TWD - Apple Crisps...Crumby, but in a good way!

For this week's TWD recipe I made Apple Crisps, selected by Em of The Repressed Pastry Chef. These apple crisps are made as individual servings is 7 oz ramekins. They are heaven. They are the perfect ending to any meal, and Evan and I absolutely loved these delicious apple desserts.

These apple crisps are supposed to be made with cranberries, but since I knew that Evan wouldn't eat cranberries, I made two with dried cherries and golden raisins and two just with apples and caramel. I made lots of extra crumb topping since I firmly believe the more crumb topping the better when it comes to crisps and cobblers!! Mmmm...crumby!




These crisps are so easy to make and they require no out of the ordinary ingredients. I made and assembled them several hours in advance and popped them in the oven right as we were starting dinner. Couldn't have been easier! I am strongly considering making a big one to serve as a Thanksgiving dessert!

I cannot believe Thanksgiving is only two days away! I want to wish all of the TWD bakers a very happy and fun-filled Thanksgiving! I am so thankful to have found this talented, spirited, and wonderful group of bakers. Reading all of your blogs constantly inspires me and makes me smile. And your support for and comments on my blog truly means the world to me. I have learned and grown so much from all of you, and for that I am very thankful.




For the complete Apple Crisp recipe, please visit Em of The Repressed Pastry Chef. I highly recommend that everyone make this...immediately!

Butterless Oatmeal Chocolate Chip M&M cookies

Do you ever feel like you are doing way too many things at once? I try, I really do, to slow down and take my time. To sit back and just relax...but more often than not, after a full work day, you can find me going to the gym/yoga/dinner with friends, followed by grocery shopping, followed by cooking/baking something in my apartment, while simultaneously reading recipes, blogging, watching TV, doing laundry and talking on the phone.


But here's a little piece of advice...when you try to juggle too many things at once, something eventually falls to the wayside. Like you forget about your laundry and by the time you remember to go put it in the dryer someone else has already placed your clean, wet clothing in a dusty corner of the laundry room (btw, whoever you are...this is a serious violation of the unwritten neighborly code of conduct!). Or you end up watching most TV shows twice and both times unsuccessfuly; once when you are doing 500 other things and not paying attention at all, and then again (thanks to DVR) when you finally feel you can give that episode of Grey's Anatomy your full, undivided attention...and then you fall asleep 15 minutes in.

OR how about this one...when you realize after you bake a batch of Oatmeal Chocolate Chip M&M cookies that the melted butter called for in the recipe is still sitting in the microwave and never made it into the cookies...don't you hate when that happens?



And so, I give you Butterless Oatmeal Chocolate Chip M&M cookies. But I prefer to think of this mistake as an opportunity. I was subconsciencely trying to make a low fat version of Bakerella's "Cowgirl Cookies." That's my story and I'm sticking to it! :)

The cookies, as it turns out, were not bad at all. Because they were missing butter, they were not soft. The texture was much more crispy. But the taste was still very good. In fact, a couple of my friends and I ended up eating more of these cookies then we would like to admit...

I think that replacing the butter with applesauce would work really well with this recipe. The flavor was great, they could have just used a little bit of softening up, and I think applesauce would do the trick here. I will definitely be trying an applesauce version of these, and when I do, I promise that I will not talk on the phone, watch TV and surf the internet while baking these cookies!

Cowgirl Cookies

adapted from Bakerella
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup cooking oats

3/4 cup m&ms

3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup white sugar

1/3 – 1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 slightly beaten egg

1/2 cup butter (melted slightly in the microwave)

**or sub in applesauce, or leave out the butter like I did!

1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine first 10 ingredients (AP flour through pecans) and stir together in a large mixing bowl.
Mix wet ingredients (egg, butter, vanilla) into dry ingredients. Use the back of a large spoon to work it all together. You may even need to use your hands to get everything incorporated.

CEiMB - Banana Pecan French Toast Bake

This week's CEiMB recipe is Peach French Toast Bake, selected by Liz of The Not So Skinny Kitchen. Now, before I get to the recipe, I first want to let you all know that my Grandma makes the ABSOLUTE BEST french toast. Ever. Of All Time. Her French Toast could literally win an award, its that good. In fact, it has won an award. It's won the "Lauryn says this is the BEST FRENCH TOAST EVER award." Hey, its a huge honor!

My Grandma uses Challah Bread, and anyone who has ever had Challah French Toast knows that the Challah version far outshines regular French Toast, but even of all the Challah French Toasts out there, my Grandma's is still the best, without a shadow of a doubt. I pity the fool who dares to challenge my Grandma's french Toast. Bring it!


OK, now back to the recipe. While typically french toast is cooked in a pan, this recipe is made healthier by letting the bread soak in an egg mixture over night and baking it in the oven the next day. I didn't have any peaches on hand, but I did have a couple of bananas, so instead I made Banana Pecan French Toast. I love banana pancakes, and I figured the combination would work well with french toast too.


I ended up feeling luke warm with the result of this French Toast. I made half the recipe in an 8 inch square pan and baked mine for 30 minutes. It came out a bit soggy. Maybe I should have baked in for longer. Maybe it was the bread I used, just regular light whole wheat bread instead of Challah. I bet it would have tasted better with challah.



I have to admit that the real problem is that once you have my Grandma's French Toast you become a French Toast snob. Nothing ever tastes as good. So I guess this poor french toast was doomed from the start. My Grandma just sets the bar waaay too high! If you would like to try it, however, please visit Liz at The Not So Skinny Kitchen for the complete recipe, or you can find it on page 35 of Ellie Krieger's book, "The Foods Your Crave."

TWD - Sparkly Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies

SPARKLE is one of my all time favorite words. When I was little I always wanted to have a puppy and name it Sparkle. I never got a puppy, but for this week's TWD recipe, I got to have my very own sparkly cookies! I made Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies, selected by Pamela of Cookies With Boys, and these cookies sure did sparkle! I am not much of a ginger cookie fan, so I made these with the intention of giving them all away, but guess what? These cookies were AMAZING, even for a non ginger fan, I really thought they were delicious. And with their perfectly round shape and sparkly shine, these simple cookies were beauitful!

The recipe combines molasses, brown sugar, and a whole slew of spices, including black pepper. I was a bit scared of having a peppery cookie, but the outcome was a soft, chewy cookie with a really great balance of sweet and spicy.

I made a half recipe, which gave me 15 nice sized cookies. Everything came together really easily and I had no difficulties and no complaints. I let my dough chill in the refrigerator for about 4 hours, and I baked my cookies for only 10 minutes. I thought they came out perfectly!

My favorite part of the cookie making process was rolling the dough into individual balls and coating each ball in sugar. I think something about getting my hands messy while baking makes me feel like I am really working hard. Why is that? I combined raw sugar and white dusting sugar together, and wait, have I mentioned that my cookies came out soooo sparkly?!!

I think these would make a great Holiday cookie. They keep for several days and I would even venture to say that the flavor improved on the second, and even third day. These are the type of cookie that I could picture a family sitting around a fireplace, playing board games together and nibbling on. Perhaps a nice family who has a puppy named Sparkle.

Thanks to Pam of Cookies With Boys, one of my favorite bloggers! Please visit Pam for the complete recipe, and be sure to check out the other members of TWD.

CEiMB - Carrot, Green Apple and Mint Salad (and Miso Glazed Salmon!)

Expectations...we all have them. Expectations for ourselves, expectations of those who we surround ourselves with, expectations for our day to day life and expectations for our future. Expectations are impossible to avoid. They are a part of human nature. We all try to avoid being in situations where our expectations are so high that we are bound to be let down...but on the flip side, one of the all-time best feelings in when we have low or even no expectations for something that ends in a spectacular result. This Carrot, Green Apple and Mint salad, chosen by Jessica of A Singleton in the Kitchen as this week's CEiMB recipe, falls right into that category!

My expectations for this salad were pretty low (sorry Jessica). But boy, was I pleasantly surprised when I tasted it. I love, and I mean love, this salad! The sweetness of the carrot, the sour from the green apple and the freshness of the mint produce a winning combination. I added in shredded purple napa cabbage to mine, and it gave the salad a great extra crunch and nice color.

I also loved the dressing on this salad. It was so simple, yet flavorful. I left out the mayo entirely and used greek yogurt, and I added 2 tablespoons of orange juice and 2 tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce to the apple cider vinegar, honey and lemon juice called for in the recipe. It was fantastic! I couldn't stop eating it. And with a salad as healthy as this, you can eat as much as you want!


I served this delicious salad with miso glazed salmon, and the combination of these two dishes together was just fabulous. The whole thing came together quickly and easily and I would highly recommend this as a healthy week night meal.

I would also like to provide a great fish cooking tip I recently learned (special shout out and thanks to my friend Emily's fiance's mom!!) If you put a few stalks of celery in with the fish while it is cooking, it absorbs the fishy smell that is usually left behind when you cook fish. Trust me, it works. I used to avoid cooking fish in my apartment because of the lingering fish smell that would stick around for the next day or two (yuck), but I tried the celery trick and there was no fish smell whatsoever!! Woohoo!

I owe a big thank you to Jessica of A Singleton in the Kitchen for this week's pick. I love reading your blog and hearing stories about your family and I think you are a very talented baker and chef...I shouldn't have doubted your pick! I am so glad I gave this recipe a try and I will definitely be making it again. The complete recipe can be found in Ellie Krieger's book, The Foods You Crave, on page 131. And my recipe for miso glazed salmon is below.

Miso-Glazed Salmon
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin (or other sweet Japanese sake)
2 tablespoons hot water
2 tablespoons white miso
2 (6oz) Salmon fillets
cooking spray
fresh ground pepper

Preheat broiler at 450.
Combine and stir together first five ingredients in a bowl. Arrange fish in a shallow baking dish coated with cooking spray and season with fresh ground pepper. Spoon miso mixture evenly over fish, reserving some miso mixture for basting.
Broil for 10 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork, basting once after 5 minutes with remaining miso mixture.

Happy Halloweeny! A belated Halloween Post for the MSC Club!

I love Halloween. LOVE. It's an excuse for me to act like a kid, get dressed up and eat lots and lots of candy. I also love talking about what I should be for Halloween months and months in advance. When June hits, I start frantically emailing my friends asking them what I should be for Halloween. My friends think I'm nuts...I think I am smart for planning ahead, thank you very much.

This year I wanted Evan and I to dress up as Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom. Unfortunately we didn't end up dressing up at all this year, but I think we would have made a great Khloe and Lamar. Oh well...there is always next year. Wait, what should I be for Halloween next year? :)

(BTW, did anyone watch the Khloe/Lamar wedding special on E!? Am I the only only that thinks they make a great couple? Am I the only one who cried when Khloe asked Bruce Jenner to walk her down the aisle?)


Though I didn't dress up this year, I still got in to the Halloween spirit with these fun Halloween cupcakes! I had a blast making and decorating these! I made two types of cupcakes -- both Martha Stewart recipes. I used her recipe for Yellow Buttermilk cupcakes, which is one of my favorite basic cupcake recipes. The other cupcakes were made with Martha's Devils Food Cupcake recipe. Both tasted delicious! Soft and moist and flavorful and just perfect!



As you can see, I went all out with a variety of decorations. I just couldn't resist!



I brought them into Evan's office for everyone to enjoy and they were gobbled up in no time. I mean really, who could resist this Spider cupcake, made with orange Twizzlers as legs and jellybeans as eyes?

Or this ghost?

Or these vampire bites?? Spook-tastic!! (Did I really just say Spook-tastic? Wow...)

I hope the Martha Stewart Cupcake Club will forgive me for my very belated post. I made these on time, just didn't post them on time. I hope everyone had a very Happy Halloween! BOO!

TWD - All In One Holiday Bundt Cake

For this week's TWD, I made Dorie's All In One Holiday Bundt cake, selected by Britin of The Nitty Britty. I was particularly excited to make this cake because I had just purchased a brand new bundt pan last week, and because I have been completely loving The Food Librarian's 30 days of Bundts tribute on her blog, which she most incredibly named "I Like Big Bundts and I cannot lie!" Best name ever - you rock Food Librarian! But I wanted to like Big Bundts too! So I set out, brand new Bundt pan in hand, to embark on my adventure in bundt-dum.

I really enjoyed making this cake. With pumpkin, apple, cinnamon, cranberries and pecans, I just knew I was going to like this immediately. I used only half the amount of pecans because I didn't want it to be too nutty, but otherwise I followed the recipe as written. Everything came together easily and into the oven it went.

The cake made my whole apartment smell absolutely amazing as it was baking. I could still smell all of those yummy spices in my kitchen the next day. It unmolded from my Bundt pan easily, and had the most beautiful golden brown color.

I tasted just a tiny crumb because I decided to freeze this cake and save it for Thanksgiving. But that crumb I tasted was absolutely delicious!! Whoever spends Thanksgiving with me this year is in for a big treat!!!

Thanks to Britin of The Nitty Britty for selecting this delicious perfect for fall cake! Please make sure to visit the other members of TWD to see what's being baked in their kitchens!

Saying Goodbye

For the past week, everytime I have sat down to write a post to my blog, I have felt completely at a loss for words. After a 14 month battle with cancer, my best friend Lindsay's mother Marilyn passed away on Friday, October 30th. Growing up, I spent countless amounts of time playing and hanging out with Lindsay at her house. A house filled with happiness, bright colors, dogs and lots of candy. Marilyn always made me feel so comfortable and welcome there, and many of my favorite childhood memories took place in that house. Throughout my life, Marilyn was always so supportive of me, and of my friendship with Lindsay. Lindsay and I went off to college together and remained best friends, and Marilyn remained an important part of my life. Marilyn inspired me in so many ways. She always wanted to be a part of everything and she felt more like one of the girls than like one of the moms. She was upbeat, adventurous and vivacious. She was the type of person that made you feel good just to be around. Her energy and enthusiasm for life was contagious. She was an incredible mother to Lindsay, and a very special friend to me.

So I guess I've been feeling like writing about cookies and cakes is almost insignificant when compared to the terrible tragedy that Lindsay and her family and friends have been facing. I love blogging and I love baking and I wanted so badly to make something as a special tribute to Marilyn, something that Marilyn might even be proud of. But I couldn't think of what to write to honor Marilyn, so I didn't write anything at all. And then it hit me...her iconic platinum blonde hair...so blonde you could spot her from blocks away and always styled to perfection.

And so I made Blondies as my dedication to Marilyn and as a tiny way of showing my gratitude for the love, support and inspiration she has given me throughout my life. Marilyn, these blondies are for you. You will never be forgotten.

I used Dorie Greenspan's recipe from my absolute favorite cook book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. Since this recipe has not yet been selected by the TWD group, and to respect the integrity of the group, I will not be posting the recipe. But I will say that these Blondies are sheer perfection. Chewy, gooey, cookie like, and melt in your mouth delicious. This recipe for chewy, Chunky Blondies is defintely worth trying.

I really enjoyed making these Blondies, and I am glad to be back into the swing of regular blogging. My apologies to all of the groups I am a part of (TWD, CEiMB and the MSC Club) for not posting on time. And to Marilyn, the eternal blonde with the brightest smile and a heart of gold...you will remain in our hearts forever.

TWD - Cookies and Cream Fudge Brownie Torte - I Did It My Way

This week's TWD recipe for Cherry Fudge Brownie Torte was selected by April of Short + Rose. But, as the great Frank Sinatra says, I did it MY way! The main reason I changed this recipe was that I didn't have any dried cherries as the recipe called for, and I have really been making an effort lately to make recipes work without spending a ton of extra money.

I did have all the brownie ingredients in my pantry, however, so at first I decided to make just a Fudge Brownie Torte, with no cherries. But then...I noticed a package of Oreo cookies towards the back of one shelf in my pantry. I had bought them a little while back for something I must have wanted to bake and never got around to doing, and they were just begging to be included in this brownie torte. How could I say no to those cute little oreo cookies? And that is the story of how my Cookies and Cream Fudge Brownie Torte was born!

I followed Dorie's brownie recipe, using half bittersweet and half semisweet chocolate. Everything came together easily. As I mentioned I skipped the entire cherry portion of the recipe and instead added in about 3/4 cup of chopped oreos to the brownie batter. I baked my brownie in a 9 inch cake pan (not a springform!) for a total of 48 minutes.

For the mousse topping, I decided to double the cream cheese and leave out the mascarpone. I also added in about a 1/2 cup of crushed oreos. My mousse was much more of a frosting. It was thick and spreadable. But it was absolutely delicious!



I brought this torte to my wonderful friend, and new mother, Rebecca and her husband Ben. I figured they could use a little sugar rush as they adjust to getting very little sleep and taking care of their beautiful daughter, Sydney Dale! Sydney is absolutely gorgeous and I am completely in love with her! Just look at her!!!! I am obsessed!

Rebecca and Ben loved the brownie torte, and I had a little sliver too. I thought it was out of this world amazing! Thanks to April of Short + Rose. I'm sure it was amazing with the cherries too, and you can check out April's blog for the complete recipe!!