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Sugar High Friday - Citrus : Reminder
2008-05-12 07:50:00
Yes, I know, it seems like the 25th is weeks away and there is still plenty of time to make something for the event....and you are right...but you know what they say: time flies. I was happy to see from your comments and the wonderful entries I have already received that you dig the theme this month, but I am difficult and I want more. Pleeeeeaaaase!!! Don't forget to send the entry at sugarhighfridaycitrus AT gmail DOT com. For all the rules, see this post.I have been baking a lot for home and work these past few days and there will be another SHF-Citrus entry tomorrow for a special someone and a celebration but in the meantime I thought I'd give you something from the archives to entice you and maybe inspire you for this round. Citrons Givres : one of my favorite treats as a child and still has an adult, although now I like to add a little vodka to the lemon sorbet. Funny story is that in most French restaurant a lemon sorbet with a touch of vodka is called a Colonel...interesti...
More About: Sugar , Friday , High , Reminder

Ultimate Lemon Pound Cake and Lemon Thyme Strawberries
2008-05-09 22:17:00
First of all I would like to thank all of you for leaving such kind comments and sending emails after my last post. I surely did not mean to bring your spirits down and I forwarded each piece of advice and kind notes to M. Like me, she is deeply touched by your thoughts and prayers and was truly amazed by the generosity of bloggers and anonymous alike. I tell you, you guys rock!!Life goes on and she is fully committed to enjoy the time she has and do the things she has been postponing for too long like coming to Pilates with me or dragging me out of bed to go strawberry picking this morning...I know she enjoyed bugging me after the ab torture I made her go through yesterday!! We got caught by the rain, but like many times in May around our parts, it pours ocean for 5 minutes and then the sun shines through as if nothing happened. We picked about 10 pounds of juicy red strawberries, so flavorful I feel the urge to put my nose in the basket every couple of hours. The house has taken o...
More About: Lemon , Cake , Ultimate , Pound , Strawberries

Lemon And Honey Tangerine Gratins
2008-05-07 18:04:00
Everyday I wake up I count my blessings. Everynight I go to bed I think about the things I need to improve and realize that both my blessings and my shortcomings are numerous which makes me a standard-normal human being, and I am ok with that. What I am not ok with is being helpless when faced with death or diseases and which I were a rocket scientist or super duper doctor working on some cure to help people. There are days I want to kick for not being a brainie and there are days I am fulfilled to focus on the things I know how to do, we all have to find our strong points and should stick to them. Being envious is a waste of time: maybe a rocket scientist can't make a good a pie as my grandma's?!!Last Monday we had a couple friends of ours over for dinner, and as usual they came early in the evening so we could sit on the back porch and watch the sunset over the water (one of those blessings I am counting). We like to open a bottle of wine and get dinner ready together. He is an ...
More About: Lemon , Honey , Tangerine

Announcing Sugar High Friday #43: Citrus!
2008-05-05 02:02:00
I love reading the archives of Sugar High Friday , the monthly event created by Jennifer of The Domestic Goddess . Imagine recipe upon recipe dedicated to sweets, months after months, year after year....all at the click of button. While browsing one night last February, I noticed that the blog hosting SHF citrus way back when three years ago did no longer exist. It must have been really late in the night because I found myself emailing Jennifer telling her that if she was interested in a citrus theme again, that I'd love hosting it. I had heard that the list of future hosts was close to a year long so I put that thought to rest until she emailed back later that week and offered that I host in May...this year! Yippeee!Why "Citrus "? The simplest answer I have is that after chocolate (or right alongside), citruses are my favorite flavors. Lemons, lime, oranges, tangerines, clementines, mandarines, grapefruits, kumquats,...you name it, I dig it. I know that this does not apply to everyb...

Lemon Rhubarb Mascarpone Mousse Cake
2008-05-03 22:52:00
Yes, another rhubarb post...it's the season and I just can't get enough....Sorry folks! When Marcela was planning her visit, one of her wishes was to get some rhubarb and Meyer lemons so we could bake something with them. She also wanted to keep the seeds of the lemon to grow her own tree back in Argentina. We searched everywhere for both to no avail and decided to stick with our original plan to make macarons instead. She did a fabulous job with the latter and I hope that macarons have no secret for her now and I got to tell you, buttercream and dulce de leche go really really well together!!After dropping her off at the airport, B. and I headed for the farmers' market downtown and guess what I found by the bucket....rhubarb!!! Arghhhhh.....Wish I had it growing in the backyard but one has to do with what they have, right?! I need to add that since I mentioned I had found Loquat trees everywhere downtown, one of my clients told me she had her own tree and I was most welcome to h...
More About: Lemon , Cake

Lemon And Yogurt Scones And Unexpected Finds
2008-05-01 07:23:00
Marcela is finally here, safe and radiant from her stay in Seattle and New York, ready to chill under the Southern sun. After many late night chats on Yahoo with Lisa over the past year or so, it is a blast to finally laugh in person instead of in front of the computer and discover the many facets of Argentina through her experiences and her eyes. As the nerds that we are, we spent most of the evening of her arrival Tuesday on Google earth checking out the country with the perfect guide. Today was spent downtown Charleston with us showing her some of our favorite places, streets, parks, etc... but I will get to that a little bit later.After my post admitting that I was a clafoutis fanatic, going as far as eating it everyday, I stumbled on a great looking scone post by Julie of A Mingling Of Tastes. Her blog is one of my regular reads where I get my fix of yummy breakfast ideas, and after many weeks of thinking I ought to make scones again, because after all we do like them, she time...
More About: Lemon , Yogurt , Scones

Cardamom Tapioca Pudding, Roasted Rhubarb And Strawberry Syrup
2008-04-29 08:01:00
I know my mom is going to say "Ah! Finalement" (Ah! Finally) when she reads this post. You see it is not uncommon during our phone conversations for me to say "Oh, by the way, I saw this really cool ingredient, gadget, linen, etc...on a French site and I am having it come to your house so you can bring it next time you come visit or pop it in the mail with the next care package. Hope it's not too much trouble!" There is usually a pause, sometimes a sigh, followed by "where the heck did you find this? What don't you sleep at night for a change?" The explanation is easy: B's muscles unwind when he falls asleep by severely twitching which provokes him to jerks and send his knee(s) in my ribs or his arm across my face. One black eye and a many bruises later we both agreed that it was safer for me if I let him fall asleep first and then sneak in the bed half an hour later. Most of the time, I turn the computer on and start browsing....and find things I "need" for baking. You've been ...
More About: Strawberry , Cardamom , Pudding

Cheesecake Pops - Dunking With The Daring Bakers
2008-04-27 06:04:00
I get excited every month about posting the Daring Bakers challenges. Actually it is more like an act in three part. On reveal day, I check our site in my pajamas like a kid waiting to open her Christmas present. I give myself a week or so to think about how I want to go about the challenge, baking, cutting, plating and photographing. Then, I usually get them done the second week and then I tend to lose the mood until posting day. That's when it hits me, why I love it so much: it's the sense of community, knowing that there is a bunch of us out there loving the same thing...baking and sharing the fruits of our labor. It may be more or less challenging for some of us each time but it gives me the opportunity to share my love of baking and eating with you all.Since I have been in the States for over 10 years, I can't say that cheesecake is new to me, having churned about 2-3 a day at work back in the days and a few here on this site However turning a cheesecake into a lollipop was ...
More About: Cheesecake

Choux Beignets And Apricot Curd
2008-04-25 20:29:00
I don't really like to start a post with a conversation but after trying different ways to write it up, I found that the accurate was to relate the conversation that took place between B. and myself last night before falling asleep. If you were to eavesdrop on the following conversation you'd think we lead the grand life:B: what time is the cocktail party tomorrow?Me: starts at 7pm. What time is the band playing?Him: starts at 9pm.If you know us a little better, then the rest of the conversation about our friends' party for their anniversary makes much more sense:Me: I need to have the 300 cream puffs done by 10am at the latest, they are picking them up and the cake by noon.Him: I've got to be at the party site by 6pm to hook up the PA system and practice some tunes with the guys. Well, at least we can have breakfast together. Anything special (with that look of "please, no more clafoutis")?Me: what about some "choux beignets" with some of the leftover cream puff dough I am boun...

Polka Dot Matcha Tea Cake
2008-04-23 06:28:00
Meet the most wonderful little tea cake, snack cake, perfect middle of the day break cake...that almost never got posted! Despite the fact that I have made it three times since last week, it is so popular among food bloggers that it seemed redundant to add my own version to the mix. When I cut into it and served to B. with a cup of tea Sunday afternoon, he exclaimed "It is so good you have to post it...and I don't really like Matcha ". I told him it had been around the blogging block quite a bit and I was just interested in trying a different cake recipe for our little afternoon pick me ups. "Did you make it exactly the same way?" he asked. "Ugh, no...completely different actually, the designs and ingredients have changed, only the concept remains" I replied. I knew where he was heading...A couple of weeks ago, a friend mentioned she wanted to try Matcha but everytime she smelled it she was turned off by the strong grassy scent. I thought of making cupcakes or or a cake with some sm...
More About: Cake , Polka Dot

Blueberry Pineapple Clafoutis
2008-04-21 06:35:00
I hear you Bron...I am getting there...with my clafoutis that is! See, she is hosting "Hay Hay It's Donna Day - The Clafoutis Edition" this time and everytime I opened my emails this month I could see her little avatar with signatures like "show me your clafoutis" , "Bron wants to know where your clafoutis is" ... Everytime I would hear myself say out loud "Can't show it to you, I am eating it" ...or "My clafoutis is my belly". Without trying to be smart alec there is a very simple reason for my answers: clafoutis is a staple at my house and does not last long if put in front of me! What is that a clafoutis? Well, to keep it short, it is thinner and lighter than a cake but thicker than a crepe...and it's good!Now, I am about to tell you some stories that may make it sound like I take the dessert lightly, but on the contrary, I take my Clafoutis very seriously! Hello! My name is Tartelette and I am a Clafoutis addict. Thanks to Bron and Barbara though, I don't feel out of place a...
More About: Pineapple

Macarons 101 In Desserts Magazine
2008-04-18 16:12:00
Desserts Magazine #2 - Macarons 101 (click) To say that I love Vera, the editor for the digital Desserts Magazine is a small word! She asked me a while back if I wanted to contribute a picture and recipe for their first digital magazine (The Creme Au Nutella) and we have been chatting almost daily via emails. When she asked me if I wanted to write a macarons tutorial for their second edition with step by step pictures, I immediately jumped on it given the numbers of emails and questions I kept getting from readers...and you know that nothing makes me happier than to give back the love and support you all show me day in and day out.Voila! It's out! A whole 8 pages (36-43) full of guidelines, tips and pictures to help you on your macaron quest! I am laughing at the way I am holding the pastry bag....ehehe but between the making and taking the pictures on timer my brain lost track!! For the article I focused on the French meringue based macarons but my French buddy Mercotte wrote a wo...
More About: Desserts

Chocolate Mocha Cake
2008-04-17 20:31:00
Because we both work odd hours and often during the weekend, some Mondays offer the luxury of a quieter day. A day I like to spend outside or in my favorite room in the house, the guest bedroom. When we built the house, we designed the entire upper floor ourselves and B. did an amazing job at it, it really feels like a separate apartment complete with a reading/library space, office and large bathroom. We like it so much that we sometimes sleep upstairs and it does feel like a mini break. I set up a little photo studio up there and with views of the trees and the water ahead, it s very soothing for the soul and the spirit. Last Monday, we decided to shut away from the world for a little while and recharge our human batteries by taking a nap upstairs. He woke up before I did and when I opened my eyes, he was sitting at the desk, reading old books, savouring the warmth of the three o'clock sun entering the room. I went downstairs, made us a pot of coffee (we both at gigs that night) ...
More About: Cake , Chocolate , Mocha

Warm Berry Crumbles And Fromage Blanc Ice Cream
2008-04-15 15:34:00
I meant to post this yesterday but I found out that home improvements seriously interferes with blogging. Noting like holding crown molding with one hand and typing with the other, right?!! We decided to tackle the little things we skipped when we built our house (and I mean "we" as owner/builder), exhausted after 15 months spent on a dream and ready to relax on the sofa with a book and a cup of tea. In that spirit, it looks like my friend Inne from Vanille & Chocolat might be coming to the end of her DIY home improvements and share with us this lovely Lemon And Lavender Cake. I am mentioning this, because in the world of food blogging, two things that will never cease to amaze me in the awesome sense of community and incredible friendships that we create. We take notice when somebody does not update for a while, we inquire about certain recipes and enthusiasm and support are kings! Having this cookbook giveaway this past weekend was a way for me to pass on the goodwill and tell...
More About: Ice Cream , Berry , Cream

Ispahan Cupcakes And A Cookbook Giveaway
2008-04-12 16:11:00
Before I talk about these cupcakes, I need, I have to, I must and want to thank you all who visit this site and leave fun and thoughtful comments. I am overwhelmed each time you wish to share something with me. I try my best to visit as many bogs as I can but I always seem to run out of time. I apologize if I am sporadic in my visits on your sites. I try to give, share and support and I just wanted you to know that I am sorry if you don't always see me around in a timely manner. You guys are the best!The cupcakes? Oh, yes....I did say in my last post that the next one would be about cupcakes, didn't I? For the cookbook giveaway, you have to either read this until the end or scroll down to the bottom.One of my friends just had a baby a few weeks ago, a little preemie named Rose. Now that mom and baby are back home and settling down into their new routine, we decided to throw them a very special "Welcome Home" since the birth and following days were rather traumatic for the both of ...
More About: Cookbook

Coconut Panna Cotta - Warm Lemon Poppyseed Cake, Yuzu Mandarin Sauce
2008-04-09 08:02:00
In both my jobs, I work freelance, which means that on Sunday night, the upcoming week on the calendar looks one way and by Tuesday night all the little blocks are filled, scratches and arrows everywhere. By Wednesday morning one side of the fridge (B. has an aversion for magnets and other knickknacks on the front) is completely covered with "production sheets" such as menus, sitting charts,plating,order forms, invoices,.... One could say that my fridge is my office. Where am I going with this?On Sunday night I looked at the calendar and thought this week would be nothing as busy as the week before, which left me a little uncomfortable. I get paid by the event, the gig, the class, the training, which means that a slow week gives me some rest but does not help the pocket book. I admit, I needed a break, it helps regenerate the creative juices and there are a ton of household things awaiting my attention. I am also trying for some extra greens as I have a certain VIB (Very Important B...
More About: Lemon , Coconut , Cake , Mandarin , Sauce

A Taste Of Yellow 2008 - Tropical Fruit Verrine and Peach Macarons
2008-04-07 07:22:00
There are many events I like to participate in but there is one I would not miss for the world: LiveStrong Day With A Taste Of Yellow launched and hosted by Barbara from Winos and Foodies . Last year 149 bloggers from all over the world answered her call to celebrate life, remember our loved one who passed away from cancer and this year I have no fear that more will rally on May 13th to support the LiveStrong Foundation. I have previously talked about my brother passing away at an early age from cancer and then my grandmother a few years later. There is not a day that goes by without their memory influencing my thoughts, my choices and my attitude. I laugh more, I try not to sweat the small stuff (does not mean I succeed all the time) and I live and love stronger, for me and others. I tried to write this post all weekend long but everytime my eyes got cloudy and my heart heavy, no exception this very minute. I miss Thierry, I miss Mamie Paulette. I wish I could write a more eloquent...
More About: Fruit , Tropical , Peach

Ice Cold Lemon Strawberry Fraisier
2008-04-05 01:30:00
An abundance of gorgeous strawberries and extra Grand Marnier Mousseline led me to create this little thing. I called it a Fraisier because it looks like one but that's where the resemblance stops....although by taste it was just as good. Like the choux, a Fraisier is one of my favorite desserts, one I would push my mother to buy for Easter it looked so Spring-like. It usually is compose of a genoise, pastry cream, strawberries and topped with a thin layer of marzipan. Rich in composition and ingredients but light in texture like most French desserts tend to be. It seems like we have a knack to pack a million calories in a bite that seems as light as air!!Here I was with the strawberries, the mousseline cream and no base but a serious hunkering for Meyer lemon. Lemon genoise? Lemon meringue?....hmm...decision, decision, hesitation....That was until I remembered a recipe for "The Best Damm Meyer Lemon Pound Cake" on the Saveur Magazine website. With a claim like that I had to check ...
More About: Strawberry , Cold

Choux A La Fraise - Strawberry Puff Seduction
2008-04-02 06:00:00
I am a sucker for cream puffs....really I am...and strawberries and of course pastry cream because well, it is like eating berries on a cloud of cream and a pillowy puff. Yes, I know, I am often called a hopeless romantic or a dreamer, sometimes a combination of both. As long as I can remember I was the one hording the "choux" at every wedding back home. The "Piece Montee" (Constructed Piece), also known as a Croquembouche was for a long time the traditional wedding cake in France (and still is), with the American ones being the "new kid on the block" so to speak. I would take my little plate and usually wait for everybody to forget me and come back to take chunks out of the nougatine base and decorations, some caramel and of course a few extra choux.I don't know why but as a child I kept other "choux" related items very separate. I was like person who does not like her/his vegetables to touch the meat which in turn should not touch the corn. Aside from the "wedding choux" having i...
More About: Strawberry , Seduction , Puff

Perfect Party Cake: Dorie And The Daring Bakers
2008-03-30 07:16:00
It was bound to happen that one of these days the Daring Bakers would tackle a Dorie Greenspan recipe. Her last volume, Baking From My Home To Yours is filled with delightful, well written and fail proof desserts, pastries and treats. I had my share of baking from her book and I was delighted when Morven, our host for March announced that we would all be making her Perfect Party Cake . I have made it several times this year for different birthday parties and occasions and I have fallen in love with the textures and tastes of both the cake and the buttercream. I believe it has become the cake I use the most for building tiered cakes or "party cakes".Since I always make it according to the person's wishes when he/she orders, I rarely get the chance to play around with the decorations or flavors. Not this time! Boy, did I have a blast with this one! It's been a while since I selfishly made a cake with all the ingredients that I like. I appreciate that we could take liberties from the ...

Raspberry And Lime Mascarpone Mousse Cakes
2008-03-27 05:48:00
We celebrated Easter with B.'s family, a small and quiet gathering on the beach, very much unlike the gatherings in my family back home. There was plenty to share and although I offered to bring something for dessert, my sister-in-law said I could take the day off, she'd take care of it. Doesn't she realized that it really does not bother me and I am actually looking forward to making something? I am sure those of you who like to cook and bake have found themselves in this position. When you love food, it's not work, it's a pleasure. Oh well, I still wanted to make something for us and took the opportunity of the "Exchange Dinner" we host each year to make these Raspberry and Lime Mascarpone Mousse Cakes .What is the "Exchange Dinner" you ask? Well, I came to the US as an exchange student about 11 years ago and I was an exchange student doing my Masters here for one year. Long story short, I met B. here a few weeks before I was supposed to go home "forever" and although I did go...

Chocolate Caramel Mousse - Date Night
2008-03-25 05:08:00
I was trying my best to pretend Christophe was not around the house....avoiding his mischievous glance on my way to the kitchen, grazing my hand on the shiny cover and yet preventing myself from leafing through the pages filled with gorgeous photographs and fun recipes. One night though, I found myself alone in the house and tempted by the promises of silky chocolate mousse, I gave in. I have always been pretty forward with my beaus (ask B. and he will tell you that the first thing I told you was "You're sexy" instead of "You're sweet" when we met - he'd tell the truth), and when there is chocolate, well I guess you don't need a visual...except Christophe was not going to get the best of me this time and leave me wondering again if he was the man for me. After making his Chocolate -Caramel Mousse, I think we might go steady for a while.I was really intrigued by Christophe's mousse, particularly the ingredients and since there was just the two of us in the kitchen that evening, i...
More About: Night

Pain d'Epices Creme Brulee
2008-03-22 23:48:00
Macarons are great, no doubt about it, the only caveat when you make them on a regular basis is that you are left with quite a lot of egg yolks. B. will tell you that this is never a real problem and when you consider the endless possibilities if egg yolks based desserts, I'd say he is right. Custards, creme anglaise, pots de cremes, zabaglione, chocolate mousse, etc...and of course cremes brulees!I have had the same relationship with cremes brulees as I have had with macarons. I love to make macarons, but did not start really liking eatng them until a couple of years ago when I let my imagination free and started to play with fillings, toppings, centers, etc...It was kind of the same with creme brulees. The owner of the restaurant I worked for hated two things: cinnamon and flavored creme brulees. The custards had to remain as plain as possible and since I had to make close to 100 a day I quickly started to hate making them, but still loved eating some whenever we went to diner so...
More About: Pain , Creme

Swirly Macarons And A Birthday
2008-03-20 05:40:00
I guess I really can't be left alone... or my mind start playing tricks on me. Last Sunday I was working on a wedding cake for a friend of mine getting married this coming weekend when she called and asked me for the thousandth time if I had also started working on her wedding favors. "Yes" I replied "and may I add that I must really love you and F.?" "Why is that?" she asked... "because of all that blue...I think I am losing my mind". The theme of her wedding is a beach/lagoon sea and ghastly as I found her idea to have a lot of blue, I agreed to do it all, including macarons for wedding favors. Why can't I be left alone? Well, it seems that my brain has short circuits because not only did I agree to make a lot of them (300) I started playing on the ocean theme and decided to swirl the white and blue batters together and ended up with these Swirly Macs. I think I had moment of lucidity when I decided to only swirl half the bunch and sandwich them with a plain side. Half a genius ...
More About: Birthday

Sweet Melissa Lemon Blueberry Buttermilk Pie & Winners
2008-03-18 05:43:00
Not only does Melissa Murphy's latest book satisfies my cravings for bakery sweets but it also fulfills my love for all things citrusy. I wish I could show you how good her Lemon Squares are but I am afraid I only have the crumbs on our plates to show for it as they were devoured faster than I could take a picture. I had to hide the Lemon Blueberry Tartlets pictured to avoid the same "problem" (eating is never a problem in our neighborhood). I bookmarked the original recipe Lemon Blueberry Pie the first time I flipped through the book for plenty of delicious reasons: it had lemon, buttermilk, blueberries (the freezer is stock full of them) and I could make minis for a dinner party. They lasted for about 5 minutes and then our guests asked to come back next week for another try-out from the book (Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Torte anyone?)Before I give you the recipe, I know you are awaiting to read if your name got pick to receive one of the 5 copies the publishers were giving away ...
More About: Sweet , Winners

Sweet Melissa's Blueberry Muffins and Carrot Cake & Books Giveaway
2008-03-15 18:00:00
I have really felt like I have been on a mini vacation this past week, baking my way through The Sweet Melissa Baking Book, written by Melissa Murphy, owner and pastry chef of Sweet Melissa Bakery in New York city. When I received the book for preview I was really excited to finally make some of her creations in my own kitchen. I have been a fan of her work for a long time and promised myself I would straight to her bakery if I ever made it to New York one day. Well, it was even better this past week because I took a trip there four times in four days! I have tried to do a thorough review of the book for you guys but the best part is at the end of this post where I have the chance to give away 5 copies of this new book!The book is a right along the line as a classic baking book filled with hundreds of recipes of every body's favorites. This is the kind of book that references all the basic and classic American standards but often with a little spin to it (like an orange flavored cr...
More About: Books , Cake , Muffins , Carrot

Vanilla Vanilla Cupcakes
2008-03-12 05:43:00
First, I wanted to thank you all for sharing your pet stories when I posted about our collie/sheltie Tippy and the great demise of the cinnamon buns. It really brightened my weekend and brought on a couple of welcome laughs! Those animals sure are unbelievable!!Now, the Vanilla Vanilla Cupcakes... B's mom called Monday night and we started to chat about everything and nothing as we usually do, and she started to beat around the bush, as she usually does, about needing me to bake something for her garden club. She is a talented baker but she does not get in the kitchen much nowadays, and she knows I am happy to give her and "her ladies" a hand whenever I can. I usually try to fit the cake, treats, and sweets to the theme of their meeting, but when she pronounced the words "Easter" I admit I drew a blank. I am still warming up to Peeps and Chicks (nothing wrong there just different countries different candies) and really beside liking the colors I don't think I wanted to make a bunn...

Frozen Rhubarb And Banana Charlottes
2008-03-10 04:19:00
What follows is a typical conversation you can hear at our house on a Sunday afternoon:Me: Hey, what'cha got planned today?Him: well, I found this electric saw (or drill, or vacuum,....) in the street and I thought I'd fix it up. You?Me: I just picked some stuff up at the grocery store and I'd thought I'd play around a little.Both at the same time: well, call me before you burn the house down!We had a very similar conversation last week but this time I was on a mission. I was standing in the middle of the fruits and vegetables stands, starring at gorgeous stalks of deep red rhubarb when my friend S. called. "Remember my bridal shower next July?" Yesssssss....(can't you just tell what's coming?!) "Change of plans...it's in two weeks otherwise I'll have to throw a baby shower with it!" Yesssss "Can you think of something pretty, girlie, decadent, pink, red, white....?" Yesssss...I love S., she is the exact opposite of me in almost everything and in that regard she is the ultim...
More About: Banana , Frozen

My Dog Ate My Homework!
2008-03-09 07:01:00
This is semi-related baking post, and I apologize for the lack of treats today but I thought I would give you the reason why: let me introduce you to Tippy -aka Tip The Ferocious. This picture was actually taken the other night when he was playing it all cool with his toys and pretending to be the nicest, less troublesome dog around. He has calmed down from the days he would snatch steaks from our plate or devour an entire sheet pan of cookie cooling on the counter top. He has even stopped chewing up the house to bits and shreds when we leave him alone (crating him was brilliant, he loves it). Now and then, when we forget to crate him and leave in a hurry he will find his way inside the trashcan and scatter the contents across the kitchen, dining room and living room. Lo-ve-ly.....!!! The crown event however when we found him all fours on the kitchen table eating from a box of chocolate. He had that look of "Maybe if I don't move they won't see me..." We thought that was the end o...
More About: Homework

Opera Macarons, Thoughtful Gifts And An Award
2008-03-07 16:28:00
Be prepared this is the loaded post of the weekend! Take your time reading it but there were many people I wanted to thank on this site and this is long overdue. I know I still have to answer a couple of "meme" I have been tagged for and I am saving those for next week. In the meantime, let's start at the beginning...A couple of weeks ago, one of my favorite bloggers and fellow Daring Baker Deborah from Taste and Tell sent me an email reading that she wanted to try her hand at making macarons but she had never had one so she would not know what to look for in the texture, taste, etc... She offered to pay me to send her a box and I immediately shook my head "No, no, don't pay me, instead let's do a trade! I'll send you some macarons and you'll send me a favorite cookie or something". She agreed and although a few health and family have delayed my sending them they are finally one their way to her house. Cross your fingers that they get there un-crushed! Wednesday afternoon the m...
More About: Gifts , Opera , Award