Ambitious Deliciousness – Dont Eat Lazy.

While stuck at home for the entire weekend, we waited for Irene with much anticipation. She took longer than we expected, and all we could do was wait and wait and wait. My family was very fortunate, as we did not suffer any damage or power outages. But I also know that others  along the East Coast were not as lucky.

I realized that being stuck indoors is very bad for me for two reasons – 1. I get stir crazy, 2. I want to eat everything in sight. Since we couldn’t go outside, my sister and I made peanut butter and jelly cookies, using a recipe from The Kitchn. This recipe requires overnight freezer action, followed by some heat from the oven. I knew it would be a risk since we were prepared for a possible blackout, but we had a lot of time on our hands. You can only watch so much TV!

The best thing about this recipe? You can make a big batch to keep in the fridge (up to 3 months), then slice and bake whenever you’re in the mood for a treat!

(more…)

After making these delectable little treats for the second time, I decided that whoever came up with the idea to make cake pops deserves a prize. Or a medal. Why? Because cake pops = little drops of happiness. They make people super duper happy!

Since I promised my friend that I would make her red velvet cake pops, surprised her with them at her bridal shower. Hope you liked them, Susan!

As I’ve mentioned before, I make an exception to my “don’t eat lazy” rule and use boxed cake for cake pops. I added more chocolate, cocoa, an extra hint of acid and a small drop of red food coloring to enhance the flavors and color. But if you’re feeling extra inspired, feel free to use my red velvet cake recipe to bake the actual cake!

(more…)

I’ve fled the abundant land of zucchini and found myself smack in the middle of pumpkin land. I was never a huge fan of pumpkins but lately, I find them alluring. My goal is to be more intentional about using produce that are in season. What’s autumn without this orangey goodness?

A funny story about these cookies: I distinctly recall taking the baking soda out and setting it on my counter as I was adding the ingredients. But then, it went back to its resting place without ever making it out of the bottle.

So the end result ended up being a weird-shaped cross between cookie and cake. I’m not about to go making up words like stoup: thicker than soup but not quite a stew, so I’ll just call these cakey cookies.

(more…)

Historically, this dessert was called pound cake becaue it contained one pound of butter, sugar, eggs, and flour, making it easy for people to remember, especially since they couldn’t read. But this cake is a bit lighter than that.

This delicious pound cake recipe comes from Deb of Smitten Kitchen. She has the most beautiful photos and great content! Go check it out. She did warn us that this recipe required sifting the flour three(!) times and said it would be well-worth the effort. Boy, am I glad I listened to her!

Featuring T’s pretty plates! Can you see the tiny orange zest pieces?

The recipe called for lemon zest that I didn’t have. But what I did have was a moldy lime and a juicy orange. So the choice was obvious. I chose the latter and continue about my baking.

There were little bits of citrus surprise with every other bite, adding a new element of unexpected tartness, to play off the sweetness of the cake. I really enjoyed this cake and would totally make it again!

(more…)

So what if the holidays are over? It’s never too late for ginger spice cookies!

The recipe called for crystalized ginger and molasses. I’ve never cooked with either of those ingredients before so it was very interesting! The “crystalized” ginger had a sugar coating and was pretty to look at. Doesn’t it remind you of rock candy? It gives the cookie a subtle ginger flavor.

I imagine using shortening would have contributed to the texture of the cookies, making them more chewy than cake-like. I didn’t think it was super important, so I omitted it. I’ll leave it up to your discretion.

Try these cookies! They’re super delicious!

(more…)

My friend C, who loves molten chocolate cake, came over for lunch the other day. It was nice to have someone in the kitchen with me, keeping me company and also allowing me to take action shots!

I made a few changes to this great recipe and it turned out amazingly good! The cake is light and fluffy, while having the perfect amount of chocolatey bitterness. Even the uncooked batter was great; tasted like chocolate ganache!

Highly recommended! It’s YUMMY!!!

(more…)