Sugar Cookies - Plain, with Icing, or with Frosting

My grandma used to make some of the best sugar cookies in the entire world. No, I'm not being biased. I swear. When we were little, my sister, my cousins and I would look forward to these cookies every Christmas Eve. They were sweet, crunchy, and perfectly sized for little kids and adults alike. I used to get jealous because my sister would be the one who helped my grandma make them and that meant I never got to taste them until our family dinner. And, unfortunately, it also means that I have no idea how to make them. My grandma is gone now so it's been a very long time since those cookies have been around. I used to try really hard to duplicate pretty much everything she used to make, but I've realized that it just isn't possible. She was a Polish grandma. And like pretty much every other grandma out there, she had her own measuring techniques and her own ingredients and I'll never be able to go back in time to figure out what those were. I've finally come to terms with that. So the only thing I can do at this point is do my best to make an updated, albeit different, version to her classics.

Zucchini Pineapple Muffins

These. Oh boy. These are some good muffins. It's almost like a little zucchini bread for one. But better. These muffins are good and good for you. You can be very happy while eating them.

We've really been focusing on the healthy lifestyle over here, but that doesn't mean we're not going to enjoy food. I mean, come on...food is delicious! Why would you deny yourself the good stuff? You just have to make sure the good stuff is good for you. And these muffins totally are. They're so moist and there's just enough sweetness to make you feel like you're getting a great little dessert. Or breakfast. Yeah...I think I may have one for breakfast...

**Update**
I have tweaked the recipe slightly by removing baking soda, lemon juice, and some of the sugar. I have also increased the baking powder by 1 tsp. The muffins have a better texture and taste just as good!

Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

I bought a blueberry bush today. Couldn't resist with my new-found green thumb.

And, well, I thought it might be a good idea since my son and I love them so much and they're just so expensive. The plant was only eight bucks so why not give it a go, right?

Blueberries don't usually stick around very long here, but if by chance there are any sitting around after a few days, I'll use them up in a recipe before they go bad. I love to use blueberries in cooking and baking soone day, a coffee cake sounded good. I was also looking for something easy so I thought I'd use the crescent dough can that had been lingering in the fridge. It seemed like it would work really well since it bakes up nice and flaky so I worked out a couple ideas and ended up with this super easy, super yummy dessert.

Pink Lemonade Cookies

It's so hard to say no to my little guy when he asks if we can make cookies. If he asked more often I could, but it's usually only every couple months or so. I think I can let the boy splurge on cookies every two months...

Chocolate Coconut Clusters

You know how it goes when you want something...you just have to have it. Well, I was wanting something sweet after dinner one night and an Almond Joy sounded really good. My son got a couple when he was trick-or-treating, but well, those are long gone. Him and my husband both hate coconut so they were all mine. He, he.

Easy Pumpkin Mini Muffins

I made these little, itty, bitty, mini muffins last week and I'm quite pleased with how they turned out. They're part of my 'Pumpkin Event' and, well,  they're just so darn cute! I love creating things in mini form because food of a 'smaller stature' is just so fun eat.

Basic Pie Dough and Apple Hand Pies

Thanksgiving is right around the corner which means it's the perfect time to bake pies. Of course there's the standard pumpkin pie, but if you're feeling adventurous, venture out and get creative with apple, cherry, or even pecan!

Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

My latest pumpkin idea had me going in a simple cookie direction. It was between Pumpkin Sugar Cookies and Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies so I reached out to my Facebook community to see which one I should make. It was unanimous...everyone wanted the sugar cookies!

Pumpkin Crescent Roll-Ups

Continuing my 'Pumpkin Event' is so much fun. And what's more fun than little pumpkin-flavored bites that are super easy to make and super tasty?

Strawberry Bread

I love trying new things in the kitchen. There's just something so exciting about tasting a new food or creating something that you haven't made before.

I never used to be much of a baker, but I've found myself pushing my own culinary limits lately and writing recipes that I would have never even thought about writing. Whenever I would bake a cake or whip up some muffins, I always used recipes in cookbooks or ones I found online. I was always too nervous to write my own since baking is such a precise science. But like most other things in life, a little practice and hard work will usually yield great results. Since I started this whole blog thing, I've tried out a few baked items here and there and I can honestly say that I've gotten better with each one.

Peachy Nectarine Ice Cream

Since I have this new ice cream maker, I've really been taking advantage of it. I know that sounds like I've been gorging myself on ice cream, but the funny thing is that I make all this food (ice cream and other) and usually don't eat it. I'll taste it and maybe have a little, but my husband or son will eat most or I'll send some to my folks. I just love the actual act of cooking, baking and recipe writing. I could sit here for hours and just write up new ideas and recipes; it's just so exciting to find new flavor combinations and new ways to create in the kitchen. That's how this ice cream got started.

Apple Butter Spice Cake with Apple Butter Buttercream Frosting

I made a new cake a couple weeks ago and I can't believe I haven't posted it yet! I guess I'll just say that it's because life keeps getting in the way. We've had a lot going on over here with vacation, being out of town, and setting up a pool...twice. I haven't been getting as much work done as I'd like and I certainly haven't been cooking as much or posting about it. But I'm making it a point to write about this cake tonight because I'm not only too tired to do anything else, but it's just so good that I have to write about it.

Apple Pluot Tarts

Have you ever had a pluot? If not, you're missing out. It's this sweet fruit that is almost like a plum but with a little more bite to it. There are a few different varieties but they're all very similar so they can be used interchangeably.

I discovered them last year at the grocery store. I was walking in the produce section when the word 'dinosaur' caught my eye. It's not normally a word you'd see around fruit so I was intrigued. I headed over to the sign and saw a fruit that was green with pink speckles on it. Now, any fruit that has pink dots on it has to make you look twice, right? And it must taste good if it's that pretty, right?

Grilled Pineapple

Have you used your grill yet? We've been using ours quite a lot lately. Charring up some food on the grill is a great way to have tasty food that is healthy, too. You don't need a lot of extra fat when you grill so it's a nice way to eat good food and feel good about what you eat.

Coconut Ice Cream

I recently acquired my very first ice cream/frozen yogurt/sorbet maker. How cool is that, right? I secretly always envied those that already had one because they are able to make combinations that you just can't find at the grocery store. I'm not really a big fan of ice cream, but the ability to make sorbet is mostly was lured me in. Something about the smoothness of a sorbet is just so simple, appetizing and inviting.

Well, with every new appliance that enters my house, I have to use it to it's full abilities. This means that I had to make an ice cream right away. My husband is an ice cream freak, but sadly for him, my first attempt had to be a coconut flavored concoction. He hates coconut. He went to Dairy Queen that night.

Simply Strawberries and Angel Food Cake

My son and I were browsing the fruit aisles at the grocery store the other day after a long shopping trip. I always ask him what kind of fruit he would like and sometimes he'll throw something new in, but it's almost always the same response - he wanted strawberries. It's always hit or miss when it comes to our store because they're either a really low price with sub-par fruit or a high price with decent fruit. The strawberries were on sale today which meant the selection was just...okay. It's funny to see people check out every little strawberry in those containers because there's really only so much you can do. Of course, I'm one of those people. But no matter how hard you stare at those berries, you're pretty much guaranteed to get at least two or three strawberries in each pint that makes its way to the garbage can once you get home!

Cranberry and White Chocolate Krispie Cookies

If you ask anyone what the typical thing to use Rice Krispie Cereal for is, I'm willing to bet they'll say Rice Krispie treats. Do people even still eat the cereal by itself? It seems to have just become a standard that you have to make the little marshmallow-y, gooey, dessert when you buy the cereal box. That's what I did months ago when I picked one up at the store. I thought it would be fun to make a batch with my son and I was right about the preparing part. The eating part, however, was a different story. I thought he would love them and I would be the coolest mom because we just made the ultimate kid treat. Well, he ate about half of one and then the rest sat there for days without anyone but my husband eating them. And that's only because I made him because I don't like to throw away perfectly good food. Rice Krispie treats that have been sitting out for over a week? Well, those quickly became past their prime.

Tropical Banana Muffins

I've had the idea for some tropical-inspired muffins in my head for a bit and I finally wrote a recipe last week. Two versions later, I had the best-tasting banana muffins with a hint of tropical flare.

The 3rd Birthday Bash

My son turned the big '3' a couple weeks ago and I still can't believe it. I'm also surprisingly taking it much better than I did when he turned 2. He was never your typical 2 year old so I'm wondering if the terrible twos are still coming. It's just one of the perks of being a parent, right? That and having a birthday party every year...or in our case two with a third that still hasn't happened yet.

The Best Buttercream

 

I'm not a fan of buttercream frosting that comes in a can. It just tastes so processed, fake and full of sugar. Instead of buying those, I'll usually whip up my own because it's so easy and tastes so much better. I don't like sugary frostings so my version has just enough to compliment the butter. This recipe is an adaptation of my normal buttercream because I've incorporated almond extract. It adds a sweetness without additional sugar and enhances the flavors of the cake itself.