Run Swim Bike Cook Week 4: Cherry, Cinnamon, and Ginger Honey Scones

Okay, so we slept in our new home for the first time last night, making the move official.  Moving is complicated under the best of circumstances.  Moving into a house that is 114 years old can be particularly challenging.  Not only did the home need some serious deep cleaning (hey prior owners, the gift card was nice, but clean toilets would have been even nicer), but we had to do some last minute demolition because our queen size box spring couldn't make the corner upstairs.  I'm also getting a new front-loading washer and dryer out of the deal because our old top-loader won't fit. 

There are certainly many other interesting details to share, but I'm sinking in boxes, not to mention the fact that we don't have internet set up yet.  So without further adieu, here's the final wrap-up to Run Swim Bike Cook 2014.

The challenge: cherry and honey.  The result?  Kind of a flop.  I found a recipe for Cherry, Cinnamon, and Honey scones that looked interesting, although I should have been wary since the recipe differed drastically from my favorite go-to scones.  Fresh cherries were out of season, and the only dried cherries I could find were in a combo pack with cranberries and blueberries.  The recipe called for full-fat yogurt and mine was fat-free, but still I forged ahead undaunted.  With all of the kids home from school, an extra trip to the grocery store was out of the question. 

And so one frigid morning, I surprised the kids with homemade scones for breakfast.  Thrilled, they ran to the table, sighed contentedly because the kitchen smelled great, posed for a picture, took one bite, and left the rest untouched.   They probably could have overlooked the heavy texture and general lack of flakiness.  Unfortunately, they couldn't get past my "special" ingredient--the inclusion of a gourmet ginger honey from Lithuania.  While I personally love ginger, the flavor is admittedly quite intense and didn't mellow during baking.  Note to self: in future baking ventures, the combination of cherry, cinnamon, honey, and ginger is just one flavor too many.

Always prepared with a creative solution, Talia came to the rescue by suggesting we sample the special food Papa K brought home the day before: garlic mustard pickled eggs.  (By the way, the henna painting on her hand came from Girl Scout World Thinking Day.)

Back to the eggs, I was supremely grossed out by the concept, let alone the unnatural color.  When my daughter offered me one, I nearly turned my nose up completely before remembering how willingly our kids eat all the strange and unusual things we throw on their plates.  It was only fair that I also try a bite with a good attitude.

And so, we all summoned our courage and sampled the delicacy.  After finally getting the rubbery morsel down, we decided to let Papa K finish the rest.

And so, I guess Week 4's culinary challenge is all about risk-taking.  Whether the results are tasty or not, it's rewarding to be brave enough to try.

Other news:  I finished!  2.2 miles swimming, 112 miles biking, and 26.2 miles running, and not a moment too soon.  At 10 pm on February 28th, I lamented to Jason that I was still 2 miles short on the run.  Life had gotten complicated, and I'd missed my last trip to the gym.  Amazing man that he is, he climbed out of bed, got into his running clothes, and insisted on running the last two miles with me, despite the freezing cold and snow.  It felt so rewarding to actually finish--thanks, love. 

After such an intense month of training, I'd love to take a break, but it's time to start training for June's Utah Valley Marathon.  Thanks to the help of RSBC, I'm off to a good start.