i'd rather be baking

My sister and I have a Starbucks habit. I was going to call it a tradition, but habit is definitely more accurate. You might even call it a bad one. We really like it there. It’s fair to say you’ll rarely find us together without a sugary-sweet coffee drink or two.

And on the (admittedly fairly frequent) occasions in which we can justify it, we buy a hunk of their delicious banana chocolate coffee cake. Sometimes two. In fact, said cake has been known to serve as birthday breakfast. She’s even been known to flirt with unsuspecting baristas over it. And hey, it worked one time.

When I made this version last week, I called Ryan almost immediately to tell him that I was bringing it to his office. I was legitimately afraid I’d eat the entire thing. And that weekend when we stopped in at a Starbucks for a midday perk, I again bought a slice just to confirm what I’d instantly suspected: this is so much better.

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I had every intention of posting this delightful little number nearly a week ago, when it would’ve been some use to you for last weekend’s festivities. Then the chaos that is Valentine’s week in a bakery happened, and well, I sort of forgot about everything else.

Nonetheless, these are every bit as delicious as their name suggests. I’ve had them earmarked in December’s Cooking Light since, well, December, and when I finally got around to making them I was not disappointed. And they provided the excuse to buy Nutella, which every other food blogger on earth seems to love, and which I now love  as well.

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February is my favorite month of the year, mostly because it’s home to both Valentine’s Day and my birthday in short succession, but partly because it seems to be one big excuse to eat chocolate. I mean really; chocolate is everywhere you look!

As the first of these holidays (and probably the only one you’re celebrating) draws near, you just might need a little something for your valentine. Or maybe your best friend, sister, bitter girlfriend, or office grouch. It doesn’t really matter.

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The other day I met Ryan downtown for lunch. He walked out of his office holding a small handful of pistachios, his new favorite snack. “Try one,” he said.

So naturally, I did, and pistachios and I are now very tight. Or rather, I fear that soon my jeans will be getting a bit tight, because I can’t stop munching on them. I’m not sure why I didn’t discover these delicious little bundles of salty goodness sooner, but it’s safe to say we’re friends for life. We quickly decided that pistachio-laced cookies were needed, and landed here.

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Sometimes, one just needs to make brownies.

A very good example of such a time is when one has just moved 1,500 miles away from home, to a cold, strange city. And perhaps the snow one was hoping for when moving from the south has certainly not materialized, but a long string of cold, cloudy, smoggy days have taken its place. I’m just saying, sometimes a girl needs brownies.

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