Smart & Easy, And Delicious Recipes For Every Day!
How I Found My Favorite Meringues with Citrus Curd I remember the afternoon I first decided to try meringues with citrus curd; the sun was slanting through the kitchen window and the house smelled faintly of orange zest. I was chasing that perfect balance of crunchy, sweet meringue and bright, silky curd, the kind of…
How I Found the Fresh Lemon Tiramisu The first time I made Fresh Lemon Tiramisu, it was on a whim for a spring picnic when the air smelled like cut grass and wet pavement after rain. I wanted something bright, clean, and a little boozy but not heavy the way coffee tiramisu can be. Over…
The first time I made Mini Lemon Cakes With Lavender Glaze I still remember the first time I made these Mini Lemon Cakes With Lavender Glaze for a neighborhood picnic. The park smelled like cut grass and fried onions while my little tray of cakes smelled like sunshine and something floral and unexpected. I’d tweaked…
How I First Fell for This Lemon Blueberry Cake The first time I made Lemon Blueberry Cake I was trying to chase down a sunshiny flavor that would cut through a week of heavy soups and stews. The kitchen filled with that lemony perfume as soon as the batter hit the oven, and I remember…
The First Time I Made It I remember the afternoon I decided to try Mango Mousse Cake for the first time: sunlight pooling on the counter, the kitchen smelling faintly of butter and sugar, and a stack of mangoes that had ripened faster than I expected. I was trying to impress a friend who always…
A cake that bursts into the room I have this silly habit of bringing desserts to houses where the conversation is already halfway to dessert, as if cake can finish a thought. The Strawberry Earthquake Cake is my favorite kind of showstopper because it looks fancy but really asks for very little fuss. I first…
A cake that stole my heart I still remember the first time I made what I now call Triple Matilda Chocolate Cake; it was a rainy Sunday and the smell of chocolate filled the house so completely that my neighbor stuck her head in the door. That kind of moment is why I keep this…
That First Time I Made These I have a memory of standing in my tiny kitchen on a rainy afternoon, the windows fogged up and a mug of tea cooling on the counter, when I decided I needed something minty, chocolaty, and just a little bit virtuous. I’d been experimenting with variations of protein-packed snacks—one…
The afternoon I fell for these I still remember the first time I made what I now call Gourmet Brownie Cookies. It was one of those gray afternoons where baking felt like the only antidote to a long week. A friend brought over a plate of warm treats and I kept calling them cookies, then…
How I Came to Love Almond Cake I still remember the first time I baked what I now call my go-to Almond Cake. It was a rainy Saturday and the house smelled like toasted nuts and vanilla by the time the oven dinged. That memory lives in the texture of this cake: tender crumb, a…