Back again with butterfly wedding cake photos

Spring has passed, summer is waning, and fall is soon to arrive. It's hard to believe that so much time has passed! While I did mention a few months ago that my posts might become less frequent, I did not imagine that such a long time would pass before posting again. Life gets busy for …

Taking time to dream and to imagine…

So often when I have some time off I begin to think about what I need to do or should do. Funny thing, sometimes even the things I do for enjoyment can begin to feel like a chore, or something that I must check off the list. Today I decided to take some quiet time …

Entertaining with the Madeleine cake: gateau madeleine

Recently my sister's fiance came to visit. I wanted to make some sort of cake or dessert to welcome him, but wasn't sure what would be best. My sister recommended a "Madeleine" cake, as she remembered eating a piece together with her fiance one time, and recalled him liking it. I have to admit that …

Swiss roll cake with raspberries and creme patisserie

Here is my husband's favorite cake. Well, one of his top two favorite cakes. It's sweet, but not overly so; simple and classic. The homemade creme patisserie is smooth and creamy and the fresh raspberries add the perfect amount of tartness. I guarantee you, this cake is amazing! For the creme*: 1/3 cup + 1 …

Classic chicken roast: just like Grandma’s Sunday dinner

Baking a whole chicken is not something I do often. Believe it or not, it is actually cheaper to buy a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store than it is to buy a whole uncooked chicken, generally. How is that even possible? Here's the only conclusion that makes sense to me: the store must price …

Melt-in-your-mouth meatballs seasoned with garlic, lemon, and parsley

These meatballs are amazing! This is an adaptation of a recipe I learned from a French lady years ago. I hope you enjoy it. Ingredients 1 1/4 lb ground beef1/2 cup oatmeal ("quick oats")1/3 cup milk (of choice, I used unsweetened almond)1/2 medium onion, diced small2 large cloves garlic, diced small5-6 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped1/2 …

Roasted cauliflower with lemon, garlic, and fresh dill

We had a head of cauliflower in the house that was just calling out to me to be cooked. It lent itself perfectly to this nice roasted cauliflower recipe that I put together. The garlic gives it tons of flavor and the lemon adds a nice, tangy zing. The fresh dill builds the flavor even …

Delicate lemon cake with royal icing roses

Last week my sister came back after having lived abroad for a while, so I had a perfect opportunity to make a cake. What better way to welcome someone home than a homemade cake? For the cake itself I found a lovely vanilla cake recipe and changed this a bit by adding lemon juice and …

Banana cream sandwich cake

A few weeks ago I made a genoise cake for the first time. It was a practice run, as I was planning to make a fraisier cake, which uses a genoise sponge. So, there I was with a lovely plain genoise sponge. And what to do with it? At that point I didn't have much …

Pork roast with fresh rosemary and garlic

This pork roast is a recipe I learned to make when I was living in Slovenia, and I have adapted it a just a bit. It is quite easy to prepare and always comes out wonderful and full of flavor. Ingredients about 3 lb pork roast (I used two smaller roasts)6-8 large cloves garlic2 Tbsp …