i'd rather be baking

Everybody makes banana bread, right? That’s what I thought until I began bringing it to share with coworkers at various previous jobs of mine. People would go nuts. They couldn’t believe it. One lady told me that she makes her family banana bread from a boxed mix. What? I didn’t really know such things existed.

I was raised to believe that banana bread was what you did with those nasty looking, brown-spotted bananas that are otherwise completely disgusting. Mash them up, stir in some wet and dry stuff, stick it in the oven and something magical happens. That’s basically ten-year-old Laura’s understanding of the whole process.

Read more »

So. We’ve discussed brownies, and blondies. And now I must introduce you to their sweet little lovechild.

And I have to admit, she’s a lovely girl. She has her mother Blondie’s beautiful complexion with her father Brownie’s winning personality. Talk about genetics.

Read more »

So it’s finally summer, right? I realize that for most of you, it may as well have been summer for a month already, but not so here in Utah. In fact, only last couple of weeks have been remotely hot and at this point we’re kind of grateful for it. After all, it’s almost July.

Anyhow, now that summer weather has arrived in full force, all I really want to eat for breakfast, lunch, and dessert is fruit. All I really want to eat for dinner is chips and salsa, but that’s another story.

Read more »

Before moving to Utah, I dreamed of living in a real-life city with a real-life Whole Foods. It’s still hard for me to believe that there are no less than four within a thirty-mile radius of my house. I frequent the one nearest me about once a week, sometimes just for fun.

I’ve become addicted to Whole Foods’ Vegan Everything Cookies. They are now, hands down, my favorite cookie, which is saying something. I’ve eaten a lot of cookies in my day.

Read more »

I’ve been wanting to make focaccia bread for a really long time, but I’ll admit, I’m a little lazy when it comes to the overnight proofing of breads. The whole concept kind of annoys me. Patience isn’t my forte.

I’ve had this focaccia from Simply Recipes flagged for quite a while for just that reason: no 12-hour wait is necessary! And last week I got a rather urgent craving for my favorite summer salad from Panera Bread. You know, that one with big chunks of bread, mozzarella, tomatoes, and red onions. The focaccia would wait no longer.

Read more »