Christmas time is here...

This is the first of many recipes I will be posting for the holidays!

M&M Cookies:

Pre-Heat Oven to 350 degrees Farenheit

Part One:

-2 cups of flour

-1/2 teaspoon baking soda

-1/8 teaspoon salt

-Sift all these together in a bowl & set aside

Part Two:

-1 large egg

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-Whisk together in a small bowl & set aside

Part Three:

-1 cup (2 sticks) butter : softened

-1/2 cup of brown sugar : packed

-1/2 cup of cane sugar

-Cream the butter & sugars together.

Part Four:

-12 oz bag of holiday M&Ms

-After part three is creamed together slowly add part two, then add part one.

-Add the M&Ms and fold it all together.

-Scoop onto a baking sheet & bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.

Until next time...

Eat sweets & enjoy with a nice glass of milk!

London Calling...

After my amazing wedding we honeymooned in London!

We spent a fantastic week exploring, discovering, and eating our way through the city.

Today I will leave you with some of our food from the trip!

Enjoy the eye candy!

Get the ball rolling...

It is my dream to one day have my own little place.

A place where all things that I love are housed under one roof.

Lately, I feel lost.. I know what I want for my future but money always gets in the way.

My little, cozy bakery will happen, it will! When it does happen, I will be blogging the whole way.

I am just now getting settled into my new home. I am really starting to like this new city, I feel like I could see my business happen here. So, what's next? Spreading my name around town! Order cakes, pies, cookies, & other specialty desserts from me! Like them? Spread the word! With your help I can get my name out into the baking world in & around the KC area. In the next few weeks I am going to be working on price sheets & order forms for those of you out there with a sweet tooth!

Until next time...

Eat sweets & dream big!

>>Fast Forward

It's been over a year, wow!

My sincerest apologies for the long absence.

Let's play catch up...

I finished up that winter wedding cake I was talking about, I did a few other orders & experiments.

Come January, I got engaged and my focus shifted so that I could plan my wedding.

We got a new kitten & her name is Fig.

Got married in August & went on our honeymoon in London!

Shortly after our arrival back in the states, we packed up and moved across states & have settled in a new home!

A lot of other in betweens have happened & I'll definitely be posting several old experiments. Basically, that brings us to now... I am going to be blogging a lot more again. So, please check back regularly for updates & scrumptious recipes. Here's some eye candy:

This evening I made the most amazing cookies!

My Winter Amaretto Cookies & our tree is up...

...Love & Sweets

+much more to come

Autumn is just around the corner...

And I have found the perfect cookie for the season!

These cookies are jam packed full of different chocolates, cranberries, pecans, and vanilla bean. I baked these off a little larger than normal and they were fabulous!

The recipe is as follows:

My Autumn Cookies

-2 cups flour (unbleached, King Arthur)

-1 teaspoon baking soda

-1 teaspoon coarse salt

Sift all of these ingredients and set aside.

-1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter

-1 cup of light brown sugar

-1/2 cup of cane sugar

Cream these together until light & fluffy.

-1 egg

-1 egg yolk

-1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

-1 vanilla bean

Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds from the pod and whisk all these ingredients together.

-4 or 5 ounces of dark chocolate chunks

-4 or 5 ounces of white chocolate chunks

-About 1 cup of chopped pecans

-About 4 ounces of dried cranberries

You can switch up the ratio according to your liking but those are the measurements that I used.

Once all the butter & sugar is light and fluffy, slowly add in the egg and vanilla mixture. After that, add in the dry sifted ingredients little by little. Once everything is fully incorporated add in the chocolates, nuts, and cranberries. Scoop and roll cookies and sprinkle them with some cane sugar before baking for a nice shimmer effect after they are baked. Bake these for about 12-15 minutes at 325 degrees. Enjoy with a nice glass of milk or cup of tea!

These cookies were beautiful, delicious, and fabulously rich: All things that an autumn treat should be! I loved these so much that I think I will be giving these out as part of my Christmas treat baskets. Please do try these cookies out, you will not regret it!

Until next time...

Eat sweet things & enjoy the changing leaves!

I got my chilly, grey, September day...

I woke up to a fierce thunderstorm at about seven o'clock, this morning.

I have been craving Pakastani food so much, it's one of my comfort foods. Growing up one of my dearest friends was Pakastani and I spent almost all my time at her house. Her family became my family and I love them all so much. It's been years since I have spent quality time over at their house but I keep in touch and crave Mama Farzana's food all the time. Since it was rainy and I was all cozied up I thought why not attempt the impossible? I went out and acquired all sorts of ingredients. One of my favorite dishes other than samosas, pakora, and buryani is this keema pilau dish. It turned out really well and here's how I did it...

First:

-1 cup basmati rice

-2 cups of water

-1/2 teaspoon of oil

-1/2 teaspoon of salt

-Pinch of black pepper

Rinse the rice and drain, add oil & rice to to a sauce pot, stir around rice for a minute or two and then add the water. On medium heat allow the water to boil and then turn down to a low heat and cover the pot. Check it in about 15-20 minutes and it should be cooked! Set aside once it is done and keep it covered.

Second:

-1/2 cup of brown lentils (masoor)

-1 1/2 cups of water

Rinse the lentils and drain, add to a sauce pot. Add the water and allow to boil, then reduce the heat and cover the pot with a lid. Check them in about 25-30 minutes, they should be tender. These will need to be cooked for part three.

Third:

-1/3 yellow onion (finely chopped)

-2 cloves of garlic (minced)

-About 1/2 lb. of ground chuck

-1 teaspoon of salt

-2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

-1 small can of tomato paste (you will use about 2/3rds of the can)

-About 2 cups of water (+ or -)

- 1/2 teaspoon Garam Masala

-1 box of Shan: Bombay Biryani mix (you will use half of the packet)

*You should be able to find the Shan Mix at almost any International market or Indian specialty food store.

Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic. Add the butter to a pot, then add the onion and garlic and allow them to begin the caramelize, add the meat and salt. Cook the meat completely, then add the tomato paste and stir. Add in the garam masala and 1/2 of the Shan mix & stir. Add in the water & cooked lentils, stir. You may need more water, based on your desired consistency. Allow this to simmer, occasionally stirring. If your would like a thicker consistency bring to a boil & reduce.

Fourth:

Put some rice in a bowl and add your keema pilau to the top according to your liking and enjoy with a nice glass of water and some naan bread. This dish does have a nice kick to it, so be forewarned. Enjoy!

Until next time...

Cozy up with comfort foods & sweet things!