Category — Dessert + Sweet Recipes

I recently finished watching all three seasons of Justified–a somewhat silly TV show on the FX network set in Kentucky that’s about a US marshal and a whole bunch of lowlife hillbilly types who sell Oxycontin and shoot each other with sawed off shotguns. It’s not terribly flattering to Kentuckians in general, but it’s an entertaining show, and besides Timothy Olyphant is so darn good-looking that I’d probably watch a show about him watching paint dry. In the course of the  show, the characters mention jam cake a few times. After the first mention I was curious, the second mention intrigued, and by the third mention, I knew I had to look into this jam cake thing once and for all. Because JAM. And CAKE. Yes please.

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I haven’t blogged in awhile because I’ve been working on another project – having a baby! Yesterday he was three weeks old and things are normalizing pretty quickly, so I was able to find time to make this toffee for a Passover Seder we were invited to last night… and baby even slept well enough for me to write up the recipe and share it.

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This might be the perfect chocolate cake recipe – deep and rich, not too sweet, not at all dry, and sturdy enough to transport easily. The cream cheese icing gives it the perfect boost of sweetness. And no, it doesn’t taste at all like Guinness, but I think the combination of melted butter, sour cream, and beer add to the moist crumb. I brought it to a dinner party and it was a huge hit all around. You can get the recipe from Simply Recipes here.

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I don’t know about you, but I’m drowning in Girl Scout Cookies right now. Having been a former scout, I can’t say no to the earnest girls who ask me to buy their cookies–so I have ended up with an embarrassing number of boxes. Imagining creative ways to use them (other than just eating them, of course) led me to make this ice cream cake – with 2 boxes of Samoas, dulce de leche and vanilla ice creams, and a little bit of chocolate ganache and coconut on top for good measure.

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Have I mentioned that one of my favorite places in the entire world is Palm Springs, California? I love it so much, I got married there. Not only does it offer breathtaking desert landscapes and mid-century modern marvels, it’s also home to a very specific regional culinary delight: the date shake.

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This recipe has been billed as “the only shortbread recipe you’ll ever need” and I couldn’t agree more. The secret to this Scottish-style shortbread is kind of weird- it’s cornstarch. Lots and lots of cornstarch. And, naturally, lots of butter. But it’s absolutely the best shortbread recipe I’ve tried to date.

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What do you do when you have leftover egg yolks AND a whole bag of way-too-sour clementines? Why, you spend the afternoon making clementine curd, naturally. It’s a little sweet, a little tangy, a little creamy, and a lot addictive. Put it on your morning toast or pancakes, fill a thumbprint cookie or a tart shell, or… just eat it with a spoon.

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I saw a recipe for rainbow fudge on Pinterest recently, and knew I had to make it. (For a full-fledged adult in her mid-30s, it turns out I’m pretty into rainbows.) But, I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t have a couple of major issues with the original recipe… so I had to do it my own way.

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It has been a couple of weeks since I’ve posted, but I have great excuses up the wazoo. Our heating system got entirely redone so I had no computer for over a week. I had to throw three parties over the last 10 days AND take a trip to Scottsdale. On top of that, I am creating a life right now, so I think it’s totally OK to slack off around here. Another thing keeping me busy is that I’ve made this recipe about 5 times recently.

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I have been on the hunt for a chocolate cookie that’s crispy on the outside and chewy-gooey-fudgy on the inside. I’ve tried quite a few recipes, but this one is the best I’ve found - I love the crisp, crackly outside that yields to a soft center. All you need is a tall glass of milk.

What’s extra great is that there is no flour nor butter in them, just egg whites for binding, so they are practically health food. (OK technically it would be more accurate to say they are practically candy, since the bulk is made up of sugar and chocolate.)

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