Zester
- 9 x 5 loaf pan
Ingredients
For the Bread
- 2 Cups All purpose flour
- 2 Tsps Baking powder
- ½ Tsp Salt
- ½ Cup Oil Coconut, vegetable, or canola.
- 1 Cup Granulated sugar
- 1 Cup Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
- 2 Large Eggs
- 2 Tbls Fresh lemon juice
- Zest of 1 lemon For more lemony flavor, zest 2 lemons
- 2 Tsps Vanilla extract
- 1 Cup Blueberries + 2 tsps all purpose flour
For the Glaze
- 1 Cup Confectioners sugar
- 2 Tbls Fresh lemon juice Use more or less as needed to get a nice pourable consistency. Not too thin though!
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, mix together the oil, sugar, sour cream, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract until fully combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
- In a separate bowl, toss the blueberries with the 2 teaspoons of flour.
- Then, fold the blueberries into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 50 – 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If needed, cover loosely with foil for the last 10 – 15 minutes of baking to prevent excess browning.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 20 minutes in the loaf pan. Carefully remove from the loaf pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze
- Once the bread has cooled, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice. Start with two tablespoons of lemon juice and whisk well. If your mixture is too thick, slowly add up to one more tablespoon of lemon juice. If it’s too thin, add more powdered sugar as needed. (To test the consistency, take a spoonful of the glaze and tip to pour it back into the bowl. It should pour smoothly and easily, but not run like a thin soup.)
- Using a spoon, drizzle the glaze on top of the bread and spread it around. The glaze should harden up a little more after about 15 – 20 minutes.
