Baking and Books

Old Fashioned Lemon Buttermilk Cake (Plus Major Giveaway)

Ari — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 15:22:53 +0000

Lemon cake is one of those decadent treats that I try not to make too often, mostly because I can't stop eating it. But my husband is participating in a two-day paintball game this weekend and I thought to myself: this would be the perfect time to make that cake I can't resist. No, not because he'd be out of the house I'd have the cake all to myself (though that thought did cross my mind). My thinking went more along the lines of slicing the cake into several pieces, putting one aside for myself, then sending the rest off with my husband before I changed my mind and ate ~~two~~ three pieces. Paintball guys don't mind it when you send baked goods to them and they don't care how much butter is in a cake. They're too busy running around the woods and torching calories at an inhuman rate. I've considered playing paintball for these calorie-burning benefits alone... but then there's that whole dodging paintballs thing and well, I'd rather limit myself to that one piece of cake.

There is a lot of butter in this cake. Like, a lot. But this is also the best lemon cake I've tasted and it will fill your home with an aroma so alluring you'll be tempted to sit next to the oven while it bakes. Or do a happy dance, clapping your hands in anticipation of glazing this bad boy with lemon glaze. That's right, more lemon flavor. Love it.

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10 Books to Check Out this Summer

Ari — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 19:24:19 +0000

Few things give me more summertime pleasure than sitting outside and reading a good book with a cup of spiced tea. Often I turn to my favorite chai latte concentrate for a quick fix, but if I have a bit of extra time I enjoy brewing my own spiced cup o' relaxation. It's not chai but it is equally delicious and a cinch to make. All you need is milk, honey, black tea and a handful of spices - whole cloves, a cinnamon stick and black peppercorns. Garnish with an extra cinnamon stick and serve it hot or pour into a tall glass filled with ice cubes for warm weather refreshment.

I used to spend hours stretched out in the shade with a book and a cup of tea, but these days I'm content to read a few pages and sip my tea while the baby rolls around on his blanket and prepares to launch himself at the dog. He can't crawl yet but when he gets the hang of it Oreo better watch out!

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Homemade “Hot Pockets”

Ari — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 14:31:18 +0000

Originally I was going to call the recipe in this post "Baked Veggie Sandwiches with Mozzarella," but then I shared the photo on Facebook and my friend David was all "HOT POCKETS!!" And I was like, "Hey, they are hot pockets!" Except better, of course, because homemade food always beats the frozen food aisle at the grocery store.

These "hot pockets" came about by revisiting a 2007 post about Baked Sandwich Surprise, which was essentially a long loaf of bread stuffed with sauteed veggies and mozzarella cheese. I was looking for something to take to work for lunch this week and this was the perfect solution - except I changed the recipe/process and make four individual sandwiches instead of a giant loaf. I couldn't resist.

I'm kind of a tinker-er in the kitchen.

Each golden brown “hot pocket” is stuffed with mozzarella, a dash of Parmesan and sauteed portabella mushrooms, spinach, red onion, pine nuts and zucchini. I seasoned the mixture with thyme and sage, but the beauty of this recipe is that you can really use whatever veggies and herbs you want. And I love how each pocket is a lunch unto itself. You don’t have to slice off a hunk ‘o sandwich in the morning but can simply toss a pocket into your lunch bag. Plus you can eat these one-handed – maybe dipping the pocket in marinara sauce between bites.

I’m a big fan of food you can eat with your hands. Aren’t you?

Get the recipe at BakingandBooks.com.

Whole Wheat Banana Maple Muffins

Ari — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:56:46 +0000

This recipe for Whole Wheat Banana Maple Muffins was brought about by two things: my love for baked goods with coffee in the morning, and my desire to lose the remainder of my baby weight. Two seemingly conflicting desires - unless you test tons of healthy recipes, then scrap them all and come up with your own recipe.

What kinds of recipes did I try? Recipes for bland bran muffins that were described as "too good to be true" in the recipe intro. Quinoa muffins, which weren't half bad but didn't impress me either. Plain whole wheat muffins that were just "eh."

I was after was a healthy muffin recipe that did not taste healthy. Know what I mean? I wanted something sinful without the sin. And though I could have cheated by making one of those deliciously sugar-laden muffin recipes that are so easy to come by, part of my weight loss plan involves limiting myself to one decadent sweet-tooth adventure a month. In May I used my allotment on a chocolate chip cookie affogato (so worth it). This month I'm saving up for a devils food cake with peanut butter frosting, which I plan to make for the hubs on Father's Day.

I did allow myself one loop-hole in this plan: I can bake to my heart's content so long as what I'm making is healthy and low calorie. Needless to say, it has to be scrumptious too or why bother?

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Chocolate Chip Cookie Affogato

Ari — Thu, 20 May 2010 16:10:17 +0000

Some recipes are so simple that I wonder whether I can really count them in a blog post. This applies to the recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookie Affogato, but in this case the results are so delectable that there was no question: I had to share. Because frankly, if you like chocolate chip cookies, whipped cream, ice cream and coffee the desire to make a glass (or bowl) of this is going to haunt you until you give in to the decadence.

You're welcome.

I tweeted about making this yesterday and all but one of the replies I received went something like: "Affo-what?" So, to briefly explain: "affogato" is Italian for "drowned" and the traditional version is simply vanilla ice cream or gelato doused with a hot shot of espresso. It's not something that shows up often in the states (at least, not in my neck of the woods) but it really should.

Although the time-honored Italian version is delightful I couldn't leave well enough alone and decided to add broken bits of chewy chocolate chip cookies, whipped cream and dark chocolate shavings to the mix. I also swapped vanilla ice cream for chocolate ice cream and since I don't have an espresso machine went with strong coffee, brewed French press style, instead. The results? Marvelous....

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Mini Sugar-Topped Monkey Breads (Plus Book Giveaway)

Ari — Mon, 17 May 2010 18:08:03 +0000

Hello friends! It’s been a while hasn’t it? I’m sorry. I had to figure some things out… Let me explain. I always thought I kept “blog life” and “real life” pretty separate. That this site was just about food. Then I had a baby – and no one in my family called or wrote or visited. [...]

Chocolate Almond Cafe Au Lait

Ari — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 20:01:47 +0000

One of life’s great ironies is that just when you need coffee the most, you’re too tired to make it. Like when you’re a new parent and sleeping no more than 45 minutes at a time… that is when you need coffee! But I tried it once and ended up putting the milk away in [...]

Maple Scones, A Taste of Vermont

Ari — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:44:05 +0000

I love Vermont. Of all the places I’ve visited in my lifetime, Vermont is the place that I think about on hectic afternoons, when I fantasize about my life ten years from now. I love its rustic solitude, with towns cradled between towering mountains. I love how eloquently it showcases the vibrant colors of Fall… [...]

Strawberry Coffeecake with Cinnamon Crunch Topping

Ari — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:23:03 +0000

I had myself a bit of a baking bonanza this afternoon, making not one, but two goodies in the kitchen. I didn’t plan to do so much baking, but I was whipping up a batch of to-die-for blueberry muffins (photo/recipe coming soon) and had a bunch of leftover topping. What to do? Well I could [...]

Plain Jane Sweet Chocolate Rolls with Diced Apricots and Raisins

Ari — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 18:11:59 +0000

Although I haven’t posted in about a month, believe it or not my days have been filled with foodie thoughts. I’ve been leafing through old issues of Saveur, bookmarking recipes in Everyday Food, and spending far more time than is healthy ogling things in my newest cookbooks: Savory Baking and Rustic Fruit Desserts. But when [...]