As I write this, the remains of Hurricane Nicole are sweeping past. Rain and wind have brought down almost all of the remaining leaves. We are moving into the cold, grey days of November. I love Fall. It is my favorite season. The brilliant colors and warm days move swiftly to dark, cozy, winter nights. I light MacIntosh scented candles and breath in the remembered scent of my childhood and a nearby orchard. And I indulge myself with apple fritters, hot from the fryer whenever possible. Unfortunately this year the season slipped by me without a visit to a Pick-Your-Own Apple ...
Baking
CARROT CAKE
Those who know me well will certainly have heard this story before. It was my first real life lesson, and it has served me well for many years. I went to boarding school when I was fifteen. We lived in a row of New England clapboard houses on Main Street, 20 girls or so in a house. Each house had a living room and a kitchen which were available to use. Of course, our meals were all served in a Dining Hall, so the kitchens were mostly used for baking gifts and birthday cakes and cookies for bake sales. Somewhere in there I came across a carrot cake recipe. I don’t honestly ...
CARDAMOM SPICED CRANBERRY APPLE BREAD
Did anyone else notice that cranberries were late getting to the market this year? I love cranberries, especially in breakfast quick bread. Usually they appear right about the beginning of October, piled high in the produce aisles. This year…nowhere to be found. Checking Google, sure enough, there is a potential cranberry shortage this year. So when you see them, grab a few extra bags and freeze them for the holidays. Once I had my cranberries I went right to work, marrying the flavors of apple and cranberry with cardamom. Cardamom, like cinnamon and nutmeg, is a warm spice. It ...
EASY CORNBREAD. THE CORNBREAD DILEMMA SOLVED.
Why is it so hard to make good cornbread? This easy cornbread recipe will deliver moist and delicious cornbread every time! I’ve had good cornbread, I’ve had bad cornbread and I’ve had great cornbread. I’ve eaten cornbread in restaurants and at home. I’ve made cornbread from scratch and tried almost every box mix out there. I’ve added ingredients and changed proportions. Almost always the cornbread is great when it comes hot out of the oven. But by the next day, pretty much no one is going back for leftovers. I think it is because the very thing that makes cornbread “bread” is ...
CARAMEL PUMPKIN BLONDIES
Last week my daughter sent me a picture of some caramel sea salt chips she found in Trader Joe’s. She knew they were right in my sweet spot (pun intended!) I am a caramel lover. I will pick it over chocolate any day. Add a little salt and that’s perfection. And of course, I did have a good use for these wonderful morsels of goodness. When we owned The Carolina Bed & Breakfast in Asheville, NC, I used to make some killer pumpkin blondies for our guests. The recipe included both white chocolate and butterscotch chips which melted down into the batter and formed a ...
CHANGING SEASONS WITH FRESH FIG CAKE AND FIG JAM
This lovely, not-too-sweet-cake is inspired by my new home, and the fig tree growing next to my back porch. It's not a fancy cake, there is no icing to make or spread. The flavor comes from fresh figs. Some are chopped and added to the batter and the remainder are cooked down into a light jam and spread between the layers. The result is a moist, light cake which is slightly remniscent of a Fig Newton in taste (although not in consistancy). September is almost over and Fall is upon us. While I miss the already cold nights of my home in the mountains, there is much to learn and enjoy ...
COOKING ON THE FLY: TOMATO AND ZUCCHINI GALETTE
Tomato and Zucchin Galette in its simplest version: commercial pie crust and a few ingredients from your pantry come together to create a rustic pie rich in the flavors of summer. I’ve been busy. I am not kidding about that. In the space of one month Rick and I are selling a house, buying a house, finishing building a house and renting a house. It wasn’t meant to happen this way. These things were not supposed to all come together at the same time. Because they have, life has been a mad dash to get everything ready. We have been masters at planning: our days are scripted, our ...
Honey Roasted Almond and Fresh Apricot Bars
Using the contents of my cupboard I created these Honey Roasted Almond and Fresh Apricot Bars as a final treat for a picnic in the park. The honey almonds add some sweet and salt to the flavor, the apricots are a bright pop of fruit and the bottom crust gives a buttery finish to each bite. It has been a crazy spring! In March, we took our first family trip since returning from Anguilla in March of 2020. Later, in the last week of May, we got married, went on a short honeymoon, came back, and bought a house in Charlotte—all in the space of ONE week! And then life slowed down ...
THE BEST STRAWBERRY PANCAKE I EVER MADE
What makes a pancake a pancake? Is it how it is cooked? The ingredients? When you eat it? Does it matter? This delicious “pancake” may or may not meet the common definition of a pancake, but it will knock your socks off for its delicious strawberry filled flavor, the slightly crunchy top, and the soft, pillowy interior. As a former Bed & Breakfast owner, I have cooked a lot of breakfasts in my life but it’s been a while since I made a dish that got the reception this one did at our Easter Brunch. And since I told you I would share any recipe I thought worth your time, I could ...
BANANA BREAD LIKE MAMA USED TO MAKE
It has taken me some time, and I have eaten a lot of banana bread, but I have finally come up with a recipe that produces a loaf like my mother used to make. It is moist and rich with the flavor of banana, studded with good sized chunks of apricot and a faint bite from pecans. It was a childhood treat and a grown-up’s memory until my sister told me she thought the recipe came from the Joy of Cooking. My mother’s edition of The Joy Cooking would have been a very old one. The original was published in 1931 and, while my mother may not have had the first edition, she would ...
