The Pillsbury Bake-Off has started its "You Be the Judge!" portion of the selection process for the 100 finalists for the April 2010 contest. Actually, I’m behind by two weeks, as they are already on #3 of 10 voting weeks. The recipes were due by April 20 and I’m amazed that they were able to,…
I was traveling this weekend and didn’t have access to my usual tea-making equipment (I make iced tea almost every day at home). I had some great iced tea on the road and some not-so-great. Oh, and I was traveling in the South, so sometimes my request for unsweetened tea didn’t translate. My stops and…
It’s no surprise that I found an occasion to make cupcakes! Friends were visiting us over Memorial Day weekend and they are cupcake connosieurs (they live in NYC with easy access to a myriad of successful cupcake bakeries). I decided they would be my testers. The recipe in question: Chocolate Cupcakes on p.54 of Essence…
Cameron and I had been working outside all afternoon into the evening (I’m painting the porch!) and wanted a quick and light dinner. A visit to MyRecipes.com, one of my favorite recipe sites, yielded this: Smashed White Bean and Avacado Club. Sounded interesting, was rated five stars, and going vegetarian (even vegan) for the night…
Recently my husband was craving homemade donuts. Cameron’s dream came true! He found a recipe, prepared the dough, and cut out the donuts. (NOTE: we used butter instead of shortening in the recipe.) While they were rising, he made the regular icing, according to the recipe, and I mixed up some chocolate frosting (yes, I…
Essence of Chocolate: Recipes for Baking and Cooking with Fine Chocolate I admit I am very skeptical about cookbooks like this. Are they just using chocolate to lure me in? Will the butter, chocolate, and time that I put into these recipes yield fabulous results? (I’m kind of a chocolate dessert snob, I admit it!) …
I recently attended the “Herbs Galore” event at Maymont in Richmond, Virginia. What fun! Even in the 95 degree unseasonal heatwave I had a great time. So many choices! It can make your head spin, so it’s good to go with a plan. This year I actually didn’t have a list – my husband was…
I’m heading to the grocery store for some avacados, limes, and cilantro! We have become regular guacamole-makers in our house over the past three years. We were first inspired by some fabulous gourmet guacamole we had at Pampano in NYC, then a few months later enjoyed it freshly made at Taqueria Poblano in Alexandria, Virginia….
They’re growing!!!!!! My Sensitive Plants have pushed out their first “real” leaves. These tiny fronds are already acting their part. A little brush with a fingertip causes the leaves to close up and the stem to bend slightly down.
I made pancakes twice this past weekend. Practically flourless, these hearty pancakes are my favorites for breakfast with company. I make them for “just us”, too. We like them with maple syrup or honey, sometimes topping with fruit such as bananas, strawberries, or blueberries. A dollop of yogurt is great, too. Leftovers can easily be…