Merveilles for Christmas
My grandmother, Nova Metzger Jacobs, routinely made these cookies at Christmas-time, and I, as a child, routinely ate too many of them. They are called Merveilles (French for "miracle"), and they are...
View ArticleLemon and Rose Madeleines
Apparently I'm on a French dessert kick. Last week, I deep-fried a lovely batch of Merveilles. And yesterday, I made a dozen Madeleines. Who wants to taste these little shell-shaped cakes? Madeleines...
View ArticleFabulous Almond Butter Cookies (GF)
I made these cookies the other day, and thought they were fabulous in every way: tender-crisp, beautifully-perfumed, and subtly-sweet. They are also gluten-free, and a cinch to make! Where to find...
View ArticleKevin’s Lemon and Rose Cake
Today, because it's bitterly cold here, and also because my driveway has turned into a skating rink, I thought I should make something bright and sunny to eat. And what could be cheerier than a...
View ArticleChocolate Pots De Crème (GF)
This week, because Saturday is Valentine's Day, and because we can not possibly celebrate Cupid's arrow without something rich and wonderful, I whipped up some rich and wonderful Chocolate Pots de...
View ArticlePetit Fours with White Chocolate Glaze
Why do I make lots of 19th-century desserts? Because the ghosts who inhabit my house demand them. Today, for instance, Sarah Wild (1793-1872) requested little cakes, or Petit Fours, for Afternoon Tea....
View ArticleRhubarb Streusel Puffs!
Yesterday, if only to satisfy my curiosity, I grabbed a sheet of (store-bought) puff pastry, and cut it into quarters. Then I topped each quarter with a handful of rhubarb and some oats, brown sugar,...
View ArticleFrench Blueberry Galette
Sweet, juicy blueberries. Zippy lemon zest. Flaky French pastry dough. Can you blame me for falling in love with this gorgeous galette? My step-by-step recipe: A brief note: After I made the galette, I...
View ArticleA Fabulous Fruit Pizza
I made this red, white, and blue dessert "pizza" the other day. It's a giant homemade sugar cookie, dressed to the nines with lemony cream cheese frosting and colorful fruit. It tastes like...
View ArticleStrawberry Turnovers
Today, because strawberries are in season, and because I had some puff pastry in the freezer, I made a great big batch of... Chicken Cacciatore. Just kidding! I made some super-simple Strawberry...
View ArticleEasy Lavender Shortbread Cookies
Yesterday, I clipped several blossoms from my lavender plants. Then I added the perfumed petals to a standard, three-ingredient shortbread dough. The result of this mad experiment? Pure deliciousness!...
View ArticleChocolate Chunk Cookies with Fresh Mint
Oh, the things I do for you. On Monday, I threw bittersweet chocolate chunks and fresh, chopped mint leaves into some homemade cookie dough. The result? Cool, minty, chocolate chunk cookies! These...
View ArticlePerfect Peach Pie
My mother made this peachy bliss every summer when I was a kid. It's a simple dessert -- just peaches, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg, all nestled between two layers of fabulously-flaky French pastry...
View ArticleHow I Make a Lattice (Woven) Pie Crust
If you think a lattice crust is beyond your culinary skill, I have some terrific news for you. This woven design -- which always looks terribly chic on a fruit pie -- is a cinch to achieve! As proof,...
View ArticlePeanut Butter Cookies! (GF)
Yesterday, out of the blue, I developed a sudden desire to eat peanut butter cookies. To fight the temptation, I first vacuumed the entrance hall. Then I went for a swim. Then I took Lily the Beagle...
View ArticlePuff Pastry Apple Blossoms
This week, to celebrate the start of apple season, I made some scrumptious little desserts called "Apple Blossoms." The flower petals are thinly-sliced apples, arranged on strips of store-bought puff...
View ArticleMy Best Sweet Potato Pie
I wasn't supposed to have a sweet potato-harvest this year. Not after the crop's leaves were devoured by a woodchuck in early August. So imagine my surprise when Margarita, my garden helper, dug...
View ArticleRustic Apple Cake
I made this simple dessert the other day, and then promptly inhaled almost all of it. What a perfect autumn cake! It's rich and buttery, and deliriously-scented with cinnamon, lemon, and nutmeg. It's...
View ArticleMy Favorite Pumpkin Bread
My mother baked this pumpkin bliss every autumn during my "growning-up" years. What a scandalous treat! It's moist, sweet, and definitely delicious. But then, what else would you expect from a batter...
View ArticleGlazed Orange Tart
I made this unusual tart for a small brunch party last weekend, and it was devoured -- with gusto -- in a flash. Not to worry -- I made the same tart this morning, so that you could taste it, too! The...
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