When I was growing up, there was a store my family frequented that had an amazing bakery section. They baked everything fresh on premises, and it was all super delicious. My parents still shop there often, and they never leave the store without a loaf or two of their amazing homemade bread, or maybe a couple of bagels. There's one treat we often used to buy from this bakery that stood out in my mind above all else. Their cherry pie never looked very elegant. It was wrapped in saran wrap that often stuck to the top a bit, and the "lattice" crust was made from a cutter, not an actual lattice. But nobody could care about that, because it was just so delicious. We didn't get this pie often, and … [Read more...]
Engagement Cookies {How-To}
Thank you to all the awesome people who have commented, emailed, tweeted and otherwise complimented me on the treats I made for my sister's engagement party. I put so many countless hours of work, about 20 pounds of flour, bags and bags of sugar of all varieties, and finally pulled it all off. I just showed you folks the various goodies I made for the party, but I saved the best for the last. The center of the middle table had these: From a glance, they might simply look like wooden branches in really cool vases. But look close and you can see there are delicious little flowers sprouting from the branches. You know how they saw money doesn't grow on trees? Well here's something super … [Read more...]
Clown Cookie Pops with a Royal Icing How-To
Remember my Clown Cake Pops? Well if you thought those were cute, I've got a real treat for you. Meet Simcha, my favorite clown cookie: (Simcha is Hebrew for Happiness, something which there's a lot of on Purim. Name yours as you see fit.) I've been considering doing a royal icing/sugar cookie post for a while, and finally, today I am going to take you behind the scenes to discover how to make your own little clown friend. First, let's start with the dough. I use the King Arthur Flour decorating cookie recipe, and people really like it. If you have one you like, go for it. Scroll past the recipe for decorating how-to. Sugar Cookies for Decorating: From King Arthur Flour Cookie … [Read more...]
Tiny Pecan Pies and a Pie Crust Tutorial
Until a couple of months ago I was absolutely terrified of making my own pie crust. Any and all desserts that involved pie crust started with one out of the freezer aisle in the grocery store. Then one of my coworkers asked if he could order a pie as a treat for his family for Rosh Hashanah. My first instinct was to say no, after all, I had never made a pie crust, and didn't want to try it for the first time on a customers. But as I have mentioned before, I never like to turn down a customer, so I did some research, and I said yes. I explained that it was going to be my first time making a homemade pie crust, and he agreed. I spent a long time searching the internet for advice and … [Read more...]