i'd rather be baking

I’ve seen various recipes for pumpkin cinnamon rolls floating around the food blog world the past few weeks and they all just look so good! But my main gripe with homemade rolls still stands: long rise time for something I want to eat first thing in the morning. And I never seem to plan ahead quite enough to make them the night before.

So one day last week, when my mom was here and Ryan took the morning off, I decided to try a pumpkin variation on these cinnamon rolls. They turned out so well the first time around that I figured it was worth a try. And oh my, were they delicious.

Read more »

The bakery where I work is primarily a cupcake shop, but we do serve lunch as well. We buy our sandwich bread from another local baker, and it’s by far the best part of our sandwiches. Every time our delivery guy comes in with fresh bread, I can’t help but snack on an end piece.

The much-lauded bread is a great whole-grain blend that includes oatmeal and is wonderfully soft and moist thanks to the use of applesauce in the dough. Customers are sometimes uncertain about ordering a sandwich on oatmeal applesauce bread, but never cease to compliment the result. It’s a good one.

Read more »

We enjoyed a lovely visit with my mom this week. While I did spend some time introducing her to some of my favorite vegetarian dishes (like this one), I didn’t do much baking. She left yesterday and apparently took the last of the warm fall weather with her. The days are turning distinctively colder and grayer, which makes me think that winter must be just around the corner.

I tried out this gem of a recipe last week and now, as I sit here sipping a homegrown pumpkin latte and surrounded by sleeping dogs, I really wish I had one of these blondies. I’m not usually a big fan of white chocolate but this is definitely a notable exception.

Read more »

I’m a Southern-raised girl who, until recently, had never made biscuits. I’ve certainly eaten my fair share, but I’d never made them and upon realizing this felt sort of ashamed, like I might need to turn in my flannel shirt or something. And I really love flannel.

And following this apparent need to channel my inner Southerner, I’ve learned that I kind of love making jam. Kind of a lot. I have a lot of jam on hand these days. Would you like some?

Read more »

Is it just me, or are we all so happy it’s the weekend? This week flew by and I think it’s because I spent so much of it in the kitchen. This time of year always makes me want to spend every afternoon in my warm little kitchen, baking and cooking away. Lately I have found myself eager to experiment with new flavors and foods and these muffins are the perfect example. It’s no secret that I love pumpkin, but incorporating it into more savory applications has been a new, fun, and delicious challenge.

I made these muffins one night last week when it seemed that fall had happened overnight. Do you know the sort of change I mean? Suddenly it’s dark before seven at night and venturing out early in the morning requires a fleece jacket. Naturally, I find myself making things like pumpkin cornbread.

Read more »