Just Baking

“A cup of coffee, friends, and a natter” rates in the top five of my feel-good list at the moment, so yesterday as I was getting food ready for dinner, Anne was coming around, I thought it would be nice to finish the meal with coffee and biscuits, slumped in a cosy corner, exchanging news. […]

Our stimulus check arrived in the mail yesterday. … exactly 10 minutes before our minivan decided it knew exactly what we should do with that money, and sputtered and died. Is that not Murphy’s Law or what? We bought our van new in 2003 and have not had to take it into the shop for […]

I love scones. They throw together quickly, bake in a snap, and almost always come out perfectly. Plus, they’re one of those go-to items for the day before grocery shopping day, when it seems like Mother Hubbard has one up on you — no eggs? No problem. No milk? No problem. You can be pretty […]

With very few exceptions, I’m a scratch baker. Occasionally I’ll use a brownie mix, or I’ll employ a cake mix as the base for a coffee cake, but by and large, I like to assemble my own batters from scratch.
I have a recipe for sugar cookies that I love. It produces beautiful, delicious cookies and performs consistently. […]

I am always warning my kids not to spill things . . . “Don’t spill that – chocolate stains.” So, many times I’ll get the question asked of me by my kiddos, “Mommy, does this stain?” I’m not sure if they are asking because they want permission to spill something, or if they are going to […]

I love granola. This recipe is awesome.  The best part about it is, you can add to it or change things about it. For example, you can use olive oil instead of canola oil, or you can add your favorite nuts or fruits to this.
I like to eat mine cold with fresh raspberries and milk. […]

Making bread from scratch requires a certain level of commitment. You have to measure ingredients, carefully; you have to get involved on an intimate, physical level, working up a sweat to knead the dough into a cooperative, elastic mass. You have to deal with living organisms that are picky about things like temperature and moisture […]

As someone who writes for a food blog and other food related sites, and someone who also loves to read food blogs, I can admit that often times I will make something simply because I believe it will be good food blog fodder. This train of thought often leads me to leave out those things […]

In the Pacific Northwest we have all the same months that you folks in the rest of the world have, right up to May. The month that follows May here in the PNW is more commonly known as June-uary. As I sit writing this, the rain is slanting down from dusty gray clouds […]

I love making lists. I think that is one of the reasons 43 Things is one of my favorite Web sites. It is all about making lists and marking things off. Sometimes (ok … every day), I’ll even add something to my daily sticky note lists just so I can mark it off!
After finally finishing […]