Hello, it’s me. I was wondering if after all these months you’d like… …a recipe?* Spring evening with my husband and dear friends. Narcissus blooming tall in the big clay pots. A space station sighting.** Coconut Cream Pie. Pretty perfect. Coconut Cream Pie (This recipe is a mash-up of the best ideas from several sources,…
Tag: Desserts
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting
Last born had a birthday on Sunday. After warm spinach-artichoke dip and zingy cucumber dip; after frozen strawberry margaritas whose fruit factor was boosted with homemade strawberry jam; after burgers and hot dogs sizzling from the grill, sweet and bacony baked beans, and potato-egg salad with fronds of fresh dill (that I should have chopped…
Mincemeat Cookies
Maybe you, too, didn’t get around to making those mincemeat tarts at Christmas time. Maybe that jar of mincemeat sits on your pantry shelf, reminding you of its goodness every time you reach past it for a can of soup or a box of crackers. Maybe the craving for that resinous, spicy, fruity flavor gets…
Cheesecake with a walnut crust
August 20, 1964 – Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho Today is the 50th anniversary of my third birthday. Birthday cakes are the subject of intense consideration in my family, always homemade unless the cook has a doctor’s note, and always of a type and flavor chosen by the guest of honor. I wear two…
Fudgy Brownies
No pan of brownies is safe. No 9×13-inch cake can escape. No baked good with a side will survive this fiend’s preference for dessert from the center of the pan. She rips the heart out of them all without remorse, because she doesn’t like crispy edges. This menace has a name, but I call her…
Blueberry Pie
The blueberries I bought for this pie on Friday were luscious. We’re at the height of blueberry season in Arkansas now, and these beauties came with stems and leaves as evidence of their truck farm origins. Sourced by a local produce stand, they were bursting with so much flavor that I might as well have…
Lime Cheesecake Bars
Hello, Reader. Please excuse my absence. I’ve been in Paradise. ♦ ♦ ♦ Now I’m back, welcomed home with flowers and hummus and happy dogs. Life is good. Viscount David Linley, grandson of a king and son of a princess, was asked once why he chose to make his vacation home on property in the middle of…
Crunchy Peanut Bars
If you have a cat, maybe you keep a little disposable cup on the side of the bathroom sink, so that your cat can get a fresh drink while you brush your teeth. And maybe at some point you’ve confused your cup with his and accidentally taken your morning blood pressure meds with a swig…
Buttermilk Sugar Cookies
This recipe makes a bunch, because I needed a bunch. These soft, delicately-flavored cookies were dessert last week at my Third Thursday Cafe. Buttermilk adds a little tang to the dough, which bakes up under a shower of cinnamon sugar. It’s a lovely smell to come home to. I divided the output as it came…
Lemon Cake
Once upon a time, a woman and her husband were invited to a Christmas party. The woman knew she’d see friends there who had done nice things for her recently, so, on the day of the party, she made three lemon cakes to take to them as gifts. She grated zest from many lemons, and…
Cookbook Wall 