Author Archive

  Celebrate the bounty of summer with this easy and delicious soup

Sometimes I add a splash of Monin Lavender Syrup to my drinks to give them a deeper lavender hue–just for fun!    ~Lavender Lemonade~ makes one half gallon         lavender syrup: ½ cup water ½ cup sugar 4 teaspoons dried culinary lavender     For Lemonade: 2 cups fresh lemon juice 4 […]

  I'm not much of a crab person, but I love these little shrimp cakes. I usually mix up the "crumb" part with some panko, pretzels, crackers or any bits of cereal I have left over to make up the bind and the crust. I have made these with GF crackers quite successfully too. They […]

  This rich and creamy soup makes a great starter or main course, served with a salad. The jalapeños can be seeded or not to achieve your desired level of heat. However you do that, the distinct flavor of the jalapeños shines through. I've guided this soup with some additional fried peppers and shallots.

  There's nothing more comforting than hot, home made rolls from the oven. But do you have time to make them? This recipe does have the typical bowl rise and shape rise time but you can make the dough ahead and bake the next day or make ahead, bake "blond" and then finish baking just […]

  I make Chicken Noodle Soup all the time but I snapped this up from a NYT post and was intrigued with the idea that using ground chicken instead of the usual shredded meat, such as the "easy" rotisserie short cut that we should all be using! The idea is that ground chicken will absorb […]

  So this recipe starts as a great salad that you don't have to worry about it sitting out at a picnic or gathering. Then magically, turn it into a chilly night soup with the leftovers! The touch of acidity with the lime juice is a perfect foil to the beans. I like to grill […]

This is my Go-To favorite Oatmeal Cookie recipe from way back when bakery days. Simple, always comes out right, a bit chewy and a bit crispy. Add raisins and nuts or don't. This is my favorite quick fruit cobbler topping also! Just chill the dough and crumble on top of any fruit filling and bake […]

  One of my top favorite pumpkin recipes. Make them in loaves or muffins, dessert or breakfast!

  This is a really nice glaze for flat cookies or cakes. It does dry semi hard but perhaps not hard enough for packaging. However, it is so much tastier than Meringue Powder, which dries rock hard. This glaze can be edited to take on most any flavor you can dream up.

  This is the frosting you want to use for detailed cookie decorating. It dries hard for packaging. It's not much on flavor but you can add different extracts. Keep it covered well when not using, pushing plastic wrap on the surface, as it dries rock hard when exposed to air.

This is my favorite basic sugar cookie dough recipe. It's easy, it's forgiving, it can be frozen and thawed. It can be rerolled. It's your holiday friend.