Rainbow Sprinkle Bread with Birthday Cake Crumb Topping

I know I’m supposed to be telling you more about what people bake in Italy, but two things are happening this week: 1) I’m leaving for a week for a family wedding in Israel, which means a) cramming in as many baking projects as possible before I go and b) procrastinating when I should be […]

Rome: Ciambelline al Vino with Dipping Chocolate

There’s a very good reason why Rome is so storied and romanticized and revered. It deserves it. I first visited Rome on an organized bus tour with my mom in 1999, then with a girlfriend a few months later while studying abroad in Paris in college. Those visits were very short, but I instantly knew […]

Baked Sunday Mornings: Peppermint Chocolate Chip Meringues

Guys, I did it. Baked Sunday Mornings is making our very last recipe from Baked Occasions, and I have baked every single one; this is the first cookbook that I have ever baked through 100%. I feel such a fondness for this book, because our group was with it from the very beginning as recipe testers […]

Puglia: Spicy Pepper & Herb Taralli

For most people, visiting Italy means Rome, Florence, Venice, maybe Milan, right? Let’s throw in Bologna or Pisa if you wanna get real fancy. But how many tourists make it to the southern part of the Boot? Destinations like Napoli, the Amalfi Coast, and even Sicily might be on the list after hitting the main handful of hotspots; but an […]

Baked Sunday Mornings: Lebkuchen

Orange. Lemon. Coriander. Ginger. Cocoa. Rum. Honey. Almonds. Many people would say all yummy things, yes? But have you ever put them all into one recipe? Specifically, a cookie recipe? Germany, YOU SO CRAZY. These German holiday cookies from Baked Occasions, called Lebkuchen, are the second-to-last recipe in the book for Baked Sunday Mornings. They include all these ingredients […]

White Chocolate Birthday Shortbread Bars

I’m kind of on a shortbread bender right now, guys. Ever since I started playing around with variations on Ovenly‘s Buttery Shortbread recipe, it’s all I can think about– work? sleep? gym? NO– only shortbread. And I’m just fine going about my day believing this is normal, adaptive, healthy behavior– please don’t burst my bubble. […]

Baked Sunday Mornings: Chocolate Pop Tarts with Peanut Butter & Jam Filling

Some weeks I feel like I’m really progressing in my baking and making important strides in understanding baking chemistry… This was not one of those weeks. Between going back to work after having the summer off, ruining a batch of homemade puff pastry, and being involved in several Italian dessert projects for my upcoming Italy […]

Baked Sunday Mornings: Peanut Butter Blossoms

I’ll admit it– I am a chocolate snob. And I’m perfectly fine with that. If I’m eating chocolate out of hand, it’s definitely going to be a good quality bar or truffle or candy. And for baking? It’s going to be Guittard, TCHO, or Valrhona, because the quality of your chocolate makes a big difference […]

Salted Chocolate Sesame Rice Crispy Treats

Snap-Crackle-Pop will never be the same. I, like so many other dutiful American bakers, made my rice crispy treats using the recipe on the Rice Krispies cereal box, never questioning whether there were better marshmallow-laced specimens out there. But then, people like Deb Perelman and Joanne Chang taught me that rice crispy treats could be […]

Baked Sunday Mornings: Exceedingly Chocolaty Crinkles

Baked Sunday Mornings is celebrating Christmas in July… and I like it. We’re embarking on our last 5 recipes from Baked Occasions, which is really hard to believe! Most of our remaining recipes are holiday cookies, and Exceedingly Chocolaty Crinkles are among my favorites, as this was one of the recipes that I tested when our blogger group did […]