Certain recipes or baking concepts often keep floating my way. I believe this is due to algorithms, or what have you, where whatever bent you are on via the Internet boomerangs all manner on the subject back to you. I also still believe in synchronicity, search engines be damned, and […]
BOOKSHELF
Cookie of the Month: Gazing at buttery crescents
The full moon does have an effect. I find myself both mesmerized by its brilliance and taunted in (and mostly out) of sleep by its bright pull on the inner and outer psyche. The full moon and its fans get all the showy attention, but I have always been fond […]
Revisiting a great pumpkin muffin
I have prided myself on trying new recipes in this blog space. It’s as if it’s a better gamble or a more promising adventure if I have not made something before. We always have our eyes on the new, unnamed, undiscovered proposition. Sometimes, though, with recipes, you shouldn’t turn your […]
Cookie of the Month: Prioritizing pumpkin for ‘brownies’
[D]espite my misgivings about all things pumpkin spice (which is mainly due to its too-earliness, if anything), I know that a little pumpkin — and its accompanying spice — can conjure up something delicious. Sometimes, on the way to one thing, another is discovered. This was the case for my […]
Cookie of the Month: Having more fun with blondies
[M]y idea of blondies (bar cookies, not actual blondes) was that they were simply chocolate chip cookie dough, spread into a pan and baked. Not necessarily so, as I discovered when I checked into recipes for them. Had I ever really made an actual blondie? I realized I had not. […]
Cookie of the Month: ‘Butting’ in for Easter cookies
[B]unny butts have weighed “heavily” on my mind for the last year or so. Having re-entered rabbit parenting after some time away from it (adopting a colorful, fluffy, lively fellow named Zydeco), I’ve become more aware of the popularity of rabbits from their humans who post about them on social […]
Bread of the Month: Staking a cornmeal claim for ‘Johnnycakes’
Armed with freshly ground cornmeal from a local historic grist mill (see previous blog entry), I pondered ways to use it. I loved a good cornbread, but I had made many pans in my day, so I was up for something different. One Sunday, I Iooked to something cozy and […]
Cookie of the Month: Milling around California history
Our lack of rain this winter had me nervous and twitchy. I wanted to inspire more precipitation and thought I might get some sort of magic from visiting a place where water was not only flowing, but a source of power and purpose. [I ]turned to the Bale Grist Mill […]
Bread of the Month: Mixing lemon, lavender, blueberries
Occasionally, I stumble across a recipe that reminds me of the versatility and homey comfort of muffins. I don’t make them a lot, and I should, particularly when I find an easy, flavorful version like the Lemony Yogurt Muffins from “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple,” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; […]
Cookie of the Month: Going old-school oatmeal
Back in the day, the cookies — dropped from a teaspoon — were softer, rounder and, yes, smaller, and the world was good. I discovered this recently when I revisited a retro recipe for oatmeal cookies. [A] wee bit of ground cloves (along with a generous dose of cinnamon) gave […]