i'd rather be baking

I don’t make a lot of cakes at home. I’m kind of up to my ears in cake at work and really, it’s just not my thing. But this, my friends, is the only exception. This is my favorite cake of all. It’s not pretty or fancy, but it’s by far my favorite.

I’ve been baking this cake since high school and it’s become a favorite dessert among my family and friends. At our wedding rehearsal dinner, our best man talked about this cake during his toast. It’s that good.

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These muffins have been one of my favorite things to bake since college. My whole-wheat-loving Oregonian roommate (with whom I share many a chai-loving, vegetarian sensibility, despite my Southern roots) and I pretty much ate these things like it was our job. And if you know of any such jobs out there, please do let me know. It’s safe to say we’ll both drop our current career paths and get right on that.

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Caramel and apples are two of my most favorite things, and I don’t really know why I haven’t made them into cookies sooner. I’ll admit, I love these flavors more than most things in the world, and I’ll happily use the impending chill of autumn as an excuse to enjoy them.

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One thing I’m loving about Utah is the abundance of cheap, beautiful produce. Recently this has meant apples (especially my favorite, Granny Smiths!) at prices I haven’t seen since last October. I’m not sure what the cause of this bounty is, but I’m not complaining.

I know what you must be thinking: it’s March, nearly April. Who cares about apples right now? And don’t we all have bathing suits to fit into soon, anyhow? Let me tell you: you need this bread.

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Last week I got an email from Williams-Sonoma. This email may as well have been addressed to me personally, because it detailed a package of four little pastry cutters, in the shapes of three leaves and one little acorn. I swooned, and drove straight to the mall after work.

It helps that we still have a couple of gift cards left over from our wedding, but who am I kidding? I would have bought them anyway. And it’s a darn good thing, too, because I just don’t make a whole lot of pastry. I don’t know why; probably because I just don’t have the patience for it. But that needs to change, and these little babies are just the motivation I need.

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