Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Bars

I was away last week on a yoga retreat in the beautiful Berkshires.  That meant eating vegetarian and super healthy the whole time.  For meals and snacks, thats fine with me on the overall.  But no dessert.  No butter, no fat, no chocolate.  I finally escaped at one point and found myself a buttery, nut-filled, [...]

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Summer Fruit Tart

Finally, it is feeling like summer here.  We have actually had a  week in the 70’s with some sun here in the Northeast.  Some times I think I’m crazy for enduring this crazy weather.  I went to a Red Sox game two weeks ago wearing a winter coat and hat.  And I was still cold.  [...]

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Budding Powdered Sugar Pound Cakes

Are these not adorable?  My best friend gave me this cute flower silicone pan for making cupcakes.  I love how there are three different shapes.   Even though, the cakes lose some of the pan’s details, I still think they are really cute and fun.  I made a lemon pound cake, which was lighter than other [...]

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The Best Blondies Ever

I have a sweet tooth.  Big time.  Some might say it’s a problem or possibly even an addiction.  But I just think that I’m passionate about sweets, especially good sweets (I don’t want to be wasting those calories on just any sugar-filled baked good!)  So when I get a sugar/chocolate craving, I need something that [...]

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Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

I’ve never baked with rhubarb.  But I spotted some at the grocery store and I felt inspired.  Why not try something new?  And what better way to eat rhubarb as accompanied by ripe strawberries and baked with a delicious crumbly topping?  Trust me, there is no better way.  This dessert was amazing.  I embarrassed myself [...]

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Strawberry Panzanella (Crunchy, Caramelized, Strawberry Shortcake)

We were having dinner guests and I wanted to celebrate the first beautiful sun-filled weekends we’ve had around here.  That meant some kind of dessert with strawberries.  I saw this Strawberry Panzanella recipe on 101 Cookbooks this week and was intrigued.  I’ve made traditional panzanella, a bread salad, with tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and onions but [...]

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Raspberry Lemon Pop-Tarts

I first thought of this idea for homemade pop-tarts when I was putting together a bunch of care packages for college kids.  I wanted to do something homemade and special but brownies and cookies seemed so ordinary.  Pop-tarts feel vintage and funky to me, especially ones that are made from scratch.  
These are so easy – [...]

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Palmiers (Elephant Ears)

 
 

So these appear complicated and like something you might find in a French patisserie – but have no fear – they are so absolutely simple!  Two ingredients.  That’s it.  All I needed to buy for this recipe was puff pastry and the cane sugar was already in my kitchen. 
 
This is a simple but beautiful cookie [...]

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Matzo Crack

So this stuff is called matzo crack for two reasons: 
1.  You bake it in big sheets and then crack it into small pieces. 
2.  It’s highly addictive.
Number 2 is where the problem comes in.  I love sugar.  It is my crack.  I would consume it all the time if I’m not careful (I’m still [...]

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Strange but Amazing Black Bean Brownies

 

Try not to freak out.  I know it’s black beans in your brownies and a lot of them.  But think of how moist they make the brownies and all the protein added, replacing all the flour. So if you have a few cans of black beans hanging around, give this recipe a whirl, I swear that [...]

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