So I realize that “muffin cakes” seems kind of redundant…either that or oxymoronic, but what I’m trying to get across here is that these were supposed to be cupcakes but were really more like muffins. A muffin-cupcake hybrid, if you will. Denser and cakier than cupcakes, and maybe less sweet? (Ummmm, I was pretty drunk [...]

Dear Chocolate-Raspberry Squares, I miss you so much already! I know we were only together for less than 24 hours, but those hours were some of the most intense and magical hours of my entire life! I don’t wanna freak you out, but…I think I may be falling for you…hard. When we were together it was [...]

Well this reeks of infiltration. Who hacked into this blog?!?! So I have a confession to make: I’ve never eaten a chili dog, and I didn’t eat one this time (although I had to try a bite, OK two bites, and it was delicious). This was all the husband’s doing. He’d been talking for days about [...]

Sometimes things get a little, um, frenetic in this kitchen, and you know what doesn’t help the situation? Me attempting to string up a bizarre lighting contraption with a dangling cord in an effort to improve the food photography, which really just resulted in me feeling like I had a freakin spotlight shining on me [...]

Since I make my own granola bars, it logically follows that I make my own granola, right? Right. Alright. Glad we’re on the same page. Interestingly enough (or at least interesting to me, since I’m fascinated by my own granola trajectory and everything that has to do with granola in general), the bars preceded the granola, and it wasn’t until I [...]

It’s time to relate a painful and shameful story from my past. It’s a story that only the people who are closest to me know, an incident that drudges up such shameful pain that I have tried to block it out these past few years. But you can’t escape your past, people, and you can’t undo [...]

Once in a great while, a recipe comes along that I am so enamored with, it gets awarded a permanent spot in my repertoire. This is a very special honor because I am always wanting to make new things, of course, and so a repeat performance is rare. So in honor of Valentine’s Day, I’d [...]

The only things better than warm, buttery frosted maple scones fresh from the oven for dessert are warm, buttery frosted maple scones fresh from the oven for breakfast. I know this because (are you ready for this?) I made these babies for dessert last night and again for breakfast this morning. But before you call [...]

No bells and whistles here, just your path to simple, perfectly cooked Brussels sprouts. The trick here is in the preliminary blanching, which can be done up to 24 hours in advance of the final cooking. Next, the sprouts are heated in butter on the stovetop until sizzling, placed in the oven and baked, and [...]

Growing up, the only chocolate chip cookies I ever made, with my mom and sister, were the classic Nestle Toll House ones. They always came out really flat, and we never knew why, but they were perfect. The first time I attempted to make these cookies away from home, they just didn’t come out the way [...]

So let’s see…five posts so far, two are ice cream. Yup, that seems about right. I mean, I clearly had to make this ice cream, for two reasons: “speculoo” I still had a ton of lemons from the big bag of organic lemons I bought to make those lemon bars. How many times can you use the [...]

We’re getting in gear for the Super Bowl over here! And no, I have not yet attempted to make my own puff pastry or hot dogs…OK, hot dogs will probably never happen, but puff pastry I could see (project!)…so for now, I’m content with introducing you to the hands-down easiest and best pigs in blankets [...]

I thought these were going to be a tots disast (right, “disast” is an abbrev. for “disaster,” not a typo, and obvi “tots” is “total”). The anxiety began when I realized that I forgot to take the butter out of the fridge to soften. I do this all the time, actually, clearly pointing to the fact [...]

Whenever anyone asks me how I’m not obese, I answer honestly: I hit the gym…a good amount! Now what I don’t usually tell them is that, quite serendipitously, my gym happens to be right across the street from the good grocery store (14 blocks from my apartment), so that whenever I “need” to go grocery [...]