Birthday Treats to Give Out: Healthier than a cupcake

For TR, who still reminds me that we need healthier habits in our public schools.

Daughters and Son, now that they attend school, end up coming home having eaten different things at school handed out to them by parents who want to celebrate their child's birthday.  Fortunately for me, many of Son's friends treats are simply often limits to him, so he just doesn't get to have them.

Daughters are a different story.  I've been buying back candy rapidly this year (I'm poor because of it) and haggling and wheeling and dealing trying to keep excess sugar and sweets away from Daughters.  I simply told Daughter #2 that we weren't going to do any treats for her birthday since it fell on a weekend.  No big deal.

Daughter #1 was a different story.  Her birthday fell on a weekday, and she desperately wanted to give out a treat.  She negotiated with me, asking me if I would make her one of the fruit mosaics so that she could take it.  I wasn't really in the mood for a fruit mosaic, and the additional struggle with that is I have to be there to serve it.  I racked my brain trying to think of something that I could take to school, so that Daughter #1 could have something to pass out which didn't mess with my healthy food sense.

I had a flash of brilliance and decided to do the Party in Your Mouth popcorn.  It was perfect as it didn't have too much sugar, I could individually package it, and it would be a nice light snack for the students to enjoy.  I ran out of rice crackers at one point, so I had to go ahead and use pretzels (which I had lying around) and it tasted great.  You do need to create about 1 cup of mix per bag you make, so if you're making 27 bags to pass out, you'll need about 27 cups of mix.  Bear in mind that popcorn pops up very nicely, so that should be the bulk of your mix.  If you're worried about sodium content with salty pretzels, seaweed and rice crackers, do not add salt when you're popping the corn.

The kids loved it, and I have to say that I loved making it.  The little bags were perfect and Son liked them so much he's demanded them for HIS end of school party.  Since it is a Son-safe treat, I guess I'll be making some more bags of this!  You can certainly do fancier packaging with ribbon and pretty tape, but I went with mailing labels with Daughter's name a just the word popcorn and birthday.  It worked!


Recipe for the popcorn is here.  Bear in mind that this recipe makes about 10 cups, so you'll need to double or triple accordingly.  I mixed in a large, clean grocery bag, and just shook it together.

Then using a 1 cup measuring cup, I scooped it into my cellophane bags.

Folded it over and had my individual bags of popcorn ready to go.

A link to cellophane bags

Engineering Birthday Party: Because I know some awesome people

For NN, CW, CK

I've said it before, I'll say it again, I went to graduate school with amazing people and the first year teaching out of graduate school was at a school that was filled with phenomenal teachers.

Let me repeat.  Phenomenal.

Many of those teachers and I are still wonderful and great friends and we still support and encourage each other.  The other amazing thing about that school is that the students who attended were also phenomenal and amazing. I am on Facebook with them, I run into them in random places, and they still call me Ms. Choi.  Oftentimes they communicate with me on Facebook, reminding me of things that I said and did to encourage them.  For that experience at that school, I'm still forever thankful and still receiving many blessings that I never would have expected.

So, imagine my joy when in a conversation with an old colleague, she revealed that she was leaving a prestigious post at a top university in order to go to work for herself.  As an amazing science teacher, I picked her brain about things I might be able to do to encourage Daughters to have a cool experience in science.  I also mentioned that Daughter #1 hadn't come up with a theme for a birthday party, and NN offered to help throw a science birthday party for her.  DONE.  BAM.  YES!!!  

Admittedly, Daughter #1 didn't really know what to expect when I suggested this to her, but she was game for anything new, and I told her to invite 10 of her friends to what was going to be an amazing birthday.  The list was made, the stage was set, and this birthday party was on its way to being planned.

The BEST party of this party planning?  Someone else planned the moment by moment activities.  Did I mention that NN is a former high school chemistry teacher?  She did, as she likes to say, "Got her nerd on."  She planned diligently and minutely, plotting out outcomes, goals, and moment by moment activities.  My only job was to invite, plan food, order the activity kits and she and a former student from our school would do the rest.  I also offered up the help of one of my current students, who is keenly interested in engineering, as a way to have extra help in the room.

This is the kind of planning she and CW did.

The team of scientists/teachers who arrived on my doorstep for this party was the best collection of nerd power.  Former student CW even convinced her husband, another science nerd to join the party and help out.  And what we ended up having is a lot of robotics fun.  It was amazing watching how intensely the girls all wanted to create this robot, and how hard they worked.  I know that my team of adult helpers worked harder than they, but still, it was the QUIETEST birthday party I've ever hosted.  I need more parties like this one.  (And I intend to have them.)

So here is my break down.

Decorations

I wanted a sort of "industrial" looking feel, and to also not spend ANY money on making decorations, so I determined that going black and white, and cutting bunting out of old magazines with black and white text would be cool.  I really liked the effect.   I made some streamers out of circle cutouts, mainly because I had a stack of black paper and I cut them out and sewed it together.  

If you want to make the bunting, I found that the small bunting worked well, and it's simply following a template and cutting it out.  Here.

I also decided to be a bit goofy and try making my own water bottle labels. I've seen lots of people do them before, and I have to say it was solely for me.  I don't think anyone noticed, although Daughter #1 seemed pleased with them, and even helped tape them on.  After all, who doesn't love their own name printed on a bunch of water bottles?  I got to personalize them with a bit of the robot clip art I found.

The Activity

Making the robot was the ONLY thing that the girls did.  (we ran out of time at a 2 hour party.)  They had some fun brainstorming what they wanted their robots to be able to do (in a fantasy world), and I found all of their answers really amusing and fun.  (Below is Daughter #2's response, and I thought to myself-  BUT HEY!  I can teach you piano!!!  When I asked her about it later, she clarified that I would teach in a different way and I would be in control, but a robot she could still control.  She's 6, but she thinks like someone who wants to be in charge.  ALL the time.)

This is the robot kit that I purchased.  The price is what determined how much I would be spending on the rest of the party, hence the no money for decorations results.  Reuse what we have at home!


The teachers and I had GRAND plans of having the kids bling out their robots with sequins, feathers and pompoms, using zots dots, but it didn't happen.  We didn't have enough time.  And when I suggested to Daughters #1 and #2 that they do the sequins for fun, they looked at me like I was insane and told me that they don't do such things.



The Food
Originally, I had all sorts of insane ideas for the food.  At one point I did a few experiments of trying to have them create structures with cheese cubes and pretzel sticks, but gave up on that idea, only because it started getting gross and the thought of food that had been excessively touched and then put in someone's mouth, DID NOT appeal.  I also hate wasting food and it seemed a sure fire way to do that, so I got rid of that idea.

I ended up going with simple things, trying to find ways to make things which were black and white.  The kids LOVED all the snacks and as one of the teachers put it, were "engineering snacks" as kids could work as they ate.  (Stick cheese in mouth and continue to engineer your way through the day.)

Menu
Cheese Sticks - I simply bought the prepackaged ones from Trader Joes - mild cheddar, jack and string cheese sticks.  Total hit.
Pretzel sticks
Fruit cups
Sesame Ginger Rice Krispy Pops (black and white)
Party in Your Mouth Popcorn (black and white)
Vanilla Bean Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting (White with specks of black)

I did display the fruit cups in my cupcake stand, which I thought was pretty.  Another blog reader told me that she made it the centerpiece at her party but tying balloons to the center.  I thought that idea pretty brilliant.

It was really amazing fun at this party, and I'm so glad I did it. Daughter #1 had a phenomenal time, and I just have to give a huge thanks to my team of amazing teachers!  Love you all!!!  

If you are in the Bay Area, and are interested in hosting such a party as this, message me, and I'll be happy to give you emails and contacts of the people whom you can hire to have this much fun.  THIS MUCH FUN!

Strawberry Financiers: Sweet efforts, sweet results

For my dear CY, who encourages and pushes me forward

Two and a half years ago, Husband was working these crazy night hours, so he and I decided together that we would have one of our friends, who had hit a bit of a rough patch, to move in with us.  She had left California for a while to care for her family, and upon coming back, had no place to live and no funds really to get a place of her own.  It was ideal for me because then I wouldn't be home alone nights when Husband was gone, and during the day, when Husband was home, he'd be sleeping and our friend would be doing other things.  It was the perfect setup.

As CY was looking for teaching jobs, she enlisted my help and every single night we would pore over job openings and apply to whatever seemed halfway suitable.  Even if it wasn't suitable at all, we would apply.  I helped her convert documents into PDF files, proofed her cover letters, helped her think about her teaching philosophy and prepared her for interviews.  I was "Get Hired for Teaching Boot Camp" and I was a merciless sergeant.  Every night, every single one, we worked hard at getting her hired.  Job after job was filled, already filled, no longer needing to be filled, and it was one disappointment, and one heartbreak after another.

We spent time encouraging each other, because believe me, it is NOT easy helping someone every night with their applications.  I was still working, still taking care of my own three kids, but felt the need to help CY.  Together we would pray for the right job, the right interviewer, the absolute right position to pick her, and time after time our hopes would be dented, as the jobs didn't come through.  Each time CY would feel badly, feel sorry for the work she was putting me through, and I reminded her, "When this all works out, and it will, I will be more blessed from having helped you, than if I didn't do anything at all.  And when you get hired, you owe my family and me dinner at Baja Fresh."  She giggled and agreed.

But before she even got hired, she decided spontaneously one day, to put her trust in God and to go ahead and buy my family dinner, because she knew that God would absolutely provide the job.  So even before she was hired, and even before she was black in her account, we all went to Baja Fresh, in my minivan, and ate a meal that was supposed to happen after she got hired.  But we did it without that guarantee, only with our faith in God.

Finally, a tiny district that I had never heard of, a small one, wanted to interview her.  I prepped her as I normally did, helped her figure out how to articulate her teaching passion and philosophy, worked out her interview outfit, and sent her on her way.  The person she met at the interview was the assistant superintendent of this small district, and when he saw her, he knew.  She was the person that he needed to hire, and he did.  

Last Friday, CY called me to tell me that she had made permanent status after her work for the district for 3 years, and that she wanted to take my family and me out to dinner.  She reminded me of our time together two and half years ago, of how hard we worked and what we did to get to where she was now.  And I readily agreed and we went out to eat together, once again at Baja Fresh and re-lived our sweet time together.  And I have to say, the fish taco I ate this time, was the tastiest thing I had eaten in a long time, as it really reminded me of how much effort you put into something directly is reflected in the joy you get in the results.

Congrats CY.  We all love you and know that you were the right person for that position. And sweet like the effort, sweet like the results are these strawberry financiers.

Strawberry Financiers (adapted from Bon Appetit May 2012)
Makes 24 small cakes

Ingredients
1/2 cup plus 5 tablespoons unsalted butter (learn how to brown butter here)
1 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons of honey
5 large egg whites
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

Method
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Simmer until browned bits begin to form. Continue to simmer, frequently scraping up browned bits at bottom of pan, until fragrant and dark brown but not burnt, 6–7 minutes.

Meanwhile, process almonds and flour in a food processor until nuts are finely ground. Transfer to a medium bowl; whisk in 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar. Add egg whites; mix until smooth. Fold in honey and browned butter (but not the brown solids) into batter. DO AHEAD: Batter can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.

Arrange a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 375°. Coat muffin cups with nonstick spray. Pour 1 generous Tbsp. batter into each prepared muffin cup. Top with 3–4 strawberry quarters. Bake until cakes are golden brown and just cooked through, 17-20 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Party in Your Mouth Popcorn Mix: What to look forward to now?

When I was teaching full time, single, and had no children or husband, May was the month that all teachers looked forward to. May signaled a closing to a school year, a time when students would move on to the next class, and the glimpse of the 10 week summer break free of students and the demands of paper grading, teaching, and planning.  In other words, May was the beginning of the end of the school year, and what a sweet sweet time it was.  I began planning the long days of no work, thinking of the students as they would move to the next class and no longer drive me nuts, and think about days that didn't involve multiple papers to grade and comments to give.

I know that teaching provided that in a way that most standard jobs do not.  However, nothing really prepares you for motherhood when May begins the season of, "WHAT DO I SIGN MY CHILD UP FOR!" in terms of camp and summer.  Don't get me wrong, I do love my children and I love them to have no homework and freedom, but I cannot think about endless hours of time with them day after day without inwardly cringing at the thought of endless hours day after day with them.  There is no break that arrives after May, nor are there long lazy days when I can pamper myself.  Instead, as a mother May brings the aching stress that comes from trying to find things for Daughters and Son to do so that I don't hurt myself physically from the stress of having them around for extra hours during the day.  Cost is an issue.  Timing is an issue.  My own work and managing that is an issue, and suddenly May=stress.

However, it's not all black and white.  Summer isn't all negative, or all difficult or all horrible, as not having to pack lunches all the time, or worry about food all the time, or plan meals all the time is really nice.  Having the freedom to go places on the weekend and do unexpected things is also really great.  And there is more time for leisurely outdoor cooking, and more fun experimenting with all the different ways of NOT being warm while in the kitchen.  With summer that is as much good as there is stress.

I'm going to be making this Black and White popcorn mix a lot this summer, as it's fun to eat and I can send the kids outdoors to the backyard with a huge bowl of it and let them make a mess back there.  It's originally based off of a Hawaiian popcorn mix that friend SH told me about, which I researched and figured out what was in it.  But this one is a lighter healthier version as it doesn't use furikake (a seasoning mix, which usually has MSG in it), butte, or li hing powder (you need to be Hawaiian to know what this is) either.  Everything in it is just crispy and delicious and completely addicting.  You can't stop once you start, so I do suggest you make a bowl to SHARE with others.

Party in Your Mouth Popcorn Mix
Serves 6

Ingredients
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ cup popcorn kernels
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups rice cracker mix (I like Trader Joes, for it has no nuts and therefore safe for the allergies)
2 full sheets of roasted seaweed, cut into tiny slivers (I used a preseasoned one that I had. Feel free to use one of the pre-seasoned “personal” packs of seaweed, just use the entire pack and cut it into tiny slivers)

Method
In large pan, heat oil, and 3 kernels of popping corn over medium high heat. Cover As soon as you hear them pop, add the entire ½ cup of kernels and salt. Cover and shake pan in order to get kernels well-distributed. Watch. Keep pan on heat and shake repeatedly once the popping starts in order to ensure all kernels get popped and nothing gets burned. Once popping stops to a few seconds in between each pop, remove from heat and uncover so as to allow steam to escape.

Once popcorn has cooled, mix with rice cracker mix and sliced nori. Serve. Makes great party food.

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Curried Israeli Couscous: Getting out of your rut

I like exercise.  I like exercising a lot. I'm one of those people who prioritizes a trip to the gym five days a week in order to get a good sweat in.  I'd even consider going every day but schedules on the weekend are too intense so I'm unable to get those extra workouts in.  So I manage with my five days a week.  I do yoga, some strength training, spinning, elliptical, swimming.  It's a pretty full week of workout and I feel good about the work that I do.  I consider myself pretty fit.

Until Wednesday.  On Wednesday I decided to try a class called TRX.  (this is not a promotion for this class by the way.)  I wanted to try and see how hard it would be and what it would do to my workouts.  I took an hour class, jumping, pushing, straining, flailing, grunting, groaning, pushing, shoving, squatting, piking...

Now I cannot walk.  I can walk, but it is not my normal walk.  Going up and down the stairs hurts.  Turning in my chair hurts.  Flexing my foot hurts.  Getting out of the car causes pain.  I have completely thrashed myself in this class.  I did manage to get in some spinning and some swimming today but I hear my body screaming its dismay at my total abuse of its normal working function.  "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?" it screams.

I'm not quite sure.  But I think I like it.  I think I'd like to do some more of this TRX.  Because it got me out of my rut.  I want more from my workout and I want to push my body even more.  I don't want to be caught up in the same routine, same rotation, same thing over and over.  I want something new.  It's definitely not an every day thing, or an every week thing even, but once in a while, to kick my butt and get me out of my rut, I think it is very very good.

I've been in a rut in other ways as well.  I've been relying on old faithful recipes to get me through the week, and haven't really been challenging my brain with any new ideas.  Food has become uninspiring to me (GASP) and I haven't really been able to get behind any dish.  Sure I've been cooking, but I haven't been cooking anything so amazing that I HAVE to post.

But then I had an idea for a curried couscous.  And I made this.  And it was yummy, simple and delicious with a basic grilled chicken, (or even rotisserie chicken.)  It was gobbled up by Children as fast as you could say "RUT" and there was a fight over who would get the last morsels.   It can be made ahead of time and left at room temperature, or served warm from the pan.

Curried Israeli Couscous with Raisins
Serves 4

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 ½ teaspoons curry powder
1 ½ cups Israeli couscous
1 ¾ cups water
¼ cup of raisins (I used golden raisins)
juice of 1 lemon
¼ cup cilantro, finely chopped
Salt to taste

Method
Add 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and carrots and saute until golden.

 Add couscous, curry powder, and a pinch of salt. Stir coating all couscous with seasoning and incorporating carrots and shallots evenly throughout.   Add water, raisins, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed and couscous tender. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro and lemon juice. Check seasonings and add salt as needed.

Serve warm or room temperature.

Printable recipe

to get you out of your rut

Cold Sesame Asparagus and Snow Peas: Green Thumb for Mother's Day

For all the fabulous mothers who work hard and do more than is expected of them.  Happy Mothers' Day.

After almost 11 years of marriage, you sort of change your expectations of how to do things.  Husband is what I call a "worried" gift-giver, often second guessing himself as to what to give me.  We've pretty much figured out after 11 years of marriage, that if I want a present, I pretty much have to declare what I want and Husband will happily fork out the cash for me to have it.  More often than not I can't figure out what I want for various occasions so there is a back log of presents that still haven't been given.  (10th anniversary and 40th birthday presents are still outstanding, only because I can't decide.)

Normally we don't do much for Mother's or Father's day either.  I like to present him with a cute photo of the kids on Father's day and for Mother's day, I usually don't expect anything from him; after all, I'm not HIS mother.   Now that Children are in school, they make a variety of presents for me to keep and then eventually throw away.  I'm just not that sentimental.  (Children, if you read this when you are grown up, don't be hurt.  I love it when I get the present.  When it starts collecting dust, mommy kisses it goodbye.)  This year, I decided that I really wanted a new vegetable garden for Mother's Day.  There was an old patch of vegetable garden in the back, and I decided I wanted to tear it down and make a new one and plant something in it.  This is, of course, in light of the fact that I am normally a plant murderer.  But Mother-in-law planted a patch of Korean red leaf lettuce for me (sangchoo - 상추) and it has grown so well with a bit of care of weeding and watering from me.  Since I successfully managed that, I started getting curious about all the things that I could plant in my garden and watch grow.  Children have also gone crazy for the experience, loving watching things sprout out, form and create, and I thought it would be the perfect Mother's Day present for me.

I had someone tear down the old box, break down the old junk that was in there, and I in turn bought a bunch of dirt and filled the box with stinky organic composted earth, (to which Daughters and I keep commenting,  "What stinks") and today planted a variety of things.  Because I have no idea how things will grow, and since a good chunk of the vegetable box is in the shade, I'm only doing small experiments of things just to see what ends up coming out.  I'm not sure if I'm going to be successful with everything that grows, but we're going to give it a try.  Daughters in particular were extremely excited with all the planting that they've been able to do, and hopefully my cucumbers, peppers, and tomatoes will have a fun time growing this summer.

With all that green, and with all that good vegetable sense in my garden, I took it upon myself to try some new treatment of vegetables.  I wanted simple treatment of vegetables that really highlighted delicious flavors, and came up with this dish.  The vegetables are blanched, and then thrown in ice water to shock bright green.  Then they can be stuck in the fridge and right before serving, tossed with sesame oil, sesame seeds, salt and pepper.  The result is a light beautiful vegetable dish that just tastes like that - vegetables.

Cold Sesame Asparagus and Snow Peas
Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
8 oz asparagus, cut on the diagonal into 1 inch pieces
8 oz snow peas, cut in half on the diagonal

1 ½ tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon crushed sesame seeds
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Method
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add asparagus and snow peas all at once. Blanch for about 90 seconds. Drain and immediately immerse vegetables into ice cold water. Allow vegetables to shock green and remove from water. Drain and chill until needed.

Right before serving, toss asparagus and snow peas with sesame oil, sesame seeds, salt and pepper. Serve.

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Pineapple Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake with Pineapple Syrup: Trying to fix things up

For Husband, who works so hard so we can have this home

A year ago, Husband and I began the insane process of purchasing the home that we were renting.  In the end we bought it, this 1969 home since we loved living it in it as renters.  As renters, you have a lot less responsibility over the home than you do as owners.  As owners, suddenly you look around and everything you see are dollar signs.  As renters, when the toilet ran, I simply called the landlord to fix it, and he sent out a plumber.  As an owner, when my master bedroom toilet ran, I ran to Home Depot and bought the inner guts of a toilet and I fixed it myself.  (Plumber - over $80; self - $10.)  You change how you do things when you are an owner.

The list of things that need to be done to this 1969 home are endless.  The windows are single pane and rattle like the earth is coming to end during a light breeze.  The outside paint is some strange 1980's color whose name might be something like taupe or khaki, but to me says "ugly."  The carpet needs to be replaced, the hardwood needs to be refinished, the landscaping needs to be redone, and the kitchen remodeled.  The list of things that need to be attacked in this home is seemingly endless and at times I am completely stymied by the question of WHERE to start, HOW to start, and WHAT to start with.  Husband repeatedly grumbles that owning a house is a never-ending pit of expenditure.  We simply choose not to get started with anything so as to avoid it.

However, in a casual observation made with friend SH, I noticed that a side portion of our small yard had this complete overgrowth of ivy.  And upon closer examination, discovered that this ivy had essentially climbed up 4 different trees and were essentially choking the trees.  The trees were dying because of this insanely intense ivy and suddenly I got it in my head that THIS I could attack.   The ivy had to be pulled out RIGHT NOW and done RIGHT AWAY.  I called out to Daughters and said, "Let's get that ivy" and suddenly Daughters grabbed their gardening gloves, put on their rain boats, and began ripping apart ivy with me.  We were three dangerous women on a mission to eliminate all the ivy. 

Do you know how HARD it is to remove ivy?  The ivy that began climbing the trees essentially needed to be peeled off and as the girls did it, I discovered them hanging onto ivy in an effort to bring it down.  There were moments I would look over and the two were dangling mid-air, like Tarzan, trying to yank down the ivy.  The stuff doesn't want to die.  But over a four day period, with brief periods of insane ivy murder, we began removing that patch of ivy.

Today Daughters and I finished the job.  The ivy has been removed.  In another bizarre twist I have discovered that the ivy is actually an infiltration from next door, and Mother has bellowed into the phone, "The minute you see that stuff wanting to come back, you have to attack it and eliminate it all over again."  I'm on it.  I'm going to keep it out of my yard.  I've come to truly hate ivy.

On the complete OPPOSITE end of my hatred of ivy, is my LOVE of this cake.  LOVE.  Did I say LOVE?  Let me repeat.  LOVE.  Tangy sweet pineapple, lovely vanilla bean, gorgeous cake.  LOVE.  That's right.  One bite of this and all the ivy is forgotten.

Until the ivy grows back.  But I'm not going to let it.  EVER.

Keeping focused on this cake.  Not the ivy.

Pineapple Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake with Pineapple Syrup
Makes 10-inch bundt cake, serving 12 to 14

Cake
Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped out
½ cup sour cream
½ cup buttermilk
1 ½ cups diced fresh pineapple

Syrup
Ingredients
⅔ cup fresh pineapple puree (use a hand blender or blender and puree until fairly smooth)
⅓ cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons water

Method
Place rack in center of oven, and preheat oven to 350. Grease and lightly flour inside of 10 inch bundt pan.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Set aside. Mix together sour cream and buttermilk mixture. Set aside.

Using either a stand mixer (paddle attachment) or a hand mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add sugar and beat at medium-high speed until the mixture is light in texture and color, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating for 30 to 40 seconds after each addition. Scrape down sides of bowl as necessary. Beat in vanilla bean. At low speed, add flour mixture in three additions, alternating with sour cream mixture (Add a bit of flour, a bit of sour cream mixture, a bit of flour, a bit of sour cream mixture, a bit of flour.)

Using a spatula, carefully fold in diced pineapple, incorporating it into the batter. Carefully spoon batter into bundt pan.

Bake cake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes, then invert it onto another rack. Place the cake, on the rack, over a baking sheet.

While cake is baking, make syrup. Combine pineapple puree, sugar, and water in a small non-reactive saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove pan from heat. Using a pastry brush, dab syrup generously all over surface of the warm cake, allowing it to soak into the cake before reapplying. Let the cake cool completely.

Printable recipe

My favorite bundt pan