When I first described the concept of this mango carrot cake French toast casserole to my mom, she replied, “You’re just trying to have dessert for breakfast, aren’t you?” She knows me so well. ...
walnuts
Easy Spiced Nuts
Confession: I feel a little silly adding “easy” to this recipe title, because I’m of the opinion that if you’re making spiced nuts that are anything but easy, you’re probably doing it wrong. But having a recipe title with only two words seemed weirdly skimpy to me, so here you have it: “easy spiced nuts”! ...
Cranberry Orange Nut Bread
Now that Thanksgiving is over, who else is ready to never cook again?! Okay, okay, I would miss being in the kitchen if I never set foot in it again, but I could certainly use a few days off right about now. To accommodate various schedules, we had Thanksgiving dinner with two different groups on two separate days this past weekend; with contributing several dishes to each dinner, whipping up ...
Pumpkin Carrot Cake Muffins
Apparently, I missed the memo that carrot cake is a springtime thing. My first carrot cake recipe appeared in the summer and I shared an updated version this past winter, so it seems only fitting that I should once again post about carrot cake in fall, the last of the carrot cake off-seasons. This recipe, however, is totally outfitted for fall: these are pumpkin carrot cake muffins! ...
Campanelle with Basil Walnut Pesto and Roasted Broccoli
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m feeling a bit rough around the edges after this holiday weekend. While we still technically have another week or two of summer, school is now back in session, the campus is flooded with undergraduates again, and I’m fairly certain I have never before started an academic year feeling this haggard and un-refreshed. It’s like that feeling when it’s ...
Creamy White Bean Pasta Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette
When I was a writing instructor, I used to caution my students against using sweeping or obvious generalizations to start their papers (“Since the beginning of time…” “Mankind has always…”), but that is exactly what I’m about to do: Sometimes, life gets unexpectedly hectic. ...
Apple Spice Cake
I’m sure some of you are thinking, “Apple cake?! But it’s not fall anymore!” Well, as much as I love to feature seasonal foods, sometimes I’m inexplicably in the mood for something…unseasonal. Does that ever happen to you? Like, it’s the middle of July and you think to yourself, “You know, I could really go for some pumpkin bread right about now!”? Luckily, apples are one of the few fruits that ...
Cranberry Apple Crisp
My mom has been making apple crisp for as long as I can remember. We didn’t have it very often, but enough for it to make an impression on my brother and me as small kids. Once when my mom was baking an apple crisp, my brother (probably no more than four or five) declared, “I love Uncle Chris!” My mom was touched to hear him express his affection for her brother but a little confused about ...
Pumpkin Zucchini Muffins
There are times when I really just need to get into the kitchen and bake something. It helps me take my mind off other, more stressful things, and it’s always nice to fill the apartment with warm, comforting smells of cinnamon and chocolate, you know? ...
Walnut & Chicken Salad with Blueberry Vinaigrette
I have a problem. I’m obsessed with pick-your-own-fruit orchards. First, I picked tart cherries in northern Michigan last month, and that was all fine and dandy and I limited myself to about six or seven pounds of cherries. Then, while visiting family in western New York last week, my aunt asked if I wanted to tag along with her to the blueberry fields, and I figured heck, why not? And so I picked ...