Daring Bakers: Povitica

Povitica, pronounced po-va-teet-sa, is a popular holiday dessert bread, much like a nut roll, served in Eastern Europe. Depending on what country you are in, the name and filling will vary; however, they all share the common thread of tradition and familial pride. Secret family recipes and techniques have been passed down through generations. Epic battles have been waged over proper rolling techniques (okay, not really). How have I never heard of this sweet and swirly bread?

Sunday Baked: Googly-Eyed Chocolate Mint Thumbprint Cookies

Hmmm...What to do? What to do? How do I make this week's selection from Baked Explorations a little more enticing? I mean, another mint dessert... so soon! Yes, the department stores have had their Christmas displays up for a couple of weeks (which is pure ridiculousness by the way), but we are still way too far away from Christmas for this baker to be overly excited about these cookies. Not to mention, we just covered Grasshopper Bars, their minty kin, a few weeks ago. It's mint overload....Aaaahhh! How will I ever survive?

Sunday Baked: Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cake

Yeah, yeah... I know, it's not Sunday, and my "Sunday Baked" title doesn't technically apply anymore. But, I promise you, I really did baked this over the weekend! Really, I did. I am just now getting around to writing them up. Does time fly these days, or what?

This cake was another winner from the boys at Baked NYC and their cookbook Baked Explorations.  A quick, easy recipe that produced a perfect after school snack.  The cake was moist and sweet, not too dissimilar from an oatmeal cookie... just in cake form!  The recipe as written calls for a cream cheese frosting layer (recipe below), but I thought the addition would put an already sweet dessert over the top... and, I like sweet. Instead, I opted for a light dusting of powdered sugar, which suited my tastes perfectly. 

Pumpkin Pistachio Cannoli (Homemade)

I just can't help it. The fall desserts, I mean. I'm piggy-backing on my Caramel Apple Cake from a few weeks ago with another bit of fall deliciousness. And, you know what, I'm not gonna feel bad about it. Nope! In fact, I may even do it again next week. The thing is, my birthday is in October. I get all happy and giddy watching the trees change color and unpacking my warm weather clothes. Not to mention, the excitement of Halloween (and my birthday) throws the house into a bit of a tizzy. It's just a fun time. It flat out makes me happy. October is the greatest month of the year (don't even try to argue me on this point), and I feel obliged to celebrate it as I please. So, bring on the pumpkin, and let's celebrate!

Daring Bakers: Croissants

The Daring Bakers go retro this month! Thanks to one of our very talented non-blogging members, Sarah, the Daring Bakers were challenged to make Croissants using a recipe from the Queen of French Cooking, none other than Julia Child!

This is not only my first Julia Child recipe, but also my first time making croissants. Yes, before this week I was a croissant-making virgin.

.... Err, I don't think that one came out right :)

Any who, I need to apologize to all of you for the quality of my post this week. I had no idea croissants would be such a devil to make! Not because it was overly difficult (though technique is required for sure), but rather they took forever to complete. I am talking a good day and a half when all was said and done. Granted, I could have knocked a lot of the time off the clock had I not had a million things going on, but it never happens that way. Instead, I had to squeeze steps in here and there throughout the weekend. As a result, I was not able to get many of the photos I had hoped to for all of the required steps. Sorry all!

Sunday Baked: Honey Corn Muffins

The year was 1998. I was in graduate school for a degree I would never end up using, a good fifteen pounds heavier and chock full of that youthful optimism we all possessed in our earlier twenties. On one particular night, my girlfriend and I were making our rounds at a required school function when what did I come across at the potluck table, but a magical concoction that would forever change my views on corn muffins (and potlucks for that matter). There in front of me sat a vintage Corningware plate, and on that plate was something that I could only describe as being thrown together last minute in the backseat of someone's car (assuming that car was equipped with an oven). Now, why would I try something so unappealing? Simple. It was the smell. Those muffins pulled me right in... buttery, sweet and loaded with whole corn kernels. They made my toes curl. I helped myself to seconds and probably thirds and fourths after the alcohol started to kick in... well, there's probably no need to get into that part of the story.