sweets

I’ve been candid about my love-hate with traditional American fruit pies before. Maybe my classic French training is to blame or perhaps it’s my fondness for French food generally. Whatever the reason, my preference is for a fresh fruit tart such as this strawberry tart. And for those who feel that making a homemade pie […]

Before leaving NY, we lived in Brooklyn, Cobble Hill to be exact, on a quaint treelined street called Clinton.  It was a lovely old Italian area filled with old-school butchers, bakeries, lovely people, and Italian rainbow cookies. Not your typical “cookie” more cake-like, but something I love and have fond memories of.  Brightly colored, almond-based […]

Oh my, do I love chocolate crinkle cookies. I’m late to the crinkle game I will say, it was years before I finally discovered how truly delicious these cookies are. While I still go salty over sweet, I am obsessed with cookies, and I don’t discriminate. My cookie preference really just depends on my mood. […]

My family’s love of Din Tai Fung is no secret. I did a copycat recipe of their chilled cucumber salad (a true favorite) and to this day, this simple dish, remains one of my most viewed blog posts. I think that says something. Din Tai Fung has a cult-like following and for good reason. Their soup […]

I’ve always loved scones, or at least as long as I can remember. I think my love of them stems from the fact that they are often not overly sweet. Typically made with fruit, these simple pastries also go well with a great cup of coffee. And I do love my coffee. Scones are actually […]

I have always loved bananas.  As a kid, I preferred them over apples. Straight-up, on top of cereal, with ice cream, you name it, I’m a fan. Like banana bread, frosted banana cake was a treat and something I always looked forward to having. Some things never change. This is one of my all-time favorite […]

The world is a better place because of donuts. Seriously, it’s true. Donuts make people happy, myself included. Birthday mornings in my house are celebrated with donuts, it’s just something we’ve always done. At 13 and 11, we still have not stopped. I posted a recipe for baked cinnamon sugar donuts last year, I thought […]

There comes a time every winter when I start thinking of summer. What can I say, I don’t love the cold, well, unless I’m skiing, but that’s a different story. Typically in the February/March timeframe I start to crave summer foods. Fresh-picked strawberries, juicy vine tomatoes, grilled corn, and inevitably, my favorite summertime sweet treat, […]

Pot de crème is a simple baked custard I have blogged about before.  Last time it was a classic chocolate pot de creme, an old favorite, this time I’m talking rich creamy butterscotch. Both of my pot de creme are delicious, but very different. Butterscotch has always fascinated me. I have loved the flavor since […]

Chocolate pecan turtles are one of my favorite chocolate treats. My association with turtles goes way back. My dad loved them and used to get them when we went skiing in Colorado. As a young kid, I almost always opted for the larger sweet treat at the chocolate shop (a caramel apple), but my dad […]

I love muffins. Muffins and scones actually, they are the perfect accompaniment to morning coffee. But I’m picky, with muffins especially. With muffins, I prefer a standard-sized one, not the super-sized caloric bomb ones that make you feel like you’re eating three muffins in one sitting. I want my muffins soft, moist, flavorful and bursting […]

My family knows it, I am obsessed with almond butter. I buy it constantly and am always putting it into things I make. I have been wanting to make my own almond butter for some time, so this was a fun recipe to develop. I have had so many kinds of almond butter over the […]

You survived the holiday season but you have one more celebration to come. But this one is easier. Much easier. New Year’s Eve is a bit more celebrated than New Year’s Day. And let’s call New Year’s Day what it is: a recovery day for the night before. But New Year’s Eve is a fun, […]

Apparently, Christmas jam is a thing. As a chef and a food blogger, I had no clue. This is a fine example of the food world today, chances are, the idea (recipe) is out there long before you came up with the recipe, and the only hope is you make it better. Jam is something […]

Linzer cookies, a traditional Austrian Christmas cookie, are one of my all-time favorite cookies. With their delicate nutty shortbread-style crust and jam filling, what’s not to love? Slightly more involved to make than the average drop or slice-and-bake cookie, I think that these are well worth the effort. They are lovely to look at and […]