Creations

rock n' roll cookies

Rock N’ Roll Cookies

Posted on by Katie Gaffen

These cookies have been in the pipeline since before I started this blog.  As a matter of fact, they were part of the inspiration for the blog.  I was sitting at work one Friday daydreaming wistfully (during my lunch break, of course) about the upcoming weekend and what I wanted to do, and I thought to myself “I wanna bake.”  Since just about any phrase can trigger a spontaneous burst of song in my head, this immediately launched a parody of “I Wanna Rock” by Twisted Sister in my twisted mind.

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kentucky derby red rose cupcakes

Kentucky Derby Winner’s Circle Cupcakes

Posted on by Katie Gaffen

The 2015 Triple Crown kicked off with the Kentucky Derby this weekend, and I wanted to celebrate the occasion with a little party.  Usually, I gather whoever I can easily get to come over (this year my neighbor) and serve mint juleps and Kentucky hot browns.  This year I decided to step it up a notch with red rose cupcakes for dessert.  In keeping with the general theme of “horse,” I decided to make apple walnut carrot cake cupcakes with molasses cream cheese frosting (both recipes are adapted from the Joy of Cooking).  Adding bourbon peach filling gave it an air of race day indulgence.  (Anyone who’s ever been to a Triple Crown day at the race track knows it’s all about the indulgences for the large majority of the crowd.)

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finished bear claws

Chocolate Bear Claws- First Attempt

Posted on by Katie Gaffen

Sometimes, baked goods don’t turn out quite as you planned.  This was definitely the case with this weekend’s chocolate bear claw experiment.  While they weren’t a complete and utter failure, they were bad enough that I made myself throw 11 out of 12 of them away.  Still, just because this pastry flopped doesn’t mean the experience was a complete loss.  In today’s post, I’ll go through exactly what I did this time and give some suggestions for future improvements.  This recipe took all day and a lot of effort, so I don’t know that I’ll be trying it again anytime soon, at least not quite like this.

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apple cinnamon (charoset) bread

Apple Cinnamon Bread

Posted on by Katie Gaffen

Passover began last Friday night, and with Passover comes charoset.  For those who don’t know, charoset is a sort of spread made of apples, walnuts, red wine, and cinnamon, and it is one of Josh’s favorite snacks.  While Josh would be content to eat it on matzo until the whole batch is gone, I am always scheming up new baked creations.

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