January is already winding down, and I am just now stopping to catch my breath and reflect on the whirlwind that the past few weeks have been. Leading up to the new year, I spent a lot of time prepping for a fresh start and making a detailed plan for how I would hit the...
Beignets, Revisited + COOKBOOK news!
Hi friends, It's been so long since I've written a new blog post to share with all of you and I'm dying to catch you up on all the excitement around here. So many things have happened--where do I begin? The very beginning, I suppose. WAY back in February 2013, I pressed 'publish' on my...
Ginger Sweet Tea
Spring has sprung, and warmer weather has finally appeared. The turn of the season has prompted a standing reservation with the lawn chairs in our yard. Our little lady has officially caught the love-of-outdoors bug and we are wholeheartedly supporting her in that discovery. This means lots of playing in the dirt, waddling around the...
Maple Cinnamon Chia Pudding
My daughter just turned ten months old, and she has more personality in her little finger than I could ever hope to have. She has an insatiable curiosity for the world, and a truly adventurous spirit when it comes to food. Introducing new foods to her is one of my very favorite things to do...
Meyer Lemon Ice Cream
Do you ever have those days where you just want to take one day to go back in time and be a kid again? Where your only care is playing, riding bicycles, doing hopscotch in the driveway, avoiding cleaning your room, and if you're really lucky- going to the ice cream shop? I’ve had a...
Homemade Nutella
Confession time. I consume a shameful amount of Nutella on a nearly daily basis. I could be a professional Nutella eater and would never get sick of the silky smooth, chocolat-ey, hazelnut-filled spread that is heavenly on just about everything. While living in Italy I got accustomed to the good stuff. Truth: Italian Nutella is...
Monkey Bread (From Scratch!)
Happy Spring! We’re fully enjoying our first days of sunshine and milder temperatures in Michigan this week. Sometimes we get overeager for the warmer days, or at least I know I do. I left the house the other morning without a jacket because it felt so warm out…only to realize once I was on the road...
Why I'm Celebrating Pi Day
So today is Pi Day. The nerdy holiday that encourages pie-eating in the name of mathematics. Sign me up. I don’t usually “celebrate” Pi Day, but this year we’re making a big deal of it for several reasons. First, I’ve been baking pies like a crazy lunatic for weeks in the name of research for...
Maple Pecan Blondies with Maple Butter Sauce
We are on a bit of a maple kick around here lately. After years of talking about it, we finally took advantage of the massive sugar maple trees in our yard and made our own maple syrup this year. We were lucky enough to catch the first big run of sap right on time, so we had more sap than...
Everything Bagel Dip
Wednesdays are my favorite day of the week. You see, Wednesdays are my special day with the little lady. We get to go to swimming lessons and Trader Joe's. It's our ritual that we both look forward to every week. It's our only outing of the week that doesn't feel like a chore. It's therapeutic...