tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-89139038726949604362012-01-26T15:33:26.730-05:00Recipes behind the baked goods of a girl in Buffalo, New York.soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.comBlogger1331100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-35920454639914595602011-08-10T19:52:00.002-04:002011-08-10T20:01:37.741-04:00

The past couple of weeks have left me craving sweets like crazy but with little time to bake them in.  Luckily blondies are extremely fast to put together, which means they get to my mouth sooner! You really should wait until they're completely cool before cutting them, I recommend using the fridge or freezer if you don't have the willpower to postpone devouring them. I know a lot of recipes

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-38574013562231548472011-08-05T20:27:00.000-04:002011-08-05T20:27:28.924-04:00

Because I love chocolate. Because it's been a crazy week. Because these are delicious and easy and it's the weekend and there's no reason not to make them. Chocolate Crackles 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 large egg Confectioner's sugar In a

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-3072878569414225822011-08-02T20:10:00.003-04:002011-08-02T22:38:21.451-04:00

I love ice box cookies, especially in summer.  You make one batch of dough without the worry of having to bake them right away and you've got something you can slice and bake whenever you feel that sweet tooth coming on.  These are the perfect little cookie to accompany anything - coffee, tea, sorbet, ice cream, or ice-cold milk! Almonds and honey are one of my favorite combinations, but as

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-48933455607251852182011-07-31T11:37:00.000-04:002011-07-31T11:37:38.623-04:00

About a month and a half ago, our refrigerator started making very loud humming sounds.  This was a very expensive fridge and very new (bought last summer!)  We looked up information on the internet, we disconnected the fridge overnight, we cleaned, we removed ice, we called, we had a repairman come look at it, he ordered a part that the fridge company didn't have anymore.  Needless to say, we

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-27763137501128041392011-07-29T15:22:00.000-04:002011-07-29T15:22:11.809-04:00

These happened because I realized I only had 3 sticks of butter left in the fridge and panicked, but I loved them so much that I'd make them even if I had 3lbs. left!  You'd never know there wasn't any butter in these cookies, I swear!  If you're a chewy fan, you must preheat the oven now. Feel free to substitute any nut -  I used almonds, but typically walnuts are the partner for dates.  I'd

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-45996735439089790702011-07-27T12:55:00.001-04:002011-07-27T12:57:01.235-04:00

Even though temperatures were above 90 degrees last week, it didn't lessen my desire to bake and eat sweet things, unfortunately!  I made the dough for these during the day when it was hot, chilled the dough overnight and then baked them in the morning before the house warmed up too much so no one would yell at me :) This recipe comes from Rebecca Rather's Pastry Queen book that I love.  She

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-39947929894218321012011-07-24T15:44:00.000-04:002011-07-24T15:44:57.312-04:00

A few days ago, my grandma came by with our first batch of zucchini from her garden.  I knew as soon as it wasn't too lethal to turn on the oven that I'd be making zucchini bread!  (P.S. I am loving this hot weather!!!)  My mom has used this recipe for as long as I can remember and the smell of it baking always reminds me of summertime. Over time I've cut down significantly on the sugar and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-36994223006700821142011-07-17T08:25:00.000-04:002011-07-17T08:25:31.239-04:00

For most of my life, one set of my cousins have lived in a different city from me.  So when one of them gets married, it's a nice excuse to get together with everyone and catch up.  Of course, it's also an excuse to bake! I did a bit of research before making these cookies and found that bloggers seemed to be raving over Peggy Porschen's sugar cookies.  From pictures, they looked like they did

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-15794629834029752572011-07-13T14:08:00.000-04:002011-07-13T14:08:39.134-04:00

I LOVE fruit and generally I prefer to eat fruit raw.  Especially juicy summer fruit - you don't need to add anything to it to make it any better, it's perfect as-is!  But sometimes I go overboard at the supermarket and buy too much to handle.  This morning while reaching for my morning egg, I saw the strawberries I bought last week getting pretty soft, too soft for a tart or any fresh

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-9171925352461419932011-07-11T08:43:00.001-04:002011-07-11T09:24:36.171-04:00

I originally set out to make a pie this weekend and then remembered I had more than half of a quart of half-and-half leftover from making my sister's cheesecake ice cream last weekend.  I browsed a few cookbooks before deciding on a panna cotta from David Lebovitz's Ripe For Dessert. Panna cotta is a lovely summer desert.  Served chilled, it's a refreshing and lighter alternative to richer and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-78185320553010504282011-07-08T12:17:00.000-04:002011-07-08T12:17:01.142-04:00

As crazy as these cookies sound from the title, they were out of necessity.  I found a cookie recipe that sounded delicious but I didn't have all of the ingredients, so I used what I had and they were amazing.  This makes a very compact cookie, just enough dough to hold everything together.  But sometimes you don't want a plain cookie, sometimes you want a cookie stuffed with lots of good things

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-26731938988305880882011-07-07T13:33:00.001-04:002011-07-07T13:55:21.275-04:00

A few years ago, after I graduated from culinary school, one of my gifts was an ice cream maker.  I can't say I use it very often, maybe a few times per summer, but after making this ice cream I was reminded how amazingly easy and delicious homemade ice cream is. I made a cheesecake ice cream for my sister's birthday a couple of years back.  She requested it again this year, but I decided to

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-53857836375966702402011-07-04T17:19:00.001-04:002011-07-04T17:19:18.206-04:00

Isn't it amazing how much can change in so little time?  Today is America's birthday, the 4th of July.  It's a beautiful summer day here and I can only hope the rest of the summer will be as nice.  But how do you embrace the beauty of things you love when you and the one you love have decided to take some time to be apart?  It hurts too much to even think about going about normal day-to-day

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-57113797131931137872011-06-26T13:51:00.000-04:002011-06-26T13:51:02.264-04:00

Perfect for breakfast, brunch, or a snack, this delicious cake is incredibly easy to make and even easier to eat.  It contains no dairy - that is, no eggs, milk, or butter, although I did use butter for the lard originally called for - and you can, and should, make it ahead of time to allow the flavors to develop, which means you can make it when you have time and eat it when you don't!  I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-25820027505173478642011-06-20T14:08:00.004-04:002011-06-20T14:31:49.425-04:00

This was the dessert I made for Father's Day - a riff on apple crisp and pie, tucked into crisp and buttery phyllo dough. The original idea for this came from somehow finding two boxes of phyllo dough in the freezer but not having enough time to make baklava.  My dad loves apple crisp and apple pie so I wanted to do a more summery version of it - there's very little sugar here, no cinnamon (a

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-56123589921446504862011-06-19T19:16:00.001-04:002011-06-19T19:21:00.682-04:00

I debated between posting this recipe today or the dessert I made for Father's Day, but ultimately, this was the one I decided on since my dad specifically requests them every year.  I don't remember when I first made dried cherry scones, but my dad decided they were his favorite breakfast treat ever since.  Luckily the recipe is extremely easy and delicious! I honestly don't remember where

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-64647133929984172232011-06-16T11:59:00.001-04:002011-06-16T11:59:56.223-04:00

The beginning of this week started off much too cold for June and everyone agreed a nice dose of chocolate was in order.  I wanted to spice things up a bit, literally, so I devised a comforting chocolate oatmeal cookie and added chili powder and cinnamon to the dough.  I will admit it's not entirely noticeable but it does give the cookies a little extra "something." If I made these again, I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-29352464800915170382011-06-12T11:53:00.000-04:002011-06-12T11:53:49.568-04:00

I hate to admit it, but I bake much more often than I blog.  It was quite an effort to even get myself to bring the camera out for these photos on a rainy Sunday morning, but I'm glad I did! Instead of the common walnut or pecan, I substituted beautifully green pistachios in this cake, which means a lovely hit of color when you cut into it.  Toasting them intensifies their unique flavor and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-38223564026142283632011-06-05T12:44:00.002-04:002011-06-05T12:57:34.308-04:00

Today is my grandma's birthday and we're having a celebration later so what better to bring than cupcakes?  Originally I planned on icing half of the cupcakes with vanilla buttercream and half with chocolate buttercream but while searching for chocolate frosting recipes, I came across one that looked more like a "custard" (there were no eggs in the recipe) and the idea dawned on me to fill

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-85979074012687028052011-05-31T10:05:00.000-04:002011-05-31T10:05:06.972-04:00

Summer is my favorite season, if you couldn't tell.  So last week when cherries started popping up in stores and markets, we nabbed some up as quickly as possible!  I would say half of them were sweet as can be while the other half needed some improvement, which is where this coffee cake came in handy.  This is a great, simple and easy recipe for any fruit you need to use this summer that might

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-87566764049697463832011-05-29T20:19:00.002-04:002011-05-29T20:28:07.982-04:00

Something about lemon bars has always screamed warm weather to me - the lemon's yellowness and the scent of them being zested and juiced is complete summery dessert perfection!  Crisp, buttery and tender crust; cold, silky smooth and just-tart-enough lemon curd on top, I urge you to bring these along to any party this summer. I did something a little different here by using a lemon meringue pie

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-48724895441937703442011-05-24T15:08:00.004-04:002011-05-24T16:20:25.325-04:00

Last week I made an orange poppy seed Bundt cake.  Well, I tried to.  When I went to take the cake out of the Bundt pan, of course the top of the cake stuck in the pan and only the bottom half came out.  It was still really delicious and we ate it all but I was really upset about not being able to get the whole cake out of the pan! I was determined to make a Bundt cake that would look as

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-39525980562050166472011-05-20T15:35:00.008-04:002011-05-20T20:47:36.719-04:00

  I've been home from North Carolina for almost a week now.  I've baked a few things but quite frankly haven't had the motivation or inspiration to write anything or take pictures until now.  It's pretty rough to come back from warm, beautiful sunny weather to day after day of clouds, rain and cold, not to mention being away from my sweetheart! But life must go on and until I'm able to move

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-49878790255847766862011-04-30T19:30:00.000-04:002011-04-30T19:30:48.940-04:00

  I haven't baked much this past week besides a small batch of chocolate chip cookies for my sister since tomorrow morning my parents and I are driving to Mount Airy, North Carolina, where I'll be spending 2 weeks with my beloved.  Keep on baking and I'll see you in May :)

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-81724239838964201602011-04-27T13:11:00.004-04:002011-04-27T14:06:18.838-04:00

I hope everyone who celebrated Easter had as lovely a holiday as I did!  Although last week's weather here certainly didn't feel like spring, my family and I began our Easter preparations anyway, hard-boiling and dyeing eggs, baking Easter egg bread, and buying Wardynski sausage for Sunday brunch.  Somehow it slipped my mind to take photos of our feast of brown sugar and mustard-glazed spiral

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-14475878631005172872011-04-23T20:04:00.002-04:002011-04-23T21:59:51.176-04:00

For some reason, orange and citrus in general, scream warmer weather to me.  I didn't realize it until I cut one of these open, but the slightly oozy orange curd reminds me of an egg yolk - perfect for Easter, don't you think? :) I used the buttery orange cake and orange curd recipes from the Orange Grove Cake in The Cake Book by Tish Boyle.  I don't get to use this book as often as I'd like

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-79473686271585393642011-04-21T17:18:00.004-04:002011-04-21T21:01:51.711-04:00

I've been searching for a great gluten free sugar cookie for at least 3 years now - since my brother and sister-in-law got engaged.  I attempted to make engagement cookies in wedding cookie shapes, conjoined heart shapes, even little tiny hearts.  I could get them off of the baking sheets if I was incredibly careful but decorating was an entirely different story - they crumbled to bits and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-87892972708763689352011-04-17T14:30:00.000-04:002011-04-17T14:30:28.311-04:00

These are light, springy muffins that go perfectly with tea or coffee for breakfast and brunch.  They reminded me of what graham crackers would taste like in muffin form, I suppose from the honey-oat combination, and they were delicious. I hate to keep bringing up the weather but I wish it would just make up its mind already!  This past week had days near 60, but today it's been snowy and rainy

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-22440462494548034102011-04-14T16:22:00.000-04:002011-04-14T16:22:49.327-04:00

While on a search for traditional Easter recipes, I found this one.  I have to say, I like these more than the last batch of hot cross buns I made a couple of years ago!  They're called biscuits, but because it's a British recipe, this means cookie in America.  The dough is put together like a biscuit dough, however, and they come out with an amazing combination of chewy dried fruit and tender

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-30794018728582662822011-04-13T12:58:00.000-04:002011-04-13T12:58:45.066-04:00

Sometimes I take for granted what a luxury it is to bake.  Baking ingredients aren't a necessity like vegetables and fruit are for healthy, substantial meals.  Butter, sugar, flour, chocolate, nuts - these ingredients are an indulgence to keep in the cupboard and sometimes it takes an unfortunate instance to bring us back to reality.  It's not that anything earth-shattering happened but last

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-87480156697690486022011-04-10T17:58:00.001-04:002011-04-10T18:05:33.928-04:00

I had to get my chocolate fix in somehow ;) I added peanut butter and milk chocolate chips just to use up half of a bag I had in the cupboard, but feel free to add semisweet, bittersweet, white, mint chips, toasted walnuts or pecans, dried cherries, whatever makes you happiest!  I like to make these tiny for some reason but I imagine they'd make amazing ice cream sandwiches if you're feeling

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-81190221822133678002011-04-07T16:57:00.001-04:002011-04-07T21:19:11.375-04:00

Placek (plah-sek) in Polish just means cake, but placek around Buffalo (and probably other cities with a high Polish population) refers to a sweet yeast bread topped with sugary crumble, with or without golden raisins served on Easter.  It seems like paczki have found their way around the blog world fairly easily (I assume because everyone has an obsession with doughnuts and things cooked in hot

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com72tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-9362594425422586652011-04-04T17:36:00.002-04:002011-04-04T17:45:07.812-04:00

Today is my brother Andy's birthday!!!  We had a celebration for him over the weekend and he requested carrot cake again this year and I used the gluten free carrot cake recipe from last year, with a few minor changes as well as my go-to cream cheese frosting.  This is one recipe I feel like I have nailed down for good - I prefer this carrot cake over one with wheat flour any day and I urge you

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-31222711237381006302011-03-29T16:26:00.001-04:002011-03-29T16:27:57.470-04:00

  Last night I had a craving for chocolate.  So I looked through some recipes and decided on a chocolate drop cookie that seemed like it would be delicious with white chocolate chips in the dough and coated in confectioner's sugar before baking.  The recipe was unfortunately a disaster.  The dough came out dry and sandy, I had to knead it in order to get any cookies out of it at all, then after

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-84931373075395767702011-03-26T15:57:00.001-04:002011-03-26T15:58:55.927-04:00

 It might be 20 degrees, but at least we have sunshine this weekend! :) Although citrus fruits are typically seasonal to winter, they help bring brightness to cold days and I figured I might as well use those sweet, delicious, juicy naval oranges before they go all dry and bitter for the season. I really liked the ease in preparation for this crust, I plan on using it in the future.  I didn't

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-81544557001515542812011-03-25T15:10:00.002-04:002011-03-26T16:26:50.962-04:00

A few weeks ago, a lovely person from Oh! Nuts contacted me and asked if they could send me some of their products for me to use in a recipe.  No one has ever asked me to do something like that before, I was thrilled!  After much debate, I asked them to send me shelled roasted unsalted pistachios, dried pears, and dried guava squares, all of which arrived very quickly! Due to mid-March madness

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-57096613553160749382011-03-23T16:31:00.002-04:002011-03-23T16:52:33.403-04:00

This morning Buffalonians woke up to the ground covered in snow. Disappointing, of course, but not a big deal. I shoveled the heavy, wet snow off of our driveway by 11AM and thought "Yeah, take that, snow!" Not an hour later it started snowing again and hasn't stopped since.  I can't help but be discouraged about spring being here when I look out my window and all I see is falling snow and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-91284544554157433092011-03-22T13:44:00.003-04:002011-03-22T14:10:41.718-04:00

Last week I had my boy visiting me for 8 glorious days. I had every intention of taking pictures and posting recipes of the things I prepared ahead of time (paczki doughnuts, cinnamon pecan swirl coffee cake, triple chocolate biscotti, Irish brown bread, among other things) but the weather here was so goddamn dark and gloomy.  It is this week as well so far.  I'm pretty sure last week was a fluke

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-90279650503110036492011-03-03T15:25:00.000-05:002011-03-03T15:25:08.796-05:00

Although I know warmer weather is on its way, this time of year still requires a lot of comforting.  Comfort in knowing winter is almost over, comfort in the fact that pretty soon you'll be able to take walks outside without wearing gloves, a scarf, boots and a heavy winter coat.  These cookies are comfort cookies, for sure.  I don't know where they originated, but the recipe my mom had in her

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-50988464133570414772011-03-01T16:13:00.001-05:002011-03-01T19:26:01.513-05:00

When I made these yesterday, I didn't even think about the green chips being representative of St. Patrick's Day quite yet... I was thinking more along the lines of spring.  Green grass, green leaves, green flowers, NO MORE SNOW.  I can't wait for the snow to melt here, can you tell?  While it might take some time before it looks like spring here in Buffalo, these brownies helped lift my spirits

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-11599729639717032052011-02-27T14:40:00.001-05:002011-02-27T22:34:09.539-05:00

One of the biggest side effects of losing weight for me is that now I will basically click the "x" in Firefox if I see a recipe with more than a stick of butter.  This recipe is one of those that make me realize you don't need a lot of butter to make baked goods taste really amazing.  In fact, these muffins taste buttery!  With only 4 tablespoons of butter!  They don't require any silly "health

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-33000810609208648942011-02-25T08:40:00.000-05:002011-02-25T08:40:53.425-05:00

I know, I know.  World Nutella Day was back on February 5th!  But to be honest, I didn't have any in the pantry at the time and there was a snow storm that day if I remember correctly.  But now that I had some, I wanted to do something different with it.  The website has a lot of great recipes listed, but I'd say 95% of them are way too decadent for what I had in mind.  I found this recipe

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-18874900338086876692011-02-23T16:01:00.001-05:002011-02-23T16:10:47.473-05:00

Last weekend I found 4 cans of sweetened condensed milk in the cupboards.  With one of the cans, I decided to make some dulce de leche.  It was super easy (just pour a can into a large microwave-safe bowl, zap for 10-15 minutes on 30% power, stirring every few minutes until it's golden), but left me with a jar of dulce de leche.  So last night I had this genius idea to make some brown butter

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-91952247862085818512011-02-22T14:35:00.003-05:002011-02-22T14:57:37.788-05:00

  Hello!  My name is Beth Hyzy and I've loved to bake for as long as I can remember.  There aren't many things better in this world than the warm scent of cinnamon bread baking in the oven or the sight of chocolate cupcakes being frosted with big gobs of swirly, fluffy buttercream. In the fall of 2004, I attended a 2-year culinary arts associate's degree program at Erie Community College and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-16375988682841190072011-02-21T13:50:00.000-05:002011-02-21T13:50:44.962-05:00

 I used to really dislike gluten free recipes that called for a pre-made mixture of flours rather than the flours separately.  In general, I still prefer to use separate flours because I think they give gluten free baked goods a better texture.  Recently though, going through Bette Hagman's Deliciously Gluten Free, I thought of what a waste it was to have this book and never use any of the

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-83334358731125385542011-02-19T14:01:00.000-05:002011-02-19T14:01:32.956-05:00

 Normally I don't like to claim things are the best because I know and you know that I'll be posting more biscotti recipes down the line.  But this recipe is so perfect for adaptations - add any nut you'd like, toasted.  Add the zest of any citrus, add any dried fruit, add any spice or mixture of spices.  For this batch I added the zest of an orange to brighten up the dark wintery day (once

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-30174695818077425122011-02-17T19:53:00.004-05:002011-02-17T20:12:17.594-05:00

Quick, just sweet enough and relatively healthy, these little poppy seed loaf cakes are super simple to put together and even easier to eat.  Along with a cup of tea or coffee, they made today seem less gray and wintery and taste like the beginning of spring.  Feel free to substitute lemon zest and juice if that's what you have - I never keep lemons around unless I buy them for a specific recipe

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-28829942620063526232011-02-15T08:31:00.000-05:002011-02-15T08:31:49.905-05:00

  Although I had been making heart-shaped things all last week, I didn't have anything for Valentine's Day proper.  We had 4 very black bananas on the counter, so naturally, banana cake!  This recipe translated very well to a 10" heart-shaped pan made by Wilton, but the original is baked in a 9x9 square.  The only thing I'd change next time is to either increase the amount of sugar in the batter

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-25626057282644501152011-02-14T08:18:00.001-05:002011-02-14T08:18:42.817-05:00

I wanted to make some heart-shaped chocolate cookies to give away for Valentine's Day and I found a great, unique recipe on Smitten Kitchen for brownie roll-out cookies. With all those comments reassuring me this was a delicious recipe, I had to go for it and indeed they were perfect!  Tender on the outside with a chewy bite, held their shape nicely in the oven, no puffing or spreading at all.

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-21779817456893065592011-02-12T14:53:00.002-05:002011-03-26T15:58:38.978-04:00

 If, for whatever reason, you're looking for an alternative to chocolate this weekend, I present you with these adorable butterscotch tarts.  What's as romantic as cutting into a molten chocolate cake and watching that gooey chocolate lava pour out?  Using your fork or spoon to gently break a crisp, nutty tart shell and seeing creamy butterscotch ooze onto the plate.  This is the type of tart I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-38895051648752687812011-02-10T16:09:00.002-05:002011-02-10T16:13:35.163-05:00

As you may have noticed, my birthday cake used nearly 20 egg whites.  Some of these were already saved and stashed in the freezer, but I still needed a few more to make the frosting.  This left me with 4 egg yolks sitting in the refrigerator - egg whites are very easy to freeze, but egg yolks have a tendency to get very rubbery and change their texture unless you add liquid or sugar.  So before

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-8417830205306412002011-02-09T16:42:00.003-05:002011-02-10T16:12:58.375-05:00

These crispy on the outside, fudgy in the middle cookies are basically Almond Joys in cookie form and they're delicious!  I pressed the dough into some miniature heart-shaped tart pans, but these are originally drop cookies and obviously if you don't want to fuss around, just form into walnut-sized balls and flatten slightly before baking.  I'm using upcoming Valentine's Day as an excuse to make

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-51222968817870289812011-02-04T15:16:00.007-05:002011-02-05T15:51:22.801-05:00

To go with some cozy chili for dinner, I made these adorable cornbread sticks.  The recipe comes from another book I picked up in North Carolina last month called "Making Do: How to Cook Like a Mountain MeMa," and you can imagine why I had to buy it!   It's filled with recipes like "Daddy's Hoecake," "Real Honest-to-Goodness Butter,""Roasted Possum," and even has a chapter called "For Medicinal

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-83295037344353075032011-02-03T16:15:00.004-05:002011-02-04T18:49:43.755-05:00

I won't admit to making these just so I could display them with an adorable new plate and mug my sister and mom gave me for my birthday but I won't admit to having a reason to make them, either :)  (Since it's February now, don't be surprised if every food picture I take has pink and hearts in the photo!) They're delicious little bites of vanilla-scented oatmeal dough and mini chocolate chips

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-91229967014194994042011-01-30T11:43:00.003-05:002011-01-30T11:50:41.306-05:00

Everyone always tells me it's crazy to make my own birthday cake, no one does that, but I've been doing it since I started baking!  I don't see anything crazy about it - I can choose any flavor combination I want and I know it will always be delicious.   This year I chose to go all-out girly, pink, fluffy and light with a brown sugar angel food cake frosted with a swirly Italian meringue - not

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-28708593408262885472011-01-29T15:25:00.002-05:002011-01-29T15:51:38.133-05:00

 :)

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-63710512663945829772011-01-26T13:43:00.002-05:002011-01-26T13:45:44.612-05:00

In need of something chocolatey, gooey and delicious, I found this looking through recipes I've had printed out for a while and they're the perfect after-dinner chocolate fix if you also love the combination of chocolate and tart cherries.  I made the recipe as-is but next time I'd recommend chopping the cherries up so they're more evenly dispersed among the cookies.   Chewy Chocolate Cherry

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-36548102347486647882011-01-20T12:33:00.000-05:002011-01-20T12:33:26.656-05:00

 Although this recipe comes from the Gooseberry Patch book called Autumn in the Country, it definitely still applies in the middle of winter!  It's a warm, soft and slightly spicy cookie studded with chewy raisins and crunchy toasted walnuts and I urge you to try it if you're a fan of any oatmeal cookie.  These are perfect for cuddling up with a cup of hot tea, coffee or milk on a cold January

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-48694150228847922882011-01-19T14:13:00.001-05:002011-01-19T16:54:48.310-05:00

I'm sure anyone that has loved ones who live far away know the feeling.  You get back from a visit and you have to go back to normal life again.  It takes small steps at a time - unpacking the suitcase is first on the list for me.  The sooner you do that, the easier it is to get back into the swing of things.  Then you have to get used to not being with someone constantly.  Not eating with

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-91669948075629339702011-01-08T07:25:00.000-05:002011-01-08T07:25:24.910-05:00

An important quality in most baked goods I choose to make is that they're good keepers.  Because unless I demand my family (and myself) eat about 6 cookies each or a quarter of a cake, there's just no way things get eaten within a few days.  This is part of why I make biscotti so often.  The other part is just because I adore the process of creating them - you make the dough, you form it into

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-63082962938293208522011-01-07T08:53:00.003-05:002011-01-07T16:06:27.109-05:00

I'm a very lucky girl - I received quite a few cookbooks for Christmas.  I read cookbooks like novels which is probably why this is the first recipe I've made from one of the cookbooks I've had for almost 2 weeks now.  You see, it took me all of last week just to get through Nigella Kitchen, let alone cook from it!  Nigella's books tend to be on the wordy side though, so

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-17242968751926698252011-01-06T08:52:00.001-05:002011-01-06T08:56:31.645-05:00

My mother, who doesn't have .01% of the sweet tooth I do, ADORES these cookies.  They have been in the family repertoire for as long as I can remember and come from a local church cookbook - the recipe has been cut out, saved, lost and found again but I actually have it memorized by heart now.  The ratio for shortbread isn't a difficult one to remember - generally for every stick of butter you

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-22223885351036959172011-01-05T13:08:00.003-05:002011-01-05T13:13:02.007-05:00

How do we end up with the things we end up with?  I don't remember how I ended up with a container of steel-cut oatmeal, but I've been trying to use it up now for about a year and finally did so with this hearty, substantial, full-of-texture bread.  I was worried the oats would be too crunchy, that there wasn't enough liquid in the dough for them to cook - you can definitely tell there's

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-32336558648755848632010-12-31T15:01:00.002-05:002010-12-31T15:36:51.988-05:00

I don't have much to say about 2010, just lots to reflect on and think about.  It was an amazing and emotional year and if 2011 is as good as 2010 was, I think I'm going to explode. I seem to talk about my love of cupcakes more than I actually make cupcakes or eat them.  I suppose this is mostly because I can't control myself when I'm around a little individual-sized cake with its own portion

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-62755786599599294142010-12-26T14:32:00.000-05:002010-12-26T14:32:12.507-05:00

 I have never known a Christmas morning without this coffee cake.  In one way or another, made by my mother, myself, or a combination of the both of us, it's probably the only Christmas tradition we've stuck by year after year and I love it.  The tradition AND the coffee cake :)  They're sweet yeasted rolls in the shape of a Christmas tree with a delicious nutmeg-spiced cream cheese and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-47363520512641364192010-12-24T10:56:00.000-05:002010-12-24T10:56:01.782-05:00

My only excuse for making these is that I had no chocolate cookies to put on cookie plates for Christmas this year ;) Not that anyone really needs an excuse to make chocolate anything.  This wasn't my favorite chocolate biscotti recipe ever, the dough crumbled when I tried to slice it thinly (I prefer thinner over thicker biscotti), but the taste is great so I suppose that makes up for it.

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-55654797021429169382010-12-23T19:12:00.007-05:002010-12-23T19:46:47.881-05:00

Or PBD's, as my boyfriend likes to refer to them.  I've been hearing about these for years now, a candy my boyfriend's mother makes especially around the holidays.  I knew about the general idea of them and a few of the ingredients, but I wasn't able to come up with a recipe that looked accurate at all on the internet.  So luckily we got her to write it down for me :)  And sure enough, it's

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-12291264112789766242010-12-21T18:56:00.000-05:002010-12-21T18:56:50.116-05:00

I'm not sure what it is, but I've always loved piping.  Holding a pastry bag gives me instant comfort (even when I was working at bakeries and nothing was going right that day.)  Maybe it's because I know what I'm doing, I feel comfortable with it - yet every year I debate whether or not to do decorated sugar cookies for Christmas. Food should first and most importantly taste good.  I stick

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-956689430020791492010-12-21T14:30:00.000-05:002010-12-21T14:30:51.915-05:00

Among all the sweets I've been making this holiday season, there came a need for something savory to go with the pot roast we were having for Sunday dinner.  "Salad?" my mom asked.  I said "Nah, how about biscuits, bread?"  It was too late in the day to be pulling out the yeast, but I knew a quick bread would be perfect.  This is along the same lines as a beer bread, the savory version of

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-26881744287277886262010-12-16T14:50:00.001-05:002010-12-16T15:18:31.113-05:00

I came across this recipe while looking through my many cookie books a few weeks ago and decided to use it against other recipes I'd found for a few reasons:  It only called for 1 stick of butter and the dough could be rolled out immediately after being made.  That's not to say you can't refrigerate or freeze it - I did this with the half I didn't roll out straight after making it and everything

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-3856232656968747582010-12-12T11:34:00.001-05:002010-12-12T11:49:41.718-05:00

This isn't so much a recipe post as it is a question - (related to this post by Confessions of a Cookbook Queen, I never get invited to Christmas parties either!) during the holidays, do people really "drop by unexpectedly" ?  I have always wondered this because it's not something that happens to me or my family at all, even around this time of the year.  It's so nice to read cookbooks and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-28031001423979527342010-11-27T09:35:00.000-05:002010-11-27T09:35:30.525-05:00

Finally getting off my lazy blogging butt and posting the recipe for these since I have no excuse not to - the pictures have been uploaded for 3 weeks.  These cranberry chocolate chip biscotti are a lovely cookie to have hanging around the house, especially around the holidays as anything cranberry is festive in my opinion.  Feel free to add or subtract additions to this recipe - add some

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-39036620973532873062010-11-26T10:12:00.000-05:002010-11-26T10:12:30.484-05:00

I hope everyone who reads this blog had a great Thanksgiving!  I definitely did - lots of amazing food ate with my immediate family, sister-in-law and adorable nephew.  (All gluten free, too.  We've been doing that gluten free holiday thing for a few years now, not to brag or anything :D)  I've been a lazy daisy as far as photographing baked goods go.  The dessert recipes for Thanksgiving are

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-62256109869710000742010-11-07T13:23:00.004-05:002010-11-07T13:29:02.349-05:00

I have to admit, I went a bit pumpkin crazy last week.  I saw a 3-pack of pumpkin at the warehouse store and I grabbed it.  I now have 4 30-ounce cans and 2 15-ounce cans sitting in my cupboard - even after making this coffee cake.  I'm not admitting that I won't be able to use it all yet :) This is a great, spicy, warming coffee cake during these colder months and it just so happens to be

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-19284750722737070462010-11-05T13:28:00.001-04:002010-11-05T13:28:24.373-04:00

  One of the things I (everyone, I'm sure) love about food is its comforting qualities.  The other day my sister Laura came home from a terrible day at work.  I asked her what I could make her to cheer her up and her reply was "peanut butter cookies :)" - one of her absolute favorites and it was the least I could do to see her smile. This is my go-to recipe for peanut butter cookies and I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-44363731054175355812010-11-03T13:33:00.000-04:002010-11-03T13:33:30.294-04:00

I haven't done a lot of gluten free baking lately since Rachel just had a lovely baby boy a few weeks ago, my nephew Oliver:   But luckily this past weekend we got to see him in his adorable dragon costume for Halloween: For this special occasion, I made a gluten free pumpkin spice cake.  I made it last year and it's a wonderful keeping cake since pumpkin baked goods seem to stay fresh and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-12483105807876850902010-10-31T14:27:00.001-04:002010-10-31T14:35:42.952-04:00

 One of my favorite things to do is browse the internet for recipes so I have a large binder full of printed-out cakes, cookies, pies, anything you can imagine.  I finally got around to trying this recipe last week and I recommend it for anyone looking to make a simple, easy and not necessarily fall-centric coffee cake.  You could add cinnamon or toasted and chopped nuts to the cocoa swirl but I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-11099226381086264322010-10-28T13:05:00.002-04:002010-10-28T13:09:00.590-04:00

The first night we had a fire in the fire place, the first time we babysat my new baby nephew, I made these little spice cookies - and they were perfect.   With cups of tea, coffee, milk, or just plain, they're the cutest treat for the colder months. Cinnamon-Ginger Cookies (Biscotti dello Canella-Zenzero) Adapted from Cooking Light 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-85055031889883880922010-10-26T13:36:00.002-04:002010-10-26T14:27:25.225-04:00

We like to buy in bulk at my house.  So I don't just buy the 15oz. cans of pumpkin, we buy the 32oz. cans of pumpkin.  So generally I have leftover pumpkin after making recipes.  I just store the leftover in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a month.  I had just under a cup left and didn't want to open another can so this is what I decided on. I don't think it's any wonder why

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-6975354844104526422010-10-22T14:18:00.001-04:002010-10-22T14:19:17.687-04:00

Ahh, it's Friday.  Normally this means nothing to me as I don't work a regular 9 to 5, Monday through Friday job.  But I had a big cupcake order today for a wedding and it's done.  Over with.  Not only did these cupcakes have to be vegan, the bride also wanted some gluten free and she turned out to be a complete nightmare to work with.  More on this story another time.  For now, I'm done. And I

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-14844262149522630742010-10-19T20:55:00.003-04:002010-10-27T15:40:41.886-04:00

I'm starting to notice fall recipes include many of the same ingredients: apples, pumpkin, spices, oatmeal, etc.  I don't really get sick of the repeat ingredients as long as the final products are different from one another.  This isn't a typical apple cake with tons of oil or butter or nuts - it's very light yet still extremely comforting.  This is an extremely quick and tasty coffee cake -

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-80879041781060158872010-10-17T20:56:00.004-04:002010-10-17T21:13:59.067-04:00

I made these muffins in late September using the jack-o-lantern cupcake liners and I thought "...well now I have to wait until October to post the recipe."  Here we are in late October and I haven't gotten around to it until now!  Two weeks from today is Halloween, jack-o-lanterns are definitely appropriate. These banana muffins are appropriate at any time of the year though, absolutely

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-90562445146333281812010-10-14T10:10:00.000-04:002010-10-14T10:10:19.454-04:00

This is the kind of thing you want to smell baking in your kitchen all year long, but especially in the colder months.  It will make your house smell warm and absolutely comforting. What is it about cinnamon that makes us think of comfort and warmth?  I suppose it's because spices are used in so many holiday and cold-weather recipes, but I adore it.  Along with brown sugar and chopped, toasted

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-25660189908766888662010-10-12T12:45:00.001-04:002010-10-12T12:49:22.747-04:00

 On the first day of October I opened one of the four (just to be safe!) cans of pumpkin I stocked up on at the grocery store recently and made these lovely biscotti. Generally all pumpkin baked goods tend to taste the same - like pumpkin pie only in cookie or cake form, but because biscotti are harder cookies, it's a more unique variation on the pumpkin theme.  I sent home about a dozen of

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-35105194356457080892010-10-11T16:39:00.000-04:002010-10-11T16:39:45.080-04:00

 It's a bit harder than I thought to get back into posting recipes after (my perfect) last week. HOWEVER, the recipes must go on. Everyone who eats these cookies (including my lovely houseguest from last week) falls in love with them and I suppose that should be enough inspiration for me anyway :) These apple oatmeal cookies are the perfect taste of fall.  I used a combination of raisins and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-374095390415273382010-10-02T09:14:00.000-04:002010-10-02T09:14:07.263-04:00

I hope everyone's fall is as lovely as mine so far!  I have many more recipes and pictures to share (apple oatmeal cookies, pumpkin spice chocolate chip biscotti, banana chocolate chip muffins to name a few), but my boy is on a plane right now on his way to visit me, so blogging will resume on or after October 10th :)

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-51511709532785241382010-10-01T08:59:00.000-04:002010-10-01T08:59:14.668-04:00

 Last week I definitely started baking in fall mode: apples, spices, golden toasty nuts.  Ironically I baked this on one of the warmest days of September (it went up to almost 80 degrees) but it still made my house smell like autumn.  This is a really fast and easy quick bread and it keeps well so if you don't eat it all within a couple of days, it's not a big deal.  My sister's boyfriend had

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-14965139573015894242010-09-30T12:26:00.000-04:002010-09-30T12:26:10.609-04:00

I love biscotti. You bake a batch and they can stay around the kitchen for a week or two (since they generally produce a large amount of cookies) and you don't have to worry about them not tasting as fresh as the first day, because if anything, biscotti just get better over time. I make a different batch of biscotti about once a week and last week I was craving chocolate badly. I didn't want

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-40432219538680262132010-09-29T11:03:00.000-04:002010-09-29T11:03:35.876-04:00

September means beginning of major soup weather.  You can (and I do) make soups all year 'round but when you make soups in September through April, no one makes faces or thinks you're crazy.  To go along with steaming bowls of delicious chicken-vegetable gumbo, I made these lovely rolls.  They made a perfect accompaniment to the soup, but the leftover rolls were amazing toasted, spread with

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-13383112621256476862010-09-28T10:53:00.000-04:002010-09-28T10:53:52.434-04:00

Last Sunday, September 19th, my parents celebrated their 29th wedding anniversary.  I asked my mom what kind of cake she wanted and she said "Hmm, how about black forest?" Black forest cake it is!  I hope they do something big next year for number 30 :) From the same book as the gluten free vanilla cake, this is my go-to gluten free chocolate cake.  It's absolutely chocolaty and delicious. 

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-57963404990925084152010-09-27T09:19:00.000-04:002010-09-27T09:19:05.527-04:00

In late August my dad developed a really bad cough and he couldn't sleep at night.  A few days after he started getting better, I developed a bad cough and couldn't sleep at night.  I still have no idea what it was - my ears were plugged up, I couldn't hear, I had no voice, I was dizzy, and the lack of sleep made me no fun to be around.  The first thing I did when I started feeling better was

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-46241348250158489742010-09-26T09:09:00.000-04:002010-09-26T09:09:34.595-04:00

I had been baking cupcakes and cakes all summer, some for money, some for family, and by the time late August rolled around I just wanted to make something different, easy, yet impressive.  In comes chocolate mousse.  Mousse is always elegant - maybe because of its decadent taste and texture - people always assume it's incredibly difficult to make.  It isn't and it's too bad more people don't

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-70819520423927262552010-09-25T16:28:00.104-04:002011-08-10T20:05:38.083-04:00

Delicious Inspiration Recipe Index Coffee Cakes: Apple Kuchen Butter Cake Butter Crumb Coffee Cake Blueberry Coffee Cake Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake Sour Cream Cocoa Swirl Coffee Cake Pumpkin Coffee Cake Christmas Tree Coffee Cake Cherry Streusel Coffee Cake Toasted Pistachio Cinnamon Swirl Cake Cinnamon-Crumble Jam Coffee Cake Cookies/Candy: Shortbread Rugelach Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-68691308247372538832010-09-25T11:50:00.001-04:002010-09-25T11:51:24.577-04:00

In late August, we threw my sister-in-law Rachel a baby shower on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.  The next two posts will be recipes of the food I made - gluten free pizza dough and chocolate mousse with gluten free cinnamon shortbread. It seems like a lot of gluten free baked goods come in boxes and bags these days because those who need to avoid wheat find it easier or more convenient, just

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-11556052079179635042010-09-24T13:51:00.000-04:002010-09-24T13:51:54.606-04:00

For those who don't know, I bake a lot of gluten free things because my sister-in-law Rachel is gluten intolerant.  She and my brother, Andy, come over nearly every Sunday and it's always nice to be able to offer them something gluten free for dessert and I love experimenting with gluten free baking.  Anyway, she's about to pop any day now with a baby boy: This cake wasn't made for her

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-43964856807527644812010-09-23T10:40:00.002-04:002010-09-23T10:43:19.416-04:00

I made this sucker for the 4th of July and it was gooood.  (That weekend was quite a whirlwind due to a family reunion and a birthday as well as the holiday so I did a lot of baking and quite frankly don't remember how many things I baked, but there was at least a sweet potato pound cake, tiramisu and cupcakes in the mix...) I also made a chocolate mayonnaise cake with Duke's Mayonnaise (a

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-29224411441791352422010-09-22T16:20:00.005-04:002010-09-27T09:33:33.777-04:00

I don't really care how long the gap has been or how many people actually read this blog, but I realized a few weeks ago, I like doing it.  I really like writing about the food I make and eat with my friends and family and I love sharing recipes and photos to go along with them. So even if no one reads this, I'm going to try and keep it updated anyway.  Because a few nights ago I was going

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-14372300438928524302010-04-26T12:42:00.003-04:002010-10-27T15:33:45.501-04:00

It occurred to me today that this is the last (not even full) week in April and I'd only posted a couple recipes here so far this month but I have been baking!  Laziness, I guess.  But this blueberry coffee cake is too good not to share.  It's Saturday afternoon, I just wanted to make something springy for Sunday brunch and I had some blueberries in the freezer.  These days

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-47139256431729745222010-04-09T14:55:00.003-04:002010-10-27T15:22:31.407-04:00

I always read before going to sleep at night.  It's a nice way to wind down at the end of a day and lately, I've been going through my old issues of Cook's Illustrated magazine.  I found this one in a Holiday Baking issue and I immediately wanted to make it - no butter, no oil - just flour, spices, eggs.  Could biscotti be this easy and taste good?  I trust Cook's Illustrated and

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8913903872694960436.post-17071388700383265702010-04-03T15:06:00.002-04:002010-10-27T15:23:16.260-04:00

Spring has finally arrived! The past 3 or 4 days here in Buffalo have been absolutely beautiful. 70 degrees, sunny, the daffodils are starting to bloom and the trees have little tiny green buds on them. Trudging through winters in Buffalo makes people here appreciate spring even more I think. Easter is a pretty big holiday here - not just because we have a high population of

soundless_spacehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06772271956772211192noreply@blogger.com7