getting my ducks in a row

This Saturday, The SIL is hosting a baby shower for Her SIL, and I jumped at the chance to make a few things for the party.  The following are on this week's to-bake list: Iced Duck Butter Cookies, Tea Bag Cookies, Linzer Cookies and Lemon Bars.

Woman Does Not Live on Baked Goods Alone

....though woman certainly wishes she could.  We have to eat regular food every once in a while.

One of The Kids' favorite meals is Spaghetti Bolognese, Caulifower with Anchovies and Garlic, and Garlic Toast.  I love making the Bolognese Sauce, as the initial cooking time is quick and then it's a long slow simmer with just a stir once in awhile.

First there is...

butter.

Pierre Herme at Wegman's?

Yes, Wegman's. When the supermarket first opened in NJ, maybe 9 years ago, I read an article about their croissant and brioche.  Pierre Herme, a famous Parisian patissier, was hired to create them for the grocery store.  He insisted on using french butter, which has a higher butterfat content than american butter.  I cannot tell you how excited I was, and I immediately took the 45 minute trip to Bridgewater.  They were heavenly.

Yesterday, The Husband brought some back for me.  I wondered if in this economic climate they are still using imported french butter.  The croissant didn't taste like I remembered it, so I wrote customer service to find out.  I will report back with their response. In the meanwhile, I will savor my Pierre Herme-inspired croissant from good 'ole Wegman's.

We enjoyed a pain au chocolat, croissant and cheese croissant.  The BFF and I demolished the coconut cream danish before the camera came out.

counting our blessings

You rarely realize how fortunate you are to have something until you don't have it.  Health, home, family... POWER.  Last weekend, the winds were whipping around at 60+ mph; it was raining torrentially, and a HUGE tree fell down, right around the corner from us.  It took down cable and power lines and we were out of power for 50 hours.

The extreme decay makes one wonder why it took so long to topple over.

We had our own not-so-little problem of a treetop snapping off, also because of rot.  Fortunately, it crashed onto the Big Climber and not the house.

momofuku milk bar's compost cookies

I visited Momofuku Milk Bar, helmed by Christina Tosi, over a year ago and wasn't at all intrigued by its compost cookie. I think I was put off by the coffee grinds.  Last week, I read not one, but two blog posts about this garbage compost cookie with pretzels, potato chips and other assorted cupboard detritus, and I became curious. The final straw was when The BFF came over with a brownie filled with Oreos and toffee bits. "A Compost Brownie!" I exclaimed. Well, not really, as she purposely chose those add-ins to enhance her recipe.  I, with less lofty ideals, am interested in clearing out some of the odds and ends in my pantry and have come up with an interesting mix.

Poppycock with Pecans

Rolos and Butterfinger Jingles

Pretzels

st. paddy's- green velvet cupcakes

Last week, I saw Bakerella's beautiful pictures of her project; they were so lovely that I was inspired to bake similarly for Saint Paddy's Day. 


Green Velvet Cupcakes, anyone?

In stock was, literally, the one last drop of green food color. 

After rummaging through the pantry, I found some "Willow Green" from Wilton's Country Colors. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and I had no time for a ShopRite run, so I put some in...

Lemon on the Brain

The 11-year old Neighbor, after sampling the lemon wafers, put in a special request for Lemon Bars. She mentioned that she had seen them on a television program and was wondering what they tasted like. She also stated that she liked to eat lemons in the raw. Hmmm, I wonder if these will be lemony enough.

The Borders bookstore near us is closing (possibly making way for Wegman's!!!) and I, forever tempted by sale items, picked up The Craft of Baking by Karen DeMasco, former pastry chef at Craft, Craftbar and 'wichcraft.  She has a wonderful recipe for lemon bars which includes flour and baking powder for the lemon filling.  I followed the recipe to a t, except I reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup.

To be honest, I don't always take the time to cube the butter, but since they had to be photo-ready...

spring is in the air

Right about now, when stuck in late-winter doldrums and while Punxsutawney Phil is into his fifth week of hibernation, I pull out my favorite yellow scarf.

I love this scarf. Its bright cheeriness, reminiscent of daffodils and fuzzy chicks, reminds me that spring is right around the corner.

The color also inspires today's cookie- Lemon Wafers. I need bright, tangy, tartness in my life. You do too.

happy 200th birthday, frédéric chopin!

Today is Chopin's 200th Birthday and I want to celebrate. Chopin was born in Poland, but he spent his adult life in Paris, so I dusted off my copy of Dorie Greenspan's Paris Sweets and settled on making a mille-feuille. With store-bought pastry puff. I know it's a bit of a cop-out, but I didn't have time to make it from scratch. I also didn't have the patience as that recipe called for two doughs and too many turns and folds. Inside-Out Puff Pastry will have to wait.