From the category archives:

Desserts

White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies

October 5, 2011

I have happy childhood memories of trips to the cookie shop that opened up in our mall at some point in the ’80s called Blue Chip Cookies. Does anyone remember them? Their storefront was set up just like Mrs. Fields, with a case of fresh baked cookies, but they claim to be the first to innovate [...]

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Apple Cake with Butter Pecan Glaze

September 12, 2011

This post should come with a long overdue apology to my sister…for laughing at her (hard) almost 30 years ago. Her first grade class put together a little “cookbook” comprised of their own made-up recipes. My sister’s contribution to this handwritten anthology was the concept of an apple cake. “Bwahahahaha!! An apple cake!! Who ever [...]

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Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

August 22, 2011

I recognized that first time that I brought homemade cookies with me to the hair salon that I would be setting a precedent. None of the stylists ever come out and ask when I arrive for my appointment. They greet me with smiles and hugs as always. But I try to put their curiosity to [...]

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Peanut Butter Crunch Shortbread

July 18, 2011

These little five-ingredient Peanut Butter Crunch Shortbread elephants marched their way into my kitchen the other day. Even though they’re made with peanut butter (get it – elephants? peanuts? ha ha), the crunch doesn’t actually come from peanuts. Even better: it’s turbinado sugar. Until now, I’d only ever used turbinado sugar – the kind with the large [...]

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Anatomy of a Chocolate Chip Cookie

July 11, 2011

What makes a chocolate chip cookie chewy? How can I make thicker cookies? Or thin and crisp cookies? I’m afraid I’ve gone and geeked out again (remember the last time?) and did a little chocolate chip cookie recipe analysis to get to the bottom of these questions. Most chocolate chip cookie recipes call for exactly [...]

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Good Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cupcakes – Happy 4th!

July 3, 2011

Just a short and sweet note to say Happy 4th of July (and, to my friends to the north, a belated Happy Canada Day!)! To help you celebrate, here’s a fabulous recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes with Swiss Meringue Buttercream Frosting. These cupcakes, from the back of the Hershey’s cocoa powder box, come together almost magically. [...]

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Cream Biscuit Strawberry Shortcake

June 14, 2011

It turns out that today, June 14, is National Strawberry Shortcake Day (who knew?). Far be it from me to let this opportunity to try the Cream Biscuit Strawberry Shortcake recipe I’ve been holding for months slip by. No offense to those Twinkie-like yellow strawberry shortcake sponge shells they sell in the produce department at [...]

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Chocolate Cream Pie with Cinnamon & Ancho Chile

June 9, 2011

In my seventh grade home ec class, circa 1987, we churned out such memorable delicacies as turkey tetrazzini, purple cows (that would be a tall glass of Shasta grape soda with a scoop of vanilla ice cream dropped in) and hamburger macaroni. But my favorite of them all was chocolate pudding pie. It called for [...]

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Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream

June 2, 2011

There was a moment of calm when I doled out the homemade strawberry ice cream cones. On the faces of my daughter and two little friends who were at our house last weekend – ages 2, 3 and 4 – were looks of focus, determination and, dare I say, intensity as they sought to catch [...]

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Panna Cotta with Balsamic Strawberries

May 2, 2011

A little over six years ago my then-boyfriend and I were renting a condo in southern Orange County. One Sunday afternoon, after friends who had joined us for brunch had left, Mike suggested we go for a walk on the beach. This was the second time he’d made such a suggestion that weekend. The previous [...]